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Gibraltar Ringer 7
A pause to give Mark's Cyprus blog some space and to recognise what a real blog should look like. So much information and consistently great photos.
Here we are on day 10 and two more housemates join us in Bruce's Farm - Carl and Ann Powell. Their arrival coincided with Mark's work experience day when he inspected something in the Dockyard. Never to miss an opportunity he joined us on the hill in uniform but surprisingly didn't try ringing Blackcaps for obvious reasons. His two mornings away coincided with the largest number of birds netted in one round. At this rate we are having to download data to IPMR daily at Jew's Gate and gives us a chance to compare numbers and species caught. This is getting a little embarrassing as the winds seem to favour us and they have had a week of poor results.
Today of course, Carl ringed all we could throw at him and he has caught up with most of the good birds such as Redstart but we could only get him one retrapped Iberian Chiffchaff. Yesterday's Willow Warblers failed to put in a repeat performance and must have moved on. Mark's face on one net round gave away that he was holding something special and I was therefore surprised that he offered it up after the promise of a beer. Not exactly a rare bird in Britain but I have never ringed Grasshopper Warbler until this one and spend some time looking at the differences with Lanceolated Warbler. It's all in the under tail coverts and tertials and did not take long to work out. A lovely bird and photogenic as the attached shows. A beer worth spent.
We now have two chefs - bad for all our waist lines and I have already failed on the no beer on weekdays rule, foolishly mentioned on Ascension and already picked up by our one avid reader!
Cyprus Weekly
Birding Highlights for the Week Ending 29 Sep
Osprey at Akhna Dam on 29 Sep
* indicates that a photo of the species is included please visit Flickr site to view or click on the link
Monday already and after a long day at work I managed to get to Akhna Dam for a couple of hours. The evenings are drawing in and it’s now dusk at about 1850 so I need to make the most of the time before the clocks go back. The dam was productive although nothing exceptional was seen. Waders numbers were fairly consistent with the last couple of weeks with Ruffs and Little Stints being in the majority. A couple of Whiskered Terns were present, one being a moulting adult and Red-backed and Masked Shrikes continue to pass through in reduced numbers. A Little Owl was in the usual place, Snipe numbers had increased to 4 and a Sedge Warbler was seen. As I returned home through the village c20 European Beeaters fed from the telegraph wires.
With the car back up and running with Turkish insurance, we headed over to the North via the dreaded “Poundland”. We arrived at Fresh Water Lake South and I immediately sighted a Whiskered Tern. Several waders were present including a Spotted Redshank, Ruffs, Ringed Plovers, Wood & Green Sandpipers and 3 Black-winged Stilts. A couple of Kingfishers chased each other around the tamarisks. A whos who of herons were present with c30 Grey Herons, 2 Purple Herons, 2 Night, 5 Squacco and 18 Little Egrets accompanied by 6 Glossy Ibises. Clapsides beach held 4 Ruff and an early Golden Plover but disappointingly there were no post breeding Audouin’s Gulls present.
Mid week already and with a BBQ looming I only managed to grab a couple of hours at Akhna Dam where there were a few notable highlights. A Jack Snipe fed actively under a tamarisk with 4 Common Snipes in close proximately. A couple of Shrikes continue their passage and Ruff numbers had increased to c30. A Temmick’s Stint and 9 Lapwings* flushed amongst the more common Spur-winged Plovers* and a lone White Wagtail continued its stay. A Honey Buzzard* drifted overhead and a few Willow Warblers and a Reed Warbler moved actively in the reeds. As I was leaving the site on the main road to Ay Nik a latish Lesser Grey Shrike sat on a sprinkler head and overhead a fantastic view as 33 White Pelicans* flew south west in formation.
On Thursday, I was late home and had to drop Deb to the theatre club in Dhekelia where a Red-backed Shrike sat on a fence. On the way home, I stopped at Dhekelia Fire Station and the Stone Curlew roost had risen to 23 vice 18. Briefly, with the light fading at Akhna Dam, I encountered a Greenshank, 2 Snipe, a couple of Little Stints and Ruffs with an immature Masked Shrike catching flies in the twilight. A couple of Garganeys rose from the water and a Northern Wheatear was sat on a ploughed field. I also noticed a Whiskered Tern hawking the water.
On Friday morning as I departed for work 18 European Beeaters passed over the house heading south east. Attending a dinner in Troodos, we travelled up in the afternoon seeing a Great Grey Shrike in Ay Nik and 2 Ospreys over Polemedia Dam as we started the ascent. On Saturday on the way down we stopped at Oroklini Hills and saw a Masked Shrike, Northern Wheatear, 3 Chukars and c20 European Beeaters. With the station fete on Saturday, I had little time to go birding so had to wait until Sunday afternoon when I visited Akhna Dam.
At Akhna Dam I immediately noticed an Osprey* sat in the water with a Little Egret nearby and c30 European Beeaters overhead. A solitary White Wagtail continued in situ and a Spotted Flycatcher called as I passed. A couple of Shrikes; Red-backed and Masked continue to perform as they hunt actively prior to departure and at least 5 Kingfishers were seen. A female Marsh Harrier spooked the various waders with 4 Snipes and at least 25 Ruffs being seen along with smaller numbers of Little Stint, Little Ringed Plovers and a single Curlew Sandpiper.
Highlight of the Week: A Jack Snipe is always a good bird on passage and the 33 White Pelicans was a good count but good to get another opportunity to photograph an Osprey..
Look Forward: A couple of days off in the week should see me at Akrotiri attempting to catch up with a Lesser Spotted Eagle..
If you are planning a visit or require more info please feel free to contact me at: birder639@yahoo.com
Mark Easterbrook
CommentsGibraltar Ringer 6
With Carl and Ann Powell due out here shortly, the last thing I am going to mention is the weather. For a reasonable number of birds, we need an easterly wind and this is not due to return until the end of this week. Today started wet and got wetter until the early afternoon when the sun and wind helped to dry us out. We had managed a productive hour from first light picking up a steady flow of Sardinian Warblers, Pied Flies, Blackcap, Wrens, Iberian Chiffchaff and Blackbirds (never seen so many of the latter in one place), while watching the progress of squalls in the harbour below, the Bay, and the Straits further out. Anticipating trouble as the winds got up, it was a job to get all birds out and nets closed in time. In a break, and because we have yet to have a day without moving nets, we moved 2 unproductive nets from the bottom of the hill to the top. More emotional moments and all eyes on Mark and his teddy (see earlier blogs). At last the rain stopped, the sun came out and a female Sparrowhawk obligingly flew into an upper net. Not much causes me to run uphill but in this case and blowing out of every orifice, I caught her - a beautiful 2nd year female. The ringing day finished with an adult male Redstart in fresh and striking plumage.
Well, not quite the end of the day. A visit to La Linea and an 'all you can eat' Chinese restaurant was preceded by a viewing of White Storks nesting on platforms beside the road and a spiral of up to 40 birds over local wetland. Slept all the way back!
Gibraltar Ringer 5
It had to happen - the weather has turned and so last night we decided to go into Spain for some inland ringing this morning. Two and a half hours in the queue to cross the border did nothing for our collective sense of humour but fish and chips collected and eaten at the home of John Hale in Malaga Province managed to restore spirits...and a few beers. Mark Cutts and I stayed with John overnight and severely dented his beer stocks while Julia and Robin overnighted around the corner at their house in Casares. By the time we had opened 13 nets in John's 14 acre garden we had still no idea of the landscape but as dawn broke, a fantastic panorama of rocky hills and scrubland opened before us. Lesser Kestrel and Blue Rock Thrush were overtaken in interest by low flying Griffon Vultures (pictured) and then by large flocks of feeding Crag Martins with the occasional Red-rumped Swallow and House Martin.
Despite rain overnight, bird numbers were down this morning again, mostly due to the westerly wind but the pleasure of walking through such interesting countryside, compensated. A new bird was Cetti's Warbler, common enough in the UK but we were never going to ring it on Gibraltar. A retrapped Cetti's was ringed by Julia 10 days previously. We left John in his idyllic surroundings to return to the Rock and check that our furled nets remained so.
Gibraltar Ringer 4
With the prospect of going over to Spain to ring tomorrow morning, we are hastily back from Middle Hill and a quick repack of kit. No time compromised as the change in wind to a Westerly and little early cloud, reduced the numbers of birds considerably. Even the raptors were scarce today. Nevertheless, of the 23 birds ringed this morning, one new one for the list was Whitethroat. The fresh birds that we see in the fields at home look a little tired and worn here and it is surprising how many local birds simply do not move far. The combination of well travelled and local species that moult twice if hatched early in the year, makes for some interesting debates, Sardinian Warbler and Blackbirds in particular. Pied Flycatchers (pictured), Blackcaps, a Garden Warbler and Redstart made up some of the other numbers. A control Blackcap was very surprisingly ringed by Julia 2 years ago at Jew's Gate.
Despite having all nets up and in the right place, Charles Perez helpfully suggested that the line of four on the steepest slope should be moved three feet to the left to get closer to the vegetation. We all agreed and Mark Cutts' teddy remained intact so hopefully Sunday's ringing should produce better numbers.
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