Birdwatching in Bulgaria: tailored trip 8-15 March, day 5

Day 5 or should I say day and night 5 with an extension into the night. Today we started at 3,30. Our main aim for the day was Capercaillie. We wanted to be at the lekking site at 5 a.m. so we needed to plan accordingly. We grabbed a coffee along the way and got onto a superb 4X4 Lada Niva. This was the car that was going to take us to the lekking site or at least near it. There was still some snow up in the mountains so we needed a 4WD car. The car was coping with the snow and ice with no problems whatsoever. This costed about 12 l  of petrol / 100 km.

At 4.30 am we were at our starting point to the lek. We paced in full silence. The snowflakes were reflecting the light from our head torches and we walked in nice confidence. A "falling star" witnessed our way to the lek. Soon we were there. We switched off the torches It was only us, the tall pine trees and the stars. It was 5 a.m. and still totally dark. We were going to wait for the first calling birds as people usually do at the prime time for lekking. It is now 5,20; 5,30; 5,40; 5,50; 6.00 the time never passes. We started moving around and our local guide was like a statue. This is what the dynamic contemporary life does to people. We can't even stand still for an hour. We can't enjoy Nature. We are not comfortable even with our own thoughts. And that is just for an hour with no computers, internet, facebook, or mobile phones. This was quite a test that can make you think about the way people live in cities and small towns. Not a single call from the birds. Occasional screech of the trees blown from the wind made us hop and think about the Capercaillie call. Could have been?! Soon we started walking aiming to at least flush a bird. No. Not this time. We tried around the lek. Visited a second lek. We walked in the snow with lots of tracks from wild animals. Walked along the tracks where our guide has seen them before but no luck. It was still early in the season. We were aware that the lekking time is about a month later than now but we were still willing to try. This was the only time we had. After a couple of hours walking we decided to give up. We had already spent 7 hours on the field and was just 11.00 a.m. What a morning!

The snow is too much for a Capercaillie. Beautiful morning though

On the way down from the mountains we stopped for a while to enjoy the view of at least 4 Balkan chamois.

Having missed the Three-toed and the White-backed Woodpeckers we wanted to make another attempt for the first species. our guide assured us that the site is not accessible but we still wanted to try. Well, we asked for it. The track was quite snowy, stony, slippery and everything but accessible. We quickly gave up and got off from the car. A big silhouette showed from round the corner. It was the Lord of the Sky: a Golden Eagle. It was really close.

Golden Eagle by Iordan Hristov

After this unsuccessful attempt we decided to try for the White-backed Woodpecker. We walked for about half an hour along a track by a river until we reached a suitable beech forest. Stayed there for a while and...No. Not this time. It was really an unsuccessful day. Every our attempt was doomed.

On the way to the car we saw two Balkan Chamois that were calmly grazing by the river.

After lunch we decided to leave the area. It enough of snow, mountain roads and cold weather. It was time for a little bit of warmth. Soon we were the lowlands where the life was different: Sun.

Along the way we logged a Long-legged Buzzard, Calandra Lark, Syrian Woodpecker, Little Owl, Stonechat and the first for the year Crag Martins.

We arrived in our hotel in the late afternoon to enjoy a deserved rest.

Tomorrow we are trying again for the White-backed Woodpecker and then we travel to Greece where we hope to see Black Vultures and other birds of prey.

Tomorrow's start is 7 a.m. We shall sleep more :)

Birdwatching in Bulgaria: tailored trip 8-15 March, day 4

Today we decided to wake up a bit later than usual. The heavy snow suggested that we might not be able to reach some of the sites tomorrow so there was no point to get up early. Nevertheless we still walk up at 6,30 to get ready for an early breakfast and departure.

As we woke up we realised the snow has covered everything. It was only about 10 cm but was rather nice to see this much snow. Finally. This winter there was very little snow and we wanted it. In this case it wasn't going to help us with our mission to find the birds but it was still nice.

After some nice sandwiches and coffee we were back on the road. The day was devoted to the Pygmy Owl and Three-toed Woodpecker. Soon we realised that the sites for the latter wouldn't be accessible. Although the road was cleaned up (superficially) there was a vehicle or two that were struggling to climb up a hill. We decided to stop along the road and check different locations for Pygmy Owl. The only response were all species of Tit typical for this area including the most abundant Coal Tit, Crested Tit and Willow Tit. Occasionally we got Great-spotted Woodpecker, Crossbills, Jays and Common Treecreepers.

Coal Tit by Iordan Hristov

In addition to our road transect which substituted my prime sites we walked along some tracks. On the first one we had no luck although there were signs of Pygmy Owl presence judging by the activity of passerines. On the second one the small birds were even louder and more abundant. We have several bits of excitement along here. Unusual call of Great-spotted Woodpecker attracted our attention thinking of something else. Even more exciting was the flight of a huge clumsy bird in the forest that took off from a tree. We like thinking that it was a Capercaillie but we never saw it. It would have been really great.

It was already 3 p.m. and were thinking of going back to the car almost admitting the Pygmy Owl has defeated us. Just as we packed our stuff, we heard the magical call!!! PYGMY OWLLLLLL! We couldn't believe it. After a whole day of walking in vain we finally got a response. In a minute the bird was around. It sat high on a tree looking at us. After gaining some confidence it even approached us a bit but still pretty far for a decent photo. Nevertheless I managed to do this documentary one which would a great memory of this fantastic day.

Pygmy Owl by Iordan Hristov

In the next half an our we were really excited. We returned happy to the car and started towards our next hotel.

The start for tomorrow will be pretty early. The subject of our trip tomorrow is the Capercaillie so we should be up at 3,30. Oh my... my friend thought I was joking when I told him. Well I was not...

Start up tomorrow at 3.30 a.m.

New specially tailored birding trip started yesterday: 8-15. March, day 1 and 2

New birdwatching trip started yesterday when a friend arrived from the Netherlands. His specific interest in 8 particular bird species brought him in Bulgaria. He is after Black Vulture, Saker Falcon, Capercaillie, Rock Partridge, Dalmatian Pelican, Pygmy Owl, White-backed Woodpecker and Three-toed Woodpecker. Not the easiest species to get. Especially at this time of year for species like the Capercaillie. I shall try to do my best. I already checked a few of the sites so from here on it would be pure luck.

My guest arrived in the early afternoon and we darted immediately to the first place where I observed the Rock partridge two days ago (described in my previous post). Unfortunately the bad weather didn't made our attempt successful. The rain, snow and wind would put every bird away. Well things like this happen. I had another place in mind and if doesn't work out we can certainly come back here again.

That's exactly what we did. We traveled to that second place but the snow was just too much. Definitely too deep for a Partridge so we had to come back to the first place. We woke up early in the morning to be able to be the spot in a reasonable time but ... no. Too much snow. Nevertheless, the morning was beautiful. Lovely sunshine made the birds active. Song Thrush and Wood Lark songs were echoing in the small mountainous valleys. Bramblings and Hawfinches were some of our morning highlights. We stopped at a spot for White-backed Woodpecker but no luck.

After this early morning outing we traveled back to the Rock Partridge place from the previous day. The beginning of the track was marked by the call of Sombre tit. One of my favourite birds welcomes us so this might be a good sign. We approached the area slowly with no talking whatsoever. And we did it right. The warming sunshine has made a bird to come out and stay quiet in the roots of a tree right in front of us. This time we did it. We saw it. Yes it took off once it saw us but in flight we could see the typical features of the Rock Partridge. It wasn't the best view but it was definitely a Rock Partridge. We stayed in the area for a little while but the bird didn't call or appear.

Well this could be the first tick for the trip. "-1" my guest said. Still a long way to go though. With this in mind we headed to the nearest town for lunch. Out next target bird is White-backed Woodpecker. There are several sites along the road we hope to see it. The weather is pretty miserable again. Snow and wind don't really help. If I was a woodpecker I definitely wouldn't come out of my tree.

Nevertheless, we stopped at several spots. After that we walked along a short path in a beautiful beech forest which is the preferred habitat type by the White-backed Woodpecker. This time there was some response to our waiting. A lovely Middle-spotted Woodpecker came over. So apparently he doesn't mind the weather. It was already 5 p.m. so we had to go. We had another 100 km to go so we headed south.

Our next targets for tomorrow would be again the White-backed Woodpecker, Dalmatian Pelican and the illusive Saker Falcon. See if we are lucky.

The start for tomorrow is at 6 a.m.

Stay tuned...