ornithom
Active member
Tingaki, Kos 27th August to 3rd September 2009
We stayed at Mythos Apartment which is located on the east side of the main street near the roundabout in the centre of Tingaki. The apartments backed onto some rough ground comprising a rough grassy field with 2 cows in, a tamarisk lined rough track, and a small reed bed. This area proved very interesting in the first couple of days, as the regular zitting calls of Fan-tailed Warbler proved elusive at first. A roosting colony of 300 House Sparrows was a great evening spectacle but failed to tempt any hunters, and the first 2 days held a beautiful adult male Red-backed Shrike. Also seen here was a Crested Lark and a Great Tit favoured the trees in the apartment grounds.
As this was a ‘holiday’ I tended to keep my birding to the times of day that were suitable to the plans of my partner, and so I visited the saltpan which is only a ten minute walk from Tingaki. The timing was usually early evening, between 1630 and 1900, and so wasn’t the best time to watch. Never-the-less I did manage to find my way round the saltpan to some interesting birds. Eventually, I did get out for one morning walk at 0630 and the difference was absolutely amazing, I would highly recommend that anyone visiting at this time of year try their best to make the visits early.
The saltpans can be approached from several roads (tracks really!) but I walked from Tingaki along the beach road which passes a car park, then onto Alykes past Ikaros Beach Bar, continues to some run-down houses and reaches one of the best spots; the sluice. This area has some small trees lining the sluice, and the outflow also proved interesting. The road then continues to another smaller car park, which also had some good cover trees and some ruined sheds (good for Little Owl, I later found). Just past this car park is a strange low walled square field which was really good for larks, wagtails, and Hoopoe. Towards the seaward side the dunes become wider, but the only problem here is the nudists, which proved to be a bit of an annoyance when trying to watch some pipits and not attract the attention of the Greeks topping up their tans! Again, however, the early morning visit avoided them completely and I found my first ever Tawny Pipit as well as Wheatear and Great Reed Warbler. There are some stables located in this area and the track through the dunes leads to a road that comes from the Tingaki-Marmari main road. This road runs past the freshwater inlet which is probably the best spot of the area, attracting most of the waders found during the week as well as Squacco Heron, Little Egret, Stone-Curlew (in the fields away from the main water), Yellow Wagtail, a single juvenile Black-headed Bunting and lots of ‘other’ wildlife (dragonflies, frogs, fish). From the inlet the track follows the waters edge back round to the outskirts of Tingaki where a couple of tracks lead through to the back roads of the town. The fields along this track provided very little at this time of year, but shrikes and Crested Lark were still in evidence.
Itinarary
27th August 2009
First day – arrived in Kos around 1300 and coach journey to Tingaki was via a couple of hotels in Mastichari. This provided quick views of some the commoner birds of Kos – Collared Dove, House Sparrow were quickly added, followed by Red-rumped Swallow, House Martin (the only ones of the trip), Hooded Crow, Jackdaw and for me the highlight of the trip – a cracking Roller dropping from some roadside wires and hovering 1 metre above the grass showing off its blue wing patches before falling into the grass, a lifer for me and a good bird to kick off the holiday.
After arriving at the apartments we got our bearings, having a wander round town and generally keeping an eye out for anything with wings. I managed to add Swallow, Yellow-legged Gull and a cracking male Red-backed Shrike from our apartment balcony, and some zitting calls couldn’t be located but I knew I recognised the culprit. A walk later on in the evening to the supermarket added Turtle Dove.
28th August 2009
Any time spent on the balcony during the week was always accompanied with my binoculars, and today I relocated the shrike, finally pinned down some Fan-tailed Warblers zitting in the long grass and found a Great Tit in the apartment gardens.
The afternoon allowed me some time to find my way to the saltpan but I didn’t get too far as I got sidetracked by the ‘newness’ of the site and being in a foreign place. Plenty of further shrikes provided ample distraction, particularly as most were juveniles and in the stark afternoon light proved very tricky to identify. As I walked along the beach road I found a track which followed the edge of the saltpan and led past some buildings to the sluice. Some trees near the sluice provide some protection to allow you to watch the birds without being quite so conspicuous and so I managed to get good views of a juvenile Spotted Redshank, Curlew Sandpiper, several Ringed Plovers and some Little Stints. A Little Egret was a little further out and another was found on the beach side of the road, where the outflow from the sluice followed a smelly track to the sea. On the way back along the road I found a male Lesser Grey Shrike.
29th August 2009
Another afternoon trip to the saltpan today but a bit further than yesterday, past the sluice to the square field and the nudist area! But the birds made up for the uncomfortableness, with 3 Hoopoes, plenty of Crested Larks, some unidentified Wheatear/Stonechat, and at least 3 Red backed Shrikes. Some interesting chirps proved impossible to look at as they were in the dunes and whenever I put up my binoculars all I got were white bums in the background. Not a pleasant sight! On the way back a Sardinian Warbler showed briefly and a Turnstone at the outflow was a nice surprise.
30th August 2009
A morning walk to the supermarket provided my first Scarce Swallowtail and 2 Hummingbird Hawk-Moths in some gardens near Konstantinos supermarket.
Another evening trip to the saltpan, and tonight I took my girlfriend and decided to walk in the opposite direction. Not a good idea! Not only did we not see much but that was the first time she’d been birding with me, so I’ll need to try harder to get her out again! However, a White Wagtail was a new trip bird and some lovely Long-tailed Blue butterflies provided me with some welcome distraction from the birds.
An evening Greek Night in Zia gave me the chance to view a different part of the island but the journey provided only Chaffinch, Collared Dove and Red-backed Shrike. From a bar roof I spotted a couple of Greenfinch and heard some Coal Tits.
31st August 2009
A trip out to Kos Town this afternoon and one of the first birds on the harbour was Pallid Swift followed by some Yellow-legged Gulls, a couple of scruffy Hooded Crows and a Rook.
The evening trip to the saltpan gave me some extra time, so I pushed on to complete the whole circuit which took me 1.5 hours. However, the quick circuit meant that I ended up with a short bird list as I was more intent on getting round than stopping for everything that caught my eye. New birds tonight were a Little Ringed Plover at the outflow and the inlet area had a Squacco Heron flying over my head to land here, some Little Stints and 3 Ruff, as well as several Grey Heron and 2 Little Egrets. There was also some interesting birds making a call which I’ve attributed to Olivaceous Warbler but I never got good views to confirm their identity. This area got me excited and I knew I had to get out here for a morning visit.
1st September 2009
A day out at the water park only provided good numbers of Hooded Crow and Jackdaw, a Hummingbird Hawk-Moth and a Kestrel-type bird flying in the fields outside.
After getting back I managed to get out via the south shore path the inlet again to try and sort out the Olivaceous sounds, but didn’t hear them tonight. I did find 7 Sand Martins flying through and wader numbers were up. 16 Little Stints, 10 Ringed Plover, another Little Ringed, Turnstone, 2 Ruff, 5 Curlew Sandpiper. Red-backed Shrike and Fan-tailed Warbler were fast becoming ubiquitous and there were some impressive number of Yellow-legged Gulls coming into roost but nothing more exciting amongst them.
2nd September 2009
I finally managed an early morning start today and was amazed at the difference. The walk along the generally quiet back roads gave huge numbers of hirundines, in particular the field opposite the first beach car park after the seafront bars gave me great views of Fan-tailed Warbler displaying, and at least 50 Red-rumped Swallows and a couple of ‘normal’ Swallows. The Red-backed Shrikes on the way down the beach road were all in fine voice and showed exceptionally well. Just before the sluice a Wheatear showed briefly and was the first of several of the morning. As I approached the sluice a small bird dropped from the trees and came back up to land further along the treeline. A short wait and it popped into view, a Spotted Flycatcher. At the sluice a fine number of Kentish Plovers were in view and after staring at them for several minutes realised that a few of them were bigger, and had slightly ‘whiter’ faces. I realised I was looking at Greater Sandplovers and eventually picked out 3 of them. Another first for me! As I was absorbed by the Sandplovers my subconscious twitched at the sound of the swallows alarm-calling at something. As I scanned the swallows a juvenile Marsh Harrier flew close by across my binocular path. I couldn’t believe my luck this morning! I continued along to the trees surrounding the car park (that the nudists used) and instinctively knew I should sit and wait and see what was around. Straight away another Spotted Flycatcher was found and stayed put to get it on film. A couple of unidentified warbler flitted away, and then one was found in the treetops, a Chiffchaff. A short time later a Willow Warbler was seen feeding in the trees, and as I was putting away the camcorder a larger bird flew from the sheds and caught my eye. It had landed out of view but because of a window in the building I knew if I approached carefully I’d get a better view. This I did and stuck my head round the corner, a Little Owl stared back and then took off. The 3 Hoopoes were still in the usual square field, and Crested Larks flew ahead of me as I kicked them out of the grass. As I walked through the dunes, this time not being bothered by the nudists, I found a Blue-headed Wagtail, 5 more Wheatears and a couple of brown birds with longish tails, as they took off quickly I could only imagine that they were juveniles wagtails. I continued through the dunes and again disturbed a small brown bird. I followed it into a ditch containing some reeds, and in a vain attempt to get it out I made some ridiculous ‘chacking’ noises with my tongue. Out popped a massive Great Reed Warbler which sent me into fits of hysteria. Again I couldn’t believe my luck. However, I didn’t find the LBJ!!
Some more kicking through the dunes produced another Wheatear and while watching that, a superb Tawny Pipit wandered quickly through the grasses. Another lifer. After rejoining the road and following it round to the inlet area, I noticed a Grey Heron sitting in the middle of the field. Always one to check out the unusual I scanned the heron and spotted some brown straw coloured ‘humps’ in the field. It couldn’t be! I got the scope onto the humps and realised they had big yellow eyes and yellow legs. Stone-Curlews, and as I scanned the field I saw a lot. I walked a bit further to get a better view of the field, and with my binoculars counted 63! As I rounded the corner to the where the inlet meets the saltpan, the freshwater provided respite for a whole host of waders this morning, including 2 juvenile Wood Sandpipers, a Temminck’s Stint, at least 20 Little Stint, Turnstone, more Ringed Plovers, some more (or maybe the same) Sandplovers, Little Egret and Curlew Sandpiper. A juvenile Black-headed Bunting came down for a drink at the fresh water edge. And this was my last new bird of the trip. The remaining track back to Tingaki was done quickly as I was running out of time and it was getting extremely hot! A quick stop at the Long-tailed Blue site provided a couple of photos.
An excellent morning and a good finish to my holiday, with 4 lifers and a total trip list of 49 species.
Full Bird List
Squacco Heron – 1 flew in to land at the inlet on 31/08/09
Little Egret – 2-3 seen on every visit
Grey Heron – 2-5 seen on every visit
Marsh Harrier – juvenile seen flying in at the sluice and again at the inlet on 2/09/09
Kestrel – 1 small ‘brown’ falcon is assumed to be this species at Mastichari on 1/09/09. 3 juvenile/female watched harassing Hooded Crows on the dunes at Alykes are assumed to be this species on 2/09/09
Stone-Curlew – the gobsmacking total of 63 seen in fields at the inlet on 2/09/09
Little Ringed Plover – 1 seen at the sluice on 31/08/09 and another at the inlet on 2/09/09
Ringed Plover – up to 20 seen on every visit
Kentish Plover – single seen 29/08/09; 24 seen at the sluice on 2/09/09
Little Stint – several seen at the sluice on 28/08/09; 3 at the inlet on 31/08/09; 16 along the south shore on 2/09/09; in excess of 20 on 3/09/09
Temminck’s Stint – single at the inlet on 3/09/09
Curlew Sandpiper – single seen at the sluice on 28/08/09; several at the inlet on 31/08/09; 5 at the inlet on 1/09/09; in excess of 10 on 3/09/09
Ruff – 3 at the inlet on 31/08/09; 2 at the inlet on 1/09/09
Spotted Redshank – single juvenile at the sluice on 28/08/09; and again on the 29/08/09
Wood Sandpiper – 2 juveniles at the inlet on 2/09/09
Turnstone – single seen at the outlet stream on 29/08/09; one at the inlet on 1/09/09
Yellow-legged Gull – 200+ seen on every visit to the saltpan; several over various parts of Tingaki and Mastichari
Collared Dove – very common in Tingaki with several seen every day
Turtle Dove – 1-2 seen most days in Tingaki especially around the ‘back streets’ leading to the saltpan
Little Owl – one flew over the main street in Tingaki at 2230 on 1/09/09 but a better and more definite view seen the following morning in the ruined sheds at the end of the beach road
Pallid Swift – possibles seen over Mastichari; up to 7 seen over the harbourfront at Kos Town on 31/08/09
Roller – single seen on the journey to our hotel somewhere between Mastichari and Tingaki
Hoopoe – 3 seen in the square field on 29/08/09; 31/08/09 and 2/09/09
Crested Lark – common around the saltpan with up to 20 seen on 2/09/09
Sand Martin – 7 seen along the south shore of the saltpan on 1/09/09
Swallow – 2-6 around the saltpan and Tingaki on various days
Red-rumped Swallow – 2-3 seen most days; up to 50 seen in fields between Tingaki and the saltpan 2/09/09
House Martin – several seen in Mastichari from coach
Tawny Pipit – single seen in dunes at Alykes on 2/09/09
Yellow Wagtail – single flying over at Alykes on 29/08/09; 6 flying over opposite Ikaros beach bar at Alykes on 31/08/09; 4 flying over the saltpan on 1/09/09; finally found some on the ground on 2/09/09
Blue-headed Wagtail – single allowed me to ascertain this subspecies on 2/09/09
White Wagtail – single in fields along south shore of saltpan on 30/08/09
Wheatear – up to 5 seen in dunes on 2/09/09
Fan-tailed Warbler – seen on every visit to the saltpan including a small colony near the horse stables in the dunes on 31/08/09; a small colony in rough ground behind our apartments
Great Reed Warbler – single in small ditch in the dunes on 2/09/09
Sardinian Warbler – single around the sluice on 29/08/09; another along the south shore on 30/08/09
Chiffchaff – single seen in trees around the sheds on 2/09/09
Willow Warbler – single seen in trees around the sheds on 2/09/09
Spotted Flycatcher – single at the sluice and another around the sheds on 2/09/09
Great Tit – single seen in grounds of our apartment; one heard near Golden Sun hotel
Red-backed Shrike – common around the saltpan with up to 5 birds seen on every visit; up to 15+ seen on 2/09/09; single adult male in rough ground behind our apartment 27/08/09 and 28/08/09
Lesser Grey Shrike – single seen along beach road on 28/08/09 and again on 29/08/09
Magpie – 3 seen from coach on trip to Mastichari on 1/09/09
Jackdaw – several seen from coach at Mastichari on 27/08/09; up to 50 in fields around the water park on 1/09/09
Rook – single seen in Kos Town on 31/08/09
Hooded Crow – very common around Tingaki and the saltpan seen on every visit
House Sparrow – huge colony of up to 300 birds roosting every evening in rough ground behind our apartment; very common elsewhere in Tingaki and the saltpan
Chaffinch – single bird seen on road to Zia on 30/08/09
Greenfinch – 3 in trees in Zia on 30/08/09
Black-headed Bunting – single juvenile bird seen briefly at the inlet on 1/09/09
Olivaceous Warbler (?) heard at the inlet on a couple of visits
Coal Tit heard in Zia on 30/08/09
Other Wildlife
Scarce Swallowtail – 1 seen on flowering bushes near Konstantinos Supermarket in Tingaki on 30/08/09 morning only; single over our apartment 2/09/09
Hummingbird Hawk Moth – 2 on flowering bushes near Konstantinos Supermarket in Tingaki on 30/08/09 morning only; single at water park on 1/09/09
Long-tailed Blue – several seen in roadside bushes near Golden Sun Hotel, Tingaki on 30/08/09 and 2/09/09
Lots of other unidentified butterflies got me very frustrated!
Also a couple of dragonfly species were seen but are yet to be identified
2 lizard species (a gecko and a sand lizard-type) were seen but have yet to be identified
A frog species seen briefly on 2/09/09 is yet to be identified
We stayed at Mythos Apartment which is located on the east side of the main street near the roundabout in the centre of Tingaki. The apartments backed onto some rough ground comprising a rough grassy field with 2 cows in, a tamarisk lined rough track, and a small reed bed. This area proved very interesting in the first couple of days, as the regular zitting calls of Fan-tailed Warbler proved elusive at first. A roosting colony of 300 House Sparrows was a great evening spectacle but failed to tempt any hunters, and the first 2 days held a beautiful adult male Red-backed Shrike. Also seen here was a Crested Lark and a Great Tit favoured the trees in the apartment grounds.
As this was a ‘holiday’ I tended to keep my birding to the times of day that were suitable to the plans of my partner, and so I visited the saltpan which is only a ten minute walk from Tingaki. The timing was usually early evening, between 1630 and 1900, and so wasn’t the best time to watch. Never-the-less I did manage to find my way round the saltpan to some interesting birds. Eventually, I did get out for one morning walk at 0630 and the difference was absolutely amazing, I would highly recommend that anyone visiting at this time of year try their best to make the visits early.
The saltpans can be approached from several roads (tracks really!) but I walked from Tingaki along the beach road which passes a car park, then onto Alykes past Ikaros Beach Bar, continues to some run-down houses and reaches one of the best spots; the sluice. This area has some small trees lining the sluice, and the outflow also proved interesting. The road then continues to another smaller car park, which also had some good cover trees and some ruined sheds (good for Little Owl, I later found). Just past this car park is a strange low walled square field which was really good for larks, wagtails, and Hoopoe. Towards the seaward side the dunes become wider, but the only problem here is the nudists, which proved to be a bit of an annoyance when trying to watch some pipits and not attract the attention of the Greeks topping up their tans! Again, however, the early morning visit avoided them completely and I found my first ever Tawny Pipit as well as Wheatear and Great Reed Warbler. There are some stables located in this area and the track through the dunes leads to a road that comes from the Tingaki-Marmari main road. This road runs past the freshwater inlet which is probably the best spot of the area, attracting most of the waders found during the week as well as Squacco Heron, Little Egret, Stone-Curlew (in the fields away from the main water), Yellow Wagtail, a single juvenile Black-headed Bunting and lots of ‘other’ wildlife (dragonflies, frogs, fish). From the inlet the track follows the waters edge back round to the outskirts of Tingaki where a couple of tracks lead through to the back roads of the town. The fields along this track provided very little at this time of year, but shrikes and Crested Lark were still in evidence.
Itinarary
27th August 2009
First day – arrived in Kos around 1300 and coach journey to Tingaki was via a couple of hotels in Mastichari. This provided quick views of some the commoner birds of Kos – Collared Dove, House Sparrow were quickly added, followed by Red-rumped Swallow, House Martin (the only ones of the trip), Hooded Crow, Jackdaw and for me the highlight of the trip – a cracking Roller dropping from some roadside wires and hovering 1 metre above the grass showing off its blue wing patches before falling into the grass, a lifer for me and a good bird to kick off the holiday.
After arriving at the apartments we got our bearings, having a wander round town and generally keeping an eye out for anything with wings. I managed to add Swallow, Yellow-legged Gull and a cracking male Red-backed Shrike from our apartment balcony, and some zitting calls couldn’t be located but I knew I recognised the culprit. A walk later on in the evening to the supermarket added Turtle Dove.
28th August 2009
Any time spent on the balcony during the week was always accompanied with my binoculars, and today I relocated the shrike, finally pinned down some Fan-tailed Warblers zitting in the long grass and found a Great Tit in the apartment gardens.
The afternoon allowed me some time to find my way to the saltpan but I didn’t get too far as I got sidetracked by the ‘newness’ of the site and being in a foreign place. Plenty of further shrikes provided ample distraction, particularly as most were juveniles and in the stark afternoon light proved very tricky to identify. As I walked along the beach road I found a track which followed the edge of the saltpan and led past some buildings to the sluice. Some trees near the sluice provide some protection to allow you to watch the birds without being quite so conspicuous and so I managed to get good views of a juvenile Spotted Redshank, Curlew Sandpiper, several Ringed Plovers and some Little Stints. A Little Egret was a little further out and another was found on the beach side of the road, where the outflow from the sluice followed a smelly track to the sea. On the way back along the road I found a male Lesser Grey Shrike.
29th August 2009
Another afternoon trip to the saltpan today but a bit further than yesterday, past the sluice to the square field and the nudist area! But the birds made up for the uncomfortableness, with 3 Hoopoes, plenty of Crested Larks, some unidentified Wheatear/Stonechat, and at least 3 Red backed Shrikes. Some interesting chirps proved impossible to look at as they were in the dunes and whenever I put up my binoculars all I got were white bums in the background. Not a pleasant sight! On the way back a Sardinian Warbler showed briefly and a Turnstone at the outflow was a nice surprise.
30th August 2009
A morning walk to the supermarket provided my first Scarce Swallowtail and 2 Hummingbird Hawk-Moths in some gardens near Konstantinos supermarket.
Another evening trip to the saltpan, and tonight I took my girlfriend and decided to walk in the opposite direction. Not a good idea! Not only did we not see much but that was the first time she’d been birding with me, so I’ll need to try harder to get her out again! However, a White Wagtail was a new trip bird and some lovely Long-tailed Blue butterflies provided me with some welcome distraction from the birds.
An evening Greek Night in Zia gave me the chance to view a different part of the island but the journey provided only Chaffinch, Collared Dove and Red-backed Shrike. From a bar roof I spotted a couple of Greenfinch and heard some Coal Tits.
31st August 2009
A trip out to Kos Town this afternoon and one of the first birds on the harbour was Pallid Swift followed by some Yellow-legged Gulls, a couple of scruffy Hooded Crows and a Rook.
The evening trip to the saltpan gave me some extra time, so I pushed on to complete the whole circuit which took me 1.5 hours. However, the quick circuit meant that I ended up with a short bird list as I was more intent on getting round than stopping for everything that caught my eye. New birds tonight were a Little Ringed Plover at the outflow and the inlet area had a Squacco Heron flying over my head to land here, some Little Stints and 3 Ruff, as well as several Grey Heron and 2 Little Egrets. There was also some interesting birds making a call which I’ve attributed to Olivaceous Warbler but I never got good views to confirm their identity. This area got me excited and I knew I had to get out here for a morning visit.
1st September 2009
A day out at the water park only provided good numbers of Hooded Crow and Jackdaw, a Hummingbird Hawk-Moth and a Kestrel-type bird flying in the fields outside.
After getting back I managed to get out via the south shore path the inlet again to try and sort out the Olivaceous sounds, but didn’t hear them tonight. I did find 7 Sand Martins flying through and wader numbers were up. 16 Little Stints, 10 Ringed Plover, another Little Ringed, Turnstone, 2 Ruff, 5 Curlew Sandpiper. Red-backed Shrike and Fan-tailed Warbler were fast becoming ubiquitous and there were some impressive number of Yellow-legged Gulls coming into roost but nothing more exciting amongst them.
2nd September 2009
I finally managed an early morning start today and was amazed at the difference. The walk along the generally quiet back roads gave huge numbers of hirundines, in particular the field opposite the first beach car park after the seafront bars gave me great views of Fan-tailed Warbler displaying, and at least 50 Red-rumped Swallows and a couple of ‘normal’ Swallows. The Red-backed Shrikes on the way down the beach road were all in fine voice and showed exceptionally well. Just before the sluice a Wheatear showed briefly and was the first of several of the morning. As I approached the sluice a small bird dropped from the trees and came back up to land further along the treeline. A short wait and it popped into view, a Spotted Flycatcher. At the sluice a fine number of Kentish Plovers were in view and after staring at them for several minutes realised that a few of them were bigger, and had slightly ‘whiter’ faces. I realised I was looking at Greater Sandplovers and eventually picked out 3 of them. Another first for me! As I was absorbed by the Sandplovers my subconscious twitched at the sound of the swallows alarm-calling at something. As I scanned the swallows a juvenile Marsh Harrier flew close by across my binocular path. I couldn’t believe my luck this morning! I continued along to the trees surrounding the car park (that the nudists used) and instinctively knew I should sit and wait and see what was around. Straight away another Spotted Flycatcher was found and stayed put to get it on film. A couple of unidentified warbler flitted away, and then one was found in the treetops, a Chiffchaff. A short time later a Willow Warbler was seen feeding in the trees, and as I was putting away the camcorder a larger bird flew from the sheds and caught my eye. It had landed out of view but because of a window in the building I knew if I approached carefully I’d get a better view. This I did and stuck my head round the corner, a Little Owl stared back and then took off. The 3 Hoopoes were still in the usual square field, and Crested Larks flew ahead of me as I kicked them out of the grass. As I walked through the dunes, this time not being bothered by the nudists, I found a Blue-headed Wagtail, 5 more Wheatears and a couple of brown birds with longish tails, as they took off quickly I could only imagine that they were juveniles wagtails. I continued through the dunes and again disturbed a small brown bird. I followed it into a ditch containing some reeds, and in a vain attempt to get it out I made some ridiculous ‘chacking’ noises with my tongue. Out popped a massive Great Reed Warbler which sent me into fits of hysteria. Again I couldn’t believe my luck. However, I didn’t find the LBJ!!
Some more kicking through the dunes produced another Wheatear and while watching that, a superb Tawny Pipit wandered quickly through the grasses. Another lifer. After rejoining the road and following it round to the inlet area, I noticed a Grey Heron sitting in the middle of the field. Always one to check out the unusual I scanned the heron and spotted some brown straw coloured ‘humps’ in the field. It couldn’t be! I got the scope onto the humps and realised they had big yellow eyes and yellow legs. Stone-Curlews, and as I scanned the field I saw a lot. I walked a bit further to get a better view of the field, and with my binoculars counted 63! As I rounded the corner to the where the inlet meets the saltpan, the freshwater provided respite for a whole host of waders this morning, including 2 juvenile Wood Sandpipers, a Temminck’s Stint, at least 20 Little Stint, Turnstone, more Ringed Plovers, some more (or maybe the same) Sandplovers, Little Egret and Curlew Sandpiper. A juvenile Black-headed Bunting came down for a drink at the fresh water edge. And this was my last new bird of the trip. The remaining track back to Tingaki was done quickly as I was running out of time and it was getting extremely hot! A quick stop at the Long-tailed Blue site provided a couple of photos.
An excellent morning and a good finish to my holiday, with 4 lifers and a total trip list of 49 species.
Full Bird List
Squacco Heron – 1 flew in to land at the inlet on 31/08/09
Little Egret – 2-3 seen on every visit
Grey Heron – 2-5 seen on every visit
Marsh Harrier – juvenile seen flying in at the sluice and again at the inlet on 2/09/09
Kestrel – 1 small ‘brown’ falcon is assumed to be this species at Mastichari on 1/09/09. 3 juvenile/female watched harassing Hooded Crows on the dunes at Alykes are assumed to be this species on 2/09/09
Stone-Curlew – the gobsmacking total of 63 seen in fields at the inlet on 2/09/09
Little Ringed Plover – 1 seen at the sluice on 31/08/09 and another at the inlet on 2/09/09
Ringed Plover – up to 20 seen on every visit
Kentish Plover – single seen 29/08/09; 24 seen at the sluice on 2/09/09
Little Stint – several seen at the sluice on 28/08/09; 3 at the inlet on 31/08/09; 16 along the south shore on 2/09/09; in excess of 20 on 3/09/09
Temminck’s Stint – single at the inlet on 3/09/09
Curlew Sandpiper – single seen at the sluice on 28/08/09; several at the inlet on 31/08/09; 5 at the inlet on 1/09/09; in excess of 10 on 3/09/09
Ruff – 3 at the inlet on 31/08/09; 2 at the inlet on 1/09/09
Spotted Redshank – single juvenile at the sluice on 28/08/09; and again on the 29/08/09
Wood Sandpiper – 2 juveniles at the inlet on 2/09/09
Turnstone – single seen at the outlet stream on 29/08/09; one at the inlet on 1/09/09
Yellow-legged Gull – 200+ seen on every visit to the saltpan; several over various parts of Tingaki and Mastichari
Collared Dove – very common in Tingaki with several seen every day
Turtle Dove – 1-2 seen most days in Tingaki especially around the ‘back streets’ leading to the saltpan
Little Owl – one flew over the main street in Tingaki at 2230 on 1/09/09 but a better and more definite view seen the following morning in the ruined sheds at the end of the beach road
Pallid Swift – possibles seen over Mastichari; up to 7 seen over the harbourfront at Kos Town on 31/08/09
Roller – single seen on the journey to our hotel somewhere between Mastichari and Tingaki
Hoopoe – 3 seen in the square field on 29/08/09; 31/08/09 and 2/09/09
Crested Lark – common around the saltpan with up to 20 seen on 2/09/09
Sand Martin – 7 seen along the south shore of the saltpan on 1/09/09
Swallow – 2-6 around the saltpan and Tingaki on various days
Red-rumped Swallow – 2-3 seen most days; up to 50 seen in fields between Tingaki and the saltpan 2/09/09
House Martin – several seen in Mastichari from coach
Tawny Pipit – single seen in dunes at Alykes on 2/09/09
Yellow Wagtail – single flying over at Alykes on 29/08/09; 6 flying over opposite Ikaros beach bar at Alykes on 31/08/09; 4 flying over the saltpan on 1/09/09; finally found some on the ground on 2/09/09
Blue-headed Wagtail – single allowed me to ascertain this subspecies on 2/09/09
White Wagtail – single in fields along south shore of saltpan on 30/08/09
Wheatear – up to 5 seen in dunes on 2/09/09
Fan-tailed Warbler – seen on every visit to the saltpan including a small colony near the horse stables in the dunes on 31/08/09; a small colony in rough ground behind our apartments
Great Reed Warbler – single in small ditch in the dunes on 2/09/09
Sardinian Warbler – single around the sluice on 29/08/09; another along the south shore on 30/08/09
Chiffchaff – single seen in trees around the sheds on 2/09/09
Willow Warbler – single seen in trees around the sheds on 2/09/09
Spotted Flycatcher – single at the sluice and another around the sheds on 2/09/09
Great Tit – single seen in grounds of our apartment; one heard near Golden Sun hotel
Red-backed Shrike – common around the saltpan with up to 5 birds seen on every visit; up to 15+ seen on 2/09/09; single adult male in rough ground behind our apartment 27/08/09 and 28/08/09
Lesser Grey Shrike – single seen along beach road on 28/08/09 and again on 29/08/09
Magpie – 3 seen from coach on trip to Mastichari on 1/09/09
Jackdaw – several seen from coach at Mastichari on 27/08/09; up to 50 in fields around the water park on 1/09/09
Rook – single seen in Kos Town on 31/08/09
Hooded Crow – very common around Tingaki and the saltpan seen on every visit
House Sparrow – huge colony of up to 300 birds roosting every evening in rough ground behind our apartment; very common elsewhere in Tingaki and the saltpan
Chaffinch – single bird seen on road to Zia on 30/08/09
Greenfinch – 3 in trees in Zia on 30/08/09
Black-headed Bunting – single juvenile bird seen briefly at the inlet on 1/09/09
Olivaceous Warbler (?) heard at the inlet on a couple of visits
Coal Tit heard in Zia on 30/08/09
Other Wildlife
Scarce Swallowtail – 1 seen on flowering bushes near Konstantinos Supermarket in Tingaki on 30/08/09 morning only; single over our apartment 2/09/09
Hummingbird Hawk Moth – 2 on flowering bushes near Konstantinos Supermarket in Tingaki on 30/08/09 morning only; single at water park on 1/09/09
Long-tailed Blue – several seen in roadside bushes near Golden Sun Hotel, Tingaki on 30/08/09 and 2/09/09
Lots of other unidentified butterflies got me very frustrated!
Also a couple of dragonfly species were seen but are yet to be identified
2 lizard species (a gecko and a sand lizard-type) were seen but have yet to be identified
A frog species seen briefly on 2/09/09 is yet to be identified
