A Hot Levant

Friday September 3

Breakfast at a civilised (for birding) 7.30, started with ham and cheese on toast. Then.......in came cold meats and sausage, a plate of cheeses and one of tomatoes, Toast, Bulgarian french toast, a plate of fried egg and another of lightly grilled toast. Not to mention the home-made blueberry jam and lavender (!)  jam. Wow. Far too much. The owner also gave us a guided tour to his much decorated chimney breast which held souvenir objects from many countries. I remember Siberia, Ireland, Spain, Africa, Greece and Turkey. Minco later told us that he held the Bulgarian head of tourist board position when the country was part of the Soviet Bloc.

Straight to Cape Kaliakra, west of Kavarna - it's a very popular tourist spot and the weekend will be very crowded - as it was later in the morning. The Cape is the easternmost point of Bulgaria on the Black Sea, an increasingly narrow peninsula with a biggish parking area before the walk through ruins dating back to the 4th century. Most of the limestone remains are much later than that, a 14C French chapel near the high-arched entrance.

From the car park, we added Red-rumped Swallow, Common and Lesser Whitethroat and the first Pied Wheatears. The latter are at the extremity of their range , much twitched by Palearctic listers. Wandering through the ruins - I carried my scope and not the camera, schoolgirl error - we had good views of Red-breasted Flycatcher, our first of five Levant Sparrowhawks, (I took this photo later)

A  pretty poor photo - the only one I have, taken  from the back window of the car.

more Pied Wheatears and Shags of the eastern sub species, on rocks below the headland. Best of all were the excellent views of Alpine Swifts, flying and calling above my head. I've never heard them call before nor had such extensive and excellent views. Levant Sparrowhawk are early migrants, all the ones we saw were either juveniles or female. Pam photographed a nearly dead Convolvulus Hawkmoth which I lifted onto a large leaf - supreme optimist.

The steppe area towards the start of the cape is crossed by rough tracks, most of which we drove. Minco is perturbed by the lack of Lark sp. and the general lack of steppe birds. That's birding. A long dry and hot spell has contributed to both the lack of local birds and the sparse migration. We're happy. Half a dozen Montagu's Harriers, fewer Bee-eaters and Rollers than yesterday and the ubiquitous Red-backed Shrikes.

We were't hungry so traversed another steppe area  of coastal Dobrudzha, the northernmost part of the country's Black Sea coast. This track ended with a view of a permanent fire at the cliff edge. A dry stone wall surrounding a pipe emitting fire - underground gas - where locals have a barbecue and Minco keeps warm in the -20C winter Red-breasted Goose counts.
From the clifftop here, I was able to take a photograph of the distant Cape Kaliakra where we had spent much of the morning.

Driving north to a coastal village for lunch, Minko called a high-flying Short-toed Eagle. This roadside Horned Viper was, unfortunately, a fresh roadkill.

The lunch  stop was at a sea-facing restaurant/Hotel, sometimes used by Neophron Tours. We sat outside under an awning and the inevitable grape festooned pergola, looking down onto a rocky cove and white-capped sea. Lovely. So was the lunch, entertained by a Shrike cabaret and a very active Silver-streaked Fritillary.

Through the villkage of Shabla for another cross steppe drive on a pretty horrendous 'track' which luckily was not wet as is the norm. The vegetation is brown , dry and lacking the beautiful Spring colour of the numerous wildflowers - apart from this Eryngium, thistle family.

Stopping to view a Roller, an enormous 7 cms long green cricket landed on the windscreen, right up against the bottom edge. I took this photo from the back seat through tinted glass.

A real Waw moment was a Purple Heron rising from the reedbed to give me my best views ever - and the opportunity to photograph it from the car window.

Mink also has an interest in fungi. He stopped to show us this bracket fungus. On a nearby upright tree the flat base faces downwards. On the recently fallen tree nearby, the fungus had taken 2-3 days to turn itself round so that it faced the ground. Incredible.

  
The track led to the outer limits of Lake Shabla, an area of extensive reedbed, bordered by broadleaf woodland. The only water we saw  was a small canal, either side of the footpath we walked after parking the vehicle. We added Blue and Great Tits, Blackcap, Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Kingfisher to the trip list. Cue for a quick verse of ' In an English Country Garden'.
 This very small blue butterfly gave me the runaround. I haven't looked it up yet.

We were then given a choice of  final visit. I chose to return to the Cape, carrying my camera this time. The place was heaving, including a coachful of Russians. The wind was now strong and gusting, the Red-breasted Flycatcher wisely sheltering elsewhere. A Pied Wheatear performed very nicely, if distantly.

Tired, hot and very happy, we returned to the hotel for a welcome break and freshen-up before dinner. 
Another traditional Bulgarian dish to-night, lumps of pork with potato wedges in a tomato-ey (does this word exist) sauce. I really enjoyed it. Fresh nectarine and grapes for dessert. Pam has watermelon.

Abandoned buildings and metal objects are frequently decorated by unknown graffiti 'artists'.