Spent the last few days on the Karpasia peninsula on the BirdLife Cyprus weekend there. A mixture of late autumn migrants and early winter visitors – total of 88 species seen over the two and a half days in the area. Interesting to see early Mistle Thrush, European Robin and best of all Finsch’s Wheatear. The number of Stonechat increased over the weekend and there were still plenty of Whinchat, Spotted Flycatcher, Red-backed Shrike and Common Redstart around. A small number of European Bee-eater and Masked Shrike were seen together with a lone Turtle Dove and about five Red-footed Falcon.

Other raptors seen were an Eleonora’s and Peregrine Falcon, an adult and juvenile Bonelli’s Eagle, a Marsh and Montagu’s Harrier and at least four Eurasian Sparrowhawk. Little Owl and Scop’s Owl were around Rizokarpasos village. Two Northern Raven passed in front of the cars at Agios Therissos.

At least three groups of migrating Common Crane were seen today. Two flew over the group to the east of Agios Philonas and then headed south. Around thirty were seen heading SW near the Galinoporni just before 13.00pm and then when heading home I saw around 200 to the north of Galateia gaining height.

Common Crane Karpasia October 13th 2013 Copyright Cyprus Birding Tours

Northern Wheatear Karpasia October 13th 2013 Copyright Cyprus Birding Tours

Very windy today especially at the Cava Viewpoint and the Honey Buzzard that were flying over the area out to sea were getting a good buffeting. I saw fifteen in total and also a Marsh Harrier, Lesser Kestrel, Hobby and seven Red-footed Falcon. There were about 100 European Bee-eater and slightly less Barn Swallow through the area during my stay there. The male Blue Rock Thrush was around again and there was still a Cyprus Wheatear in the area.

I spent a couple of hours walking round Akhna Dam when I finished and watched the Osprey fishing for a long time. Other raptors around were a couple of Marsh Harrier, two Honey Buzzard, migrating Lesser Kestrel flying direct and quickly heading south and a Peregrine Falcon sitting on one of the islands. He was feeding on something but I couldn’t see what had been unlucky! There were around forty Spur-winged Lapwing as well as about twenty each of Ruff and Common Ringed Plover. Other waders seen were Curlew Sandpiper, Little Stint, Wood Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Dunlin and several Common Snipe. There were at least four Common Kingfisher, ten Little Egret, a couple of Cattle Egret and Grey Heron and a Squacco Heron. Several Spotted Flycatcher and Yellow Wagtail were present together with a Reed Warbler, a juvenile Masked Shrike and two juvenile Red-backed Shrike.

At the Cava View Point for a few hours this morning counting raptors. Despite the fact that there were a lot of people around there were more passerines today than on last visit. It was especially good to see and hear a male Blue Rock Thrush. Not many raptors around – Black Kite 2 maybe 3, Marsh Harrier 2, Red-footed Falcon 5, Hobby 2, Honey Buzzard 2 and the ever present local Common Kestrel population of a least six birds. Other birds seen:

Cyprus Wheatear 2, Northern Wheatear 2, Black-eared Wheatear 1m, Lesser Whitethroat 3, Blue Rock Thrush 1 calling, White Wagtail 2, European Bee-eater 220+ many only heard as passing too high to be seen, Grey Heron 1, Little Egret 5

Day’s highlight though was finally managing to catch up with a Red-breasted Flycatcher! One and maybe two had been spotted earlier by a visiting birder in the gardens near the track to Larnaca Sewage Works. I was pleased to get a brief view of one as if flew onto a fence sat for a few seconds then flew back into the thick undergrowth. Subsequent searching didn’t produce anything more than movement and brief glimpses of a small bird.

A brief bird watch around Larnaca this morning. At the Sewage Works there was a Golden Plover, about twelve Ruff and twenty Little Stint, a juvenile Collared Pratincole, twelve adult Greater Flamingo and a male Red-backed Shrike. Fifteen Greater Flamingo flew along the coast heading towards Cape Kiti.

On Spiro’s Beach there were thirteen Common Ringed Plover, two Little Stint and a Temminck’s Stint. A juvenile Pallid Harrier flew low over my car and several Yellow Wagtail and a White Wagtail were using a muddy puddle for a bath.

Doing the raptor watch at Cape Greco can be a hit or miss affair.  It can get a heavy passage some times – in fact I remember one October 1^st Bank Holiday a few years back when I was at Protaras with Honey Buzzards passing over all day. I think it may be safe to say that larger numbers are more regular through Akrotiri and over the Paphos Plain but bearing that in mind, this morning at the Cape I was kept busy all the time with a steady flow of raptors over the area approaching from both the east off the sea and overland from the north. I am sure that if I had been able to stay into the afternoon that I would have seen more birds.

The numbers of Honey Buzzard didn’t approach the 500 plus seen at Mandria late on Monday morning or the couple of hundred passing through Akrotiri most days at the moment; but I enjoyed myself as the flow of birds meant I had a chance to watch them as well as record their numbers and direction of travel. In total I had nearly fifty Honey Buzzard – coming through in ones and twos and some even passing over the Cava View Point and heading out to sea rather than kettling up to the east of Grecian Park Hotel as is usual. There were also several Marsh Harrier, a couple of Eurasian Sparrowhawk, six Red-footed Falcon, a juvenile Pallid and Montagu’s Harrier, a juvenile Peregrine and best of all a Saker Falcon.

There were not many passerines around and the Cyprus Wheatear seem to have left. Around sixty each of Bee-eater and Barn Swallow flew over and out to sea while I was there and a Spotted Flycatcher flitted from bush to ground and back all morning.