10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2019

The other day I counted my favourite section of the Danube River, the wide and shallow Labudovo okno Ramsar site in Serbia. Two hundred yards further, the first Common Goldeneye and Smew started to appear and, while counting Smew and geese, a Great Bittern took flight from one stand of reeds to another, right in front of us.

Geese 144

Geese Serbia Birds Estonia 144

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2018

all the time pointing with my right hand while holding the steering wheel with my left, and the hardest thing, keeping my eyes on the road. More productive areas of the Balkans have January eBird lists from 105 to 115 species (but I combined several areas in two countries, Greece and Serbia), so I have every reason to be satisfied.

Owls 105

Owls Greece Serbia Woodpeckers 105

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 24, 2020

They are about the same length (NL 6.2in / 158mm; EL 6.3in / 160mm) and weight (NL 30oz / 850g; EL 29.6oz / 840g), and obviously, the same lens diameter, hence, they should feel the same, right? Well, an escapee it may be, but still something totally new and challenging (also, a first for Serbia). Nothing can be more wrong.

Chile 304

Chile Argentina Raised Serbia 304

10,000 Birds

JUNE 12, 2014

These days I am busy with something called the “avitourism product“ of Belgrade, Serbia. By the end of a day, the best bird was the White-tailed Eagle that caught and ate a fish right in front of us – a species they have seen in the UK only once. Pygmy Cormorant – winter (it breeds in Serbia, but overwinters in Belgrade).

Serbia 175

Serbia Eagles Birds Sparrows 175

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2016

This section of the river is known as the Labudovo okno reserve, a Ramsar site and the most important waterbird wintering area in the whole of Serbia. Yeah, right. Labudovo okno reserve, photo (2) by Marko Sciban. Watch for the dark beaks.” In this light, all beaks are dark!

Geese 174

Geese Hunting Boars Birds 174

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 31, 2017

You can hear its song in spring, but even then, it is a rare privilege to have one posing at the very ends of willow branches right next to one’s car. Feral Pigeon – Columba livia. In the Bird Identification guide, it is deservedly described as an introvert. A narrow bluff-top buffer zone is also protected.

Serbia 116

Serbia Breeding Woodpeckers Feral 116

10,000 Birds

MARCH 30, 2017

He has seen them before in Cape Town, but those were introduced and feral birds, while in the Balkans they are indigenous and – countable! And this winter I saw a flock of 500 swans in Belgrade – nothing exciting about them? Well, for me – no, but for Nicolaas, Mute Swans were a lifer species. All photos (6) by Vladimir Milovanovic.

Birds 121

Birds Namibia Greece Feral 121