Lake Kerkini Nationwide Park within the north of Greece is the easiest birding space within the Balkan Peninsula and for sure a number of the most sensible ten hotspots of Europe. Unusually, in spite of being at the web page of a former marsh, Kerkini is a synthetic reservoir with the aim of irrigation of arable fields. The lake lies at a trifling 35 m / 115 feet a.s.l. and is towered through the forested, 2,030 m / 6,660 feet prime Mt. Kerkini/Belles on its northern facet, providing an enormous altitudinal vary and an ideal number of habitats. Some 320 species had been recorded right here, and in springtime it’s conceivable to look at greater than 150 hen species in every week.
This may be my favorite birding spot, which I generally discuss with every year, however because of the pandemic disruption I used to be now returning after a 4 years wreck. We arrived simply prior to middle of the night to satisfy our good friend and the Limneo Lodge owner Nikos Gallios, with whom we shared a very good pizza crowned with recent village produce, mere 100 m / 330 feet from his resort. What amazed me is that, as a substitute of the standard 6 or 8 slices, this pizza used to be minimize into tiny, bite-size slices!
Booted Eagle through Kostas Papadopoulos
The following morning used to be a lazy one, a overdue breakfast or even later tour. It used to be getting sizzling, so as a substitute of an to start with deliberate 6 km intense birding direction, I opted for a leisurely 70 km around the lake pressure with some en direction birding intermingled with a couple of cafe and eating place stops. The southern part of the lake produced White Stork, Spanish Sparrow, Pygmy Cormorant, Nice White Pelican, Squacco Heron, Black-crowned Night time-Heron, Eurasian Spoonbill, Black Kite, Eu Bee-eater, Crested Lark, Nice Reed Warbler, Crimson-rumped Swallow, and simply prior to the espresso wreck, a Lesser Noticed Eagle swallowing a snake in mid-air.
Lesser Noticed Eagle and Eurasian Hoopoe through Kostas Papadopoulos
After which we had whipped and iced espresso frappe, which is these days much more commonplace in Greece than conventional Greek espresso (with much less political correctness it can be also known as Turkish espresso, one thing I by no means attempted myself) in a deep color of very dense tree crowns, which is, alas, additionally very a lot appreciated through a neighborhood gang of mosquitoes. But, that used to be the one time we used insect repellent on all the go back and forth. The northern part of the lake added Corn Bunting, Eu Turtle Dove, Dalmatian Pelican, Pink Heron, Eurasian Interest, Eurasian Golden Oriole, Eurasian Inexperienced Woodpecker, and simplest the primary of different Masked Shrikes of the excursion (quilt picture through Kostas Papadopoulos).
The following prevent used to be for lunch in a Railway Station Tavern within the Vyronenia Village. Even if the trains on the Thessaloniki-Alexandroupolis line appear to be few and some distance in between, they nonetheless prevent at this village station was a cafe. We sat open air, shaded through previous aircraft bushes and cooled through a brief bathe falling within the shiny daylight. We have been joined through Nikos and his circle of relatives, so we ordered a dozen conventional dishes and salads to percentage, some native buffalo sausages and beef kebabs with yoghurt sauce, bouyiourdi (a Greek appetizer consisting of feta cheese, kasseri, tomatoes, oregano, olive oil and bell peppers), a mushroom pie, after which there used to be some other salty pie with honey, it’s all blended up in my thoughts through now. The provider used to be speedy, the dishes nice, costs reasonable and the corporate valuable. To spherical up the day, in our base-village of Chrisochorafa, we later had one lovely Little Owl only some hundred metres from our resort.
The following day used to be the only after I awoke early – the one time in this go back and forth. I went to discover the most productive birding space of the nationwide park, the mythical japanese levee, and at the moment began with some other Little Owl within the subsequent village. The levee used to be bursting with making a song Not unusual Nightingales, Eurasian Penduline Knockers, Jap Olivaceous Warblers, Cetti’s Warblers (one taking into consideration the most productive of perspectives), and Cirl Buntings. Then there have been a couple of Hawfinches and two younger Black Storks, Little Bittern, Nice White Egret, Shiny Ibis, Not unusual Kingfisher, Syrian Woodpecker, Peregrine Falcon, Crimson-backed Shrike, Lesser Gray Shrike, Collared Flycatcher and a circle of relatives of Western Yellow Wagtails. Later within the day, roadside birds incorporated a Booted Eagle and a Levant Sparrowhawk.
Subsequent morning we joined one in all Nikos’s Varkada Boat Excursions of the lake, crusing round and thru hen colonies and into the primary in-flow channel of the Strymonas River the place it enters the lake. Because of heavy rains many clutches of Nice Crested Grebes had failed, however we noticed each nests with eggs (and left the world right away) and adults with chicks, a few of them piggy-backing their moms. We additionally noticed nests of Pygmy Cormorants, Dalmatian Pelicans, Little Egrets, Livestock Egret (with a chick), Squacco Heron, and Spoonbills. The final time I used to be right here, the Nationwide Park Director, Dr Theodoros Naziridis, informed me they have been looking ahead to a in reality prime water degree to tug the floating concrete raft (supposed for breeding of pelicans) additional away so the pile of rocks it used to be anchored to may change into a basis for the brand new wood platform. Then again, all through a hurricane the chains that saved it anchored broke off and the raft is now stranded at the shore, available to stray canines and now not used for breeding. The Strymonas Channel used to be decorated through a lot of Nice White Pelicans, Black-crowned Night time-Herons, Shiny Ibises, additionally Penduline Knockers, Not unusual Reed Warblers, Cetti’s Warblers and Eurasian Tree Sparrows. Closing however now not least, there have been 3 species of shrikes, Crimson-backed, Lesser Gray and a minimum of 2 Masked Shrikes, perhaps 2 extra, a whole circle of relatives (now not all have been appearing so neatly).
Nice White Pelicans through Kostas Papadopoulos
We trustworthy the afternoon to the small, deserted and revitalised quarry in the back of the hamlet of Chimarros. It became out to be the house of the overall of the 4 native shrikes, the Woodchat Shrike (a circle of relatives, 2 adults and a pair of juveniles) appearing neatly, a making a song Ortolan Bunting, Turtle Dove, yet one more Masked Shrike, Jap Olivaceous Warbler, Noticed Flycatcher, Yellowhammer, in addition to 3 grazing Greek tortoise (Testudo graeca).
Versus one earlier Kerkini excursion when two intense days were given me over 100 species, those 3 lazy days were given me 95 species and I’m more than happy with the rating and the best way I were given there. The following day we went to some other nationwide park, this time a sequence of coastal lagoons, however you are going to learn that tale in a fortnight.