Birding/Hiking Trip Report --- Balkans Region (1 Viewer)

Recently (June 17-July 1) took a trip to the Balkans region, for birding mainly but also a fair amount of hiking and a bit of old town viewing. Thought I'd post it here to share what we saw and give some advice to others (I found it tough to find good info about birding there on the web).

Here's my flickr set for the trip (not much on there right now, but I'll be putting more up). https://www.flickr.com/photos/68961563@N02/sets/72157645483308212/

Day 1:
On our first day, we arrived in Sarajevo Int. Airport at around noon, coming from Boston to Chicago to Munich the previous day.
After getting the car, we waded out of town and headed SW, following the road to Mostar. It was raining a bit, so we only stopped a couple times, to look for birds/butterflies at pull-offs overlooking the Neretva River.
We didn't take too long to get to Mostar, but once there we screwed up a couple of times attempting to find our hotel. On one occasion, we missed a turn and went nearly out of town, where we found a Lesser Gray Shrike.
Our hotel, the Shangri La, was very nice, though you do have to drive up a very steep driveway to get there.
Rest of the afternoon was spent seeing the Mostar old town, not much birding to be done, though I did spot a Blackcap and a Western Yellow Wagtail around.

Will continue soon, but have to get off now.

Day 2:

Continued heading southwest toward the Croatian border, to a nice, sunny morning. Taking the main road along the Neretva river, at Drachevo we turned left at the road for the Hutovo Blato nature reserve. It was well signed, with a sizable billboard.
Not far along this road you reach a hotel/restaurant where you can also rent a canoe or go for a boat trip in the nature area. Because the canoes were cheaper and the boat trip wasn't bird-oriented, we chose to canoe, and got directions for a ~5 kilometer loop.
We didn't end up actually doing the loop, because we took a wrong turn, but we saw some birds anyway. These included Pygmy Cormorants and Gray Heron. Another interesting find was a water snake.
Returning to the hotel area after about and hour and a half of canoeing, we had to wait out a very fierce rainstorm before we could continue. When it let up, we decided to leave and bird on the drive out of the reserve.
We stopped at two places along the road out. The first was a point where a well-used dirt road went off to the left, and a less worn road headed toward the swamp. We walked along this road/path from quite a ways. Birds included European Bee-Eater, Common Nightingale, and European Greenfinch. There were also several butterfly species.
The second spot was a bit closer to the main road, where there's a pulloff with a nice view of the lake. From the pulloff we saw Great Crested Grebe and Eurasian Coot, and when we walked up a path on the other side of the road we encountered singing male Black-headed Bunting.
Hutovo Blato was the major birding event of that day, as we spent the afternoon in Dubrovnik, Croatia, viewing the amazing old town there. Lots of Common and Alpine Swift circling above the buildings, however.

Day 3:

Left Dubrovnik reasonably early, and headed south along the coast to Montenegro. Once into Montenegro, we took a short stop to overlook the beautiful Bay of Kotor (a UNESCO site). Yellow-legged Gull and Gray Heron were both around, as were numerous butterflies and grasshoppers.
Rather than taking the hours drive around the bay, we instead doubled back and took the 5-minute car ferry that leaves from a couple kilometers before the overlook (the Montenegran coast tended to be one giant string of towns along the highway, so I don't know the town's name. But the ferry station is not possible to miss).
The weather worsened farther south, but the country there was pretty ugly anyway (for the whole way, big box stores and other ugly buildings were covering both sides of the highway).
The weather got better around lunch time, and we ate at a monastery at Sveti Stefan, a very distinctive town along the coast. It is recognizable by the spit of land that goes out into the Adriatic Sea, reaching a small island with some red-roofed buildings on it.
We headed inland, following the signs to a monastery, which was a beautiful place with a hiking trail going a ways up the surrounding hills. We had lunch here and birded around a bit. Highlights included nesting Barn Swallow, a singing Cirl Bunting, and an adult and immature European Serin.
When it started raining again, we continued our journey along the coast. Our next stop was outside the sizable city of Bar. While driving down the hills with the city in view, we came upon a pull off and a dirt road leading off to the right. It's pretty short, and leads to what appeared to be an old abandoned quarry. Along this road we found our first Eurasian Siskins of the trip, as well as some more Alpine Swift and a pretty awesome legless lizard (no ID for him, just know that he was light brown and possibly over a foot in length.

From Bar we went south to Ulcinj, where we had one of the luckiest moments of my birding career. We got some vague information at the Tourist I about how to get to the Ulcinj Salina, the Salt Pans that we had heard were an amazing sight. We tried a couple roads that supposedly led into the area, but were having no luck (though we did save a tortoise from being squished by traffic). However, the lucky moment came when we were traveling down another road that was supposed to get us the Salina, and we spotted a Little Owl on top of someone's roof. We cautiously approached and started watching the bird (trying not to look too much like creepy stalkers), when the guy living there came out to our car. We hurriedly got the birdbook out and pointed at the owl, so he'd understand. He instantly recognized what we were talking about, and it turned out that the man, Miri, was a birding tour guide and was willing to take us into the Salina for a couple of hours ... for free!
He got going in his trusty pickup and went out a tiny little dirt road that we would never have located, until we reached the edge of the salt pans. From here he led us out along a network of causeways that stay just above the water line. Along the shores we saw Kentish Plover, Crested Lark, and Spanish Sparrow.
The air was full of Common and Little Terns, and there was also a pair of Whiskered Terns around. No pratincole, however. We saw Greater Flamingo in massive numbers; there were two or three small flocks nearby us, and in the distance over the salina we could see a massive flock that must have been in the hundreds. On the return, we saw a large snake that had caught a fledgling Barn Swallow, there were several Common Sand Martin flying around, and a lone immature Black-headed Gull hunted.
Looking back, this has to have been the most incredibly unlikely and lucky thing that has ever happened to me while birding. So many unlikely things happened that had to have happened for us to just happen to meet Miri. If that owl hadn't been perching so obviously (in the daytime, too!) on just the right house, we never would have seen the salt pans.
However, it may be easier for you, because we suggested that he give his name to the people at the tourist info booth in the city of Ulcinj

Day 4:

After a night at the fairly nice Hotel Vir in Virpazar, on the edge of Lake Skadar, we got up early to meet Emma and Andre, who were our guides for a morning boat trip on Lake Skadar, with the tour company "discover montenegro". The tour was quite a bit longer than we expected it to be, going all morning, and about 7 hours or more. We also thought that the tour was a bit too focused on finding one particular bird (the Dalmatian Pelican), rather than all sorts of birds in general, but we still did see a lot of things, just not so many lifers. It also may vary in productiveness depending on the time of year.
We were in the water by 6:30, and Andre took us along the north side of the lake, because that's where the pelicans are, and where most things nest. Early on we got lots of looks at Great Crested Grebe, Pygmy Cormorant, and Great Cormorant. Eventually we got out of the open water and headed into the massive fields of lily pads, which was slow going but better birding. Squacco Heron were a frequent sight, and we saw quite a lot of Whiskered Tern building their nests among the pads. We heard but were unable to see the elusive Cetti's Warbler.
After much time we reached the place where a flock of 36 Dalmatian Pelicans were hanging out. This is apparently around a quarter of the Lake's population, and the flock included a few young birds. We got very good looks at them as they circled above the boat, before flying off. Nearby, we got close to a cormorant colony, and also saw Glossy Ibis, Black-crowned Night Heron, and Gray Heron which nest near the cormorants. Also in the area were two male Common Pochard and the endangered Ferruginous Duck.
There weren't many birds on the long journey back, but right at the dock we did get one last species, the Little Grebe.
At this point unfortunately it was about two hours later than we had expected it to be, so we had to hurry off to Albania. In Albania, we drove to Koplik and from there up to Boge, where we had a taxi to Theth arranged to be waiting for us. Along the road up, we saw some Red-backed Shrikes and a rabbit, but not much else.
In Theth, we stayed in the somewhat rustic, but comfortable, Villa Gjecaj (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...eviews-Villa_Gjecaj-Theth_Shkoder_County.html).

Day 5:

On this day we got up early and took a 12 kilometer hike in the beautiful Accursed Mountains around Theth. The trail we took goes to a small alpine meadow in the mountains. This hike took all morning and then until about two in the afternoon, and was quite a good birding hike. On the way up, birds included Long-tailed Tit, Marsh Tit, and European Goldfinch. We also passed a streambed full of greenish brown frogs with bright orange underbellies.
Around the alpine meadow, there were a number of species, such as Linnet, Black Redstart, and lots of Rock Buntings. Also, lots of interesting butterfly species were around, and some beautiful alpine flowers.
On the way down, we saw a few Eurasian Jays and a singing European Robin. At the bottom, we decided to check out some old towers in the village of Theth that had some story behind them about people hiding there during a feud. If you decide to check them out, do not go in the museum. It is literally a bunch of garbage thrown in a dusty room that they charge you admission for. Red-backed Shrike were hanging around the village.
We again spent the night in Theth.

Day Six:

Spent the early morning in Theth before taking the ten o'clock taxi back to Boge, where our car was parked for the past two days. Gray Wagtail right by the guest house, but not much else.
In Boge, our plan was to bird from our car along the Boge-Koplik road, but unfortunately we left one of the bags in the taxi and had to chase it down. We ended up in the small town of Dedaj before we could begin birding, having covered half the distance to Koplik.
Nonetheless, we managed to find quite a few birds. Eating lunch in a little cemetery in Dedaj, Spanish Sparrow and Red-backed Shrike were common, and a Eurasian Hoopoe also came by, making its distinctive call.
A little bit farther down the road, we took a turnoff toward the "Natyral Razma Resort" and followed that road for a kilometer or so, seeing a Little Owl and a pair of Black-eared Wheatear. Back on the main road, we made stops every couple of minutes for all sort of things. Buntings of two species, Corn and Black-headed, were very common, and European Bee-Eaters could be seen on the telephone wires. Other interesting birds included Woodchat Shrike, Crested Lark, and Greater Short-toed Lark. Once we reached Koplik we got on much busier road, and couldn't bird, so we tried to get to our next destination, Divjaka-Karavasta National Park, as fast as we could. This national park, on the Albanian coast south of Durres, contains a major lagoon and is another important site for Dalmatian Pelicans.
To get to the park, we had to go through the town of Divjake, and take a right turn in the middle of town. Once into the national park, there were a number of lodging sites to choose from. We stayed at the Divjaka Resort Hotel, a very nice and inexpensive place at only 20 euros.
Before turning in, we took a little walk down to the lagoon, and managed to see a couple birds. The only lifer here was a European Reed Warbler, but there were also two Kentish Plovers and a whole bunch of Common Tern.
As we were heading back to the hotel, we had to cross a bridge and noticed a Sea Hare swimming around in the water. This was an entirely new animal for us, and a nice way to end the day.

Day Seven:

Began the "Northern Woods" hike (check out this pdf for park info and maps of the other hikes: http://eden-al.org/media/Divjake-Karavasta Hiking Guide.pdf ) pretty early in order to be able to finish by check out time. On the hike we heard quite a lot of things, but unfortunately didn't see a whole lot in the way of birds. The best find was short but decent looks at four flying Eurasian Golden Orioles. Common Chaffinch were also numerous.
We also managed to get looks over a smaller lagoon, and saw a few more Dalmatian Pelicans and Eurasian Spoonbill.
After the hike, we hung out in our room for a little while until check out, and watch the Common House-Martins nesting on the side of the building. Then we headed off toward Ohrid, Macedonia. When we reached the city, we didn't do much birding for the rest of the afternoon, spending the time instead seeing the castles and old mosaics in the old town there. However, we did at one point see a family of Mute Swans, two adults and five cygnets, and a European Honey-Buzzard was seen outside of down (on the drive in).

Day Eight:

After spending a bit of time in the morning seeing a couple more sights in Ohrid (including the 900 year old Plane Tree), we drove south to the town of Trpejca. Form a little beyond that town, we took the road going over the mountains of Galchica National Park, towards the small town of Tsarina. This 27 kilometer road is good quality for both driving and birding the alpine environment, as it gets above tree line for quite a while. We chose to do a hike here, up Mt. Magorra, which is in the southern strictly protected area of the park. The trail leaves from a pull off of the main road, and begins right about at the divide. There's a map set up there, and a pretty obvious path leads to the right, into some woods.
The trail begins in a meadow, where there were tons and tons of amazing butterflies, but also a singing male Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush, and some Common Linnet. Leaving the meadow, we got into woods for a while, and didn't see too many birds, though there were some Chaffinch, as usual.
We got above the tree line again pretty quickly, however, and into the habitat of some more interesting birds. Tree and Water Pipit were the first species we saw, flying pretty noisily around the tundra. There were also more interesting butterflies and three beautiful alpine orchid species. At the top of Mt. Magorra we ate lunch with views of three countries (Macedonia, Albania, and Greece), before heading down again. The trail makes a lollipop, so the trip down was in different habitat until we reached the tree line again. Northern Wheatear and Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush were around.
Back at the car, we drove down out of the national park (seeing our first Common Wood-Pigeons of the trip on the way) and started driving along the edge of Lake Prespa, toward Bitola. We were surprised on this drive by two Dlamatian Pelicans, a Great Cormorant, and seven Great Crested Grebes. A Montagu's Harrier soared over some fields on the inland side of the road.
At our guest house, near Bitola, a Eurasian Tree Sparrow fed on fresh (delicious) cherries, and as usual Barn Swallow were everywhere.

Day Nine:

On this day we got another chance at some good alpine birds by taking a hike up into Pelister National Park. We got going pretty early in the morning, and managed to see a few birds on our hike up to the "Big Lake", which is a pretty small lake surrounded by mountains with a nice little hut. These birds included Gray Wagtail, Tree Pipits (which were performing their flight songs a lot) and Yellowhammer. When we got to the Big Lake, a fierce windstorm was blowing in, so we went into the hut and stayed there for a couple hours, from about ten 'til noon, until things died down.
When it got calmer, we took a little walk around the ridge that surrounded the Big Lake, getting great views from the high places. We passed a lot of WWI battle remains, fortifications built by the Germans and the Serbs. Among the rocks and grass we found a little group of Alpine Accentors, and saw one pair mating. A little farther on we scared up a rabbit, and the Tree Pipits were common here too.
On the trip down, we saw a couple more things, including a pair of Whinchat and a Cirl Bunting way back at the trailhead.
Back at our guesthouse, Villa Dihovo (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...ews-Villa_Dihovo-Bitola_Pelagonia_Region.html), he hung out and ate sweet cherries right off the tree while watching world cup matches.

Nice! Good to mix in a bit of culture and scenery too. Somehow I always think walking to see birds in their habitat gives them more value than just seeing/turning up to see them from the car/roadside?

(You could perhaps post a link to this thread in the 'vacational trip reports' section.)

Day Ten:

We left Dihovo early enough to get to the ancient ruins of Heraclea (in Bitola) by nine o'clock. We walked around the ruins for about an hour seeing a bunch more mosaics, and a roman theater. After that we left Bitola and headed in the direction of Kavadarci, the birding capital of Macedonia.
Along the way we stopped for lunch at Pletvar Pass, which is just beyond the town of Pletvar (it's difficult to miss, as it's a very obvious high of land). We pulled off to the right of the main road where a dirt road heads into the woods and walked along the road until we reached a picnic table at a water tap. We had lunch there and birded a bit along the road. Common Stonechat were obvious on the walk up, and numerous butterflies, including the Nettle-Tree Butterfly and the Queen of Spain Fritillary, were mud-puddling in the dirt road.
The highlight of our time here came when we were walking back from along the road. The other member of my birding group came back to the picnic table from a few minutes of walking around and said that he'd seen an odd plump grayish bird walking along the road in front of him. Wondering what it might be, we walked back along the road, peering up into the bushes on the edge around where he said it disappeared to. We didn't see anything until I heard a little rustle and nudged the bush with my foot. Suddenly, a Rock Partridge exploded out of the bush and flew right by us on its escape, giving me good looks at its flank patterning and red bill. This is apparently a very tough species to see, and especially unusual to be about in the middle of the day.
After the pass we went to Kavadarci and made our way to the Hotel Feni (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...views-Hotel_Feni-Kavadarci_Vardar_Region.html). The people here were extremely helpful, as they were experienced with birders coming through the area. They were able to arrange a meeting that very afternoon with a local guide named Emil, who we had heard of from numerous trip reports we had read about the area. We were very fortunately able to set up a tour for 6 o'clock the very next morning, and we also got directions to a couple places nearby to birdwatch.
The first was Drenovo Gorge, which you pass through on the drive into Kavadarci. It's about 15 minutes out of town. We were told that at an old Yugoslav war memorial (it's a cement column), you could get views at a cave where Black Stork and Egyptian Vulture were both nesting. We struck out on those two, but a few other things came by, including a Common Buzzard.
After that we went to Marena, where you could supposedly find tons of roosting Lesser Kestrels. This was also a bit of a bust, though we did see a handful fly by.
Dinner at a place Emil recommended that I now forget the name of. We could hear owls in the trees outside, but were unable to see any, even with our headlamps.

Day Eleven:

Got up at 5:45 in order to meet Emil in front of our hotel just after six. Getting into his vehicle, we go to Marena again, and he manages to find us the Lesser Kestrels, so we do end up seeing quite a few. They roost on top of the older houses there, and unfortunately are threatened by renovations.
From Marena we cross the Vardar river and go to Vojsanci, where we stop to see a White Stork nest right by the road with two chicks, who are exercising their wing muscles. There's also a large colony of House and Spanish Sparrows built into the lower part of the stork nest. In Vojsanci, we go to a little valley outside of town where we bird for a couple hours in the scrubby habitat. There are lots of Black-headed Buntings here, and two Little Ringed Plovers are hanging out in a dry stream bed. The highlights, however, come from the warbler family. We see three species. Two of these, the Sardinian and the Eastern Orphean Warbler, are more common species. However, we are extremely lucky to get in-the-open views of the Olive-Tree Warbler, an easy-to-miss specialty of this area. They usually hang very low in the vegetation, but we get brief but good looks of two birds in the open, toward the tops of bushes.
From Vojsanci, we drive to Demir Kapija, stopping on the way to see a Long-legged Buzzard and an unexpected Osprey. We have a brief stop for drinks in the town of Demir Kapija, and then head into the hills out of town for more birding.
We stop in Demir Kapija gorge, at a pull off right before the entrance to an old tunnel built by the Germans in WWI. A male Blue Rock Thrush is seen almost as soon as we get out, as is a Bonelli's Eagle. Crag Martins are easily seen, as they nest in the mouth of the tunnel, and we luckily spot a small flock of young Rock Sparrow. No Alpine Chough, however.
Farther up, we take a side road up to where we would start the 1 hour hike to the Vitachevo vulture feeding station, a reliable site to see Griffon Vulture. However, because it's already almost eleven o'clock, we decide that we should just bird around the base, looking up at the cliff with Emil's scope. We don't see any Griffons, but we do see two (or possibly the same one twice) Egyptian Vulture, and a Booted Eagle. Closer in to us, we spot a Masked Shrike and a Sombre Tit.
After noon drive to Rila NP, Bulgaria is uneventful for birds, other than stops at a couple more White Stork nests.
Spend the night at the Hotel Pionerska, in Panichiste, BUL.

Olive-tree warbler, eastern Orphean Warbler, Bonelli's Eagle, Masked Shrike,Sombre Tit and especially Rock Partridge - all good birds even for a european birder to see.

Day Twelve:

Got up at about seven (thought it was six, didn't realize there was a time change) and birded around the hotel for about an hour. Saw a few species, including three life birds, the Spotted Nuthatch, Song Thrush, and Eurasian Bullfinch. There were also several moths perched on the outside of our hotel, one of which was a pine sphinx, the others I don't have an ID for.
At eight thirty we went up to the chair lift up to the seven lakes, in order to be there when it starts running at nine. We managed to be one of the first people going up, which was good because there were tons and tons of noisy people right on our tails. So I would recommend getting up earlier in morning and hiking up the lift rather than taking it, in order to beat the crowds.
Despite all the people, we did manage to see a few birds up high, and get some nice views of the seven lakes (though it was a bit socked in). The best find by far was a Black Stork that made two passes over us while we were eating lunch. Also present at the lunch spot was a Coal Tit, a Ring Ouzel, and lots of singing Dunnock. Back near the chair lift we saw three Red Crossbills.
When we got back down, we drove out and around the park to the Rila Monastery, and spent the afternoon touring that. Not many birds there, just a couple more Black Redstart and Common Swift.
We stay the night at "Camping Bar" just up the road from the monastery, where they have nice bungalows.

Day Thirteen:

We get up early and drive to the end of the road, to another camping/hotel place, where a hike begins from. This is a great walk, which goes up into the beautiful pine forest until you reach a small lake. From there you can bushwhack a bit to get to a height of land as well.
The birding here was quite good. We had fleeting looks at a Black Woodpecker early on, and a bit later quite good looks at a pair of Greater Spotted Woodpeckers. We encountered a small group of young Goldcrests, a juvenile Mistle Thrush, and a pair of Short-toed Woodcreepers. Later, right before we exited the woods at the edge of the lake area, we saw a lone Crested Tit foraging in the pines.
At the lake there weren't so many birds, though there were some butterflies and a frog.
On the way down it was getting closer to the middle of the day, so we didn't get so many birds, but we did see and almost catch a legless lizard, and noted a couple of neat orchids along the trail that we had missed on the way up.
We headed back down to the monastery then, and attempted to see some things around there, but there wasn't much, so we headed off for our next destination, Serbia, going through Sofia and Dragoman along the way.
At Dragoman we stopped to see the marsh there that I'd heard about being a very good site. We got off the main highway in Dragoman at a hotel and asked at the desk, where we got somewhat cryptic directions about heading down a cobblestone road some unknown number of kilometers.
The real route is much simpler, as you really just have to follow the signage from the highway that we didn't get to because we pulled off at the hotel. You turn right at the very end of a cobbled street and go until you see an obvious parking area with a sign advertising the place (it has a photo of a bittern on it, I think). From here, we walked out on a board walk that leads to a viewing tower over the marsh (unfortunately not visible as a landmark from the road). This was a very productive place for us; from it we spotted a pair of Western Marsh-Harrier, and a few Great Egret. Down on the boardwalk, Eurasian Reed Warbler were numerous, and surprisingly out in the open for easy photos. We followed the boardwalk as far as we could, until it broke apart and was impassable. Toward the very end we saw a small flock of four immature Bearded Reedlings feeding on the seeds of the reeds.
Rest of the drive to Nis, Serbia was uneventful as far as birds were concerned. Toured the town in the evening.

Day Fourteen:

By far the most boring day of the trip, all we did was drive from Nis, Serbia, to Pale, Bosnia. We tried to spot at Tara National Park in western Serbia, but it was pouring so we saw no birds.
The only bird of interest was a Ring-necked Pheasant that flew across the road in front of us early in the morning. Gave nice views of his long tail, golden coloration, and red face patches.
Other than that, no birds of interest, just Hooded Crows and Eurasian Collared Doves.

What a great trip! Are you posting your lists on ebird?

Zheljko said:

What a great trip! Are you posting your lists on ebird?

Click to expand...

Yes, I am. I have most of my lists up now, just the last few days are left.
Sadly we didn't plan enough time for Serbia. One of our original plans had us going up to the Belgrade and Novi Sad area, but we only had two weeks, unfortunately.

Day Fifteen:

Our last day in the Balkans. We go hiking up Mt. Jahorina, a ski area from the Sarajevo Olympics. The hike isn't very long, but we get above tree line again and see a few things, including what I'm pretty sure was a fledgeling Water Pipit. In the pine trees at the base of the lift there's a bit more diversity, and we see some European Serin and some singing Lesser Whitethroat, a bird that I'd been hearing for the whole trip but had been unable to ever see. Other birds around the base included Gray Wagtail and the ever-present Common Linnet.
After leaving Jahorina, we went to Sarajevo, where we spent the afternoon seeing a bunch of museums and attractions there, including the spot where the Archduke was shot and some neat mosques. No birds, though.

Final Trip Totals:

129 Bird Species, 81 Life List Additions.

1. Mute Swan --- Ohrid, Macedonia 6/23/14
2. Common Pochard --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
3. Ferruginous Duck --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
4. Rock Partridge --- Pletvar Pass, Macedonia 6/26/14
5. Common Pheasant --- drive across Serbia 6/30/14
6. Little Grebe --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
7. Great Crested Grebe --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
8. Dalmatian Pelican --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
9. Great Cormorant --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
10. Pygmy Cormorant --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
11. Black-crowned Night Heron --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
12. Squacco Heron --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
13. Little Egret --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
14. Great Egret --- Dragoman Marsh, Bulgaria 6/29/14
15. Grey Heron --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
16. White Stork --- Vojsanci, Macedonia 6/27/14
17. Black Stork --- 7 Lakes, Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
18. Glossy Ibis --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
19. Eurasian Spoonbill --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
20. Greater Flamingo --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
21. Egyptian Vulture --- below Vitachevo, Macedonia 6/27/14
22. Osprey --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
23. Eastern Imperial Eagle --- near Kavadarci, Macedonia 6/27/14
24. Short-toed Eagle --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
25. Booted Eagle --- below Vitachevo, Macedonia 6/27/14
26. Bonelli’s Eagle --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
27. Western Marsh Harrier --- Dragoman Marsh, Bulgaria 6/29/14
28. Montagu’s Harrier --- Lake Prespa, Macedonia 6/24/14
29. Long-legged Buzzard --- Vojsanci, Macedonia 6/27/14
30. Common Buzzard --- Drenovo Gorge, Macedonia 6/26/14
31. European Honey Buzzard --- Ohrid, Macedonia 6/23/14
32. Common Kestrel --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
33. Lesser Kestrel --- Marena, Macedonia 6/26/14
34. Common Moorhen --- Lake Skadar, Montenegro 6/20/14
35. Eurasian Coot --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
36. Black-winged Stilt --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
37. Little Ringed Plover --- Vojsanci, Macedonia 6/27/14
38. Kentish Plover --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
39. Black-headed Gull --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
40. Yellow-legged Gull --- Dubrovnik, Croatia 6/18/14
41. Little Tern --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
42. Common Tern --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
43. Whiskered Tern --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
44. Rock Pigeon --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
45. Common Wood Pigeon --- Galčica NP, Macedonia 6/24/14
46. Eurasian Collared-Dove --- Ohrid, Macedonia 6/23/14
47. Little Owl --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
48. Common Swift --- Dubrovnik, Croatia 6/18/14
49. Alpine Swift --- Dubrovnik, Croatia 6/18/14
50. Eurasian Hoopoe --- Dedaj, Albania 6/22/14
51. European Bee-Eater --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
52. Black Woodpecker --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/29/14
53. Great Spotted Woodpecker --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/29/14
54. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
55. Crested Lark --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
56. Greater Short-toed Lark --- near Koplik, Albania 6/22/14
57. Common Sand Martin --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
58. Eurasian Crag Martin --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
59. Barn Swallow --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
60. Red-rumped Swallow --- near Bar, Montenegro 6/19/14
61. Common House Martin --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
62. Water Pipit --- Galčica NP, Macedonia 6/24/14
63. Tree Pipit --- Galčica NP, Macedonia 6/24/14
64. White Wagtail --- Mostar, BIH 6/17/14
65. Western Yellow Wagtail --- Mostar, BIH 6/17/14
66. Grey Wagtail --- Theth, Albania 6/22/14
67. Dunnock --- 7 Lakes, Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
68. Alpine Accentor --- Pelister NP, Macedonia 6/25/14
69. European Robin --- Theth, Albania 6/22/14
70. Common Nightingale --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
71. Black Redstart --- Theth, Albania 6/22/14
72. Northern Wheatear --- Galčica NP, Macedonia 6/24/14
73. Black-eared Wheatear --- Dedaj, Albania 6/22/14
74. Whinchat --- Pelister NP, Macedonia 6/25/14
75. Common Stonechat --- Pletvar Pass, Macedonia 6/26/14
76. Song Thrush --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
77. Mistle Thrush --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/29/14
78. Common Blackbird --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
79. Ring Ouzel --- 7 Lakes, Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
80. Blue Rock Thrush --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
81. Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush --- Galčica NP, Macedonia 6/24/14
82. Blackcap --- Mostar, BIH 6/17/14
83. Common Whitethroat --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
84. Lesser Whitethroat --- Jahorina Mountain, BIH 7/1/14
85. Eastern Orphean Warbler --- Vojsanci, Macedonia 6/27/14
86. Sardinian Warbler --- Vojsanci, Macedonia 6/27/14
87. European Reed Warbler --- Divjaka-Karavasta NP, Albania 6/22/14
88. Great Reed Warbler --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
89. Olive-Tree Warbler --- Vojsanci, Macedonia 6/27/14
90. Goldcrest --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/29/14
91. Spotted Flycatcher --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
92. Great Tit --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
93. Coal Tit --- 7 Lakes, Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
94. Crested Tit --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/29/14
95. Marsh Tit --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
96. Sombre Tit --- below Vitachevo, Macedonia 6/27/14
97. Long-tailed Tit --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
98. Bearded Reedling --- Dragoman Marsh, Bulgaria 6/29/14
99. Eurasian Nuthatch --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
100. Short-toed Woodcreeper --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/29/14
101. Lesser Grey Shrike --- Mostar, BIH 6/17/14
102. Red-backed Shrike --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
103. Woodchat Shrike --- near Dedaj, Albania 6/22/14
104. Masked Shrike --- below Vitachevo, Macedonia 6/27/14
105. Eurasian Magpie --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
106. Eurasian Jay --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
107. Spotted Nutcracker --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
108. Western Jackdaw --- Kavadarci, Macedonia 6/26/14
109. Hooded Crow --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
110. Northern Raven --- Pelister NP, Macedonia 6/25/14
111. European Starling --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
112. Eurasian Golden Oriole --- Divjaka-Karavasta NP, Albania 6/22/14
113. House Sparrow --- Sarajevo, BIH 6/17/14
114. Spanish Sparrow --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
115. Eurasian Tree Sparrow --- Dihovo, Macedonia 6/24/14
116. Rock Sparrow --- Demir Kapija, Macedonia 6/27/14
117. Common Chaffinch --- Divjaka-Karavasta NP, Albania 6/22/14
118. Common Linnet --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
119. European Goldfinch --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14
120. European Greenfinch --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
121. Eurasian Siskin near Bar, Montenegro 6/19/14
122. European Serin --- Sveti Stefan, Montenegro 6/19/14
123. Eurasian Bullfinch --- Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
124. Red Crossbill --- 7 Lakes, Rila NP, Bulgaria 6/28/14
125. Yellowhammer --- Pelister NP, Macedonia 6/25/14
126. Cirl Bunting --- Sveti Stefan, Montenegro 6/19/14
127. Black-headed Bunting --- Hutovo Blato, BIH 6/18/14
128. Corn Bunting --- Ulcinj Salina, Montenegro 6/19/14
129. Rock Bunting --- Theth, Albania 6/21/14