Trip report ELK SAFARI & Beaver watching 25–28 SEP 2015 4 day Bird & mammal watching tour in the Biebrza Marshes Text by Łukasz Mazurek, photographs by Danielle Lepetit & Łukasz Mazurek Tour Leader: Łukasz (Lucas) Mazurek Participants: Danielle, Miguel (ES) Wildlife: 7 mammal and 49 bird species recorded, full checklist on page 6 WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 1 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 Day 1, Friday 25th Sep - Warsaw to Biebrza We met at the first communist Hotel MDM downtown Warsaw and were soon on our way out of the city. Stopped for lunch at a traditional Polish tavern about half way to the Biebrza. When we reached Biebrza Marshes and drove into the National Park, we already started to look out for Elk and within minutes Danielle and Miguel spotted an Elk on the side of the road. It was a female and soon its calf also emerged from the vegetation. Great views and it was our first minutes in the Park! A few kilometres further up north we stopped at Bagno Lawki watchtower and spotted a distant White-tailed Eagle perched up at a pole, had good views in the scope. Finally, we made it to the hotel, got checked in and after a brief introductory talk about the marshes we were on our way to Barwik trail into the marsh for an evening Elk Safari trip. Once out in the open marsh, we could hear many Cranes and also Elks rutting in the distance. Saw a Greater Spotted Eagle perched up a tree (great views in the scope) and a Common Buzzard hovering in the sky. At sunset hundreds of Cranes showed up in the sky, flying from all around into the marsh to roost. After sunset, we turned back and behind the corner of the forest saw a huge bull of Elk that slowly walked across the mowed fen. We watched it disappear into the reeds. Just before reaching our car we have heard a pair of Tawny Owls - a male and a female very close. A very nice start of the holiday. Gorgeous dinner back at our hotel. Day 2, Saturday 26th Sep - BIEBRZA MARSHES After a hearty Polish breakfast we went on a drive around the best sites Biebrza Marshes have to offer at this time of the year, our Wild Marshes trip. Firstly, we visited a Raised Bog, ate some northern bilberries still in fruit and saw common sundews. Later, we had a walk in the birch forest of Wolka - Kapice. Saw a Greater Spotted Woodpecker and a Grey Headed Woodpecker plus some fantastic evidence of Beaver activity. After a short visit at the Russian WWI military forts in Osowiec (Mute Swan, Common Buzzard) we had a walk at Mścichy. Everyone enjoyed the fantastic, vast open pristine landscape but it became quite windy and rainy in the meantime and we only saw a Grey Heron there. WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 2 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 Later we stopped at Brzostowo for lunch of home made stuff served by the farmers. On the way, we have scored some Mallards and Buzzards as well as 200+ Cranes in the fields quite near that gave some great views. At one of the later stops at Góra Strękowa we have spotted a male Hen Harrier. Back on the Tzar’s road we have seen a young Elk bull very near and had great views. Our last trip this day was a long walk along the Honczarowska dike. We saw a Nutcracker and a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, many Cranes, 2 Elks near on our way there and heard one more female moaning. Plenty of footprints: Boar, Roe and Red Deer, Elk, Racoon Dog. At a viewing tower at the far end of the dike we saw a yet another Nutcracker and 3 distant Elks, had a cup of hot tea (freshly brewed) and headed back. The walk back produced yet more Cranes in the sky, at least 2 Red Deer rutting very near and 2 more Elks, a huge bull and a cow very near that were a stunning view in the scope. Traditional substantial dinner back at the hotel. WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 3 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 Day 3, SUNDAY 27th Sep - BIEBRZA MARSHES After the usual plentiful breakfast we went on a birding trip visiting a set of ponds near Knyszyn. Lots of nice birds there, White-tailed Eagles, Marsh Harrier, Sparrowhawk,Great White Egrets, Whooper Swans, some Ducks, Grebes and plenty of Lapwings (see the checklist). Afterwards we decided to chill out a bit visiting the baroque WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 4 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 town of Tykocin with an old castle and a 17th century synagogue. We had a wonderful lunch at a traditional Polish tavern in Kiermusy and headed back to the hotel for a short break before our evening departure for Beavers. When the time was right, we boarded our car and drove down to meet the Beaver boat at sunset. Two boatmen carried us down-and up stream while we watched and photographed Beavers swimming and coming out ashore to groom their fur, mark the territory and chew some twigs. We have had some gorgeous views of at least 8 different Beavers and 1 brief sighting of an American Mink. Very happy, we stopped for dinner at a roadside bar U Dany and enjoyed some of the traditional Polish dishes. On our way back to the hotel we have seen some Fox, Elk and a Badger in car lights. Day 4, Monday 28th Sep - Biebrza to Warsaw The group decided to stay in bed until breakfast, all in all, we have been quite successful with wildlife sightings and we finished late last night. There was a full moon and an eclipse this night so I decided to wake up early and give it a try on my own and maybe also try to photograph some Elks. I woke up to the dense mist but the last stage of the eclipse and the Red Moon were still visible. Later, I moved on to check the nearby meadows for Elks and found one young bull that gave some fantastic views and photographs in the fog and the rising sun. A nice finish of a tour! WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 5 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 After the usual substantial breakfast we packed our stuff and headed back to Warsaw. Arrived on time, had a short walk in the Old Town and sat down at a small restaurant for lunch. Checklist F - footprints D - droppings H - heard C - common Mammals Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 SUM Red Deer Cervus elaphus 2H 1 Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus 2 1 Elk Alces Alces 8 1 1 3 Red Fox Vulpes vulpes 2 1 Badger Meles meles 1 1 American Mink Mustela vison 1 1 European Beaver Castor fiber 8 1 Number of species: 0 2 5 2 7 BIRDS Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 SUM 019 Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus 6 1 029 Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo 13 1 033 Great White Egret Egretta alba 3 1 035 Grey Heron Ardea cinerea 2 4 2 039 Mute Swan Cygnus olor 2 4 19 3 039 Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus 57 1 049 Mallard Anas platyrhynchos 5 120 2 WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 6 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 SUM 051 Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope 30 1 075 White-tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla 1 2 2 079 Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga 1 1 085 Marsh-Harrier Circus aeruginosus 1 1 087 Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus 1 1 091 Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 2 2 8 3 093 Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus 1 1 117 Common / Eurasian Coot Fulica atra 20 1 119 Common Crane Grus grus 500 500 150 3 137 Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus 1500 1 171 Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus 6 1 201 Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus 12 1 203 Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto 2 2 2 207 Tawny Owl Strix aluco H H 2 225 Black Woodpecker Dryocopus martius H 1 2 225 Grey-headed Woodpecker Picus canus 1 1 227 Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major 1 1 229 Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos minor 1 H 2 249 Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis 2 1 251 White Wagtail Motacilla alba 3 1 259 European Robin Erithacus rubecula 4 2 2 263 Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros 1 1 2 307 Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita 1 1 317 Great Tit Parus major 1 1 317 Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus 3 1 319 Willow Tit Poecile montanus 2 1 319 Marsh Tit Poecile palustris 2 1 323 Nuthatch Sitta europaea 5 1 331 Magpie Pica pica 25 5 2 333 Jay Garrulus glandarius 4 6 3 3 333 Nutcracker Nucifraga caryocatactes 2 1 335 Jackdaw Corvus monedula 30 20 2 337 Rook Corvus frugilegus 6 1 337 Hooded Crow Corvus cornix 10 1 337 Raven Corvus corax 6 2 2 341 Starling Sturnus vulgaris 300 500 2 343 House Sparrow Passer domesticus 20 1 343 Tree-Sparrow Passer montanus 40 1 WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 7 WILDPOLAND TOUR REPORT - ELK SAFARI & BEAVER WATCHING, SEP 2015 Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 SUM 347 Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs 10 1 351 Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis 20 1 351 Siskin Carduelis spinus 20 1 373 Yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella 30 1 Number of species: 7 34 27 2 49 OTHER Species name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 SUM Common toad 2 1 Common frog 3 1 Number of species: 1 1 0 0 2 For full size photographs, please visit our news at www.wildpoland.com or our facebook page: www.facebook.com/wildpoland WWW.WILDPOLAND.COM 8.