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Antikythera Pictorial Report Spring 2009 ……… 23rd April – 2nd May We have not visited Antikythera during the springtime before and were looking forward to a greener landscape and some different birds and flowers. Two weeks were booked for us again by Angelos through The Ornithological Society of Greece, who was there to met us when the ferry docked at Potamos harbour. After helping Angelos load up the next week’s food supplies from the ferry, we set off for the guest house where we were introduced to others, Christos from Heraklion University in Crete, Apostilos also from Crete. Simon from Italy who we had briefly met at Chania last spring, Xanthippi and Onoufrios from Athens University, all of whom will be doing the ringing and other research, Apostilos who would at some point be doing raptor watch with us. Our trip had started on the 23rd April when we set off on the evening ferry from Kastelli Kissamos, this trip would also see us heading for the Peloponnese, then onto the west coast of Greece before catching a ferry from Igoumenitsa to Ancona in Italy through France and then into the UK. Taking in some of the wetlands and birding sites we would be away for a total of eight weeks. With an hour of daylight left we hoped to spot a few Shearwater on the way, we were not to be disappointed and saw a small group of Mediterranean Shearwater half way into the two hour journey. No other birds were seen and darkness soon came leaving us to sit in the empty lounge for the last hour of the short crossing. After disembarking the ferry we set of to the centre of the island, entering the valley where the ringing station is situated….a new location this year, we heard the calls of several Scops Owls. Everyone was ready for bed when we arrived and we set up our new motorhome outside the accommodation and turned in with thoughts of some good birding in the morning. Whilst watching for the raptors we also logged the many other species on a daily basis and went in search of wild flowers and insects. 24th Awake at 6am, Scops Owl calling still and as daylight came we heard the calls nearby of Bee-eater, a flock of fifty plus would wake us for the next few days as they fed before their journey north continued, Chukar Sparrowhawk Tree Pipit Yellow-legged Gull Whinchat Eleonora’s Falcon Pied Flycatcher Redstart Whitethroat Barn Swallow Subalpine Warbler Spotted Flycatcher Woodchat Shrike Marsh Harrier Kestrel Hoopoe Wood Warbler Golden Oriole Pallid Harrier Montagu’s Harrier Hen Harrier Common Buzzard Peregrine Falcon Quail [heard] House Martin Sand Martin Collared Flycatcher Turtle Dove Raven Bee-eater Scops Owl
25th Montagu’s Harrier Barn Swallow Yellow-legged Gull Whinchat Woodchat Shrike Hoopoe Bee-eater House Martin Wood Warbler Whitethroat Yellow-legged Gull Pied Flycatcher Chukar Tree Pipit Marsh Harrier Kestrel Barn Swallow Golden Oriole Common Buzzard Honey Buzzard Pallid Harrier Eleonora’s Falcon Hobby Booted Eagle dm Bonelli’s Eagle Peregrine Falcon Sparrowhawk Scops Owl Hoopoe Spanish Sparrow Raven Long-legged Buzzard
26th Bee-eater Spotted Flycatcher Spanish Sparrow Woodchat Shrike Barn Swallow House Martin Turtle Dove Golden Oriole Scops Owl [12 calling] Thrush Nightingale Nightingale Great Reed Warbler Pied Flycatcher Sedge Warbler Wood Warbler Redstart Garden Warbler Swift Whinchat Blackcap Tree Pipit Red-throated Pipit Meadow Pipit Marsh Harrier Montagu’s Harrier Eleonora’s Falcon Hobby Sparrowhawk Honey Buzzard Common Buzzard Booted Eagle dm Hoopoe Alpine Swift Raven Yellow Wagtail Bonelli’s Eagle Yellow-legged Gull Barn Owl
27th Bee-eater Icterine Warbler Tree Pipit Pied Flycatcher Barn Swallow Yellow-legged Gull Eleonora’s Falcon House Martin Whinchat Marsh Harrier Alpine Swift Meadow Pipit Spotted Flycatcher Yellow-legged Gull Golden Oriole Hoopoe Redstart Spanish Sparrow Wood Warbler Raven Nightingale Turtle Dove Red-rumped Swallow Whitethroat Woodchat Shrike Kestrel Black Kite Montagu’s Harrier Scops Owl
28th Spotted Flycatcher Golden Oriole Eleonora’s Falcon Wood Warbler Bee-eater Pied Flycatcher Woodchat Shrike Yellow-legged Gull Whinchat Tree Pipit Kestrel Sedge Warbler Spanish Sparrow Marsh Harrier Barn Swallow Montagu’s Harrier Peregrine Falcon House Martin Northern Wheatear Willow Warbler White Wagtail Chiffchaff Common Buzzard Grey Heron 2 Redstart Booted Eagle dm Yellow Wagtail Grey Wagtail Scops Owl
29th Bee-eater Swift Yellow-legged Gull Kestrel Montagu’s Harrier House Martin Crag Martin Golden Oriole Woodchat Shrike Turtle Dove Tree Pipit Spotted Flycatcher Pied Flycatcher Eleonora’s Falcon Peregrine Falcon Alpine Swift Icterine Warbler Garden Warbler Corn Bunting Yellow Wagtail Hoopoe Scops Owl
30th Bee-eater 30+ Turtle Dove Booted Eagle dm Pied Flycatcher Eleonora’s Falcon Barn Swallow Yellow-legged Gull Kestrel Great Reed Warbler Montagu’s Harrier House Martin Wood Warbler Common Buzzard Golden Oriole Whinchat Meadow Pipit Marsh Harrier Pied Flycatcher Black-eared Wheatear Spotted Flycatcher Raven Hooded Crow 2 Woodchat Shrike Long-legged Buzzard Bonelli’s Eagle Peregrine Falcon Hobby Scops Owl
1st May Yellow-legged Gull Kestrel Bee-eater Wood Warbler Pied Flycatcher Montagu’s Harrier Marsh Harrier Barn Swallow Alpine Swift House Martin Long-legged Buzzard Raven Tree Pipit Yellow Wagtail Whinchat Peregrine Falcon Turtle Dove Spotted Flycatcher Golden Oriole Scops Owl
2nd May With bad weather forecast for the rest of the week and migrants limited to the few that were staying over on the island we decided to leave on the evening ferry a week early. This would also give us the opportunity to see the other sites that we planned to visit at a more leisurely pace. There were many smaller birds touching down and keeping the ringers happy with lots of Garden and Wood Warblers, Spotted and Pied Flycatcher seen in many of the shrubs, giving some really great close up views. So, on our last day here we had….. Scops Owl Kestrel Spotted Flycatcher Montagu’s Harrier Bonelli’s Eagle Garden Warbler Wood Warbler Great Reed Warbler Pied Flycatcher Bee-eater Barn Swallow Red-rumped Swallow Eleonora’s Falcon Golden Oriole Raven Turtle Dove House Martin Blackcap Icterine Warbler Alpine Swift Swift Sparrowhawk Yellow Wagtail Whinchat
After our ferry tickets were booked 15 Common Buzzard flew through as if to taunt us. Down at the port shortly before the ferry arrived we spotted a Semi-collared Flycatcher and a few moments after we departed Antikythera we spotted a couple of Cory’s Shearwater and a group of six Mediterranean Shearwater. We settled in for the four hour trip to Gythio as night fell and joined crew and passengers in the lounge watching the Greek football cup final. AEK v Olympiakos, after extra time the score was 5 all and the game went to penalties which ended with Olympiakos winning 15-14 the ferry having slowed so no one would miss the game we eventually arrived half hour late at 00.30hrs onto the Peloponnese. We parked up with several other campers on the harbour front to get some sleep before we headed west towards Kalamata and our next nights stop at Gialova.
Continued in the separate report, “PELEPONESE
AND WEST COAST GREECE 2009” |
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