Tuesday, 15 November 2022

Bulgaria- Desert Wheatear, National Mega

Today was supposed to be a boring day. Dimiter and I were due to sort out a water meter for our project plot but due to famous Bulgarian bureaucracy we have to wait for some paperwork and then go to Dobrich on Friday to sort out the next bit of paperwork. Anyway, it meant by about lunch time we had nothing better to do then go for Tripe soup and Risotto and then after that birding.  

So we headed north to Darunkulak and we already had a good afternoon with White-tailed Eagles, White-headed Duck (a Bulgaria tick for me), Bewick's Swans. migrating White-fronted Geese, Red-crested Pochards and there were literally hundreds of raptors, mainly Common Buzzards but also Hen and Marsh Harriers feeding on this year's small mammal population explosion which was particularly easy prey in the recently ploughed fields. Ebird list HERE

On the way home at dusk we headed across the fields from Durankulak to the Krapets road and a Wheatear flew across the road. Any Wheatear in November needed double checking so we stopped and sure enough it was a female Desert Wheatear (only the third record for Bulgaria). It was getting dark and the light was awful but we managed to get a few records shots (Dimiter has better ones so will post them soon). 

I was hoping to find a Bulgarian mega on this project and even better with a joint find with Dimiter. An excellent day!  


Female Desert Wheatear (above and below) 

Adult White-tailed Eagles 
Bewick's Swans (above and below)

One of over 100 Common Buzzards we saw today
White-headed Duck
White-fronted Geese on the move. Also had a group of 7 going over the project plot this morning. Ebird list from this morning HERE
A Roe Deer at dusk over the Desert Wheatear field- we got totally lucky finding the Wheatear in the 200 hectare open vast and hedge-less ex-communist farm it was in 

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