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Report of a Birding Trip to Georgia from 30Th April to 11Th May 2016

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Report of a Birding Trip to Georgia from 30Th April to 11Th May 2016 Report of a Birding Trip to Georgia from 30th April to 11th May 2016 By Jildert Hijlkema 1 Birding in Georgia | 30 April – 11 May 2016 Participants: André Geelhoed Jildert Hijlkema Jasper Hooymans Joep Hooymans Rens Huizinga The Netherlands Cover photo The Gergeti Trinity Church sits high on a mountaintop overshadowed by Mount Kazbek (5.047 m / 16.558 ft) in a dramatic landscape. (Jasper Hooymans, 02-05-2016) © Birding in Georgia | 30 April – 11 May 2016 Introduction In the middle of 2015 we started philosophizing about a birding trip to Georgia, mainly fueled by some mind blowing Caucasian species known as the “Big Five”: Caucasian Snowcock, Caucasian Black Grouse, Great Rosefinch, Güldenstädt’s Redstart and Caucasian Chiffchaff. All species which do appeal to birders’ imagination and which occur in the High Caucasus only or have a limited distribution. After gathering information, reading articles (among other things from Dutch Birding) and asking people who have been there for birding, we scheduled our trip end of that year for the next spring. As timing is probably one of the most essential variables in order to see the target species, we decided to plan our trip from 30th of April till 11th of May, travel days excluded. By planning a trip just less than two weeks we were able to visit the main birding areas in the inland of Georgia, as the county is only twice the size of the Netherlands. Although some good species can be found in the coastal region (Mediterranean Shearwater, Gray-headed Swamphen and White-backed Woodpecker) we deliberately ignored Batumi and the Chorokhi Delta because of our time-restricted schedule. By this choice we had enough time to visit and enjoy a great variety of habitats with each their own specific species and characteristics. More practical information, our schedule and species can be found further in this report. Hopefully this report can be useful by designing your schedule for a birding trip to this beautiful country. Jildert Hijlkema On behalf of the rest of the group: André Geelgoed, Jasper Hooymans, Joep Hooymans and Rens Huizinga. 1 Birding in Georgia | 30 April – 11 May 2016 2 Birding in Georgia | 30 April – 11 May 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. The Practical Guide .................................................................................................................................. 5 1.1 Flights and getting there ........................................................................................................................ 5 1.2 Visas and travel advice .......................................................................................................................... 5 1.3 Money .................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.4 Language ................................................................................................................................................ 5 1.5 Time and telephone ............................................................................................................................... 6 1.6 Car rental ............................................................................................................................................... 6 1.7 Driving and petrol .................................................................................................................................. 6 1.8 Accommodations ................................................................................................................................... 6 2. The Site Guide .......................................................................................................................................... 9 2.1 Itinerary ................................................................................................................................................. 9 2.2 Kazbegi (Stepantsminda) ..................................................................................................................... 10 2.2.1 The Russo-Georgian Friendship Monument ............................................................................... 10 2.2.2 Jvari Pass ..................................................................................................................................... 10 2.2.3 Ioane Natlismcemeli Orthodox Church ....................................................................................... 10 2.2.4 Gergeti Trinity Church ................................................................................................................. 13 2.2.5 Sno .............................................................................................................................................. 13 2.2.6 Coordinates ................................................................................................................................. 13 2.3 Alazani River Valley .............................................................................................................................. 15 2.4 Chachuna Managed Reserve ............................................................................................................... 15 2.5 Kapatadze Lake / Sakhare Lake ........................................................................................................... 18 2.6 David Gareji Monastery ....................................................................................................................... 18 2.7 Jandara Reservoir ................................................................................................................................ 21 2.8 Javakheti Plateau ................................................................................................................................. 21 2.9 Vardzia ................................................................................................................................................. 23 2.10 Borjomi-Kharagauli NP ........................................................................................................................ 25 2.11 Kumisi Reservoir .................................................................................................................................. 25 3. Review ................................................................................................................................................... 28 3.1 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................... 28 3.2 Recordings ........................................................................................................................................... 28 3.2 Missed species ..................................................................................................................................... 28 3.3 Considerations ..................................................................................................................................... 29 4. Appendix ............................................................................................................................................... 30 4.1 Species list ........................................................................................................................................... 30 4.1.1 Birds ............................................................................................................................................ 30 3 Birding in Georgia | 30 April – 11 May 2016 4.1.2 Butterflies ................................................................................................................................... 38 4.1.3 Others ......................................................................................................................................... 38 4.2 Literature ............................................................................................................................................. 39 4 Birding in Georgia | 30 April – 11 May 2016 1. The Practical Guide 1.1 Flights and getting there Travelling directly from western Europe or North America, you have little choice to fly; however, almost all the schedules are pretty inconvenient and there are no longer direct flights from Amsterdam or London. The most obvious route is to go via Istanbul, and Turkish Airlines (THY; www.thy.com) gives the most options. The airport Tbilisi is located 17 km (11 mi) southeast of the actual capital. At the airport even at night many taxis are available. We had both during our outward from (AMS Amsterdam) and return with Turkish Airlines a transfer at Istanbul, although at different airports (see flight schedule below). The costs of our flight standard economy class where less than €300 per person. 1.2 Visas and travel advice To enter Georgia a passport is required, which is valid for a period of at least six months from the start of your trip. For EU citizen no visa is needed for stays with at most 90 days in a period of 180 days. At the moment of departure the Dutch government recommended not to travel to the regions Abkhazia and South Osetia. Safety risks at the border region between Georgia and Russia were also mentioned. Birders from the Netherlands can look at https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/onderwerpen/reisadviezen/inhoud/georgie for a more recent travel advice. 1.3 Money The unit of currency is the lari (GEL), which is divided into 100 tetri. The GEL is tied to the European
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