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| Woodchat Shrike ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
Another advantage of staying in Petra is the road to Skalochori which links you up with birders from Kalloni heading West for the upland and migrant goodies out there. My Hotel made breakfast available early (7a.m.) which gave me a headstart on last year's Hotel in Skala Kallonis. The drive is enjoyable as there's not much traffic, beautiful views and lots of roadside birds to stop for like this Woodchat. Even away from the coast, the uplands often have migrants such as my first ever Levant Sparrowhawk. At Ipsilou, there were not many small migrants but there was a Cuckoo, and on the last bend before the bottom car park this Tawny Pipit...
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| Tawny Pipit ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Solar Powered Skalochori ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
The island seems to be largely solar-powered. These massive banks of panels are on a revolving podium which follows the Sun. But what do they do when the sky looks like this?
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| Ipsilou ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Approaching Storm ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
The lightning was amazing and the thunder very loud. It's an experience to be in the mountains when this happens. However, when you realise you're carrying a 'lightning conductor' (scope + tripod ) the only sensible thing to do is get back into your Mobile Faraday Cage and drive on into Sigri. The rain and hailstones lashed the car but I made it to my Taverna for a cuppa and cheese toastie. Once the rain stopped the wind dropped and the Sun came back. More birding!
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| Mont Ipsilou area ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Long-legged Buzzard ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Long-legged Buzzard ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Forking Tracks ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
I parked my car here and walked up both tracks. The left one takes you to Faneromeni upper ford. The right one takes you up to a nice area for shrikes...
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| Masked Shrike ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Masked Shrike ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Masked Shrike ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
And Stonechats...
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| Stonechat ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Stonechat ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
I think their Stonechats are a little bit darker than ours on the upperparts. Otherwise quite similar.
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| Stonechat ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
More Wild West pics to come later.
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