The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Jordan is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia with a population of around 11.3 million people. It sits strategically at the crossroads of the continents of Asia, Africa and Europe in the Levant area of the Fertile Crescent, a cradle of civilization. Covering just under 90,000 k2 (35,000 square miles), it is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian West Bank to the west. It is around 400 kilometres (250 miles) long between its northernmost and southernmost points; Umm Qais and Aqaba respectively. The Jordan River, flowing into the Dead Sea, is located along the country’s western border. Jordan has a small coastline along the Red Sea in its southwest, separated by the Gulf of Aqaba from Egypt.

Amman is Jordan’s capital and largest city with around 2.25 million inhabitants, making it the most populous city in the Levant. Major cities are overwhelmingly located on the north-western part of the kingdom due to its fertile soils and relatively abundant rainfall. These include Irbid, Jerash and Zarqa in the northwest, Amman and As-Salt in the central west, and Madaba, Al-Karak and Aqaba in the southwest. The east is an arid plateau irrigated by oases and seasonal water streams. Major towns in the eastern part of the country are the oasis towns of Azraq and Ruwaished. In the west, a highland area of arable land and Mediterranean evergreen forestry drops suddenly into the Jordan Rift Valley. The rift valley contains the Jordan River and the Dead Sea, which separates Jordan from Israel.

Jordan has a 26 kilometre (16 mile) shoreline on the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea, but is otherwise landlocked. The Yarmuk River, an eastern tributary of the Jordan, forms part of the boundary between Jordan and Syria (including the occupied Golan Heights) to the north. The other boundaries are formed by several international and local agreements and do not follow well-defined natural features. The highest point is Jabal Umm al Dami, at 6,083 feet above sea level, while the lowest is the Dead Sea at −1,378 feet, the lowest land point on Earth.

Jordan has a diverse range of habitats, ecosystems and biota due to its varied landscapes and environments. The Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature was set up in 1966 to protect and manage Jordan’s natural resources. Nature reserves in Jordan include the Dana Biosphere Reserve, the Azraq Wetland Reserve, the Shaumari Wildlife Reserve and the Mujib Nature Reserve.

The climate in Jordan varies greatly. Generally, the further inland from the Mediterranean, there are greater contrasts in temperature and less rainfall. The highlands above the Jordan Valley, mountains of the Dead Sea and Wadi Araba and as far south as Ras Al-Naqab are dominated by a Mediterranean climate, while the eastern and northeastern areas of the country are arid desert. Although the desert parts of the kingdom reach high temperatures, the heat is usually moderated by low humidity and a daytime breeze, while the nights are cool. Summers, lasting from May to September, are hot and dry, with temperatures averaging around 32 °C and sometimes exceeding 40 °C between July and August. The winter, lasting from November to March, is relatively cool, with temperatures averaging around 11 °C Winter also sees frequent showers and occasional snowfall in some western elevated areas.

Ajloun – ©Smart Viral CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Many of the flowering plants bloom in the spring after the winter rains and the type of vegetation depends largely on the levels of precipitation. The mountainous regions in the northwest are clothed in forests, while further south and east the vegetation becomes more scrubby and transitions to steppe-type vegetation. Forests cover less than 2% of Jordan, making Jordan among the world’s least forested countries, the international average being 15%. Four terrestrial ecoregions lie with Jordan’s borders: Syrian xeric grasslands and shrublands, Eastern Mediterranean conifer-sclerophyllous-broadleaf forests, Mesopotamian shrub desert, and Red Sea Nubo-Sindian tropical desert and semi-desert.

Birding Jordan

With much attention focused on neighbouring Israel, information for birders about Jordan has been sadly lacking. The publication of Ian Andrew’s excellent book in 1995 The Birds of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and his Birding in Jordan website helped put Jordan on the birding map. Ian worked in Jordan for a number of years and collected together records from the small number of birdwatchers and tour companies who had previously visited this fabulous and under-watched country.

Ornithologically, the main difference between birding in Jordan and in Israel, is that you have to find the birds yourself. In contrast with Aqaba (Jordan’s main Red Sea port); very few birds must pass unseen in Eilat (especially during peak migration seasons). With less than a mile between them, the same birds must occur. Any birder in Jordan therefore has a greater chance of ornithological glory! The few Jordanian birdwatchers can often expect to discover new birds for their country or at least major rarities.

The difference in the level of coverage is reflected in the bird lists of these countries – over 500 recorded for Israel but less than 450 for Jordan, although, of course, Israel has a relatively long Mediterranean coast too. Another tempting feature for would-be visitors is the habitat. Eilat regulars are often dismayed by the continued development in the resort, whereas the habitat in Aqaba is fantastic with irrigated allotments running for about one kilometre along the coast and an increasingly famous sewage works (not least because it can almost be viewed from Eilat – but not quite!)

Ornithological understanding has increased substantially since the first of many expeditions took place to establish baseline criteria for Jordan’s wildlife organised by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature in Jordan. These were the first expeditions since Guy Mountford et al visited the country in the 1960s. Much of these baseline data were collected by Jordanian/European survey teams including many bird specific surveys.

Although there are plenty of new places to explore in Jordan, there are a number of sites definitely on the birding trail. The country’s position at the top of the rift valley means that migrant birds can be found almost anywhere at the right time of year.

Starting in Amman, most birding itineraries explore the country in two stages. Firstly, heading from the city into the eastern desert, one can expect to start seeing typical desert species but there are several specific sites well worth exploring. The first important stop is Wadi Al Butm – a tree lined wadi worth checking for migrants. Among the more common migrant species, birds such as White-throated Robin and Striated Scops Owl have been reported.

Azraq Wetland Reserve  – ©Ldud CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The next stop is Azraq. Now a shadow of its former glories due to water extraction, this desert oasis has enjoyed substantial habitat restoration in the last few years and is now a must for passing birders. With a visitor centre, boardwalk through the reeds and hides, visitors can view the pools easily and can expect to find a good range of wetland birds and passage migrants. The lack of cover in the surrounding stony desert means Azraq pulls in the birds and is responsible for some excellent records in recent years. Highlights have included Ménétries’s Warbler, Egyptian Nightjar and Red-wattled Lapwing. When flooded, the low-lying desert (Qa) to the east of the reserve can hold massive numbers of waterfowl and waders.

Eleven kilometres from Azraq is another RSCN reserve – Shaumari. This is another site able to pull in migrant birds since it again offers substantial cover (scrub and woodland) amid the surrounded desert. The road leading to this oasis allows birders good access to the desert too with Larks and Cream-coloured Coursers regularly seen.

Mujib Nature Reserve  – ©hikinginjordan CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Heading further east, the road passes through the town of As Safawi. From here eastwards, you enter the basalt boulder desert. About 9k east of the town, among the more typical larks and wheatears it is worth looking out for the so-called Basalt Wheatear probably a dark form of Mourning Wheatear. The dark morph Desert Lark (subspecies annae) can also be found here. The boulder desert means this area is hard to explore and too far from the road without a four-wheel drive. However, finding these birds near to the road isn’t usually too much trouble. The desert near As Safawi also contains Ammoperdix partridge that could be an undescribed race of See-see rather than the Sand Partridge – but more research is needed.

After exploring the eastern desert, birders usually venture south of the capital into the Jordan Valley. The first stop is usually the Dead Sea where one can find, hardly surprisingly, nesting Dead Sea Sparrows. However, the whole valley area down to As Safi near the southern tip of the Dead Sea is irrigated and provides extensive unexplored habitat. Heading further south, the wadis extending down from the rift margin can be explored using the roads near Fidan. Until recently, access along this road required military permission. Now things are much more straightforward to the east of the road. Caution should be taken around military camps and to the west of the road (the border side). You may be questioned if you wander too close to camps but usually out of curiosity. Best to ask first. This area provides the bird with the usually desert species: Temminck’s, Horned, Hoopoe and Desert Larks. Dunn’s Larks have also been found here.

Heading down to the port of Aqaba, you’re in migrant heaven! At the right times of year, you can expect Collared Flycatchers to be perching on postcard stands, Thrush Nightingales contact calling from under parked cars and explosions of Levant’s Sparrowhawks from bushes and trees as you pass them. No different to Eilat in this respect, but in Aqaba, you will probably be the birder finding these birds. As previously mentioned, the coastal strip is a series of irrigated allotments full of warblers, chats and pipits. Aqaba also has a fantastic sewage works! A sewage works at the top of the Red Sea has to be worth a visit! It is true to say that many of Jordan’s rarest sightings come from this site. Birds are welcome but its situation close to the border makes this a sensitive military area. One has to seek permission to gain access but it is well worth the hassle. Highlights may include Painted Snipe, Cotton Teal, Pink-backed Pelican, Grey-headed Gull and Pacific Golden Plover.

Wadi Rum – ©Daniel Case CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

North of Aqaba is Wadi Rum. This is a spectacular area of vast sandstone mesas up to 800m tall. This site has great ornithological significance in Western Palaearctic terms being the only reliable breeding site for Verreaux’s Eagle. Recent birdwatching records suggest that there may be another pair or two in Jordan but your best bet to see this magnificent eagle is to scan the cliffs behind Wadi Rum resthouse. In recent years, seeing a Verreaux’s Eagle has been less than certain, but the hope is that this species maintains it status in Jordan.

Moving further north on the Kings Highway which runs along the rift valley margins, one can visit The RSCN reserve at Dana. This site offers the visitor some of the most spectacular views in the country, looking out over Wadi Araba. Wadi Dana itself leads down into Fidan mentioned earlier but here, at an altitude of 1500m, the habitat is very different. The Barra forest is made up of oak and juniper and holds species such as Tristram’s Serin, Cretzschmar’s Bunting and Sinai Rosefinch. The rocky wadis contain Hume’s, Eagle and Scops Owl. The campsite at Dana is also an excellent place to watch raptor migration. Two Verreaux’s Eagles have been seen here annually since 1999 and with earlier sightings of both adult and juvenile birds, one would think that this area could well hold another pair. It is a wonderful place to stay and most birders spend at least a night here. This is why there are so many excellent bird records from the site like Crested Honey Buzzard and Black Bushchat.

There are many other sites not mentioned here as this is a small sample of some of the key areas. Jordan is one of the most welcoming and safe countries in the Middle East and also very easy to explore. There are several RSCN reserves encompassing a wide range of habitats. Information about visiting and travelling in Jordan can be found in the websites mentioned below. Whilst in Jordan, it is worth putting aside time to visit some cultural sites. Even the most bird focussed visitor would be hard pressed not to find Petra and Jerash breath-taking. Of course, these sites are not without their birding attractions too!