Cyprus Weekly
Birding Highlights for the Week Ending 13 Apr 14
Syke’s Wagtail at Akhna Dam on 12 Apr
A new week and a visit to Akhna Dam beckoned. Waders were present in good numbers with 6 Common Snipe, so surely only a matter of days before a Great Snipe appears. Ruffs, Wood Sandpipers, Common Sandpipers and Little Stints were all present along with a lone lingering Cormorant and drake Ferruginous Duck. I was rewarded with the first Whiskered Tern of the year that was in breeding plumage and 2 Yellow Wagtails of the Dombrowskii* (Romanian Wagtail) hybrid form. 3 Meadow Pipits were late and 6 Little Egrets was a good count with 2 Purple Herons and 7 Grey Herons.
Tuesday and rain stopped play. A very heavy thunderstorm lasting about 5 hours drenched the area so I decided to stay in, catch up on some sleep and go for an Indian in the evening – so still an enjoyable day! On Wednesday, with news from the wider island of migrant breeders arriving, I visited the Cape Greco area. At the pines good numbers of migrants were present with a Wryneck*, 2 Pied Flycatchers, 4 Collared Flycatchers (3 Males & a Female), 3 Common Redstarts (2 Males) and an Eastern Bonelli’s Warbler which are becoming a bit thin on the ground. I moved onto the Cape area and more migrants, with Cretzchmars’ Ortolan and Corn Buntings with a Woodchat Shrike and numerous Whinchats nearby. A pristine Eastern Black-eared Wheatear is getting late and a male Cyprus Warbler continued to sing. At Ayia Napa Sewage Works, I saw my first Eastern Olivaceous Warbler of the year, with a Wood Warbler, Eastern Bonelli’s, Willow and Common Redstart. As I drove home via the Ayia Napa Football Pitches several more Whinchats were obvious and 2 Turtle Doves flushed. I paused at Paralimni Lake driving across it – still no joy with a Caspian Plover! Around the other side by Sotira Pond, 2 Glossy Ibises continued their stay as did 3 Black-winged Stilts. Suddenly 15 Purple Herons* lifted off from the reeds and continued their migration and my first roller of the year sat on wires with a Cuckoo*.
On Thursday, I had to visit Troodos and saw most of the mountain specialities with the exception of Crossbill and Wren. As the AOS knows, these are the 2 most difficult to catch up with. Red-rumped Swallows were seen on the ascent as were Serins and singing Eastern Olivaceous Warblers. At Larnaca Airport Pools North, another Red-necked Phalarope was present with numerous Ruffs, Wood and Common Sandpipers with a small group of Dunlins also being present. The Black-tailed Godwit continued its stay at Oroklini, Flamingos numbered 30, Red-crested Pochards 15 and Little Egrets have increased to 15. 4 Garganeys were present (3 Drakes and a Duck) and Black-winged Stilts remained constant at about 40. Later at Akhna Dam, the first Curlew Sandpiper of the year feeding with a group of 50 or so Ruffs was overlooked by the Cormorant which appears to have forgotten to migrate and a drake Garganey. At the dam wall end of the site, a Wood Warbler was a good find with 3 Collared Flycatchers, another couple of Eastern Olivaceous Warblers, a Cetti’s, 2 Sedge and a couple of Reeds. Eventually, I connected with my first Common Whitethroat of the year, progressing the year list onto 218. As I left, a Whinchat showed and a “supercilliaris” Wagtail was perched in a tamarisk.
With wine tasting in the Mess on Friday afternoon with a curry to follow, no birding took place and if events run true to form, I am not hopeful of an early start tomorrow. As predicted, I got to Akhna Dam at about 1500 after suffering all day. In any event, it was a good decision. As I worked my way through a flock of Yellow Wagtails including, Black-headed, Blue-headed, I found a “Dombrowskii” hybrid and then a couple of Syke’s (beema) Wagtails*. A late Water Pipit was also present with a Purple Heron flushing from the reeds. Whinchats totalled 3 and a male Redstart added a flash of colour. A lone Glossy Ibis fed amongst the Ruffs but other than the Yellow Wagtails it was routine business.
On Sunday as I drove to the market, a female Montague’s Harrier was over the fields at Akhna Dam. I dropped Debs at the market and did a quick round at Oroklini Marsh. The Black-tailed Godwit was still present with 2 drake Garganeys. Flamingos totalled 38, 3 Greenshanks were noisy and my first Kingfisher of the month flushed from a small “skanky” pool. Picking Deb up I moved to the Larnaca area where 2 drake Ferruginous Ducks were still on the sewage works lagoons along with 2 late staying Shelducks. Nothing much doing, the airport fields had a Woodchat Shrike keeping watch from the fence and at Pervolia the regular “drive by” Calandras did the business. Kivisili Fields were disappointing with only 1 female Pallid Harrier being present, so I drove past Larnaca Airport looking in at the pools. The Phalarope was no longer present amongst the numerous Ruffs but the 9 Dunlins hung on. For a change JUMBO Drain let me down with only a Snipe and Common Sandpiper being notable. In the afternoon I visited the Cape Greco Pines area where the trees were alive with black and white flycatchers. At least 3 Collareds, 2 males and a female, 3 Pieds, 2 females and a male and 2 Semi-Collareds – one of each. Added to this my first Spotted Flycatcher of the year, a couple of Whinchats, 3 Common Redstarts, a Hoopoe, several Tree Pipits and a Wryneck. I retuned home via Paralimni Lake finding a small flock of Greater Short-toed Larks and along the water filled bund line, a spanking Wood Warbler. Wheatears are coming towards the end of their passage with only 1 Northern being present. I arrived home, cooked a BBQ and had a surprise as a European Nightjar flew through the garden at dusk, thus ending a productive week.
Highlights of the Week: Semi-Collared Flycatchers and grilling my way through Yellow Wagtail flocks to eventually find a Syke’s.
If you are planning a visit or require more info please feel free to contact me at: birder639@yahoo.com
Mark Easterbrook
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