A Day for Scarcities

Highlights - Thursday 7th April

The varying winds (mostly SE to the south of us) delivered four local rarities, first up was a juvenile Night Heron that did a fly past at Porto Kagio, less than an hour later there were 2 Common Starlings at Kokinoghia. These were followed by a Short-eared Owl (at swallow hollow) and a Hawfinch (that was caught and ringed). 

We also recorded our first Turtle Doves of the year (4) - a species that is at real risk of extinction because of human induced pressures such as illegal hunting and no longer occurs in the numbers we saw on our first visits 20+ years ago.

Grounded Migrants: numbers were limited, the ringing teams haul of 79  new birds gives a false impression as the windy conditions presumably forced birds in to the sheltered areas where they operate. There were no obvious substantive arrivals though it is likely that there was some churn in the birds present (namely some departing and others arriving).

Visible Passage: Limited but with a late surprise. A scattering of pipits, larks, wagtails and hirundines was the best we could manage until late afternoon when 42 Spanish Sparrows appeared at the northern edge of the recording area. They were clearly part of a more widespread, late afternoon arrival as 120 were seen further north at Lower Vathia and another 15 at Gerolimenas.

Raptors: a single Kestrel Sp and a Marsh Harrier were all we could manage 

Bird Ringing: A total of 79 new birds ringed: 23 Eastern Subalps, 9 Sedge Warbler, 9 Common Whitethroat, 7 Redstart, 5 Nightingale, 5 Blackcap, 5 Willow Warbler, 3 Tree Pipit, 3 Chiffchaff, 2 Robin! 2 Hoopoe! 1 Great Reed Warbler, 1 Ortolan Bunting, 1 Eastern Bonellis Warbler, 1 Rüppell's Warbler, 1 Hawfinch and 1 Pied Flycatcher

Weather: a day of changes - NE 5 early on, then briefly calm then SSW 6-7 later WNW 6-7, hazy with 5he odd patch of blue sky, a few drop of rain occasionally 

Turtle Dove near Paliros

Hawfinch at Cape Tenaro

Short-eared Owl near the path to the lighthouse

Common Starlings at Kokinoghia