DAY 3
Leaving Arachova, we drove north and passed Livadi Plateau, looking for birds in the Greek Fir forest. Lots of passerines: finches, tits, firecrests and wrens were abundant but we also saw hoopoes and Red-backed Shrikes, as well as lots of Cirl Buntings.
The main targets for today, however, were north of Parnassos, more specifically close to Mt Oiti. We visited Gorgopotamos river and Sperchios river to look for the Dipper and the Levant Sparrowhawk; both species were found and we had great views of them! We also saw a nice Nightingale, singing in the dense riparian forest of Sperchios
At late noon, we drove south to reach Athens and stopped on the way at Kopaida Plain, just to enjoy the flocks of the Bee-eaters and the dozens of Great Reed Warblers in the ditches, among others.
Our targets for the day were found so it was time to relax and start building our day list; we visited Lake Paralimni and found some new birds for the trip like the Great Crested Grebe, the Lesser Grey Shrike and the...Coot.
Leaving Arachova, we drove north and passed Livadi Plateau, looking for birds in the Greek Fir forest. Lots of passerines: finches, tits, firecrests and wrens were abundant but we also saw hoopoes and Red-backed Shrikes, as well as lots of Cirl Buntings.
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| Cirl Bunting |
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| Wren |
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| Dipper |
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| Levant Sparrowhawk |
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| Great Reed Warbler |
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| Bee-eater |
Late in the afternoon, we reached Athens and had a very short visit to Lycabettus Hill, seeing a very close Hoopoe and several Alpine Swifts. It was not dark enough for the Scops Owl and our plan was to visit the same hill the next day so we called it a day. And what a day it was!
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| Alpine Swift |
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| Hoopoe |
TRIP CHECKLIST
| Great Crested Grebe - Podiceps cristatus |
| Collared Dove - Streptopelia decaocto |
| Alpine Swift - Apus melba |
| Common Swift - Apus apus |
| Eurasian Coot - Fulica atra |
| Yellow-legged Gull - Larus michahellis |
| White Stork - Ciconia ciconia |
| Levant Sparrowhawk - Accipiter brevipes |
| Common Buzzard - Buteo buteo |
| Eurasian Hoopoe - Upupa epops |
| European Bee-eater - Merops apiaster |
| Syrian Woodpecker - Dendrocopos syriacus |
| Eurasian Green Woodpecker - Picus viridis |
| Common Kestrel - Falco tinnunculus |
| Red-backed Shrike - Lanius collurio |
| Lesser Grey Shrike - Lanius minor |
| Common Magpie - Pica pica |
| Eurasian Jackdaw - Corvus monedula |
| Hooded Crow - Corvus cornix |
| Crested Lark - Galerida cristata |
| Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica |
| Red-rumped Swallow - Cecropis daurica |
| Coal Tit - Periparus ater |
| Great Tit - Parus major |
| Western Rock Nuthatch - Sitta neumayer |
| Eurasian Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes |
| White-throated Dipper - Cinclus cinclus |
| Common Firecrest - Regulus ignicapilla |
| Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti |
| Eastern Olivaceous Warbler - Iduna pallida |
| Eurasian Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus scirpaceus |
| Great Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus arundinaceus |
| Eurasian Blackcap - Sylvia atricapilla |
| Lesser Whitethroat - Sylvia curruca |
| Subalpine Warbler - Sylvia cantillans |
| Sardinian Warbler - Sylvia melanocephala |
| European Robin - Erithacus rubecula |
| Common Nightingale - Luscinia megarhynchos |
| Black-eared Wheatear - Oenanthe hispanica |
| Eurasian Blackbird - Turdus merula |
| Common Chaffinch - Fringilla coelebs |
| European Greenfinch - Chloris chloris |
| European Goldfinch - Carduelis carduelis |
| Black-headed Bunting - Emberiza melanocephala |
| Corn Bunting - Emberiza calandra |
| Cirl Bunting - Emberiza cirlus |
| House Sparrow - Passer domesticus |
| Eurasian Tree Sparrow - Passer montanus |
