10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

In the chill morning of late January, I am driving east of Belgrade towards the Two Towers section of the Danube and the best waterfowling bonanza in the whole of Serbia. Actually, I visited the Two Towers twice, had about 50 bird species each time and about 60 in total, so this is sort of a composite tour description.

Serbia 264

Serbia Geese Eagles Louisiana 264

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 16, 2018

Serbia has 317 eBirded species so far, or 89% of the 356 in the national checklist. The country has one eBird hotspot with 200+ and 48 with more than 100 bird species. The country has one eBird hotspot with 200+ and 48 with more than 100 bird species. July – simply boring , weather too hot, birds hiding, only beer saves the day.

Serbia 152

Serbia Geese Owls Macedonia 152

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 19, 2019

In mid-December, I was birding along the Beljarica levee (Beh-LYAH-ritza), my local patch north of Belgrade, when something other than birds attracted my attention: three wild boars , appearing all black because they had just swam through the swamp to reach the bottom of the levee. Beljarica lies less than 2 km/1.2

Serbia 244

Serbia Otters Boars Eagles 244

10,000 Birds

APRIL 11, 2019

Shorebirds (in Europe: waders) must be an acquired birding taste. No one starts birding dreaming of drab-coloured, unobtrusive and, far on a mud-bar, largely invisible little mud-skippers. Who even spots a Woodsand without deliberately searching for birds? Who even spots a Woodsand without deliberately searching for birds?

Serbia 153

Serbia New Jersey Europe Hunters 153

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 18, 2021

In Belgrade, Serbia, winter months offer surprisingly good birding possibilities. And that harsher, mountainous climate attracts some northern guests to overwinter, as well as birds that come down from Serbian mountains to spend the winter in somewhat lower and more hospitable areas, such as Avala. Photo Miroslav Mares.

Serbia 297

Serbia Birds Woodpeckers Ducks 297

10,000 Birds

APRIL 26, 2018

Our destination lies further west, along the Drina River, which marks the border between Serbia and Bosnia. Common Chaffinches and Great T**s are calling from several directions at once, but even such extrovert birds are surprisingly hard to spot among young leaves. And the cliff was white with bird droppings. They are huge!

Serbia 106

Serbia Herzegovina Bosnia Sheep 106

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 25, 2018

We were heading to the Djerdap (Iron Gates) Gorge National Park, stretching along the south bank of the Danube in eastern Serbia, to do the 400 km / 250 mi bird tour interconnecting possibly the very best sites around Belgrade reachable within a day. The deep beech forest of Djerdap was still full of birds.

Serbia 118

Serbia Woodpeckers Birds Bears 118

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 23, 2023

Belgrade, the capital city of Serbia, offers several great birding spots and here are some recommendations for areas to go birding in and around the city, how to get there by public transport, and some of the bird species you might expect to see. To get there, take the bus line 56 to the “Cukarica” stop.

Transported 255

Transported Woodpeckers Birds Serbia 255

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 3, 2020

If you are old enough, you will remember birding without a phone? Later I carried it because of a stash of bird songs I compiled in it. And now I carry it for the same reason, only now they are a part of the bird ID app. Anyway, I don’t even have an app for the European birds at the moment, but for the Birds of Southern Africa.

Serbia 267

Serbia Birds Ducks Cyprus 267

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 10, 2020

Last month, I birded my favourite local patch, Beljarica – the best eBird hotspot in Belgrade city and the 3rd best in Serbia – four times. One consequence of being near the city is the widespread feeding of birds with what is junk-food for them – bread. With more than 30 birds, Black Storks became truly common.

Serbia 268

Serbia Birds Boars Otters 268

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 12, 2023

The night temperatures in Belgrade, Serbia, were already below minus 10 Celsius / 14 degrees Fahrenheit for two weeks. Up to the mid-20th century, Pygmy Cormorant was a common breeding species of wetlands around Belgrade until most wetlands were drained and the birds were lost, at one moment – from the entire territory of Serbia.

Protection 278

Protection Serbia 2004 Legislation 278

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Of course, I was going – birding, so the view of the fog (certainly not through the fog) has drawn several comments which I will not share here with you… While the Lada 4×4 is bumping along the dirt track (road??) Large birds flying through silver fog… buzzards? A way to beat the cold? No, they are Common Ravens. I hate fog.

Serbia 262

Serbia Birds Deer Woodpeckers 262

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2021

My readers are already familiar with Beljarica Backwaters, as described in half a dozen posts here at 10,000 Birds. It all started well three decades ago, when I intensively birded the Danube Backwaters by kayak. The post Beljarica Backwaters: Some good news announced (but not yet official) appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

Serbia 275

Serbia Deer Protection Boars 275

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 13, 2023

Seriously though, we were walking our dog at the local park when out of the blue she said (and she is not into birding at all) “ You know what would be great. Imagine looking at birds through that.” There were rumours of cameras, some devices for bird ID, etc. Like binoculars have but with further reach. and Aaaah’s!

Serbia 226

Serbia Austria Elephants 2017 226

10,000 Birds

JUNE 15, 2023

How much time do you devote to birding? How high is birding on your list of activities – is it the very first or merely one of? These are the types I recognise: Coffee Break Birding – 10-15 minutes, usually not planned ahead but squeezed out of your schedule. It is a good option if you know that there is that one special bird.

India 174

India Birds Africa Serbia 174

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 21, 2023

These birds have already left my native Serbia, further north, and this is not just the only one I have seen in Greece, but my last bee-eater of the season. This is possibly the only European wetland I’ve birded where Common Moorhens outnumber Eurasian Coots. There cannot possibly be any birds left at the canal by the road.

Greece 162

Greece Serbia Hunters Cows 162

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

In 2022, the 10,000 Birds eBird Collaborative submitted 1,837 checklists from 9 countries ( Australia , China , Costa Rica , Mexico , Saint Lucia , Serbia , Trinidad and Tobago , United Kingdom , and the United States ) and observed 1,273 species. The Collaborative life list increased to 4,140.

Saint Lucia 195

Saint Lucia Costa Rica United Kingdom Trinidad 195

10,000 Birds

APRIL 9, 2020

Part of the Labudovo okno Ramsar Wetland and protected within the Deliblato Sands Special Nature Reserve , this section of the Danube, downriver from Belgrade, Serbia, is unique for its wide shallows, before the river narrows downstream from the village of Ram. Avoid windy days – the birds will be looking for cover. Dupljaja area.

Mali 264

Mali Serbia Eagles Birds 264

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 3, 2019

What qualifies a bird to be included in the top-5? This version extended the list a bit and it turned out that almost every fourth bird was an one-monther. Somewhat unfairly, the second criterion was that I described the observation at 10,000 Birds. My first criterion was that I observed it only once during the year 2018.

2018 117

2018 Serbia Falcons Greece 117

10,000 Birds

MARCH 25, 2021

The adventure of the second European Breeding Bird Atlas, or EBBA2, was the topic of one of my first posts here at 10,000 Birds: In a warm Catalonian March, Barcelona is filled with sunlight and full of Rose-ringed and Monk Parakeets. In a very short time, we get two responses, two birds calling from opposite directions.

Europe 264

Europe Breeding Denmark Birds 264

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 15, 2016

Iron Gates (Djerdap) national park, Serbia. The main reason for visiting this site is the White-throated Dipper and soon, one cooperative bird shows itself on a rock protruding from the water. We are watching birds between two sweeps of wiper blades. Right in front of us, one more bird lands on a wire: a woodpecker!

Serbia 258

Serbia Birds Woodpeckers Bears 258

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2022

In February 2022, the Collaborative submitted 127 checklists in 7 countries ( Costa Rica , United States , Mexico , Trinidad and Tobago , United Kingdom , and Serbia ). Good Birding in March! The 2022 year list stands at 888 and the life list is now at 4,112. There are 44 hotspots with at least 400 species observed.

Costa Rica 215

Costa Rica United Kingdom Trinidad United States 215

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2019

Some five years ago I was involved in a project of ecotourism evaluation of the river Danube in Serbia, which included the city of Belgrade, founded at the bank of this river. Yet, I narrowed the city limits to encompass only the urbanised areas (220 km2) and skipped many good birding spots nearby. Serbia Birding calendar.

Serbia 249

Serbia Birds Woodpeckers Breeding 249

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2019

The Christmas Bird Count was the answer. The IWC census starts from mid-January following the logic that it is the period when the birds have reached their wintering grounds and are rather static, so the chance of double-counting the same flock is minimal. But it is so frustrating to pass the birds by without IDing them!

Geese 144

Geese Serbia Birds Estonia 144

10,000 Birds

MAY 7, 2020

Like many of you, I had plans for this year’s spring migration: to bird the very best tour of the Balkans, heading for northeastern Greece. From there some 200 km to the Kerkini Lake National Park with its 310+ bird checklist, stopping en route at the Mt. And off birding I went. The next day, the wind was swaying the treetops.

Greece 232

Greece Bulgaria Birds Serbia 232

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2023

Superficially similar but unrelated to New World condors, it is huge, more pterodactyl-like than bird-like. But it’s a huge bird. miles from the overnight spot of my bird. Not wanting to see them going back to the UK, my birding time was rather limited. It has never visited these parts of Serbia before.

Bulgaria 262

Bulgaria McDonalds Eagles Serbia 262

10,000 Birds

MARCH 12, 2020

It has been a while since I wrote on where to watch birds (unbelievable, I know), and will now focus on the nature reserve of Deliblato Sands and the adjoining Labudovo okno Ramsar Wetland, about an hour east from Belgrade, Serbia. Dominant easterly winds have shaped the prominent dune relief rising from 70 m / 200 ft a.s.l. (the

Europe 226

Europe Serbia Woodpeckers Birds 226

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 8, 2022

Beljarica Backwaters (some August birding here ) is a spacious floodplain of the left bank of the Danube, less than 10 km / 6 mi north of Belgrade, and is an exciting place to bird. If they return a while, we know not if they smile or weep beneath their tan.”. It took 12 years to reach this point. sq km / 7.2

Protection 265

Protection Serbia Protest Protesting 265

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2022

As devoted readers of 10,000 Birds know, the writers can be members of the 10,000 Birds Collaborative group on eBird. In January 2022, the Collaborate submitted 209 checklists in 5 countries (Costa Rica, United States, Mexico, United Kingdom, and Serbia). Good Birding in February! Many thanks for his tireless efforts.

United Kingdom 204

United Kingdom Costa Rica United States Puffins 204

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2015

The city of Belgrade, Serbia, has about 1.7 Less than two years ago, I wrote here how I found the 4th GBBG for Serbia. The best afternoon bird was, again, one Great Black-backed Gull on the water, this time an adult (hence, we have at least two of them overwintering here now). Birds city birds Europe gulls Serbia'

Serbia 166

Serbia Birds Ukraine Europe 166

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 16, 2014

While there are some two dozen birding spots in Belgrade, Serbia, that stand out, in this guideblog I will focus on the river Danube and its floodplain, inside the Important Bird Area “Confluence of the Sava and the Danube Rivers”. The next winter bird spot lies some 4.5 Bus: 79 & 24. eBird list. eBird list.

Serbia 232

Serbia Birds Ducks Eagles 232

10,000 Birds

MARCH 26, 2020

LABUDOVO OKNO Ramsar Site and an Important Bird Area represents a section of the Danube floodplain downriver from Belgrade, Serbia, and situated in the south of the Deliblato Sands Special Nature Reserve. The post Finding birds in Deliblato Sands Reserve, part 2/3: the Labudovo okno Ramsar Wetland appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

Turtles 168

Turtles 2002 Serbia Eagles 168

10,000 Birds

JUNE 12, 2014

These days I am busy with something called the “avitourism product“ of Belgrade, Serbia. Yes there are birding sites and there are birds – but hardly much info about them (beside Fat Birder ). Local birding sites are well known – among local birders. Nevertheless, describing where to bird is easy.

Serbia 175

Serbia Eagles Birds Sparrows 175

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2022

Once upon a time, vast forests of Quercus robur , known as common, pedunculate, European or English oak blanketed the Sava River floodplain, all the way from Croatia down to the river’s confluence in Belgrade, Serbia. The most numerous birds are Common Chaffinches. And that is where Q. and I were heading this morning.

Croatia 225

Croatia Serbia Shelters France 225

10,000 Birds

JULY 30, 2020

Sitting in a cafe, I open my notebook and wrote it down, then look around for someone I know to share the bird, but I knew no other guests. Opening my eyes in the Kastel Mariette eco-lodge in the Deliblato Sands Nature Reserve, Serbia, I wondered was the sound coming from outside the window or was it merely a dream.

Phoenix 243

Phoenix Serbia Birds 243

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 24, 2016

Can you remember any birding movie before Schrodinger’s Cat? For me, the only “birding” movie that I knew of were the Dogs of War (1980). I knew about the movie since my early birding days although it was more than ten years later before I saw it. Probably not. Then, how did I know about it? In real life!

Belize 235

Belize Birds Africa Dogs 235

10,000 Birds

MAY 28, 2015

What do you think makes for a good bird hide? I have asked myself that same question many times over the last six months, until last week, when I was involved in an opening ceremony of five new bird hides at the Palic Lake, by the town of Subotica in the very north of Serbia, along the border with Hungary (all photos are from that area).

Serbia 242

Serbia Birds Spain Hungary 242