Robert is a Canadian birder, spending his holidays in Greece. He is also a keen birdwatcher so a full day in Athens was a must. He had a really long list of lifers so we had to visit many different sites.
As he was very interested in owls, we started very early in the morning to try for the Scops Owl at Lycabettus Hill. It didn't take long before we had a male bird at close range. It was time to move to our next destination, the Aesthetic Forest of Kaisariani.
The second owl to see was the Tawny Owl. We got great views and photos of it, and there were also Short-toed Treecreepers, Firecrests, Coal and Long-tailed Tits present, among other species.
We left the forest and reached the top of the mountain; Ruppell's and Subalpine Warblers were seen, along with Black-eared Wheatears.
Next stop was Mt Parnitha. A Short-toed Eagle welcomed us but the target bird of the area was the Eastern Orphean Warbler. We found a singing male and had very nice views. We also found Blue Rock Thrushes, Rock Nuthatches, Cirl Buntings.
Close to Mt Parnitha lies Oropos Lagoon, the most important brackish wetland of Athens. Black-winged Stilts, Kentish and Ringed Plovers, Redshanks and Little Terns where some of the species seen, while a Litle Owl was found in the nearby town. We also found Penduline Tits at Asopos River.
We left Oropos and headed towards Schinias National Park, through the hilly area of Varnavas and Grammatiko. We managed to see Nightingales, Turtle Doves and Sombre Tits on the way (all lifers to Robert).
We also saw many Little Owls, Crested Larks and Swifts.
As he was very interested in owls, we started very early in the morning to try for the Scops Owl at Lycabettus Hill. It didn't take long before we had a male bird at close range. It was time to move to our next destination, the Aesthetic Forest of Kaisariani.
The second owl to see was the Tawny Owl. We got great views and photos of it, and there were also Short-toed Treecreepers, Firecrests, Coal and Long-tailed Tits present, among other species.
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| Tawny Owl |
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| Ruppell's Warbler |
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| Eastern Orphean Warbler |
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| Little Owl |
At Schinias, the most important birds seen where the Lesser Kestrel, the Ferruginous Duck, the Little Bittern, the Glossy Ibis, the Eastern Olivaceous and the Great Reed Warbler.
It was time to move to the last site, Markopoulo Fields. We were looking for the Black-headed Bunting and the Rufous Bush Robin. It was a huge success as we found both and had really good pictures.
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| Rufous Bush Robin |
Another succesfull birding trip was over; we saw and heard 77 species, including more than 20 lifers for Robert. A full day, indeed!
TRIP CHECHKLIST
| Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos |
| Ferruginous Duck - Aythya nyroca |
| Little Grebe - Tachybaptus ruficollis |
| European Shag - Phalacrocorax aristotelis |
| Little Bittern - Ixobrychus minutus |
| Little Egret - Egretta garzetta |
| Squacco Heron - Ardeola ralloides |
| Glossy Ibis - Plegadis falcinellus |
| Short-toed Snake-Eagle - Circaetus gallicus |
| Common Buzzard - Buteo buteo |
| Water Rail - Rallus aquaticus |
| Eurasian Moorhen - Gallinula chloropus |
| Eurasian Coot - Fulica atra |
| Black-winged Stilt - Himantopus himantopus |
| Black-bellied Plover - Pluvialis squatarola |
| Kentish Plover - Charadrius alexandrinus |
| Common Ringed Plover - Charadrius hiaticula |
| Little Ringed Plover - Charadrius dubius |
| Ruff - Calidris pugnax |
| Little Stint - Calidris minuta |
| Common Redshank - Tringa totanus |
| Yellow-legged Gull - Larus michahellis |
| Little Tern - Sternula albifrons |
| European Turtle-Dove - Streptopelia turtur |
| Eurasian Collared-Dove - Streptopelia decaocto |
| European Scops-Owl - Otus scops |
| Little Owl - Athene noctua |
| Tawny Owl - Strix aluco |
| Alpine Swift - Apus melba |
| Common Swift - Apus apus |
| Lesser Kestrel - Falco naumanni |
| Eurasian Kestrel - Falco tinnunculus |
| Peregrine Falcon - Falco peregrinus |
| Eurasian Jay - Garrulus glandarius |
| Eurasian Magpie - Pica pica |
| Hooded Crow - Corvus cornix |
| Greater Short-toed Lark - Calandrella brachydactyla |
| Crested Lark - Galerida cristata |
| Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica |
| Red-rumped Swallow - Cecropis daurica |
| Common House-Martin - Delichon urbicum |
| Coal Tit - Periparus ater |
| Sombre Tit - Poecile lugubris |
| Great Tit - Parus major |
| Eurasian Penduline-Tit - Remiz pendulinus |
| Long-tailed Tit - Aegithalos caudatus |
| Western Rock Nuthatch - Sitta neumayer |
| Short-toed Treecreeper - Certhia brachydactyla |
| Firecrest - Regulus ignicapilla |
| Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti |
| Eastern Olivaceous Warbler - Iduna pallida |
| Eurasian Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus scirpaceus |
| Great Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus arundinaceus |
| Zitting Cisticola - Cisticola juncidis |
| Eastern Orphean Warbler - Sylvia crassirostris |
| Ruppell's Warbler - Sylvia ruppeli |
| Subalpine Warbler - Sylvia cantillans |
| Sardinian Warbler - Sylvia melanocephala |
| Spotted Flycatcher - Muscicapa striata |
| Rufous-tailed Scrub-Robin - Cercotrichas galactotes |
| European Robin - Erithacus rubecula |
| Common Nightingale - Luscinia megarhynchos |
| Blue Rock-Thrush - Monticola solitarius |
| European Stonechat - Saxicola rubicola |
| Black-eared Wheatear - Oenanthe hispanica |
| Eurasian Blackbird - Turdus merula |
| Western Yellow Wagtail - Motacilla flava |
| Cirl Bunting - Emberiza cirlus |
| Cretzschmar's Bunting - Emberiza caesia |
| Black-headed Bunting - Emberiza melanocephala |
| Common Chaffinch - Fringilla coelebs |
| European Greenfinch - Chloris chloris |
| Eurasian Linnet - Linaria cannabina |
| European Goldfinch - Carduelis carduelis |
| European Serin - Serinus serinus |
| House Sparrow - Passer domesticus |
| Eurasian Tree Sparrow - Passer montanus |
