Fylde Bird Club - Fylde birders abroad

Southern Morocco and Western Sahara 10th-14th December 2009

Participants
Chris Batty, Andy Clifton, Peter Gluth, Andy Holden and Stuart Piner.

I was invited to join this group on a short birding trip south of the Tropic of Cancer and within 100kms of the Mauritanian border in search of Cricket Longtails and other local specialities of that remote desert region.

Flights were booked by CB with www.ryanair.com from Liverpool to Agadir for £70.00 each with pre-booked car parking for the 4 days at Liverpool Airport for £25.00.

I arranged the car hire with Junior Cars at www.voitureagadir.com for a Chevrolet Optra 1.6L at an originally quoted €228. On arrival at Agadir Airport the hire car company unexpectedly demanded the full payment in cash. An occurrence which I have never experienced before. As a result, I then bartered them down to 2,000 Dirhams (£160.00)! A very good deal.

The total cost in Morocco and Western Sahara was 8,247 Dirhams (£660.00) for the whole party and this covered the hire car cost, petrol for the 3,000km covered together with 4 night’s accommodation, all meals, drinks and miscellaneous expenses.

The hotels used were quite basic: Hotel Sahel in Goulimine (which had been used on a previous trip by CB et al) for 364 Dirhams (£6 each) for a twin and a triple room. Two nights in Dakhla for 250 Dirhams (£10 each) per night for a twin room (SP opted to sleep in the car acting as a guard). An apartment for 5 in Tarfaya for 350 Dirhams (£5.50 each).

The food was surprisingly good; Chicken Tagines in Tiznit and Laayoune. Chickpea Soup followed by a Seafood Platter and Fish and Chips in Dakhla. Camel Tagine to start for the others followed by a huge double freshly caught fish and chips in Tarfaya.

Commentary

December 10th
After collecting the hire car we set off for the 200km drive to Goulimine, arriving at midnight. Night at Hotel Sahel.

December 11th
After getting duff info from the hotel re sunrise we arrived at Oued Boukila an hour before sunrise. However after half an hour with the first rays of light we set off into the scrubby desert in search of our quarry, Scrub Warbler. They proved to be most elusive before we finally nailed them. This dry river bed and the surrounding desert held a superb range of species including Hoopoe, Thekla and Bar-tailed Desert Larks, Red-rumped and Desert Wheatears, Moussier’s Redstart, Trumpeter Finch and Spectacled Warbler. Birds of prey were a pair of Lanners together with Long-legged Buzzards and a Black Kite.
After 2 hours or so we departed on the 1,000km drive to Dakhla. En route a brief stop at Oued Chebika produced 2 Caspian Terns and 1,000 Audouin’s Gulls. By early afternoon we reached Khnifiss Lagoon and set about the task of locating Cape Gulls. Despite the light and the tide being against us we eventually found 4 individuals. There were also 350 Audouin’s Gull, a Slender-billed Gull, and a Caspian Tern. SP also had a Red-throated Pipit in the car park (he was guarding the car as one of the front electric windows failed and would not shut) whilst the rest of us marched a long way north in trying for a closer view of a Cape Gull.
At 16:00 we set off for the gruelling drive to Dakhla only stopping in Laayoune for dinner and a 400 Dirhams fine for speeding on the ring road. We eventually arrived in Dakhla at 02:30 and quickly checked into the first available hotel.

December 12th
After 3 hours sleep up at 05:30. The 540km round trip to the village cum NATO outpost of Aoussard in the extreme south-east corner of Western Sahara. After first light we noted Cream-coloured Coursers and Desert Wheatears as we headed to our first stop at Km58 post. This was our first site for Cricket Longtail but without success. However we did see a magnificent African Desert Warbler and 2 Hoopoe Larks. On to Km41 post. Jackpot! After initially giving us the run-around we had really close views of 8 birds. Another prize bird was a pair of Desert Sparrows. Added to this were a couple of Great Spotted Cuckoos and a pair of Brown-necked Ravens. On to between Km25 and Km24 posts which is actually named as Oued Jenna. Here we added a further 17 Cricket Longtails. This is a fabulous spot that will repay given even closer inspection than we gave it. CB spotted a fly-by African Rock Martin.
A total of 12 Black-crowned Sparrow-larks were logged, a family party of 10 Fulvous Babblers, another 3 Great Spotted Cuckoos and a White-crowned Black Wheatear were the highlights amongst others. On finally reaching Aoussard another 2 each of White-crowned Black Wheatear and Brown-necked Raven were seen. On the edge of the village was a lone tree with 2 Desert Sparrows getting some shade along with 2 Collared Doves. Being so far south we had hoped for them to be African Collared Doves, however, this was not be when we eventually heard them call.
We then retraced our steps back to Dakhla stopping off at Km100 post where there is a fortification on the north side. At least 15 Desert Sparrows were seen as well as a couple of Cream-coloured Coursers and a Hoopoe Lark. Between Km110 to Km112 posts we saw another 5 Cream-coloured Coursers and 6 Bar-tailed Desert Larks. The only disappointment on this road was our inability to locate any Dunn’s Larks which have been seen on previous expeditions.
We arrived back in Dakhla with very little petrol to spare. For the future I would suggest a diesel vehicle with a lower fuel consumption that would allow some exploration beyond Aoussard.
After a hearty dinner we retired for a well deserved full nights sleep.

December 13th
A short drive 18km out of Dakhla saw us at the edge of the incoming tide into Dakhla Bay. We could immediately see a large flock of loafing terns on the tide line. These proved to be 120 Caspian Terns with which were 12 Sandwich Terns and the prize of 9 Royal Terns. Out in the bay were numerous Greater Flamingos and a surprise in the form of 6 Little Terns (of the form guineae).
We set off on the long drive back north. It was only then in the light of day that we observed the carnage that is a daily occurrence on this road. We saw innumerable cars, trucks and even a coach that had come to grief, either rolled over and over in a crumpled heap, minus an axle or plenty with just punctures. Later on the mountainous section between Goulimine and Tiznit there was hardly a metre of safety barrier or wall that was left in tact. A stark reminder of the accidental happenings that occur on this road.
At 360km south of Laayoune we made an abrupt halt due to at least 3 Hoopoe Larks displaying on the road in front of us. How opportune, on getting out of the car AC turned round to exclaim PIED CROWS!!!!!! Wow, and there were 3 of them as well. A first for Morocco and only the 4th unequivocal record for The Western Palearctic, with an ancient record from Libya in 1931 and two more recent records from southern Algeria in 1961 and 1964. The birds were then observed and photographed extensively. Also seen were 2 Southern Grey Shrikes and single Cream-coloured Courser and Black Wheatear. By late afternoon we had reached Laayoune and stopped off at the road bridge over Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra. From here there was a variety of wading birds including a party of Little Stints, 100 Ruddy Shelduck and 80 Greater Flamingos. In the gathering gloom whilst trying to relocate a Black-necked Grebe amongst the Coots CB spotted 2 Crested Coot, with probably 5 and possibly more but unable to substantiate due to the deteriorating light conditions. Note Birds of Morocco (Thevenot et al) quotes previous December records for this site and also Khnifiss Lagoon. We then drove on another 100Km on to Tarfaya. We thought this the best logistical option despite being thoroughly un-recommended in all of the literature. It was like a film set out of a Clint Eastwood western. However all is not what it seems. I had read that the fish caught off the adjacent beach was very good. We parked outside the best looking restaurant and were served up camel tagines following by enormous double portions of fish and chips which were extremely good. It was here that we met the only English speaking person in Western Sahara who was a local journalist. He said that both hotels in town were very dirty and introduced us to an apartment for all of us for the night and even arranged for an 06:00 breakfast to be served at a nearby café next morning! His best advice, however, on learning of our speeding fine was to say that the best ’avoidance measure’ was to have a single 100 Dirham note in the driver’s wallet and exclaim you have no more money.

December 14th
After the 06:00 breakfast we set off once again for Khnifiss Lagoon. Our luck ran out just a kilometre before the turn off to the lagoon with a Mercedes car veering over the white line forcing us off the road we got a puncture that put an orange sized hole in the wall of the tyre and completely chewed up the alloy wheel. Worse still, the wheel nut spanner was too large! Eventually one of the few passing motorists stopped and gave us a hand with his wheel brace. On to the Lagoon, now with both the tide and the light in our favour. This time we had views of 8 Cape Gulls, some of which were paired up and displaying. Also seen were 2 each of Caspian Tern, Slender-billed Gull, Spoonbill and Osprey.
Our next stop was the coastal ridge midway between El Quatia (Tan Tan Plage) and Tan Tan. This had previously been a location for sightings of large eagles. However we had to content ourselves with exceptionally close views of a Lanner on a pylon. Driving on we passed the occasional Long-legged Buzzard and Black Wheatear with the 2 Lanners still at Oued Boukila and a lone Booted Eagle 13km north of Tiznit.
Well, of course we were bound to put last night’s conversation with the journalist to the acid test as we were again stopped by the diligent Moroccan police this time for exceeding 60 kph round a remote bend in the road. Well, despite all of the police effort to extract another 400 Dirham fine out of us, this ploy did indeed succeed, and we were let off for free!
Our last scheduled location was at Oued Massa, a very lush green compared to the arid desert of the last few days. Here we saw a flock of 20 Brown-throated Sand Martins. In the brief time available we also saw 40 Glossy Ibis overhead, Common Bulbuls, Laughing Doves, Spotless Starlings and an African Chaffinch.
On to the airport, en route we stopped by the road to watch 6 Magpies (of the form mauritanica) and later at least 6 Little Swifts at Inchaden. At the airport we were greeted with at least 500 Cattle Egrets going to roost and finally a few more Common Bulbuls and 6 Magpies (of the form mauritanica) in the car park.

Systematic List

Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis ruficollis
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 13.12.09

Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis nigricollis
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 13.12.09

Northern Gannet Morus bassanus bassanus
Khnifiss Lagoon : 2 – 14.12.09

Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo maroccanus

Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis ibis
Oued Massa : 20 – 14.12.09
Agadir Airport : 500 – 14.12.09

Little Egret Egretta garzetta garzetta
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 1 – 13.12.09

Grey Heron Ardea cinerea cinerea

Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus falcinellus
Oued Massa : 40 – 14.12.09

Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia leucorodia
Oued Chebika : 2 – 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 2 – 14.12.09

Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
Oued Chebika : 1 – 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09
Dakhla Bay : 180 – 13.12.09
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 80 – 13.12.09

Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 100 – 13.12.09

Shelduck Tadorna tadorna

Black Kite Milvus migrans migrans
Oued Boukila : 1 - 11.12.09

Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus aeruginosus/harterti
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 14.12.09

Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus nisus/punicus
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 11.12.09

Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus cirtensis
Oued Boukila : 1 - 11.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km58 : 1 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 1 – 12.12.09
Oued Boukila : 1 - 14.12.09

Booted Eagle Aquila pennata
13Km north of Tiznit : 1 – 14.12.09

Osprey Pandion haliaetus haliaetus
Oued Chebika : 1 – 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 2 – 14.12.09

Kestrel Falco tinnunculus tinnunculus

Lanner Falco biarmicus erlangeri
Oued Boukila : 2 - 11.12.09
Ridge midway between El Quatia and Tan Tan : 1 – 14.12.09
Oued Boukila : 2 - 14.12.09

Moorhen Gallinula chloropus chloropus

Coot Fulica atra atra

Crested Coot Fulica cristata
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 2 – 13.12.09 (see commentary)

Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus ostralegus

Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus himantopus
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 150 – 13.12.09

Avocet Recurvirosta avocetta
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 20 – 13.12.09

Stone Curlew Burhinus oedicnemus oedicnemus/saharae

Cream-coloured Courser Cursorius cursor cursor
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km100 (fortification on north side of road) : 2 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km110 to Km112 : 5 – 12.12.09
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 1 – 13.12.09

Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius curonicus
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 13.12.09

Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula hiaticula/tundrae
Ridge midway between El Quatia and Tan Tan : 1 – 11.12.09

Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus alexandrinus
Ridge midway between El Quatia and Tan Tan : 1 – 11.12.09

Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola

Knot Calidris canutus canutus/islandica
Dakhla Bay : 13.12.09

Sanderling Calidris alba

Little Stint Calidris minuta
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 10+ - 13.12.09

Dunlin Calidris alpina alpina/schinzii/arctica

Ruff Philomachus pugnax
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 13.12.09

Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa limosa/islandica
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09

Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica lapponica

Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus phaeopus
Khnifiss Lagoon : 11.12.09

Curlew Numenius arquata arquata

Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 2 – 13.12.09

Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus
Oued Saquiat Al-Hamra – Laayoune : 13.12.09

Greenshank Tringa nebularia
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 14.12.09

Redshank Tringa totanus totanus/robusta

Turnstone Arenaria interpres interpres

Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 11.12.09
Dakhla Bay : 20 – 13.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 2 – 14.12.09

Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus

Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii
Oued Chebika : 1,000 – 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 350 – 11.12.09
Dakhla Bay : 1 – 13.12.09

Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus graellsii/intermedius

Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis atlantis?

Cape Gull Larus dominicanus vetula
Khnifiss Lagoon : 4 – 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 8 – 14.12.09

Little Tern Sternula albifrons guineae
Dakhla Bay : 6 – 13.12.09

Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia
Oued Chebika : 2 – 11.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 11.12.09
Dakhla Bay : 120 – 13.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 2 – 14.12.09

African Royal Tern Sterna maxima albididorsalis
Dakhla Bay : 9 – 13.12.09

Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis sandvicensis
Khnifiss Lagoon : 100 – 11.12.09
Dakhla Bay : 12 – 13.12.09
Khnifiss Lagoon : 2 – 14.12.09

Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto decaocto

Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis phoenicophila/senegalensis
Oued Massa : 4 – 14.12.09

Great Spotted Cuckoo Clamator glandarius glandarius
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 2 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 3 – 12.12.09

Little Owl Athene noctua glaux
South of Agadir Airport : 1 – 10.12.09

Little Swift Apus affinis galilenjensis
Inchaden (c.30km south of Agadir) : 6 – 14.12.09

Black-crowned Sparrow-lark Eremopterix nigriceps albifrons
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km24 - Oued Jenna : 12 – 12.12.09

Bar-tailed Desert Lark Ammomanes cinctures arenicolor
Oued Boukila : 10 - 11.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km110 to Km112 : 6 – 12.12.09

Hoopoe Lark Alaemon alaudipes alaudipes
Oued Boukila : 1 - 11.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km58 : 2 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km100 (fortification on north side of road) : 1 – 12.12.09
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 3 – 13.12.09
Km100 north of Tan Tan : 3+ – 14.12.09

Short-toed Lark Calandrella brachydactyla brachydactyla/longipennis/rubiginosa
Oued Boukila : 1 - 11.12.09

Thekla Lark Galerida theklae erlangeri/ruficolor/aguirrei/superflua/carolinae
Oued Boukila : 25 - 11.12.09
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 1 – 13.12.09

Brown-throated Sand Martin Riparia paludicola mauritanica
Oued Massa : 20 – 14.12.09

African Rock Martin Ptyonoprogne fuligula presaharica
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 1 – 12.12.09

Swallow Hirundo rustica rustica
Aoussard : 3 – 12.12.09

House Martin Delichon urbicum urbicum
Oued Massa : 1 – 14.12.09

Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 11.12.09

Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea cinerea

White Wagtail Motacilla alba alba
Oued Boukila : 1 - 11.12.09

Common Bulbul Pycnonotus barbatus barbatus
Oued Massa : 3 – 14.12.09
Agadir Airport : 2 – 14.12.09

Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros gibraltariensis
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 11.12.09

Moussier's Redstart Phoenicurus moussieri
Oued Boukila : 5 - 11.12.09

Stonechat Saxicola torquatus rubicola
Oued Boukila : 5 - 11.12.09

Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe oenanthe
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 2 – 13.12.09

Desert Wheatear Oenanthe deserti homochroa
Khnifiss Lagoon : 1 – 11.12.09
Oued Boukila : 5 - 11.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 1 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 1 – 12.12.09

Red-rumped Wheatear Oenanthe moesta moesta
Oued Boukila : 2 - 11.12.09
Ridge midway between El Quatia and Tan Tan : 1 – 14.12.09

White-crowned Black Wheatear Oenanthe leucopyga leucopyga
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 1 – 12.12.09
Aoussard : 2 – 12.12.09

Black Wheatear Oenanthe leucura syenitica
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 4 – 13.12.09

Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius solitarius
Km46 south of Agadir : 1 – 14.12.09

Blackbird Turdus merula mauritanicus

Cricket Longtail Spiloptila clamans
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 8 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 14 – 12.12.09
With a further 3 at another location a total of 25 birds seen along this road.

Scrub Warbler Scotocerca inquieta theresae
Oued Boukila : 2 - 11.12.09

Spectacled Warbler Sylvia conspicillata conspicillata
Oued Boukila : 3 - 11.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 1 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 1 – 12.12.09

Subalpine Warbler Sylvia cantillans cantillans
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 1 – 12.12.09

Sardinian Warbler Sylvia melanocephala melanocephala
Oued Boukila : 2 - 11.12.09

African Desert Warbler Sylvia deserti
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km58 : 1 – 12.12.09

Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita collybita
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 4 – 13.12.09

Fulvous Babbler Turdoides fulvus maroccanus
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 10 – 12.12.09

Southern Grey Shrike Lanius meridionalis algieriensis/elegans
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 1 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km25 to Km 24 - Oued Jenna : 1 – 12.12.09
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 2 – 13.12.09

North African Blue-eared Magpie Pica pica mauritanica
Km46 south of Agadir : 6 – 14.12.09
Agadir Airport : 1 – 14.12.09

Pied Crow Corvus albus
Café Restaurant ChtouKan – Km360 south of Laayoune : 3 – 13.12.09

Brown-necked Raven Corvus ruficollis ruficollis
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 2 – 12.12.09
Aoussard : 2 – 12.12.09

Spotless Starling Sturnus unicolor
Oued Massa : 3 – 14.12.09

House Sparrow Passer domesticus domesticus/tingitanus

Desert Sparrow Passer simplex saharae
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km41 : 2 – 12.12.09
Aoussard : 2 – 12.12.09
Dakhla to Aoussard road, Km100 (fortification on north side of road) : 15 – 12.12.09

Afrian Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs africana
Oued Massa : 1 – 14.12.09

Serin Serinus serinus

Greenfinch Carduelis chloris aurantiiventris/chloris

Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis parva/carduelis/britannica

Trumpeter Finch Bucanetes githagineus zedlitzi
Oued Boukila : 10 - 11.12.09

Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra calandra
Oued Boukila : 2 - 11.12.09

Peter Gluth February 2010

Tanzania 2nd-10th June 2009

Where to go on my summer holiday? A tough choice with so many fantastic places available but as my non-birder daughter had agreed to go too the hunt was on!

Whilst browsing through a Travelsphere holiday brochure, I noted a Safari to Tanzania, covering most of the main parks with a good amount of time at the major ones. After doing a bit of a comparison to other holiday companies, which do not seem to offer the same range of sites, but are slightly cheaper I opted for the Travelsphere one. Even better, compared to a Naturetrek holiday visiting the same National Parks it was over a £1000 cheaper – an important consideration for a pensioner like me!

I knew my opportunities for birding would be more limited with non-birders for company but my daughter is keen on photography and with destinations such as the world renowned Ngorogoro Crater and the Serengeti Plains, how could we go wrong!

We flew from Manchester to Amsterdam and then on to Kilimanjaro airport near the bustling (to say the least) town of Arusha. We arrived late in the evening and all we could do was meet our fellow travellers – 18 of us in all, have dinner and then disappear to our lodges with the promise of our first game drive the next day.

The following morning we headed into Arusha to get some local currency. Much investment in Arusha has created a mix of the traditional way of life living side by side with suited businessmen and glass skyscrapers – not what you imagined somehow. Local street traders are quite persuasive trying to barter their wares whilst the markets are bustling and colourful. We then went on a visit to the Cultural Heritage Centre, which had the most incredible woodcarvings and Tanzanite gems on display. The rest of the first day (3rd June) was spent in Arusha National Park. A large flat crater had many Warthogs and Olive Baboons, a troop of Banded Mongoose, Waterbucks and 12 Giraffe. The forest held Blue Monkeys, Black and White Colobus Monkeys, and in an open area, Saddleback Stork and Crowned Crane.

Back then to Arumera River Lodge in Arusha for our second night. This was the first of many quite luxurious places we stayed in but it still retained a friendly, welcoming feel. At each lodge I was able to bird watch in the grounds before breakfast and even had a small stream teeming with birds and wildlife outside my balcony at one lodge.

On 4th, we journeyed to Tarangire National Park; this has open plains, scattered Acacias and many huge Baobab trees as well as being home to hundreds of Elephants, including cute bay calves. On game drives we saw many Zebra and Impala, several Ostrich, Rock Hyrax, Kirk’s Dik Dik (a tiny antelope), 450 Buffalo, our first Secretary bird, Lilac Breasted Rollers and 5 huge Ground Hornbills. We stayed at Tarangire Sopa Lodge on 5th.Whilst still in Tarangire we saw about 100 White Backed Vultures, 2 Maribou Stork, 1 Hammerkop, 100 more Buffalo and Superb Starlings.

Leaving the Park, we headed along a good tarmac road to Manyara Serena Lodge perched on the escarpment of the Great Rift Valley overlooking the huge Soda expanse of Lake Manyara. We had an afternoon game drive to the lake, which held thousands of Lesser Flamingos. A freshwater pool had 25 Hippos and birds included 300 Collared Pratincole, 20 Hadada Ibis, 10 Squacco Heron, 3 Goliath Heron, many Egyptian Geese, Knob Billed Duck, various Plovers and 2 Pied Kingfisher. The hippo lake gave us the chance to get out of the vehicles and stretch our legs but a tale of a tourist being attacked by a lion after wandering off kept us well within site of the vehicles! Sadly that day, we didn’t see a tree-climbing lion – something the park is famous for according to the guidebooks.

A night drive through the forest down to the lake that evening provided 200 or so Slender Tailed Nightjar, 2 Pearl Spotted Owlet, 2 Silvery Cheeked Hornbills, a pair of roosting Fish Eagles, Lesser and Greater Bush Babies, Crowned Plovers, 2 White Tailed Mongoose and a small Spotted Genet. About 30 hippos were grazing the grass and can put on a fair turn of speed! The sounds of the forest with no light pollution when the vehicle stopped were amazing.

On 6th by lunchtime we had reached Gibbs Coffee Plantation adjacent forested hills. The area has several plantations developed by the German settlers in the early 20th Century. A gentle stroll took in the plantations vast fields and a secluded waterfall. As the others walked ahead, I had a young bird guide and we soon dropped behind as I clocked up lifers. A Veraux’s Eagle soared overhead and I had my first Chameleon. After a lovely lunch – 3 courses were the norm in all the lodges! - we set off to the Ngorogoro Sopa Lodge perched 7,800 feet above sea level on the rim of the World’s largest complete Caldera (260 km square).

Louise went for a guided walk along the crater rim with some of the others, which afforded her views of Massai villages and herdsman bringing in their cattle and sheep for the night whilst I watched White Naped Ravens, Speckled Pigeons, Little Bee Eaters and Golden Winged and Tacazze Sunbirds close to the lodge with sunset over the Crater making for a spectacular view.

Waking to the sound of a distant lion roaring and buffalo roaming in front of the lodge windows made you know you were in for a good day. The three Toyota land cruisers in our group descended into the crater 2000 ft below. The crater is home to 25,000 large mammals and within 15 minutes of entering the crater, we started the day with a pride of 8 Lions at a Wildebeest kill interacting with Buffalo. Then came 70 Thompson’s Gazelle, Kori Bustards, Black Backed Jackals, big lone bull Elephants, Ostrichs, Crowned Cranes, more Lions, 3 Black Rhino, our first Cheetah, Eland, hundreds of Zebra and Wildebeest. A pool with 20 Hippo provided the backdrop for lunch with Sacred Ibis, Spur Winged Goose, tame Superb Starlings and Rufous Tailed Weavers. Later we say Hartebeest and Spotted Hyena. When one of our trucks broke down, Lake Nduto afforded closer views of hundreds of Lesser Flamingo, 1 Greater Flamingo, 20 Blacksmith’s Plover, a close Secretary Bird, 2 Kittlitz’s Plover and 2 Golden Jackals.

The following day after circling the crater rim we continued west on gravel roads. Louise took in an optional tour of a Massai village, which was a bit commercialised but did give an insight into how these people life in this environment. Meanwhile a few of us opted out and headed up to Olduvai Gorge and museum with the others following on later. This is well worth a visit - the site is rich in prehistoric history. It’s actually called Oldupai Gorge but the German who visited it and named it misheard the locals when they pronounced its name! The immediate area was very arid and the hoped for birds weren’t there – only Yellow Fronted Serin.

We then pressed on to the Serengeti National Park. En route to the Serengeti Sopa Lodge housed within the park we saw Batteleur Eagle, Ostrichs, Kori Bustards, Secretary Birds, 10 White Storks, 3 Tawny Eagles, many Grant’s and Thompson’s Gazelles and 15 Elephants with young. As we neared the lodge, we were treated to the sights and sounds – and dust! – of thousands of Wildebeest crossing in front of the vehicle. After lunch, we had an afternoon drive through the park, which is teeming with wildlife. As well as thousands of Wildebeest and Zebra, 80 Buffalo with attendant Yellow Billed Oxpeckers, Wattled Starlings and 1 Lappet Faced Vulture.

Later from my hotel balcony I estimated 9,000 Wildebeest in view although the population census is 1,250,000!!

Highlights from the following all day drive (9th) included 2 Leopards resting in sausage trees – one with a kill, numerous Giraffes, 30 Hippos, 11 Topi, Dwarf Mongoose, Nubian Woodpeckers, D’Arnaud’s Barbets, 2 White Headed Vultures, Fischer’s Lovebirds, 1 Crocodile, 11 Hartebeest, a tree climbing Lion – again in a sausage tree - and Elephants. Best of all was a female Cheetah with 4 full grown young. They were quite active and playful and it gave the opportunity to observe their behaviour with each other. Mum stalked a Reedbuck but gave it up as a bad job!

The final day we again had a 2-hour drive through the game packed plains with thousands of Wildebeest crossing our route and White Backed Vultures circling. We had a spectacular flight from the tiny airport in the middle of the Serengeti with great views of Ngorogoro and other volcanic craters including the only one still active in the area, Oldoingo Lengai. With some time to wait before our overnight flight back home we lunched and relaxed at the Arusha Coffee Lodge near Kilimanjaro Airport. Even here we had 6 White Helmet Shrikes, African Drongos, Red Headed Weaver and Ring Necked Dove.

In all I managed 38 mammal species (plus 2 bats) and an unimpressive 147 birds with 41 “lifers” – a spectacular trip and highly recommended.

Maurice Jones October 2009

Spitsbergen 22nd June-2nd July 2009

When my grandma passed away in 2005, my mum gave me a rather large sum of money from her estate. Not really knowing what to do with it, I put it away in a bond for a couple of years and let it gain some interest. When it matured in 2008, I decided to treat myself to the holiday of a lifetime. After some deliberation, I settled for an Arctic adventure. Last Christmas, there was a thread on Teletext's music page, Planet Sound, asking who could come up with the best parody of the song “Hallelujah”, as performed by the X-Factor winner. I sent a version something like this:-

“In summer I will have a trip, around Spitsbergen on a ship,
You need to wrap up, or the cold goes through yer,
They have some lovely wildlife there, like Little Auk and Polar Bear,
There's Walruses and Arctic Foxes, too, yeah,
Hallelujah!”

To my surprise, they actually printed it. Most people I know, when I told them about my holiday plans, had one question – where's Spitsbergen?! For anyone who doesn't know, it's the main island in the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard, to the north of Norway. Getting there involved flying to Oslo, staying overnight and then flying to Longyearbyen, the main settlement on Spitsbergen island. From Longyearbyen I would board the ship – a specially ice-strengthened vessel, originally built in Finland but now Russian-owned, the Akademik Shokalskiy.

My dad saw me off at Manchester Airport on the evening of 21st June. My flight was at 7.50pm, due in Oslo at 10.45 pm local time. Luckily I was staying at the Radisson SAS hotel, just across the road from Oslo Airport. By the time I'd collected my luggage and staggered into reception, it was 11.15 (and still light outside!). Once I was in my hotel room, I did my E.T. impression *-much to my dad's relief when I spoke.

I slept for about an hour that night – it was warm and I was very excited. After breakfast, I took my luggage down to reception and waited for the rest of the group. There was the leader, a guy from Cumbria and a couple from London. We made our way back to Oslo Airport for the flight to Longyearbyen. Due to my lack of sleep I drifted in and out of consciousness – but while I was awake the views of the mountains and fjords were amazing. None of us saw any blue parrots, though!

We arrived in Longyearbyen about 2 o'clock that afternoon and saw our first polar bear – a model in the middle of the baggage carousel! A coach took our luggage to the ship and as we were not due to board until 4 o'clock we did a spot of birding; in the bay there were 9 King Eiders, about 20 Barnacle Geese, 2 Glaucous Gulls, Kittiwake and Black Guillemot. In a field on the edge of the town there was an Arctic Skua and Svalbard's only passerine, Snow Bunting. Not a bad start.

To get to the ship, we had to board a little inflatable rubber boat, known as a zodiac, for which we had to wear life jackets. Once on board, we all had afternoon tea in the bar, followed by a lifeboat drill. Later that evening we were introduced to the ship's crew, before complimentary champagne and dinner. The Akademik Shokalskiy can carry up to 48 passengers, however there were only 35 on this trip in total. They were mainly British and American, with some from Germany, Holland and Denmark; there was even a French couple who were on their honeymoon!

*Phone home!
After dinner, we all tried out the waterproof boots and parkas which the cruise company would lend us (and which we would need for zodiac excursions). The latter had a fleece lining and a (bright yellow!) waterproof outer jacket. I'm not sure if that was so they couldn't lose any of us; I felt like I should've been clamping illegally parked vehicles!

23rd June

I was already up and about when the wake-up call came on the tannoy; I saw a Puffin on the sea and the first of many (blue phase) Fulmars flying past the ship. After breakfast, we had a lecture on how to dress/board the zodiacs. Firstly, a demonstration on what not to wear; one of the expedition crew, David, entered the lecture theatre in shorts, T-shirt, trainers and spraying an aerosol (the contents of which I couldn't identify) everywhere! Next, another crew member, Dr. Charles, came in, properly kitted out, in waterproof boots, waterproof trousers, the trademark yellow parka and a life jacket.

Our first trip today was to a site called Ny London, where, in the early 20th Century, Ernest Mansfield set up a marble mine. The hut and various pieces of rusty machinery still stand; however, when the marble was shipped south, it cracked and couldn't be used! The area was carpeted with flowers, including Arctic Mouse-Ear, Mountain Avens and Alpine and Purple Saxifrages. A Long-tailed Skua was on its nest; its mate landed on a wooden post by the marble mine. We also saw a Purple Sandpiper on the beach and a pair of Long-tailed Duck in the bay; the drake gave the call, which has been likened to “I'm going up!” On the hillside there was a Reindeer with a calf. The Svalbard race of Reindeer has shorter legs than its mainland relative.

In the afternoon we visited the 14th of July Glacier, where we cruised past cliffs and saw small parties of Puffins and Brunnich's Guillemots. A Glaucous Gull and a Barnacle Goose had nests on the same rock and a Black Guillemot sat on a tiny ice floe near the shore. A larger iceberg further out had about 100 Kittiwakes resting on it. On this overcast day, many of the icebergs looked pale blue rather than white.

After dinner the boat took us to the Lilliehook Glacier, where, from the top deck we had stunning views of the snow-covered mountains surrounding the fjord. 2 Bearded Seals were hauled out on the ice and about 10 Blue Fulmars flew over the boat. In addition to the hundreds of Brunnich's Guillemots on the water, a couple of Little Auks flew past – prelude to tomorrow, as we would be visiting one of their colonies......

24th June

In this country, sightings of Little Auks generally amount to birds whirring past over the sea at extreme range, or “wrecked” on land after storms, in which case, to put it tactfully, they're on their way out. The bird's influence, however, extends further than you think; it's even been immortalised in song by the rock 'n' roll revivalists Showaddywaddy.

When I went out onto the deck before breakfast, 10 Little Auks flew past – a ray of sunshine on this grey, drizzly morning. After breakfast, we took the zodiacs out to the the colony at Fuglesangen (Norwegian for birdsong!), which holds about 10000 pairs of these cute little birds. The path was steep and in some parts covered in deep snow; on more than one occasion I got stuck and had to be pulled out! On the way down I fell on a muddy patch – eat your heart out Glastonbury! Some of us also fell backwards on the snow coming down; that's one way to descend quickly, I guess!

Once there, we approached within 15-20 feet of the birds. They were very obliging, sitting up on the boulders, hopping and waddling towards one another. We even saw a few pairs doing, well, what comes naturally! Occasionally they would suddenly all take off and circle round the cliff, chattering all the time, before settling back on the rocks.

We stayed at the colony for about 90 minutes, during which time I took about 150 photos (including some of the auks doing “naughty” things!). I should mention that, not having my own camera, I borrowed a small digital one belonging to my dad. I'm no photography expert and I doubt I'll be entering the Bird Club competition any time soon but I was quite pleased with the way the pictures came out.

After lunch, the sun came out and from my cabin I saw a raft of 6 Brunnich's Guillemots. The sea was flat calm and we went for a zodiac cruise into the fjord at Hamiltonbukta. The Akademik Shokalskiy does several cruises during the brief Arctic summer; when the ship was in this area a week earlier, the fjord was still covered in ice. Much of it had now broken up. There were thousands of Kittiwakes and Brunnich's Guillemots flying around the cliffs; a few were also perched out on the ice floes. About halfway up the cliff, on a vegetated patch, was a Barnacle Goose nest. A small flock of Eider and a Bearded Seal were resting on what remained of the ice sheet. On the water there were about 15 Black Guillemots; we were able to get close enough to them to hear their whistling calls. During this zodiac cruise, we also saw 3 lots of Polar Bear tracks – but no bears!

The ship later moved into Raudfjorden – blazing a trail through the thin ice! That evening we passed the latitude of 80 degrees north – the furthest we would sail in that direction. The sea was very calm and we had a distant view of a seal on an ice floe. We drank vodka on the bow of the ship and when we crossed the line the captain sounded the horn! A Blue Fulmar then flew right overhead as if to gatecrash the celebration!

25th June

The ship was approaching Liefdefjorden, home of the glacier Monacobreen. Shortly after breakfast, an announcement came on the tannoy of a Polar Bear on a nearby island; I was in the bathroom and consequently missed it! As it was calm and sunny (the weather, not the bear!) we set out in the zodiacs. There were a lot of ice floes, one of which had a small group of Arctic Terns on it. We spotted a few things which looked like bears but turned out to be rocks! We were then rewarded with a very distant Polar Bear, which walked about 50-60 feet, then ran away. I should mention that, when we went out in the zodiacs, we couldn't land if there was a bear seen in the area. The leaders also had to carry rifles in order to scare away any bears that approached too close to us.

During this zodiac cruise we also saw 2 Red Phalaropes, as the Americans call them. It made a change to see these delightful birds in their bright red breeding dress rather than the grey and white winter garb in which they turn up in this country. They didn't stay very long, but we would encounter more during our voyage. We arrived in Monacobreen just before lunch. Mist was forming and the sea was carpeted with ice floes. The rest of the day was spent on the ship.

After lunch we saw 2 more Polar Bears on the ice, this time a mother and cub. One of the leaders set a telescope up on the top deck as the bears were quite distant. As I panned the 'scope to find them an Ivory Gull flew through my field of view! The visibility was becoming poor, however and the expedition staff took this chance to do some lectures. I attended one about the different seal species found in the Arctic. After birds, seals have to be my favourite animals – especially with those lovely round eyes.

26th June

Today we had an early start – a wake-up call at 5.15 a.m., ready to board the zodiacs at 5.45 and cruise round Alkefjellet (“Auk Fell”). There were thousands of Brunnich's Guillemots wheeling around the sheer cliffs; a few Glaucous Gulls were also patrolling the area. The rough sea and lack of sleep, however, proved too much for me. I had to lean over the side of the zodiac and do the obvious! From what I was later told, I wasn't the only one who was sick that morning.
When we arrived back at the ship I had a travel sickness pill and slept for a couple of hours. By this time the sea was a little calmer and I went out onto the deck, when an announcement was made of a Polar Bear sighting – which turned out to be a Reindeer! We went out in the zodiacs again, this time to Augustbukta, a polar desert with a shingle beach. We saw some Purple Saxifrage in bloom and some Polar Bear tracks in the snow.

There were half a dozen Arctic Terns fishing in the bay and a couple of Purple Sandpipers at the water's edge – and I alerted the group to an Ivory Gull flying along the shoreline! Many of you will remember the bird which showed up in Granny's Bay early in 2002. Not having a pager or (at the time) internet access, the first I knew of it was an article in the Blackpool Gazette. I went to look for the gull the following day; there were many birders there but it didn't show. To say that I was gutted would be the understatement of the decade! This sighting more than made up for my seasickness earlier today.

We spent the afternoon on the ship sailing past the east coast of Spitsbergen Island and past the world's 3rd largest ice cap, the Braskvellbreen. Another Ivory Gull flew past the bow of the ship. In the evening, the sun came out and we continued towards Kong Karls Land. We saw 2 more Ivory Gulls, also lots of Kittiwakes and 2 more Polar Bears. One of these was lying on an ice floe; it raised its head twice. The ice was only just beginning to break up here and we sailed very slowly through the night.

27 June

We stayed on the ship for most of the day, spending the morning sailing past the east coast of Edgeoya island. It was very bright and calm; there was a lot of ice but also a few patches of open water. We saw another half-dozen bears, including a couple of cubs, one of which rode on its mother's back, in the water!

After lunch, I uploaded my photos onto the ship's computer. All the passengers had been invited to put their best 10 pictures in; these would be included in a DVD which everyone would receive at the end of the voyage. I needed a lot of help with mine – I had no idea how to transfer the pictures into the appropriate folder. Also, which of my Little Auk photos would be in my 10 favourites? I joked with other passengers that my pictures included some “adult” content (see the write-up of the visit to Fugelsangen on the 24th)! The gift shop was also open, selling among other things, T-shirts, woolly hats and cuddly toy Polar Bears!

Late on in the afternoon, we had a zodiac cruise among the icebergs. They had many interesting formations, including one which was shaped a bit like a mushroom. An inquisitive seal (I think it may have been a Harp Seal) popped its head out of the water a few times before swimming under an ice floe, within a few feet of us. We found in ice sheet thick enough to stand on and took turns to photograph one another doing so. When we arrived back at the ship, there was the option of a “polar plunge” (a quick dip in the sea) before dinner. I was feeling cold enough already and decided to give it a miss!

28th June

Today was another sunny day. When I went out onto the deck before breakfast, I saw a Walrus on an ice floe – the first of 3 sightings during the day. We took to the zodiacs after breakfast for a cruise around Thousand Islands. Eiders, Black Guillemots, Arctic Terns and Little Auks were all out in force; the latter were wheeling around like Starlings! We came to a low-lying, rocky island. Near its shore were 3 Red Phalaropes and a Red-throated Diver. On the island itself was a Polar Bear; this one, however, wasn't in the best of health. It had a large scar on its left flank (possibly from another bear or a Walrus) and was seeking out birds' eggs among the rocks, while being dive-bombed by 2 Great Skuas.

We came back to the ship and I was halfway through a cup of hot chocolate when the expedition leader alerted everybody to another Walrus on an ice floe, straight out from the bow of the ship! This was a young male with fairly short tusks; we approached slowly and he didn't enter the water until we were almost on top of him! We had got closer to him than we would be able to approach Walruses on land.

In the afternoon, the crew continued with their programme of lectures, including one on skuas, gulls and terns, also one on interaction and learning in animals. The latter included a slide of a Polar Bear cuddling a Husky. After this, they showed the “Ice Worlds” programme, which was part of the 2006 TV series “Planet Earth”. This included footage of a Polar Bear in a Walrus colony, trying (unsuccessfully) to take one of the pups.

I went out onto the deck again before dinner and as I was watching Blue Fulmars glide alongside the boat, we sailed past yet another Walrus. This was another male and he had lost half his left tusk. As the expedition leader put it, though, that's what happens when you have to fight over the ladies!

After dinner, there was a quiz held in the bar, the prize being a free drink! The questions were all multiple choice, related to the things we had done and learnt on the voyage. Many of the questions had some silly choices, e.g. which settlement in Svalbard, set up by the Dutch, was known as “Blubber Town”? One of the options was the Shokalskiy dining room! The correct answer was a place called Smeerenburg, a 17th Century whaling station. My team (the “Nanuk Akademik Team 2009”) scored a respectable (though not enough to win) 19 out of 25.

29th June

Last night the ocean began to swell, causing me once again to be sick. While the others went out in the zodiacs I spent most of today in bed. When my travel sickness pills did nothing, the ship's doctor gave me a different batch and explained that if they didn't work, he could give me a needle, which would put me to sleep for about 6 hours. Luckily, he didn't need to resort to such drastic measures.

I woke up late in the afternoon and by 6.00pm, I was feeling hungry again! This evening there was an “Arctic Barbecue” on the bow of the ship. Being a vegetarian I was limited as to what I could sample, but I managed some corn-on-the-cob and a baked potato. Afterwards there was a zodiac cruise among the ice floes. The star of this overcast and drizzly evening was undoubtedly a Bearded Seal, which hauled out about 20 feet away! At one point, it entertained us by rolling on its side and raising its flipper – a trick to rival the Common Seal raising its head and hind flippers off the ground and making a “banana” shape!

Afterwards, the driver of the zodiac which I was in had trouble negotiating the floes and in the end, the ship had to come to us. Nevertheless, it was good to have been able to get out after having been confined to my cabin for much of the day. One guest told me that I hadn't missed any birds.

30th June

We had enjoyed some excellent weather on this trip but today we woke up to fog and drizzle! The day began with a tundra walk in Recherchefjord. As might be expected there were a lot of plants, including Polar Willow and Purple Saxifrage. We saw a Snow Bunting displaying and an Arctic Skua keeping a lookout from a mound of stones. On the water were small parties of Eider and Black Guillemot. There was also an old whaling hut on the shore.

After lunch we visited Bamsebu (“Home of the Bear”), another former whaling site. The rain had stopped by this time, although it was still very overcast. As we landed, 2 Red Phalaropes flew along the shoreline and 2 Purple Sandpipers were foraging among the shingle. On the beach lay the remains of up to 500 Beluga Whales which had been slaughtered in the 1920s and '30s; there was another wooden hut bearing the site's name.

This area also has an expanse of tundra, which a couple of the group got stuck trying to cross! Luckily the expedition staff were able to rescue them. We had an early start the next day so continued sailing that evening.

1st July

Our first outing today (at 5.45a.m.!) was to Poolepyneten, to see Walrus. We had hoped to land here, but couldn't do so, as the sea was too choppy! Those of us who were feeling brave boarded the zodiacs and sailed around the spit of land where they were hauled out. A morning at Rossall Point in January has nothing on the conditions we experienced today! There were 2 groups of Walrus, one of 4 and another of 8 or so. Some of them were lying on their backs, tusks in the air, oblivious to the biting wind.

After breakfast, we had another zodiac cruise, this time to Isfjord. The wind had dropped and the sea was much calmer. In the middle of the fjord were 2 rocky islets. One had a pair each of Great Skuas and Barnacle Geese and the other had Arctic Terns displaying. There was a flock of about 500 Eiders (mostly drakes) on the water. We had a short walk up a rocky slope, scanned over the fjord and the surrounding snow-covered mountains and took a minute to reflect on what we had seen and done over the past 8 days.

Our last landing of the day was at Alkehornet, a pyramid-like cliff with a boggy meadow at its base. Thousands of Brunnich's Guillemots and Kittiwakes were coming and going from the cliff, whilst on the tundra 3 Reindeer grazed, eventually coming within about 25 feet of us! We also saw 3 Arctic Foxes and a gaggle of 20 Barnacle Geese. Snow Bunting, Arctic Skua and Glaucous Gull all had nests in this area. As we were making our way back to the zodiacs, a skua was chasing one of the gulls.

That evening, after dinner and complimentary champagne, we were invited to watch the DVD, of which we would all receive a copy before leaving the ship, compiled from guests' photographs. I recognised a couple of mine – one of Purple Saxifrage and the other I had taken in Longyearbyen, of a red takeaway van with a cartoon Polar Bear on it, selling “kebab”, “hamburger”, “pommes frites” and “brus”! One guest had also made up his own slide show, which we watched in the bar afterwards.

2nd July

This morning we had to be off the ship at 8.00 as there was another group of passengers boarding that afternoon! A coach was ready to take us to our various destinations; some guests were staying in Longyearbyen and were dropped off at various hotels. Those of us who were catching the afternoon flight to Oslo were taken into the town square and would be picked up again at 12.30 and dropped off at the airport.

I went along the main road out of Longyearbyen, with the party I had travelled with initially. Although it was sunny it was quite cold. A lot of the bird life was concentrated around the husky kennels; it may be that the dogs' barking and howling deter Arctic Foxes. Most of the pools had at least one Purple Sandpiper and there were about 50 Eiders; some were still on eggs, while others had newly-hatched ducklings.

On the opposite side of the road from the kennels were nesting Arctic Terns, of which we had to run the gauntlet! We also saw Arctic Skua, Glaucous and Ivory Gull, 2 Long-tailed Ducks
and some rarities (for Svalbard, anyway!) -2 each of Dunlin, Ringed Plover and drake Teal. When we arrived at a famous sign (depicting a Polar Bear, with the wording “Applies to all of Spitsbergen”) we decided it was time to head back into town.

After lunch, we boarded the coach again to Longyearbyen Airport. The flight to Oslo called at Tromso, as did the Oslo-Longyearbyen flight. This time, however, it wasn't quite so straightforward; for some reason which I didn't catch, we all had to disembark at Tromso and go through Immigration Control, which we hadn't had to do on the way out.

In Longyearbyen that morning I had a long-sleeved T-shirt, a thin fleece and a waterproof coat. When we landed in Oslo I had to remove the last 2 items; the temperature there that evening, as announced on the plane, was 30C! This time, I was carrying on to London with the main group and staying overnight at the Heathrow Ibis, as there wasn't a flight to Manchester till the following day and this option was cheaper than an extra night in Oslo.

I arrived at the Ibis hotel about 10.00p.m and caught a few hours' sleep before returning to Heathrow Airport the next morning for the flight to Manchester, where I was again met by my dad. As we made our way to the railway station, Manchester was living up to its reputation of “The Rainy City”! When we got home, I had a lot of unpacking to do and 2 weeks' worth of mail to sort. Nonetheless, I now have over 1100 pictures, a DVD, a certificate – and lots of happy memories!
I nearly forgot! Those of you who have drawn a blank on Showaddywaddy's homage to the inhabitants of Fuglesangen – I'm sure many of you will remember the song....”Let's go for a Little Auk.....under the moon of love!”

La Palma, Canary Islands May 2008

Over the last couple of years I have done a fair amount of birding in the Canaries. In February 2006 I went to Fuerteventura (with day trips to La Gomera and the islet of Los Lobos), details are on the club website and included a Spanish national rarity as well as some quality local endemics such as Canary Islands Chat and Houbara Bustard. Last autumn I went to Tenerife, with a day on La Gomera, and saw several more endemics including Canary, Canary Islands Chiff Chaff, Tenerife Kinglet and above all Bolle’s and Laurel Pigeon. Last month I took advantage of new direct flights from Manchester to spend a week on La Palma, which is one of the two westernmost islands along with the smaller El Hierro.

La Palma has no Canary endemic species which I had not seen elsewhere, though the excellent views of Laurel Pigeon I obtained at the iconic Los Tilos site were infinitely better than those I had on Tenerife. There are two island endemic subspecies however, palmae Chaffinch and palmensis African Blue Tit both of which have whitish bellies among their most distinctive ID features and both of which were found without too much difficulty in any wooded area.

Another notable ornithological feature of La Palma is that it is the only one of the Canary Islands that has a population of Choughs of the North African race barbarus. A couple of these were seen within an hour of arriving in our resort of Los Cancajos, and during the week flocks of up to 60 were seen in a variety of habitats around the island. The locals are so proud of their Choughs that they are used as a symbol of identity on car stickers and road signs. It feels rather strange to spend a week on an island where all of several hundred corvids seen were Choughs other than a single Raven.

The apartment we were allocated had a sea view, so I did some seawatching from the balcony most evenings before dinner. This was very productive with flocks of up to 320 Cory’s Shearwaters in view at one time, up to 27 Little Shearwaters and dolphins of a couple of species on most nights. The highlight though in island terms was during north easterly winds one evening where a pale phase Arctic Skua headed purposefully north, according to Tony Clarke’s ‘Birds of the Atlantic Islands’ there had been no records from the island when it was published in 2004.

There are four main sites for birding highlighted in the guides for the Canaries other than the laurel forest area. One of these, the airport pools, appears to have largely disappeared during work to extend the terminal building. The Laguna de Barlovento, a concrete banked reservoir, is the largest area of freshwater on the island. In two visits it held up to 300 Yellow-legged Gulls but little else. The reservoir at Puntagorda is much smaller and could probably be passed over in a short visit, wwe gave it a go and had a Greenshank. There were no waders on the saltpans at Fuencaliente, but other trip reports showed that if we had been earlier in the spring we would have had some success here.

Butterflies were much in evidence during the good weather we enjoyed. These included the endemic subspecies of the Canary Islands Brimstone, which was widespread in laurel forest areas. Whilst the number of bird species seen was low even by Canaries standards, there was plenty of interest to fill a week and the scenery was on a par with anything on Tenerife or the eastern islands. In particular the seawatching was very enjoyable and the chance to get extensive field experience of Little Shearwaters was very welcome.

Stephen Dunstan June 2008

South Atlantic Odyssey 2007

I first became interested in travelling to the South Atlantic in 1998 when I made enquiries with Curnow Shipping Limited to travel to South Africa on the Royal Mail ship, RMS St Helena. This ship sailed from Cardiff (now from Portland) calling at Tenerife, Ascension Island, St Helena and Cape Town. Return journey by air to Heathrow. If anyone is interested in this then you will need to do it soon as there is talk of an airport being built on St Helena by 2010 when the RMS ST Helena is being withdrawn from service. You can do the trip in reverse calling at St Helena, Ascension Island, Banjul in The Gambia, Vigo in NW Spain and Portland.

In the end I didn’t go, but put the thought of doing so on the back-burner. Come forward 5 years and my interested was rekindled on reading the September 2003 issue of Birdwatch magazine. An article by Hadoram Shirihai entitled Pelagic Odyssey whetted my appetite no end and I resolved to undertake the same trip when possible. On the 8/6/05 I sent my deposit to Wildwings for the 2007 Atlantic Odyssey voyage, the 2006 trip already being fully booked up.

Much correspondence and preparation ensued before the big day finally arrived. On the 2/3/07 I left home at 03.00hrs and arrived at Gatwick at 07.30. Here I joined up with 12 other birders including Tim Cleeves the Wildwings tour leader. The England cricket team were also there, on their way to the World one day series in the West Indies. I recognised the Captain Michael Vaughan and spinner Monty Panesar – pity they didn’t perform. We left Gatwick at 11.20 and arrived at Madrid at 13.40. We were due to leave Madrid at 22.05, not at all satisfactory and made worse by the flight being put back to 23.30. We arrived at Buenos Aires on the 3/3 at 07.30 after an 11.5 hour flight with good leg room but poor meals. Thinking the worst was now over, with our onward flight to Ushuaia due to depart at 8.50am, I couldn’t have been further from the truth. To cut a very long story short one of my bags went AWOL which I was finally re-united with 6 weeks later, and our flight finally left at 16.50 arriving at Ushuaia at 21.50. Some journey but of course completely dwarfed by the 29 days at sea it was going to take us to reach Ascension Island.

The 4/3 saw a trip to the Tierra del Fuego National Park marred by dismal, overcast conditions. Nevertheless we got off to a great start with 2 Magellanic Woodpeckers flying over, bringing the bus to a sudden halt. We were lucky as one of them landed on a broken tree trunk, out in the open, providing us with some good digital images. This massive black and white pecker with a full red head is some serious bird and one of our target species. A Black-chested Buzzard eagle perched close by gave even better views. The passerines too put on a good show with the smartest being the Thorn-tailed Rayaditos. Good numbers of Patagonian Sierra-finches and Black-chinned Siskins were supported by lesser numbers of Fire-eyed Doucans, Grey-flanked and Bar-winged Cinclodes, Austral Parakeet and single White-throated Treerunner, Magallenic Tapaculo and one of the world’s largest kingfishers, Ringed Kingfisher. A group of Rufous-chested Dotterels on the shore, a party of Southern Lapwings and some displaying Great Grebes, not forgetting Flightless Steamer Duck together with several other duck/goose species made for a good day. Alas with the rain continuing to fall we had to make do without the magnificent Andean Condor, a major disappointment.

Monday the 5/3 was a wasted day queueing at Aerolineas offices for news of my ‘lost’ baggage and exchanging Argentinian currency ( as compensation for inconvenience ) into American dollars. Shopping for toiletries, clothing and essential missing item replacements took up a large part of the day and I was grateful for the help of Tim and Gerry Richards a much travelled Aussie birder. Wellingtons were almost impossible to find and I ended up with a garish yellow pair with as much tread as a nail file. Because of this I missed out on Chimango, Crested and White-throated Caracaras, Turkey Vulture and 60+ White-rumped Sandpipers. By late afternoon we had joined the ship and at 18.00 hours the Professor Molchanov began to move off down the Beagle channel heading for the open ocean. As we moved down the channel our only Magellanic Diving- petrel of the trip was seen. Commoner were Black-browed Albatrosses, Southern Giant Petrels and Sooty Shearwaters and I was able to catch up with Dolphin Gull.

For the technically minded the Professor Molchanov is an ex-research vessel from the Hydrometeorology Institute in Murmansk, Russia. She was built in 1983, in Finland, and was designed as an ice strengthened ship. She measures 236 feet in length, and 42 feet across the beam. She draws 15 feet which enables her to move into relatively shallow waters, has a displacement of 2,140 tonnes and cruises at around 12 knots. On this expedition she had a crew of 20 Russian officers, sailors, engineers and service personnel on board, and 50 passengers including support staff. About half the passengers were with ‘Wildwings’ some having joined at Buenos Aires and others at Ushuaia. Altogether including the Russians there were 14 different nationalities on board.

The official welcoming briefing was followed by a mandatory safety and lifeboat drill. The two lifeboats seated 40 people in each and were totally enclosed and described as unsinkable. They had enough diesel for 24 hours constant running, and enough survival food for 3 days. I have to say you would not want to be claustrophobic. Having recently seen the MV Explorer sink I was surprised to see their lifeboats were of the open type, and thought that had they been in the same sea state as we experienced in the Bransfield Straits, I would have feared greatly for their safety.

The 6/3, my passport to benefits birthday, was to be a day to remember or forget depending on your point of view. With a wind force 9 from the southwest, a sea swell of 8 metres, moderate visibility and air temperature 40 C many of us were sea sick, myself included. The Drake passage was living up to its reputation. Birdwatching was chiefly confined to the bridge but sea-washed windows were a hindrance. This poor weather was to haunt us for the following two days but luckily I had found my sea-legs by the following day. Sightings today included the first Wandering Albatrosses, the only Southern Royal Albatross of the trip, our first Light-mantled Sooty Albatross and first Antarctic Fulmar. Also seen were a variety of petrels including Southern and Northern Giant, Soft-plumaged, Cape, several difficult to identify diving petrels and Wilson’s and Black-bellied Storm Petrels. Two Hourglass Dolphins were seen but unfortunately not by me. I retired to bed at 8.00pm without dinner and without attending the log. It’s fair to say I felt rough.

My fellow cabin mate Dirk van der Wal from the Netherlands was not a birder but a traveller. Indeed his claim to fame was that he had visited every sovereign nation in the world, the last being East Timor. I guess he was now continuing with islands, an impossible task. We had been lucky in that we had booked one of the two three-berthed cabins and the remaining berth had not been taken up. Just as well, as there wasn’t enough room to swing the proverbial cat around and the extra bunk gave us some additional storage space.

The following day the 7/3 gave much better visibility, but with a rather heavy swell, and the wind against us. Most of the same species as yesterday were present. In addition our first Grey-headed Albatrosses appeared today along with over 500 Antarctic Prions shadowing the ship giving close up views, but the swell made photography difficult. 3 Blue Petrels and an Atlantic Petrel were also firsts for the trip. 10 Fin Whales were seen but the 8 Hourglass Dolphins must have been seen when I retired for a coffee for this proved to be a bogey species for me. Having said that, many of the recorded cetaceans were seen by only a few people each time, owing to their unpredictability and distance. Debates began over the difficulty of identifying prions and diving petrels and these lively discussions were to last for many days. Anyone thinking of going to Antarctica would do well to focus on these species to which I would also add the skuas. I ate all three meals today, and my belated birthday cake, which the chef had prepared the previous day.

The third morning in the Drake 8/3 did not bring any relief with strong winds and heavy swells pounding the ship as we approached King George Island – the northern most island in the South Shetland Group. We had intended to land on Penguin Island but as the wind picked up to gale force strength yet again, we were forced to head further south to the large Admiralty Bay where a number of countries have research stations. Here at last the sea conditions calmed down and it was great to see our first penguins, Gentoo and Chinstrap ‘porpoising’ beside the ship while others bulleted their way through the icy water leaving their own ‘vapour’ trails as they propelled themselves on to land. Good numbers of Cape petrels stiffened their wings like fulmars and showed off their striking, though smudgy wing patterning. 4 Antarctic Terns, squat, compact, energetic little fellows came close and an Arctic tern was also claimed. Our first Snowy Sheathbill flew across the bow and up to 10 Antarctic Fulmars were seen, not forgetting 40+ blond naped South Polar Skuas seen at close quarters. As we left the shelter of Admiralty bay our first White-chinned Petrel of the trip was seen and as we approached Bransfield strait we recorded our first Antarctic Shag. Tim said the only issue to consider was is this a form/race/sub-species of Imperial shag or is it a true species in its own right. Bloody certain I didn’t know.

Overnight passage through the Bransfield strait was very rough and it took a long time to get to sleep. I felt like my whole body was moving up and down through my skin, as the ship moved from side to side. Weird, uncomfortable and unfortunately not the only time this was to be experienced.

The next morning 9/3 began with the best possible start. We were now heading into the Antarctic Sound with no wind, good visibility, overcast but with spells of sunshine breaking through, the first we had seen since leaving Ushuaia. Many tabular icebergs lay in line like battleships in formation. We cruised in between them, ploughing through a porridge of ice-floes to reach Brown Bluff, where we were to land on the seventh continent. Just before breakfast a young Emperor penguin was called out and the ship manoeuvred carefully towards it. It did not move, and as we got closer until we were looking right down on the bird, we could see that it had a gaping wound around its left leg no doubt inflicted by a Leopard seal. As the day passed by we were to experience 3 more Juvenile emperors, all fit and well.

The fastest breakfast ever, soon saw me back on deck where the Antarctic scenery was staggeringly beautiful and beyond my pen to do it justice. Such haunting beauty was a life enriching experience as anyone who has been there will testify.

The ice-floes and ice-bergs offered a multitude of life. All the likely species of Antarctic Seals were present: numerous Crabeater Seals, a few Leopard Seals and the occasional Weddell Seal were all hauled out on the ice as we passed by. Adelie Penguins along with Gentoos were scattered around while Antarctic Minke Whales were roaming the sound gorging on krill with their cavernous mouths. A small group of 4 engaged in a lot of social breaching showing algae stained under-bellies and a neat short curved fin. A Lesser Snow Petrel put in an appearance to the relief of many, for you do not want to leave without seeing this most beautiful of birds. We need not have worried as a further 5 were seen on this memorable day. Such a strange high pitched falcon like call and fluttering bat-like flight made this bird one of the top 5 of the trip for me.

Finally it was time to make our first landing, but not before Rinie our expedition leader went through the procedures concerning zodiac operations. Safety was paramount and I have to say I felt in good hands with this Russian crew who had hundreds of years experience between them. The temperature was -10C so no worse than a winter Knott End to Fluke Hall winter wader walk. Brown Bluff is named after the massive sandstone cliff towering over the beach, topped by ‘molar teeth’ like formations with the colour of a Crunchie bar. There were a lot of Gentoo’s to be found still moulting and even a few large chicks losing the last of their fluffy down. Only a solitary Adelie was still to be found on the beach where plenty of Antarctic Fur Seal bulls were loafing about. At the far end of the beach another penguin species was found, a solitary Chinstrap while nearby were Brown and Subantarctic Skuas. Snowy Sheathbill and Kelp Gulls were also present. As the temperature started to fall the zodiacs began a shuttle service back to the ship and a welcome lunch.

We were supposed to head for the Weddell sea in the afternoon but the Captain and Rinie decided that the risk of ending up in too much ice and becoming further delayed (the Drake passage had delayed us considerably) was too great. Instead we headed back where we came from seeing more of the same plus one special moment when an Emperor Penguin swam across our bows, while a Snow Petrel circled around us and a Dwarf Minke Whale played around the ship, surfacing only metres away from us. This was more than magic.

The next day the 10/3 will go down as one to forget if that is possible. I had been struck down the previous night with a mystery virus infection that laid me low for 24 hours, delirious and with dreadful diarrhoea. I tried to make it on deck, which I did but lasted only minutes before returning to my bunk. The ship’s doctor and Rinie’s wife the lovely Liliana did their best to help me but only time would make me feel better. We were travelling towards the South Orkney Islands and I am told we passed an iceberg estimated to be 5 miles long. Around the edge of the berg had been up to 80 Antarctic Petrels, a huge flock and this was the only day this species was seen. Also seen were 30+ Lesser Snow Petrels and over 50 Cape Petrels. Antarctic Fulmars had peaked with over 200 birds recorded and 3 Humpback Whales were seen. Bugger.

As it turned out 3 other people had also taken ill and Tim remained ill for the rest of the trip despite the doctor’s best efforts. He must have lost close on two stone by the time he flew back to England looking only a shadow of the man I had met at Gatwick. I note he is no longer leading the next or future Atlantic Odysseys that he had signed up for.

Feeling a little better today the 11/3 as we approached the British territory of the South Orkneys also claimed by Argentina and known as Orcadas. Most of the group chose to go ashore at the Argentinean base on Laurie Island but still recovering I thought better of it and chose to stay on the bridge. Anchored not far from shore I was able to make out several Elephant Seals on land, amidst lots of Antarctic Fur Seals. Once again it was overcast but with good visibility and an air temperature of -10C, but fairly calm with little swell. With everybody back on board and lunch taken, we steamed out of Scotia bay heading north between Laurie island and Powell island and once again west to get a look at the largest island of the group Coronation island. The sleeping giant icebergs took on all shapes and sizes. Some were, jagged, pointed, others smooth and streamlined. I saw one that resembled a huge bedouin tent, another shaped like an igloo. Some were gleaming white while others dirty grey. Perhaps the most spectacular took on an aquamarine colour as though they had been subject to a litmus paper test. These frozen wonders bejewel the icy waters and were to enthral us for some days to come.

Heading north to South Georgia we set a new day record for us of 100+ Black-bellied Storm Petrels and also disturbed a flock of c. 300 South Georgia Shags, another taxonomic puzzle as P. georgianus is in the same super group as Antarctic Shag and might well be an Imperial Shag. Confused, I was. Moving further away from the South Orkneys we stretched our vision and were treated to some distant whale sightings of 2 Sperm and one Southern Right, apparently unusual in these waters.

The next day 12/3 saw a return to a rougher sea state with the ship rocking and rolling along in a force 6 and the temperature still at -10 C. That said, albatross sightings increased, with Black-browed’s recovering to 30 and our first Wandering Albatross for 5 days. Light-mantled Sooty Albatross, another top 5 bird, increased to a new high of 10 and a solitary Grey-headed also showed. We had not seen any Soft-plumaged Petrels since the rough weather in the Drake so a single bird today was great as were 2 Kerguelen Petrels of which more about later. Blue Petrels numbered 10 and Antarctic Prions came back in abundance, buffeted about in the strong winds. Fifty White-chinned Petrels were also seen along with the more usual Cape and Giant Petrel, the latter looking quite evil as they creased their eyes against the wind.

The conditions on deck were atrocious and it was too cold and dangerous to be outside for any length of time, while the salt-caked forward windows on the bridge were a hindrance. Down in the bar, you never knew when the chairs, cups, food and people would go crashing about and it put paid (not for the first time) to the afternoon lecture on Sea-birds due to the less than stable slide-projector in the ever rolling seas. I was beginning to relate to William Whiting’s Royal Navy hymn ‘FOR THOSE IN PERIL ON THE SEA’. Beverages and bottled water were free of charge, but pouring out cups of coffee/tea was a delicate balancing act not always achieved. Spirits and beers you had to pay for, and when no one was in attendance were trusted to make an entry on a schedule as to what you had taken.
Today the keen photographers once again played their part in solving a difficult ID problem. Their images were crucial in separating 2 Sei Whales from the similar Fin Whale, as they had done with the equally difficult Dwarf Minke Whale. Everyone seemed to have a high-powered lens with many having brought their lap tops with them. Downloading was a daily exercise, perhaps twice daily for some, who would rattle images off with pre-defined multiple settings. Not having a lap top I stuck to deleting obvious crap from the several 2 GB memory cards I had brought with me. A single Orca, the only one of the trip was seen by one lucky person but I finally caught up with Hourglass Dolphin which was just as well as this was the last day they were to be seen. No sign of Tim all day.

The next day 13/3 saw us approaching South Georgia first sighted at about 11.45 still 50 miles away. As expected bird numbers and diversity increased as we drew closer. This rugged, mountainous, snow covered island, 106 miles long and up to 18 miles wide, was shrouded in cloud only slowly revealing its majesty. Huge swarms of reddish-brown patches of krill abounded as we drew nearer to the continental shelf of this fantastic island. Two more penguin species were logged with some 40 Macaronis and 10 Kings. Black-browed Albatrosses exceeded 100 birds but the Giant Petrels were causing concern as the younger birds in particular were difficult to separate into Southern/Northern hence over 50 being designated as ‘sp’. The white-phase Southern’s of course presented no such difficulty. Over 5,000 Antarctic Prions were logged whereas the first Fairy Prions totalled just 5. White-chinned Petrel and Black-bellied Storm Petrel both exceeded 100 and this was our best day for Blue Petrel with over 20 recorded. 5 Albatross species were seen including an early Sooty Albatross.

Emerging from the depths was a dead ‘nematine’ or giant sea worm which can grow to several metres long. Unlike most dead marine creatures which sink to the ocean floor, they do the opposite and float to the surface. As we approached the southern tip of the island we finally turned into the Drygalski fjord for a ships ‘cruise’. It was a spectacular sail into the calm turquoise waters of the fjord, surrounded by jagged snow covered mountain peaks, and only falling short of the Risting Glacier by a few hundred metres. Here many Antarctic Terns and Wilson’s Storm Petrels were feeding at the edge of the glacier as the glacial melting creates an upwelling of nutrients and therefore a high abundance of food for the birds. Slowly we returned and once again headed for the open sea. Grytviken was our next destination and a slow sail would take us there by morning.

However we were not yet done with the 13/3 as after dark a number of diving petrels were attracted to the ship’s lights. We were able to examine 4 South Georgian Diving Petrels in the hand. Some characters I was told - including leg colour - however did not match up with the text in Shirihai (2002) so more work needs to be done on this difficult group. Also found on deck were several Antarctic Prions which were released the following day.

The next day at 06.30 we headed into East Cumberland bay towards the anchorage at the old whaling station of Grytviken. I think most of us were to spend the morning reflecting on the exploitation and scale of the whale processing that had taken place here between 1904 – 1964. We landed close to the small graveyard where we paid our respects to Sir Ernest Shackleton. Shackleton’s explorations are well known but travelling in these waters made you appreciate the enormity of his incredible story, his leadership and heroic efforts in achieving what he did.
From the graveyard we made our way past many Antarctic Fur Seals young and old and very inquisitive. We however gave a wide berth to the 3 Southern Elephant Seals loafing nearby and resembling massive garden slugs or even Jabba the Hutt. Beyond the seals, the Norwegian whaling station lay rusting away, with three whale-hunting hulks beached on the shore. Most of the buildings had been removed in the interests of safety, laying bare the great machinery they had once housed. The place was a living memorial to the whales which had perished in such huge numbers and you could not help but be moved by it all. I made my way through snow flurries to the small white church at the back of the deserted settlement and was touched by the numerous tributes found inside including one to ‘Nan Brown – An Antarctic housewife 1954-57. Selfless unto death. She enriched so many lives. She loved this Antarctic island and rests here for eternity.’ I pondered on what sort of a life it must have been and felt humbled.

From there I visited the museum which was attractively laid out, full of interest and manned by helpful staff. I bought a few souvenirs before walking on to Shackleton’s memorial at the entrance to the bay which had been erected by his comrades. Along the way I passed more Fur Seals, some small groups of King Penguins, Kelp Gulls and saw a few of the attractive South Georgia Pintails. These ducks are unusual, if not unique, in that they are carnivores, eating carrion from dead penguins. It was good to see some green vegetation at last. Tussock grass, ferns, wild flowers and lichens brightened up the sunlit views and together with the smell of seaweed perked me up from the morning’s solemnity. A Light-mantled Sooty Albatross flew right over my head lifting my spirits even further.

The afternoon saw us on our way to the second stop of the day at Fortuna bay a little further to the west. With albatrosses, petrels and penguins always in sight we landed in wintry weather close to hundreds of fur seals and close on 1,000 Gentoo Penguins along the shore and in the sea. I wandered along the beach where up to 20 Light-mantled Sooty Albatrosses patrolled the cliff sides. Some were in tandem, displaying as only they can on their long narrow pencil thin wings, so flexible so manoeuvrable, appearing stiff then almost floppy as they arch under the bodyline. Made for air currents they cut their way forward effortlessly, dreamily, floating on air as only seabirds can with their biometrically made to measure wings enhancing their performance. I could have watched them all day as they wheeled in figure of eight patterns no more than inches apart. I was in heaven. This state of bliss was to continue in the days ahead.

I walked back along the pebbly beach, on to the shingle and made my way to the King penguin colony estimated to hold 7,000 pairs. Some birds were still incubating eggs, and some were brooding small young, while the large brown fluffy juveniles, looking like woolly bears, were waiting their moult. King Penguins are oh so curious and confiding, as if wanting to be handed something, while their comical flipper balancing gait never fails to amuse. Not so amusing were the Southern Giant Petrels on the look out for easy pickings.

50+ Reindeer did not look out of place here. They had been introduced by the Norwegians between 1911-25 for sport and as a diet supplement for the whale meat. Towards the end of the landing news broke that Rinie had found some Light-mantled Sooty Albatross nests. They were nesting amongst the tussock grass, no higher than 30 feet on the side of hillocks. I managed a few images and felt immensely privileged to see this magnificent bird at such close quarters. The sky was constantly changing and the surrounding jagged peaks looked unclimbable, but I suppose man’s intrusion had only come recently and the albatrosses had chosen to continue nesting where they had always done. It had been an unforgettable day in one way or another but there was still plenty more excitement and spectacle to come.

The next day 15/3 at 08.00 saw us approaching Salisbury Plain in the Bay of Isles. Air temp was 10 C with high cloud and some sunshine, good visibility and occasional snow showers. The main aim here was to see the King Penguins at one of their most impressive rookeries and we were not disappointed. The scenery was breathtaking and fitting to hold an estimated 150,000 – 200,000 of the second largest penguin in the world. We landed in excellent sea state about a kilometre from the hill side where an estimated 60,000 pairs plus their young were gathered in the rookery and on the plain below, with thousands more along the sea shore. We wandered at will for the best part of 4 hours, constantly entertained by the antics of the penguins and capturing their every move. Their prehistoric webbed feet seemed at odds with their soft shoe shuffle. Sitting down often brought curious, fearless, Kings right up close pecking at your rucksack and anything else you may have left lying about.

It was also a great place to observe the large number of fur seals. South Georgia is probably the most important breeding ground in the world for this seal species, where at least 4 million spend the summer. At this time of year the fur seals remaining are small pups born this year, now playing around the beaches before leaving the bay. A few females with slightly younger pups, still suckling, were also present. Most males had returned to the open sea. They made easy and pleasing subjects to photograph. Brown Skuas feeding on seal carcasses and penguin eggs were also easy to photograph.

Just beyond the rookery in shallow pools in the tussock grass we came across some more South Georgia Pintails, 10 in total. As I was watching them a Giant Petrel flew over me, perhaps 10 feet above. Had it wanted to I felt sure it could have knocked me over.

We returned to the ship for another delicious lunch while the ship relocated and re-anchored ready for the second landing of the day. There are few places in the world where one is permitted close access to nesting Wandering Albatrosses and here we were at Prion Island to do just that. We had hardly set foot on shore when we saw the first of 7 South Georgia Pipits seen that day, affording great photographic opportunities as they searched among the rocky shoreline for food items. More Fur Seals, Giant Petrels and Gentoos were also present. Our group split up into smaller units of no more than the regulatory 11 per guide and made our way up the muddy, slippery gully to reach the plateau. It was good to see some of the Russian crew, including the waitresses also showing a genuine interest. The ground was covered with the remains of Antarctic Prions, presumably skua victims and we had to run the gauntlet of Fur Seals hidden in the tussock grass on either side.

The first breeding birds we saw were Southern Giant petrels. The almost fully grown young, waiting to be fed still wore downy plumage and their green-tipped tubenose looked enormous at close quarters. The Wandering Albatross race here is the ‘snowy’ albatross – Diomeda exulans exulans with a wingspan of 11 feet, truly magnificent birds. Several nests were brooding tiny downy chicks with proud parent. We watched in awe at the courtship displays of the younger birds known as ‘gamming’, where groups of 3 or 4 birds would spread their wings out to face each other, stretch their necks skyward and emit sounds like a donkey braying. Bills were vibrated and clattered with would-be partners or rivals. All this was set amongst glorious scenery and the criss-crossing of Light- mantled Sooty Albatrosses above us. Two hours never went quicker. Prion Island is now the only island in South Georgia where visitors are allowed to visit. It has been strictly monitored since 1995 when some 230 pairs nested on the island. Today only 190 or so pairs breed here and I think we all know why that is.

At 16.00 we were all back on board after another unforgettable day. With great memories and peace of mind we set off on our 1,400 nm journey north eastwards to Gough Island but not until we had celebrated our successful stop in South Georgia with hot Gluhwein in the bar. Dinner followed with spring rolls, then New Zealand Guinea fowl on a bed of sweet potato and asparagus tips, followed by Chocolate mousse. It would have to do.

The next day 16/3 started with snow showers and a layer of snow on deck. It was 10 C and overcast but later in the day it became sunny with excellent visibility. Massive icebergs were all around the ship but here they were far smoother in shape, owing to the warmer waters and the length of time they had been at sea since ‘calving ‘. Some looked like melting ice creams. Shapes included an inverted mug with handle, that from a different angle resembled an elephant’s head and trunk. It is what memories are made of. Sadly this was to be the last day that we saw these doomed monoliths.

Little bird life was seen in the morning but it picked up later with up to 250 Soft-plumaged Petrels, 40 White-chinned and our first Grey Petrel. Black-bellieds were still showing well but it was to be our last day for Blue Petrel and Southern Fulmar. Our first Sooty Shearwater for 9 days was a welcome sight as was our first of the trip Great Shearwaters which we were to see everyday for the next 9 days.

Cetaceans were seen by the lucky few, with six distant Fin Whales and a pod of 30-40 Long-finned Pilot Whales coming straight towards the ship at speed. I was told it was a brief encounter, all over in a minute and which I had missed by seconds on coming back on deck from having a coffee and muffin break. It is impossible to see everything but they would have been nice.

The 17/3 saw a welcome rise in temperature to 40C with following winds reaching near gale force and the sea swell up to 6 metres as we surfed the waves and made good speed. This was to be our last day for seeing Black-bellied Storm Petrels only to be replaced by its congener the White-bellied Storm Petrel of which we saw over 80 today. It was also our last day for Cape Petrel and Macaroni Penguin although we still had one more penguin to look forward to. Great Shearwaters with over 300 seen replaced the White-chinned Petrels with only 3 seen today. Wandering Albatrosses declined to 2 but Grey-headed’s increased to 7 and Soft-plumaged Petrels remained at a healthy 90 or so. A memorable vertical sighting was seeing a Soft-plumaged Petrel, above a Kerguelen Petrel, above a Great Shearwater all in line. Mind blowing.

An influx of 40 Kerguelen Petrels made compelling watching, for this bird ran a close second to the Light-mantled Sooty Albatross for me. They are medium sized petrels, slate grey in colour with silvery linings on their underside primaries when seen in sunlight. I could have watched their aerobatics all day. Some stayed with the ship for some time, often in front. They were just so marvellous to watch as they rocketed skyward with rapid wing beats, then stalling and shimmying as though correcting their flight before diving, roller-coaster fashion, sometimes. Their flight was incredibly fast and versatile, and I was never sure what they were going to do next. They were true masters of the air as they put on a show to remember.

The 18/3 saw damp and drizzly conditions with the air temperature rising to 60C. Today we saw our first sighting of the Tristan (Wandering) Albatross and one lucky individual saw the only White-headed Petrel of the odyssey. 3 Sooty Albatrosses together was a taster of things to come and other new birds included a Great-winged Petrel, a Spectacled Petrel, recently split from White-chinned Petrel and 10 Little Shearwaters of the southern race Puffinus assimilis elegans. My highlight of the day was seeing a Soft-plumaged Petrel chasing a Kerguelen Petrel with 2 Sooty Albatrosses to one side while in the foreground a Great Shearwater was chasing a Little Shearwater. Another unforgettable moment.

Grey Petrels increased to 50 and Sooty Shearwaters reached their trip peak with 30 sightings. Cetaceans were largely absent today but a pod of 4 whales close to the ship sparked a lot of interest. However with very brief views, and no pictures, ID remained inconclusive with the general consensus favouring Southern Bottlenose Whale, although some markings indicated another beaked whale, the very rare Shepard’s Beaked Whale.

The following day 19/3 saw our position at 08.00: 44014’S / 16055’W, 381 nautical miles from Gough Island. With the wind force only 2-3, and the temperature up to 90C it was a pleasant day on deck, and with new species continuing to appear, interest remained high. Among sightings of Sooty, Wandering and Black-browed came an albatross only seen twice, the Shy Albatross with its characteristic black ‘thumb marks’ on the white underwing at the join of the body. Today also saw my first Atlantic Petrels with about 30 being seen. Six of the tiny Grey-backed Storm Petrels were also seen today with 3 others being seen on separate dates. They did not stay with the ship and sadly I didn’t get a photo but they were cracking little birds. 5 equally attractive petrels, the White-faced Storm Petrel were also seen but not photographed. Our first Broad-billed Prions appeared today, confirmed once again by digital photography by examining the wide, duck-like black bill that can only be seen well from frontal views.

Marine life was once again thin on the water, with only a probable Sei Whale close to the ship in the morning and a few ‘blows’ from distant whales. A couple of Sub-antarctic Fur Seals was one of the first signs that we must be closing in on land.

The 20/3 saw temperatures continue to rise peaking at 140C. With a light wind, good visibility, scattered showers and sunshine our winter plumage was shed in favour of T-shirts as everybody enjoyed the warmer weather. Today we were finally to reach Gough Island after a distance of 1,377 nautical miles (1,584 land miles) from Prion Island. It had taken us 118 hours at an average speed of 11.66 knots per hour. It had been interesting poring over the nautical charts on the bridge each day, from where we could also e-mail back home the events of the day. Now we could see land again as the first ‘land ahoy’ call was made at a distance of 44 nautical miles away.

Another call was made by one of our keen cetacean watchers who homed in on two distant splashes claiming a Great White Shark through his image stabilising binoculars. The only known ’flying’ shark is the Great White, common enough around South Africa and not that far away, so who knows. It went in the log as such.

It took well over 4 hours before we reached Gough Island seeing more and more birds as we drew closer. Sooty Albatross numbers increased, with up to 200 being seen and I was in ecstasy with over 100 Kergulen Petrels to drool over. Soft-plumaged Petrels are no slouches in the speed stakes and with over 500 seen today our heads and bodies were constantly on the move. Atlantic Petrels peaked at 500, not too surprising as they are endemic to this island and the Tristan da Cunha group. With over 3,000 Broad-billed Prions, 2,000 Great Shearwaters, 55 Little Shearwaters, 50 Tristan Skuas, 400 Grey Petrels, 200 Southern Giant Petrels and our first Yellow-nosed Albatrosses it’s fair to say this was some day. With smaller numbers of many other species including 5 albatrosses, 3 petrels and 3 storm petrels our heads were spinning with delight. I particularly enjoyed watching the White-bellied Storm Petrels foot paddling and literally bouncing off the waters surface.

Gough Island is 65 square kms in size, rises to 910m and has cliffs up to a height of 460m in places. It is 425 km from Tristan da Cunha and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995. Many species breed here and few scientists have visited the island long enough to obtain accurate censuses, but an amazing overall figure of 20 million pairs of birds has been suggested.

It was not yet dark so it was decided to pay a visit to the Northern Rockhopper Penguins we could see below the cliffs, looking for the endemic Gough Moorhen and Gough Island Bunting at the same time. Landings are not allowed on the island but there is a manned South African weather station on top of the cliffs. Our zodiac drivers skilfully found a way through the kelp fringe surrounding the island and we duly ticked off the flightless moorhen and the walking bunting. 100’s of Sub-antarctic Fur Seals were also seen looking very different to their Antarctic cousins with their golden face and chest. The aptly named Rockhoppers with their long yellow floppy eyebrow plumes were a joy to watch as they hopped their way, feet together over the rocky coastline. It was time to call it a day and what a day it had been. Not quite over a Soft-plumaged Petrel was found on deck after dinner and eagerly photographed before being released.

The following morning we were woken up at 04.50 for an early morning zodiac cruise along the coast of this truly magical island. It was a perfect morning with calm seas and few clouds. The island oozed mystery, recalling Conan Doyle’s ‘Lost World’ or Spielberg’s ‘Jurassic Park’. It was a geologists dream and a birders delight. Numerous waterfalls cascaded over cliff edges. Extraordinary rock formations and a rainbow of colours bedazzled our senses. Ferns, tree ferns, sedges, mosses and Phylica a shrubby tree grew amongst the lush vegetation dominated by tussock grass and all the while Sooty and Yellow-nosed Albatrosses wheeled above us. Southern Elephant and Sub-antarctic Fur Seals were seen at very close quarters with the fur seals frequently brushing alongside our zodiacs as we came as close to shore as we were allowed. We meandered around stacks, islets and caves all home to nesting birds and grazing crabs. A visit was made to a rocky outcrop where a colony of Antarctic Terns with young were present. You could say that this is where the Antarctic meets the tropics as 4 Common Noddies were also seen.
Up to 7 Gough Moorhens and 20 Gough Buntings were seen plus prolonged views of the comical Northern Rockhopper penguins during our 2 1/2 hour early morning cruise. You could not have wished for a better start to the day but with stomachs rumbling, breakfast called and we made our way back to the ship. During breakfast the ship lifted anchor and headed north while some of the crew did some fishing to enable a spot of chumming to be carried out with a mixture of fish entrails and kitchen scraps.

As we left Gough Island behind, an onion bag full of ‘chum’ was dragged along behind the ship, soon attracting a large gathering of tubenoses. This was photography made easy with scores of Tristan Wandering Albatrosses, Yellow-nosed Albatrosses, Sooty Albatrosses, Great Shearwaters, Southern Giant Petrels, Spectacled Petrels, White-chinned Petrels, and White-bellied Storm Petrels following and alongside the ship. The net lasted for a while then after half an hour or so began to burst open allowing a free for all feeding frenzy to ensue. What a spectacle as we steamed NNW towards Tristan da Cunha reluctantly leaving Gough behind us. A group of about 20 Southern Right Whale Dolphins apparently common enough but rarely seen were claimed at some distance from the ship.

In the early morning of the 22/3 we arrived at the remotest inhabited place on earth, Tristan Da Cunha. It is roughly situated 1,500 miles west of Cape Town, 2,000 miles east of Buenos Aires, and 1,350 miles south of St Helena which is the nearest inhabited place. The huge volcanic cone of Tristan (6,760 feet high) was free of cloud and the ship was idling along after a calm night. What a sight as we made our way round to the only flat part of the island, a basalt plateau with the settlement of Edinburgh. Formalities completed we were given permission to land and at 09.00 we touched down on Tristan soil.

We had until 17.00 to explore the island. My first port of call was to the lava flow and volcanic cone that had caused the island to be evacuated in 1961. From there I made my way to the ‘famous’ potato patches or allotments as we would know them. Cattle and sheep were in the fields along the way and several Southern Painted Lady butterflies were seen, along with other insects and wildflowers such as daisies and hawkweeds. It was good to be able to finally stretch one’s legs on a decent walk and to talk to the ‘locals’ who were very friendly and helpful. The last of the potato harvest was being taken in, and as I chatted to one of the residents an Antarctic Tern took advantage by taking worms and other invertebrates from the disturbed soil. With no competition from passerines it was a niche open for them to exploit.

The only other species I saw all day were Yellow-nosed and Sooty Albatrosses high above the foothills of the volcano. A rodent eradication programme is badly needed if they are to see the return of the Tristan Thrush and Bunting and more nesting seabirds. I ambled back to Edinburgh and visited the small museum, the Post Office, the supermarket, various craft sellers and the bar where several South African beers were consumed while ‘Coronation Street ‘ was being shown on TV.

It was a relaxing day in pleasant temperatures and sunny skies as I continued to walk round the attractive settlement, stopping to watch the school children playing football and admiring the neat and tidy dwellings some still with corrugated roofs, although since the 2001 hurricane most have been fitted with galvanised replacements. However with a fragile population of around 270 and slowly decreasing I fear for their future as all the young folk seemed eager to leave. No doubt the ‘Internet’ has shown them what they are missing and they are keen to broaden their horizons. Indeed two of the young folk were travelling with us to Ascension Island bound for the Falklands where they had short term job offers as welders after earning the relevant certificates back in the UK in Birmingham.

Overnight we kept our anchorage outside Edinburgh but by early morning the conditions in the harbour were impossible so we were unable to pick up any local guides for our visit to Nightingale Island. However the islanders on Nightingale reported good conditions in one of only two landing sites there, and along with our two Tristanian’s Leon and Frankie on board, it was thought we would be able to land without extra personnel from Edinburgh. Wrong. The swells prevented us landing all day and we were forced to spend time cruising slowly around the inshore areas. We anchored on the lee side of the island in the hope that the swell might abate but it wasn’t to be.

At least it was a sunny day with temperatures rising to 200 C and uncountable numbers of Great Shearwaters to count, ending up as a tick in the log. 350 Great-winged Petrels were seen by the end of the day and our cruising also gave us good views of more Spectacled Petrels as well as over 200 White-bellied Storm Petrels. Although it was frustrating not to have landed on Nightingale there was still the next day for a second chance. In the evening our disappointment was tempered by a fine BBQ on the aft deck. Good food and beverages flowed as the music played in the warm Tristan evening.

The next morning 24/3 was a relief to all, as the conditions at Edinburgh had improved so much that the local guides could come aboard. We headed to Inaccessible Island and on arriving Rinie and the Tristanians took a scout zodiac to check out the conditions on the beach. The go ahead was given and a tricky landing followed with some people getting quite wet. It was worth it though as we were soon investigated by several curious tail-cocking Tristan Thrushes with their gold and black patterned underparts. Fearless they approached without caution inspecting us and our gear just as the King Penguins had done. Within minutes several Tristan Buntings also showed themselves in the tussock grass but the real prize was yet to come. Tim happy to be taking advantage of terra firma had brought a disc player ashore and played the squeaky calls of one of the ultimate ticks: the Inaccessible Island Flightless Rail, only to be found on this one small island. Although we could hear them responding we could not see them. We repositioned ourselves further along the pebbly beach soon to be rewarded with cries of ‘There’s one there’. They are the smallest flightless birds in the world, dark brown all over with red eyes, and a short decurved bill. They were rather like miniature Kiwis, with similar strange fur like feathers. Incredibly fast in the dense tussock they also proved difficult to photograph and I managed just a fuzzy image. With all three endemics seen, including 3 rails we made our way back quickly to the ship in order to attempt another landing at Nightingale Island. Incidentally this island is also the only known breeding place of the Spectacled Petrel, with an encouraging increase to about 20,000 birds at the last census.

Evacuation off the beach went without incident but the gangway on the ship was a different matter, proving very difficult on our return with one lady having to be hoisted on board by the ships crane whilst still in the zodiac. Another lady missed her footing and slipped into the water but was immediately rescued by the crew. In just over an hour we arrived at Nightingale Island and landed safely on the rocks below the steep path that would take us to where the Grosbeak Bunting another endemic might be seen. Only one lucky observer saw the bunting but the visit was immensely enjoyable with many more Tristan Thrushes and Tristan Buntings being seen.

Best of all was close encounters with fledgling Yellow-nosed Albatrosses, a real privilege and memories to treasure as we trespassed over their breeding grounds with their immaculate bowl shaped nests, small compared to those of the Wandering Albatross. Much wing exercising and bill clapping was going on, although they seemed unperturbed by our presence. Here too were numerous shearwater and petrel burrows and one of the Tristanian wardens retrieved for us one of the fluffiest of chicks you are ever likely to see, that of a Great Shearwater. Adult Great Shearwaters were walking ungainly down the hacked out path looking for some where to take off from, while others arrived with a thump on the ground. More decent views of Northern Rockhopper penguins brought to an end another brilliant day.
Just for the record Nightingale Island is approximately 1 square mile in size and is home to 250 pairs of Sooty albatrosses, 5,000 pairs of Yellow-nosed Albatrosses, 10,000 pairs of Broad-billed Prions , 10,000 pairs of White-faced Storm Petrels, 125,000 pairs of Northern Rockhopper Penguins, and 3,000,000 pairs of Great Shearwaters with smaller numbers of Common Noddies and Antarctic Terns.

Reaching Tristan shortly before dark we bid farewell to our guides and were soon heading off northwards on the next long leg of our journey (1,327 nm) to St Helena. As expected the next day saw sea-bird sightings beginning to tail off and one Tristan Albatross and one Sooty Albatross set the pattern for a quiet passage. Soft-plumaged Petrel numbers slumped to 5 and White-bellied Storm Petrels were down to 20 from the previous day’s total of 200. At least a few goggled-eyed Spectacled Petrels stayed with the ship and a new species was Leach’s Storm Petrel with up to 11 recorded. Tonight, those who were interested watched the first of four episodes of a French television drama called Napoleon as a taster to our visit to St Helena where he was exiled for a second time following his escape from Elba.
The next day 26/3 saw even fewer numbers of sea-birds with only 3 species seen today. The albatrosses had left us and we were down to 4 Spectacled Petrels and 1 White-bellied Storm Petrel, the last day we were to see either species. New for the Odyssey were 3 Bulwer’s Petrels, this stunningly shaped species a sight for tired eyes as we searched the ocean for signs of life. With their long pointed wings and long narrowing tail this all dark species save for a faint diagonal wing bar is a gem to see. Staying close to the ocean surface searching for prey its flight is unpredictable as it twists its body and zig-zags its way along. What a bird this would be to see in British waters, instead of having to travel to the Spanish and Portuguese Atlantic islands.

Frustratingly, a distant large pod of dolphins (50-100) remained unidentified. Even from digital images opinions differed between Pan-tropical Spotted Dolphins and Clymene Dolphins although both species may have been present. Much easier to be sure of was the appearance of hundreds of flying-fish leaping out of the water to escape the ship, with one landing on board hitting our chef on the leg. I saw a school of 60 or so together as they flew low over the water travelling some considerable distance. Clearly sea temperatures were rising, with the air temperature reaching 230 C today.

At 08.00 on March 27 we were still 635 nm from St Helena but the days now were pleasant on deck. Today saw the nadir of sightings with just two species all day. Bulwer’s Petrels increased to 7, and we saw 2 early morning sightings of Red-billed Tropicbirds, probably at the edge of their South Atlantic range. It was a day for inside lectures, a feature of every day and with a dearth of sightings better attended. The morning’s talk was entitled ‘St Helena- The Lost world’ but in the afternoon the talk was replaced by a surprise party as Lillian and Jason had prepared a great ice cream buffet including a couple of buckets (!) of Campari/orange juice and Pina Colada respectively. Walter the ship’s doctor once again played his accordion to add to the tropical atmosphere on deck and a good time was had by all. In the evening the third episode of Napoleon was screened.

The next day saw us closing in on St Helena with bird numbers increasing. Bulwer’s Petrels peaked at 20 offering lingering views of some, as they kept pace with the ship. Bloody marvellous. Leach’s Petrels came close and afforded comparison with one of their close congeners - Madeiran petrel with 10 and 3 seen respectively. These however were nothing like the Leach’s we see from the Fylde coast in Sept/Oct and you could be forgiven for mistaking them. Their upperparts were bleached out making them extraordinarily pale and buff coloured in appearance, particularly within the crescentic wing bar. Some distant petrels were logged as Storm petrel sp but a single Red-billed Tropicbird and a Brown Noddy posed no such problems. A Sperm Whale was seen breaching almost vertically far in the distance and a school of over 50 Striped dolphins were seen coming closer and closer to the ship before disappointingly veering away.

The 29/3 saw our run in to St Helena as it appeared on the horizon just after noon some 28nm away. With bird numbers picking up we once again recorded 20 Bulwer’s, plus 15 Leach’s and 10 Madeiran’s while a further 70 petrels remained unidentified. Over 50 Red-billed Tropicbirds with their seemingly endless tails were seen and our first boobies of the Odyssey when 10 Masked Boobies were logged. We made our way up the west coast of the island seeing spectacular red volcanic cliffs and glimpses of trees and grassy meadows at the top of sheltered gorge-like valleys. Brown and the smaller Black Noddies circled round the ship, and our arrival was heralded by the appearance of 20 Rough-toothed Dolphins which escorted us bow-riding towards Jamestown the main town of St Helena.

St Helena is a UK dependent territory and our second oldest colony (1659) after Bermuda (1609). It has an area of 121 Sq kms, roughly half the size of the Isle of Wight and rises to 2,700 feet at Diana’s Peak. The local economy is centred mainly on agriculture and fishing. There are some cottage industries and income also comes from honey production and tourism. Philately is a major income and information generator, but the island with a population of about 6,000 continues to rely heavily on British development aid.

After Customs and Immigration officials had cleared the ship we landed late afternoon by zodiac. We were soon seeing some of the island’s naturalised birds with a strange line-up of Java Sparrows, Zebra Doves, Madagascar Fodies, Common Waxbills, Yellow Canaries and Common Mynas. Some Fairy Terns were nesting on the cliffs that abutted the harbour wall. We had a few hours to spare before dinner and most of us took the time to explore the lower reaches of Jamestown, a place living in the past and none the worse for it. I decided against walking the 699 steps embedded into the cliff face and known locally as Jacobs ladder. Instead I roamed along Napoleon Street, visited the local library and museum and relaxed in the quaintness of it all.

In the evening most of us headed for a meal at a small restaurant on the waterfront while others had taken the remaining seats at Ann’s Place in the Castle Gardens which I later visited. Ann’s Place was hosting the annual get together with a concert of the Woman’s symphony orchestra of St Helena. Music and stand-up comedy by the compere the local Bishop! was a chance to see island life as it is. It was all so innocent and not of any great standard. I felt ashamed later at having poked fun at it, for it didn’t deserve it. I was not the only one to have done so. Afterwards the local bars and the Consulate hotel were visited and copious amounts of alcohol consumed. We returned to the ship at midnight passing Jacob’s ladder that was now illuminated like a stairway to the sky.

The next morning 30/3 saw a state of panic as following the early morning wake up call, another call was made that a Whale Shark was swimming around the ship. A mad rush of semi-dressed individuals made their way onto the deck to watch this largest of all fish move very slowly towards the stern of the ship only inches from the surface. It then swam up the starboard side before it repeated the circuit as if doing a lap of honour to the absolute delight of everyone on board. It looked huge and we estimated it to be 8 metres long, but the literature says they can grow up to 16 metres, so really just a medium sized one! Nevertheless what a start to the day and probably going down as the highlight of the Odyssey for some people.

This morning the passengers split into two groups with many going on a 3 hour island tour while the rest, me included, went to see the Wirebird (St Helena Plover) the only surviving endemic land bird, named because of its thin wire-like legs. Seven birds were seen very well and a recently hatched chick. From there we paid a visit to Longwood House where Napoleon was confined for the remaining six years of his life. The house and grounds are now French territory and they are in effect a museum containing some original furniture and some artefacts from Napoleon’s time. It was fascinating to reflect on how he might have spent his time there.

Returning back to Jamestown I asked to be dropped off about 2 miles short so that I could amble downhill and enjoy the countryside and suburbs. It was a delightful walk with temperatures in the low 20’s. On the way I passed the school and couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it was called Pilling Primary School, motto ‘Together as one’. The nearby hospital reminded me that one of our number had been suffering toothache on arriving in Argentina where she had had some dentistry done. It had helped, but every now and then it would flare up again. It was now much better but she had nevertheless arranged to see the local dentist here in Jamestown. Being a British citizen the advice given to her had cost nothing but had she chose to have had an extraction it would have cost her £1.10p. Fillings likewise cost £1.10p but a full set of dentures would have knocked you back £5. Now that’s what I call value for money.

The afternoon saw 17 of us join an inshore boat cruise on the Gannet 111 in search of dolphins and seabirds. With its friendly and experienced crew it didn’t take long before we caught up with a group of 50 or so Pan-tropical Spotted Dolphins making high leaps out of the water. Quite a few came close to our boat to ride the bow wave, as we endeavoured to take photographs. Then they left, charging forward like infantry with purpose. We caught up with them again and this time one or two Rough-toothed Dolphins were also seen. After spending a good 45 minutes engaging with them we headed south along the coast. Suddenly we saw an odd looking shape floating about on the sea. On drawing nearer it became clear that we were watching a mating pair of Green Turtles. How lucky was that, as they are rare in St Helena waters.

We carried on to our main objective that of Speery Island where the boat was tossed about in choppy waters making photography nigh on impossible. Here were nesting Fairy Terns, Red-billed Tropicbirds and Masked Boobies. 2 Sooty Terns were also seen and Black Noddies were on nests that looked like they were dripping candle wax, forming stalactite icicles. It was highly exhilarating hanging on for dear life with birds whizzing about here and there and not a hope of photographing them. Returning closer inshore we paid a visit to a rocky bay where many Black and Brown Noddies were roosting and where Madeiran Storm Petrels arrived late afternoon. We saw about 100 of these stocky, broad winged petrels some hanging in the wind over the rocky headland and others just flying around. They have a narrow pale crescentic bar on the upperwing and a very dark underwing. By the time we arrived back at the harbour we had been out for 4 hours in what had been an immensely enjoyable time.

Back on the ship we had a barbecue on a lovely warm evening. Mouth-watering salads complemented the delicious crayfish, spare ribs, spicy sausages, juicy beefburgers, chicken legs, and tender rib-eye steaks washed down with punch, beer, wine or soft drinks. At around 21.00 the Professor Molchanov heaved anchor and we regretfully left St Helena for our 680nm journey to Ascension Island. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed St Helena and as a walker would love to return to explore the island on foot. It probably won’t happen but I can dream, and if an airport is forthcoming it would be so much easier.

The 31/3 was a quiet, calm day with few birds and a very distant whale fin breaking the surface, species unknown. A Cory’s Shearwater was good to see having missed the two earlier ones. 15 Bulwer’s Petrels, 10 Madeiran and 5 Leach’s were identified with a further 12 indeterminate’s at a distance. 2 Red-billed Tropicbirds were also seen and the only Long-tailed Skua of the trip.

April Fools day did not pass without incident. When the ‘breakfast is served’ call was made at 06.40 instead of 08.15 quite a few were fooled including the Russian waitresses who thought they were late for work. Rinie was also optimistic when he announced Ascension was in sight – a mere 280nm away. At 08.00 the air temperature was rather warm at 260 C and another hot day was in prospect. As expected few birds were to be seen from the ship with 15 Leach’s overtaking the Madeiran total of 3. An Arctic Tern was seen and a very distant flock of over 500 terns were probably Sooty Terns. Other than that we had to be content with the numerous Flying fish that were seen throughout the day.

After dinner, at the log, an elaborate prank that had started the day before was revealed. A picture claimed to have been taken during the chumming session on 23/3 was chock full with birds, including what looked like a Black-capped Petrel. Peter Simpson showed a picture on his computer taken from a book of another Black-capped petrel which was remarkably similar to that shown the previous evening. Yes you’ve guessed it, it had been superimposed by another birder Laurence Pitcher who works for Photoshop in a professional capacity, showing just how impossible it is to trust photographs these days.

The next morning found us only a few miles from Ascension, a rather stark volcanic island, quite different in outline from St Helena. We chugged along slowly, escorted by a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins as we made our way to Boatswainbird Island. Once again we were to see a feast of nesting seabirds. All around us birds were coming and going with Masked and Brown Boobies diving into the sea harpoon-like with wings folded back. Hot spots where feeding frenzies were happening could be seen in the distance, where no doubt competition was fierce between Dolphins, Boobies, and Tuna. Black Noddies and Fairy Terns flirted with us and massive Ascension Island Frigatebirds flew sedately overhead. The foreplay was good but the climax was spectacular for when we dropped anchor a blizzard of birds lifted off the stack and speckled the sky, a truly wonderful sight.

This rock stack is the world HQ of the endemic Ascension Island Frigatebird with some 5,000 pairs and we were looking forward to zodiacing the sheltered side. We were not disappointed as we cruised alongside where every ledge, hole and cranny was taken by Black and Brown Noddies, Brown Boobies, Fairy Terns, Red-billed Tropicbirds and two new tropical species the White-tailed Tropicbird and Red-footed Booby. Thousands of Masked Boobies and Ascension frigatebirds occupied the top of the stack with many more wheeling around as cameras clicked and videos panned. Once again our bodies were contorted and necks stretched in order to get that perfect picture. Thousands of images were taken as we twisted our torsos in the rocking zodiac. A combination of half heads, half tails, just sky, just water, blurred images, over and under exposures ensued with now and again that satisfactory picture. Suddenly a few Bottlenose Dolphins appeared, staying around for a few minutes and also a small Manta Ray close to the surface which I was one of the lucky ones to see. It was a magical hour and a half and yet another great experience to stay in the memory for years to come. One of the lasting images in my mind is that of the sitting tropicbirds with their amazingly long tails.

From here we cruised along the coastline enjoying the view, marred only by the high-tech intrusions this strategically placed island has been subjected to. We anchored close to Georgetown near a large cargo ship and made an afternoon landing at the pier where we had to pull ourselves up by ropes on to the steps, similar to what we had to do in St Helena but a little trickier. The adjacent beaches had golden sands and were very inviting but the temperature was in the mid-thirties and there was nowhere to escape the suns rays. It was a Monday but almost nowhere was open with everyone at work. It was like a ghost town, but a spick and span ghost town with no litter and nothing to do. Three of the landbirds were seen around the environs: Yellow Canary, Common Myna, and Common Waxbill and the missing one Red-necked Francolin was seen the following day on Green Mountain. The Odsidian hotel was open, probably because it doubled up as a tourist information office from where I bought a touristy T-shirt. The only other place open was the Post Office where at sometime everyone visited, not just for postcards and stamps but because it had air conditioning.

We made our way back to the ship for an early dinner as we were to return to the island for a special evening excursion. On our return we were met by the Ascension Island Conservation staff and shown a short video on the life of the Green Turtle, before splitting into two groups and escorted to the ‘nursery’ sands at Long Beach. Here we were taken to see one of several huge female turtles depositing their sticky golf ball sized eggs into the pit she had excavated with her flippers. About 120 are laid into an egg chamber before she covers it with a couple of tons of sand. Recently over 70 turtles had been seen in one night. Some people returned early morning the next day to see the last adults returning seawards and to see some of the tiny hatchlings emerging.

Our last day before returning home was spent visiting Green Mountain, the peak of the old volcano and the highest point on Ascension at 2,800 ft high. A convoy of vehicles was at our disposal and I chose the wrong one! I could see the driver looking anxious and soon found out why when some distance short of the summit the radiator started to boil over. We were left to hike our way to the summit but luckily a passing islander took pity on us and took us as far as vehicles were allowed. From there in the cloud cover the temperature was much more agreeable and we explored the immediate area. Land crabs were quite common here where the mosaic of habitats included woodland, grassland and shrubland. I found several specimens of a Long-tailed Blue butterfly ssp, known by the locals including the conservation staff as the blue moth! It makes you wonder what else goes unidentified here.

After lunch we made our way to the Sooty tern colony at Wideawake Fairs, near Mars bay. The terns are known locally as ‘Wideawakes’ owing to their onomatopoeic calls. We were lucky because they have a 10 month breeding cycle and are not always present at this time of year. Various figures were given as to how many were present in a colony known to have reached about 75,000 pairs. With many birds continuing to arrive it was thought there were currently in the region of 30,000 pairs which was still an awesome sight. We stayed there for about an hour jockeying for position to get the best vantage point to photograph them. It was a fitting finale to a wonderful experience.

All that remained now was to get back to England. Our last meal was served onboard a few hours before disembarking the ship for the last time. At around 21.00 hours fond farewells were made accompanied by music from the doctor’s accordion. About half the passengers were staying with the ship for the last leg to the Cape Verde Islands, a further weeks cruising, but for the rest of us it was a long overnight wait at a local ‘pub’ and the military airport before flying back to RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. It had been a long unforgettable journey, with memories that will stay with me forever, and regardless of the inconveniences it had been very,very good.

From Ushuaia to Georgetown, Ascension Island we had travelled 5556nm, equivalent to 10,290 km or 6431 statute miles and during all that time I never saw another ship until the cargo ship anchored at Ascension. We saw 8 Penguins, 9 Albatrosses, 16 Petrels, 4 Prions, 4 Shearwaters, 7 Storm-Petrels, 2 Tropicbirds, 3 Boobies, 4 Shags, 1 Cormorant, 1 Frigatebird, 5 Skuas, 5 Terns and 2 Noddies not forgetting all the landbirds. In addition we saw 11 Whales, 7 Dolphins, 6 Seals and a South American Sea Lion as well as various other wildlife, most, but not all of which are mentioned in the main body of this report. And my five top birds, well in no particular order: Light-mantled Sooty Albatross, Kerguelen Petrel, Great Shearwater, Inaccessible Island Rail and Lesser Snow petrel.

Barry Dyson 2008

Mallorca 25 May – 1 June 2007

Due to having to go in half term this trip to Mallorca was outside the peak spring passage time. Details of the species likely to be of interest to British birders are included, in total 80 species were logged.

Although a couple of days were not given over to birding it was not too difficult to catch up with a number of the island’s specialities. The biggest disappointment was getting an ‘untickable view’ only of a presumed Balearic Woodchat Shrike from a moving car.

We stayed at Port d’Alcudia, which proved to be a perfectly good base. As well as being close to several key sites the birding in the resort itself was not bad at all. From our balcony we saw Eleonara’s Falcons most evenings, and there was clearly a flightline for herons and egrets presumably en route to and from Albufera.

One or two miscellaneous points:

- car thefts are still a problem at Cuber, park carefully or empty your car. We were targeted though fortunately lost nothing of value.
- Graham Hearl’s book is still an invaluable resource, but status of many species have changed since it was written.

Cory’s Shearwater – seen from the Formentor lighthouse and Cala Rajada

Shag (Mediterranean race) – seen without difficulty at coastal locations

Little Bittern – one seen at Albufera

Night Heron – seen overflying Port d’Alcudia, best views at Albuferata

Squacco Heron – seen at Albufera

Cattle Egret – regularly overflew Port d’Alcudia and many at Albufera

Purple Heron – seen from balcony at Port d’Alcudia, several Albufera

Black Stork – one seen at Cuber was something of a surprise, though apparently they have summered there in the past

Marbled Duck – seen at Albufera and Depuradora de s’Illot

Red-crested Pochard – many Albufera

Black Vulture – about four seen at Cuber

Eleonora’s Falcon – seen at Cuber, Albufera, Bocquer Valley and over Port d”Alcudia on most evenings

Purple Gallinlule – Albufera

Black-winged Stilt – ubiquitous at wetland sites

Kentish Plover – near Albuferata

Audouin’s Gull – easily seen on the beaches from Port d’Alcudia to Porto Pollensa, overflew the apartment most days

Gull-billed Tern – two Albufera

Whiskered Tern – several Albufera

Pallid Swift – seen at Formentor

Crag Martin – seen from viewpoints on the road to Formentor, at Formentor lighthouse and in the Bocquer Valley

Tanwy Pipit – Cuber near the dam

Iberian Yellow Wagtail – seen on the outskirts of Port d’Alcudia and at Salines de Lavante.

Blue Rock Thrush – seen in the Bocquer Valley only, at the far end of the valley near the cove

Fan-tailed Warbler – widespread, including on the outskirts of Port d’Alcudia

Moustached Warbler – Albufera

Great Reed Warbler – Albufera

Balearic Warbler – seen at viewpoints on the Formentor peninsula and in the Bocquer Valley

Sardinian Warbler – seen at several sites

Serin – common, including in the resort

Stephen Dunstan August 2007

Turkey 8th-20th July 2009

Participants
Peter Gluth, Stuart Piner, Robert Pocklington and Tom Westhead.

Original Plan
South Van Marshes, Van Hills, Serpmentas Lava Fields, Cizre, Nemrut Dagi, Birecik, Isikli, Durnalik, Adana, Demirkazik, Sultan Marshes, Karpinar Craters, Konya and Akseki.
We then added in Ataturk Baraji for Blue-cheeked Bee-eater and Kulu Golu for Lesser Flamingo.
I then decided to go ahead of the main party and reconnoitre the area between Van and Ishak Pasa. This proved to be a great success and time saver for the rest as I located precise sites for Grey-necked Bunting, Red-fronted Serin, Mongolian Trumpeter Finch, Crimson-winged Finch, Radde’s Accentor and Twite (of the form brevirostris).

Actual Itinerary
July 8th: Kantal, Istanbul.
July 9th: Van Hills.
July 10th: Ercis (river by military installation east of town), Bendimahi Marshes, Serpmentas Lava Fields, Soguksu, Tendurek Gecidi.
July 11th: Sim er Hotel Dogubayazit, Ishak Pasa, Hinterland of Ishak Pasa toward Iran.
July 12th: Somkaya, Tendurek Gecidi, Soguksu, Kazgol - Caldiran, Bendimahi Marshes.
July 13th: South Van Marshes and Fort, Bendimahi Marshes, Soguksu, Tendurek Gecidi.
July 14th: Van, Ishak Pasa, Somkaya, Soguksu Bendimahi Marshes, South Van Marshes, Ercek Golu, Tarmali Gecidi, Road to Cizre via Hakkari.
July 15th: River Tigris – Cizre, Euphrates crossing west of Siverek Nemrut Dagi.
July 16th: Adiyaman, Ataturk Baraji, Birecik Gravel Pits, Café Gulhane – Birecik, Ibis Wadi – Birecik, Isik Restaurant Wadi – Birecik, Café Gulhane – Birecik.
July 17th: Ibis Wadi – Birecik, Birecik Cliffs, Altinova Koyu – (Orchards 4km north of Birecik), Yaycalik Koyu, Isikli, Durnalik.
July 18th: Cimbar Bogazi – Demirkazik, Havutlu – (south of Adana), Tuzla Golu, Tabaklar – (Heronry on River Seyhan Nebri), River Seyhan Nebri up river back to Havutlu.
July 19th: Akgol – Goksu Delta, Aydinkisla near Bozkir, Akseki.
July 20th: Antalya.

Commentary

July 8th. Arrived at transit hotel in time for a local walk evening walk where saw 6 Alpine Swifts and 2 Laughing Doves.

July 9th. Internal flight from Istanbul to Van. Then collected hire car from Europcar. Off to Van Hills for Grey-necked Bunting etc. Spent most of the afternoon there without success. However did encounter 25 Finsch’s Wheatear, 6 Isabelline Wheatear, and a surprise Red-tailed wheatear sp. (I have only listed it as this as I did not, at the time realise that xanthoprymna had not been seen this far east and whether it could even have been a chrysopygia?). Also seen were singles of Egyptian Vulture, Booted Eagle (pale morph) plus a pair of Long-legged Buzzards with 2 dark morph juveniles. Additional species were 25 Rock Sparrow, 8 Western Rock Nuthatch, 4 Blue Rock Thrush, 18 Hoopoe (including 9 together on one rock) and at least 100 Armenian Gulls.

July 10th. A few kilometres east of Ercis there is a military installation between the road and Lake Van with a river flowing through. Here I found at least 15 Night Herons plus Roller, Bee-eater, 3 Calandra Larks and 2 Finsch’s Wheatear. Next stop was at Bendimahi Marshes which was excellent with 2 Purple Herons, 3 Squacco Herons and a Night Heron. Plenty of Armenian Gulls and 30 Slender-billed Gulls as well as 3 White-winged Black Terns, 4 Whiskered Terns and singles of Little and Gull-billed Tern. On Lake Van were at least 50 Black-necked Grebes and a White-headed Duck. A Black-bellied Sandgrouse on the dry mud gave excellent photo opportunities whilst in the village itself I found a Citrine Wagtail amongst the throng of White and Black-headed Wagtails. On to the lava fields at Serpmentas which were a huge disappointment, not a single bird of any species encountered! However in the hay meadows immediately prior to the lava field had much more success with 6 Finsch’s Wheatear, 2 Short-toed Lark, 2 Twite (of the form brevirostris), 4 Black-headed Bunting, a Snowfinch and 2 Eastern Olivaceous Warblers. Next was to explore the lava fields between Caldiran and Dogubayazit. First stop was at Soguksu. Go through village and 200 metres after the ‘village ends sign’ there is a drivable sandy track on the left back into the village. GPS: N 39.2561, E 44.0459. On the left of this is a stream and on the right a series of donkey paddocks culminating with the last two having donkey sheds to the rear. Here was a treat in store; 8 Mongolian Trumpeter Finches and 3 Red-fronted Serins gave crippling views. Added to this were a Rock Thrush, Ortolan Bunting and a Quail whilst overhead were a Hobby and a superb Lesser Spotted Eagle. At the top of the pass is Tendurek Gecidi at 2644 metres. Here another 4 Twite (of the form brevirostris), 3 Red-fronted Serins and 7 Rock Thrush’s were seen together with 9 Shorelark, 2 Snowfinch and an Alpine Accentor.

July 11th. Off up to Ishak Pasa where straight away connected with 7 Western Rock Nuthatch. On climbing up the hillside encountered Ortolan Bunting, Tawny Pipit, 2 each of Isabelline Wheatear and Red-fronted Serin before finally clinching an elusive singing Grey-necked Bunting with another on the way down. After this I decided to explore the very variable roads and tracks towards the Iranian border which I could see in the distance. Here I found at least 25 Shorelark, 2 Snowfinch, 2 Rock Thrush and 2 Tawny Pipits. Along the road where it was ‘gravely’ I saw 5 Bimaculated Larks and 2 Common Rosefinches. Definitely an area worth exploring more. See the sketch in Michael Grunwell’s report.

July 12th. Back to Tendurek Gecidi where as last time plus 3 Radde’s Accentor and 2 Crimson-winged Finch plus 7 Bimaculated Lark and 15 Black Redstarts. On to Soguksu again, this time with the addition of 3 Egyptian Vultures and a Long-legged Buzzard plus 4 Rock Sparrow, 2 Snowfinch and an Alpine Accentor. At Caldiran I decide to head west to find Kazgol, a lake with reported Marbled Duck seen. None of them, but at least 25 Black-headed Wagtails in the hay meadows. Also 3 Cranes, unfortunately not Demoiselle, 2 White Stork, at least 10 Quail, 8 Ruddy Shelduck, Tawny Pipit and 2 Little Ringed Plovers. Later a Hobby was seen with 2 dark morph juvenile Long-legged Buzzards. On the way back to Van a quick stop at 18:00 by the road side at Bendimahi Marshes gave me the good luck to see at least 500 Rose-coloured Starlings coming into roost. Also seen were 56 Slender-billed Gulls and 3 Gull-billed Terns.

July 13th. A few hours at South Van Marshes before going to the airport to meet up with the rest of the team. Here I saw 800 Slender-billed Gulls with numerous Armenian Gulls plus 53 White-winged Black Terns and a single Whiskered Tern. There were also 11 Ruddy Shelduck plus 10 each of Green & Common Sandpiper and Little Ringed and Kentish Plovers together with 2 singing Great Reed Warblers. At the fort were a Roller and 40 Alpine Swift. On teaming up with the others it was then ‘operation catch-up’. Back north to Bendimahi Marshes. Different to before were 12 Gull-billed Terns, 40 White-winged Black Terns, 3 White-headed Duck, 4 Squacco Heron and a Greenshank. At Soguksu all the goodies were still there to everybody’s relief with the extra bonus of a party of 4 Crimson-winged Finches. At Tendurek Gecidi again all were present and correct with now 8 Twite (of the form brevirostris) and another 2 Radde’s Accentor in a different place plus our first Chuckar.

July 14th. Dawn and up to Ishak Pasa. A big surprise was the first bird seen which was a Penduline Tit. We eventually saw 5 (a pair feeding 3 juveniles). Climbing up the slopes we saw 7 Rock Sparrow, 2 Blue Rock Thrush, Rock Bunting and a Tawny Pipit before becoming aware of the singing Grey-necked Bunting I had seen a few days earlier. We were then treated to the bird hopping around us and on nearby rocks singing its heart out. Magic. On the way down we saw another 2 Golden Eagles plus another and 2 Long-legged Buzzards on the way back to Van. A quick stop at Bendimahi Marshes produced a Curlew Sandpiper and now 8 White-headed Ducks. On to South Van Marshes where we eventually saw 3 Reed Buntings (of the form caspia) plus Bearded Tit, 2 Great Reed Warblers and a Glossy Ibis. We then went to Ercek Golu and the small marsh on the right of the road. Here we were delighted with 2 performing Moustached Warblers plus 2 Great Reed Warblers and a fine male Stonechat (of the form armenicus). On the main lake were 25 White-winged Black Terns and 125 Black-necked Grebes. This was followed by my personal logistical disaster. Despite pleas from others that going to Cizre (our next destination) via Tatvan would give the others the chance of large numbers of Rose-coloured Starlings I said that this route via Siirt and Sirnak had been advised against by many as full of military checkpoints. Also the very much longer alternative of going via Batman and Midyat would take hours and hours. My brilliant suggestion was to go via Hakkari and then along the Iraqi border to Cizre. A much shorter route and the chance of encountering something different. We certainly did. Ten hours and 20 terrifying military checkpoints later we finally emerged from what can only be described as an active ‘war zone’. Tanks, armoured personal carriers, machine gun nests, artillery, soldiers carrying rocket propelled grenades and hundreds of them at a time disappearing into the mountain side darkness on patrol plus the obstacle of unlit spiked road blocks. At times it appeared that even a wrong look or an accidental pressing of the accelerator pedal might get us all shot at!

July 15th. Nice to be birding again. Dawn on the bridge over the river Tigris. An amazing number of trucks were heading to either Syria or Iran. 4 Pied Kingfishers straight away but the traffic noise was too much so we headed off about 2 kilometres up river to where there are a number of gravel islands. We soon first saw one then two Red-wattled Plovers. They flew from the far side to give us fantastic flights views calling all the time and then alighted on the shore right in front of us. We also saw 22 Slender-billed Gulls, 2 Squacco Herons, a Peregrine and another Pied Kingfisher. Now elated we drove on to the ferry crossing over the River Euphrates to the west of Siverek. The ferry is just like a World War II landing craft. Excellent birding during the crossing with an Egyptian and 3 Griffon Vultures, 2 White and 3 Black Storks plus 50 Little Swifts along the cliffs. We then went on to Nemrut Dagi. There was an absolute feast of birds to see here; 10 White-throated Robin, 8 Eastern Rock Nuthatch and 2 Western, 3 Upcher’s Warbler, 5 Kurdistan Wheatear, 15 Woodchat Shrike, 2 Rufous Bush Chat, 20 Shorelark, 2 Finsch’s Wheatear, 3 Red-rumped Swallow, and singles of Rock Sparrow, Yellow-throated Sparrow, Cinereous Bunting, Ortolan Bunting, Snowfinch, Chukar, Eastern Olivaceous Warbler, Eastern Orphean Warbler and a very brief Olive-tree Warbler. Overhead first an Osprey then a Short-toed Eagle. On the very top we had to enduring a thunder storm with hail the size of marbles that actually hurt! On the way back we thought war really had started. At a quarry a kilometre or so away there was an explosion that knocked us all off our feet and scared us to death. That evening we found out that the location of hotels in Turkey are not exactly where they purport to be in their literature quoting a larger nearby town. This meant a somewhat expensive night in Adiyaman.

July 16th. Off to Atatuk Baragi for Blue-cheeked Bee-eater. This proved to be the major disappointment of the trip. Despite enumerable directions from various sources we were unable to locate the site despite over 2 hours of searching. We did see 15 Rollers in a sand pit to the north of the bridge on the west side together with a Pied Kingfisher and 6 Laughing Doves. We reluctantly, then set off for Birecik. First port of call was the gravel pits, which is a brilliant site for birding. We had good views of at least 5 Iraq Babblers together on a gravel track GPS: N 37.0491, E 37.9699 plus 6 Graceful Prinia, 5 Desert Finch, 3 Black Francolin, 6 Pygmy Cormorant and 2 Reed Warblers (of the form fuscus) all of which were new for the trip. Added to this we also saw, 3 Squacco Heron, 3 Night Heron, Little Bittern, 4 Roller, 3 Hoopoe, 8 Pied Kingfisher, Upcher’s Warbler and a Little Owl. We then departed for the shade of the Café Gulhane in central Birecik. The café owner and the locals were all impressively helpful in immediately showing us where the location of the Striated Scops Owls. We saw 4 juveniles all in a row. Absolutely superb. Double Pepsi Cola’s all round! We also saw 3 Long-eared Owls and heard just 1 Scops Owl. Mid afternoon saw us off to the Ibis Wadi. Too late, they had all been recaptured and interned in their large cage. We did however manage five brief views of See-see Partridge, including one running along the top of the wadi, plus 6 Eastern Olivaceous Warblers. We then went onto the wadi opposite the Isik Restaurant where we saw another See-see Partridge.

July 17th. A dawn visit to the cool Ibis Wadi produced birds as the day before as well as 6 Ménétries' Warbler, a Dead Sea Sparrow, Rufous Bush Chat and 4 Roller. On Birecik cliffs GPS: N 37.03858, E 37.98182 we observed 10 Little Swift and a Peregrine. We then drove 4 kms north to the orchards at Altinova Koyu. Here we saw another 8 Dead Sea Sparrows, 5 Rufous Bush Chat, 3 Yellow-throated Sparrow, a Ménétries' Warbler, 2 Syrian Woodpecker, Hoopoe and 2 Black-bellied Sandgrouse. We then travelled some 20 kms east to Yaycalik Koyu GPS: N 37.002788, E 38.151113 for a new site for See-see Partridge. We had no success with that species but we did see a large covey of 20 Chukar. We then returned westward to stop at Isikli. Here we had 3 Yellow-vented Bulbul plus 5 White-throated Robin, 2 Red-rumped Swallow and singles of Long-legged Buzzard, Woodchat Shrike, Sombre Tit, Cinereous Bunting and Eastern Black-eared Wheatear. A visit to nearby Durnalik was not producing anything so we set off for Dermirkazik.

July 18th. Up at 04:00 for the tractor ride as the land rover was in for repairs. We arrived at the meeting place to find no tractor, but we did hear a Nightjar churring. I suggested to Ali that we drive on ahead with the other three opting for the relative safety of the tractor drive. In twenty years of being a mountain guide and Snowcock host this was the first time that anybody had attempted to drive a standard car halfway up the mountain. He was most impressed. After a few cups of coffee the tractor eventually caught us up and we joined them for the bumpy but exhilarating drive up to the watch point. It was quite chilly with a lot of variable cloud drifting in and out. After a while the curlew like eerie calls of the snowcocks echoed across the mountain side. Then all of a sudden we had located one, then two, three and four all walking along to eventually arrive and sit on the skyline. What a thrill, magic, pure magic, we were watching Caspian Snowcocks! Whilst we were at the watch point we had great views of a Wallcreeper while lying on our backs looking vertically. On our slow walk back to the car we saw some 15 Chough, 3 Alpine Accentor, 2 Red-fronted Serin, 3 Rock Bunting, 5 Shorelark and singles of Snowfinch, Crimson-winged Finch and Western Rock Nuthatch. Overhead were a few Alpine Swifts and Crag Martins and a distant Golden Eagle. While tracking the eagle two of us managed to get onto a Lammergeier which unfortunately disappeared all too quickly. Further down we saw 2 Long-legged Buzzards and 6 Red-backed Shrikes. Much elated after our morning in the clouds we returned for a hearty breakfast with Ali. We then drove to Adana and the Tarsus Delta. We arrived at the well directed canal junction site near Havutlu. This is definitely the most unappealing birding site I have ever experienced. However for all that, we did see the target in the form of 3 White-breasted Kingfishers plus 2 each of Squacco Heron and Yellow-vented Bulbul. We next ventured south to Tuzla Golu, a large lake just inland from the Mediterranean. Birding here was terrific. Little Bittern, Squacco Heron, 150 Slender-billed Gulls, 50 Little Tern, 3 Black Tern, 15 Spur-winged Plover, 2 Stone Curlew, 150 Kentish Plover, 12 Little Stint, 5 Curlew Sandpiper and 3 Greenshank. On the land were Rufous Bush Chat, Spanish Sparrow, Great Reed Warbler, 2 Calandra Lark, 2 Graceful Prinia and overhead a Peregrine. We tried for another of my ‘shortcuts’ and headed west to find ourselves in the village of Tabaklar. We headed further west past a mosque to the River Seyhan Nebri where the road ran along the eastern side all the way back to Havutlu on the main Adana to Karatus road. As soon as we got to the river we encountered an enormous heronry. We were stuck for time and it was getting dark so we only stopped a few minutes. From our brief view in semi-darkness we could detect 100’s of Little Egrets, Squacco Herons and Night Herons with some Glossy Ibis also. There were most probably other species there as well. Certainly a site for next time. On the drive along the river we also encountered a feeding flock of at least 20 Collared Pratincoles, with another White-breasted Kingfisher on overhead wires and a hunting Barn Owl.

July 19th. A dawn start at the tower hide at Akgol GPS: N 36.29446, E 33.93293 (the road entrance is at GPS: N36.33387, E 33.89995) in the Goksu Delta. Here we saw our prize of 2 Grey-headed Swamp-hen. We also saw our only Cormorant, 5 Squacco Heron, a Purple Heron, 4 Penduline Tits, 2 Black-headed Wagtails and a Reed Warbler (of the form fuscus). We then drove inland towards Akseki, our final birding site. On the way at Aydinkisla near Bozkir we saw an Egyptian Vulture on an electricity pylon with 2 Isabelline Wheatears on adjacent wires and a nearby Lesser Grey Shrike. On arrival at Akseki we walked round the graveyard which produced at least 5 Masked Shrikes and 2 Syrian Woodpeckers with our only Blackcap. We then went to the walled plantation also mentioned in ‘Gosney’ where we found an Eastern Bonelli’s Warbler, 5 Sombre Tit, 8 Raven, a Spotted Flycatcher, 2 Long-legged Buzzards, Eastern Orphean Warbler, Middle Spotted Woodpecker and 3 Eastern Black-eared Wheatears. We finally went to the northern site located off the Akseki by-pass as mentioned in ‘Gosney’ and we found a single Krüper's Nuthatch but unfortunately no sign of any White-backed Woodpeckers.

July 20th. With the rest of the party departing in the early hours to London Gatwick this was to be my duding out day. Starting the morning with breakfast on the roof top terrace it seemed very hot. It just got hotter and hotter so I went into the sea to cool down until lunchtime. On finding a restaurant overlooking the cliffs and with a little sea breeze I enquired from the waiters, who all looked very distressed, what was the temperature. + 40 deg. C. I suggested. What about a record 52 deg. C.
Definitely time to go back into the sea! Final birds seen were 6 Yellow-vented Bulbul’s.

Literature and References
Gosney, D. Finding Birds Turkey: Ankara to Birecik.
Gosney, D. Finding Birds in Eastern Turkey.
Mullarney, K. et al. 2001. Collins Bird Guide.
Porter, R.F et al. 2007. Birds of the Middle East.
Chris Batty (2003).
Donaghy, N. Iraq Babbler – a new breeding bird for Turkey. Birding World vol. 19 no. 7 pages 283-284.
Michael Grunwell (2005)
Chris Lansdell (2007).
Occhiato, D. Nemrut Dagi, Adiyaman. Birding World vol. 14 no. 8 pages 343-344.
Klaus Malling Olsen (2005,2006,2007 and 2009).
Fraser Simpson (2008).
GeoCenter 1:800,000 Euromap of Turkey.

Flights
London Stansted to Istanbul Sabiha Gocken via Pegasus Airlines @ £119.00 (280.53TL)
Istanbul Sabiha Gocken to Van via Pegasus Airlines @ £37.75 (88.99TL)
Antalya to London Stansted via Cyprus Turkish Airlines @ £95.23 (213.85TL)

Rest of Party:
London Gatwick to Antalya with Thomas Cook @ £194.00 each return
Antalya to Van via Turkish Airlines @ £46.00 each
Antalya to London Gatwick

Car Hire
From and return to Van Airport for 4 days.
Renault Clio for £142.44 (301.00TL plus €21.19 deposit) booked via www.carrentals.co.uk
and supplied locally by Europcar.
Toyota Corolla on One Way hire from Van Airport to Antalya Airport for 7 days for £482.96 booked directly with Europcar. Note the electrical engine management system failed part way through and we had to change to a Ford Focus in Gaziantep. Europcar gave appalling service during this time.
Despite writing to their Customer Services Director personally, Europcar were completely indifferent to our complaints. As a result we would seriously advise all birders not to book car hire with this company.
Note: A Toyota Corolla is not suited for the terrain usually encountered by birders with a very low undercarriage!

Hotels
We would particularly recommended the Grand Onsar Hotel in Cizre, Hotel Horizont in Kizalesi 20km east of Silifke and the Ozmen Pansiyon in the Old Town part of Antalya.

Grand Merin Hotel, Kartal, Istanbul - (***) 94.50TL single (stop over near airport)
Hotel Grand Arsisa, Ercis, Van - (***) 70.00TL single HB
Sim-er Hotel, Dogubayazit - (***) 65.00TL single (x 2 nights)
Tusba Hotel, Edremit, Van - (***) 45.00TL single
Hotel Erdur Dogubayazit - (*) 75.00TL twin
Grand Onsar Hotel, Cizre - (***) 75.00TL twin
Hotel Grand Isias, Adiyaman - (****) 120.00TL twin
Mirkelam Motel, Birecik - (?*) €22.50 twin
Oz Safak Pansiyon, Demirkazik €55.00 per person HB including Snowcock trip.
Hotel Horizont,Kizalesi, Silifke -(***) 75.00TL twin
Ozmen Pansiyon, Antalya €25.00 single

Restaurants
We can recommend the following, both very good for fish and with superb locations.

Kiyi, Birecik - (overlooking River Euphrates)
Nesetin Yeri, Kahta - (overlooking Ataturk Lake)

Systematic List

1. Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus
Bendimahi Marshes : 20 – 10.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 8 – 12.07.09

2. Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis
Bendimahi Marshes : 50 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 10 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 10 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 125 – 14.07.09

3. Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis/capensis
Bendimahi Marshes : 6 – 10.07.09

4. Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 1 – 19.07.09

5. Pygmy Cormorant Phalacrocorax pygmeus
Birecik Gravel Pits : 6 – 16.07.09

6. Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus minutus
Birecik Gravel Pits : 1 – 16.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

7. Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax
Ercis : 15 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 3 – 16.07.09
Tabaklar (Heronry on banks of River Seyhan Nebri) : 000’s – 18.07.09

8. Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides
Bendimahi Marshes : 3 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 4 – 13.07.09
Cizre : 2 – 15.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 3 – 16.07.09
Havutlu : 2 – 18.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09
Tabaklar (Heronry on banks of River Seyhan Nebri) : 000’s – 18.07.09
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 5 – 19.07.09

9. Little Egret Egretta garzetta garzetta
South Van Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 5 – 13.07.09
Cizre : 1 – 15.07.09
Havutlu : 1 – 18.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 3 – 18.07.09
Tabaklar (Heronry on banks of River Seyhan Nebri) : 000’s – 18.07.09

10. Grey Heron Ardea cinerea cinerea

11. Purple Heron Ardea purpurea purpurea
Bendimahi Marshes : 2 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 12.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 1 – 19.07.09

12. White Stork Ciconia ciconia
Ercis : 2 – 10.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 2 – 12.07.09
Euphrates crossing west of Siverek : 2 – 15.07.09

13. Black Stork Ciconia nigra
Euphrates crossing west of Siverek : 3 – 15.07.09

14. Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus
South Van Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09
Tabaklar (Heronry on banks of River Seyhan Nebri) : ‘some’ – 18.07.09

15. Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferriginea
Van Hills : 2 - 09.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 8 – 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 11 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 3 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 7 – 14.07.09

16. Mallard Anas plathyrhynchos

17. Teal Anas crecca
Birecik Gravel Pits : 1 – 16.07.09

18. Pochard Aythya farina
Bendimahi Marshes : 100 – 10.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 10 – 12.07.09

19. Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula
Kazgol, Caldiran : 1 – 12.07.09

20. Ferruginous Duck Aythya ferruginea
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09

21. White-headed Duck Oxyuca leucocephala
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 3 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 8 – 14.07.09

22. Lammergeier Gypaetus barbatus barbatus
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

23. Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus fulvus
Euphrates crossing west of Siverek : 3 – 15.07.09

24. Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus percnopterus
Van Hills : 1 - 09.07.09
Soguksu : 3 – 12.07.09
Tarmali Gecidi : - 1 14.07.09
Euphrates crossing west of Siverek : 1 – 15.07.09
Aydinkisla, Bozkir : 2 – 19.07.09

25. Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos homeyeri
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 14.07.09
Somkaya : 1 – 14.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

26. Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina pomarina
Soguksu : 1 – 10.07.09

27. Short-toed Eagle Circaetus gallicus
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09

28. Booted Eagle Aquila pennatus
Van Hills : 1 - 09.07.09 (pale morph)

29. Black Kite Milvus migrans migrans
Sertavul Gecidi : 5 – 19.07.09

30. Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus aeruginosus
Bendimahi Marshes : 6 – 10.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 10.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 2 – 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09

31. Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinis rufinus
Van Hills : 4 - 09.07.09
Gulicar : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 12.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 13.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 2 – 13.07.09
Somkaya : 2 – 14.07.09
Isikli : 1 – 17.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 2 – 18.07.09
Akseki : 2 – 19.07.09

32. Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09

33. Kestrel Falco tinnunculus tinnunculus
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 14.07.09

34. Hobby Falco subbuteo subbuteo
Soguksu : 1 – 10.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 1 – 12.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 14.07.09
Hakkari to Cizre : 2 – 14.07.09

35. Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus brookei
Cizre : 1 – 15.07.09
Birecik Cliffs : 1 – 17.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

36. Caspian Snowcock Tetraogallus caspicus
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 4 – 18.07.09

37. Black Francolin Francolinus francolinus francolinus
Birecik Gravel Pits : 3 – 16.07.09

38. See-see Partridge Amnoperdix griseogularis
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 2+ – 16.07.09
Birecik, Isik Restaurant Wadi : 1 – 16.07.09

39. Chukar Alectoris chukar
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 13.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Yaycalik Koyu : 20 – 17.07.09

40. Quail Coturnix coturnix coturnix
Serpmentas : 1 – 10.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 3 – 11.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 10+ – 12.07.09

41. Water Rail Rallus aquaticus aquaticus

42. Moorhen Gallinalo chloropus chloropus
South Van Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09

43. Coot Fulica atra

44. Grey-headed Swamp-hen Porpohyrio porphyrio caspius
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 2 – 19.07.09

45. Common Crane Grus grus
Kazgol, Caldiran : 3 – 12.07.09

46. Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus saharae
Tuzla Golu : 2 – 18.07.09

47. Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus
South Van Marshes : 13 – 13.07.09

48. Avocet Recurviristra avosetta
Bendimahi Marshes : 400 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 400 – 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 250 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 400 – 13.07.09

49. Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus himantopus
Bendimahi Marshes : 150 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 150– 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 50 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 30 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 250 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 2 – 14.07.09

50. Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola pratincola
Cizre : 2 – 15.07.09
River Seyhan Nebri back to Havutlu : 20+ – 18.07.09

51. Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius curonicus
Kazgol, Caldiran : 2 – 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 12 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 2 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 1 – 14.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

52. Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus alexandrinus
South Van Marshes : 10 – 13.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 150 – 18.07.09

53. Lapwing Vanellus vanellus

54. Spur-winged Plover Vanellus spinosus
Tuzla Golu : 15 – 18.07.09

55. Red-wattled Plover Hoplopterus indicus aigneri
Cizre : 2 - 15.07.09

56. Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 5 – 18.07.09

57. Little Stint Calidris minutes
Tuzla Golu : 12 – 18.07.09

58. Green Sandpiper Tringa ochrorus
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09
Serpmentas : 1 – 10.07.09
South Van Marshes : 10 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 15 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 1 – 14.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 4 – 16.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09
River Seyhan Nebri back to Havutlu : 1 – 18.07.09
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 1 – 19.07.09

59. Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucus
South Van Marshes : 10 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 20 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 1 – 14.07.09
Cizre : 3 – 15.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 1 – 16.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

60. Greenshank Tringa nebularia
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 1 – 14.07.09
Cizre : 1 – 15.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 3 – 18.07.09

61. Redshank Tringa totanus totanus
Ercis : 1 – 10.07.09

62. Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09

63. Snipe Gallinago gallinago
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

64 Ruff Philomachus pugnax
Bendimahi Marshes : 5 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 30 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 50 – 14.07.09

65. Black-headed Gull Chroicephalus ridibundus

66. Slender-billed Gull Chroicephalus genei
Bendimahi Marshes : 30 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 56 – 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 800 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 8 – 14.07.09
South Van Marshes : 2 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 1 – 14.07.09
Cizre : 22 – 15.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 150 – 18.07.09

67. Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

68. Armenian Gull Larus armenicus
Van Hills : 100+ - 09.07.09
South Van Marshes : 100+ - 13.07.09

69. Little Tern Sterna albifrons albifrons
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09
Cizre : 4 – 15.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 50 – 18.07.09

70. Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica nilotica
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 3 – 12.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 12 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09

71. Common Tern Sterna hirundo hirundo
Bendimahi Marshes : 3 – 13.07.09
Cizre : 4 – 15.07.09
Euphrates crossing west of Siverek : 5 – 15.07.09

72. Black Tern Chlidonias niger niger
Tuzla Golu : 3 – 18.07.09

73. Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida hybrida
Bendimahi Marshes : 4 – 10.07.09
South Van Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09

74. White-winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus
Bendimahi Marshes : 3 – 10.07.09
South Van Marshes : 53 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 40 – 13.07.09
Ercek Golu : 25 – 14.07.09

75. Black-bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles orientalis orientalis
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 2 – 17.07.09

76. Rock Dove Columba livia livia
Van Hills : 200 - 09.07.09

77. Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus palumbus

78. Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocta decaocta

79. Turtle Dove Sterptopelia turtur turtur
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 20 – 16.07.09

80. Laughing Dove Sterptopelia senegalensis phoenicophila
Kantal, Istanbul : 2 – 08.07.09
Cizre : 2 – 15.07.09
Adiyaman : 10 – 16.07.09
Ataturk Baraji : 6 – 16.07.09
Antalya : 3 – 20.07.09

81. Cuckoo Cuculus canorus canorus
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 10.07.09
Sim er Hotel, Dogubayazit : 2 – 11.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 4 – 12.07.09

82. Long-eared Owl Asio otus otus
Birecik, Café Gulhane : 3 – 16.07.09

83. Barn Owl Tyto alba erlangeri
River Seyhan Nebri back to Havutlu : 1 – 18.07.09

84. Little Owl Athene noctua indigena
Birecik Gravel Pits : 1 – 16.07.09

85. Striated Scops Owl Otus brucei obsoletus
Birecik, Café Gulhane : 4 – 16.07.09

86. Alpine Swift Apus melba melba
Kantal, Istanbul : 6 – 08.07.09
Sim er Hotel, Dogubayazit : 2 – 11.07.09
Van Fort : 40 – 13.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 20 – 14.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 7 – 18.07.09

87. Pallid Swift Apus pallidus brehmorum
Ishak Pasa : a few seen – 14.07.09

88. Swift Apus apus apus

89. Little Swift Apus affinis galilejensis
Euphrates crossing west of Siverek : 50 – 15.07.09
Birecik Cliffs : 10 – 17.07.09

90. Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus meridionalis
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

91. Hoopoe Upupa epops epops
Van Hills : 18 - 09.07.09
Ercis : 3 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 2 – 10.07.09
Sim er Hotel, Dogubayazit : 1 – 11.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 11.07.09
Van Fort : 2 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 2 – 13.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 13.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 3 – 16.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 3 – 17.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

92. White-breasted Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis smyrnensis
Havutlu : 3 – 18.07.09
River Seyhan Nebri back to Havutlu : 1 – 18.07.09

93. Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis rudis
Cizre : 5 – 15.07.09
Ataturk Baraji : 1 – 16.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 8 – 16.07.09

94. Bee-eater Merops apiaster
Ercis : 1 – 10.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 4 – 10.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 10.07.09
Gulicar : 2 – 12.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 2 – 13.07.09
Tarmali Gecidi : - 1 14.07.09
Hakkari to Cizre : 2 – 14.07.09
Ataturk Baraji : 5 – 16.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 3 – 16.07.09

95. Roller Coracius garrulus garrulus
Ercis : 1 – 10.07.09
Gulicar : 1 – 12.07.09
Van Fort : 1 – 13.07.09
Ataturk Baraji : 15 – 16.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 4 – 16.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 4 – 17.07.09

96. Syrian Woodpecker Dendrocopus syriacus
Nemrut Dagi : 2 – 15.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 3 – 16.07.09
Birecik, Isik Restaurant Wadi : 2 – 16.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 1 – 17.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 2 – 17.07.09
Akseki : 2 – 19.07.09

97. Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopus medius ??
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

98. Skylark Alauda arvensis armenica
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 10 – 11.07.09

99. Crested Lark Galerida cristata ??
Bendimahi Marshes : 2 – 10.07.09
Serpmentas : 2 – 10.07.09
Cizre : 4 – 15.07.09
Tuzla Golu: 50 – 18.07.09

100. Short-toed Lark Calandrella brachydactyla artemisiana/woltersi
Serpmentas : 2 – 10.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 5 – 18.07.09

101. Calandra Lark Melanocoryphra calandra calandra
Ercis : 3 – 10.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 2 – 18.07.09

102. Bimaculated Lark Melanocorypha bimaculata bimaculata/rufescens
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 5 – 11.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 7 – 12.07.09

103. Shore Lark Eremohila alpestris penicillata/kumerloevei
Tendurek Gecidi : 9 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 25 – 11.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 6 – 12.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 4 – 13.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 20 – 15.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 5 – 18.07.09

104. Sand Martin Riparia riparia riparia
Ercis : 200 – 10.07.09

105. Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris
Hakkari to Cizre : 2 – 14.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 2 – 18.07.09
106. Swallow Hirundo rustica rustica

107. Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica rufula
Nemrut Dagi : 3 – 15.07.09
Isikli : 2 – 17.07.09

108. House Martin Delichon urbica
Ishak Pasa : 5 – 11.07.09

109. Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 11.07.09
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 2 – 11.07.09
Gulicar : 2 – 12.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 1 – 12.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 14.07.09

110. White Wagtail Motacilla alba alba
Bendimahi Marshes : 4 – 10.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 12.07.09

111. (Black-headed) Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava feldegg
Bendimahi Marshes : 10 – 10.07.09
Kazgol, Caldiran : 25+ – 12.07.09
South Van Marshes : 8 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 8 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 6 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 2 – 14.07.09
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 2 – 19.07.09

112. Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola werae
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 10.07.09

113. Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea cinerea
Hakkari to Cizre : 1 – 14.07.09

114. Yellow-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus xanthopygos
Isikli : 3 – 17.07.09
Havutlu : 2 – 18.07.09
Antalya : 6 – 20.07.09

115. Radde´s Accentor Prunella ocularis
Tendurek Gecidi : 3 – 12.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 2 – 13.07.09

116. Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris montana
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 20 – 11.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 12.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 3 – 18.07.09

118. Rufous Bush Chat Cercotrichas galactotes syriacus/familiaris
Nemrut Dagi : 2 – 15.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 1 – 17.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 5 – 17.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

120. White-throated Robin Irania guturralis
Nemrut Dagi : 10 – 15.07.09
Isikli : 5 – 17.07.09

121. Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros ochruros
Tendurek Gecidi : 4 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 11.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 13.07.09
Soguksu : 5 – 14.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

122. Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe libanotica

123. Isabelline Wheatear Oenanthe isabellina
Van Hills : 6 - 09.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 11.07.09
Aydinkisla, Bozkir : 2 – 19.07.09

124. Eastern Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe hispanica melanoleuca
Isikli : 1 – 17.07.09
Akseki : 3 – 19.07.09

125. Finschs´s Wheatear Oenanthe finchii finchii
Van Hills : 25 - 09.07.09
Ercis : 2 – 10.07.09
Serpmentas : 6 – 10.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 2 – 15.07.09

126. Kurdish Wheatear Oenanthe xanthoprymna
Nemrut Dagi : 5 – 15.07.09

126.1. Red-tailed wheatear sp. Oenanthe xanthoprymna/chrysopygia
Van Hills : 1 - 09.07.09 [see comments earlier in report]

127. Stonechat Saxicola maurus armenicus
Ercek Golu : 25 – 14.07.09

128. Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius longirostris
Van Hills : 4 - 09.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 14.07.09

129. Rock Thrush Monticola saxatilis saxatilis
Soguksu : 1 – 10.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 7 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 2 – 11.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 6 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 3 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 3 – 13.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 13.07.09

130. Mistle Thrush Turdus viscivorus viscivorus
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

131. Blackbird Turdus merula aterrimus/syriacus

132. Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla atricapilla
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

133. Eastern Orphean Warbler Sylvia crassirostris
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

134. Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca curruca
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Isikli : 3 – 17.07.09

135. Ménétries' Warbler Sylvia mystacea rubescens
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 6 – 17.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 1 – 17.07.09

136. Graceful Warbler Prinia gracialis akyildizi
Birecik Gravel Pits : 6 – 16.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 2 – 18.07.09

137. Moustached Warbler Acrocephalus melanopogon mimicus
Ercek Golu : 2 – 14.07.09

138. Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus fuscus
Birecik Gravel Pits : 2 – 16.07.09
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 1 – 19.07.09

139. Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus arundinaceus
South Van Marshes : 2 – 13.07.09
Bendimahi Marshes : 1 – 13.07.09
South Van Marshes : 2 – 14.07.09
Ercek Golu : 2 – 14.07.09
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

140. Eastern Olivaceous Warbler Hippolais pallida eleica
Serpmentas : 2 – 10.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 6 – 16.07.09
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 6 – 17.07.09

141. Olive-tree Warbler Hippolais olivetorum
Narince : 1 – 15.07.09.

142. Upcher´s Warbler Hippolais languida
Nemrut Dagi : 3 – 15.07.09
Birecik Gravel Pits : 1 – 16.07.09

143. Eastern Bonelli´s Warbler Phylloscopus orientalis
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

144. Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita brevirostris
Tendurek Gecidi : 2 – 10.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 12.07.09

145. Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata striata
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

146.Great Tit Parus major major

147. Blue Tit Cyanistes cauruleus cauruleus
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

148. Coal Tit Periparus ater rufolateralis/abietum
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

149. Sombre Tit Poecile lugubris anatoliae
Isikli : 1 – 17.07.09
Akseki : 5 – 19.07.09

150. Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus tephronotus
Akseki : 4 – 19.07.09

151. Penduline Tit Remiz pendulinus pendulinus/menzbieri
Ishak Pasa : 5 – 14.07.09
Akgol, Goksu Delta : 4 – 19.07.09

152. Bearded Tit Panurus biarmicus russicus
Bendimahi Marshes : 8 – 10.07.09
South Van Marshes : 1 – 14.07.09

153. Krüper´s Nuthatch Sitta krueperi
Akseki : 1 – 19.07.09

154. Western Rock Nuthatch Sitta neumayer neumayer
Van Hills : 8 - 09.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 7 – 11.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 14.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 2 – 15.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

155. Eastern Rock Nuthatch Sitta tephoronota dresseri
Nemrut Dagi : 8 – 15.07.09

156. Wallcreeper Tichodroma muraria muraria
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

157. Red-backed Shrike Lanius cullorio cullorio
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 6 – 18.07.09

158. Woodchat Shrike Lanius senator niloticus
Nemrut Dagi : 15 – 15.07.09
Isikli : 1 – 17.07.09

159. Masked Shrike Lanius nubicus
Akseki : 5 – 19.07.09

160. Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor
Aydinkisla, Bozkir : 1 – 19.07.09

161. Iraq Babbler Turdoides altirostris
Birecik Gravel Pits : 5+ – 16.07.09

162. Magpie Pica pica pica

163. Jay Garrulus glandarius krynicki

164. Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax docilis
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 10 – 18.07.09

165. Jackdaw Corvus monedula soemmerringii

166. Rook Corvus frugilegus frugilegus

167. Hooded Crow Corvus cornix pallescens/sharpii
Kantal, Istanbul : 6 – 08.07.09
Van Hills : 10 - 09.07.09
Antalya : 1 – 20.07.09

168. Raven Corvus corax laurencei
Akseki : 8 – 19.07.09

169. Starling Sturnus vulgaris ??

170. Rose-coloured Starling Sturnus roseus
Bendimahi Marshes : 500+ – 12.07.09

171. House Sparrow Passer domesticus ??

172. Spanish Sparrow Passer hispaniolensis hispaniolensis/transcaspius
Tuzla Golu : 1 – 18.07.09

173. Dead Sea Sparrow Passer moabitucus mesopotamicus
Birecik, Ibis Wadi : 1 – 17.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 8 – 17.07.09

174. Rock Sparrow Petronia petronia exigua/puteicola
Van Hills : 25 - 09.07.09
Gulicar : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 4 – 12.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 7 – 14.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09

175. Yellow-throated Sparrow Gymnoris xanthocollis transfuga
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Altinova Koyu (orchards 4km north of Birecik) : 3 – 17.07.09

176. Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis leucura
Serpmentas : 1 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 2 – 11.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 13.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 4 – 13.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

177. Linnet Cardielis cannabina bella

178. Twite Carduelis flavirostris brevirostris
Serpmentas : 2 – 10.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 4 – 10.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 1 – 13.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 8 – 13.07.09

179. Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis niediecki/loudoni

180. Greenfinch Carduelis chloris ??

181. Red-fronted Serin Serinus pusillus
Soguksu : 3 – 10.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 3 – 10.07.092
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 11.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 12.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 2 – 18.07.09

182. Common Rosefinch Carpodacus erythacus kubanensis
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 2 – 11.07.09

183. Crimson-winged Finch Rhodopectus sanguinea sanguinea
Tendurek Gecidi : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 4 – 13.07.09
Tendurek Gecidi : 1 – 13.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 1 – 18.07.09

184. Mongolian Trumpeter Finch Bucanetes mongolicus
Soguksu : 8 – 10.07.09
Soguksu : 5+ – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 6 – 13.07.09
Soguksu : 5 – 14.07.09

185. Desert Finch Rhodospiza obsoleta
Birecik Gravel Pits : 5 – 16.07.09

186. Reed Bunting Emberiza schoenebaenus caspia
South Van Marshes : 3 – 14.07.09

187. Ortolan Bunting Emberiza hortulana
Soguksu : 1 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 11.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09

188. Grey-necked Bunting Emberiza buchanani cerrutii
Ishak Pasa : 2 – 11.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 14.07.09

189. Cinereous Bunting Emberiza cineracea semenowi
Nemrut Dagi : 1 – 15.07.09
Isikli : 1 – 17.07.09

190. Rock Bunting Emberiza cia ??
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 14.07.09
Cimbar Bogazi, Demirkazik : 3 – 18.07.09

191. Black-headed Bunting Emberiza melanocephala
Van Hills : 2 - 09.07.09
Serpmentas : 4 – 10.07.09
Soguksu : 3 – 10.07.09
Ishak Pasa : 1 – 11.07.09
Ishak Pasa Hinterland : 1 – 11.07.09
Gulicar : 1 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 2 – 12.07.09
Soguksu : 3 – 13.07.09
Nemrut Dagi : 5 – 15.07.09

192. Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra calandra
Serpmentas : 1 – 10.07.09
Gulicar : 10 – 12.07.09

Peter Gluth (November 2009)

Cape Verde Islands 1st-15th March 2007

For those interested in Western Palearctic listing, a visit to the Cape Verde Islands is essential. Over the last few years the archipelago has become increasingly popular with tourists and with cheaper and more regular flights to the islands imminent, the pressure of tourism on the local environment and ecosystems could be severe. With this in mind, Chris Bell and I decided to spend a very enjoyable and successful fortnight on the islands before such pressures have an impact on the islands' bird populations.

Several trip reports and guides have extensively covered the logistics of birding the Cape Verde Islands, so there seems little point in repeating all this here (for useful references see below). This report is simply intended to act as an update to existing reports.

Cape Verde Travel organised our international and internal flights and accommodation for a total cost of £1,077 (including £25 for a entry visa organised by Cape Verde Travel prior to our trip). Direct flights are now available from the UK - from Manchester and Gatwick, with Thomsonfly and Astraeus.

The Cape Verde Islands are clearly gearing up for a significant increase in tourism; plenty of money seems to have been spent on the road network, internal flights and other amenities. The flight delays mentioned in previous trip reports were not a problem during our stay.

The exchange rate during our trip was 157 CV Escudos = £1.

The total cost of the trip came to £1,606. This would have been significantly cheaper with a larger team of birders.

We saw all of our target species, except for (the seemingly very rare) Cape Verde Peregrine.

Literature
The Birds of the Cape Verde Islands by Cornelis J.Hazevoet (1995).
The Birds of the Atlantic Islands by Tony Clarke (2006).
Cape Verde - A Birder's Guide to the Cape Verde Islands by Dave Sargeant.
Cape Verde Islands 24th February-7th March 2005 by Chris Batty.
Cape Verde Islands 21/02/2002 - 06/03/2002 by Colin Dodsworth
The Cape Verde Islands: tropical birding in the Western Palearctic by Andreas Noeske and Setfan Pfützke in Birding World Vol.7 No.4: 152-160
Birding the Cape Verde Islands by Arnoud B. van den Berg in Birding World Vol.18 No.2: 80-81.
Cape Verde Islands The Bradt Travel Guide.

Chris Batty, Dr Mike Brooke, Tony Clarke, Paul Donald, Stewart Hinley, Andrew Holden, Richard Klim and Tommy Frandsen provided useful information.

Itinerary

Thursday 1st March
flew Manchester to Sal arriving c2.45pm
birded around Sal airport
flew Sal to Santiago departing 7.15pm arriving 8.05pm
taxi to Hotel America (CV Escudos 1,200)
stayed at Hotel America (Praia)

Friday 2nd March
taxi from Hotel America to Atlantic Rent-a-Car (CV Escudos 200)
hired car for three days (CV Escudos 15,000 plus CV Escudos 2,340 for extra kilometres (over 140/day allowance)
birded Praia, Liberão, Ribeira de Praia Formosa, São Jorges, Boa Entrada, Tarrafal until dusk
stayed at Hotel Praia Maria (Praia)

Saturday 3rd March
birded Ribeira de Praia Formosa, Pedra Badejo, new reservoir, Praia
stayed at Hotel Praia Maria (Praia)

Saturday 4th March
birded Sao Lorenco dos Orgaos, new reservoir, São Jorges, Cidade Vehla
stayed at Hotel Praia Maria (Praia)

Sunday 5th March
taxi to airport (CV Escudos 500)
flew Santiago to São Nicolau departing 1.10pm arriving 2pm
taxi from airport to Tarrafal (CV Escudos 2,000)
taxi to Punta de Baril (CV Escudos 500)
seawatched from Punta de Baril
taxi to Tarrafal (CV Escudos 500)
stayed at Pension Alice (Tarrafal)

Monday 6th March
chartered fishing boat to Raso departing c8am arriving c10.50pm (organised through Pension Alice)
birded Raso
picked up by charted fishing boat at c2.30pm and taken to Branco
birded Branco into night
camped on Branco

Tuesday 7th March
picked up from Branco by chartered fishing boat at c11am and arrived back at São Nicolau at c3.30pm (total cost of chartered fishing boat 550 Euros)
stayed at Pension Alice (Tarrafal)

Wednesday 8th March
aluguer to Cachaco (CV Escudos 200)
birded Faja Valley
aluguer back to Tarrafal (CV Escudos 240)
birded Tarrafal
stayed at Pension Alice (Tarrafal)

Thursday 9th March
taxi to airport (CV Escudos 2,000)
flew São Nicolau to Sal departing 2.20pm arriving 3.05pm
flew Sal to Boa Vista departing 4.35pm arriving 5.05pm
taxi to Sal Rei (CV Escudos 700)
stayed at Pousada Boa Vista (Sal Rei)

Friday 10th March
hired 4x4 to Curral Vehlo organised through Rui at Melitour (located in Sal Rei opposite Pousada Boa Vista) (CV Escudos 6,000)
birded Curral Vehlo then dropped at Rabil Lagoon
birded Rabil Lagoon
aluguer to Sal Rei (CV Escudos 200)
stayed at Pousada Boa Vista (Sal Rei)

Saturday 11th March
hired 4x4 to Bai de Gatas organised through Rui at Melitour
charted fishing boat to llhéu dos Pássaros
birded llhéu dos Pássaros into night
camped on llhéu dos Pássaros

Sunday 12th March
chartered fishing boat back to Bai de Gatas departing 7am
hired 4x4 back to Sal Rei organised through Rui at Melitour (total cost of llhéu dos Pássaros trip 155 Euros)
aluguer to Rabil Lagoon (CV Escudos 200)
birded Rabil Lagoon
aluguer back to Sal Rei (CV Escudos 200)
stayed at Pousada Boa Vista (Sal Rei)

Monday 13th March
taxi to Rabil Lagoon (CV Escudos 400)
birded Rabil Lagoon
aluguer back to Sal Rei (CV Escudos 200)
taxi from Sal Rei to airport (CV Escudos 700)
flew Boa Vista to Sal departing 6.10pm arriving 6.30pm
taxi to Santa Maria (CV Escudos 1,000)
stayed at Hotel de Luz (Santa Maria)

Tuesday 14th March
taxi to Pedra de Lume (CV Escudos 1,500)
birded Pedra de Lume
taxi to Santa Maria (10 Euros)
birded Santa Maria
stayed at Hotel de Luz (Santa Maria)

Wednesday 15th March
taxi from Santa Maria to airport (10 Euros)
flew Sal to Manchester departing 3.35pm

New site on Santiago
A new reservoir is situated south of the road between Joa Teves and Pedro Badego west of the Liberão turning. This site produced an excellent selection of species on two consecutive days, including at least two Cape Verde Purple Herons, a Squacco Heron (the sixth record for the Cape Verde Islands), Cormorant (the first record since 1924), 6 Spoonbills, 2 Snipe, 2 Green Sandpipers, Black-winged Stilt, breeding Moorhen (the first breeding record since 1969) and Cape Verde Warbler. This waterbody will surely be host to many a Cape Verde and Western Palearctic rarity in years to come.

Target birds found

Common Quail (form inopinata)

Santiago
One in Praia on rough ground behind Shell terminal.
Two in rubble above Cidade Vehla.

Helmeted Guineafowl

Santiago
c10 Ribeira de Praia Formosa at top of ridge c2km out of town after junction before sharp righthand bend.

São Nicolau
c20 in Faja Valley along trail c2km north of Cachaco village (see Sergeant p23).

Fea's Petrel

Raso
c6 from Tarrafal to Raso crossing.

Cape Verde Shearwater

Santiago
One off Cidade Vehla.

São Nicolau
c50 lingered distantly off Punta da Barril during evening seawatch.

Raso
Many from boat to and from Raso/Branco, giving exceptional views close to boat.

Branco
Birds returned to colony from 7.10pm, just after dusk. Many where heard calling and three were observed in nest.

Cape Verde Little Shearwater

Santiago
We searched on two consecutive nights in the valley running southeast from São Domingos but failed to see or hear any shearwaters (see Batty, 2005).

Branco
Birds began arriving at colony from 7.45pm. Appeared to be numerous, with many heard singing and several seen in flight above scree slops during evening.

White-faced Storm-petrel (form eadesi)

Branco
Although a small pale seabird that flew along the peninsula at the southeast side of the island at c11.30pm was most likely this species, there were no confirmed sightings by midnight. We spoke to a seabird researcher who was staying on São Nicolau, who suggested that the full moon may have discouraged the petrels from returning to the colony.

llhéu dos Pássaros
The first birds returned to the colony just before 8pm and excellent views were obtained both in flight and on the ground. Numbers were difficult to estimate, but birds were almost constantly on view between 8pm-10.30pm. After then the main period of activity appeared to be over, but singles were still coming and going at 11pm. Keep to the rocky sides of the islet to avoid destroying the burrows in the centre.

It is worth being aware of which island lhéu dos Pássaros is before you set off (it is the closest island to the shore at Bai de Gatas). The fishermen initially began heading to llhéu de Baluarte, which has been a problem on previous trips to lhéu dos Pássaros.

Madeiran Storm-petrel

Branco
Many returned to the colony on the scree slopes by 9pm.

Red-billed Tropicbird (form mesonauta)

Santiago
20+ were around the cliffs east of the Shell terminal in Praia during the evening.

Raso
A few seen from Tarrafal to Raso crossing and several seen around the colony on Raso.

Boa Vista
c5 over llhéu de Curral Velho.

Brown Booby (form leucogaster)

São Nicolau
Singles off Tarrafal and a few off Punta de Barril.

Raso
Many seen around colony.

Branco
A few seen offshore.

Boa Vista
Seen off llhéu dos Pássaros and at colony on llhéu de Curral Velho.

Magnificent Frigatebird

Boa Vista
A female was observed over the east side of llhéu de Curral Velho and circled high between here and Curral Vehlo then drifted west.

Bourne's Heron

Santiago
Two juveniles were in the mahogany tree at Liberão. The birds apparently fledged on 7th March, five days after we visited the site.
At least two were at the new reservoir on two consecutive days. This site may well prove to be a regular stake out for this species in the future.

Cape Verde Buzzard

Santiago
Two were seen distantly over the northeastern slopes of Pico do Antonia viewed from above the school west of São Jorges dos Orgãos.

Alexander's Kestrel

Common and widespread on Sal, Santiago and Boa Vista.

Neglected Kestrel

São Nicolau
Common and widespread.

Cream-coloured Courser (form exsul)

Boa Vista
Seen along route between Sal Rei and Curral Velho.

Cape Verde Barn Owl

Santiago
One was seen at dusk at the regular site south of Tarrafal over farmland by the (former?) sewage works. From the Shell garage in Tarrafal head south for c1km then take a right turn along the only obvious wide stone road and park by the sewage works fence. It is best to access south from Tarrafal as there are several confusing diversions as you enter the town from the south.
Another Barn Owl was heard but not seen in the valley running southeast from São Domingos from the layby on the south side of the road 700m west of the junction north of Riberia Chiquerio.

Cape Verde Swift

Widepread on Santiago and São Nicolau.

Grey-headed Kingfisher (form acteon)

Santiago
Common and widespread in vegetated areas in the interior.

Black-crowned Finch Lark (form nigriceps)

Santiago
A male was on rubble above Cidade Vehla.

Boa Vista
Common and widespread.

Bar-tailed Desert Lark (form cinctura)

Boa Vista
Common and widespread.

Greater Hoopoe Lark (form boavistae)

Boa Vista
Widespread.

Raso Lark

Raso
c12 were seen within a short distance of the landing area.

Cape Verde Warbler

Santiago
Seen at Boa Entrada; west of São Jorges and the new reservoir.

Brown-necked Raven

Common and widespread on Santiago, São Nicolau, Raso and Boa Vista.

Iago Sparrow

Common and widespread on Sal, Santiago, São Nicolau, Raso and Boa Vista.

Common Waxbill

Santiago
Common and widespread.

Other species

Black Heron

Raso
One appeared to fly in off the sea on Raso viewed from the landing area, then continued east along the coast. Excellent views were obtained in flight, but a subsequent search along the coastline east of the landing area failed to relocate the bird. This is the third record for the Western Palearctic and second for the Cape Verde Islands following one on llhéu de Curral Velho, Boa Vista from 6th February to 7th March 1985.

Western Reef Egret

Boa Vista
A dark morph was at Rabil Lagoon (there have been over 20 previous records).

All statuses above per Clarke, 2006 (apart from for Squacco Heron).

Target birds missed

Cape Verde Peregrine

Given the vast areas of suitable habitat and the seemingly endless supply of prey it seems bizarre that this is such a rare, difficult-to-find resident on the islands.

Santiago
We failed to locate any at São Jorges, Sao Lorenco dos Orgaos, Formosa, Cidade Vehla and Praia, despite many lengthy vigils.

São Nicolau
We failed to locate any at Tarrafal or around the Faja Valley.

Complete trip list
Common Quail Coturnix coturnix inopinata
Helmeted Guineafowl Numida meleagris
Fea's Petrel Pterodroma feae feae
Cape Verde Shearwater Calonectris edwardsii
Cape Verde Little Shearwater Puffinus boydi
White-faced Storm-petrel Pelagodroma marina eadesi
Madeiran Storm-petrel Oceanodroma castro
Red-billed Tropicbird Phaethon authereus mesonauta
Brown Booby Sula leucogaster leucogaster
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo lucidus
Magnificent Frigatebird Fregata magnificens
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis ibis
Black Heron Egretta ardesiaca
Western Reef Egret Egretta gularis
Little Egret Egretta garzetta garzetta
Grey Heron Ardea cinerea
Bourne's Heron Ardea bournei
Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia
Cape Verde Buzzard Buteo bannermani
Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Alexander's Kestrel Falco alexandri
Neglected Kestrel Falco neglectus
Moorhen Gallinula chloropus
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus himantopus
Cream-colored Courser Cursorius cursor exsul
Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula
Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus alexandrinus
Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola
Sanderling Calidris alba
Little Stint Calidris minuta
Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea
Dunlin Calidris alpina
Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago
Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica
Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus phaeopus
Common Redshank Tringa totanus
Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus
Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres
Rock Dove Columba livia
Cape Verde Barn Owl Tyto detorta
Cape Verde Swift Apus alexandri
Grey-headed Kingfisher Halcyon leucocephala acteon
Black-crowned Finch Lark Eremopterix nigriceps nigriceps
Bar-tailed Desert Lark Ammomanes cinctura cinctura
Greater Hoopoe Lark Alaemon alaudipes boavistae
Raso Lark Alauda razae
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
Cape Verde Warbler Acrocephalus brevipennis
Spectacled Warbler Sylvia conspicillata orbitalis
Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla gularis
Brown-necked Raven Corvus ruficollis ruficollis
Spanish Sparrow Passer hispaniolensis hispaniolensis
Iago Sparrow Passer iagoensis
Common Waxbill Estrilda astrild jagoensis

Stuart Piner April 2007

Cape Verde Shearwater

adult Red-billed Tropicbird (form mesonauta)

Brown Booby (form leucogaster)

Squacco Heron

juvenile Bourne's Heron

Alexander's Kestrel

Cape Verde Swift

Grey-headed Kingfisher (form acteon)

female Black-crowned Finch Lark (form nigriceps)

Bar-tailed Desert Lark (form cinctura)

Greater Hoopoe Lark (form boavistae)

Raso Lark

Cape Verde Warbler

male Spectacled Warbler (form orbitalis)

male Blackcap (form gularis)

male Spanish Sparrow

male Iago Sparrow

all images taken with a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N1 or Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W30 mounted to a Leica APO77 telescope with a Leica Digiscoping Adapter and 20x or 30x wide angle eyepieces

southern France and northern Spain 1st-10th August 2006

My previous trips to France and Spain had all been in mid-winter, so I decided to organise a summer trip, primarily focusing on The Pyrenees. Although August is by no means the best time of year to visit the area, the trip offered an excellent opportunity to combine a holiday with my girlfriend and the chance of connecting with some new Western Palearctic birds.

We flew from Blackpool to Girona with Ryanair, at a combined cost of £225, then hired a Seat Ibiza from Solmar through Carjet for c£161, including a tank of diesel.

Literature
’A Birdwatching Guide to The Pyrenees’ by Jacquie Crozier
Birding World 18 (12) 517-526 – ‘Sacred Ibis: a new invasive species in Europe’ by Pierre Yésou and Philippe Clergeau
’Finding Birds in North Spain’ by Dave Gosney
’Finding Birds in Southern France’ by Dave Gosney
’Where to watch birds in France’ by Philippe J. Dubois
’Where to watch birds in North & East Spain’ Michael Rebane

Trip reports by Martin Birch, Richard Bonser, Nick Bray and Viv Stratton, Phil Bristow, Rhion Pritchard, Keith Shepherd and James Walsh also provided useful information. Chris Batty, Peter Gluth, Tom Lowe and Andrew Raine provided information on the area.

Itinerary
Tuesday 1^st August: Flew from Blackpool to Girona arriving at 11.10pm. Drove into France and slept in car just outside Gruissan, southeast of Narbonne.

Wednesday 2^nd August: Etang-de-Campignol, Etang de Vendre, then drove to Termignon and stayed at Hotel Relais Des Deux Cols in Lanslebourg Mont Cenis.

Thursday 3^rd August: Morning in Termignon then drove to Nice. Stayed at Hotel Saint Gothard, Rue Pagannini.

Friday 4^th August: Nice. Stayed at Hotel Saint Gothard, Rue Pagannini.

Saturday 5^th August: Drove to Eaux Bonnes and slept at Hotel De La Poste.

Sunday 6^th August: Forêt de’Isseaux, Candanchu, Jaca. Stayed at Hotel Ramiro 1.

Monday 7^th August: Hecho Valley. Camped at Camping Victoria.

Tuesday 8^th August: San Juan de la Pena, Hecho Valley. Camped at Camping Ain Jaca

Wednesday 9^th August: Candanchu, drove to Barcelona. Stayed Hotel Auto Hogar, Avenida Paralel.

Thursday 10^th August: Barcelona, then drove to Girona. Flew from Girona to Blackpool.

Key Sites

Étang de Campignol
From Narbonne take the D32 southeast towards Gruissan. Head southwest along the narrow streets of the small town of Gruissan, keeping the Étang de Gruissan to your right. At the junction with D232, just south of the town, head west for c2km and park by the LPO birdwatching centre, immediately after the road crosses the second canal. Walk south along the east side of the canal until you reach the shore of the Étang de Campignol. See ‘Where to Watch Birds in France’ page 172.

Two Sacred Ibis where seen in flight over the étang soon after dawn and the surrounding vegetation hosted three Melodious Warblers and Red-backed Shrike. I failed to locate any Moustached Warblers, but a strong breeze hampered the search for this species.

Étang de Bages-et-Sigean
I had intended to visit this site, situated to the south-southeast of Narbonne and just north of Sigean, to hopefully see the breeding colony of Sacred Ibis as described in Birding World 18 (12) 517-526. The colony should be easy to locate at the site, but after seeing this species at Étang de Campignol, I decided not to visit.

Étang de Vendres
Take the D64 from Béziers, crossing the A9 at exit 36, and follow signs for the village of Vendres. Continue through the village then take a track leading to the eastern side of the lagoon, which apparently also leads to the remains of the ‘Temple of Venus’. See ‘Where to Watch Birds in France’ page 181.

A fine selection of Mediterranean species where seen. However, the wind strength once again hampered chances of connecting with reedbed species.

Termignon
Termignon is accessed by taking the N6 northeast from Modane, which is situated to the east-northeast of Grenoble. On the hairpin bend just north of the small village of Termignon take a track north signed ‘Parc National de la Vanoise’. Continue along the steep, narrow roads until you eventually reach an obvious parking area (several camper vans were parked there overnight) with a ‘No entry’ sign just beyond it. This area might be called ‘Bellecombe’ on some maps. Turn around and head back along the road for c3.5km and park in the much smaller parking area on your left. It is best to travel ‘too far’ to the large car park, as spotting the first, smaller parking area is very difficult without initially finding your bearings.
From here walk west along the obvious mountain footpath. See ‘Swiss, Italian & French Alps – 4th-8th June 2004’ but Phil Bristow et al.

In 2004 Phil Bristow et al. located a pair of Rock Partridge after walking west along the footpath for 20 minutes. Unfortunately, during the morning I spent at the site, low cloud meant that visibility was down to only c10ft, making searching futile. I also walked east for c2km from the upper, ‘Bellecombe’ car park, checking excellent looking habitat, but there was no sign nor sound of the species from dawn-2pm. Alpine Chough, Water Pipit, Ring Ouzel and Black Redstart were seen.

Frustratingly, Nutcrackers could be heard calling from all directions, but due to the poor visibility, could not be seen. Fortunately I managed to gain good views of four c2km south of the lower car park, during a brief period when the cloud lifted.

Nice
There is a self-sustaining population of Fischer's Lovebird near Nice; I connected with the species at two sites to the east of the city.

Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat: Head east out of Nice on the N98 and after c4km take the D25 south along the peninsula and follow signs for the port. You eventually come to a small car park on the waters edge. Drive through this car park then north along a narrow street (keeping the port to your right) towards another car park by a small beach. Several Fischer’s and Masked Lovebirds were present in the palms and on the buildings around the car park. In 2005 Tom Lowe also saw Indian Silverbill here.

Beaulieu-sur-Mer: Beaulieu-sur-Mer is situated just northeast of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, at the head of the peninsula. Head east along the N98 to a car park opposite a church by La Reserve restaurant. Several Fischer’s and Masked Lovebirds were present behind the church in the gardens. In 2005 Tom Lowe also saw Peach-faced Lovebird at this site.

I am unsure about the taxonomic status of Masked and Fischer’s Lovebirds.

Forêt de’Isseaux
From Oloron-Ste-Marie head south along the N134 then follow signs for Lourdios. In Lourdios take the right turn signposted ‘Forêt d’Issaux’, ‘Spie Trindel’ and ‘Balades a Cheval’ (see photo). Single Black Woodpeckers were seen 3.9km and 6.6km from this junction, but I failed to locate any White-backed Woodpeckers. I also failed to locate any White-backed Woodpeckers at the site described in ’Finding Birds in Southern France’ by Dave Gosney (page 6, site 1), but an early morning visit may have been better for this species.

Candanchu
This small ski village on the Spanish/French border is signposted off the main road just south of the Col du Somport. I took the ski lift up into the mountains tops on two separate occasions, costing €8 per person each time. Outside the ski season the lift only operates in August.
I gained fantastic views of a Wallcreeper on the ground and low rocks c200yds past the small café, keeping along the right hand track. At least fifteen White-winged Snow Finches were nearby and 10 Citril Finches were on the slope just below the top of the ski lift. Alpine Chough, Rock Thrush, Black Redstart and Water Pipit were also noted.

Jaca
Nesting Rock Sparrows showed well at the Citadel.

Hecho Valley
Two days were spent in the Hecho Valley and various sites were visited. The valley can be accessed north off the N240 in the village of Puente la Reina, to the west of Jaca.
The refuge of Garbardito, east of the road, just north of the villages of Hecho and Siresa failed to produced Wallcreeper or Citril Finch. However, Peter Gluth had excellent views of the latter species by the drinking trough near the mountain refuge, by the lower car park in June 2006. Several trip reports, such as that by James Walsh, give excellent directions to the ‘Wallcreeper cliff’.
The ‘picnic’ area by the river at Selva de Oza produced stunning views of an adult Lammergeier. However, this was surprisingly the only Lammergeier I saw during my time in the Hecho Valley, despite reasonably extensive searching.
The Hecho Valley also produced Bonelli’s, Booted and Short-toed Eagles.

San Juan de la Pena
The site is well signposted south off the N240 c11km west of Jaca. See ’Finding Birds in North Spain’ by Dave Gosney (pages 6-7).

A Black Woodpecker was observed feeding a fledged juvenile in woodland c50yds along the track to the communications tower (Gosney, page 6), immediately west of the monastery (there is no vehicular access along this track, park in the Monastery car park).

Barcelona
Monk Parakeets were abundant in most vegetated areas, especially in the Parc de la Ciutadella. At least one other parrot sp was also seen, but not well enough to identify.

Complete trip list
Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus cristatus
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis ibis
Grey Heron Ardea cinerea cinerea
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea purpurea
White Stork Ciconia ciconia ciconia
Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
Gadwall Anas strepera strepera
Mallard Anas platyrhynchos platyrhynchos
Eurasian Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus
Black Kite Milvus migrans migrans
Red Kite Milvus milvus milvus
Lammergeier Gypaetus barbatus aureus
Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus percnopterus
Eurasian Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus fulvus
Short-toed Eagle Circaetus gallicus
Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus aeruginosus
Montagu's Harrier Circus pygargus
Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus nisus
Common Buzzard Buteo buteo buteo
Booted Eagle Aquila pennata
Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata fasciata
Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus tinnunculus
Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus peregrinus
Coot Fulica atra atra
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus himantopus
Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis
Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis michahellis
Little Tern Sternula albifrons albifrons
Common Tern Sterna hirundo hirundo
Rock Dove Columba livia livia
Stock Dove Columba oenas oenas
Woodpigeon Columba palumbus palumbus
Collared Dove Streptopelia dacaocto dacaocto
Fischer's Lovebird Agapornis fischeri
Monk Parakeet Myiopsitta monachus
Common Swift Apus apus apus
Pallid Swift Apus pallidus brehmorum
Alpine Swift Apus melba melba
Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis ispida
European Bee-eater Merops apiaster
Hoopoe Upupa epops epops
Iberian Green Woodpecker Picus sharpie
Black Woodpecker Dryocopus martius martius
Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major hispanus and pinetorum
Crested Lark Galerida cristata cristata
Sand Martin Riparia riparia riparia
Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica rustica
House Martin Delichon urbicum urbicum
Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis trivialis
Water Pipit Anthus spinoletta spinoletta
Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava flava
Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea cinerea
White Wagtail, Motacilla alba alba
Dipper Cinclus cinclus cinclus
Wren Troglodytes troglodytes troglodytes
Dunnock Prunella modularis mabbotti
European Robin Erithacus rubecula rubecula
Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros gibraltariensis
Western Stonechat Saxicola torquata rubicola
Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe oenanthe
Rock Thrush Monticola saxatillis
Ring Ouzel Turdus torquatus alpestris
Common Blackbird Turdus merula merula
Song Thrush Turdus philomelos clarkei
Mistle Thrush Turdus viscivorus viscivorus
Cetti's Warbler Cettia cetti cetti
Fan-tailed Warbler Cisticola juncidis juncidis
Western Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus scirpaceus
Melodious Warbler Hippolais polyglotta
Garden Warbler Sylvia borin borin
Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla atricapilla
Common Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita collybita
Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus trochilus
Goldcrest Regulus regulus regulus
Firecrest Regulus ignicapilla ignicapilla
Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata striata
Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca
Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus taiti
Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus caeruleus
Great Tit Parus major major
Crested Tit Lophophanes cristatus abadiei/mitratus
Coal Tit Periparus ater abietum
Nuthatch Sitta europaea caesia
Wallcreeper Tichodroma muraria muraria
Short-toed Treecreeper Certhia brachydactyla megarhyncha/brachydactyla
Eurasian Golden Oriole Oriolus oriolus oriolus
Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio collurio
Woodchat Shrike Lanius senator senator
Eurasian Jay Garrulus glandarius glandarius
Black-billed Magpie Pica pica pica/melanotos
Spotted Nutcracker Nucifraga caryocatactes caryocatactes
Alpine Chough Pyrrhocorax graculus graculus
Red-billed Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax erythrorhamphos
Western Jackdaw Corvus monedula permologus
Carrion Crow Corvus corone corone
Common Raven Corvus corax corax
Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris vulgaris
House Sparrow Passer domesticus domesticus/balearoibericus
Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus montanus
Rock Sparrow Petronia petronia petronia
White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis nivalis
Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs coelebs
European Serin Serinus serinus
Citril Finch Serinus citronella
Greenfinch Chloris chloris aurantiiventris
Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis parva
Linnet Carduelis cannabina cannabina
Yellowhammer Emberiza citronella citrinella
Rock Bunting Emberiza cia cia
Western Reed Bunting Emberiza schoeniclus schoeniclus/witherbyi
Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra calandra

Stuart Piner September 2006

adult Yellow-legged Gull

Fischer's and Masked Lovebirds

Fischer's Lovebird

Monk Parakeet

European Bee-eater

Forêt de’Isseaux sign in Lourdios

sign at Selva de Oza in Hencho Valley where Lammergeier was seen

Wallcreeper

Red-backed Shrike

White-winged Snow Finch

all images taken by Stuart Piner & Josephine Gluth with a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N1 or Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W30 mounted to a Leica APO77 telescope with a Leica Digiscoping Adapter and 20x or 30x wide angle eyepieces

This trip was a mixture of birding and family sightseeing. Given restirictions on time in the field the target was to see Fuerteventura Stonechat, Houbara Bustard and a minimum of 50 species whilst accepting a few island specialities might be missed. This was achieved, and the finding of a Spanish national rarity added greatly to the bonhomie of an already good week.

Roads were generally quiet and well maintained. The road south of Betancuria is best avoided by those of a nervous disposition. Some of the tracks are very driveable, particularly the one to the dam at Embalse de los Molinos.

Day 1
Arriving early afternoon we transferred from the airport to our apartment in Corralejo. The journey was interrupted by a return to the airport so there was a lot of opportunity to look for some initial entries on the list. Other than Yellow-legged Gulls and some potential Lesser Black-backed Gulls among them only a Kestrel was positively identified.
After unpacking a wander into Corralejo produced several Spanish Sparrows at the apartment and many more en route to the harbour. Turnstones were conspicuous in the harbour itself, later in the trip we would see a local feeding them with fish he was stripping at a table on the rocks.
Observations from the balcony of the apartment in the evening produced a Chiffchaff or two, a female Blackcap and a presumed Berthelot’s Pipit on rough ground across the road. Collared Doves, Feral Pigeons and Linnets were also added to the list before close of play.

Day 2
A short boat trip to the former volcanic island of Los Lobos, just of Corralejo. This was primarily for the scenery, and very spectacular it is in an eerie kind of way. The bird interest was generally rather limited save for Berthelot’s Pipits at regular intervals. By half way round the six mile circuit of the island these had only been augmented by a couple of Ravens, another Turnstone, a Whimbrel, a Redshank and a mixed group of Yellow-legged Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls.
The second half of the walk from the lighthouse at the north end back to the harbour did improve the trip list somewhat with a couple of Southern Grey Shrikes (one memorably carrying a lizard victim) and a Buzzard of the Canary Islands race which drifted over south west.
Back in Corralejo Little Egret and Common Sandpiper were added to the list, both were to be seen at most coastal sites visited during the week.

Day 3
With a newly received hire car the first stop of the day was the Embalse de las Molinos. Or it would have been if we hadn’t set off on the wrong track on arrival. However this did no harm as splendid views of about 10 Trumpeter Finches proved to be the best of the whole trip.
On arriving at the Embalse itself (having successfully evaded a couple of camels on the road) things finally began to pick up pace with a couple of Fuerteventura Stonechats seen at very close range. Also seen at this great site were nine Ruddy Shelducks, six Greenshank, Dunlin, Green Sandpiper as well as egrets and over 60 Coot. New birds for the trip also included Hoopoes, and a White Wagtails which was a species not seen anywhere else during the week.
Moving onto Betancuria a local race (degener) African Blue Tit was seen well in the grounds of the craft museum. Buzzards circled and the first Plain Tiger butterfly of the trip was seen. Moving on to Las Penitas the instructions in Clarke and Collins were not understood so the reservoir edge was not reached, but the walk added Song Thrush (only one of the trip) and then Spectacled Warbler to the birds seen. The first Barbary Ground Squirrels were seen, these proved to be regular even in some of the tourist resorts.

Day 4
A long drive down to the La Pared area to work the dunes before taking the kids to the zoo in the afternoon. On the way in to Costa Calma half a dozen Pallid Swifts were welcome. Walking out on to the dunes was testing the patience of the travel party, with only the ubiquitous Lesser Short-toed Larks to show for it. Proceedings were about to be called to a close when a magnificent Houbara Bustard flew past at point blank range. On the way back to the car another was seen at reasonable range feeding for several minutes before melting into the vegetation. Cracking.
Lunch on the outskirts of the town produced the only Goldfinch of the trip and more great views of Plain Tiger butterflies.
Heading on to the Oasis Park zoo at La Lajita the bins were kept round my neck just in case. Half way between the meerkats and the otter tank a strangely familiar yet utterly out of place ‘swee’ call was heard. Not knowing quite what to expect I was relieved to see the bird in question pop up obligingly in full view barely twenty feet away. Raising my bins I was confronted with a Yellow-browed Warbler! Fumbling around for my video camera I tried to get some footage, eventually ending up with record shots of the eye stripe and wingbars between vegetation and great recording of the call.
Shortly after this undoubted highlight another new bird for the trip was seen in the form of a Grey Wagtail frequenting the otter pool in the zoo. This was the only one seen on the whole trip. Less satisfying but going on the list were Monk Parakeets.
Returning home we went via Catalina Garcia lake. The Ring-necked Duck and Lesser Scaup seen here recently were unfortunately not on view. However some compensation was provided by three Spoonbills, two Black-tailed Godwits, a Ruddy Shelduck and a few other waders.

Day 5
Tried unsuccessfully to increase the desert specialities seen by driving some tracks off El Cotillo, which eventually triumphed over the hire car. Walking from the resort to El Cotillo did produce several wader species including Ringed and Grey Plovers. Best of all though were the 10 Kentish Plovers, including a group of eight near the lighthouse.
The afternoon was spent largely in Catalina de Fuste, largely doing tourist things. A check of the saltpans to the south of the resort produced a few waders but nothing new. A small diversion to the Barranco de Torre did however produce a welcome Plain Swift.
Stopping to swim in the sea at the Corralejo dunes produced a couple of Sanderling, again the only ones of the trip.

Day 6
Last day with a car. Given the chance to do some birding in the morning I elected to go to the Embalse rather than scour for desert species with no guarantee of success. This produced a couple of Grey Herons and good views of a Buzzard as well as no fewer than 15 Ruddy Shelducks. Returning from the far end I spotted a female duck not seen on the way down, expecting perhaps a Teal I was surprised to see it was a Shoveler.
Returning to Las Penitas to crack the access to the reservoir edge was successful, and produced the only Sardinian Warblers seen during the week. Blue Tits and Spectacled Warblers were also plentiful in this area.

Day 7
A whistle stop tour of Lanzarote. Following the purest group of Rock Doves I have ever seen at the camel area on the ‘fire mountain’ the 50th species of the trip was notched up with a Swallow flying over the caves in the north of the island where the unique blind albino crabs live. That looked like it for a great holiday until a couple of Cory’s Shearwaters were seen in the gloom from the ferry back to Fuerteventura.

Day 8
Packing and home. No new species.

Species List

Cory’s Shearwater
Two seen from the Lanzarote-Fuerteventura ferry crossing.

Little Egret
Widespread. Up to four birds seen together at locations including Corralejo (especially north of the harbour), Embalse de los Molinos, Catalina Garcia, the shoreline pool at Los Molinos, El Cotillo shore etc.

Grey Heron
At least two at Embalse de los Molinos on second visit, one (of these?) over Las Penitas reservoir the same day.

Spoonbill
Three together at Catalina Garcia, including a Darvic ringed bird.

Ruddy Shelduck
Up to 15 at Embalse do los Molinos, one at Catalina Garcia.

Shoveler
Female at Embalse de los Molinos on one visit.

Buzzard
Local race birds seen over Los Lobos, Betancuria, Las Penitas and at the Embalse de los Molinos.

Kestrel
Local race birds widespread on Fuerteventura, and also seen at several sites on Lanzarote.

Barbary Partridge
One at Embalse do los Molinos.

Coot
Over 60 at Embalse de los Molinos, c16 at Catalina Garcia and two at Las Penitas.

Houbara Bustard
Two seen at La Pared dunes on the outskirts of Costa Calma.

Little Ringed Plover
Three at Catalina Garcia and one at Embalse do los Molinos.

Ringed Plover
Four on El Cotillo shore.

Kentish Plover
Ten in the El Cotillo area, including eight together near the lighthouse by the road.

Grey Plover
Two on El Cotillo shore.

Sanderling
Two on the beach at Corralejo dunes.

Turnstone
Up to 25 at El Corralejo. Also seen at El Cotillo and the saltpans south of Catalina de Fuste.

Dunlin
Seen at Corralejo harbour, the saltpans south of Catalina de Fuste and Embalse de los Molinos.

Green Sandpiper
One at Embalse de los Molinos.

Common Sandpiper
Up to two birds seen at Corralejo harbour, El Cotillo shore, Los Molinos shore and the saltpans south of Catalina de Fuste.

Redshank
Three at the saltpans south of Catalina de Fuste, one on Los Lobos.

Greenshank
Up to six at Embalse de los Molinos and three at Catalina Garcia.

Black-tailed Godwit
Two at Catalina Garcia.

Whimbrel
Up to six north of Corralejo harbour, three at El Cotillo and one on Los Lobos.

Yellow-legged Gull
Widespread.

Lesser Black-backed Gull
Several seen for certain in gull flocks on Los Lobos.

Rock Dove
Particularly pure looking flocks at Las Penitas, and particularly on the fire mountains on Lanzarote.

Feral Pigeon
Widespread.

Collared Dove
Common and widespread.

Turtle Dove
One heard near Tefia.

Pallid Swift
Six birds over Costa Calma.

Plain Swift
One in the Barranco de la Torre.

Hoopoe
Generally widespread other than in the Corralejo area, not seen on Los Lobos.

Monk Parakeet
Seen at La Lajita.

Lesser Short-toed Lark
Seen in large numbers at La Pared, smaller numbers off tracks at El Cotillo.

Swallow
One seen at Jameos del Agua, Lanzarote.

Berthelot’s Pipit
Widespread.

White Wagtail
Seen on both visits to Embalse de los Molinos (up to two birds).

Grey Wagtail
One feeding round the otter tank at Oasis Park zoo, Las Lajitas.

Fuerteventura Stonechat
Three seen at Embalse de los Molinos.

Song Thrush
One in cultivations at Vega de Rio Palmas.

Blackcap
Seen from apartment in Corralejo, a number singing at Costa Calma.

Spectacled Warbler
Most seen at Las Penitas. Small numbers elsewhere.

Chiffchaff
Up to two seen around the apartment in Corralejo.

Yellow-browed Warbler
One in the grounds of Oasis Park zoo, La Lajita.

African Blue Tit
Local race birds seen at Betancuria and heard at Las Penitas.

Southern Grey Shrike
Widespread. Also seen on Los Lobos and Lanzarote.

Raven
Widespread. Also seen on Los Lobos and Lanzarote.

Spanish Sparrow
Common at virtually all settlements on Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.

Linnet
Regular over apartment in Corralejo, several seen at El Cotillo and smaller numbers elsewhere.

Goldfinch
One over Costa Calma.

Trumpeter Finch
Seen at several sites, easiest at Embalse de los Molinos and between here and Los Molinos.

The following additional species were seen by two other groups visiting the island in February, to give an indication of the variety of species present:

Teal
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Egyptian Vulture
Booted Eagle (barely annual)
Barbary Falcon
Moorhen
Cream-coloured Courser
Lapwing
Golden Plover
Spotted Redshank
Curlew (probable heard by myself at Las Penitas)
Sandwich Tern
Black-bellied Sandgrouse
Little Swift
Fieldfare
Hawfinch (no previous records)

Stripping out the exceptional records from each of the three trips (Yellow-browed Warbler, Booted Eagle and Hawfinch and the long-staying vagrant American ducks) a total of about 60 would seem a reasonable February target for those able to bird the best sites without distraction.

In terms of other wildlife interest butterflies included Plain Tiger and Greenish Black-Tip. Mammals seen were the introduced Barbary Ground Squirrels, several Rabbits and Algerian Hedgehogs (road casualties only). A number of dragonflies were seen, but other then Blue-tailed Damselfly not seen well enough to name.

Stephen Dunstan March 2006

Morocco 2nd-10th April 2005

After gaining inspiration from several trip reports backed with a long harboured ambition to visit, I decided to journey to Morocco with Alan Clewes, Andy Clifton and Stuart Piner in early April 2005.

Our simple aim of this trip was to see as much as we could in a little over a week and really aim to locate and appreciate several ‘target’ species that can be found in this extremely diverse country. We flew to Casablanca and performed a circular route - traveling as far north as Merdja Zerga, then traversing the Middle Atlas to reach the extreme south-east of the country at Erfoud and then heading west towards Agadir before heading north again to Casablanca.

Logistics

Due to the restrictions on dates (due to work commitments for some of us), we were forced to travel using the comparatively expensive British Airways option (£386 per person including taxes) in order to optimize our time in Morocco. Additionally, our travel within the Easter holidays further ensured our inflated air price compared to other times of year or carrier (for example return flights by Airtours from Manchester to Agadir were available for as little as £199 including taxes in March 2004 – for further details see Chris Batty’s trip report).

We left London Heathrow mid afternoon on Saturday 2nd April (arriving in Casablanca mid evening) and returned from Casablanca late morning the following Sunday. Unfortunately, on arrival at the check-in desk for our return flight, we were told that there was no space on the flight despite the fact that we had a ticket (this was apparently due to the cancellation of a flight the previous day). After much conveyance that the reason why we had flown British Airways was so that such a situation would not occur, we were flown back to Heathrow (via Paris) with Air France and BMI for no additional charge.

Car hire was booked through the Holiday Autos website with Budget as our ground agent for a total of £393 for a Toyota Avensis with an additional local charge for a second driver. Unfortunately, due to one of our party mislaying the car keys near Erfoud, we had to transfer to a Peugeot 406 midway through our trip (which we picked up at the Budget office in the centre of Ouarzazate). This episode, occurring due to our own incompetence, highlighted the need to use a recognised ground agent with offices located throughout the country.

Overnight accommodation was found on arrival at each destination with relative ease, although we did struggle to find suitable accommodation near the airport at Casablanca on our final night and were forced to stay within the city itself. Typical decent standard accommodation cost £10 - £15 per person per night although we found acceptable standards for as little as £4.50 per person in central Ouarzazate. Additionally, a couple of us stayed at the Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua (whilst the other two decided upon the car) for one night where tented accommodation and an evening meal were priced at £28 per person. Outrageously luxurious for the meagre price of £10 per person, and worthy of a special mention, was the Auberge Kasbah Tombouctou at Merzouga.

Expecting food to be of variable standard to say the least, we had our usual contingency supply of Nutri-grain bars. Thankfully, we were more than impressed by the general standard and soon put the ‘bread and crisps’ diet to the back of our mind and tucked into tajines almost every evening with the less culinary adventurous amongst our party enjoying a regular supply of pizzas and burgers. The only disappointment came in Agadir where, all psyched up for a McDonald’s breakfast, we found out that this establishment doesn’t offer these ‘early morning feasts’ in Morocco. Throughout the trip, we ensured that we only drank bottled water and all members of the team remained perfectly healthy throughout.

The local currency, the dirham (£1 equaled 15 dirhams during our visit), is a restricted currency and cannot be taken out of the country and is not available abroad. However it is easy to purchase within the country as all towns that we visited contained ATM machines that accepted internationally recognised cards. For the latest currency rates, details can be found at oanda.com.

Literature

Although Morocco is a large country, there is a relatively standard ‘birding route’ with several sites of interest being pinpointed by birders in order to see a variety of the target species. ‘Finding Birds in Northern Morocco’ and ‘Finding Birds in Southern Morocco’, both by Dave Gosney, were invaluable to the trip and can be purchased from Birdguides with updates posted here. The new edition of ‘A Birdwatchers’ Guide to Morocco’ by Patrick and Fedora Bergier was also useful, in particular as it covers many sites that Gosney does not mention as well as providing tips for accommodation. ‘A Birdwatching Guide to Morocco’ by Pete Combridge and Alan Snook was relatively light in terms of content for our purpose. A 1992 Morocco trip report by Tim Allwood et al, purchased from Steve Whitehouse’s FBRIS some years ago, provided details for our Tristram’s Warbler site.

We used a 1:800,000 GeoCenter World Map of Morocco throughout our visit; purchased from Stanfords. A Lonely Planet guide to Morocco was also used during the trip, allowing us to discover the range of accommodation available in areas that we wished to visit. The Collins Bird Guide (Mullarney, Svensson, Zetterstrom and Grant) was used throughout the trip while the 17 CD set Die Vogelstimmen by Andreas Schulze was also a useful resource.

Websites and acknowledgements

Information on birdwatching in Morocco can be gained from the many trip reports to be found on various websites such as Surfbirds and Birdtours. Additionally, Go-South contains recent Moroccan sightings and further information on birdwatching in Morocco. Particularly useful is Chris Batty's report from March 2004 whilst further information was kindly provided by Chris Batty, Martijn Bot, Tony Clarke, Dave Farrow, Andrew Holden, Marnix Jonker, James Lidster and Arnoud van den Berg.

Other Information

We were impressed by the standard of roads in the country, with asphalt surfaces experienced everywhere except between Erfoud and Merzouga. With little traffic and relatively low speed limits, the Moroccan police force are exceptionally hot on speed traps using radar guns. These tended to all be located on the outskirts of city limits (where the 40 km per hour zones continue inexplicably far from the built-up areas) or on the auto-routes in the north of the country. Although we had been warned about night driving, the only danger we noted were the many pedestrians on conurbation peripheries and the odd motorbike with little in the way of lights.

In the Erfoud area, if you are traveling in a conventional car, it is currently not possible to drive the old road to Merzouga due to re-construction. However, if you continue from Erfoud to Rissani and proceed along the asphalt road east of Rissani, Merzouga (and Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua) can be successfully accessed along the sandy tracks leading off the main road.

Moroccan people have a reputation to enjoy a bit of haggling – our visit was no exception. Conversely, though, this is done in a friendly way and on no occasion did we feel as though we had to buy anything or were being swindled. The only slight problem that we had to deal with was when our guide failed to produce the hoped for Houbara Bustard – having negotiated a reduced rate of pay for the lack of this species (as everybody in Erfoud will claim to be able to show you Houbara Bustard), he appeared slightly surprised when we presented him with the amount. After initially giving us a sob story, he then claimed that he would phone the police! I calmly announced that this was an impossibility as he had no battery left on his phone and, realising he was not going to extract any more cash from us, shook our hands laughing and drove off.

The only area where you may experience ‘in your face harassment’ will be in the town of Erfoud. One way to combat this, and to make this part of your trip a little less stressful, would be to hire the services of Idriss or his brother – both multi-lingual guides and top blokes who can point you in the direction of Desert Sparrows etc. Additionally, when we lost our car keys at the Pharaoh Eagle Owl site near Rissani they were able to fetch mechanics and arrange taxis so that we could (eventually) continue our trip.

Finally, it would be advisable to have at least one member of your crew to be conversant in French – though this is not a necessity, my French had to be fully utilised when we were sorting out our second hire car of the trip with Budget in Ouarzazate!

Itinerary

A brief outline of our trip (with approximate driving times) is detailed below:

Saturday drove north from Casablanca airport to Temara-plage (south of Rabat) where we stayed overnight.

Sunday Sidi Yahya at dawn then drove to Merdja Zerga (c2 ½ hour drive). 1 ½ hour drive back south to Lac de Sidi Bourhaba (and Mehdiya Plage) and finally driving (3 ½ hours) to Ifrane where we stayed overnight at the Hotel Chamonix.

Monday Dayet Aoua from first light then a couple of hours driving (after several roadside stops) to Zaida. An hour or so drive to Col Talghomt (south-east of Midelt) with a further 2 ½ hour drive to a site 43km west of Errachidia. Overnight at the Auberge Kasbah Tombouctou at Merzouga (after searching for Egyptian Nightjar).

Tuesday Merzouga area from early morning with a visit to the Auberge Erg Chebbi and the wadi adjacent to the Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua then the late morning and afternoon spent on a 4x4 in the desert area north-east of Erfoud and east of Aoufouss. Evening birding at the Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua with an overnight stay here.

Wednesday a short early morning drive from the Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua to cliffs 4.9km west of Rissani. 5 hour drive west to Ouarzazate with overnight accommodation in the town centre.

Thursday stony desert area from 57km east of Ouarzazate to similar areas 26km west of Ouarzazate until dusk. Overnight drive of c8 hours to area south of Guelmine (punctuated with a visit to Agadir airport and Oued Sous for Red-necked Nightjar). Overnight in the car just south of Guelmine.

Friday stony desert areas up to 22km south of Guelmine until mid morning then a couple of hours drive north to Oued Massa and then, finally, an hour or so drive to Oued Sous on the southern fringes of Agadir for dusk. Overnight at the Hotel Pergola near Oued Sous.

Saturday Oued Sous early morning with a couple of hours drive north along the coast to Tamri. Brief stop at Essaouira with a 2 ½ hour drive to Cape Beddouza (for a brief bit of seawatching) and then a further half hour or so drive to the vast coastal lagoons between El Oualidia and Sidi-Moussa (south of El-Jadida). Overnight spent in Casablanca city centre.

Sunday departed from Casablanca Airport late morning.

Target birds

Ruddy Shelduck
Six on the open water at the mouth of the Oued Massa (Gosney Southern page 10 site 6). There was no water in the lake at Merzouga and we similarly failed to locate any water north of Maadid, near Erfoud (where this species had been seen the previous week).

Ring-necked Duck
The long-staying male was easily located with the Common Pochard flock south of the causeway at Lac de Sidi Bourhaba (Gosney Northern page 10 site 3).

Marbled Duck
Eight at Lac de Sidi Bourhaba south of the causeway (Gosney Northern page 10 site 3). 2 on the pools at Oued Massa (Gosney Southern page 10 site 6) and 2 on lagoons between Oualidia to Sidi Moussa (Gosney Northern page 18).

Barbary Partridge
One by the asphalt road by the entrance to the car park at Sidi Yahya (Gosney Northern page 12 site 1) and another adjacent to the road 3.5km beyond the hunting lodge returning to Sidi Yahya village. A further individual on roadside rock face between Ouarzazate and Tazenakht by a small pink castle-type building near the ‘Agadir 297’ post and 3 birds flushed from coastal scrub at the Oued Sous (Gosney Southern page 8 site 2).

Double-spurred Francolin
At least 3 males calling from dawn, audible from the car park at Sidi Yahya (Gosney Northern page 12 site 1) including 1 bird located in the scrub immediately adjacent to the car park. Early morning mist, however, reduced our chances of locating any further calling birds in the valley. Although the directions in Gosney are adequate, further directions to the site from Temara may be helpful. Approaching Temara from the main coast road, go straight on at the first x-roads in the town and then turn right at the t-junction. Follow this road for 1.4km and turn left, at the next T-junction turn right and then turn left at the obvious cross-roads. Drive down this road for c9km when you will reach the village of Sidi Yahya – just before you reach the village proper, take the obvious right as the road goes downhill and follow this road for 13km passing the hunting lodge on your right. The car park can be reached via an unobvious track on the right a few hundred metres before the ‘Sidi Betache 17km’ post.

Northern Bald Ibis
This species was easily observed from the main road between 6 and 9km north of Tamri village. Additionally, we stumbled upon the colony where we were informed that at least 200 individuals were present this year. For obvious reasons, it is necessary not to reveal the location of this colony.

Black-winged Kite
Three individuals showed very well over poppy and arable fields 1.5km north of the hunting lodge (i.e. back towards the village of Sidi Yahya from the ‘car park’) at Sidi Yahya. A further individual was seen by the roadside between Casablanca town and the airport.

Lanner Falcon
One south of Guelmine and south of the bridge over the Oued Sayad on telegraph posts adjacent to the ‘Tan-Tan 122’ post and directly opposite a camel sign (Gosney Southern page 2 site 2).

Western Swamp-hen
Two were located in reeds to the south of the causeway at Lac de Sidi Bourhaba (Gosney Northern page 10 site 3).

Crested Coot
At least 15 at Lac de Sidi Bourhaba (Gosney Northern page 10) and at least 30 on the lake at Dayet Aoua (Gosney Northern page14 sites 1 and 2).

Cream-coloured Courser
We readily stumbled upon this species in pretty much any suitable desert habitat. 5 were located north of Zaida c2km south of the junction to Itzer, at least 9 in the area 43km west of Errachidia, 5 c15km east of Ouarzazate and 3 south-west of the junction to Marrakech/Agadir ‘348’ (26km west of Ouarzazate).

Crowned Sandgrouse
Seven flew north over the desert area just west of the ‘Agadir 421’ post east of Ouarzazate (and east of Skirou).

Black-bellied Sandgrouse
Three in the stony desert south of the main road 55km east of Ouarzazate.

Laughing Dove
Regularly encountered in southern and south-eastern areas of habitation such as Erfoud, Errachidia and Ouarzazate.

Pharaoh Eagle Owl
The ‘popular’ individual was easily located roosting in its favoured cave west of Rissani. Heading north from Rissani village, you will soon locate a green Ziz petrol station on your left. Immediately after this turn left on the road signposted to Alnif and clock 4.9km from here and park adjacent to the roadside near the ‘Alnif 84’ km post. There is an obvious ridge of rocks immediately to the north of the road – walk along the eastern base of these for approximately 1.5km until you reach a low ridge of rocks followed by a fairly large ‘slag mound’. Climb this largest mound and look at 11 o’clock where you will locate the favoured cave just to the left of an obvious fault in the cliff-face.

Marsh Owl
Four birds showed well at the south end of Merdja Zerga. From the main coast road, take the turn off to Moullay Bousselham. Instead of driving to this village, proceed south along the road east of Merdja Zerga, through the village of Gnafdi, for several kilometres until you reach an obvious bridge over the Nados Canal. Turn right onto the sandy track immediately after the bridge and drive as far as you can and park in the poplar woodland on the left. Continuing on foot, with the canal on your right, the poplars will end and the Marsh Owls were located over the first extensive area of juncos on the left hand side (Gosney Northern page 6 site 5). Note that these birds are vulnerable to disturbance and, under no circumstances, do not stray from the path.

Red-necked Nightjar
Three birds were readily seen, and heard singing, at dusk at the Oued Sous (Gosney Southern page 8 site 3). We had excellent views of one individual on the entrance track immediately before you reach the car park by the guard building. In a brief midnight search at Agadir Airport, we were unable to locate this species.

Little Swift
At least a couple were seen at Casablanca airport on our departure.

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
One was noted on wires in the village of Aoufouss (to the north of Erfoud) and a further 3 in the small village to the west of ‘Skirou 12’ km post (east of Ouarzazate). Several were also seen by other observers during our visit on the road between Timejdad and Erfoud.

Levaillant’s Green Woodpecker
At least 3 showed well at Dayet Aoua (in the roadside trees between Gosney Northern page 14 sites 2 and 3).

Bar-tailed Desert Lark
This is a typical species of the sandy desert in the south of the country. At least 6 were noted on either side of the main road 43km west of Errachidia, several were seen on our 4x4 trip into the desert north-east of Erfoud and a few were also present 22km south of Guelmine (Gosney Southern page 2 site 3).

Desert Lark
The fluty song of this species is instantly recognisable and far carrying in the arid, stony desert areas of the south. Two pairs were located on our 4x4 drive into the desert north-east of Erfoud with additional birds being present in suitable habitat 55km and 57km east of Ouarzazate.

Greater Hoopoe Lark
At least 3 showed well, with birds present on either side of the road, 43km west of Errachidia.

Thick-billed Lark
In an excellent year for this species, two pairs were seen (one pair either side of the road) 43km west of Errachidia and at least 5 showed well on the stony desert a couple of hundred metres to the west of the road near the ‘Guelmin 22’ km post (Gosney Southern page 2 site 3) . The week prior to our visit, this species had been noted 4km east of Mellab on the road west of Erfoud towards Timejdad.

Temminck’s Horned Lark
A pair showed to a few yards in the desert area to the south of the main road 43km west of Errachidia.

Plain Martin
Only seen in the Oued Massa area (Gosney Southern page 10) – from the main road, take the turning to Massa village. At the T-junction turn left and proceed for a couple of km until you reach a bridge over a dried up river bed and park here. Walk right from this bridge and this species nests in the riverbank several hundred metres along the rough path. Other birds were located over the arable fields adjacent to the river (near Gosney Southern page 10 site 4).

Moroccan Wagtail
Two in the drainage ditch running at right angles to the path opposite the guard hut at the Oued Sous (Gosney Southern page 8). The only other individual noted was near the bridge over the Ksob Wadi south of Essaouira (Gosney Southern page 4 site 2).

Common Bulbul
Seen regularly and fairly numerous on the coastal strip from Guelmine (Gosney Southern page 2) north to Sidi Yahya (Gosney Northern page 12).

Moussier’s Redstart
At least 4 males at Dayet Aoua along the track to the ‘orchard’ (Gosney Northern page 14) with a further male by the roadside south of Azrou, a pair by the roadside 55km north of Rich, 3+ at the ‘Tristram’s Warbler site’ south-east of Midelt on the Tizi-n-Tairhemt pass and several on the Oued Massa reserve (Gosney Southern page 10).

Seebohm’s Wheatear
We only noted this species between Azrou and Itzer (south of Ifrane and north of Zeida) where several were noted by the roadside in suitable Middle Atlas habitat.

Desert Wheatear
Common in desert areas near Erfoud, Guelmine and Ouarzazate.

Red-rumped Wheatear
Surprisingly, we only noted this species at two sites – appeared common in the desert area south of Guelmine with at least 3 noted to the west of the road adjacent to the ‘Guelmine 22’ km post (Gosney Southern page 2 site 3) and a family party just south of the Oued Sayad (Gosney Southern page 2 site 2). A further individual showed well on the plains 13km south of Zeida (Gosney Northern page 16).

Western Mourning Wheatear
A pair showed well by the roadside 29km west of Ouarzazate. 26km west of Ouarzazate on the main road you will reach a junction where ‘Agadir 348’ km is to the left and Marrakech is straight on – continue in the direction of Marrakech. The birds were immediately adjacent to the ‘Ouarzazate 29’ km post with the male singing from the roadside wires to the left of the road and the female showing well on the rocky hillside to the right of the road. Searching of stony desert areas up to 57km east of Ouarzazate proved fruitless (including last year’s site south of the road at ‘Ouarzazate 55’ km post).

White-crowned Wheatear
Commonly seen in the Erfoud and Ouarzazate desert areas.

Black Wheatear
Much less numerous than the previous species with singles noted in Zeida town (Gosney Northern page 16), by the main road west of the Tizi-n-Tairhemt pass 55km north of Rich and 1 by the obvious road tunnel on the main road north of Errachidia.

Scrub Warbler
A pair (of the form saharae) were seen 43km west of Errachidia north of the main road. Just west of the ‘Errachidia 43’ km post, park by the bridge over the small wadi. Looking north-west from the bridge, you will note an obvious area of low green scrub that you need to walk towards. After walking through the first 150 yards or so of these bushes, you will come to an area of bare sand and then another, more extensive area of bushes will start fairly imminently. We located this species after a further 200 yards on the eastern edge of this more extensive area. Additionally, we failed to find this species (of the form theresae) in the bushes west of the main road south of Guelmine immediately south of the Oued Sayad and to the east of the plastic covered structures (Gosney Southern page 2 site 2).

Tristram’s Warbler
In early April, this species has returned to its mid altitude breeding areas and, as such, we located a pair at a favoured site south-east of Midelt on the Tizi-n-Tairhemt pass. If you are coming from Midelt, park in the lay-by on the hairpin bend by the ‘Er-Rich 51’ and ‘Errachidia 114’ signpost exactly 1.5km before you reach the pass summit (signed Col Talghomt 1907m). You will know this is the correct locality as the roadside rock face is strewn with obvious graffiti and an ‘attention au feu’ (fire) sign is also present. Walk down the obvious valley and the birds favour the bushes to the left of the ravine.

African Desert Warbler
A pair showed well to the north of the road 43km west of Errachidia (see Scrub Warbler for site directions) – they favoured the scrub c400 yards north of the road before flying into the obvious bright green ‘strip’ running east beyond the small hillock to the right of the main area of vegetation. A further individual was noted in similar desert scrub habitat on the 4x4 drive to the north-east of Erfoud.

Fulvous Babbler
At least a pair favoured the gardens and the adjacent wadi at the Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua south of Erfoud (Gosney Southern page 26 site 3), 10+ were seen in similar habitat on the 4x4 drive to the north-east of Erfoud and at least 7 were noted in the bushes to the south of the Oued Sayad, south of Guelmine (Gosney Southern page 2 site 2).

Black-crowned Tchagra
A pair showed very well in saline scrub at Oued Sous (to the east of Gosney Southern page 8 site 2) – park by the entrance gate and walk behind the guard house keeping the small channel on your left, cross the bridge and view the small area of bushes where the Tchagras were favouring. This species was also heard at Sidi Yahya and at Oued Massa (though we failed to see this species here due to our mid afternoon visit).

Brown-necked Raven
A single seen in the desert adjacent to Merzouga village, a flock of 7 2km west of Auberge Kasbah Dakaoua adjacent to the track to the asphalt road to Rissani and c10 birds over the road 4.9km west of Rissani (where you park for the Pharaoh Eagle Owl).

Desert Sparrow
A pair and a further male showed very well in the mucky courtyard immediately adjacent to the Auberge Erg Chebbi in Merzouga. We did not try the usual site at Café Yasmina (Gosney Southern page 26 site 4 - birds have apparently been irregular in