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Turkey Photo Trip Report

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Turkey Photo Trip Report TURKEY PHOTO TRIP REPORT 5th-19th June 2009 Participants Peter Alfrey & Darryl Spittle INTRODUCTION The primary objectives of this trip were to get as many Western Palearctic ‘ticks’ as possible, acquire as many satisfactory photographs of all birds encountered as possible, to increase our personal understanding of Turkish avifauna in terms of species identification, subspecies identification, taxonomy, vocalizations and breeding and migration ecology and also to record as many species as possible within our trip time frame to achieve a competitive mid-summer trip list. Trip Blogs http://peteralfreybirdingnotebook.blogspot.com/ http://gwentbirding.blogspot.com/ ITINERARY 5th June Adana to Demirkazik 6th June Demirkazik. Evening Drive to Goksu Delta. 7th June Goksu Delta. Evening Drive to Adana 8th June Yesilce. Drive to Birecik. 9th June Birecik 10th June Halfeti. Drove to Mardin. 11th June Cizre. Drive to Tatvan. 12th June Tatvan to Van Road and Van Marshes 13th June Van and Ercek Golu 14th June Bendimahi, Calidran Ovasi and Dogubeyazit 15th June Dogubeyazit and Calidran 16th June Bulanik 17th June Nemrut Dagi 18th June Adana and Tarsus marshes REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY Kirwan G.M. et al 2008. The Birds of Turkey. Helm. Gosney D. 1991. Finding Birds in Turkey, Ankara to Birecik. A Gostour Guide. Gosney D. 1994. Finding Birds in Western Turkey. A Gostour Guide. Gosney D.1994. Finding Birds in Eastern Turkey. A Gostour Guide. Green I. & Moorhouse N. 1995. A Birdwatcher’s Guide to Turkey. Bird Watchers’ Guide. Porter R F et al, 1996. Field Guide to the Birds of the Middle East. T & A D Poyser Mullarney K et al, 1999. Bird Guide. Collins. Forsman D 1999, The Raptors of Europe and The Middle East. A Handbook of Field Identification. T & A D Poyser. Olsen K.M & Larsson. H. 2003. Gulls of Europe, Asia and North America. Helm. OTHER TRIP REPORTS http://www.osme.org/osmetrip/tripreps.html http://www.surfbirds.com/trip_report.php?id=610 Ornithological Society of the Middle East Web Site OSME http://www.osme.org/index.html DAILY ACCOUNT Species names mainly follow, and photo captions gleaned from: Kirwan. G.M et al, 2009. The Birds of Turkey. 5th June 2009 Drove to Demirkazik from Adana. 6th June Demirkazik Highlights included: Golden Eagle, 6+ Caspian Snowcock, Radde’s Accentor, Alpine Accentor, Crimson- winged Finch, White-winged Snowfinch, Finsch’s Wheatear Carmadi Road Bimaculated Lark, White-throated Robin, Bimaculated Lark, Carmadi Road. Alstrom considers M.bimaculata to be monotypic although others consider these Turkish birds to be M.b.rufescens. Horned Lark, Demirkazik. Generally considered to be E.a.penicillata throughout Turkey. Ortolan Bunting, Demirkazik. A species in Turkey that is found breeding in uplands at 750-2600m. 7th June 2009 Goksu Delta Highlights: Black Francolin, Purple Swamp Hen, Graceful Prinia, Marbled Duck, Lanner Falcon, Rufous- tailed Scrub Robin. Other characteristic species: Spur-winged Lapwing, Ruddy Shelduck, Whiskered Tern, White-winged Black Tern, White-throated Robin, Great White Pelican, Moustached Warbler, Great Reed Warbler Breeding Ruddy Shelduck with six young, also Marbled Duck with two young, Spur-winged Lapwing, Goksu Delta. A local summer visitor to Turkey to most wetlands except the Black Sea Coastlands. Goksu delta is the most important breeding site. A marked decline has occurred in recent decades. Western Marsh Harrier, Goksu Delta. A breeding resident and partial migrant to Turkey. Black-crowned Night Herons, Goksu Delta. About 150 pairs breed in the delta complex. 8th June Yesilce Area Highlights and speciality birds included: Eastern Rock Nuthatch, Desert Finch, Cinereous Bunting, Cretzschmar’s Bunting, Upcher’s Warbler, Olive Tree Warbler, Eastern Orphean Warbler, Eastern Black- eared Wheatear, Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin, White-throated Robin White-throated Robin, Durnalik, Yesicle area. A monotypic species, summer migrant and increasing population in Turkey. Occurs mainly in the south. Rufous- tailed Scrub Robin, Durnalik, Yesicle area. Turkish birds relate to one or other of the grey- backed forms. Common in Eastern Turkey especially around Birecik. 9th June Birecik Highlights and speciality species: Little Swift, Bald Ibis, Dead Sea Sparrow, Iraq Babbler, Chesnut- shouldered Sparrow, See-see Partridge, Menetries’s Warbler, Characteristic species: Sand Martin and hirundines, European Roller, European Bee-eater, Eurasian Hoopoe, Pygmy Cormorant, Ferruginous Duck, Coot, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe Little Swifts, Birecik. The subspecies is A.a.galilejensis. A local and uncommon visitor. The largest colonies in Turkey are on the Euphrates. Eastern Olivaceous Warbler, Birecik. Part of a taxonomic puzzle, Eastern and Western Olivaceous Warblers are widely recognized as separate species but problems presented by three North African forms of Eastern Olivaceous, reiseri, laeneni and nominate pallid (which may integrade with elaecia) have not been resolved. Also Helbig & Seibold (1999) prefer to put Olivaceous Warbler and Booted Warbler in the subgenus Iduna. Others suggest moving Olivaceous Warbler into Acrocephalus. Bald Ibis, part of a feral colony at Birecik. About 50-60 birds are present as part of a breeding program. Bald Ibis no longer occurs in a wild state in Turkey after suffering a population terminal decline mainly associated with poisoning by agricultural chemicals. The free flying birds are rounded up and kept in a compound during the winter to prevent the associated high mortalities that occur during the migrations to East Africa. The only wild birds in the Middle East occur in Syria- a tiny and declining colony at Palmyra. European Roller, Birecik . A fairly common summer visitor to Turkey, breeding up to at least 2000m. Chestnut-shouldered Sparrow, Birecik. The subspecies is believed to be transfuga. Recently assigned to the resurrected genus Gymnoris. A scarce and local summer visitor to Southeast and East Anatolia. Breeds in pistachio orchards or groves of Oak. 10th June Halfeti and drive to Mardin Highlights: Pale Rockfinch, Cream-Coloured Courser, Lesser Short-toed Lark Characteristic species: Desert Finch, Little Swift, Greater Short-toed Lark, European Turtle Dove, Eastern and Western Rock Nuthatch Drive to Mardin: Short-toed Snake Eagle, Lesser Kestrel Black-headed Bunting, Halfeti. A very common and widespread summer visitor to all regions of Turkey except the Black Sea Coastlands. Breeds in all types of agricultural and scrubby areas usually below 2400m. Lesser Short-toed Lark, Halfeti. Cheleensis-type and rufescens-complex birds form a confusing situation in Turkey leading to the proposition that Asian Short-toed Larks were occurring in central areas of Turkey. Further research is required to clarify the situation. Desert Finch, Halfeti. A species which appears to be increasing in Turkey. The range is mainly in Southeast Anatolia. Records in the past from Eastern Turkey around Van Golu may have actually related to Mongolian Finch – a species which has only ‘recently’ expanded into Turkey from the east. Pale Rockfinch, Halfeti. This highly unusual species appears, on the basis of jaw morphology, tongue apparatus and skull structure, to represent a modern day relict of an extremely early radiation of Passeridae, Emberizidae or Fringillidae. A local summer visitor over much of Southeast and East Anatolia. 11th June Cizre and drive to Tatvan Cizre Highlights: 5 Red-wattled Lapwing, 12 Collared Pratincole, 6 Little Tern, 2 Pied Kingfisher, 1 Black Francolin Drive to Tatvan 2 Common Sandpiper, 1 Booted Eagle, 2 Egyptian Vulture, 6 Lesser Kestrel, Tatvan Armenian Gull, Montagu’s Harrier, 10+ Bimaculated Lark, 2 Greater Short-toed Lark, 10+ Black-headed Bunting 12th June Van Highlights: White-headed Duck, Armenian Gull, Characteristic birds: Pied Avocet, Black-winged Stilt, Black-headed Wagtail, Great Reed Warbler, Little Ringed Plover, Ruddy Shelduck, Ruddy Shelduck, Lake Van. A widespread and reasonably common resident over much of Turkey. Large flocks assemble to moult at certain wetlands from July to September with a maximum count of 20,000 at Ercek Golu. Adult Armenian Gull, Lake Van. Armenian Gull appears to be the relict of an early colonization event from the Atlantic via the Mediterranean Basin. Great Reed Warbler, Lake Van. A widespread and fairly common summer visitor to suitable habitat. Black-headed Wagtail, Lake Van. The current hypothesis of a deep split between eastern forms and the other western taxa of Yellow Wagtails is in vogue, while retaining Black-headed Wagtail as a subspecies within M.flava. Black-winged Stilt, Lake Van. 13th June Van and Ercek Golu Highlights: Paddyfield Warbler, Moustached Warbler, Eurasian Penduline Tit, Characteristic species: Greater Flamingo, Ruddy Shelduck, Black-winged Stilt, Pied Avocet, Garganey, Northern Shoveler, Black Tern, White-winged Black Tern, Common Redshank, Bearded Tit 1st summer Armenian Gull, Lake Van area. Active primary and secondary moult showing contrast between very worn and new remiges. Presumably the saline conditions, heat and intense sun is responsible for the obvious intense wear. Chukar, Van Hills 14th June Bendimahi 1 Gull-billed Tern, 1 Common Quail Caldiran Ovasi 4 Crimson-winged Finch, 4 White-winged Snowfinch, Dogubeyazit 2-3 Grey-necked Bunting, 1 Red-fronted Serin, 1 Crimson-winged Finch, 2 Chukar, 2 Common Cuckoo, Crimson-winged Finch, Serpmentas Lava Fields Grey-necked Bunting, Dogubeyazit 15th June Dogubeyazit and Serpmentas Lava Fields Dogubeyazit 2-3 Grey-necked Bunting,
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