Fiche de renseignements - Go-South

close to the sea, 50 km south of Tantan, where we saw a pair of Barbary Falcons and at
least 7 Common Scoters.
Sandy Plains, 06.04.2010 White-crowned Black Wheatear, Sandy
Plains, 06.04.2010
In Akfenir we attempted to secure a permit for Khnifiss lagoon without success as the office
was closed. To reach the office, go past the fuel station on the left and turn right before
passing the police station. After about 70 metres there is a big sign for the office on the left.
Another opportunity to obtain the permit is to sleep at the hotel La Courbine d’Argent, where
the owner can arrange permits. However, we went to the lagoon without a permit and after a
brief discussion with the warden we were allowed to stay for one hour. Despite a fairly strong
wind we were able to pick out our target bird, Kelp (Cape) Gull, quickly. At least 7 adults of
this much sought after species, which recently started to breed here, were present. Without a
boat trip, which is sometimes offered in the area, the large lagoon is difficult to cover. For this
reason we were only able to search a small part before we continued to Tarfaya.
Tarfaya has a strategic position for seawatching. We went straight to the harbour and sat
there for about 2 hours. This produced several Cory’s Shearwaters, Gannets, a Great Skua
and an unidentified Dolphin. We were joined by the police but they were very friendly and
smiled after looking through our scopes. When we left the harbour we were stopped by an
official and had to wait for about 20 min until he had taken down all our details. At this point it
is worth mentioning that we counted a grand total of 12 police checkpoints on our way to
Dakhla, starting north of Guelmin. As suggested in other trip reports we used the attached
Fiche, which we had completed in advance, and we claimed to be “biologists”. This proved a
good choice because most checkpoints were passed with relative ease after showing
passports and passing on the form. On our return journey north controls went much faster.
In Tarfaya we stayed at the Casa Mar, a nice hotel situated close to the entrance of the
harbour. When driving into Tarfaya from the north, continue straight towards the harbour
instead of turning left towards Laayoune. The hotel Casa Mar is on the right just before the
entery to the harbour. We paid 700 MD for dinner, bed & breakfast for all of us.
07.04. Tarfaya - Dakhla
We wanted to reach Dakhla and do some birding in the famous Dakhla Bay. For this reason
we had to move on quickly and only stopped a couple of times. A toilet break south of
Tarfaya produced a fly-by Crowned Sandgrouse. The first proper stop was made about 40
km north of Laayoune. A lake on the left of the road held some waterbirds and a pair of
Thick-billed Larks. In Laayoune we added an adult female Rock Thrush and Marbled Duck
to our list. A brief stop at the river passing through Laayoune can be rewarding. A rubbish
dump 204 km north of Dakhla produced one pair each of Hoopoe Lark, Brown-necked
Raven and Red-rumped Wheatear.
At the first camping site in Dakhla Bay we searched unsuccessfully for African Royal Tern in
the early afternoon and evening. A more rewarding stop was at the southernmost point of the
bay (around the bridge to the harbour) where we had at least 12 European Storm Petrels
as well as 100+ Audouin’s Gulls.
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