Antalya region

It may have sounded a bit crazy to some but a weekend in Turkey may seem a little far-fetched but it is very doable with a bit of planning and a hire car.  Not as expensive as it may appear, Turkey these days is a very cheap place to visit as a result of domestic economic turmoil with a drop in the value of the lira making it an attractive place to visit on so many levels.

A flight out of Gatwick on a British Airways A320 on Thursday afternoon arrived in Antalya at just after 10pm (after an hour delay) and at my hotel just after midnight.  At this point, it would be remiss of me not to mention the Antik Boutique Hotel in Side where I stayed for my 3 nights - the hospitality and kindness showed by the proprietors was exceptional and is wholly recommended.

Birding sites visited over the three days are listed here:

Manavgat Lake - 20th May

Returning here after visiting this site in March was a little disappointing with migration season well and truly over.  There were a few people walking in the area which made birding here a little lacklustre but it was still a nice walk round.

A couple of obliging common sandpiper were feeding along the lake edge.

Two delicate prinia were still singing within the scrub.

Tasagil Olive Grove - 20th May

A speculative visit to a site mentioned in the now very outdated Gosney guide in the hope of an olive-tree warbler that yielded masked shrike, eastern olivaceous warbler, sardinian warbler, turtle dove, and a spotted flycatcher.

Sites east of the Manavgat River - 20th May

Having visited this site back in March, there were high-hopes of flooded arable fields full of waders and terns but given the time of year, the irrigated fields were now dry with just a single pool that held a squacco heron, spur-winged plover, and a couple of yellow wagtail of the feldegg race.

The fields also produced a really smart lesser grey shrike and a male red-backed shrike.  A couple of red-rumped swallow flew over.

A couple of bee-eater flew over the pine forests toward the river.  

And much like the last visit, I headed into the pine woodland not expecting to see a great deal but a few eastern oliveaceous warbler were in song and a hoopoe flew through the woodland.  Creeping through in the car, a couple of rufous-tailed scrub robin were zipping around presumably breeding within the scrub there.

A red-backed shrike and crested lark were sitting along the fenceline.

Cimikoy Meadows - 21st May

Before heading to the planned birding sites, an hour drive from the hotel had me in the small town of Akseki.  I was grateful to have stopped by and seen the market which was a hive of activity particularly around a wonderful market selling an array of local produce.

A few miles east of Akeski, Cimikoy Meadows is a stunning area that would be gift-shopped to an inch of its natural existence in the UK.  Bounded by low mountains eastward, the track leads through an area of lush meadow punctuated by scattered scrub and trees which make it ideal for passerines.

Unsurprisingly, the site offered a lot of interest that started with a lovely male black-headed bunting singing from the top of an olive bush.

A stunning finsch's wheatear passed by on the start of the walk.

There was always something around, red-rumped swallow breeding by the village, red-backed shrike feeding along the track, raven flying through the valley, blue-rock thrush and western rock nuthatch within the scree.

A few male Cretzchmar's bunting were still singing from the top of the scattered bushes, and an ortolan made an appearance by a stone wall that may have been breeding there.

Another specialty from this area are ruppell's warbler with around three present along the walk.

What I was hoping for was olive-tree warbler but without really being aware of the ideal areas for this, it was a chance encounter that would deliver what was a new species for me.  Heading back toward the car after taking a slightly different route, this singing individual was eventually located just to the south of the track.

Also within that small area was a singing woodlark and a lovely adult woodchat shrike.

A Syrian woodpecker feeding within the meadow was also a first that capped off a brilliant day in glorious weather.

Site west of Akeski - 22nd May

The day of my return back to the UK but with the 19:50 flight time, this provided an opportunity to head out somewhere before the journey back to the hotel.  Having had a brilliant day ay Cimikoy the day before, I couldn't resist heading back to the area.  However, instead of turning right toward Akseki, I randomly took a left turn, found a small track, parked the car, and went for a wander.

It was relatively quiet but there was plenty of interest with two olive-tree warbler, black-headed bunting, eastern black-eared wheatear, masked shrike, and cretzchmar's bunting.

A thunderstorm lurked above the mountains making slow progress, once the first spots of rain started to fall, I was off...