February 2007

February 2007 report from Kaliviani and Western Crete. Starts slowly but produces [for us ] a few early arrivals on 20th, 22nd, 25th , 27th & 28th February 1st Sardinian Warbler, House and Italian sparrow, 30+ Yellow Legged Gull, Hooded Crow, Black Redstart. 2nd Blackbird, Chaffinch, Sardinian Warbler, Hooded Crow, Goldfinch. 3rd Raven 2, several Buzzard, Light form Booted eagle, Peregrine falcon, Kestrel. Chaffinch, Sardinian Warbler, Linnet, Yellow Legged gull, Hooded Crow. 4th Great Tit, Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Stonechat, 1 adult with a juv. Cormorant, 36+ yellow Legged Gulls, Raven 1, Hooded Crow 12, Crag Martins 10+, several Buzzard could be seen at one time over the hills and the house, Griffon Vulture 2, Sparrowhawk 1, Goldfinch. 5th The morning dawned after a stormy night and snow could be seen on the lower hills, thunder and lightning crashed and flashed, for most of the day it was very quiet , hardly any birdsong . Raven 2, Hooded Crow, Linnet, Black redstart, a Barn Owl was heard late evening. 6th Goldfinch, Yellow Legged Gull, House Sparrow, Sardinian Warbler, Chaffinch [numbers increasing daily ], Crag Martin, Hooded Crow 18, Buzzard 3, Great Tit 1, Raven 2, Kestrel 1, Griffon Vulture 2, our Peregrine has been about again hunting from the hill above the house performing some incredible stoops past the front window, later in the afternoon a male Hen Harrier hunted across the fields below , stonechat and Black Redstart. 7th Yellow Legged gull, Buzzard, House and Italian Sparrow, Sardinian Warbler, an adult Cormorant with 2 juv. Stonechat, Chaffinch, Rock Pigeon 40+. A trip to Kolybari – Chania coast produced, Buzzard 5, Sparrowhawk 1, Cormorant 1, Shag 1, White wagtail 20+, Chiffchaff, Stonechat, Black Redstart, Blackbird 1, Meadow Pipit 20 + in small groups, Linnet 6, Moorhen 2, Marsh harrier 1, Crag martin 20 +, Cettis Warbler. On the way home a party of 60-70 Hooded crow performed aerobatics near Nopigia. On a section of beach we found another dead Loggerhead Turtle so far that’s one every year since we have been here, a postscript to this, in the summer of 2002 there were over 150 nest sites along the cost registered by the L.T. Trust, this year I think they had counted 30 something. 8th Cettis heard behind the house, Chaffinch, a Sparrowhawk hunted nearby, Yellow Legged gulls 200+, House and Italian Sparrow 20 +, Hooded crow, Cormorant 1, Buzzard 3, Goldfinch 5, Greenfinch 2,. In Chania , Blackbirds 3, Chiffchaff 3, Starling 14 and later on the way home another 80-100, at night a Barn Owl called nearby. 9th Yellow Legged Gulls 170+, Buzzard 6, Raven 1, many Chaffinch, House Sparrow, Cormorant 2, Crag Martin 6, Hooded Crow 14, Goldfinch in small groups of 4-6, Rock Pigeon 20+. A trip to meet Roy and Raye at lake Agia, produced on the way and at lake…. Cormorant 1, Teal 100+, Shoveler 30+, Great Tit 1, Marsh Harrier 3, producing some fantastic aerial displays one even putting another into the lake, Buzzard 15+, Wigeon 20+, pale from Booted Eagle 1, later a dark form Booted Eagle , Chaffinch, Grey Wagtail 1, Sardinian Warbler 1, Crested lark 3, Tufted Duck 12+, Hooded Crow 10, White Wagtail 1,later a group of 20+, Meadow Pipit 5, 80+ Yellow Legged Gulls, 80+, refused to settle and continuously rose from the lake on the thermals high into the skies above and then spiralled down again to start all over. Coot 200+, Moorhen 30+, Blackbird 1, Stonechat 6+, Chiffchaff 6+, Dabchick 50+, Kestrel 2, Gadwall 18, Black Redstart 1, Crag martin 10 +, Cetti’s heard from three different locations . 10th Sardinian Warbler, Stonechat, Yellow Legged Gull 50+, Hooded Crow 12, Chaffinch , House Sparrow, Cormorant 2, Linnet 16, Buzzard 2, Kestrel 1, Peregrine 1, Raven 1, Griffon Vulture 1, Sparrowhawk 1, greenfinch, Goldfinch, Blackbird 1, Blue Tit 2, Crag Martin 6. 11th Italian and House Sparrow , Yellow Legged Gull 20+, with a possible LBB Gull, Buzzard 3, Sardinian Warbler 2, Stonechat pair, Chaffinch, Goldfinch 6, Long Legged Buzzard 1, Black Redstart 1, Great Tit 1. 12th Crag Martin, Buzzard 4, Sardinian warbler, Stonechat, Black Redstart, Yellow Legged Gull. 13th Goldfinch, Hooded Crow 18 , Shag 1, Chaffinch, Yellow Legged Gull, Crag Martin, Crested Lark 4. 14th Chaffinch numbers really building now the olive grove is full of song, Hooded Crow 14, House and Italian Sparrow, Crag Martin 7, Raven 2, distant views of we think a Long Legged Buzzard, Goldfinch , Buzzard 4. 15th Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Yellow Legged Gull, Italian and House Sparrow, Robin 1, Hooded Crow 14, Crag Martin 6, White Wagtail 1, Griffon Vulture 6, several Buzzard, Crested Lark 4, Black Redstart 1, Kestrel 1. 16th. Yellow Legged gull, Hooded Crow 14, Chaffinch, Rock dove 30 +, Peregrine Falcon, Buzzard 4, Sardinian Warbler 2, Robin 1. 17th High winds, storms, meant no birding today . 18th Yellow Legged Gull, Chaffinch, Buzzard 4, Italian and House Sparrow, Hooded Crow 16, Rock Dove 6, Griffon 1, Peregrine 1, Raptors 3,flew too high and distant, [heading north] to ID properly . 19th Crag Martin 3, a pair of Kestrel, Buzzard 5, Hooded Crow 14, Raven 1, Sardinian Warbler 2, Italian and House Sparrow, Great Tit, Chaffinch, LL Buzzard 1, 150+ Yellow Legged Gulls, Cormorant 1, Blackbird 1, Greenfinch 2, Chiffchaff 2, Sparrowhawk 1, Stonechat 2. 20th * * * GOLDEN ORIOLE male flew low north onto Gramvousa a very early bird, White Wagtail, Crested Lark , Sardinian warbler 6, Greenfinch 2, Chaffinch + + +, Chiffchaff 3, Hooded Crow 14, Yellow Legged Gulls, Blackbird 1, Cetti’s heard , Robin 1, Raven 1, Rock Dove 13, an early evening bat flew around the house before the sun had set 21st Chaffinch, Hooded Crow, Heard Golden Oriole in gulley behind house, at the same time a Cetti’s Warbler, Blackbird 2, Blue Rock Thrush 1, Buzzard 4, Italian and House Sparrow, Rock Dove 6, Sardinian Warbler 5, Greenfinch 3, Stonechat pair, Peregrine 1, High overhead 11 raptors circled in and out of the clouds heading north . 22nd * * * HOOPOE 1, in olive grove next to ours, Italian and House Sparrows 20+, Raven 3, Greenfinch 3, Chiffchaff 2, a Cetti’s heard, Hooded crow 20+, Black Redstart 2, Blue Tit, 1, scores of Chaffinch, Rock Dove 30+, a pair of Sardinian Warblers building a nest in shrub alongside the house entertained us for some time, Buzzards 10+, Robin 2, BONELLI’S EAGLE 1, Griffon Vulture 3, Goshawk 1, Kestrel 3, White wagtail 3, Stonechat 2, Cormorant 1, Blue Rock Thrush 2, Collared Dove 5, Crested Lark 4, Great Tit 1, Goldfinch 10+, Yellow Legged Gull 6, Linnet 1. late at night heard Scops Owl calling. No not that Hoopoe, but one taken on India trip Photo by and © C&S 23rd First bird of the day was our Peregrine Falcon as he stooped past the front door into the olive grove below where there are hundreds of Chaffinch busy feeding , a Cetti’s was heard again , Blue Rock Thrush 1, Sardinian Warbler 2, Rock Dove 12, Hooded Crow 14, Raven 4, Yellow Legged Gull 100+, Blackbird 1, Buzzard 3, Black Redstart 1, Chiffchaff 3, Raven 1, Sparrowhawk . 24th A stormy day with rough seas strong NE winds had the Peregrine Falcon using all of his flying skills as he continued his forays into the Chaffinch’s below, Hooded Crow 14, Buzzard 2 and Raven 2 added to the aerobatics, Yellow Legged Gulls 25+ and chiffchaff 2 . 25th HOUSE MARTINS, half a dozen flew with the same number of Crag Martins when we hiked onto Gramvousa . Whilst out we saw …… Buzzard 7, Chaffinch 100’s , Raven 2, Hooded Crow 20+, Griffon Vulture 2, Goshawk 1, Greenfinch 6, several large groups of Goldfinch 50+ each, Great Tit 2, Chiffchaff 10+, Woodlark 1, Blackbird 2, Stonechat 6, Black Redstart 1….. and an unidentified orange/red furry caterpillar about 6cms long. 26th Italian Sparrow, Chiffchaff, Hooded Crow, Sardinian Warbler, Yellow Legged gull, Buzzard, Blue Tit, pair of Blackbirds, Chaffinch, Robin, pair of Black Redstart, 6 Crag Martin, Goldfinch, still present a single Hoopoe, our first Thrush for a long time. We also found an injured Chaffinch in the olive grove unable to fly, we think it may have collided with the perimeter wire fence. 27th The day had hardly dawned when continuous thunder was heard in the distance and for a few hours we had heavy rain and hail along with lightening as the rain cleared and visibility increased we saw a raft of 200+ Yellow Legged Gulls just off the coast. Our usual daily sightings were about , Hooded Crow, Blackbird, Sardinian Warbler, House and Italian Sparrow, Buzzard and Goldfinch. The weather cleared and turned out quite nice so we set off along the coast into Kissamos and a couple of miles the other side for a look on the beaches. We found early Isabelline Wheatear 5, Northern Wheatear 2, Stonechat, several party’s of White Wagtail, Crested Lark, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Meadow Pipit , a Buzzard, 3 groups of about 50+ Yellow Legged Gulls along the shoreline, a Cormorant and a single Sandwich Tern, Corn Bunting 3. An early wild flower… Salsify [ Tragopogon porrifolius ] flowering time April –June was found along a beach track. 28th The day again started with rain but later brightened so another Gramvousa trip was the plan of the day, before setting off we saw… Buzzard 3, Sardinian Warbler 2 [our pair nest building ] Italian Sparrow, Chaffinch, Blackbird 2 male, Great Tit and a pair of Kestrel hovering over the hills behind the house. On our walk on W.Gramvousa we saw…… Raven 2, Sparrowhawk 1, Alpine Swift 1, small numbers of House and Crag Martin, Buzzard 4, Kestrel 1, Crested lark, Meadow Pipit, Stonechat 4 pairs, Hooded Crow 5, Griffon Vulture 3, Black Redstart 1, Robin 1, Chaffinch, Greenfinch 1, Blackbird 1, Great Tit 1, Sardinian Warbler 4. We found 3 species of Orchids and lots of other wild flowers.

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