Cyprus Bird Watching Tours - BIRD is the WORD - Akrotiri 25/09/2019
Collared Flycatcher - Cyprus Bird Watching Tours Bird is the Word © Matt Smith All Rights Reserved
On the 25th I guided Paul and Fiana around the Akrotiri and Troodos sites.
We started at Phassouri Marsh car park where quite a bit was flying over, Garganey, Mallard, Grey Heron, Bee-eaters, Whiskered and White-winged Tern and various Egrets. A Whinchat was showing on the reeds nearby. We then ventured to the main hide, seeing a pair of Black Francolin crossing the road infront of us nice and slowly, providing great lengthy views.
We started at Phassouri Marsh car park where quite a bit was flying over, Garganey, Mallard, Grey Heron, Bee-eaters, Whiskered and White-winged Tern and various Egrets. A Whinchat was showing on the reeds nearby. We then ventured to the main hide, seeing a pair of Black Francolin crossing the road infront of us nice and slowly, providing great lengthy views.
Black Francolin - Cyprus Bird Watching Tours Bird is the Word © Matt Smith All Rights Reserved
Spur-winged Lapwing were showing on the ground and we had views of a Common Kingfisher and a Sedge Warbler. Glossy Ibis and Great Egret flew over and huge flocks of Mallard were coming down into the pool. We also had plenty of Turtle Doves flying over here.
Great White Egret - Cyprus Bird Watching Tours Bird is the Word © Matt Smith All Rights Reserved
On the other side of the marsh near the gravel pits there was only one Red-footed Falcon showing, a male though.
We then checked out a Eucalyptus woodland for roosting raptors and only managed to see a single Honey Buzzard in the trees. Blackcap were calling and showing in the small bushes and plenty of Bee-eaters were perched in the trees.
We then ventured to the Salt Lake, seeing the many Flamingos and some Eleonora's Falcons hunting with some even sitting in some trees. We had a small party of Yellow Wagtail on a puddle and a juvenile Citrine Wagtail was among them. Plenty of Spectacled Warbler were showing in the bushes.
Next stop was Kensington Cliffs, we was lucky to get a good kettle of Honey Buzzard as we arrived, also two Griffon Vultures were in the air, one being mobbed by plenty of Eleonora's Falcon, and we had an ellies meters away on the cliff too. The Green Turtle was still showing in the bay and as we left an Osprey flew over.
We admired some of the pygmy carlinas and then proceeded up to the mountains. In Platres we had great views of two Cyprus Wheatear and I had distant views of Treecreepers though Paul and Fiana could not get on to them. Coal tit were showing well here too as well as our endemic Cyprus Grayling butterflies. At Livadi tou Passia we were treated to mouth watering close views of a female collared flycatcher (the first I had ever seen in Autumn) and close encounters with a Cyprus Jay and a very brief view of a wren. Colchicum Troodi was flowering in abundance here.
We stopped to have our lunch and then left back to Limassol, seeing a stunning Masked Shrike and fleeting views of a Cyprus Warbler. We finished with 69 species for the day.
We then checked out a Eucalyptus woodland for roosting raptors and only managed to see a single Honey Buzzard in the trees. Blackcap were calling and showing in the small bushes and plenty of Bee-eaters were perched in the trees.
We then ventured to the Salt Lake, seeing the many Flamingos and some Eleonora's Falcons hunting with some even sitting in some trees. We had a small party of Yellow Wagtail on a puddle and a juvenile Citrine Wagtail was among them. Plenty of Spectacled Warbler were showing in the bushes.
Next stop was Kensington Cliffs, we was lucky to get a good kettle of Honey Buzzard as we arrived, also two Griffon Vultures were in the air, one being mobbed by plenty of Eleonora's Falcon, and we had an ellies meters away on the cliff too. The Green Turtle was still showing in the bay and as we left an Osprey flew over.
We admired some of the pygmy carlinas and then proceeded up to the mountains. In Platres we had great views of two Cyprus Wheatear and I had distant views of Treecreepers though Paul and Fiana could not get on to them. Coal tit were showing well here too as well as our endemic Cyprus Grayling butterflies. At Livadi tou Passia we were treated to mouth watering close views of a female collared flycatcher (the first I had ever seen in Autumn) and close encounters with a Cyprus Jay and a very brief view of a wren. Colchicum Troodi was flowering in abundance here.
We stopped to have our lunch and then left back to Limassol, seeing a stunning Masked Shrike and fleeting views of a Cyprus Warbler. We finished with 69 species for the day.
Cyprus Jay - Cyprus Bird Watching Tours Bird is the Word © Matt Smith All Rights Reserved
Cyprus Jay - Cyprus Bird Watching Tours Bird is the Word © Matt Smith All Rights Reserved
Colchicum Troodi - Cyprus Bird Watching Tours Bird is the Word © Matt Smith All Rights Reserved
| Species List: Chukar Partridge Black Francolin Mallard Garganey Greater Flamingo Glossy Ibis Cattle Egret Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egret European Shag Common Kestrel Red-footed Falcon Eleonora's Falcon Eurasian Hobby Osprey European Honey-buzzard Griffon Vulture Western Marsh Harrier Ring-tail Harrier Water Rail Common Moorhen Common Coot Spur-winged Lapwing Common Snipe Yellow-legged Gull Slender-billed Gull Whiskered Tern White-winged Tern Rock Dove Common Wood-pigeon European Turtle-dove Eurasian Collared-dove Laughing Dove | Common Kingfisher European Bee-eater Red-backed Shrike Masked Shrike Eurasian Jay Eurasian Magpie Eurasian Jackdaw Hooded Crow Coal Tit Great Tit Crested Lark Barn Swallow Zitting Cisticola Sedge Warbler Eurasian Reed-warbler Eastern Olivaceous Warbler Willow Warbler Blackcap Sardinian Warbler Cyprus Warbler Spectacled Warbler Eurasian Wren Dorothy's (Short-toed) Treecreeper Whinchat Cyprus Wheatear Spotted Flycatcher Collared Flycatcher House Sparrow Citrine Wagtail Yellow Wagtail (*Flava) Black-headed Wagtail Tree Pipit Common Chaffinch European Greenfinch European Goldfinch 69 |
Cyprus Grayling
Large White
Painted Lady
Wall Brown
Speckled Wood
African Grass Blue
Millet Skipper
Humingbird Hawkmoth
Lesser Emperor
Pygmy Carlina
Colchicum Troodi
Large White
Painted Lady
Wall Brown
Speckled Wood
African Grass Blue
Millet Skipper
Humingbird Hawkmoth
Lesser Emperor
Pygmy Carlina
Colchicum Troodi
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