Two Roller Day

 Highlights - Monday 18th April

The morning saw the first rain since we arrived 3 weeks ago with a shower before dawn and another two during the morning. This grounded a selection of migrants including 64 Nightingale and 29 Whitethroat it also provided the days highlight, two different Rollers, one in the lone pine and adjacent wires 500m north of Kokinoghia and the other on wires to the east of the car park at Kokinoghia. Rollers are a scarce spring migrant at Tenaro, with the last record being back in 2006, this is explained by their migration strategy as in spring they almost all migrate around the eastern end of the Mediterranean.

Other birds of note included a Black Kite, 6 Golden Oriole and at least 14 Bee-eaters.

Grounded Migrants: the rain helped to deliver a small arrival of migrants, Nightingale (64) and Whitethroat (29) being the most numerous. Other counts were: 6 Golden Oriole, 7 Woodchat Shrike, 7 Willow Warbler, 3 Subalpine Warbler, 1 Garden Warbler, 2 Great Reed Warbler, 2 Sedge Warbler, 13 Redstart, 13 Whinchat, 9 Collared Flycatcher, 15 Pied Flycatcher, 3 Ortolan Bunting and a single late Serin. 

Visible Passage: Good numbers of Swallows were present from early on with 100 feeding on the 'Narrows' at 07.00, with the total for the day of 310 being the highest spring count for the headland. Also 32 House Martin and 11 Red-rumpled Swallow through. 14 Bee-eater and 33 Turtle Doves, 25 Tawny Pipit, 31 Tree Pipit and 142 Spanish Sparrow were recorded.

Raptors: 1 Black Kite, 1 Montagu’s Harrier, 1 Harrier Sp, 2 Lesser Kestrel, 3 Kestrel Sp.

Bird Ringing: None

Weather: A pre-dawn shower was the first rain for over 3 weeks. Wind SE 3-4 early on, with two heavy showers during the morning. Overcast with sunny spells. A front moved through late morning after which SW 3-4.

Roller on the wires north of Kokinoghia \ '

Bedraggled Roller in the lone pine tree north of Kokinoghia 

Bee-eater and Turtle Doves at Paliros after one of the rain showers

Golden Oriole at Mianes