Cyprus - 15th to 25th April

Not entirely a birding trip as all my trips abroad are mooted to be but Cyprus in spring really is a treat.  Based just south of Larnaka Airport at Perivolia, the airport lagoons and sewage works were within a short distance away which made up most of the birding for the nine days spent here.  This was only my second (birding) visit to the island (4th in total) - not a great effort but with the intervening period beset global dis-ease, this trip was very much within my radar.

Flights were booked on British Airways with a last minute aircraft change on the outbound leg to a wide-bodied Boeing 777-200ER.  



Accommodation was booked through Airbnb, an annex within a residential complex that we eventually warmed to during the stay.


Birding was leisurely, usually a couple of hours in the morning and a couple of hours in the evening with the day largely spent frolicking on the beach and dining on great local foods.  Cyprus is a lovely place that should be visited much more regularly.

A total of 106 species were observed, just one new WP species (Slender-billed gull) but plenty of quality as you would expect.  Migration had tapered off after the peak passage during the last couple of weeks of March and the first couple of weeks in April.

Sites visited included;

Larnaka Sewage Works



Spiros Pools and Beach




Larnaka Salt Lake

Troodos Mountains (Atalante Trail - 14km)





Kiti Dam




Kivisili Fields

Cape Greko





Phissouri reedbed (Akrotiri Marsh) and Oriklini Marshes.

Bird Sightings

Northern Shoveler
Present in good numbers at Larnaka Sewage Works (35) and Airport South Lagoons.

Mallard
Small numbers at Larnaka Sewage Works.

Pintail
A single drake on the 17th at Larnaka Sewage Works.

Eurasian Teal
Present at Larnaka Sewage Works with a maximum of eight seen.

Garganey
Good numbers on Larnaka Sewage Works with a high count of 24 on the 18th.  Also seen at Akrotiri Marsh.  


Ferruginous duck
Five seen flying over Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.

Red-crested Pochard
Two drakes at Oriklini Marshes on the 21st.  

Ruddy shelduck
Two seen at Larnaka Sewage Works on the 18th and 19th.

Chukar
A couple seen on Cape Greko and one near Spiros Pool.

Black francolin
Widespread, though seen infrequently at Larnaka Sewage Works.

Great crested grebe
Not a common bird here apparently, but up to three present at Larnaka Sewage Works for the entirety of the trip.

Little grebe
Seen at Larnaka Sewage Works, Oriklini and Akrotiri Marsh.

Great Cormorant
Present on Larnaka Sewage Works.

Grey heron
Seen daily at Larnaka Sewage Works with a group of seven flying past on the 18th evening.

Purple heron
Two 1st summer seen at Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.

Squacco heron
Seen at Oriklini Marshes (below), Phissouri reedbed (below) and Larnaka Sewage Works.



Night heron
A small group of six associating with Cattle egret flying over Spiros beach on the 24th.

Little egret
Widespread particularly at Spiros Pools.

Cattle egret
Regularly encountered with seven in a field near Akrotiri Marsh.

Great egret
Just a single bird seen over St. George's Chapel, Akrotiri on the 22nd.

Glossy ibis
Seen at Akrotiri Marsh and Spiros Pools with groups of around 20 flying over.


Greater flamingo
Up to 100 birds spread widely along Airport South Lagoons and the Salt Lake.



Marsh harrier
Singles at Larnaka Sewage Works and Akrotiri Marsh.

Pallid harrier
One female flew over Cape Greko on the 18th.  

Montagu's harrier
Two single birds (both ringtails), one at Larnaka Sewage Works on the 18th and one over St George's Chapel, Akrotiri on the 22nd.


Kestrel
Seen daily at many sites.  

Red-footed falcon
One seen at Kiti Dam on the 24th.

Baillon's crake
Great bird with two seen at Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.




Coot
At least 10 at Oriklini, three on Airport South Lagoons, and two at Larnaka Sewage Works.

Moorhen
A few seen at Akrotiri marsh and a single bird at Kiti Dam.  

Ruff
Present in good numbers on Spiros Pools and Larnaka Sewage Works with over a 100 birds there.  

Dunlin
Three summer plumage adults on Spiros pools on the 24th.

Common snipe
Two seen at Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.

Green sandpiper
A single bird at Oriklini and one on Akrotori Marsh.

Wood sandpiper
Widespread and seen daily at Larnaka Sewage Works.  Also present on Akrotiri Marsh.



Marsh sandpiper
Singles seen at Larnaka Sewage Works and Phissouri reedbed.



Common sandpiper

At least three at Larnaka Sewage Works.  

Ringed plover
Four on Spiros Pools.

Kentish plover
At least two males on Spiros beach/pools.  A couple seen at Akrotiri Gravel Pits.

Little stint
Good numbers on Spiros Pools with at least 30 seen.  

Greenshank
One on Sprios Pools and one at Akrotiri Gravel Pits.

Black-tailed godwit
Just a single bird seen at Oriklini on the 21st.

Spotted redshank
A single bird in summer plumage at Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.

Collared pratincole
Such lovely birds with two seen hawking insects at dusk over Larnaka Sewage Works on the 21st.

Spur-winged plover
Widespread with good numbers in fields behind Larnaka Sewage Works.




Black winged stilt
Common and widespread at numerous sites.

Black headed gull
Three seen passing through Larnaka Sewage Works on the 19th.

Yellow-legged gull
Present on Larnaka Sewage Works and widely seen.

Slender-billed gull
Seen on two days - 25 on Spiros Pool on the 16th and four ( 3 of the 4 shown) on Airport South Lagoons on the 19th.


Little tern
Breeding nearby and seen daily on Larnaka Sewage Works.  

Common tern
Two passing through Larnaka Sewage Works on the 18th and 23rd.

Whiskered tern
Two adult summer present on Larnaka Sewage Works on the 18th.

Woodpigeon
Small groups here and there.  

Collared dove
Common around Larnaka.

Laughing dove
Common around the complex.

Turtle dove
Seen on the northside of Phissouri reedbed with at least 10 there with 16 together on wires at Kiti Dam.

Feral pigeon
Whatever.

Cuckoo
One singing on the walk in Troodos.

Great spotted cuckoo
Four seen at Kiti Dam.  




Eurasian Scops Owl
Two calling at Kivisili on the 20th.

Swift
Seen daily throughout the stay.

European Bee-eater
Six flying over Kiti Dam on the 24th.

Blue-cheeked bee-eater
A group of 10 flying over Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.


Hoopoe
Singles seen at Larnaka Airport Pools, Kivisili, and Akrotiri Marshes.

Wryneck
A single bird seen at Akrotiri Marsh on the 22nd.

Crested Lark
Common around the pools south of Larnaka.


Barn swallow
Seen daily throughout the stay.

Red-rumped swallow
Two's and threes heading through the airport pools and sewage works.

House martin
Small groups over Larnaka Sewage Works.

Red-throated pipit
Seen in varying numbers in fields opposite Spyros Beach with a peak of 35 on 19th.

Tawny pipit
A single bird in fields opposite Spyros beach on the 23rd.

White wagtail
Seen frequently throughout the trip.

Yellow wagtail
Mostly seen at Larnaka Sewage Works.


Wren
Only a single bird seen at Troodos.

Whinchat
Three males seen, two males at Larnaka Sewage Works on the 19th (one later seen at Spyros Beach), one at Spyro's Pool on the 21st.

Nightingale
Two singing at Cape Greko.  

Northern wheatear
A few seen with five near Spiros beach on the 19th.


Pied wheatear
Seen on Cape Greko and eight along the trail at Troodos (below).


Black-eared wheatear (Eastern)
A single 2cy bird seen from the hide at Larnaka Sewage Works.


Blackbird
Two seen along the Atalanti Trail in Troodos. 

Sardinian warbler
Widely heard and seen.

Blackcap
Seen at various sites including Cape Greko and Kiti Dam.  

Spectacled warbler
Seen at Cape Greko and Spyros Pool (below).





Common whitethroat
Seen at Cape Greko.

Lesser whitethroat
One seen on the eastern side of Spyros Pool.  

Cetti's warbler
Widepspread with one seen well from the tower hide at Phissouri reedbed.

Reed warbler
A few singers at Oriklini Marsh.

Sedge warbler
One seen at Phissouri reedbed.

Great reed warbler
Four singing at Phissouri reedbed.

Eastern olivaceous warbler
Three singing at Kiti Dam, and one at Phissouri reedbed.

Zitting cisticola
The most irritating of species, seen and largely ignored.

Pied flycatcher
One in the woodland at St. George's Chapel on the 22nd.



Spotted flycatcher
Two at Kiti Dam on the 24th.


Coal tit (Cyrpus)
Widespread in Troodos.

Great tit
A few singing in Troodos. 


Golden oriole
Six (five males and one female) at Kiti Dam on 24th (in a bonkers five minute spell at the site).


Masked shrike
A pair nest building behind Ben Nevis cafe in Troodos.

Woodchat shrike
A single male on wires soth of the Airport Lagoons on the 23rd.

Magpie
At least five at Kiti Dam.

Jay
A few seen on Troodos.

Hooded crow
Widespread.

House sparrow
Common and widespread.  

Spanish sparrow
A small group at Larnaka Sewage Works on the 24th.


Greenfinch
Seen daily over the site complex.

Chaffinch
A few individuals at Troodos.

Linnet
Small groups seen around the Sewage Works and at Kivisili

Goldfinch
Three flying over Cape Greko.

Serin
Eight singing males within the pine woodland in Troodos.

Crossbill
Three females seen in Troodos.

Aircraft

It was interesting being so close to LCA which wasn't very busy but there were a few interesting aircraft around.




Walking the gravel pits around Akrotiri was timed well with the departure of a couple of Typhoons and a Voyager.



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