Cyprus Birding Tours

Offering guided bird watching tours around Cyprus


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Achna Dam 14th September 2020

Went to Achna for first time in several weeks to see if I could find the Pied Kingfisher that had been seen there on Thursday. Surprisingly it was the first bird I saw when I arrived – it called and flew in front of me as it headed to another part of the dam. Later on I saw two in that area – I assume one of those was the one I had seen earlier. No chance of anything other than a record flight shot as they were flying around the area and then disappearing! But it was a great morning’s birding with other birds seen including a Spotted Crake, Little Bittern, Great Crested Grebe, Western Marsh and Montagu’s Harrier, lots of Red-backed and Masked Shrike, many Common Hoopoe, Spur-winged Lapwing, Common Ringed Plover, Wood, Green and Common Sandpiper, Dunlin, Common Snipe, Purple and Squacco Heron, Olivaceous and Willow Warbler.

Achna Dam, 14th September 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Birds
Spotted Crake, Achna Dam, 14th September 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours
Distant flight photo of one of Pied Kingfisher, Achna Dam 14th September 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours
Spur-winged Lapwing, Achna Dam, 14th September 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours
Masked Shrike, Achna Dam, 14th September 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours
Common Hoopoe, Achna Dam, 14th September 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Achna Dam morning 6th June 2020.

Achna Dam 6th June 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Achna Dam 6th June 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

I don’t remember as much water in Achna Dam before as I found today . But even so I managed to have a good walk in several areas and found some interesting birds. Its getting hotter though now so I guess walks of an hour or more will soon be out of the question!

Birds seen included:
Glossy Ibis 13
Squacco Heron 8
Gull billed Tern 12
Spur winged Lapwing 8
Great Cormorant 2
Grey Heron 3
Great Crested Grebe 1 ad
European Roller 1
Cattle Egret 2 (one with stick in bill)
Little Egret 2
Little Bittern 1f
Purple Heron 1
Common Hoopoe 4
Black winged Stilt 2


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Larnaca area 16th March 2020

Out around Larnaca yesterday morning doing the waterbird count. Still more than 2000 Greater Flamingos plus several hundred Slender-billed Gull, 23 Little Gull, three Mediterranean Gull, more than 50 Black-winged Stilt, nine Pied Avocet, a male Tufted Duck, three Great Crested Grebe, some Little and Common Ringed Plover, Ruff, Kentish Plover, some Northern and Isabelline Wheatear, a couple of Common Hoopoe (see photo), lots of Common Chiffchaff, Lesser Whitethroat and Western Yellow and White Wagtail and a Woodchat Shrike.

Common Hoopoe, Larnaca 16th March 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Common Hoopoe, Larnaca 16th March 2020 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Larnaca area 10th December 2019

Out doing the waterbird count today but the best bird was an immature Audouin’s Gull at Oroklini Beach which I visited after I’d finished (see heavily cropped photo).

Audouin's Gull, Oroklini Beach 10th December 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Audouin’s Gull, Oroklini Beach 10th December 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Other sightings included:

Meneou Pool
Common Ringed Plover 1

Larnaca Airport Pools South
Grey Plover 1
Armenian Gull c10
Caspian Gull 8+
Heuglin’s Gull 2 ad
Baltic Gull 1 juv

Larnaca Sewage Works
Great Cormorant 431
Bluethroat 1
Common Teal 417
Northern Shoveler 180
Greater White-fronted Goose 2
Eurasian Wigeon 3m and 2f
Great Crested Grebe 1
Northern Pintail 8
Common Shelduck 1
Western Marsh Harrier 1
Armenian Gull 20+
Caspian Gull 30+
Yellow-legged Gull 5
Black-headed Gull 68+

Spiros Pool
Common Ringed Plover 1
Eurasian Golden Plover 175

Larnaca Airport Pools North
Black-headed Gull 35
Slender-billed Gull 3 ad
Common Redshank 43
Dunlin 6

Larnaca Salt Lake
Greater Flamingo 946
Common Shelduck 6
Kentish Plover 2
Common Ringed Plover 5
Spanish Sparrow 10+
Corn Bunting 4
Cattle Egret 3
Black-headed Gull 77

Larnaca Salt Lake north east corner
Water Pipit 1
Common Snipe 29+
Western Water Rail 1h

Kamares area
Jack Snipe 1
Common Snipe 1
Water Pipit 2
Common Kingfisher 2
Western Water Rail 1 seen

Oroklini Beach
Audouin’s Gull 1 imm
Black-headed Gull c150
Little Egret 1
Caspian Gull 4
Armenian Gull 7
Great Cormorant c50 heading E offshore

Oroklini Marsh
Northern Lapwing c60
Northern Pintail 5m
Bluethroat 1h
Spur-winged Lapwing 36+
Little Egret 3
Northern Shoveler 200+
Common Teal 130+
Common Starling c30
Red-crested Pochard 1m and 1f
Greater Flamingo 26
Cattle Egret 32
Ferruginous Duck 1
Common Pochard 2f


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Larnaca area this morning 9th November.

Good morning out around Larnaca in the sunshine. Not a great variety of birds but already good numbers of ducks and flamingos around plus a few more unusual species.

Spiros Pool
Eurasian Golden Plover 18

Larnaca Sewage Works
Common Teal c500
Northern Shoveler 300+
Black-necked Grebe 1
Great Crested Grebe 3
Northern Pintail 1
Armenian Gull 12
Common Shelduck 1
Spur-winged Lapwing 2

Larnaca Salt Lake
Greater Flamingo 1200+
Common Crane 1

Kamares, Larnaca
Bluethroat 1 (see photo)
Black Redstart 1
Eurasian Penduline Tit 1h
Common Kingfisher 1
Common Redshank 1
Green Sandpiper 1
Common Snipe 2
Spur-winged Lapwing 3
Water Pipit 1
Eurasian Sparrowhawk 1 over being mobbed by Jackdaws
Little Egret 2

Panagia Stazousa/Pyrga
Long-legged Buzzard 1
European Serin 30+
Cyprus Warbler 2
Woodlark 7 (see photo)
Eurasian Blackbird 1

Bluethroat, Larnaca 9th November 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Bluethroat, Larnaca 9th November 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Woodlark, Pyrga 9th November 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Woodlark, Pyrga 9th November 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Great Crested Grebe, Cyprus June 2019

After all the wet weather during last winter, its great to find that a species that hasn’t bred in Cyprus since 1982 has bred this spring at two locations – Great Crested Grebe. This pair has five young and was seen this morning. Distant photo.

Great Crested Grebe family 10th June 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Great Crested Grebe family 10th June 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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East of the island 18th January 2019

Finally a sunny day with not a lot of wind and no rain coincided with a day I was free to go out. Went to the east again and checked out Oroklini, Achna, Paralimni Lake and the rocky coasts. A good collection of birds including Greater Flamingo, Greater Sandplover, Grey Plover, Slender-billed Gull, Audouin’s Gull, Blue Rock Thrush, Peregrine Falcon, several Western Marsh Harrier, Great Crested Grebe, Northern and Spur-winged Lapwing and Black-winged Stilt.

Photos of one of the Grey Plover and Greater Sandplover that were at Agia Trias, Paralimni

Greater Sandplover, Agia Trias 18th January 2019 (C) Cyprus Birding Tours

Greater Sandplover, Agia Trias 18th January 2019 (C) Cyprus Birding Tours

Greater Sandplover, Agia Trias 18th January 2019 (C) Cyprus Birding Tours

Greater Sandplover, Agia Trias 18th January 2019 (C) Cyprus Birding Tours

Grey Plover, Agia Trias, 18th January 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Grey Plover, Agia Trias, 18th January 2019 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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East of island today 11th December 2018

Visited Oroklini Marsh, Akhna Dam, Paralimni Lake, Cape Greco, Agia Trias, Kermia Beach, Macronissos Beach and Leivadia.
Highlights were fly in Pallas’s Gull at Oroklini (which then flew out again straight away), Great Crested Grebe at Akhna, Grey Plover at Agia Trias, Audouin’s Gull at Kermia Beach  (see photo) and Temminck’s Stint at Leivadia.

Audouin's Gull, Kermia Beach 11th December 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Audouin’s Gull, Kermia Beach 11th December 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Common Redshank, Oroklini Marsh 11th December 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Common Redshank, Oroklini Marsh 11th December 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Larnaca area this morning 30th July 2018

Migration slowly getting busier with c50 Collared Pratincole in the fields near Larnaca Sewage Works and a group of 13 Common Sandpiper resting on the rocks on the nearby coast this morning. Feeding on the Sewage Pools were Gull-billed, Whiskered and White-winged Tern. A couple of Slender-billed and Black-headed Gull were present as were more than 100 Greater Flamingo, a couple of Black-winged Stilt, 23 Ferruginous Duck, a Common Greenshank, six Grey Heron and six Cattle Egret, plenty of Spur-winged Lapwing and both the long-staying unseasonable Great Crested Grebes.

Ferruginous Duck, Larnaca Sewage Works, 30th July 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Ferruginous Duck, Larnaca Sewage Works, 30th July 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Gull-billed Tern, Larnaca Sewage Works, 30th July 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Gull-billed Tern, Larnaca Sewage Works, 30th July 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Larnaca Sewage Works 20th July 2018

Two unseasonal species this morning at Larnaca Sewage Works. Two Great Crested Grebe and three Common Tern (one in photo below). A single Great Crested Grebe had been there on 9th July but it has now been joined by another. A very early date for this passage migrant/winter visitor.

Also present were a flock of 60 plus Greater Flamingo, a Slender-billed Gull, ten Black-headed Gull, a few Common Sandpiper and at least ten Ferruginous Duck.

Common Tern, Larnaca Sewage Works, 20th July 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Common Tern, Larnaca Sewage Works, 20th July 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Larnaca area 5th March 2018

A few hours around Larnaca produced the following more interesting sightings. Migration still to get into full swing.

Meneou Pool
Greater Flamingo 39
Common Ringed Plover 1

Larnaca Airport Pools South
Greater Flamingo 180

Spiros Beach
Greater Sandplover 2 (see photo)
Caspian Gull 1
Isabelline Wheatear 1

Larnaca Sewage Works
Spur-winged Lapwing 4
Common Teal 50+ in one flock, very restless
Northern Shoveler c50 headed out to sea
Black-necked Grebe 12+ (Nine in breeding plumage)
Eurasian Wigeon 3f
Little Gull 1 imm
Common Buzzard 1
Western Marsh Harrier 1

Pervolia fields
Calandra Lark 3+

Petounta Point
Isabelline Wheatear 2
Great Cormorant 2 heading E
Eurasian Reed Warbler 1h

Agios Theodoros Coast – sea watch 15:10 – 16:30
Little Egret 3 on rocks
Great Crested Grebe 4 offshore
Northern Shoveler c50 heading W to E
Duck spp – probably Pintail c35 W to E
Great Cormorant c180 W to E 15:10

Greater Sandplover, Spiros Beach, 5th March 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours

Greater Sandplover, Spiros Beach, 5th March 2018 (c) Cyprus Birding Tours


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Red-breasted Merganser today Akrotiri Gravel Pits 5th December 2017

I hadn’t been sure where to go birding today until I heard last night that local birder John East had found a female Red-breasted Merganser at Akrotiri Gravel Pits. The last record was in 2014 so not to be missed. The bird was keeping close company with a Great Crested Grebe and a Black-necked Grebe who had been on the pool for several days and I was pleased to get a few photos. Also around Akrotiri today:

Akrotiri Gravel Pits
Eurasian Sparrowhawk 1
European Serin 7
Woodlark 8
Red-breasted Merganser 1f
Great Crested Grebe 1
Black-necked Grebe 1
Little Grebe 1
Western Marsh Harrier 1f and 1 sub-ad male

Phasouri Reed-beds
Bluethroat 1
Eurasian Skylark 1

Zakaki Marsh
Water Rail 1h

Lady’s Mile
Black-headed Gull 300+
Armenian Gull 6+
Caspian Gull 1+
Greater Flamingo 48 juvs
Pied Avocet 2
Common Buzzard 1

Akrotiri Salt Lake
Greater Flamingo c1200
Common Buzzard 1