Helen Skuodas from Scotland came to Greece for holidays and had one day for birding; she did not have a 'wish list' but would really like to see birds not found in the UK, so the destination for the day was Mt Parnassos, a superb birding hotspot with woodpeckers like the Black and the White-backed Woodpecker and alpine species like the Alpine Chough.
On our way to Parnassos, we stopped at Kopaida Plain, to look for another woodpecker not found in the UK, the Syrian. We managed to find a couple of them and had good views as one of them was on a wooden pole. We also managed to see Sardinian Warblers, Spotted Flycatchers and Crested Larks, among others.
Reaching Mt Parnassos, we first looked the scrubby slopes above Arachova village, where we found more Sardinian Warblers and Rock Nuthatcher. We then moved to the dense Greek Fir forest, looking for woodpeckers. We managed to see four different species (Green, Middle Spotted, White-backed and Black)! Other birds seen were the Short-toed Treecreeper, Firecrest, the European Nuthatch.
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| White-backed Woodpecker |
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| Black Woodpecker |
Leaving the forest, we moved higher up in the alpine zone, where we saw some Rock Buntings in the tree line and then we started walking in the slopes around Kelaria ski center. We heard several Rock Partridges but couldn't see them, unfortunately. We did see several Black Redstarts, Serins, Wood Larks and a couple of Alpine Choughs.
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| Helen in the alpine zone of Mt Parnassos |
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Rock Partridge |
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Eurasian Collared-Dove |
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Pallid Swift |
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Eurasian Sparrowhawk |
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Common Buzzard |
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Buteo buteo |
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Middle Spotted Woodpecker |
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White-backed Woodpecker |
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Syrian Woodpecker |
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Eurasian Green Woodpecker |
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Black Woodpecker |
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Eurasian Kestrel |
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Eurasian Jay |
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Eurasian Magpie |
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Yellow-billed Chough |
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Eurasian Jackdaw |
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Hooded Crow |
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Common Raven |
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Coal Tit |
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Eurasian Blue Tit |
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Great Tit |
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Wood Lark |
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Crested Lark |
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Bank Swallow |
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Barn Swallow |
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Common House-Martin |
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Willow Warbler |
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Common Chiffchaff |
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Cetti's Warbler |
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Eurasian Blackcap |
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Sardinian Warbler |
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Common Firecrest |
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Eurasian Nuthatch |
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Western Rock Nuthatch |
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Short-toed Treecreeper |
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Eurasian Wren |
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Mistle Thrush |
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Spotted Flycatcher |
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European Robin |
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Black Redstart |
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House Sparrow |
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Eurasian Tree Sparrow |
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Gray Wagtail |
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White Wagtail |
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Tree Pipit |
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Common Chaffinch |
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Eurasian Linnet |
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European Goldfinch |
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European Serin |
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Rock Bunting |
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Cirl Bunting |
