On 10 May we decided to explore the western side of the island by driving south to Petra and then following the coast road that eventually leads to Lapsana. But first we once again visited the lay-by near our hotel as the nearby scrub is always a magnet for migrating birds. On this occasion we have good views of Ruppell’s Warbler, a bird that spends spring and summer in souther Greece and parts of Turkey. From the lay-by we could also see Raven and Blue Rock Thrush. On the ocean were Shelduck and their young.
As we travelled west we stopped at several locations that looked promising for birds. On wires we saw a couple of interesting birds, including our first sighting of a Cretzschmar’s Bunting, although it was very distant. As was a Masked Shrike, a bird that has a limited spring and summer range around the eastern Mediterranean.
On the ground we saw a female Cretzshmar’s Bunting, which is a lot plainer that the male. There were also Cirl Bunting and Isabelline Wheatear around as we travelled west.
We decided to have lunch in the small, pretty town of Antissa, which is a short distance south of the northern coast road. We had a very typical Greek lunch of Moussaka with Greek salad.
We worked out way back to our apartment along the east-west road that