Mushrif Palace Gardens

24°27'04''N + 054°22'39''E

Mushrif Palace Garden is a well-watched site in central Abu Dhabi with irrigated parkland and trees.

It is called Mushref Palace Gardens on page 23 in the Shell Birdwatching Guide.

Access:

Coming into the city along Airport Road, turn left down 15th Street (Mohammed Bin Khalifa Street). Go straight across the first roundabout and immediately after the speedbumps, 350 meters ahead, make a U-turn and then drive off the road and park in the car-parking area on the right.

Birding:

Be very circumspect with your binoculars here, and DO NOT use a telescope or camera. If you ignore this advice, you will at best loose valuable time trying to explain (in your best Arabic) that you were not taking pictures of women, or at worst loose all your equipment and spend some time at the police headquarters. Security in Abu Dhabi city is taken extremely seriously.

Walk under and around the trees and across the grass by the helipad, crossing the guarded side entrance driveways to and from the Palace into mature plantation. This area is called the Front Wood and holds a variety of migrants. Resident birds include Red-whiskered Bulbul and Eastern Olivaceous Warbler.

Wintering and migrant birds often include Citrine Wagtail, various Yellow Wagtail races, Red-throated Pipit, Tree Pipit, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Isabelline Shrikes, Desert Whitethroat, Menetries's Warbler, Upcher's Warbler and Chiffchaff. Masked Shrike is often found in winter.

Walk through the wooded area, pass a plant nursery and check out the Back Wood. Good for wintering and migrating passerines, but since the summer of 2007 extensive cutting of trees is taking place.

UAE rarities have included:

Black-winged Kite (11.-31.10.2001)

Corncrake (02.11.2004 - 5 meters up in a tree!)

Little Crake (13.-15.09.2003)

Eurasian Woodcock (26.11.2001 & 08.02.2004 & 13.-14.02.2006)

Common Wood Pigeon (02.-11.04.2000)

Forest Wagtail (1-3 birds wintering most years)

Olive-backed Pipit (23.12.1999 - 05.01.2000 & 15.04.2003)

Ring Ouzel (02.-05.01.2003)

Black-throated Thrush (22.02.2005)

Eurasian River Warbler (26.05.2000 & 09.10.2003 & 08.05.2005)

Blyth's Reed Warbler (16.05.2002 & 07.05.2003 & 29.10.-02.11.2004)

Hume's Leaf Warbler (03.01.-06.03.2002 & 17.-18.05.2003)

Green Warbler (21.10.-03.11.2005)

Hume's Whitethroat

European Robin (11.12.2005 - 21.04.2006)

Eurasian Siskin (06.02.2002 & 25.12.2004 & 10.01.2005)

Little Bustard (17.12.1996) might be of escaped origin