Trip report Summer Wildlife 20-27 AUG 2016 8 day wildlife watching tour in the Białowieża Forest and Biebrza Marshes

Text by Łukasz Mazurek, photographs by Łukasz Mazurek and David L. Chen

Tour Leader: Łukasz (Lucas) Mazurek Participants: Jonathan, David (USA), Phoebe, Karen, Francesca, Timothy, Graham (uk) Wildlife: 12 and 96 bird species recorded, full checklist on page 12

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Day 1, Saturday 20th Aug - Arrival

Part of the group arrived in the morning and others - the day earlier so pickup was easy, although with a bit of driving around the Old Town of Warsaw, an unexpected sightseeing for some! David’s flight, however, was delayed until late afternoon so he was only able to join us later in the evening. We helped to organise a private driver to pick him up and drive to Bialowieza later while the rest of us hit the road to Bialowieza, as planned. We had a stop for lunch at a roadside cafe where everyone had a chance to try some local specialities and continued afterwards. Weather was perfect and we saw several White Storks, Common Buzzards as well as a Goshawk on the way. Having checked in we met downstairs at our lovely wooden guesthouse for dinner and an introductory talk over a map.

After dinner we decided to go for a night drive hoping to see some Bison, Red Deer or Racoon Dogs. We drove through the forest, villages and glades for about an hour with a spotlight and saw a total of 5 Red Deer, 2 Roe Deer, 2 Racoon Dogs and a Hare. No Bison yet but not bad as for our first night! Late evening David has arrived safely so the group were now complete and ready for adventure. Day 2, Sunday 21st Aug - Białowieża

After a hearty Polish breakfast we met Irek, our National Park guide who took us for a few hrs walk in the Strict Protection Area, the core area of the UNESCO protected forest. Apart from the usual stunning forest, huge trees, colourful fungi and excellent explanations on the natural forest ecosystem by Irek, we have seen a few Nuthatch, Spotted Flycatchers, Lesser Spotted and Greater Spotted Woodpeckers as well as a few Red Squirrels and a Bank Vole. Back at the guesthouse we had a traditional Polish lunch of pierogi (dumplings) stuffed with cabbage, potatoes and cheese. After a short break we have boarded our minibus and drove to the central forest for another walk. On the way we have seen a Marsh Harrier and a Honey Buzzard, a few Ravens and plenty of Jays, of course. We have reached a large glade where Bison were likely to come out at dusk and we waited there for about an hour. It was very atmospheric to hear all the sounds of a natural forest

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and silence. Apart from a few Black Woodpeckers flying around there was little animal activity so we retraced our steps and started walking back to the minibus. Half way there we decided to check if the Pygmy Owls would respond and in fact they did so we followed a small track towards them and briefly saw two birds silhouetted against the sky high up in the trees. A spectacular sighting. On the way back for dinner we saw a total of three Racoon Dogs and a Roe Deer.

Day 3, Monday 22nd Aug - Białowieża

This early morning we have decided for an early start to try for Bison that come out of the forest at dawn. Our destination were two sites, Kosy Most area in the central forest and the glades up north of it. It was still a bit dark when we started, a perfect time for mammal activity and we saw a yet another Racoon Dog very well right in front of the minibus. It was already brightening up when we reached Kosy Most and we saw a herd of ca. 20 Red Deer hinds with a few young stags. Just before sunrise a thick mist has gone up and as there was no sign of Bison, we decided to check out on the meadows up north. Some time later, it came out to be a very good decision as we saw 21 Bison at the very first place we visited. There they were, a herd of huge, wild European Bison feeding quietly at the edge of the forest in the delicate mist and the rising sun. It was a mixed herd of cows with calves but a few large bulls were already with them, suggesting it was a breeding behaviour. Together with them, we watched an adult Lesser Spotted Eagle perched up and hunting once in a while. We have spent a good hour or so with them and watched them slowly disappear back in the woods when the sun came up. It was a

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spectacular sighting but it wasn’t over yet. We had a feeling we could once again see them as it was obvious they would have to pass another open area on the way back to the forest. We kept checking other meadows that were possibly on their way and in the end we managed to see them once again, slowly walking towards the forest.

After this fantastic morning we transferred back to the guesthouse for a usual, plentiful breakfast, that was even more tasty than ever :) In the meantime, it started raining so we decided to go for the inter-forest ponds near Topiło for some bird and amphibian activity. We saw a Grey Heron, Great White Egret, some ducks (Wigeons, Teal, Goldeneye), Common Sandpiper and numerous frogs and toads, see list. We also had our lunch of packed sandwiches and met the border patrol. As it stopped raining, we moved back to the forest and had a short stop for coffees at a local cafe and watched some Spotted Flycatchers there.

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We decided to have another short walk in the forest later this afternoon, at a site where more Bison were likely. After a small problem with parking (our minibus stuck in deep mud for a while but managed to drive out with the help of the group) we slowly walked into the forest seeing plenty of fresh Bison tracks and other signs. We were just watching a recent Bison rubbing site when someone shouted - Bison! There it was, a huge Bison bull lying on the forest ground, some 50 metres away. This one wasn’t particularly shy but we kept our distance and have spent a good hour or so with him as he later walked through the forest and onto the meadow. A perfect end of a long day out!

Day 4, Tuesday 23rd Aug - Białowieża

Today after breakfast, we planned to visit the Siemianówka Lake for more bird variety. Our plans were verified, however, by a huge herd of Bison we saw on the way, at least 51 animals strong. It is a rare sighting at this time of the year so we spent some two

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hours with them before reaching the reservoir banks. Accompanying them, were some Common Buzzards and a pair of Lesser Spotted Eagles with one juvenile. Seeing the lake with its birdlife was a nice change from the forest habitat and everyone enjoyed the White-tailed Eagle, Honey Buzzards, Whooper Swans, Marsh Terns, Shrikes. On top of all the birds (see list) we have scored a few grass snakes and sand lizards on our paths and were even lucky to get a glimpse of an Elk () bull. We had lunch of packed sandwiches with some local specialities like sausages and sękacz - a traditional cake that we picked up at a local grocery. Our specialty - the freshly brewed coffee was also a welcome beverage, as usual :)

On our way back to the hotel, we saw the same herd of Bison once again and decided to stay with them until sunset. It was another unforgettable evening!

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We decided to use our last chance - last morning in the Białowieża Forest and try for at one of my favourite trails. Wake up was early but necessary if you want at least a small chance of spotting them. Our tours see Wolves in the Białowieża Forest approximately once a year and as we have already scored one and one Lynx earlier this year I wasn’t expecting much, to be honest. Something dragged me to another site, however and I took a different turn than planned, thus taking the group to another Wolf territory. My intuition proved worth it once again as we have soon seen some very fresh Wolf poo, scratching and footprints. When we reached the crossroads of forest tracks the scratching was even more obvious and we could even smell the fresh Wolf urine on the trunk. Suddenly someone whispered: wolves and the fingers were pointing along the track. There we saw three Wolves, an adult with two juveniles some 200 m away, in the middle of a forest track. They were soon gone so we sat quietly and started howling, hoping to see them once again. Within a few howls they came out again, and although a bit further, we saw 5 animals this time, crossing the track one by one. A fantastic and thrilling experience!

Only David had a camera out and was quick enough to take a picture and, although, not very sharp at least we have a souvenir :)

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After our last substantial breakfast in the forest lodge we packed our luggage and started our journey to the Biebrza Marshes. We briefly stopped at one of the old wooden villages and continued towards the Dojlidy fishponds. Saw one White-tailed Eagle there, thousands of Edible Frogs, Grey Herons, Black Terns, Whooper Swans, Little and Crested Grebes with chicks and more, see list.

For lunch of sandwiches and other traditional goods, we transferred to another small lake where we watched a few White-tailed Eagles in the sky and up in the trees. We checked in at our small guesthouse in the marshes early and after a short break we went for a marshy trail in the evening hoping for some Elks and Cranes. We have soon seen a White-tailed Eagle, several flocks of Cranes but no Elks. We decided to split the group and after some time we saw one Elk cow quite near. I have run to bring the rest of the group and soon we were all together watching the Elk disappear in the willow shrub. We enjoyed an atmospheric sunset out in the marsh, surrounded by silence occasionally broken by the Cranes piercing call.

Day 6, Thursday 25th Aug - Biebrza Red area

After a hearty, traditional countryside breakfast we drove straight to the north of the National Park, the famous Red Bog area. Saw some large flocks of Lapwings on the way. When arrived there, we were the only tourists and we enjoyed the silence and tremendous space and wilderness around us. We had a fantastic walk of ca. 11 km there, through the forest, the post glacial sand dunes, a vast reed bed and marshes as well.

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We saw dozens of Sand Lizards, their young were just everywhere. Found Grass Snake’s nest, saw a Honey Buzzard near, had lunch at a lovely spot of a former village area, saw plenty of Wolf poo and scratching, multitude of mushrooms, some Spotted Flycarchers, Wood Warblers, Hawfinch and a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

Came back for an earlier dinner (plentiful as always) and continued afterwards. Our target for this evening were Beavers during a boat cruise. We stopped at a viewing tower on our way and saw two distant Elks and two Red Deer stags. The boat cruise was fantastic. We saw at least 9 different Beavers really close in torchlight, swimming, feeding and scent marking their territory. Milky way was bright and heavy and we also saw some Mallards, Swans, Bats and heard a Tawny Owl. On our way back we have picked some bison grass vodka and enjoyed a few shots back at the guesthouse while doing our checklist for the day. Also saw a Red Fox in car lights.

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Today we had our last full day out in the marshes, decided for a drive around the best sites. We drove over 120 km and had several stops seeing the vast marshland, traditional countryside and some historic sites of WWI (Russian military forts) and WWII (battlefield). We have also briefly stopped at the NP HQ where everyone picked up some souvenirs. Another welcome stop was a full of bilberries as well as a short stop for ice-cream at a roadside cafe. The day was packed with sites as no other and we saw Common Redstarts, more Cranes, Great White Egret, a Marsh and Hen Harrier, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, a flock of Grey Partridges (rare birds these days!) 4 Dunlins in the marsh and a lot more.

Day 8, Saturday 27th Aug - Biebrza to Warsaw

This was our last day so we decided for a yet another dawn patrol before breakfast. The morning was beautiful with all the mists, sunrise and Cranes loud rattle. We had a short walk through the wet meadows at the edge of the forest and saw 5 Roe Deer, Cranes, Yellowhammers, Yellow Wagtails a Common Snipe, all in the stunning and unspoiled scenery. After breakfast we packed all our gear and headed for Warsaw with a short stop at one of the viewing towers where we saw two Elks and two Nutcrackers, a great end of the tour. Well, not a real end as we still managed to have a nice drive to Warsaw, have a

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short walk in the old town and a nice lunch at a small Polish-Jewish restaurant there. Afterwards we drove everyone back to their hotels or Warsaw airport on time.

Here is our happy group, thank you all for a great week! Lukas

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Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 SUM

European Bison Bison bonasus F 21+1 51 3

Red Deer Cervus elaphus 5 20+1 2 3

Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus 2 1 1 5 4

Elk Alces Alces 1 1 2 2 4

Wolf Canis lupus F 5 2

Red Fox Vulpes vulpes 1 1 1 3

Racoon Dog Nyctereutes procyonoides 2 3 1 3

Badger Meles meles F 1

European Beaver Castor fiber 9+ 1

Red Squirrel Sciurus vulgarus 3 2 2

European Hare Lepus europaeus 1 1

Bank Vole Clethrionomys glareolus 2 1 2

Number of species: 4 7 5 2 4 4 1 2 12

BIRDS

Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 SUM

017 Little Grebe / Dabchick Tachybaptus ruficollis 12 1

019 Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus 12 1

029 Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo 30 1

033 Great White Egret Egretta alba 2 1 6 1 1 5

035 Grey Heron Ardea cinerea 1 6 10 2 4

035 White Stork Ciconia ciconia 15 6 3 6 1 5

039 Mute Swan Cygnus olor 1 1 4 5 4

039 Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus 3 4 2

049 Mallard Anas platyrhynchos TRUE X X X 3 6 6

051 Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope 2 1

053 Common Teal Anas crecca 1 1

055 Common Pochard Aythya ferina 12 1

067 Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula 1 1

075 White-tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla 1 5 2

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Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 SUM

079 Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina 1 4 2

085 Marsh-Harrier Circus aeruginosus 1 6 1 1 1 5

087 Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus 1 1

091 Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 2 1 1 2 1 5

091 European Honey-Buzzard Pernis apivorus 1 2 1 2 4

093 Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus 1 1

093 Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis 1 1 2

095 Common / Eurasian Kestrel Falco tinnunculus 1 1

097 Northern / Eurasian Hobby Falco subbuteo 1 1 2

105 Hazel Grouse / Hazelhen Bonasa bonasia F 1

111 Grey Partridge Perdix perdix 13 1

117 Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus 1 2 2

117 Common / Eurasian Coot Fulica atra 5 70 2

119 Common Crane Grus grus 7 100 H 80 50 5

137 Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus 3000 100 2

141 Dunlin Calidris alpina 4 1

143 Temminck's Stint Calidris temminckii 1 1

145 Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos 1 2 H 3

147 Common Redshank Tringa totanus 1 1

151 Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago 1 1

171 Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus 30 1

173 Common / Mew Gull Larus canus 10 1 2

175 European Herring Gull Larus argentatus 6 1

187 Common Tern Sterna hirundo 1 1

193 Black Tern Chlidonias niger 5 1

193 Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida 1 1

201 Feral Pigeon Columba livia feral 20 6 X 3

201 Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus 12 X 2

203 Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto X 1

207 Tawny Owl Strix aluco H H H 3

211 Pygmy-Owl Glaucidium passerinum 2 1

225 Black Woodpecker Dryocopus martius H H H H 4

227 Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major 6 1 1 1 4

227 Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos medius H H 1 H 4

229 White-backed Woodpecker Dendrocopos leucotos H 1

229 Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos minor 1 1

231 Skylark Alauda arvensis X 1

243 Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica X X X X X X 6

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Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 SUM

243 Northern House-Martin Delichon urbicum X X X X 4

251 White Wagtail Motacilla alba 6 6 5 5 3 X 6

253 Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava 1 1 1 3

255 Wren Troglodytes troglodytes H H H H 1 5

259 European Robin Erithacus rubecula 1 H H 3

263 Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus 1 1

263 Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros 3 1

273 Whinchat Saxicola rubetra H H 2

275 Song Thrush Turdus philomelos 6 x 2

275 Redwing Turdus iliacus H 1

277 Blackbird Turdus merula 12 x 2

297 Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus 2 1

305 Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus 1 x 2

305 Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix 1 1 2

307 Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita H H H 3

311 Goldcrest Regulus regulus H 1

313 Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata 6 2 6 3

317 Great Tit Parus major H 1

317 Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus H H 2

319 Crested Tit Lophophanes cristatus H H H 3

319 Willow Tit Poecile montanus 2 1

319 Marsh Tit Poecile palustris H H H 2 4

321 Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus 4 1

321 Penduline Tit Remiz pendulinus 1 1

323 Nuthatch Sitta europaea 6 H 2

327 Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio 1 3 2

329 Northern / Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor 1 1

331 Magpie Pica pica 1 1 X 3

333 Jay Garrulus glandarius 12 H 6 5 x 5

333 Nutcracker Nucifraga caryocatactes H H 2 3

335 Jackdaw Corvus monedula x 1

337 Rook Corvus frugilegus 300 X x 3

337 Hooded Crow Corvus cornix 1 3 X 3

337 Raven Corvus corax H 1 2 H H 5

341 Starling Sturnus vulgaris 200 30 60 1500 30 X x 7

343 House Sparrow Passer domesticus 20 20 20 10 4

343 Tree-Sparrow Passer montanus 3 6 2

347 Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs 1 1 12 6 4

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Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 SUM

349 Linnet Carduelis cannabina H 1

351 Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis 10 1

355 Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes H 1 2

357 Common Crossbill Loxia curvirostra H 1

367 Reed Bunting Emberiza schoeniclus 1 1

373 Yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella x 1

Number of species: 10 27 35 35 45 28 29 14 96

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