Tour Report

November 01st, 2018

1/11/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD, Tour Paphos & Akrotiri 29/10/2018

On Monday 29th October I guided Gwyneth and Dave around the Paphos and Akrotiri sites. There were no target species, just to see as many birds as was around.
We started out in Akrotiri at Zakaki for some wetland/marsh species. We was unfortunate in that the Penduline Tits, Moustached Warbler and Reed Buntings hadn't arrived at the site yet, but we did have some fantastic views of a few Water rails in the open for the duration of our visit and also a smart Bluethroat which was very close at times. The Bluethroat was the star bird of the tour for Gywneth, being a lifer.

A few Spanish Sparrow were drinking from the water near the hide on arrival, after they left a single bird flew down to the same area on some small reeds and sat on the ground behind the reeds. I initially though it was another spanish sparrow but got the scope on it. It was quite darkly streaked for a female spanish sparrow and I could see a hint of green/yellow on the wing though in the shade and also a very plain head. At this point I was convinced it was a Juvenile Common Rosefinch. It flew across the path and into the reeds, so I went down the steps for a better shot for record seeing as Common Rosefinch are vagrants in Cyprus. After I got my shots it moved a bit further into the reeds and I let it be. Probably not the most exciting bird especially in this plumage/age but still a Cyprus Rarity, being the 14th record if accepted.
There was a Yellow Wagtail under the hide that had a damaged tail and both Sedge and Reed Warbler were calling from the reeds. Common Kingfishers were showing at times and fishing in the marsh and further into the lake there was few waterfowl, just a pair of Northern Pintail. A Cetti's Warbler showed well briefly and Grey Heron flew overhead and a large flock of Black-headed Gulls came down to the water as we were leaving.
We then headed to Ladies Mile and had a look through large group of Gulls. We managed to see some Yellow-legged Gulls and a few recently arrived Armenian Gulls among them. Suddenly they all shot up, we looked around to see why ... and amusingly a female merlin shot across very low and headed towards the football stadium. Not the kind of raptor I would assume gulls to be scared of. We had seen a small falcon in the distance from the hide at Zakaki earlier being chased by a Hooded Crow, but too far to accurately identify, though I stated it to most likely be a merlin at the time.
We looked through some of the waders at Ladies Mile, some Kentish Plover, Little Stint, Dunlin and Ruff were present. I decided against driving to the salt lake due to the recent rains making the ground unstable, so unfortunately we missed out on the Greater Flamingo and also a juvenile Oystercatcher which was reported there a bit later in the day, which is a scarce bird in Cyprus.
We visited Bishop's Pool which was fairly quiet, with hardly any of the wintering waterfowl arrived. We didn't even manage to find any Ferruginous Duck here, though the Rock Doves were present.
Being as quiet as it was we didn't spend much time there before moving on. We drove through Phassouri Marsh in hope of a Black Francolin on show of which we had only heard earlier. We was unsuccessful, though we did see a Sparrowhawk and a few Serin in flight.
Next stop was Kensington Cliffs in hope fo catching some Eleonora's Falcons, though always a gamble seeing as they are all (or mostly all) gone by November. Unfortunately there was none in sight, and neither were the Griffon Vultures. We did see many European Shags on the rocks though and family party of Chukar scurrying close to the car and Lesser Whitethroat in a nearby bush.
We stopped at Mandria for Laughing Dove of which we found two, and around the fields we had many Skylark and Water Pipits. The Water Pipits posed nicely for us around a puddle and we also saw a large group of them on a freshly cut alfalfa field along with a single Red-throated Pipit. We also had a Northern Wheatear fairly close to the car on the potato fields.

Next we headed to Anarita Park in search of Finsch's Wheatear, en route we was treated to a Long-legged Buzzard perched on a pylon, a consistently used perch of recent weeks. As we arrived at one of their territories we had flight views of one which proceeded to land on a boulder quite high up and then losing the bird after a few minutes.
We sat here and ate our lunch hoping it would return to one of its normal perching spots but it didn't oddly enough.
Last stop was the Sewage Plant for Spur-winged Lapwing of which we got many. There wasn't much else to see here and so we ended the day picking some figs and pecan nuts. A thoroughly enjoyable tour with good results (despite the lack of many winter arrivals) and a Cyprus rarity managing 65 Species.

Species List:

Common teal
Mallard
Northern pintail
Northern shoveller
Chukar
(h) Black francolin
Little grebe
Grey heron
European Shag
Western marsh harrier
Eurasian sparrowhawk
Long-legged buzzard
Common kestrel
Merlin
Water rail
Common moorhen
Eurasian coot
Spur-winged lapwing
Little ringed plover
Kentish plover
Little stint
Dunlin
Ruff
Yellow-legged gull
Armenian gull
Black-headed gull
Rock dove
Common wood pigeon
Eurasian collared dove
Laughing dove
Common kingfisher
Crested lark

Eurasian Skylark
Barn swallow
White wagtail
Yellow wagtail
Red-throated pipit
Water pipit
Cetti's warbler
(h) Sedge warbler
Eurasian reed warbler
Common chiffchaff
Eurasian blackcap
Lesser whitethroat
Sardinian warbler
Spectacled warbler
European robin
Bluethroat
Western black redstart
European stonechat
Northern wheatear
Finsch's wheatear
Great tit
Red-backed shrike
Magpie
Eurasian jackdaw
Hooded crow
Common chaffinch
Common rosefinch
European greenfinch
European goldfinch
Common linnet
European serin
House sparrow
Spanish sparrow
65

October 05th, 2018

5/10/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD - Paphos half-day tour 02/10/2018

On 02/10 I guided Barry and Pete on a half day tour around Paphos. Cyprus Warbler and Cyprus Wheatear were the target species but the light was a bit poor as we set out so we ventured around the Sewage Works first with a short stop to see the Stone Curlews at their usual spot. We saw many Stone Curlews very close to the car, though they were disturbed by our presence after a while.
At the Sewage Works the Spur-winged Lapwings weren't on the fields so we had to drive near the solid waste area to get good views of them of which we also saw one of this years young. A European Honey Buzzard must have roosted in the trees over night as it took up from a nearby area and forced thousands of Wood pigeons in the sky, as well as a Grey Wagtail that called out as it flew over. A Cattle Egret showed well perched on an irrigation machine, no doubt waiting for its morning shower :)
By the pomegranate orchards we had a Eurasian Hoopoe on the pathway, Whinchat, Red-backed Shrike, Spotted Flycatcher and Willow Warbler were in the roadside fennel. Blackcap called from the coniferous trees.
The Light was getting better now and so we ventured to Anarita Park passing Agia Varvara on the way. Sure enough we located a 1st winter Cyprus Wheatear sitting on the power lines and on the opposite side of the road a wild hare darted through some shrubs. There wasn't much to see at Anarita Park, seeing as it is more a spring site though I did manage to locate 2 young Cyprus Warblers which came close to the car at times.
After finishing up here we headed to Mandria as I had just gotten word that a Richard's Pipit was showing, probably the same one Colin Richardson had found there a few days prior. En route we stopped to view a few Laughing doves. We set the scope up at the recently cut field and scouted through the many yellow wagtails. I found it at the far back corner though as Barry got on the scope it had hid behind a dry clump of Alfalfa and didn't show itself.
As we ventured to the West fields we had a Western Marsh Harrier quite low. On the western fields there was at least 4 Red-footed Falcon, one adult female and an adult male on the wires nearby and a few juveniles hovering over the fields.
Despite the noisy generator next to us it was a nice end to the tour, with a quick glimpse at Asprokremnos Dam on the way back (of which we only saw a grey heron) which brought our total to 35 species for a half day.

Cattle Egret
Grey Heron
Common Kestrel
Red-footed Falcon
European Honey-buzzard
Western Marsh Harrier
Eurasian Stone Curlew
Spur-winged Lapwing
Common Wood-pigeon
Eurasian Collared-dove
Laughing Dove
European Bee-eater
Eurasian Hoopoe
Red-backed Shrike
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit

Crested Lark
Barn Swallow
Zitting Cisticola
Cetti's Warbler (h)
Willow Warbler
Blackcap (h)
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Whinchat
Cyprus Wheatear
Spotted Flycatcher
House Sparrow
Yellow Wagtail
Grey Wagtail (h)
Richard's Pipit
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch

35 species

September 23rd, 2018

23/9/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Paphos + Akrotiri 14/09/201

On the 14th I guided Vernon and Lynn around Akrotiri and Paphos. We started at Akrotiri, on the way from Paphos we had a European Honey Buzzard fly very low over the car on the motorway, a good start!
Our first site was the Salt lake, as we approached the site through the salt flat shrubs a male Eastern Black-eared Wheatear showed incredibly well, a scarce autumn migrant. 2 Temminck's Stint showed very well close to the car accompanied by a small party of Little Stint, Ringed and Little Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover and Yellow Wagtail. A Citrine Wagtail called at one point but we was unable to locate it. There was many Marsh Harriers roosting on the Salt Lake and a single Montagu's Harrier.
There was a storm approaching from the north west and narrowly missed us, providing some dramatic scenery. Due to this many of European Honey Buzzards that must have roosted in the foothills were flying in low. We had some huge flocks pass over creating quite a spectacle (roughly just over 150 birds with 3 black kites among them them.)
The gravel pits held little and so we moved on to Bishop's pool which was also short on numbers, though a small party of Black-crowned Night Heron in the reeds provided good views. We wasted little time and checked out Kensington cliffs for close views of Eleonora's Falcons, of which didn't disappoint.
We then made our way back to Paphos, starting at the Sewage Works for Spur-winged Lapwing of which showed nicely. A recently arrived Tawny Pipit showed at the side of the road enabling good views. We then checked a nearby site for Eurasian Stone Curlew, one was showing quite close in the shade of an olive tree.
We then finished up at Mandria with a few Isabelline and Northern Wheatear and a European Shag on the rocks bringing our day total to 62 Species.

Species List:

Mallard
Garganey
Common Teal
Little Grebe
Black-crowned Night-heron
Cattle Egret
Grey Heron
Little Egret
European Shag
Common Kestrel
Eleonora's Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
European Honey-buzzard
Black Kite
Western Marsh Harrier
Montagu's Harrier
Water Rail (h)
Common Moorhen
Common Coot
Eurasian Stone Curlew
Spur-winged Lapwing
Common Ringed Plover
Little Ringed Plover
Kentish Plover
Common Greenshank
Wood Sandpiper
Little Stint
Temminck's Stint
Dunlin
Ruff

Yellow-legged Gull
Rock Dove
Common Wood-pigeon
European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Laughing Dove
European Bee-eater
Red-backed Shrike
Lesser Grey Shrike
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Greater Short-toed Lark
Crested Lark
Sand Martin
Barn Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
Willow Warbler
Sardinian Warbler
Spectacled Warbler
Whinchat
Northern Wheatear
Eastern Black-eared Wheatear
Isabelline Wheatear
House Sparrow
Citrine Wagtail (h)
Yellow Wagtail
Tawny Pipit
European Goldfinch
62

September 19th, 2018

19/9/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD 4 day Tour - Paphos, Larnaca + Agia Napa + Akrotiri x2. 7-10-13-17/09/2018

European Honey Buzzard Juvenile Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Starting from 7th September I took Ray and Ann from the Shetlands on a 4 day tour.
Our first day was in Paphos where we managed short views of Eleonora's Falcon from the motorway to start the day off, first bird being a target species. Our first site was the Headland with Greater Sand plover being a target species. On arrival we was treated to a large
congregation of 6 Common Sandpiper all sitting together on a rock with the resident Whimbrel being incredibly confiding. A Raptor flew along the coast a bit out to sea which turned out to be an Osprey.
Further along the coastal path there was a Common Kingfisher that showed well and then even further up there was two kingfishers fighting on the blocks. The Greater Sand Plovers were all here at the corner and we managed exceptional views and photographic opportunities with them.

Whimbrel Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Our next site was the Sewage Works which was very productive in terms of Shrikes including 3 Masked Shrike which was another target species. Many Spur-winged lapwing were showing well and Yellow Wagtail darted from field to field. A Single Cattle Egret and Glossy Ibis flew in. The Glossy Ibis flew very low and landed infront of the car providing great views.
We stopped at an orchard next which is well known for Eurasian Stone Curlew, we saw over 10 resting in the shade of the trees and managed some good shots from here. A Long-legged Buzzard flew fairly low across the road.
Mandria held little but an increase in Laughing Dove numbers and some decent flocks of European Bee-eater and Yellow Wagtails that fed meters from the car.
We then stopped in at Kouklia where the only body of water in Paphos is. Levels were very very low and the Green Sandpipers and Wood Sandpipers that were present previous days had gone, we did manage to see a juvenile Peregrine Falcon and Long-legged Buzzard here though and a few Red-rumped Swallow.
Heading up past Agia Varvara we were treated to a big movement of Black Kite, we counted 14 birds visible at any one time though there could have been a lot more as our vision was obstructed by a large hill to the left which was their flight path.

Black Kite over Paphos Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

For Cyprus this is a very large group to be seeing in one go and maybe even a record number.
Moving through Episkopi we managed a few Cyprus Wheatear squabbling, another target species and then passed through Armou Hills on the return to the motorway which produced a few Eurasian Hobby's, an obliging Masked Shrike and Ray managed to get on a Golden Oriole, a good finish to a great day which produced more than I thought it would in Paphos for this early in September; totaling 50 species.

Common Snipe Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Our second day on the 10th was to be in Larnaca and Agia Napa. We started at the Menou area where we was treated to a pair of Turnstones on the beach very close to the car and a Sanderling, all of which are scarce birds in Cyprus.
On the incredibly dry spiros pools there was 12 Eurasian Stone Curlew sitting in the open providing mouth watering views ... even more so for the feral cat creeping up to them. Ray was absolutely amazed by how many Stone Curlews we had seen in 2 days, a species he had struggled with in quite a few countries to get decent views of. We saw a female black francolin and then on a further agricultural field a male, another target species acomplished and a favoured species
by Ray and Ann who marveled over this beautiful bird.
We then entered the hide and scouted through all the birds at the Sewage Works ... and there was a lot to go through! Marsh Sandpiper was a lifer for them both and there was at least 4 present and 2 greenshanks for comparison. Many Greater Flamingo were here with Whiskered, White-winged and Gull-billed terns flying low over their heads. A Whimbrel shot in and did a few close flybys. We all mistook it for a Curlew at first of which this area is a wintering ground for.
We took a quick visit to the Salt Lake to try to find a few rare butterflies as Ann was very keen on them. It didn't take long to find many Small Desert Blue butterflies and also a Little Tiger Blue near their host plants.
Oroklini had very little water and life, we did find a very obliging and photo friendly Common Snipe in a ditch.
Then we moved on to Achna Dam, which held some good birds but not the kind of numbers I was expecting for this time of year. White-winged Terns flew very close to us allowing breathtaking photo opportunities as did a Gull-billed Tern, a Marsh Harrier landed and stayed
on the ground for our duration and our star bird was a Spotted Redshank that we saw on the ground and in flight numerous times and heard the call.
Our last stop was at Cape Greco for Cyprus Warbler in particular. Sure enough we found at least 3 providing decent views, one was even in song and a great way to finish day 2 with an endemic species that is proving to be very scarce this autumn on their usual territories. We finished the day with 71 species.

Citrine Wagtail Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Our 3rd day was on the 13th. I decided that two days in Akrotiri was best kept for the middle of the month so we could witness some raptor migration.
We started off at Zakaki where we had a Citrine Wagtail feeding very close.
Moving on to the salt lake we were treated to a few little flocks of Greater Short-toed lark flying in, Northern and Isabelline Wheatear in the scrub along with Red-backed shrike and Whinchats.
Spectacled Warbler showed well as did a large group of Little Stint and a Temminck's Stint was distant. 5 Marsh Harriers were on the ground and one flew in, also 3 Montagu's Harriers flew in which included a 2cy Male which was at times incredibly close to the car.
We managed over 10 European Honey Buzzard but they did not fly in low.
We decided to head to the Gravel Pits, on the way we saw a few Chukar and a few Honey Buzzards low over Bishop's Pool gate. The Gravel Pits had a few newly arrived Tawny Pipit, though we didn't manage any good photo opportunities with them as they were incredibly easily rattled.
We then moved on to Kensington cliffs to get better views of Eleonora's Falcon. We had one perched very close on the cliffs and many playing in the air at eye level.
At the Bee-hives on the way back there were many Bee-eaters and a male Lesser Kestrel overhead presumably with two female lesser kestrels though I didn't get enough time to identify them properly. Not quite as enthralling day as I had hoped considering the date but we still managed 65 species.

Spotted Crake Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Our final day was on the 17th, and the raptor passage switch had most definitely had been clicked on! Throughout the day we recorded a staggering number of European Honey Buzzard that seemed to be coming from all angles! 650+ infact.
Our day started at the Salt Lake were a juvenile Collared Pratincole stood. It actually scurried up to us as we parked the car next to it allowing fantastic photo opportunities. Ray was really after some good photos of this species and so I couldn't have asked for a better moment. Most of the waders were still here, the Temminck's Stint were very close and provided excellent photo opportunities unlike during our last day.
3 Great Egret flew over head and landing with usual line of Grey Heron showing how tall they are! Water Rail could be heard but not seen. We decided to check Zakaki again as we was earlier this time with crakes in mind. We did infact see and photograph a Spotted Crake which was very obliging at times. A Great Reed Warbler showed well also.
After a while Honey Buzzards started flying over head and so we raced back to the Salt Lake. There was a small group resting on the salt flats which we got some good photo opportunities of. We continued round to the salt lake and scoped Honey Buzzards
on the ground as far as the eye could see. We also had some close and a Black Kite washing its feet. Honey Buzzards kept pouring in providing quite a spectacle, some high, some low, some kettling and a few coming in to land. A Juvenile bird actually landed some meters away from us providing incredible photo opportunities and views. We only managed to spot 1 Steppe Buzzard among them.

Great Reed Warbler Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

European Honey Buzzard Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

As we was leaving the site a Marsh Harrier was seen chasing a Black Francolin which planted itself in a small tuft of reeds.
On the Gravel Pits we managed to locate two Masked Shrike, one adult female which allowed very good close photo opportunities, something Ray had been after and was very happy with. The Honey Buzzards continued to stream over though nothing was landing at the
pools.
We then spent some time at the Phassouri Tower hide where watched Common Kingfisher, Great Reed Warbler, many Turtle Dove and Bee-eater and again many Honey Buzzards with some coming so close to the hide that they almost flew in it!

Western Marsh Harrier Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Temminck's Stint Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

We had our lunch and then visited Kensington Cliffs again for Eleonora's Falcon. We had one perched in a tree, a Dark Morph and also one close on the Cliffs again. 3 Honey Buzzard flew in and the Eleonora's pushed them off, not quite as aggressively
as I was expecting. We saw a Griffon Vulture on approach to cliffs but sadly it was very high and moving away from us.
We then returned to Phassouri and spent some time watching and photographing the Bee-eaters which were landing close to the road and then raptor watching until it was time to leave. We had a few Hobby's here but unfortunately didn't
manage any red-footed falcon despite seeing a few the day before. A Bonelli's Eagle approaching its 3rd plumage showed well and the constant stream of Honey Buzzards and Marsh Harriers persisted the whole time with the odd Black Kite here and there.
A fantastic day showing the raptor migration in full swing and seeing 69 species.
We managed 111 species in total over the 4 days.

Masked Shrike Cyprus Birding Birdwatching tours ecotours birdlife wildlife

Species List:

Chukar Partridge
Black Francolin
Helmeted Guineafowl
Mallard
Northern Shoveller
Garganey
Common Teal
Ferruginous Duck
Muscovy Duck
Little Grebe
Greater Flamingo
Glossy Ibis
Black-crowned Night-heron
Cattle Egret
Grey Heron
Great Egret
Little Egret
European Shag
Lesser Kestrel
Common Kestrel
Eleonora's Falcon
Eurasian Hobby
Peregrine Falcon
Osprey
European Honey-buzzard
Black Kite
Griffon Vulture
Western Marsh Harrier
Montagu's Harrier
Eurasian Sparrowhawk
Steppe Buzzard
Long-legged Buzzard
Bonelli's Eagle
Water Rail
Spotted Crake
Common Moorhen
Common Coot
Eurasian Stone Curlew
Black-winged Stilt
Spur-winged Lapwing
Common Ringed Plover
Little Ringed Plover
Kentish Plover
Greater Sand Plover
Common Snipe
Whimbrel
Spotted Redshank
Common Redshank
Marsh Sandpiper
Common Greenshank
Wood Sandpiper
Common Sandpiper
Ruddy Turnstone
Sanderling
Little Stint

Temminck's Stint
Dunlin
Curlew Sandpiper
Ruff
Collared Pratincole
Yellow-legged Gull
Black-headed Gull
Gull-billed Tern
Whiskered Tern
White-winged Tern
Rock Dove
Common Wood-pigeon
European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Laughing Dove
Common Swift
Common Kingfisher
European Bee-eater
Eurasian Hoopoe
Red-backed Shrike
Lesser Grey Shrike
Masked Shrike
Eurasian Golden Oriole
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Greater Short-toed Lark
Crested Lark
Sand Martin
Barn Swallow
Red-rumped Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
Cetti's Warbler
Sedge Warbler
Eurasian Reed-warbler
Great Reed-warbler
Willow Warbler
Blackcap
Common Whitethroat
Lesser Whitethroat
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Spectacled Warbler
Whinchat
Northern Wheatear
Cyprus Wheatear
Isabelline Wheatear
House Sparrow
Spanish Sparrow
Citrine Wagtail
Yellow Wagtail (flava, feldegg)
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch
Common Linnet
111 species

Butterflies:

Lang's Short-tail Blue (copulating)
African Grass Blue
Little Tiger Blue
Small Desert Blue
Common Blue
Clouded Yellow
Swallowtail
Bath White
Cyprus Meadow Brown
Mallow Skipper
Millet Skipper

Moths:
Crimson Speckled Flunky

Dragonflies:
Keeled Skimmer
Slender Skimmer
Red-veined Darter
Broad Scarlet
Lesser Emperor
Blue Emperor
Blue-tailed Damselfly

Flora
Sea Dafodil

Lizards
Schreiber's Fringe-fingered Lizard
Snake-eyed Lizard
Sling-tailed Agama

May 29th, 2018

29/5/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Paphos & Akrotiri 28/05/2018

On the 28th I had the pleasure of guiding Jayne and David around the Paphos foothills and Akrotiri sites. We started out in the foothills where we got some fantastic views of Black-headed Bunting singing and good views of a pair of Black Francolins in a vineyard.
Many Corn bunting were flying around and singing, even some young. A small mixed flock of House and Spanish Sparrow were feeding and also taking more nesting material from dead wood. Moving through to Minthis we failed to find any Cretzschmar's Bunting which was odd considering how many I saw there a few days prior. The fact they were not calling or singing didn't help. But we did see many Eurasian Hoopoe at their nesting grounds including one that caught a large grub and fed its young in an olive tree.
We cut through Episkopi (paphos) admiring many rollers on the way and also getting good views of a juvenile Great Spotted Cuckoo and then searched through Anarita Park. We was lucky to see a few Red-footed Falcons still present and also a male Lesser Kestrel still hanging around. A pair of little owls were on show, one perched on a small stick provided great photo opportunities. Two of their young were sitting on top of their nesting boulder adjusting their eyes. At one point one of the adults seemingly went to attack a Sling-tailed Agama lizard that was next to it, but missed...and ended up landing on the pathway we were to take. So I managed to park just meters from it.

We then searched for some Cyprus Warblers, of which we found an adult male who sat in the broom shrub next to the car for a lengthy amount of time. Unfortunately he wouldn't sit at the top and so despite nice close photos, none of them were clean.
Then we begun our journey to Akrotiri. As we arrived at Zakaki a Eurasian Hobby flew towards the car quite low on the dual carriageway, a nice welcome. We could only see Mallard at Zakaki and didn't spend too long at this vastly neglected site.

Moving on to the Salt Lake we managed to get great views and photos of Black-winged Stilt, Little Stint, Common Ringed Plover, Ruff and White-winged Tern. We briefly saw a few yellow wagtail but they quickly vanished into the shrub as well as a Black-winged Stilt chick. Many Sand
Martin were flying over here and we had a young Barn Swallow being fed by an adult on the ground very close to the car. Many Greater Flamingo were still present here of which we got great views of, a few Slender-billed Gulls were still present but distant. A huge flock of yellow-legged gulls took off on our arrival. Dissapointingly only one Eleonora's Falcon was seen here which is unusual considering it is one of their favoured hunting grounds.
Aside birds we came across a few pairs of Tiger Beetles copulating.

A quick check along lady's mile didn't produce anything, though the strip was incredibly busy due to being a public holiday.
We had our lunch on the way to Episkopi. A few Alpine Swift were darting around here, sometimes very low and a few Eleonora's Falcons were present but not the kind of numbers expected at this time of year. The Griffon Vultures sadly didn't show, though we did get a few close flyby's by a Peregrine Falcon ending the tour with 53 species which is not too bad considering the time of year.

Species:
Chukar Partridge
Black Francolin
Mallard
Greater Flamingo
Little Egret
European Shag
Lesser Kestrel
Common Kestrel
Red-footed Falcon
Eleonora's Falcon
Eurasian Hobby
Peregrine Falcon
Black-winged Stilt
Common Ringed Plover
Kentish Plover
Little Stint
Ruff
Yellow-legged Gull
Slender-billed Gull
White-winged Tern
Rock Dove
Common Wood-pigeon
(h) European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Great Spotted Cuckoo
(h) Common Cuckoo

Little Owl
Common Swift
Pallid Swift
European Roller
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Crested Lark
Sand Martin
Barn Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
(h) Cetti's Warbler
Eurasian Reed-warbler
(h) Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Cyprus Wheatear
House Sparrow
Spanish Sparrow
Yellow Wagtail
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch
Common Linnet
Corn Bunting
Black-headed Bunting
53

May 23rd, 2018

23/5/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Paphos x2 half day tours 19 + 22/05/2018

On the 19th and 22nd I had the pleasure of guiding Mark around the Paphos sites for two half day tours. (I had a bit of a break from photography and so Mark kindly let me display some of his photos from the tour on this report)
The first day we spent in the lower paphos sites, Our first stop was Agia Varvara with Black Francolin in mind. On arrival we saw one briefly on the top of an abandoned building. We heard him call out for a long period of time though he wouldn't show for a second time.
A family of common kestrel were hanging around providing great views as they learned to hunt from their parents.
On the river we had a brief glimpse of a wood sandpiper and some reed warblers. We also had good views of Eastern Olivaceous Warbler, another target species. I had a Garden Warbler briefly show whilst Mark was photographing one of the Olivaceous Warblers.

Eastern Olivaceous Warbler - Mark Woodhead ©

We even had a brief fly by of a Common Cuckoo and Peregrine Falcon, and also a Stone Curlew in one of the orchards along with a Great Reed Warbler singing.
We then moved on to Anarita Park where some Red-footed Falcon were still present along with one Lesser kestrel. At one point a Cyprus Scops Owl called out, but didn'gt continue to call and so we did not spend time in trying to find it.
A family party of Cyprus Warblers showed briefly in the broom shrub as well as a family of Chukar on the plateau.
We made a short trip to the Sewage Plant for Spur-winged Lapwing of which we got fairly easily, there was also a small group of yellow wagtails present but unfortunately we flushed them before getting good views. A Eurasian Stone Curlew showed briefly right next to the car.
A small family of Goldfinch showed well also.
Mandria provided two Greater Short-toed larks just meters from the car, and Asprokremnos Dam car park had a smart male Common Redstart. We managed 44 species for for the half day.

Spur-winged Lapwing - Mark Woodhead ©

Greater Short-toed Lark - Mark Woodhead ©

The second day was in the Paphos Foothills on a cloudy and dusty day.
We started by driving through Episkopi seeing many Cyprus Wheatear and Roller on the way and even managing some decent photo opportunities with the Rollers. Only one Peregrine Falcon showed at the monolith, the young must have fledged.
At Minthis we managed to locate many Cretzscmar's Bunting which was another target species. Many were calling and some in song, on the ground and in the shrubs. A surprise here was a female Marsh Harrier gliding the valley and also two whinchat with one in sub-song which I had never heard before. A spectacled warbler called nearby briefly but was not seen. We continued through to Kathikas for the Black-headed Bunting which was another target species. We managed to find quite a few Black-headed Buntings, with many in song. We also came across another Black-francolin with superb flight views over the car. A small party of Sand Martin flew over here.
We had a quick look around Pano Arodes which produced many Rollers and an Eleonora's Falcon. Unfortunately we did not manage our final target species, the Long-legged Buzzard despite visiting and driving past many of their territories and favoured perching points. We managed 37 species for the half day bringing our total to 54 species.

European Roller - Mark Woodhead ©

Black-headed Bunting - Mark Woodhead ©

Cretzschmar's Bunting - Mark Woodhead ©

Species:
Chukar Partridge
Black Francolin
Lesser Kestrel
Common Kestrel
Red-footed Falcon
Eleonora's Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
Western Marsh Harrier
Eurasian Stone Curlew
Spur-winged Lapwing
Wood Sandpiper
Yellow-legged Gull
Common Wood-pigeon
European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Common Cuckoo
Cyprus Scops Owl (h)
Little Owl
Common Swift
European Roller
European Bee-eater
Eurasian Hoopoe
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Greater Short-toed Lark

Crested Lark
Sand Martin
Barn Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
Cetti's Warbler
Eurasian Reed-warbler
Great Reed Warbler (h)
Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Blackcap
Garden Warbler
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Spectacled Warbler
Whinchat
Common Redstart
Spotted Flycatcher
Cyprus Wheatear
House Sparrow
Spanish Sparrow
Yellow Wagtail (flava, feldegg)
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch
Common Linnet
Corn Bunting
Cretzschmar's Bunting
Black-headed Bunting
54

May 13th, 2018

13/5/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Troodos 11/05/2018

On the 11th I had the pleasure of guiding John and Lesley around the Troodos sites. Lesley was quite keen on botany also, so I made sure we saw some good species and many endemics on the way. We started the day on the outskirts to find some Black-headed Bunting. We found some fairly quickly with many in song and providing some fantastic views of this colourful specialty. Corn bunting could be heard around the vineyards, some Common Linnets landed close to the car at one point but views were very brief. Not far away we found a singing male Cretzschmar's Bunting on territory providing great lengthy scoped views.
A pair of Masked Shrike evicted a Jay from a pine tree right next to where we parked the car which was incredible to see. The masked Shrikes provided some impressive views. A Hoopoe flew into a small valley though we couldn't find it on the ground, or a Nightjar that was churring very close to us. Quite a few red-rumped Swallow flew over here with nests in the area.
We then headed to the Troodos Square stopping at platres on the way for Grey Wagtail and to an area that usually has a good number of Short-toed Treecreepers. Sure enough I heard some and managed to track them down, providing pretty decent and lengthy views.
A Pair of Jays were foraging on the ground not far from where we was standing though they flew off the second they noticed us. A Woodlark was singing but we was unable to find him, though later on the way back we saw him in flight, though he was quite high up in display.
Many Swifts were shooting around collecting recent emerging orange flying insects. Many Pallid swifts were showing today with decent sized groups of them moving among the Common Swift and coming down low, even head height at times. I heard an Eastern Olivaceous Warbler singing
in a bush next to where I parked the car, some brief phishing got him sitting on the top of the bush showing incredibly well for around 20 seconds.

Next stop was Livadi tou Passia where sadly the Crossbill were not showing, we even came back to this site later to eat our lunch in hope they would show, but they didn't. We also saw a Hoopoe in flight here quite close, but it vanished among the dense woodland.
Our next site was giant junipers where a flock of around 30 European Bee-eaters were resting in the pines and also hunting the flying insects. This is not a species I expected to see that day and was a bit of a treat. There didn't seem to be much here, we did get some more great views of masked shrike, I noticed a male catch a bug and not eat it, and then flew to a tree and then out. On further inspection it was actually a nest with a female inside, though we kept our distance and scoped them, not observing for long so as not to disturb them at this very sensitive period. I did take a photo from distance but do not wish to encourage people photographing nests, it is something I am strongly against.
On the way out we heard a Turtle Dove calling.

The next site was the Botanical Garden. On entry we saw a female blue rock thrush calling out constantly from a rock, and from the return calls we located the male. An obvious breeding pair who were successful last year. We managed very good views of both male and female, and managed good photo opportunities of the male. A few crag martin flew down to the river quite a few times. In the botanical garden we had incredibly close views of a Jay on the ground, Serin were darting around and another surprise bird was a Cyprus Warbler singing in the top of a pine tree, though the pine was outside the botanical garden on a lower height, so the bird was near enough eye level with us. A great way to wrap up a good day birding in the mountains managing 41 species, which is a good count for the mountains this close to summer.
*Note we did also visit Prodromos dam for flora and in desperation for the Crossbill

Species:
Cretzschmar's Bunting
Black-headed Bunting
(h) Corn Bunting
Spotted Flycatcher
Common Linnet
European Serin
European Goldfinch
European Greenfinch
European Chaffinch
Masked Shrike
Eurasian Jay (G.g.glaszneri)
Hooded Crow
Eurasian Magpie
Blackbird
Red-rumped Swallow
House Martin
Crag Martin
Barn Swallow
Common Swift
Pallid Swift
European Nightjar
Common Kestrel
House Sparrow
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Eurasian Wren (T.t.cypriotes)
Great Tit (P.m.aphrodite)
Coal Tit (P.a.cypriotes)
Eurasian Hoopoe
Grey Wagtail
Cyprus Wheatear
(h) Common Nightingale
Woodlark
Dorothy's Short-toed Treecreeper (C.b.dorotheae)
European Turtle Dove
(h) Common Cuckoo
European Bee-eater
Blue Rock Thrush
41

Flora and Fauna:
Cynoglossum montanum subsp. extraeuropaeum
Poppy of Troy
Strawberry Tree
Rose Acacia (invasive)
Black Locust (invasive)
Sequoyah Tree (introduced)
Platanthera holmboei
Limodorum abortivum
Red Valerian
Paeonia mascula
Aphrodite's Spurge
Anchusa azurea
Viola alba
Vicia tennifolia subsp. dalmatica
Orobanche cypria
Cyprus Cedar
Allium exaltatum
Ornithogalum chionophilum
Scorzonera troodea
Meklei's Poppy
Troodos Chamomile
Cynoglossum troodi
Alyssum Troodi
California Poppy (introduced/invasive)
Centaurea aegialophila
Scutellaria cypria
Rock Rose
Tassle hyacinth
Silene Vulgaris

Shaggy Ink Cap (fungi)

Cyprus Water Frog

Sling-tailed Agama
Troodos Lizard

Clouded Yellow
Bath White
Large White
Small White
Red Admiral

May 08th, 2018

8/5/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Akrotiri 07/05/2018

On the 7th I had the pleasure of guiding Antonis, Holly and Wendy around the Akrotiri peninsular. The morning was a little overcast with Black-crowned Night Herons flying in and out of Zakaki Marsh, and many Reed Warblers flitting around the reeds.
We headed for the Salt Lake. Only a few Temminck's Stints were present among the Little Stints before the lake itself, along with 3 Collared Pratincoles. Holly managed to spot a Rufous-tailed Rock thrush sitting in a low shrub which provided excellent lengthy views.

On the salt lake itself we browsed through the many waders spotting a Ruddy Turnstone in Summer plumage and a Grey Plover in winter plumage, over 5 Curlew Sandpipers and the usuals with Ruff and Little Stint the most abundant. The part melanistic Greater Flamingo was showing well again among the large flock that were displaying, we also spotted a fair sized flock flying in to the salt lake. A few female Pintail were the only waterfowl.
Moving on to lady's mile we was treated to seeing a Grey Plover in summer plumage, a pair of Black-winged Stilts copulating briefly and many Little Tern diving meters from the car with one even presenting a fish to its mate ... though this moment was short lived as a grounded Little Tern nearby was not in the mood for seeing this happen a few meters from him and chased them off. We didn't have many great photo opportunities during this tour aside the Little Terns, Temminck's and Little Stint and Eleonora's Falcon.

Bishop's pool held small numbers of birds, many Ferruginous duck were present though which was the target here. We stopped here to have our lunch.
Next destination was the gravel pits where we had good views of Woodchat Shrike, Red-backed Shrike and Winchat.
We stopped at Phassouri which held very little and then ventured to Kensington Cliffs where we had great views of many Eleonora's Falcons and Alpine Swift, though sadly the Griffon Vultures didn't show.
We decided to check the Salt Lake for a second time, driving past bishops pool I spotted a Golden Oriole land in one of the trees, also a few bee-eaters were about now.
We didn't see much else on the Salt Lake aside a Spotted Flycatcher and ended up with 70 species.

Species:
(h) Black Francolin
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Garganey
Ferruginous Duck
Little Grebe
Greater Flamingo
Glossy Ibis
Black-crowned Night-heron
Squacco Heron
Cattle Egret
Grey Heron
Little Egret
European Shag
Common Kestrel
Eleonora's Falcon
Common Moorhen
Common Coot
Black-winged Stilt
Grey Plover
Common Ringed Plover
Little Ringed Plover
Kentish Plover
Marsh Sandpiper
Common Greenshank
Wood Sandpiper
Ruddy Turnstone
Little Stint
Temminck's Stint
Curlew Sandpiper
Ruff
Collared Pratincole
Yellow-legged Gull
Little Tern
Rock Dove

Common Wood-pigeon
European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Alpine Swift
Common Swift
Pallid Swift
European Bee-eater
Red-backed Shrike
Woodchat Shrike
Eurasian Golden Oriole
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Crested Lark
Barn Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
Cetti's Warbler
Eurasian Reed-warbler
(h) Sedge Warbler
(h) Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Blackcap
Sardinian Warbler
Spectacled Warbler
Whinchat
Northern Wheatear
Cyprus Wheatear
Rufous-tailed Rock-thrush
Spotted Flycatcher
House Sparrow
White Wagtail
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch
Common Linnet

70 species

May 04th, 2018

4/5/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Paphos & Akrotiri 01 & 03/05/2018

On the 1st I had the pleasure of guiding David and Maicon around Paphos. We started at the Sewage works where many Cattle Egret were feeding in the fields and many broods of Barn Swallow were lining the wires, with a Sand martin among them.
The Spur-winged lapwings weren't outside the fence at this early time so we checked the pools to which we found Glossy Ibis, Squacco Heron and quite a few Spur-winged lapwing. Towards the solid waste area we got better views of Spur-winged Lapwing and was amazed to find they had a chick already. On the way out we spotted a Stone Curlew in flight but failed to find the point in which it landed.
Then on to Mandria where we had good views of Laughing Dove, Hoopoe, Red-backed and Lesser Grey Shrike. There wasn't much movement out at sea as now the migration has slowed right down and so we didn't stick around. We headed to Agia Varvara which held little and then onto Anarita Park where we was treated to many great views of Red-footed Falcon, Lesser Kestrel, Cyprus Warbler, European Roller, Montagu's Harrier and Red-rumped Swallow.
We moved on through to Episkopi in hope of getting Great Spotted Cuckoo which is a nightmare bird to find this year unfortunately, undoubtedly there being some problems in their wintering grounds considering the sharp decline in populations visiting Cyprus over the past 3 years. Sadly we couldn't locate any Great Spotted Cuckoos, though we did see Eastern olivaceous warbler, Cyprus Wheatear and some more Rollers. Moving up to higher ground we got great scoped views of Peregrine Falcon chicks and briefly heard the calls of a Cyprus Scops Owl echoing against the cliff face.

Moving up to Minthis hills a Long-legged Buzzard was gaining height. At the entrance to Minthis we came across a Cretzschmar's Bunting singing away at the top of a small Hawthorne tree, there was many Corn Buntings along this strip which has been subject to much construction over the past year.
We drove to Kathikas from here and managed to get incredible views of Black-headed Bunting, with all of them singing and even had close views of 2 males fighting on at least 3 occasions. There was a harrier in the distance but too far to identify.

From kathikas we headed up to Pano Arodes where we saw quite a few Golden oriole in flight. I was hoping to get Great Spotted Cuckoo here ... but the best we managed was a Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush and Spotted Flycatcher both managing to get within meters.
As we headed out and journeyed to Evretou Dam we came upon a Long-legged Buzzard perched in a tree very close providing incredible views and an inevitable take-off.
We stopped to eat our lunch at Evretou near the waters edge where Yellow Wagtails approached us and we enjoyed many flocks of Bee-eater flying over. Highlights here was a few Night Heron, Purple Heron, Squacco Heron and a Black-tailed Godwit which was well spotted by David partly concealed in the grass. We also watched a Long-legged Buzzard soaring over the hills and watched the extremely large nesting group of Spanish Sparrow in a large tree. A great day with some very colourful birds totaling 68 species.

The second day we ventured to Akrotiri. We started at the Salt Lake which had been very productive lately. In no time at all we came across many Temminck's and Little Stint, Wood and Marsh Sandpiper. There was a large Flock of Greater Flamingo overhead at various stages and also we had flocks of Glossy Ibis and Collared Pratincole that flew very close to us at times and landed nearby.

We had Eleonora's Falcon flyby's on entrance and on exit of the salt lake. White-winged and Little Terns were both present in decent numbers flying and landing very close
to us at times. The majority of waders were Ruff and Little Stint, though we did pick out a Dunlin and also quite a few Curlew Sandpipers. Seeing a few Black-headed Gull here was a bit of a surprise considering how late into spring we are.
Some Baltic gull showed well in flight and on the ground. There was a decent group of Greater Flamingo at the waters edge that were in display which was great to see especially so close as well. A few Northern Shoveler were among them.

After we was satisfed with our sightings here we moved on to Lady's Mile seeing a Tawny pipit on the way. I made a mistake here in not exploring the southern eastern point here which I am told Greater Sandplover and Broad-billed Sandpiper were seen there in the afternoon.
The water levels at Lady's Mile had reduced dramitically since last being there and seemed ripe for waders now. Though there actually wasn't many around. We did get some more ruff, marsh sandpiper and a greenshank. Also a Black-tailed Godwit among Ruff. Little Tern were in abundance here fishing.

We then moved on to Bishops Pool. Many ferruginous duck were showing and we also had a few late Common Teal and some Garganey. A Little Bittern called from the reeds though we was unable to locate it. A Chiffchaff moved from tree to tree, an unexpected sighting for this time of year (identified on call).
After checking some of Akrotiri Gravel Pits (of which the highlight was seeing two Little Terns plunging into the water around 4 meters from the car and then feeding each other in display) and Phassouri Marsh we stopped for our lunch.
After lunch we headed to Kensington cliffs where we got incredible views of many Eleonora's Falcons playing, hunting and also mobbing the Griffon Vultures that were active on arrival. We also saw lots of Alpine Swift with some flying quite low.
It was quite windy by this point so getting the Griffon Vultures closer to us in flight was not going to happen, though they still provided a good show and ended the tour on a high note. We managed 78 species for the day and brought the total number of species to 100.

Species:
Chukar Partridge
(h) Black Francolin
Mallard
Northern Shoveller
Garganey
Common Teal
Ferruginous Duck
Little Grebe
Greater Flamingo
Glossy Ibis
Black-crowned Night-heron
Squacco Heron
Cattle Egret
Grey Heron
Purple Heron
Little Egret
(h) Little Bittern
European Shag
Lesser Kestrel
Common Kestrel
Red-footed Falcon
Eleonora's Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
Western Marsh Harrier
Montagu's Harrier
Long-legged Buzzard
Eurasian Stone Curlew
Common Moorhen
Common Coot
Black-winged Stilt
Spur-winged Lapwing
Common Ringed Plover
Kentish Plover
Black-tailed Godwit
Marsh Sandpiper
Common Greenshank
Wood Sandpiper
Common Sandpiper
Little Stint
Temminck's Stint
Dunlin
Curlew Sandpiper
Ruff
Yellow-legged Gull
Baltic Gull
Black-headed Gull
Little Tern
White-winged Tern
Rock Dove
Common Wood-pigeon

European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Laughing Dove
(h) Cyprus Scops Owl
Little Owl
Alpine Swift
Common Swift
European Roller
European Bee-eater
Red-backed Shrike
Lesser Grey Shrike
Eurasian Golden Oriole
Eurasian Magpie
Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Crested Lark
Sand Martin
Barn Swallow
Red-rumped Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
Cetti's Warbler
Sedge Warbler
(h) Eurasian Reed-warbler
(h) Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Blackcap
Common Chiffchaff
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Spectacled Warbler
(h) Common Nightingale
Common Redstart
Whinchat
Northern Wheatear
Eastern Black-eared Wheatear
Cyprus Wheatear
Rufous-tailed Rock-thrush
Spotted Flycatcher
House Sparrow
Spanish Sparrow
White Wagtail
Yellow Wagtail (flava, feldegg)
Tawny Pipit
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch
Common Linnet
Corn Bunting
Cretzschmar's Bunting
Black-headed Bunting

100

April 30th, 2018

30/4/2018

Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD Tour - Paphos 28/04/2018

On the 28th I had the pleasure of guiding Hugh and Joyce around the Paphos Sites.
Starting at the Paphos Sewage Works we were treated to Spur-winged Lapwing and many Golden Oriole. We spotted a Tree Pipit calling in flight and also heard a red-throated pipit. Many various Yellow Wagtails were feeding in the freshly cut field.
A Wood sandpiper and a ruff was a good spot near some puddles and we also managed many Turtle Doves here with some smashing views.
Moving on to Anarita Park we browsed through the many Rollers, Red-footed Falcons and Lesser kestrels. There was a decent number of Montagu's Harriers hunting throughout the site, we had great views of them all in flight close and also many of them on the ground feeding nearby. A female Pallid Harrier was also among them.
Smaller birds were thin on the ground though we did manage to find a Whinchat, Cyprus Warblers and Cyprus Wheatears. We got some great views of Spanish Sparrows here collecting nesting material in a mixed group with House Sparrows.

Agia Varvara was the next site where many Black Francolin were calling but proving very hard to find as usual. The Zitting Cisticolas were flitting about as usual but life here seemed quite poor compared to recent. Our best birds here was a lone Purple Heron, Little Owl, a brief glimpse at a Collared Flycatcher and a few Pallid Swift among the many Commons.
We then moved on to Mandria which seemed very quiet. We did see a migrating flock of Glossy Ibis and many of the shrikes (Lesser Grey, Woodchat and Red-backed). The Stone Curlew were still in the same field. We cut through to Timi where a large group of Squacco Heron were all on the beach in full summer plumage, not something you get to see very often in Cyprus. A European Shag and Common Sandpiper were the only other birds on the shore.

Then we went to Asprokremnos Dam to have our lunch and check the woodland for flycatchers. The sound of Golden Oriole singing whilst we had our lunch was very pleasant and a Spotted Flycatcher darted around the trees along with many Goldfinch and Great Tit families.
Moving further inland we headed to the Xeros river which also seemed much quieter than it had been recently. The Red-rumped Swallows were still around collecting mud ... they landed quite close to us at times. On the water we could only make out Wood Sandpiper and a Green Sandpiper.
We then decided to head to Episkopi in hope of getting more views of Cyprus Wheatear of which we did. Also quite a few more Rollers and a few Pied Flycatchers. Many Eastern Olivaceous Warbler were singing in the bushes, one popped up for a minute.
Many finches were calling and singing, Linnet being the best of the bunch. A few Golden oriole flew into a woodland but proved to be very hard to see.
At the Peregrine Site we had great scoped views of 2 fluffy chicks and the male Peregrine in flight for long periods of time, a Great Spotted Cuckoo flew in and landed inside the fenced area where unfortunately we couldn't see it. We finished the day with 63 species.

Species:
Chukar Partridge
(h) Black Francolin
Glossy Ibis
Squacco Heron
Purple Heron
European Shag
Lesser Kestrel
Common Kestrel
Red-footed Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
Pallid Harrier
Montagu's Harrier
Spur-winged Lapwing
Wood Sandpiper
Green Sandpiper
Common Sandpiper
Ruff
Yellow-legged Gull
Common Wood-pigeon
European Turtle-dove
Eurasian Collared-dove
Great Spotted Cuckoo
Little Owl
Common Swift
Pallid Swift
European Roller
Red-backed Shrike
Lesser Grey Shrike
Woodchat Shrike
Eurasian Golden Oriole
Eurasian Magpie

Eurasian Jackdaw
Hooded Crow
Great Tit
Crested Lark
Sand Martin
Barn Swallow
Red-rumped Swallow
Common House-martin
Zitting Cisticola
Cetti's Warbler
(h) Eurasian Reed Warbler
Sedge Warbler
Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Eurasian Blackcap
Common Whitethroat
Sardinian Warbler
Cyprus Warbler
Whinchat
Cyprus Wheatear
Spotted Flycatcher
European Pied Flycatcher
Collared Flycatcher
House Sparrow
Spanish Sparrow
White Wagtail
Yellow Wagtail
Tree Pipit
(h) Red-throated Pipit
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch
Common Linnet
Corn Bunting

63

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