Short-toed snake eagle - Circaetus gallicus (Gmelin, JF, 1788) - Φιδαετός - Cyprus

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

The short-toed snake eagle was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the falcons, eagles and their relatives in the genus Falco and coined the binomial name Falco gallicus. Gmelin based his description on the "Jean le Blanc" that had been described by the English ornithologist John Latham and the French ornithologists Mathurin Jacques Brisson and the Comte de Buffon. The short-toed snake eagle is now placed in the genus Circaetus that was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kirkos, a type of hawk, and aetos, "eagle". The specific epithet gallicus is Latin for "Gaul" ie France.

Photos Athienou 25/2/2021 and 10/4/2021 by George Konstantinou

This is an Old World species found throughout the Mediterranean basin, into Russia and the Middle East, and parts of Western Asia, and in the Indian Subcontinent and also further east in some Indonesian islands.

Those present on the northern edge of the Mediterranean and other parts of Europe migrate mainly to sub-Saharan Africa north of the equator, leaving in September/October and returning in April/May. In the Middle and Far East the populations are resident. In Europe, it is most numerous in Spain where it is fairly common but elsewhere it is rare in many parts of its range. A bird on the Isles of Scilly, Britain, in October 1999 was the first confirmed record for that country.

The short-toed snake eagle is found in open cultivated plains, arid stony deciduous scrub areas and foothills and semi-desert areas. It requires trees for nesting and open habitats, such as cultivations and grasslands for foraging

Its prey is mostly reptiles, mainly snakes, but also some lizards.[19] Sometimes they become entangled with larger snakes and battle on the ground. Occasionally, they prey on small mammals up to the size of a rabbit, and rarely birds and large insects.

This eagle is generally very silent. On occasions, it emits a variety of musical whistling notes. When breeding, it lays only one egg. It can live up to 17 years.

The short-toed snake eagle has suffered a steep decline in numbers and range in Europe and is now rare and still decreasing in several countries due to changes in agriculture and land use. It needs protection. In the middle and far eastern part of its range, this species is not yet threatened.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Diederick Cuckoo (Chrysococcyx caprius) (Boddaert, 1783) Paralimni 1/4/2023 - Μεγάλος Χρυσόκουκος, Πρασινόκουκος, Χρυσόκoυκoς - Cyprus

 Not good photos but I am very happy to see this very rare bird for Cyprus

Only 2 references for Cyprus with the first reference being in 1982

I thank Andy Rollie for his help

The diederik cuckoo (Chrysococcyx caprius), formerly dideric cuckoo or didric cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners and the anis. Taxonomy The diederik cuckoo was described by the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in 1780 in his Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux from a specimen collected in the Cape of Good Hope region of South Africa. The bird was also illustrated in a hand-coloured plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet in the Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle which was produced under the supervision of Edme-Louis Daubenton to accompany Buffon's text.[3] Neither the plate caption nor Buffon's description included a scientific name but in 1783 the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert coined the binomial name Cuculus caprius in his catalogue of the Planches Enluminées. The diederik cuckoo is now placed in the genus Chrysococcyx that was erected by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie in 1826. The species is monotypic. The generic name Chrysococcyx combines the Ancient Greek khrusos meaning "gold" and kokkux meaning "cuckoo". The specific epithet caprius is from the Latin cupreus meaning "coppery". The common name "diederik" is from Afrikaans "diedrik", an onomatopoeic rendition of the bird's call. Description At Rietvlei Nature Reserve, Gauteng, South Africa The diederik cuckoo is a smallish cuckoo at 18 to 20 cm. Adult males are glossy green above with copper-sheened areas on the back and whitish underparts. They have a broken white eye-stripe and a short, green malar stripe. All remiges have three to four white spots on the inner vanes. The four green outer tail feathers are tipped white, and the outermost pair are spotted white on both vanes. Females show more copper above, and have coppery barring on the flanks. The underparts are often washed brownish. Juveniles have a red bill, streaky throat and a white wing-bar. They are more copper-coloured above and browner below than the females, and the flank markings are brown blotches. The diederik cuckoo is a brood parasite. It lays a single egg mostly in the nests of weavers, especially the village weaver and the bishops in the genus Euplectes. For example, it has been recorded in red-collared widowbirds. Feeding The diederik cuckoo takes a variety of insects and caterpillars. It is a noisy species, with the persistent and loud deed-deed-deed-deed-er-ick call from which it gets its name. Usually four clear, roughly identical, notes followed by a little twitter. Distribution and habitat It is a common resident breeder in Sub-Saharan Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. It has been recorded as far north as Cyprus (1982 & 2023). It is a short-distance seasonal migrant, moving with the rains. It is a solitary bird, found in open woodland, savanna and riverside bushes. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Φωτογραφίες, του Γιώργου Κωνσταντίνου Paralimni 1/4/2023

Eurasian reed warbler, reed warbler - Acrocephalus scirpaceus (Hermann, 1804) - Καλαμοποταμίδα - Cyprus

The Eurasian reed warbler, or just reed warbler (Acrocephalus scirpaceus) is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It breeds across Europe into temperate western Asia. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa.
This small passerine bird is a species found almost exclusively in reed beds, usually with some bushes. Direct counts of territorial males in suitable habitat and sampling the population sex-ratio can be a proper alternative to inference-rich predictive modeling based on imperfect habitat-extrapolation of densities of reed warblers at large spatial scales.

Photos George Konstantinou at Kouklia dan 3/7/2019

Icterine warbler (Hippolais icterina) (Vieillot, 1817) - Κιτρινοστριτσίδα - Cyprus

The icterine warbler (Hippolais icterina) is an Old World warbler in the tree warbler genus Hippolais. It breeds in mainland Europe except the southwest, where it is replaced by its western counterpart, melodious warbler. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa.

A fairly big warbler with a large head, broad based bill and long wings with a quite short square ended tail. The upperparts are greyish-green and the underparts are unifrmly light yellow. It has pale lores and a rather vague yellowish supercilium with a pale eye ring. Other distinguishing features include a panel on the folded wings formed by pale edges to the secondary feathers and tertiary feathers and the grey, sometimes bluish legs

The icterine warbler is a bird of woodland rather than forest, preferring woodland edge or glades, favouring the crowns of well spaced trees with tall undergrowth. Prefers broad leafed trees, but may be found in conifers mixed with broad leafed trees. Will use copses, orchards, parks, gardens, shelterbelts and tall hedges interspersed with trees

The song is a fast nasal babbling incorporating mimicry of other species. The call is described as teck or tec, tec, tec

The icterine warbler has the most northerly and widespread distribution of the four Hippolais species, its breeding range extends from northern France and Norway through most of northern and eastern Europe, south as far as the northern Balkans mountains and Crimea mountains eastwards in a narrowing band to the River Ob. It has bred in Scotland recently but it is normally a passage migrant in Great Britain and Ireland

It is a migratory species and the entire population winters in sub-Saharan Africa, mainly south of the equator. It begins its southward migration from late July, peaking in early August and returns to the breeding range in late May

The icterine warbler is mainly insectivorous but will feed on fruit in late summer. It forages amomng the foliage taking insects either on the leaves or fluttering, will flycatch. In general it is clumsier than the smaller but superficially similar Phylloscopus warblers. Rather solitary and it is territorial on both the breeding and wintering grounds. Four to six eggs are laid in a nest in a tree or a bush

The genus name Hippolais is from Ancient Greek hupolais, as misspelt by Linnaeus. It referred to a small bird mentioned by Aristotle and others and may be onomatopoeic or derived from hupo,"under", and laas, "stone". The specific icterina is Greek for "jaundice-yellow". Icterus was an old word for jaundice, and also referred to a yellowish-green bird, perhaps the golden oriole, the sight of which was believed to cure the disease. It is colloquially referred to by birders as icky
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icterine_warbler

Photos Livera 13/5/2018 by George Konstantinou

Baillon's crake (Porzana pusilla) (Pallas, 1776) - Νανοπουλάδα - Βαλτοπουλλάδα - Cyprus

The Baillon's crake (Porzana pusilla) is a very small waterbird of the family Rallidae.

Their breeding habitat is sedge beds in Europe, mainly in the east, and across Asia. They used to breed in Great Britain up to the mid-19th century, but the western European population declined through drainage. There has been a recovery in north-western Europe in recent years, with the recolonisation of Germany and the Netherlands, and breeding suspected in Britain; an Irish record in 2012 was the first there since the 1850s. They nest in a dry location in wet sedge bogs, laying 4–8 eggs. This species is migratory, wintering in east Africa and south Asia.

It is also a resident breeder in Africa and Australasia. There is a single North American record of this species on Attu Island in September 2000.

They are 16–18 cm (6.3–7.1 in) in length, and are similar to the only slightly larger little crake. Baillon's crake has a short straight bill, yellow or green without a red base. Adults have mainly brown upperparts with some white markings, and a blue-grey face and underparts. The rear flanks are barred black and white. They have green legs with long toes, and a short tail which is barred underneath.

Immature Baillon's crakes are similar to the adults, but have extensively barred underparts. The downy chicks are black, as with all rails.

These birds probe with their bill in mud or shallow water, also picking up food by sight. They mainly eat insects and aquatic animals.

Baillon's crakes are very secretive in the breeding season, and are then mostly heard rather than seen. They are then noisy birds, with a rattling call like that of the edible frog, or perhaps garganey. They can be easier to see on migration or when wintering.

This bird is named after French naturalist Louis Antoine Francois Baillon. The names marsh crake and tiny crake have previously been used to refer to this species. The genus name Porzana is derived from Venetian terms for small rails, and pusillus is Latin for "very small"

The Baillon's crake is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.

Baillon's crakes are not listed as threatened on the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. However, their conservation status varies from state to state within Australia. For example:

The Baillon's crake is listed as threatened on the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988). Under this Act, an Action Statement for the recovery and future management of this species has not yet been prepared.
On the 2007 advisory list of threatened vertebrate fauna in Victoria, the Baillon's crake is listed as vulnerable
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baillon%27s_crake

Photos and video 15/4/2018 Agia Varvara, Pafos by George Konstantinou

Photos 25/4/2023 Agia Varvara, Pafos by George Konstantinou

Common rock thrush (Monticola saxatilis) (Linnaeus, 1766) Πετροκότσυφας - Πυροκότσυφας - Cyprus

The common rock thrush (Monticola saxatilis), formerly rufous-tailed rock thrush or rock thrush, is a chat belonging to the family Muscicapidae. It was formerly placed in the family Turdidae. The scientific name is from Latin. Monticola is from mons, montis "mountain", and colere, "to dwell", and saxatilis means "rock-frequenting", from saxum, "stone" .

It breeds in southern Europe across central Asia to northern China. This species is strongly migratory, all populations wintering in Africa south of the Sahara. It is an uncommon visitor to northern Europe. Its range has contracted somewhat at the periphery in recent decades due to habitat destruction. For example, in the early 20th century it bred in the Jura Krakowsko-Częstochowska (Poland) where none occur today, but it is not considered globally endangered.

This is a medium-sized but stocky thrush 17–20 cm in length. The summer male is unmistakable, with a blue-grey head, orange underparts and outer tail feathers, dark brown wings and white back. Females and immatures are much less striking, with dark brown scaly upperparts, and paler brown scaly underparts. The outer tail feathers are reddish, like the male

This species breeds in open dry hilly areas, usually above 1500 m. It nests in rock cavities, laying 4–5 eggs. It is omnivorous, eating a wide range of insects, berries and small reptiles. The male common rock thrush has a clear and tuneful song
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_rock_thrush

Photos and video Cape Apostolos Andreas 10/4/2018 by George Konstantinou

Blue-cheeked bee-eater - Merops persicus Pallas, 1773 - Πράσινος Μελισσοφάγος - Cyprus

The blue-cheeked bee-eater (Merops persicus) is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family, Meropidae. The genus name Merops is Ancient Greek for "bee-eater", and persicus is Latin for "Persian".

It breeds in Northern Africa, and the Middle East from eastern Turkey to Kazakhstan and India. It is generally strongly migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, although some populations breed and live year-round in the Sahel. This species occurs as a rare vagrant north of its breeding range, with most vagrants occurring in Italy and Greece.

This species, like other bee-eaters, is a richly coloured, slender bird. It is predominantly green; its face has blue sides with a black eye stripe, and a yellow and brown throat; the beak is black. It can reach a length of 31 cm (12 in), with the two elongated central tail feathers adding another 7 cm (2.8 in). Sexes are mostly alike but the tail-streamers of the female are shorter.

This is a bird which breeds in sub-tropical semi-desert with a few trees, such as acacia. It winters in open woodland or grassland. As the name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets, which are caught in the air by sorties from an open perch. However, this species probably takes more dragonflies than any other food item. Its preferred hunting perch is telephone wires if available.

Blue-cheeked bee-eaters may nest solitarily or in loose colonies of up to ten birds. They may also nest in colonies with European bee-eaters. The nests are located in sandy banks, embankments, low cliffs or on the shore of the Caspian Sea. They make a relatively long tunnel of 1 to 3 m (3.3–9.8 ft) in length in which the four to eight (usually six or seven), spherical white eggs are laid. Both the male and the female take care of the eggs, although the female alone incubates them at night. Incubation takes 23–26 days.

The call sounds 'flatter' and less 'fluty' than the European bee-eater.

Two subspecies are recognized:

Merops persicus persicus - Breeds in Asia, winters in East and Southern Africa
Merops persicus chrysocercus - Breeds in North Africa, winters in West Africa.
This species is closely related to blue-tailed bee-eater, M. philippinus of East Asia, and the olive bee-eater of Africa, and has been treated as being the same species (conspecific)
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-cheeked_bee-eater

Photos and video Oroklini  24/3/2018  by George Konstantinou