Birding in Cyprus

I was in Cyprus for 2 weeks, for family vacations, and only spend a morning out with my friend Stavros Christodoulides, an avid cypriot birder. Under 35 degrees celcius, we managed to get some very nice species, including two lifers of mine. First was the Great Spotted Cuckoo (not very easy in July in Cyprus) in Lake , a juvenile that was taken care by his Magpie mom and soon was about to leave. The other bird, that I have missed several times before, was a Great Sand Plover, at Agia Thekla. O the ohter hand, we missed a very rare bird in Europe, an Oriental Turtle Dove that was seen during the last week in the area.
Other highlights of my trip were numerous Spur-winged Plovers around Paralimni Lake (first for me this year), a lot of Rollers (also first sightings of the year for me) on our way to Achna Lake, and a Night Heron at Paralimni Lake.
Overall, during my stay I saw:
Little Grebe, Little Egret, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Greenshank, Green Sandpiper, Little Ringed Plover, Great Sand Plover, Spur-winged Plover, Coot, Kestrel, Barn Swallow, Red-rumped Swallow, House Martin, Common Swift, Pallid Swift, Crested Lark, Roller, Great Spotted Cuckoo, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, Turtle Dove, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Hooded Crow, House Sparrow, Magpie, Corn Bunting

Evrotas Delta, Lakonia

A week ago I went again to the Evrotas Delta in Lakonia, which is a very interesting place for birding. In one of the villages nearby I saw a Tawny Owl very early in the morning, while at the coastal wetlands (or what is left of them) there were among others Ferruginous Duck, Purple Herons, Night Herons, Squacco Herons, Spanish Sparrows, Sedge Warblers, Reed Warblers, and many Zitting Cisitcola. When walking towards a group of high Oak Trees - being still more than a hundred meters away from them - a Common Buzzard that nested there must have gotten a little offended by my presence - see photos.

Sardinian Warbler

Common Buzzard

Night Herons

Purple Heron

Mt Pateras

One has to go over rocks and through man-high vegetation in order to reach the top of Mt Pateras, but the excursion was well worth it. Together with Pavlos Andriopoulos we saw among others Chukar, Rufous-tailed Rock-trush, Northern Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Subalpine Warbler, Wood Lark, and Cretzschmar's Bunting.

Subalpine Warbler

Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush

European Wildlife Photo Contest - LAKE KERKINI

Novabest nature-travel magazine and Erodios Hotel organize a european photo contest about wildlife around Lake Kerkini. You can check details of the contest at http://www.hotel-erodios.com/ Your photos should be send an email to novabest@otenet.gr
Apart from the great first prizes, the pics of the contest will travel around various cities of Northern Greece for a few weeks.
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF PHOTOS: JULY 30th

You can participate with pics of the area and its wildlife, no matter the date which they were taken. So look up your files and search for the best ones!!!

Excursion to Mt Parnassos

Sunday we went with Pavlos Andriopoulos to the Mt Parnassos area, which proved to be a very interesting and varied place for birding. 

All in all we saw 45 different species, among which figured the Short-toed Eagle, Kestrel, Black Woodpecker, Rufous-tailed Rock-trush, Northern Wheatear, Tawny Pipit, Wood Lark, Sombre Tit, Red-backed Shrike, Woodchat Shrike, Cirl Bunting, Rock Bunting, Ortolan Bunting, and Alpine Cough.

Wood Lark

Ortolan Bunting

Kestrel

Red-backed Shrike

Cirl Bunting

Black Woodpecker

Small wetlands around Athens

Black-headed Bunting (older pic from Northern Greece)

A short morning tour around a few small wetlands of Attica, revealed some interesting species.

Spata: Sparrowhawk, Hooppoe, Black-headed Bunting, Little Owl
Loutsa lagoon: Curlew Sandpiper, Black-winged Stilt, Squacco Heron
Rafina's Stream: Curlew Sandpiper, Little ringed Plover, Little Bittern

New visitors @ Schinias

After Spyros had told me that some fellow birdwatchers had seen a Sacred Ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus) in Schinias, I went to see myself this morning: It's actually a pair, and they were not too shy, so I could take a few photos. Most probably they belong to a population that had been introduced in southern Europe in the 1970's.

Sacred Ibis

Here are some more photos from today, of visitors and residents from Schinias and Mt Pendelli:

Cretzschmar's Bunting

Squacco Heron

Little Owl

Spring Oriole

The Golden Oriole, is a very hard to photograph bird, especially during its migration. Fortunately, I got really lucky in Sounio area, where this shot comes from.

Various Spring Visitor

Slender-billed Gull


Gull-billed Terns


Rueppell's Warbler


Bee-eaters


Red-footed Falcons


Little Tern


White Stork


Eleonorae's Falcon


Cretzschmar's Bunting

This year's photo bird race gave us the opportunity to get our camera and take picture of practically everything that moved! Here are some of the pics.

Birds & humans

Chukar overlooking Athens (by Sue Walsh)


Chukar overlooking Pireaus Port (by Sue Walsh)

Cretzchmar's Bunting, Rueppell's Warber and Subalpine Warbler @ Pendeli Mt

An often overlooked mountain among greek birders, Pendeli Mt can provide some interesting species. Especially near Agios Petros, yesterday I saw more than 10 Cretzschmar's Buntings as well as 4 Rueppell's Warblers. Especially the Buntings seems rather curious and come very close to any observer (it happened also last year), which gives opportunity for close up pics. The roads are slighlty over the shrubes, so you can have perfect views of the birds, without disturbing them. A few Subalpine Warblers were seen too, and Chukar was heard


Flying Rueppell's Warbler


Looking for an attractive female to start a new family


Cretzschmar's Bunting on rockroses


Just beside the road

New blog for Lesvos Rarities

The LBRC has been formed at the request of the Hellenic Rarities Committee (HRC) to encourage birders to submit records of nationally rare species seen on Lesvos. During discussions it became apparent that the Committee could have a wider role in recording the birds of Lesvos, something which has been sadly lacking until now.



The role of the Committee will be –
1. to maintain an official list of birds recorded on Lesvos
2. to encourage visiting birders to submit bird records, in particular
a. Greek national rarities to HRC
b. Local Lesvos rarities to LBRC
c. Records of breeding birds on Lesvos

The Committee’s current members are Eleni Galinou (LBRC Secretary - Lesvos/Samos), Steve Dudley (UK), Nikos Probonas (Athens, Greece) and Terry Robinson (Lesvos).

Monk Seal @ Oropos!

Yesterday, Lefteris saw this Mediterranean Monk Seal, after the Nick's Probonas directions. Beautiful and rather rare sighting for Attica!

Spring in Schinias

Hi all!

This is my first post on this blog, although Spyros had kindly posted some of my photos before.
Saturday the photo-birdrace started, so I went to Schinias in the morning... where I met Pavlos A. who was already buisy taking photos of waders there. We decided to spend the day together and had a lot of fun photographing birds in all kinds of weather conditions until late afternoon.

Highlights were:
Glossy Ibis (lots of them), Purple Heron, Bittern, Short-toed Eagle, Spotted Redshank, Green Redshank, Sand Martin, and Ferruginous Duck.

Some impressions here: 

(The buzzard with prey was above my house, in the middle of Piraeus.)

Marsh Harrier in action

Drama over Piraeus

4th Bird Race

A ringed Glossy Ibis @ Schinias, by Felix Rehsteiner


Subapline Warbler @ Imittos Mt, by Felix Rehsteiner


Wild Orchid watching @ Schinias, by Felix Rehsteiner


Sun rise at Schinias National Park, by Felix Rehsteiner


Blue Rock Thrush @ Schinias National Park, by Felix Rehsteiner


Flock of Glossy Ibis @ Schinias, by Felix Rehsteiner

The 4th Bird Race is over! Our team managed to get 97 species, from 6:30 am to 6pm, until we got arrested by secret police (Greece's CIA) because we were birdwatching in front of an important national secrets agency base! So we could not be at the final point of the race on time!

Overall, the race was a lot of fun. Only in Schinias National Park we saw 74 species (new record, since last year we saw 65 species in that location).
Highlights:
Little Owl: 3 @ Schinias
Glossy Ibis: 17 @ Schinias
Ferruginous Ducks: 10 @ Schinias
Moustached Warbler: 1 @ Schinias
Red-crested Pochard: 1 @ Schinias
Woodchat Shrike: 1 @ Schinias
Cory's Shearwater: 1 @ Rafina's Port
Long-legged Buzzard: 1 @ Imittos Mt
Sombre Tit: 1 @ Imittos Mt
Short-toed Lark: small flock of less than 10 individuals @ Oropos Estuary

Περιοχή Παπάγου- Αθήνα

New arrivals

Some new arrivals at Imittos Mt, Athens.
On Sunday March 22nd, I observed the first Cretzschmar's Bunting, Lesser Whitethroat, Rueppell's Warbler, Subalpine Warbler, Willow Warbler, Hoopoe for 2009. Other highlights were Peregrine Falcon, Long-legged Buzzard, and the regulars Rock Nuthatch, Blue Rock Thrush, Chukar, Serin, Cirl Bunting
Pics soon to be posted

4th Athens Bird Race, Saturday April 4th 2009

This years Athens Bird Race will be held on Saturday April 4th. It might be a bit early, but still there will lots of incoming migrants. The whole event will take place exclusively in the Prefecture of Attiki. Participations are open for anybody who wants to enjoy this unique birding experience.
More detailed information to be posted soon...

Teams from other countries are also welcome!

For details about the specific rules of the event, please contact Nick Probonas.

PS: Somebody should finally beat the 3 times consecutive winners!!!

Watch 2008 Bird Race Pics and 2008 Bird Race bird list

Schinias twitch

Common Buzzard soaring over the marshes


Forbidden pic: Corn Buntings in the Navy Base!


Whooper Swans


Great Grey Shrike (or Southern Grey Shrike?)

I managed to visit the wetland yesterday, so I could see the Great Grey Shrike and the 3 Whooper Swans. I was there during the afternoon, so birds seemed to have calmed down and did not care too much about my presence.

Bird list: Little Grebe, Whooper Swan, Mute Swan, Grey Heron, Coot, Mallard, Snipe, Green Sandpiper, Buzzard, Kestrel, Hen Harrier, Marsh Harrier, Yellow-legged Gull, Black-headed Gull, Meadow Pipit, Water Pipit, Crested Lark, White White Wagtail, Collared Dove, Magpie, Hooded Crow, Cetti's Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush, Starling, Great Grey Shrike, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Corn Bunting, Reed Bunting, Cirl Bunting

Nice winter pics from Moschow

Fieldfare (Photo by Michael Mescheryakov)


Waxwing (Photo by Michael Mescheryakov)

We do gt these species in Greece (Fieldfare is a lot more common), but not very often. These pics are from a local park in Moscow, in the middle of Russian winter.

Turdus pilaris

Αν και κατάλαβα ότι είχα δει τσίχλα , δεν είχα αντιληφθεί πως ήταν κεδρότσιχλα.
Θα την περίμενα στα βουνά και όχι σε κοπαδάκι των 10 -15 ατόμων στον κάμπο δίπλα στον Αλιάκμονα.

Weekend at Western Greece 23-25 January 2009

The greek twitch: Searching for the raritee at Mesolongi Lagoons, Jan 24th 2009 (Spyros, Nikos, Akis, Gerasimos, Jannet, Felix)


Spanish Sparrows @ Aitoloko Lagoon (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)


Spoonbill @ Louros (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)


Black Stork @ Louros (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)

We had a great time birding in Eastern Greece, including Mesolongi and Etoliko Lagoons, Kleisoura Gorge, Aigio Saltpans, Strofylia Lagoons, Araxos Lagoon. We (Spyros, Nikos, Jannet from Canada and Felix from Switzerland) observed a total of 85 species was more or less satisfactory, since the weather was bad, with rain and wind, especially on the second day. We also met other greek birders in the field (Nikos, Gerasimos, Akis in Mesolongi, Kostas & his team at Araxos), since this was one of the Midwinter Counting weekends
Highlights were a Hoopoe (out of the season), 2 Ospreys, Dalmatian Pelicans, Spoonbills, Great Spotted Eagle, Slender-billed Gull, Spanish Sparrow, Crag Martins, Rock Nuthatch


Slender-billed Gull @ Mesolongi Lagoons (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)


Cirl Bunting (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)


Common Buzzard (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)


Common Sandpiper (Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)

Schinias & Rafina in winter

Little Egret @ Rafina's Port (Photo by Michael Mescheryakov)


Mute Swans @ Schinias (Photo by Michael Mescheryakov)


Spotted Eagle @ Schinias ((Photo by Felix Rehsteiner)

Spotted Eagle & Great Grey Shrike Schinias National Park

The first visit for 2009 at Schinias National Park, with Michael Mescheryakov, a young birdwatcher from Russia, had a spectacular view of the Spotted Eagle. On the other hand, very few of the expected waterfowl (6 Mallards & 7 Mute Swans). Another fellow birder from Switcherland, Felix Rehsteiner, saw the Great Grey Shrike (or Southern Grey Shrike?)today, and send me the following pic. As far as my records are correct, this should be the first record of the species at Schinias National Park, making the area's list up to 223!

The complete bird list of the day:
Schinias National Park: Cormorant (3), Mallard, Mute Swan, Buzzard, Marsh Harrier, Kestrel, Spotted Eagle, Yellow-legged Gull, Blackbird, Stonechat, Magpie, Rock Dove, Collared Dove, Hooded Crow, Sardinian Warbler, Cetti's Warbler, House Sparrow, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Reed Bunting, Corn Bunting
Rafina's Port: Little Egret, Kingfisher, Black-headed Gull, Meadow Pipit, Grey Wagtail, White Wagtail,
Pictures of the Spotted Eagle soon to be posted

Great Grey Shrike (L. excubitor) or Southern Grey Shrike (L.meridionalis)
(photo by Felix Rehsteiner)

Sparrowhawk around my balcony

Since last year, I have seen Sparrowhawk 3 times flying over my balcony. This time, i managed to grab the camera and take a fast shot! The garden bird list of 2008 reached 40 species

Winter at Schinias

Although has come into the marshes, no waders have arrived yet to the wetland. Today's observations were nattowed down to only a few species, with the seasons' highlight a juvenile Red-backed Shrike

Observations of 20th Dec 2008: Cormorant, Little Grebe, Coot, Moorhen, Water Rail, Marsh Harrier (2), Common Buzard (2), Kestrel (1), Sparrowhawk (1), Redshank, Blackbird, Stonechat, Black Redstart, White Wagtail, Water Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Hooded Crow, Magpie, House Sparrow, Cetti's Warbler, Chiffachaff, Sardinian Warbler, Blackcap, Corn Bunting (100+), Goldfinch, Chaffinch

Upcoming events

BIRDING WEEKEND AT MESOLONGI – ETOLIKO LAGOONS
Jan 31rst – Feb 1rst, by Greece BirdTours

In the heart of winter, Mesolongi and Etoliko Lagoons provide one of the most important shelters for waterfowl in Europe. These are Ramsar Protected Wetlands of great importance, that promise a unique birdwatching experience, both for novice and expert birdwatchers. See www.greecebirdtours.gr for more details and prices

Dep from Athens: Jan 30^th 16:00, Return to Athens: Feb 1rst, 21:00
Participation: 2 – 7 pers
Prices include accommodation for 2 nights in double rooms, 2 breakfasts and 2 full course meals, transportation, easy-tick bird list, bird guides, available spotting scope

Please contact info@greecebirdtours.gr for further information and reservations

Traditional fishing boat at Mesolongi Lagoons

Garden Bird starting (from Dec 2007) list reaching 40

Two winter arrivals at my garden bird list. A Serin (25 Nov) and a Dunnock (29 Nov), seen from my balcony in the trees around the house. The bird list reached 40 species

Dunnock

Rock Sparrow

Rock Sparrow perching on wire



A view of Corinth Channel, connecting Greece's mainland with Peloponese

A short trip to Korinth Channel, about 45 min from Athens, gives us the chanse to see a hard-to-get species, the Rock Sparrow. The breeding colonies are just beside the road!

New garden arrivals and satelite TV!

Some autumn & winter arrivals in my garden: Spotted Flycatcher (new), Robin (a lot of them, heard all day long), Song Thrush (2), Blackcap, Grey Wagtail, Black Redstart, Starlings (flyover)

All pictures below are taken from my balcony!


Grey Wagtail on roof


Grey Wagtail on wall


Magpie



Black Redstart on cheminee

Buildings and TV antennae privide good stands for birds. Especially this satelite plate is on of the neighbourhood's favorite, as many birds like to perch. Probably because it is the tallest spot around. Even Blue Rock Thrush like it...


Black Redstart

Garden list No 38: Spotted Flycatcher

TV antennae provide good stands for bird such as Spotted Flycatchers!



Another first sighting for my garden list, a curious Spotted Flycatcher landed on the antenna of the house beside us. Fortunately I had the time to crab the camera and give it a shot.

Pelecanus crispus

Larus michahelis

Garden list No 36 & 37: Wood Warblers and Blue Rock Thrush!

Since October 2007, when we moved into our new house, I have counted 37 species of birds (I even count the escapes, such as the Peached-faced Lovebird)

The most recent visitors where 4 Willow Warblers hoping from branch to branch and enjoying a nice autumn afternoon of 25th September.

Yesterday, I saw a Blue Rock Thrush flying around the roofs of the houses around. He seemed pretty interested in satelite antennae's, probably like Animal Planet channel !

Autumn @ Schinias National Park

After rainy days there is always a lot of species to see at Schinias National Park. The highlights of the day were the 2 flighting White Storks, a flock of Terns flying over the Rowing Center (with White-winged Terns and Black Terns), a perching Turtle Dove, a beautiful Short-toed Eagle and a motinoless Blue Rock Thrush at the roof of an old building.


Short-toed Eagle


Black-winged Tern


White-winged Tern


Spotted Flycatcher

Full sightings list: Little Grebe, White Stork, Short-toed Eagle, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Water Rail, Coot, Turtle Dove, Collared Dove, Common Swift, Crested Lark, Barn Swallow, House Martin, Red-rumped Swallow, Blue Rock Thrush, Whinchat, Black-eared Wheatear, Northern Wheatear, Spotted Flycatcher, Cetti's Warbler, Willow Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Great Tit, Magpie, Hooded Crow, House Sparrow

Pectoral Sandpiper @ Axios river, N. Greece

A Pectoral Sanpiper (Calidris melanotos), an american vagrant
from Blog: http://greeknature.blogspot.com/

The autumn migration is in progress and it was a matter of time until the first rarity appears in the nearby wetlands of Axios. So last evening, Odysseas informed as that he found one Pectoral sandpiper in a small pond. This bird is considered to be an American species that for some reason was found here. The same species have been spotted here by Odysseas the same time of year last year. After 15 days without going for photos this morning we were out in the field. We were moving slowly while we were checking every single wader. After a while another birdwatcher informed us that the bird was a little bit further. Indeed we found it and we filled up our CF cards. Satisfied we took our way back!

The importance of such sightings and their offer to the bird migration science is something to be doubted. They can be part of the statistical error but they can also indicate new trends in the spreading of the populations. For sure they give great satisfaction as a birdwatcher and as a photographer!

http://nagr.blogspot.com/
http://kostaselenisbirds.blogspot.com/
http://imathiabirds.blogspot.com/

Touch & Go

Perhaps the most keen fliers in the avi world, the Common Swifts perform all their everyday routine activities on air. That includes, of course, drinking. Watching them taking a small refreshment from this small stream in coastal Athens gave the opportunity for this cute photo..

Red-rumped Visitor

Red-rumped Swallows are the least common summer visitors in major cities and towns of Greece, especially in the south. They generally avoid crowded areas being mostly fond of villages in wooded slopes. It seems, however, that they have started to populate more untypical habitats for them, in this case the coastal town of Rafina. Nests can be found in buildings and the birds are quite tame, giving me the chance to take some great photos! Special thanks to Spyros for giving me directions on how to find them.

Rarely Common or Abundantly Rare?

House Sparrow is the most common bird seen near human settlements. On the other hand, the Rufous Bush Chat is a very rare sight generally. Having both birds in the same frame is something that will rarely happen again...These birds were seen in Vravrona wetland, Attica on the 20th of June.

Pipit

Among the pipits of Europe, the Tawny is the most common summer visitor in Greece. It's fairly common in the wetlands of Greece but it's not confined to low altitude areas, as one can see breeding birds in the alpine zones of the highest mountains. Fortunately I didn't have to go that high to take this shot! This bird was seen in Evros Delta along with Yellow Wagtails.

The Bittern and the Snake

It was a warm May morning when, during a photo trip, I saw a Little Bittern standing still in the Asopos river mouth in north Attica. This bird is rarely seen in the open so I tried to get as many photos as possible. Of course I only managed to take a couple as it quickly flew to the safeness of the reeds on the banks of the river. Back in home, I realized why it had remained still in the open. A large grass snake was located very close to the bird! It seems that I spoiled a great meal for that poor heron...

Fortunately, the bird (and the snake) remained in the same area so I left the area to let nature have its own way.

Forest Heron

In Greece Herons are usually seen in coastal wetland areas like lagoons and river deltas. Seeing them inland, especially in areas with no large bodies of water is not common. Therefore I thought that this shot of a juv Grey Heron found in the heart of Dadia Forest in Evros on the 31st of July is worth showing!

Martins in the wind

When the wind blows (and on that day it blew hard) even the best flyers may get grounded. The Sand Martins of the photo were trying to stay on the branches, however the strong winds didn't allow for long stays on the same spot. All these took place in Evros Delta, on July, 30th.

Breeding Shrikes of Greece

Greece offers the opportunity of watching four different nesting Shrike species. There are several areas in Northern Greece where one can see all of them nesting in the same area.

The Woodchat Shrike is the commonest of all. It's the most abundant species, found in the mainland and most of the islands. In southern Greece it's usually the only nesting species in the lowlands.

The Red-backed Shrike is the second most common breeder. Found in higher elevations in the south, in the north it can be also seen in sea level habitats. In autumn migration huge numbers cross the country.

The Lesser Grey Shrike is an uncommon breeder in north and central Greece, with few possible pairs nesting as south as Mt Parnitha in Attica, perhaps even in the Peloponnese. During autumn migration and especially during in August is a quite common migrant in coastal flat areas, usually perching in wires.

The Masked Shrike is the most localized of all. Its main distribution range includes most of Northern Greece, reaching south to Thessaly. It also breeds in a few islands of the Aegean, like Lesvos. Unlike the other Shrikes it can be found in quite dense woodland, but it also occurs in open habitats.

Bird of Prey Heaven

Few places in Greece are so rich in raptors as the Dadia Forest in Evros. Even during the hot summer months one can enjoy bird-of-prey-watching.

The Lesser Spotted Eagle is a scarce summer visitor in Greece. Dadia Forest is one of the best places to see this medium-sized Eagle.

The Egyptian Vulture has become increasingly rare nowadays. Still, Dadia Forest still provides food and shelter for this vulture.

The Black Kite, despite being very common and widespread in many parts of the world, is very rare and local in Greece - especially in the summer -. The hills south of Dadia, and especially the area near Feres town, is the best place to look for them!

An unexpected visitor in my garden

Yesterday I saw this visitor in my garden. It is a Peach faced Lovebird (Agapornis roseiicollis), also known as Rosy-faced Lovebird. It's native range is in southwestern Africa, and more specifically Namibia and Angola.

As I found in the www, Peachfaced Love Birds are the most common Love Bird species in captivity. There are of at least seventeen distinct Peachfaced mutations, allowing well over 100,000 possible color combinations!

The Prince of Attica

The Bonelli's Eagle is one of the rarest Eagles of Greece. It maily occurs in some Aegean islands and Crete, while few pairs nest in the mainland. One of these pairs is found in Attica, giving us the opportunity of unique encounters with this one-of-a-kind bird!

Χελώνα και δεκαοχτούρα

Βρίσκονται στην ίδια αυλή που είχα φωτογραφίσει πέρυσι την ροδόσπιζα. Μέσα στην καρδιά του Παπάγου. Η αυλή φιλοξενεί επίσης καρακάξες, σπουργίτια, κοτσύφια, καλόγερους, κουρούνες. Όχι τυχαία αφού δε λείπουν οι καρποί και οι σπόροι. Συκιές , Φιστικιές Αιγίνης, Αμυγδαλιές, Ελιές κ.λ.π. δίνουν ένα πρώτης τάξεως πεδίο για τροφή στα πουλιά της περιοχής.

Larus melanocephalus

Στην παραλία του Κορινού. Ελάχιστα χιλιόμετρα από τις Αλυκές Κίτρους ( 3χλμ) .

Osprey at Schinias National Park

An impressive juvenile Osprey was seen a Schinias National Park a few days ago. The bird was flying close to the church of Agia Triada and was seen hovering over a small pond. I have never seen this species from so close range, and I was quite surprised. The sighing was also enjoyed from students of Artemida's high school, which I had the chance to guide around the wetlands.

Schinias National Park new species

Until now (May 19th) 5 new species were added to Schinias National's Park species list
Black-throated Diver, Isabelline Shrike, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Lesser Whitethroat, and last week's Osprey. The areas' bird list is now 222 species, being probably the most significant wetland for Atttica.

Athens 3rd Bird race (part II: the bird list)

Highlights of the day:
Yelkuan Shearwater, Ferruginous Duck, Short-toed Eagle, Slender-billed Gull, Gull-billed Tern, Alpine Swift, Pallid Swift, Penduline Tit, Rueppell’s Warbler, Subalpine Warbler, Rock Nuthatch, Cretzschmar’s Bunting


This year’s Athens Bird-athon trip was combined with the 3rd Athens Bird race. Our team, called “Bee-eaters” managed to arrive 2nd in the overall ranking, having recorded 91 bird species around Athens region! The team consisted of Spyros Skareas (guide and driver) and brothers Elbert & Jose from Holland.

We started at 06:30 from Rafina, where we easily had House Sparrow, Blackbird, Great Tit, Collared Dove, Western Yellow-legged Gull, Sardinian Warbler, Magpie. As the sun started to rise, we could see a Little Egret at Rafina’s Stream, and 2 Barn Swallows flying over the little bridge.

We headed off Schinias National Park, and we were there at 08:00. The marshes were full of Coot, Cetti’s Warblers, and Crested Larks. A flying Bittern was a highlight of the area, very early in the day. We had more that 50 species in that area (stated here in the order seen in the field): Peregrine Falcon, Sedge Warbler, Hooded Crow, Woodchat Shrike, Stonechat, Corn Bunting, Mallard, Moorhen, Little Grebe, Water Rail, Goldfinch, Hoopoe (we saw 7 individuals eating together!), Wood Sandpiper, Greenshank, Marsh Sandpiper, Whinchat, Greenfinch, Purple Heron, Black-headed Wagtail, Marsh Harrier, Turtle Dove, Little Stint, Great Reed Warbler, Short-toed Eagle, Ruff, Lesser Whitethroat (first record for Schinias National Park), Garganey, Common Kestrel, Nightingale (heard).
A little later, we headed off the cliffs around the marshes, to get some small passerines. Truly, we had Cretzschmar’ s Bunting, Whitethroat, Tree Sparrow.
Back again in the marshes, we saw a Little Owl on the roof of an old house and later on some more interesting species like Green Sandpiper, Ferruginous Duck, Mute Swan, Lesser Black-backed Gull (first record for Schinias National Park), Red-rumped Swallow, Subalpine Warbler, Penduline Tit (with its beautiful nest).

We continued to Agios Petros, over Nea Makri, hoping to get some rarities, but we only got Woodlark and House Martins. So we decided to go South, to Rafina’s Port again, hoping to see some interesting gulls. We saw Mediterranean Gull and Black-headed Gull, together with Little Ringed Plover.

Another stop was Loutsa Lagoon, a small pond beside the sea. There we had Grey Heron (surprisingly rare during this day), Reed Warbler (heard). The next stop was Loutros Spata, just behind Athens International Airport. The area has dried out fast this year, but it was just enough to get Tawny Pipit, Common Swift and Black-eared Wheatear.

It was around 16:00 were we started walking around Imittos Mt. Close to the top, we had residents Blue Rock Thrushes, and summer visitors Rueppell’s Warblers. Other species recorder were Chaffinch, Serin, Rock Nuthatch, Alpine Swift, Pallid Swift, Chukar, Cirl Bunting, Common Buzzard, Blackcap, Jay, Coal Tit, Short-toed Treecreeper, Sombre Tit, Orphean Warbler.

It was only 17:00 when we arrived at Oropos estuary, about half an hour ride from Imittos Mt, towards North of Athens. We had great views of Kentish Plovers, Gull-billed Tern, Common Sandpiper, Red-thorated Pipit, Slender-billed Gull, Grey Plover, Dunlin, and more than 100 Yelkuan Shearwaters flying over the sea!

Our last stop was Tritsis Park in Athens. Fortunately, we got Cuckoo, Squacco Heron and Rose-ringed Parakeet and managed to arrive on time for the end of the race.

What a day and what a bird list, just around Athens!

Red footed Falcons around Athens

Hoopoes are looking for food around the wine fields


A typical perch of a Little Owl is the roof of old buildings and churches

Red footed Falcons arrive around the end of April in Athens. Thanks to Chris Vlachos' directions, I was lucky to have great views of several individuals, around Loutros in Spata town.

Athens 2008 Bird race (part I)

3rd Athens Bird Race had a great success. Our team, consisting of myself and 2 birders from Holland (Elbert & Henk Groenewoud) reached the 2nd place in the overall ranking, with 91 species seen around Athens, from 6am till 8pm. This was the first time a team of non-greek birders took part in the race, and thus we encourage birders from all over the world to come and enjoy this great competition.
Nick Probonas' team was the champion for the 3rd consecutive year, having won all three competiotions. 3rd team was Chris Vlachos team, with only one species difference from ours!



Here are some pics and soon I will send the full species list of our team in the race

Orhpean Warbler @ Imittos Mt (Photo by Henk Groenewoud)


Sombre Tit @ Imittos Mt (Photo by Henk Groenewoud)

A short spring day in Imittos Mt.

Spring migrants have arrived in Athens! Rueppell's Warbler, Cretzschmar's Bunting, Black-eared Wheater, together with Sombre Tit, Rock Nuthatch, Blue Rock Thrush were April 1rst sightings. Also, 3 Long-legged Buzzards were soaring (first time I see so many in Imittos Mt)


Rueppell's Warbler



Cretzschmar's Bunting


Marginated Tortoise

Wild Orchids around Athens

The pics were taken from Imittos Mt, some from Kareas Monastery and some from the cemetery of Kesariani. Special thanks to Nikos from Flora of Attica for helping me out identifying the species!


Barlia robertiana


Ophrys ferrum equinum


Ophrys sicula (I apologize for not focusing!)


O. italica


O. cornuta (oestrifera)


O. tenthredinifera


O. attica

Spring arrivals in Athens

Spring migration is continuing, despite of rainy and windy Athens weather. Yesterday, on a short bird trip at Imittos Mt, we saw Cretzschmar's Bunting, Rueppell's Warbler, Subalpine Warbler, Blue Rock Thrush, Rock Nuthatch (heard), together with 3 Long-legged Buzzards (soaring over Kareas Monastery) and Chukar.
Bird pics from the trip will be added soon, together with beautiful orchid pics!

South-eastern migrants

Hooded Wheatear (Oenanthe monacha) © S.Christodoulides
Yesterday's new arrival in Cyprus

Rarities in Cyprus

Cyprus is located in the eastern south corner of the Mediterranean sea. A week of birding can be full of surprises as the country provides shelter for birds during their migration to Europe or Asia. Birdlife Cyprus publishes their annual and monthly lists in this page. Last year, a first Bateleur Eagle was seen for the first time in Europe!

The following pics are from this year's migration highlights, kindly provided by Stavros Christodoulides an avid cypriot birder.


Chestnut-rumped Wheatear (Oenanthe xanthoprymna) at Cape Greco.
Photo by Stavros Christodoulides


Blue-cheeked Bee-eater (Merops persicus) at Akrotiri Peninsula. Photo by Stavros Christodoulides


Palla's Gull (Larus ichthyaetus) at Larnaca Sewage Works. Photo by Stavros Christodoulides

Isabelline Shrike in Schinias!

A new arrival has been added to the checklist of Schinias. This Isabelline Shrike was first recorded in the 23rd of March and has been hangin' around in the same area for almost a week! A very rare sighting, there have been just a handful of confirmed records of this species in Greece overall.