CABS Spring Camp in Farmagusta, Cyprus. April 2018

All birders will appreciate the moment when a bird they have wanted to see half their lives, comes into view.  Hours spent browsing Field Guides, dreaming of foreign and warmer climes imagining the radiance and exoticness of bird species only occasionally viewed at home, usually vagrant and lost.  So it was that a Male Pallid Harrier drifted into view, gliding effortlessly across the Cyprus scrub and rock, passing 10 - 15 meters to my front across the UN Buffer Zone and north towards Turkey and its breeding grounds.

Farmagusta Region of Cyprus in which CABS work concentrated in Spring 2018.

Adult Male Pallid Harrier - UN Buffer Zone near Paralimni.

Turkish Check Point UN Buffer Zone near Paralimni.

I was once again back in Cyprus volunteering for the Committee Against Birds Slaughter (CABS) combatting the scourge of illegal bird trapping.  Spring is never as bad as Autumn and last Sep and Oct had been quieter than past years thanks to effective co-ordinated action by several environmental and law enforcement agencies.  Would this Spring see a continuation of this trend?

Hoopoe taken with my iPhone through my binoculars.

Second CY Male Pallid Harrier - Achna Dam.

Red-throated Pipit - Paralimni Lake.

By early April, migration is in full flow on Cyprus.  That said, movement seems to come in pulses probably aligned to weather conditions.  In the first week alone, we saw several Hoopoes a day as well as all 5 harrier species - most Pallid.  Smaller passerines were less evident and were represented by large numbers of Lesser-whitethroats and Northern Wheatears.

Bird watching on Paralimni Lake

Jeanine from Germany with 18 old Lime Sticks.

Black-eared Wheatear.

Our search patterns for trapping sites continued working sometimes through the night and parts of the day.  Most trappers recognise the danger (to them) of using bird song decoys as they attract activists and the police, therefore our work was harder.  We searched gardens and orchards concentrating on ripe fruit tress like the Loquat or Mulberry but found nothing in the way of lime sticks.  By night we located two decoys, one in west Cape Pyla and the second north of Ayios Nikolias - both in the British Sovereign Base Area.  Thanks to effective work by the police, both these sites were shut down and the nets and other paraphernalia confiscated. 

A hard day's night.  4 trapping nets, a decoy and other paraphernalia confiscated by the SBA police.   

Spectacled Warbler - cheap as chips.

Blunt-nosed or Levant Viper coiled and ready to strike at any bird or animal alighting to drink.

A second week's searching also proved fruitless in the sense that we didn't find anything.  Whilst this is clearly a positive development, the absence of rescue or the prevention of trapping, made our work more monotonous and therefore harder.  Fortunately, I had the birds to comfort me giving impressions that for me will last a lifetime.  

Masked Shrike - UN Buffer Zone.

Purple Heron - Achna Dam.

Kentish Plover - Paralimni Lake.

Its probably dangerous to temp fate, but trapping on Cyprus seems to be in decline.  This must be thanks to several agencies including CABS, RSPB, BirdLife and many others, as well as a far more effective approach taken by the SBA police and the threat of a €8,ooo fine.  Time will tell, but eyes are now being turned towards the Lebanon where migrating birds are massacred by so-called hunters in their thousands.

Isabelline Wheatear - coastal site.

Sign language - UN Buffer Zone.

Squacco Heron - Achna Dam.

Little Egrets - Achna Dam.

Grosse Bruch - Winter

All things considered, it has been a mild winter even with a couple of significant falls of snow.  I've posted about the Grosse Bruch several times, most recently when I wrote about the Wiesenweihe, or Montagu's Harriers, that bred near Hornburg last summer.  Sadly, because of a bout of cold and very wet weather, the nest failed and we are left with hoping that they return in a few weeks.  I wasn't sure what the Grosse Bruch would be like in winter - open, wet and cold with little in the way of cover.  The antithesis of its summer bounty.

The Grosse Bruch east of Hornburg.

Grosse Bruch - 1 Feb 18.  Note the surface water.  2 x Great White Egrets in the background.

Prior to this winter I had only seen one Rough-legged Buzzard and even then it had to be pointed out to me!  The species was therefore high on my list of 'things to see' this winter so it was exciting to hear that the Grosse Bruch was playing host to 2 or 3 of these northern buteos.  Their identification, compared with the ubiquitous Common Buzzard, was not a difficult as I had anticipated with subtle but distinct differences in shape - more aquiline - and behaviour - often 'harrieresque'.  Plumage was also distinct though I've seen many Common Buzzards sporting dark mantle and carpal patches.  One bird in particular became quite obliging and could be reliably seen south of Hedeper, its presence often given away by habitual calling.  I was really lucky to get to watch these birds, sometimes at close quarters, and really get to observe their behaviour and plumage.  A great bird!

Adult pale Rough-legged Buzzard.

Adult pale Rough-legged Buzzard.

The second raptor that I was able to reliably connect with in the Grosse Bruch this winter 
were Hen Harriers - or rather female Hen Harriers.  I had seen a single bird in this area 3 years previously but never appreciated that some birds actually seem to winter in the valley area.  Hen Harriers can be seen throughout the map area, but are most reliably seen, slightly counter-intuitively, towards Homburg quartering the arable fields.  I have seen a maximum of 3 different female Hen Harriers in this area of the Grosse Bruch but only one male bird located at the eastern end of the map area.  Having spent the summer watching Montagu's Harriers, it was fascinating to observe and note the differences in the two species - both absolutely beautiful1

Female Hen Harrier - eastern end of map area.

Female Hen Harrier - eastern end of map area.

Of course there's more to life than Rough-legged Buzzards and Hen Harriers.  Kestrels and Common Buzzards, some of which we recognise from the summer, remained throughout the area and the occasional Peregrine added some excitement to proceedings.  Sadly, Merlins and Short-eared Owls did not seem to be present even though the habitat and availability of prey must be ideal for both species.  Great White Egrets are plentiful, large flocks of Wood Pigeon are often seen and groups of Lapwing, sometimes as large as C80 birds can also be seen.  Cranes, larges numbers of which seem to be wintering in Germany now, can also frequently be seen commuting up and down the valley

Looking into the winter sun - Grosse Bruch.  Note the standing water.

A group of wintering Cranes - Grosse Bruch.

The small bird front is a little more challenging and one needs to concentrate of the small stands of trees that abound in this area.  Gold Finches are always present and I have seen Brambling, Siskins, Redpolls and sometimes very large groups of Fieldfares.  On one occasion saw two Common Sandpipers attracted no doubt by the large pools of water lying in the meadows.

A Kestrel in the late afternoon sun - Grosse Bruch.

Puckle assisting with the navigation.

Proof that I saw a male Hen Harrier - albeit at long range. Grosse Bruch.

So, that's that.  There is still a month to go of proper winter so I have not completely abandoned hope of finding some Short-eared Owls or, even more improbably, Merlins.  But spring is just below the horizon and thoughts are beginning to turn to the Grosse Bruch's summer visitors.

Wiesenweihe

Things have been looking up.  I've found a couple of local birding 'buddies' and gained access to the local e-mail-based information network.  The social and information desert that had hitherto been sapping my interest in going out, has been sated.  I had always thought I was happy being out and about with Puckle, but in the end even his illustrious company would have been insufficient to sustain me.

Map area of Schladen, Hornburg and, to the east, the Grosse Bruch.

And so it was in early May that we received intelligence of a male and female Wiesenweihe hunting over arable land 20 km north east of Goslar.  The birds were quickly located displaying and our hopes of a summer watching these, most beautiful and elegant of birds, was raised as high as they soared together in the German early summer sky.  Being so close to where I lived, I returned every day hoping to confirm a nesting site.  But the birds proved elusive and I was able to locate them only intermittently amongst the numerous Red and Black Kites, Marsh Harriers, Kestrels, Hobbys and, on one occasion, Honey Buzzard.

iPhone screen shot showing search areas west of Schladen.

First 'grab picture' of male Wiesenweihe SW of Schladen taken on 11 May 17.

First 'grab picture' of female Wiesenweihe SW of Schladen taken on 11 May 17.

After 10 days of intermittent sightings I was forced to admit that my birds had gone and were, to me at least, lost.  However, towards the end of May an email reported the sighting of 2 birds hunting in the Grosse Bruch east of Hornburg.  An immediate expedition was mounted and both birds were quickly located hunting over arable land to the east of Hornburg.  Our relief was palpable but we continued to work on the assumption that the birds would be breeding and therefore we were desperate for any evidence of nesting.

Male Wiesenweihe with Hornburg church in background - 23 May 17.

Female Wiesenweihe with Hornburg church in background - 23 May 17.

Little came of our efforts and we seemed to have lost the birds again.  Accordingly, we extended our search area east into the Grosse Graben.  Somewhat ironically, I had spent hours searching this area in vain the previous year thinking all the time what perfect habitat it was for these birds.  The picture below shows the nest area and, as you can see, it consists of extensive meadow land interspersed with ditches.  Both sides of the valley are surrounded by arable crops - mainly wheat and barley.

Breeding area - Grosse Bruch. 18 Jun 17.

Protective fence surrounding nest on which he female is perched.  20 Jun 17.

The nest.  3 eggs.  More may have been laid.  20 Jun 17.

On the 20 Jun I noticed that someone had placed a protective fence in a meadow which served obviously to indicate where the nest was located.  Actually my assessment had been correct and it was obviously good to know that the birds had at last got down to the business of reproduction.    Taking the opportunity of the female's temporary absence I sneaked a look into the nest in which lay 3 relatively small white eggs.  A normal clutch can consist of as many as 5 or 6 so more may have been laid later.

The male bird perched close to the nest site.  22 Jun 17.

Female - early Jul 17.

Male - early Jul 17.

Female - early Jul 17.

Male - early Jul 17.

So we await hatching.  Our birds have obviously left it late to breed.  I think that both harriers are first time breeders and that this is probably their third summer.  I think they arrived first in the Schladen area and prospected looking for somewhere suitable and eventually decided to move further east into the Grosse Bruch.  Here they evidently took some time to settle choosing a location in grass, as opposed to crops, roughly on the Niedersachsen/Saxon-Anhalt border.  In terms of behaviour the harriers seemed to be remarkably tolerant of Kestrels which they allowed to perch on the fence surrounding their nest as well as hunting in the immediate vicinity.  Other raptors, including a second male Montagu's Harrier, were not tolerated and were chased vigorously from the nest site.

Black Kite - Grosse Bruch - late Jun 17.

.One of several Kestrels, perched close to the nest site - late Jun.

Two male Montagu's Harriers at the breeding site - early Jul 17.

Male Marsh Harrier - Grosse Bruch - late Jun 17.

The Grosse Bruch is an amazing habitat.  It is a linear valley feature running east-west from Hornburg as far as Oschersleben.  At its centre runs the Grosse Bruch its self which is a semi-canalised wate course.  Both banks, especially the southern, are lined in some places at least with luxuriant grass and semi-wetland.  During the first half of the summer I saw in the vicinity of the Harrier site large numbers of breeding Red and Black Kites, Marsh Harriers, a single Hobby, Kestels, Buzzards, Marsh Warblers with attendant Cuckoos, Whinchats and Quails.  Disappointingly, I heard no Corncrakes.

Hare - Grosse Bruch - Jul 17.

Cuckoo - Grosse Bruch - Jul 17.

Marsh Warbler - Grosse Bruch - Jul 17.

I am in England at the moment.  I look forward to returning to Germany to see hopefully at least 3 young Montagus Harriers before they depart to Africa.  This is the first time Montagu's Harrier have bred in the Grosse Bruch since the 1930s, and the fact that at least 3 birds, possibly 4, have been present throughout the summer, obviously bodes well for the future.

Post script: sadly the Wiesenweihe nest failed due to an unprecedented storm which brought heavy rain and hail to northern Germany in July.  The exposed chicks, which must have been about six weeks old, had no chance.  Goslar suffered flooding and many communities were significantly damaged.

BREXIT and Article 50

“It is so hard to leave—until you leave.
And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world.”

John Green, Paper Towns

Eight months after the UK voted narrowly to leave the EU, Theresa May will trigger Article 50 - the formal process by which a country leaves the EU - this week.  The intervening 7 or 8 months have been a period of phony war, during which the UK's negotiating stance has gradually become clearer and the EU's position has oscillated between threat and pragmatism.

A serious politician for serious times.

As I read about the EU's half-hearted 60th anniversary celebrations in Rome and noted for the first time the absence of a British Prime Minister, I felt a palpable sense of sadness.  That things should have come to this pass is unfortunate (though not a 'tragedy' Mr Juncker) and the situation is certainly now unrecoverable.  The die is cast.

Perhaps a British point of view.

Miscalculations on both sides led to BREXIT.  Cameron fatally overestimated the extent the EU would accept British proposals for reform, and the EU and Merkel especially, displayed a level of obduracy and refusal to embrace the kind of reforms that would have accommodated the UK's concerns.  This intransigence made people like me vote to leave.

Némésis britannique?

It is clear that in the intervening months Britain has not "collapsed: politically, monetarily, constitutionally and economically" as Mark Rutte claimed it had; the rupture between Remainers and BREXITEERS has begun to heal, and even more Scots than in 2014 want to remain part of the UK.  In short, the world has not stopped spinning.  The UK, whether it wanted to or not, is now engaged in a process of national renewal.

A bit rich coming from Der Speigel.

No doubt the next 2 years will be difficult and I do not underestimate the EU's ability to act irrationally in attempting to punish the UK for leaving.  The assertion, held by many in the EU, that things must be seen to be better in the EU than out, is frankly not much of an advertisement for staying.