Alastair Dent is a British guy who first birded with us in 2013. This year, he came with his family for summer vacations in Greece and wanted a two-day "break". As they were staying at Platanos village in the Peloponnese, 50 kms east of Patra, we designed a tour that included the wetland complex of Messolonghi and Mt Chelmos that lies very close to Platanos.
On Saturday 5, we started our trip to Messolonghi. First stop was Kleisoura Gorge, a very scenic spot that holds a small colony of Griffon Vultures as well as Rock Nuthatches (a lifer for Alastair), Blue Rock Thrushes and Jackdaws, among others.
Leaving Kleisoura, we headed for the Ash Forest close to the village of Lesini, to look for woodpeckers. Alastair saw a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, while an Icterine Warbler was another interesting sighting.
On Saturday 5, we started our trip to Messolonghi. First stop was Kleisoura Gorge, a very scenic spot that holds a small colony of Griffon Vultures as well as Rock Nuthatches (a lifer for Alastair), Blue Rock Thrushes and Jackdaws, among others.
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| Griffon Vulture |
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| Rock Nuthatch |
It was time to move to the wetlands; we first explored the vast area of Louros, south of the village of Neochori. It was an amazing experience: Hundreds of Flamingoes, along with more than 130 Spoonbills, dozens of herons (Little, Great Egret, Grey and Purple Heron) and Glossy Ibises were feeding on the same area with a great variery of migrant waders (Spotted Redshanks, Marsh Sandpipers, Curlew Sandpipers, Dunlins, Wood Sandpipers, Greenshanks, Little Stints, Redshanks, Green Sandpipers, Common Sandpipers). Dalmatian Pelicans were also present along Collared Pratincoles, Gull-billed, Common and Little Terns. Even though the temperature was over 35 C, we couldn't stop looking at all these birds through our field scopes!
At noon, we had lunch at "Archontiko" restaurant in the town of Messolonghi. Among the really delicious plate, a special note should be made on the local Mullet fish served ("Kephalos" in Greek).
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| Purple Heron |
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| Spoonbills, Spotted Redshank etc. |
We still had much to explore, as Kleisova lagoon was to be visited. Apart from the birds already seen in Louros, we added Stone Curlews, Caspian Terns, Grey Plovers, while juvenile and adult terns from various species (included the White-winged Black Tern) were present in large numbers.
We ended the day with an impressive count of 80 species!
Next day was dedicated to forest and mountain species. We visited Mt Chelmos, south of the village of Platanos. The gorge of Vouraikos that runs through the northern slopes is a very picturesque habitat and a special railway crosses it up to the historic village of Kalavryta. Driving the gorge is also very rewarding, especially if you visit Megalo Spilaio Monastery. Crag Martins, Ravens and Rock Nuthatches were found, along with tits and Blackbirds. The view from the Monastery, however, is unique!
After Megalo Spilaio, we headed towards Kalavryta, looking for woodpeckers on our way. We found Middle Spotted (a lifer for Alastair), along with Green, European Nuthatches, Cetti's Warblers and Grey Wagtails.
We stopped for a coffee in "Gri Gri" pastry shop, that serves lots of traditional Greek deserts and very nice cofee. House Martins and Common Swifts flew overhead all the time. Leaving Kalavryta we drove uphill till we reached the Ski Center, at an altitude of c.1,700 m. Snow was, of course, absent but Wheatears, Firecrests, Short-toed Treecreepers and Sombre Tits (another lifer for Alastair) rewarded our efforts. Red-backed Shrikes were virtually everywhere, along with Cirl and Corn Buntings, while a Short-toed Eagle was looking for prey.
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| Short-toed Eagle |
The heat was now very intense and we drove through the windy roads towards Lake Tsivlou, a beautiful lake that was formed by landslides in the 20th century. We had lunch at "Petrino" tavern, a really cozy place that serves very tasty local food! We tried lamb, rooster and meat balls and they were all extraordinary!
After lunch we headed back to Platanos; we had seen some 43 species on that day, and a total of 104 for the weekend, an incredible number, given the weather conditions!!!!
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| Happy faces, that's our reward at the end of the trip! |
CHECKLIST OF THE TRIP
| Common Shelduck - Tadorna tadorna |
| Eurasian Wigeon - Anas penelope |
| Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos |
| Garganey - Anas querquedula |
| Green-winged Teal - Anas crecca |
| Little Grebe - Tachybaptus ruficollis |
| Greater Flamingo - Phoenicopterus roseus |
| Great Cormorant - Phalacrocorax carbo |
| Dalmatian Pelican - Pelecanus crispus |
| Gray Heron - Ardea cinerea |
| Purple Heron - Ardea purpurea |
| Great Egret - Ardea alba |
| Little Egret - Egretta garzetta |
| Glossy Ibis - Plegadis falcinellus |
| Eurasian Spoonbill - Platalea leucorodia |
| European Honey-buzzard - Pernis apivorus |
| Eurasian Griffon - Gyps fulvus |
| Short-toed Snake-Eagle - Circaetus gallicus |
| Eurasian Marsh-Harrier - Circus aeruginosus |
| Eurasian Sparrowhawk - Accipiter nisus |
| Common Buzzard - Buteo buteo |
| Eurasian Moorhen - Gallinula chloropus |
| Eurasian Coot - Fulica atra |
| Eurasian Thick-knee - Burhinus oedicnemus |
| Black-winged Stilt - Himantopus himantopus |
| Eurasian Oystercatcher - Haematopus ostralegus |
| Black-bellied Plover - Pluvialis squatarola |
| Kentish Plover - Charadrius alexandrinus |
| Eurasian Curlew - Numenius arquata |
| Black-tailed Godwit - Limosa limosa |
| Ruddy Turnstone - Arenaria interpres |
| Red Knot - Calidris canutus |
| Ruff - Calidris pugnax |
| Curlew Sandpiper - Calidris ferruginea |
| Dunlin - Calidris alpina |
| Little Stint - Calidris minuta |
| Common Sandpiper - Actitis hypoleucos |
| Green Sandpiper - Tringa ochropus |
| Spotted Redshank - Tringa erythropus |
| Common Greenshank - Tringa nebularia |
| Marsh Sandpiper - Tringa stagnatilis |
| Wood Sandpiper - Tringa glareola |
| Common Redshank - Tringa totanus |
| Collared Pratincole - Glareola pratincola |
| Slender-billed Gull - Chroicocephalus genei |
| Black-headed Gull - Chroicocephalus ridibundus |
| Yellow-legged Gull - Larus michahellis |
| Little Tern - Sternula albifrons |
| Gull-billed Tern - Gelochelidon nilotica |
| Caspian Tern - Hydroprogne caspia |
| Whiskered Tern - Chlidonias hybrida |
| Common Tern - Sterna hirundo |
| Eurasian Collared-Dove - Streptopelia decaocto |
| Common Swift - Apus apus |
| Lesser Spotted Woodpecker - Dendrocopos minor |
| Middle Spotted Woodpecker - Dendrocopos medius |
| Eurasian Green Woodpecker - Picus viridis |
| Eurasian Kestrel - Falco tinnunculus |
| Red-backed Shrike - Lanius collurio |
| Lesser Gray Shrike - Lanius minor |
| Woodchat Shrike - Lanius senator |
| Eurasian Jay - Garrulus glandarius |
| Eurasian Magpie - Pica pica |
| Eurasian Jackdaw - Corvus monedula |
| Hooded Crow - Corvus cornix |
| Common Raven - Corvus corax |
| Crested Lark - Galerida cristata |
| Bank Swallow - Riparia riparia |
| Eurasian Crag-Martin - Ptyonoprogne rupestris |
| Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica |
| Red-rumped Swallow - Cecropis daurica |
| Common House-Martin - Delichon urbicum |
| Coal Tit - Periparus ater |
| Sombre Tit - Poecile lugubris |
| Eurasian Blue Tit - Cyanistes caeruleus |
| Great Tit - Parus major |
| Long-tailed Tit - Aegithalos caudatus |
| Eurasian Nuthatch - Sitta europaea |
| Rock Nuthatch - Sitta neumayer |
| Short-toed Treecreeper - Certhia brachydactyla |
| Eurasian Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes |
| Firecrest - Regulus ignicapilla |
| Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti |
| Icterine Warbler - Hippolais icterina |
| Zitting Cisticola - Cisticola juncidis |
| Subalpine Warbler - Sylvia cantillans |
| Sardinian Warbler - Sylvia melanocephala |
| Spotted Flycatcher - Muscicapa striata |
| European Robin - Erithacus rubecula |
| Blue Rock-Thrush - Monticola solitarius |
| European Stonechat - Saxicola rubicola |
| Northern Wheatear - Oenanthe oenanthe |
| Eurasian Blackbird - Turdus merula |
| Western Yellow Wagtail - Motacilla flava |
| Gray Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea |
| White Wagtail - Motacilla alba |
| Cirl Bunting - Emberiza cirlus |
| Corn Bunting - Emberiza calandra |
| Common Chaffinch - Fringilla coelebs |
| European Greenfinch - Chloris chloris |
| European Goldfinch - Carduelis carduelis |
| Eurasian Linnet - Carduelis cannabina |
| European Serin - Serinus serinus |
| House Sparrow - Passer domesticus |
