GREATER FLAMINGO

Davaria Lagoon Peloponnese Greece September 2006. Hundreds winter on the lagoons, but this flock of 63 only stayed two days, leaving just five on the lagoons for the rest of the two weeks. The flamingos attract White tailed eagles to the area in the winter.
Cheap flights and accommodation is avaliable all year with some of the apartments overlooking the lagoons.

GREATER FLAMINGO

Divari lagoon Greece

GREATER FLAMINGO

Divari Lagoon Greece

CHAMELEON

Chameleon, extremely rare in Europe this one is closer to the African race Chamaeleo africanus than the european one, though it may turn out to be another race altogether, it is very similair to the ones found in Egypt, funnily enough an Egyption Queen married and lived in the Pelloponese four thousand years ago, so may have brought this race with them.
They are very rare away from the coastal strip the females return in July the males August, they lay about 50 eggs in the sand which are incubated by the sun for about a year.
I found this one on my first morning and then never saw another for the whole two weeks.

CORN BUNTING

Really common around the lagoons, Divaria Greece.

Stonechat

Common seen everyday with Whinchats on the rough grass around the lagoons.

EURASIAN GREAT WHITE EGRET

Upto 9 birds on the Lagoons with 50 odd Little Egrets, by mid winter there can be a hundred or so Great Whites and upto a thousand littles, the lagoons are probably the top site in Greece for Breeding Herons, especially Little Bitterns. Divari Lagoon 2006

HOODED CROW

Very Common, seen everyday but out numbered by Jackdaws flocks of 3-400 seen going to roost in evenings. Greece 2006

OSPREY

Two birds were on the Divari lagoons throughout the whole time and tended to fish right in front of me every morning, though they always sat to far for Digi scoping and the only time i got the chance was on a really hot afternoon with the sun in front, hence the poor pictures, though i manged to get several stunning minutes of video actually catching a fish.

Spotted Flycatcher

Seen everyday around the lagoons Divari Lagoon Greece Sept 2006

WHITE STORK

Eaton near Retford Notts
These six shots were taken with a Canon D20 and a 55mm lens, they are as they came off the card (not got a big lens yet) the five large images below have been cropped right the way up, not bad for my first attempt with this camera, will have to invest in a 100-400 lens soon though.

White Stork

As can be seen from pictures above these have been greatly cropped