David and his friends spent 6 days (24 Sept- 29 Sept) birdwatching in the Hortobágy and the Zemplén Hills. On the first morning 14 Lesser White-fronted Geese were seen at a close distance, and later we found a new flock of 19 birds, with the bird ringed bird called Finn. Then, with clockwork precision, all of the Hortobágy specialist species arrived such as Red-footed Falcon, Long-legged Buzzard, Saker, Long-eared Owl, Syrian Woodpecker, Short-toed Eagle, Stone Curlew, Red-throated Pipit, Little Bittern, Black Stork, Dotterel, Great Bustard, Penduline Tit, Pygmy Cormorant and of course the unforgettable and multitudinous flocks of Cranes (25 000). In the Zemplén Hills, we were lucky again: in the afternoon when we arrived, we saw in excellent light an Eagle Owl that had just set off to hunt. The next day, the half an hour birdwatching before breakfast brought us five woodpecker species (Great Spotted, Syrian, Black, Grey-headed and Green). During the day there was an extremely active woodpecker movement in the forest, and besides the species already seen in the morning we saw Middle Spotted, Lesser Spotted and White-backed as well. While searching for the woodpeckers, we noticed a pair of Ural Owls just above our head. Our pleasure was enhanced even further, when, while we were having our packed lunch, a male Imperial Eagle came to circle above us then to display for a juvenile female.

It was a great trip with lots of fun!

Zoltán Ecsedi

All pictures taken by Andy Deighton