Lesvos
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Just a few miles off the Turkish coast, the attractive Greek isle of Lesvos is now firmly on the map as one of the best places, not just in Greece, but in the whole of Europe, for watching birds on spring migration. Add to this wonderful scenery, lovely flowers in spring, and resident birds including Krüper's Nuthatch and Cinereous Bunting in their only European breeding location, and you can see why the island is proving so popular!The green isle of Lesvos is Greece's second largest, after Crete. Its hills are covered mostly in pine-woods and olive groves, and these and the open fields are covered with drifts of flowers in spring, notably the deep red poppies that are so distinctive. The geology is fascinating, with the evidence of volcanic activity everywhere, from ancient lava plugs, some dramatically topped with churches and monasteries, to the Petrified Forest, where, in a cataclysmic explosion similar to the one that overwhelmed Mount St. Helens, the trees were smothered in volcanic debris.The island is best described as amoeboid in shape, with two huge, almost enclosed gulfs that cut deeply into its coastline. Aristotle, arguably the world's first naturalist, wrote about and probably stayed on the shores of one, the Gulf of Kalloni, and it is at the head of this gulf, amongst a remarkable set of wetlands and centrally placed for our trips on the island, that we shall make our base. But probably more than its distinctive habitats, it is the island's location, a few miles off the continental landmass of Asia Minor that makes it such a good place for migrant birds. The wetlands always hold much of interest, and we expect to see Squacco and Purple Herons, Little Bittern, White Stork, Garganey, Black-winged Stilt and splendid flocks of Whiskered and White-winged Black Terns - and that's just from our hotel balconies! Within easy walking distance, the West River estuary is a great place to start the day, and may hold breeding Stone-Curlew, lots of other waders, and maybe a Black Stork or two. Rufous Bushchat should be singing from the scrubby hillsides in this area. The Potamia and Napi valleys near the town are excellent places to walk, swathed in olive groves, interspersed with oaks, and a good place to look for Middle Spotted Woodpecker and Sombre Tit, alongside some of the Aegean specialities, including Masked Shrike and the large, but elusive Olive-tree Warbler. Much of the island is clothed in pine forest, and this is home to the delightful Krüper's Nuthatch, while the west of the island has a rugged landscape of garrigue vegetation and rocky hills. Long-legged Buzzard soar overhead, while both Black-eared and Isabelline Wheatears flit about the rocks, together with Rock Nuthatches & Cretzschmar's Buntings. But the prize bird by far of this wildest part of the island is Cinereous Bunting, of which several hundred pairs breed. |
© Rebecca Nason
Red-rumped Swallow
Price: £ 1,695
The price per person includes return flight London - Mytilene including on-board meals as appropriate, airport taxes, accommodation, all meals, incidental tips, coach transport and the services of the leaders.
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Accommodation: We stay in a good quality hotel at Skala Kalloni with all rooms en suite. Lunches will be a mix of picnics and taverna meals. Transport will be by minibus. Walking: Easy-paced walks of 1 - 2 miles on easy trails and paths. Leaders: Rebecca Nason & Phil Harris Numbers: Max. 14 clients
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