Day: May 16, 2010

We can say that we were very lucky with the group as we encountered only a few quick showers in this very wet spring and the weather was exceptionally nice during the majority of the trip. We started with a nice Eastern Imperial Eagle view, just an hour after the plane touched down at Budapest airport. The Zemplén hills proved very productive and encounters during our two and a half day stay included two Ural Owls, Tawny Owl, male and female White-backed Woodpecker, Corncrake, Barred and River Warblers. A beautiful male Collared Flycatcher chasing away a Great Tit in the leaf litter of the nice beech forest just 5 meters from our feet was a memorable sight, while the view of White and 4 Black Stoks, 2 White-tailed Eagles, a Lesser Spotted Eagle, a Black Kite and a Hobby from one point was also very nice. On the Hortobágy we also managed to pick up the specialities during our four days stay, such as Ferruginous Duck, Stone Curlew, Saker Falcon, Great Bustrad, Aquatic Warbler, Moustached Warbler, many Pygmy Cormorant, many parties of Bearded Reedlings with freshly fledged juveniles, a Penduline Tit nest with the feeding adults, and as a bonus, we encountered two Broad-billed Sanpipers by a small pool. In the last morning in a nearby forest we completed our woodpecker list with Middle-spotted and Lesser-spotted Woodpeckers, and thus we saw all 9 species of this interesting family, which is available in Hungary.

Landscape in the Zemplén hills Photo: Gábor Simay

Ural Owl Photo: Gábor Simay

This spring White-winged Black Terns were numerous over the marshes of the Hortobágy Photo: Gábor Simay

Sakertour team

We had three days birding in the Hortobágy region with superb weather following two days in the Zemplén mountaines where we experienced heavy rain. After all we managed to see all target species in both areas and finished a great five days birding in Eastern Hungary!

Five minutes after we entered Hungary from Austria a female Pallid Harrier was flying slowly above us.

In the Hortobágy we encountered Ferruginous Ducks,  Long-legged Buzzard, several Montagu´s Harriers, Saker, Red-footed Falcons, no less than 8 Great Bustrads some of them displaying for us, brilliant scope views of Sone-curlew, Mediterranean Gull, a beautifully perched European Nightjar, singing Aquatic Warblers, Moustached Warblers and a very late migrating Firecrest.

Mediterranean Gull Photo: János Oláh

In the Bihar plains we saw a total of 26 Glossy Ibises which was a record number in the area! We also saw Squacco Heron, Red-crested Pochard and close views of Little Crakes and Grasshopper Warbler.

In the vicinity of the Hortobágy we found five species of woodpeckers so we headed towards the mountains with great expectations.

Despite the bad weather in the Zemplén area we could see all our target species including Lesser Spotted Eagles, Short-toed Eagle, Corncrake, Eagle Owl, Tawny Owl, River Warbler and Rock Bunting.

On the way back to the airport we found an adult Imperial Eagle which proved to be a super ending of a very successfull tour.

Attila Simay

Sakertour team