Ushkonyr, Ile Alatau ridge. Almaty oblast.

The sunny day. Not all of my waiting from the trip to Ushkonyr gorge measured up. I wanted to watch the Rock Bunting and the soaring birds of prey. But the raptors were a bit and they were soaring very high. We saw one Lammergeyer, one Long-legged Buzzard and one Black Kite. Birds were a bit but the resting people were a lot. The majority of birds we saw in very short time, so short that we couldn't identify them. So I can only presumably tell that we noted Black-throated Thrush. The Chiffchaffs were identified mostly by the sounds, the quickly flying by Grey-headed Goldfinches were identified by the calls too. But we also noted both Goldfinches and Chiffchaffs perching on trees. Other noted birds: Stonechats (2 males), Hoopoes, Pied Wheatears (2 females), Jackdaws, Magpies, Chukar Partridges, one flew by Raven. Twice we saw singing Rock Buntings. Some time we watched the pair of Grey Wagtails which presumably were building the nest.

1. Pied Wheatear (Oenanthe pleschanka)

2. Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea melanope)

3. Rock Bunting (Emberiza cia par)