(cover photo: Blue-cheeked and European Bee-eaters)
Steve, Bob and I made the very best of Lesvos in Spring with five full days (18-22/04) birding (primarilly just birdwatching) all around the island.
Here are some highlight shots from our birding:
Together with Pieter (South Africa), we had a very early start in some phrygana areas to get his target passerine species and moved to the wetlands and then to the pine forest. This was a birdwatching oriented trip and here are some record photos I took:
We also had Blue Rock Thrush, Kruper’s Nuthatch, Sombre Tit, Woodchat Shrike, Cirl Bunting, Dalmatian Pelican, and others.
The highlights of these 2 full-day trips around the wetlands of the Kalloni Gulf and Molivos area (day 1) and Schalochori and Eresos areas (day 2) with Svante and Elizabeth were: DALMATIAN PELICANS, Ruddy Shelducks, Cory’s and Manx Shearwaters, AUDUIN’S GULL, KRUPER’S and Western Rock NUTHATCHES, Sombre Tit, Middle Spotted Woodpecker, ISABELLINE WHEATHEAR, RUFOUS BUSH ROBIN, EASTERN ORPHEAN WARBLER, EASTERN BONELLI’S WARBLERS, OLIVE-TREE WARBLERS, Black-headed Buntings, Woodchat and MASKED SHRIKES, CRETZSCHMAR’S and CINEREOUS BUNTINGS, Short-toed Eagle, Long-legged Buzzard etc and a bonus of a CITRINE WAGTAIL!
A total of 99 different bird species were recorded.
(photo by Lefteris Kakalis)
The highlights of this morning trip around the Kalloni Gulf wetlands with Nicola, Hilary and Margaret were: DALMATIAN PELICANS, Black and White Storks, Black-winged Stilts, Spoonbills, Ruddy Shelducks, Bee-eaters, ALPINE SWIFTS, Black-headead Buntings, SCOPS OWL etc.
Let’s not forget that the whole island of Lesvos is designated as a Global Geopark by Unesco!
Participants in the International Summer School of Global Geoparks visited the Kalloni salt Pans on the morning of June 24. They were presented about the wetlands of the Aegean and Lesvos and birdwatched at the East parts of the Kalloni Pans. We watched together: Flamingos, 5 DALMATIAN PELICANS, 15+ Slender-billed Gulls, nesting Black-winged Stilts, a magnificent Short-toed Eagle that flew low over us all, Black Storks, Common and Little Terns etc.
The summer school that was entitled “Unesco Global Geoparks”was hosted by the Natural History Museum of the Lesvos Petrified Forest and the Geography Dept of the University of the Aegean. It had participants from all parts of the world (Iran, Brazil, Indonesia, France, Greece, Cyprus, Portogal, Senegal etc.).
The previous evening Lesvos Birdwatching participated in a panel discussion about the alternative activities on the island of Lesvos.
For more about the summer school see here.
A HALF-DAY TRIP around the north parts of the Kalloni Gulf coast (24/11) gave us good view of 7 RAPTOR species: 4 Common Buzzards (Buteo buteo), 1 Long-legged Buzzard (B. rufinus), 2 Hen Harriers (Circus cyaneus), 2 Sparrowhawks (Accipiter nisus), 1 Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), 1 Kestrel (F. tinnunculus) and… a late/lost SHORT-TOED EAGLE!
We also had: Rock Nuthatch, Cirl Bunting, SARDINIAN WARBLER (overwintering birds around every second corner!) , Fan-tailed Warbler, DALMATIAN and WHITE PELICANS, Black Stork, Spoonbill, Greater Flamingo, Great White Egret, Slender-billed Gull etc
Lesvos Birdwatching 