21 April 2012

One plane load of British birders arrived mid-afternoon. I don't know what the others got up (cos there is very little in the Pasiphae Hotel log) to but I was straight out in to the field on the way to Skala Kallonis via Dipi Larisos and Kavaki (well, sort of on the way!)

Weather - blue sky and warm (c.20C) with light southerlies.

Logs - Pasiphae Hotel as normal and from tomorrow night, at the taverna Dionysos in Skala Kallonis (at the harbour front).

Dipi Larisos
PYGMY CORMORANT - 2 adults feeding in river mouth (from bridge 1km south along the Plomari road from the main Mytilini-Kalloni road)
Temminck's Stint - 1
Sanderling - 1
Little Stint - 4
Water Rail - 1
Common Kingfisher - 1
Common Sandpiper - 1
Great Crested Grebe - 2

Kalloni Saltpans & Alykes Wetlands
Ruddy Shelduck - 40 in fields opp saltworks entrance
Black Stork - 1
Common Sandpiper - 1
Squacco Heron - 2
Mallard - 1
Short-toed Lark - 2

Lotzaria (between Tsiknias River & Kalloni Saltpans)
Bee-eater - 20

Skala Kallonis Pool
Little Crake - 1
Squacco Heron - 4

Kavaki
Ruppell's Warbler - 6 singing males (4 north of road around headland nr main car park and 2 up the hill south of the road)
Subalpine Warbler - stacks in this area (most I've ever seen here)
House Martin - 400+ hundreds to north
Common Swift - 200+ to north
Red-rumped Swallow - 40+ to north
Blue Rock-thrush - 1
Black-eared Wheatear - 2
Reed Bunting - 1

Papania school
Scops Owl - 2 in 6th eucalyptus tree from the east

Potamia
Collared Flycatcher - 1

Achladeri
Kruper-s Nuthatch - 1 pr active around the traditional picnic site but dont appear to have settled on a nest site as yet

Lots of Woodchat Shrikes and Whinchats new in today. Red-backed Shrikes also reported.