Diary of a non-birding week in Dalyan

Diary of a non-birding week in Dalyan. Birds noted in order of sightings.

Day One: Arrive at house at 11:30 pm.

No Birds seen, Little Owl and Scops Owl heard…later and annoyingly all three of the local Roosters giving it their best!

Day Two: Pottering around the house. Walk along Beach

Collard Dove, House Sparrow, House Martin, Swallow, Olivaceous Warbler, Blackbird, Great Tit, Little Owl, those bast**d Roosters.

Beach: Yellow Legged Gull, Long Legged Buzzard and Ringed Plover, naught else

Day Three: More pottering and walk past Jandarma to river and into town.

Green Finch, Jay, Hooded Crow chasing off and harassing a pair of Kestrels hills behind the football stadia, White Stork soaring above hills and later coming to land at local nest.

Day Four: Eskiköy Walk.

Early cycle ride at 6:45 am to the rocky outcrop at Eskiköy.

Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Black headed Bunting, Rufus Bush Chat (Robin) Great Reed Warbler, Cettis Warbler, Grey Heron, and Crested Lark.

Back at the house a White (Pied) Wagtail in the garden.

Day Five: Early morning cycle to Okcular and the Roller nesting site.

European Roller, Eastern Rock Nuthatch, Bee Eater and unidentified raptor possibly Bonelli’s Eagle

Day Six: Beach walk

Purple Heron flying riverside of beach and a Woodchat Shrike perched on bush riverside of beach.

Day Seven: Visit to Kaunos

Little Egret on small lake near reed beds towards the beach and Peregrine Falcon hill above the cemetery A cautionary note: Over the years the site at Kaunos has developed, in years gone by you could just walk on the site and have a look round however, slowly developments have made it access by ticket and today they have electronic turn styles (sounds impressive but you could just walk past if no one was there) which is staffed. Now that the site has a more ‘formal’ feel to it the authorities are treating it like other ‘historical’ and ‘cultural’ sites and that means no photography using a tripod or monopod on the basis that you could sell the photos. Today I was not allowed to take my monopod in, even though I explained it was birds I wanted to photograph. I was informed that if I just had my scope I could bring in my tripod/monopod but not with a camera.
I guess if I had my monopod in my bag no one would know, certainly there is no staff around the site other than at the ticket entrance.

Back at the house Masked Shrike

Day Eight:

Returned to Eskiköy rocky outcrop on the way picked up Turtle Dove and later in the fields around the outcrop Fan Tailed Warbler, heard but not seen Penduline Tit

Total Species: 38, Directions to these sites can be found on the web site http://www.dalyanbirding.com