SE Turkey - Plain Leaf Warbler & RW Lapwing (1 Viewer)

I am planning a trip to SE Turkey next year and was looking to get some gen on Plain Leaf Warbler and Red-wattled Lapwing. The best I an find on the former is that they have been reported from the Catak valley about 50 kms south of Van, but can't find any more specific info then this.

Also, is Cizre the only place to see Red-wattled Lapwing in SE Turkey?

Any help appreciated!

Some people look for Red-wattled Lapwing on riverbanks near the oddly named town of Batman, and on our trip a couple of years ago we jammed one on a roadside pond travelling from Birecik to Cizre, on the right about 20k before Cizre - quite probably breeding.

Steve

Steve Lister said:

Some people look for Red-wattled Lapwing on riverbanks near the oddly named town of Batman, and on our trip a couple of years ago we jammed one on a roadside pond travelling from Birecik to Cizre, on the right about 20k before Cizre - quite probably breeding.

Steve

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Thanks. Its a pity that the one good site for this species is right on the border to Syria :-C

Phylloscopus neglectus has not been claimed in Turkey for some years; there are three sightings, all from the same spot (near Çatak) and, to my knowledge, none is more recent than 2005. Together with other competent observers, I checked the spot (a steep-sided slope with a lot of scree) at some length (several hours, equipped with playback) in May 2006 and drew a blank. I am not sure how seriously the bird has been searched for since.

I treated it as only hypothetical for Turkey in my book, as the documentation available is weak and the observers involved in two of the sightings possess a track record of outlandish claims. Nonetheless, P. neglectus could occur in Turkey and the Çatak area is apparently not dissimilar to sites in Iran where the species is found.

If you go there, good luck, please try and obtain photos if you see the species, and do report back.

Thanks for that information Guy, really interesting to get the full story on Pale Leaf Warblers in Turkey. Would I be wrong in thinking that the habitat requirements for PLW are similar to those of Tristram's Warbler in North Africa - i.e. rocky slopes with stunted vegetation?

If possible, I will try and visit that site and possibly a few nearby valleys on my trip. Although not a photographer, I would as much documentation as possible on any potential sightings.

Some of the sightings of the Plain Leaf Warbler in 2005 were made during organized birding tours, so a number of observers saw the species there. Surely, not all have a track record of "outlandish claims". However, it seems true that the observations never got published properly (as far as I know), and I have also not heard of any pictures - so doubts are understandable.
The location - as it was roughly described to me - is near the road from Van to Catak. Near the turnoff to Bahcesaray (side valley going west) climb up a steep slope below a "cave". I am not sure if in the valley going to Bahcesaray or along the main road to Catak (think the former).

We were in the area on July 24, 2011 and I could not find any PLW during a short 3-hour stop. It might as well be that the date was simply too late (in 2005 feeding was seen already in mid-June), maybe I was at the wrong place, or maybe I was just unlucky in the short time I was there.

Good luck when you go there! But be warned that the PKK has been fairly active in the mountains south of Lake Van and going there is not without risk (a few weeks after our visit, there was an attack with dead soldiers in Catak). An obvious pile of optics and cameras will also make you look suspicious when you get to a military checkpoint.

Michael