Bulgaria Spring 2023, Day Nine, Burgas

Rather than do the 10 hour drive from Kresna to Kamen Bryag in one go I decided to break it up by first overnighting at my family's place in Shipka and then another day and overnight in Burgas. I had some excellent birding at Poda in the morning here and at Atanasovsko in the afternoon and evening here, live trip report here. Highlight was an Eleanora's Falcon over Poda (a Bulgarian tick) and plenty of waterbirds and some good raptor and soaring bird migration. The Eleanora's was my 4th Bulgaria tick this trip following Little Bunting and I had Eastern Orphean Warbler and Griffon Vulture in Kresna (although I think I had the later birds on previous trips before Ebird was invented). 

Trip list now on 179 after 25 trip ticks today including some nice ones such as Gull-billed and Caspian Tern, Collared Pratincole, Black Kite, Lesser Spotted and Booted Eagles, Honey Buzzards, Dalmation and White Pelican, Marsh Sandpiper, Spoonbill and Black-crowned Night Heron. 

I did a bit of flipping across the two sites too and had Eastern Grass Snake, a juvenile Blotched Snake and Dice Snake taking the trip herp list to 20 species now. 

Light morph Eleanora's Falcon over Poda

At least 500 Greater Flamingo at the salt pans

Over 250 summer plumaged Little Stints (above and below) 

As usual for this region most of the Ruff seem to be females (Ruff are known to be migratory sexually differentiated with males and females wintering in different areas )

No shortage of Spotted Redshanks 

All of the migrating soaring birds today were high and mainly to the north of Poda so there were not many photo ops, This dark morph Honey Buzzard was one of the closer ones.