Last night we went out for dinner in Kalloni with Stamatis
and Maria from the ‘Dionysos’ and decided to have a lazy morning save for
staggering over to get the bread. A
short pop into town gave me a few minutes at the Kamares on the way back. It was still cold and windy and the ‘small
wader’ flock was about the same size by the Golden Plovers were missing
again. A Black Stork got blown towards
Skala and three Spoonbills circled.
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| Black Stork and Olympus |
More lazing and then I headed out at lunch time as I had
agreed to meet up with Hilary from Skala Eresou who fancied an afternoon
birding but I left a little early and went back past the Kamares where the
Golden Plovers had reappeared. I have
still not seen one fly but at least this time some of them were wandering
around and feeding. Two female Marsh
Harriers saw of a smart adult male.
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| Black Redstart at the beach |
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| Black Redstart |
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| Golden Plover |
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| Golden Plover |
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| Redshanks |
I then checked out Kerami Reservoir in Potamia (yes, I have
checked out the official names now on the big Birdwatching Boards) but there
were just Coots and Little Grebes again. The name of the small old reservoir is
actually Tsonia Pond and still had the Black-necked and Little Grebes but there
were three Crag Martins hawking above it which was good.
On to Metochi, stopping on the way through the groves to
check through a flock of 150 Chaffinches feeding under the trees but there were
only a couple of Gold and Greenfinches with them. Crested Larks scuttled around with them and
House Sparrows, Great Tits and the odd Blackcap dropped in and out. A Middle Spotted Woodpecker called and even
perched up for a short while in an Elm before dropping back to the security of
the Olives where two Persian Squirrels played chase.
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| Middle Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Middle Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Many new lambs |
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| Chaffinches |
The lake was lacking in Pygmy Cormorants but there were two
immature Great Cormorants again and a female Common Pochard which was the sort
of thing I was after. Whilst watching
her I glanced up and realised that a Black Kite was not far above my head.
Which was not what I was expecting at all!
It was a tatty immature bird with a good ear mask and very streaky
underparts. I mucked up my camera settings
but still managed some shots before it circled off towards Potamia.
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| Great Cormorants and Pochard |
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| Pochard |
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| Black Kite |
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| Black Kite |
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| immature Black Kite - far streakier that I remember - just saying |
Onwards and through the accessible section of Loutzaria
where a stunning male Sparrowhawk hugged the path as it flew ahead of me only
to be trumped by the male Hen Harrier once again. There were good numbers of Crested Larks and
several Stonechats as I worked my way towards my meet up point at Hide 3.
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| Hen Harrier |
Hilary and I then headed down to the Eastern Pans and
enjoyed good views of four circling Dalmatian Pelicans along with a good
selection of duck and waders. There were
no Hen Harriers quartering but the Marsh Harriers and Ravens were continually
putting up the duck off the Sheepfields which in turn spooked the Avocets,
Curlews, Redshank and Grey Plover on the pans where the Flamingos positively
glowed. Thirteen Pintail were amongst
the Mingos again.
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| Soaring Dalmatian Pelicans |
Great Egrets stalked the olive grove margins and a Zitting
Cisticola popped up briefly as we bumped back.
The light on the first pan was perfect so we stopped to check the wader
flocks. There were far more Little
Stints and I counted 85 along with 210 Dunlin, 32 Kentish Plovers and two
Ringed Plovers. I had had it my head
that with so many Little Stints around perhaps there was a chance of wintering
Broad-billed Sandpiper? I did not expect
one to walk into view though! A strikingly stripy bird that I thought would
actually be more subtle in winter plumage and I was pleased to have Hilary with
me to share the moment. She could see
the different feeding action and head pattern as it slowly but methodically fed
while the Little Stints scurried around it.
I am not sure if there has been a winter record before? I have not even seen one in the autumn yet.
Back to the Alykes Sheepfields with a big grin. The wind had dropped and although cold, it
was nothing like the previous few evenings and we ventured up onto the mound to
scan around. The duck, Spoonbills, Pelicans and Lapwings gleamed on the pools
Gadwall were now at 18. The glorious
Greenfinch and Linnet flock perched up on the drinking pool bushes and in the
strong sunlight you could see just how grey the males of the local race
Greenies are. Meadow Pipits flew around
and Skylarks could be heard going chirrup.
A male Hen Harrier appeared almost at our feet and we
followed him all the way east before a young female appeared at the far end and
worked its way back towards us. An adult
female soon followed and then then male came back. Hilary was delighted by the show. Ravens
popped and kronked and a Kestrel hovered.
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| Hen Harrier |
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| Hen Harrier |
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| Hen Harrier |
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| Hen Harrier |
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| Hen Harrier |
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| Hen Harrier |
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| Hen Harrier |
The wind had kept the tide low once again and there were a
few Curlews and Grey Plover on the sand and just off shore a pair of
Red-breasted Mergansers snorkelled. I
had just been explaining about Sawbills when four little duck whizzed along the
Bay –‘Smew!’ I shouted and frantically took some shots as four redheads
rocketed off into the distance. I have
it in my head that Thekla found the last two in January 2017 in the saltpan
channel. For once I was quite
speechless. This is the sort of thing I came out here to hope for and with five
days of blowing north easterly I had got my reward. Nine Mallard and three Shoveler flew into the
Bay in a migratory line and splashed down for ten minutes before continuing
onto the pans. I am very sure that they
too were newly arrived.
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| Smew |
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| Smew |
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| incoming Mallard |
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| Dalmatian Pelican |
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| Dalmatian Pelican - how low can you go? |
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| Dalmatian Pelican |
Black-necked and Great Crested Grebes bobbed along and I was
surprised to find a Black-throated Diver close in too where it posed and
preened to show Hilary all the prerequisite features.
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| arty Black-throated Diver |
It was getting cold and the light was fading so we quite
while we were ahead and worked our way back passing a telegraph wire hung heavy
with Starlings and two adult Black Storks to round up a spectacular two hours
and forty minutes of winter birding.
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| Starlings |
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| Black Storks |
A lovely meal out with Eleni and Giorgos in Mytileni rounded up a rather splendid day and was topped off by a stop in Papiana at 11pm where a Long-eared Owl was calling and sat up above my head!
