Holiday Highlights - Crane Spectacular, Hungary

30th October to 4th November 2008

Leaders
Balázs Szigeti, Ecotours
Roy Atkins, Speyside Wildlife 

Guests
Penny and John Lee, Kathy Hilton, Daphne and David Knight, Tim Taylor, Jane Atkins, Sheila and Graham Rogers, Sheila and Laurence Stead

Day 1
We all meet up at Gatwick for our flight out to Budapest and we are pleased when it lands exactly on time to the minute!  Balazs, our guide, and Zsolt, our driver, are there to meet us and soon we are on our way to the hotel at the edge of the Hortobágy National Park.  After a good meal we have a chat about the coming few days and in particular the plans for tomorrow and excited we head for bed.  It is raining but Balázs promises better weather tomorrow!

Day 2
After the rain yesterday we are delighted to find a sparkling clear day with wall to wall blue skies!  It is a little cold as we head to breakfast, with a few fieldfares flying over high up and after breakfast a Syrian Woodpecker is in the tree outside our rooms, but sadly only seen by a few of us with Kathy getting the best views and picking out the important identification features.  A Sparrowhawk flies over as we load up the bus and as we drive in the direction of the Hortobágy we start counting Buzzards... they are everywhere and soon we are in double figures!

Balázs has organised that we will have the company of one of the rangers from the reserve called Gabor today and en route to pick him up from his house we spot our first Common Cranes in flight and others in the fields plus a couple of Hen Harriers including a very close male.  There are flocks of Goldfinches, a distant Marsh Harrier and we get excellent views of a Crested Lark.  Gabor’s house looks out over the flat steppes of the Hortogágy and scanning the expanse before us there are more Hen Harriers and Buzzards and a huge flock of distant geese dropping down into the grasslands.  Gabor knows the reserve very well indeed and as well as knowing exactly where to see certain birds he can take us onto parts of the reserve where you would not be allowed to go if you were on your own.  The first good birds he shows us are just a short walk from his door... two Stone Curlews are roosting in the short grass here.  They are close enough to enjoy excellent views through the scopes and Penny is particularly thrilled as it a bird she was wanted to see for a long time... you don’t get many in Scotland!

Behind them we can see more Hen Harriers and a large flock of Common Cranes are feeding whilst others are in flight, their calls echoing in the cold, still air.  It is so atmospheric and a lovely start to the day.  The big flock of geese reappears above the distant houses and trees and scanning through them we can see that the vast majority are White-fronted Geese with a few Greylags in amongst them.  The day is beginning to warm up a little now and already there are the odd butterflies around with a nice Clouded Yellow flitting by.  A Stonechat is perched on a bank of soil nearby and as we walk back to the van a large flock of White-fronted Geese fly right overhead and amongst them we pick out two Bean geese and several Greylags.

Gabor seems rather shy and rarely speaks to us directly but is very chatty with Balázs who keeps us informed of the bits of information that Gabor is passing on as we drive into the heart of the reserve down some dirt tracks.  The number of hen Harriers is astonishing and we make a stop when there are five in view in one spot close to the road.  They are being mobbed by Hooded Crows, Kestrels and Magpies and one male is particularly good to watch.  Dozens of Common Darter dragonflies are skimming along beside the van as the road follows wet ditches and there are more Clouded Yellow Butterflies.  Soon we spot our first Rough-legged Buzzard and we watch as it hunts over the wide expanse of grassland.  A Peregrine is perched on one of the heron wells that dot the landscape and soon flies off chased by two Kestrels.   It must be one of the most raptor rich places I have been as a 360˚ scan reveals five Hen Harriers, a Marsh Harrier, Rough-legged Buzzard, three Common Buzzards, Peregrine, two Kestrels, and shortly we spot an immature Eastern Imperial Eagle and two distant White-tailed Eagles!  The Imperial Eagle is rather pale looking with darker flight feathers and very distinctive and we watch it for some time as it circles over the distant trees.  There are also lots of Roe Deer and at the side of the road Balázs finds a Fire-bellied Toad rather a small species and quite dark with bright red patches on the belly.

Driving on we spot our first Great Grey Shrike in a tree top then make a stop near a small raised mound from which we make a scan.  Some way off are a small herd of Przewalski’s Horses, a species that used to live here ten thousand years ago.  A few were released here ten years ago and are doing very well with more than a hundred now on the reserve.  There would appear to be quite a few huddled together and all alike with their tan coloured bodies and dark manes and tails.

We move on again and make a stop beside a field in which, amongst several Roe Deer, are a flock of ten Great Bustards!  They don’t seem too nervous as we carefully get out of the van and set up the scopes and we get fabulous views of them as we enjoy a cup of coffee.  We watch them for some time as they settle down to rest, many even sitting on the ground amongst the deer where they seem remarkably camouflaged!  They are all males and very impressive - perhaps even more so when after a while they suddenly decide to take flight.  They look incredibly heavy and powerful as they head off over the fields and away.  But these are not the only birds we watch while enjoying our coffee as amongst several Buzzards seen from this spot a single Long-legged Buzzard also appears, an immature bird that cruises right over our heads.  It is not easy to identify but the combination of pale head, rather rusty colour to the plumage, especially the tail, and subtly different structure compared to Common Buzzard are all visible.  We also get fabulous views of a hunting Saker Falcon which zaps past then starts to soar some way off.  Soon it is mobbed by two Kestrels which seem tiny in comparison!  We can’t believe we have seen so much already... and we are still enjoying our first coffee break!

Well pleased with our sightings here we move on soon passing the bustards again in a nearby field where there are also a further three more.  We spot a superb Merlin very close to the road and even get some great photos.  Back on a tarmac road we still have beautiful sunshine as we look out at the flat countryside with scattered woodlands and trees and there are small groups of Common Cranes here and there and we pass another Rough-legged Buzzard.

We drive some distance to a very flat area of short, sheep grazed turf and drive off the road across the grassland.  Soon we stop and taking our lunch with us we walk in the direction of one of the farms stopping some way short to scan the area where we soon pick out a small trip of Dotterels.  We walk towards them until we feel we are sufficiently close but the Dotterels don’t seem in the least bit bothered by our presence.  Through the scope they look absolutely delightful.  They are such delicate looking birds and despite being in winter plumage are simply beautiful.  We spend some time here enjoying the amusing sight of Balázs creeping forwards on his belly as he tries to get close enough to get some really good photos of these birds.  It works remarkably well and after a while he is just a few yards from them and they still seem completely unbothered.  The resulting photos are excellent and since we all to get a cd of photos at the end of the trip this is great news!  Also here we witness the wonderful sight of a large flock of Common Cranes circling up, calling constantly, to gain height before heading off on the next stage of their long migration.  They are eventually dots against the high clouds.  We are however distracted by the sight of a Merlin dashing in and chasing a Meadow Pipit.  It really is life and death stuff as the Merlin dives on the pipit which each times somehow manages to twist out of the way at the very last moment.  For what seems like ages the two birds twist and turn as one out-manoeuvres the other time and again and eventually the pipit dives into the cover of a small group of bushes and the Merlin has to leave empty handed... incredible to watch!

From here we drive round to some fish rearing ponds passing a Little Owl on a rooftop on the way.  We get good views of a White-tailed Eagle here as we arrive then scan through the ducks finding Shoveler, Pochard, lots of Mallards of course, some Teal, a couple of Wigeon and a single Scaup which is a bit of a surprise.  There are Greylag and White-fronted Geese and loads of gulls.  These are mainly Black-headed with a few Common Gulls and quite a few Caspian Gulls.  In answer to the question of whether you get grebes here we find a very nice Black-necked Grebe diving just off the edge of the reedbed.  We get more excellent views of White-tailed Eagle and a Marsh Harrier flies across the water disturbing the ducks.  A group of seven Snipe fly past and there are two more feeding in the shallow water.  A few water Pipits fly over calling.

Time is passing quickly and we are keen to see one of the Common Crane roosts so we head round to the village of Hortobágy and walk through the small farm zoo here to the large tower hide at the back from where there are already huge numbers of cranes visible plus a single Great White Egret and two Little Owls.  As the light slowly fades thousands more Cranes appear in the skies in small and larger groups calling all the time.  They land over an enormous area of fields and shallow water and the constant noise of calling birds and scenes of flights of birds in front of the reddening sky is simply wonderful.  Many birds perform a dance upon landing with sometimes several birds all leaping around together with wings raised and much head throwing and calling.  It is a lovely sight and then as the light is almost gone an uncountable number of them lift up to fly out onto the lake behind.  What a sight and what a sound!!!  It is really thrilling and Balázs tells us that 16,000 birds was the official count made here just a couple of days ago.  What a wonderful finish to the day. 

Yet we are not quite finished yet... we drive round to drop Gabor back at his house and he tells us he has been seeing a Barn Owl here recently.  We decide to try playing some Barn Owl call and see if it can be coaxed into view and we are delighted when after a few moments it appears and does a circuit of us checking out where this imposter is calling from.  It looks beautiful in the torchlight and you can see that this bird, of the European race, is clearly darker bodied than our birds at home. 

Day 3
We start the day with breakfast at 7am then as we are getting a ready a woodpecker appears in the hotel grounds again... but this time it is a Great Spotted!  There is also a flock of Long-tailed Tits which look delightful with their pure white heads.

We head from here straight out to some fishponds where there has been a wintering Greater Spotted Eagle for the last few years.  It is here again this year and we start checking its known areas carefully.  There seem to be birds everywhere!  There are Skylarks along the track as we drive in, Buzzards in good numbers and we watch a hunting Marsh Harrier and a Rough-legged Buzzard hovering some way off.  There are Hen Harriers and plenty of Cranes flying around and distant geese. 

We drive round to the other side of a line of trees we have been checking and take a short walk though the ponds with tall reeds either side of the path and the occasional view out over the water.  We get great views of a two White-tailed Eagles and find a frog in the long grass which has a rather pointed nose and a white line down its jaw-line.  Checking the books later it is identified as Moor Frog.  The pools don’t have much on other than dozens of Black-headed and Caspian Gulls.  A Penduline Tit calls in the reeds so we try playing the call and very quickly one appears showing very well.  Over the next few minutes we get repeated excellent views of perhaps five birds with one particularly smart looking male showing very well indeed and even staying out in the open long enough for people to get photos! 

There are lots of dragonflies here with mostly Common Darters but also our first Migrant Hawker.  We find rather pale looking Clouded Yellows which look much more primrose yellow coloured than yesterdays individuals and checking the book later realise they are in fact Eastern Pale Clouded Yellows.  The females are sometimes even white rather than yellow.  There is also a Red Admiral and some Small Whites enjoying the warmth.  As we walk back Balázs brilliantly spots a Black Woodpecker perched on a distant tree trunk and we are soon have the scopes on it – a nice male with full red crown.  He does a very good imitation and the bird takes off flying towards us and perching much nearer.  We soon realise there is in fact a second bird, a female which comes to join him and both birds call and fly around giving us excellent views.  The female perches right on top of a dead tree and performs a most unusual head bobbing which looks like some kind of display but nothing I have heard of before.  

We pause briefly to check one of the large ponds and find a large gathering of Herons and great White Egrets on the far side and a Kingfisher flies past perching briefly at the far end of the ditch.  We enjoy a coffee back at the van and watch as birds gather in the trees the far side of a field.  There are a few Fieldfares and some Goldfinches then a Bullfinch comes in and Jane spots a Brambling and David finds a Black Redstart on the top of the building beside the lake.

Our next port of call is the large complex known as the Hortobágy Fishponds.  We walk to the first of the large lakes here and scan around.  There is a Migrant Hawker dragonfly amongst the more numerous Common Darters and out on the lake are a few ducks including Gadwall, Teal and Shoveler, there are several Great Crested Grebes and at the edge of the reeds are quite a few Pygmy Cormorants.  Walking back to the main track Jane spots a European Tree Frog, a lovely find and soon a well photographed one!

We walk on to the next lake where there are a couple of Serins and another Black Redstart feeding close to the tower which we climb to scan out over the lake.  A Bittern frustrates us by dropping into the reeds before any of the guests see it and we hear Bearded Tits calling several times but they don’t show themselves, however we see more Pygmy Cormorants as well as their larger cousins.  There are more ducks from here though the single Tufted Duck is only new species, we see a couple of Snipe and a Marsh Harrier.

Next we drive up to the far end of the complex and visit the large hide that looks out over the end lake.  It is a very large expanse and covered in birds!  There are huge flocks of ducks here including masses of Mallards, Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall and Shoveler plus quite a few Pintail.  The huge flocks of White-fronted Geese and Greylags are slightly intimidating when you know that somewhere amongst them there should be around 20 Lesser White-fronted Geese!  Roy soon notices however that there is a little flock of twenty or so geese feeding on the exposed mud behind all the other geese, which are on the water.  Checking them carefully we realise that they are in fact the Lesser White-fronts!  At that distance it is hard to make out the yellow eye-ring, though on high magnification it is just possible, but all the other features of this species are easily seen including the short neck, smaller rather triangular bill, white going up onto the top of the head and their feeding action is remarkably quick... they almost seem to be running across the mud!  Amongst the ducks are quite a few Spotted Redshank and after some time and carful scanning we find a few Dunlin in with them and single Ruff and Black-tailed Godwit.  At one point there is a great disturbance of the ducks and waders as a Saker Falcon flies over sweeping round above the flock where suddenly it is attacked by two Peregrines!  It is quite an aerial battle as they take turns to dive on but the Saker is more manoeuvrable and soon leaves them behind... fabulous stuff!  There are a couple of very close Pygmy Cormorants and a Great White Egret.

It is now getting quite late in the afternoon and we get back in the van and head round to other side of the lake.  This actually involves quite a long drive and then we get out and walk some distance across the fields towards a tower at the edge of the reeds.  As we walk there are plenty of Cranes in the fields and more arriving all the time and by the time we arrive at the tower there are thousands in the fields behind us.  From the tower we can see that thousands more are already here out in the water but the next hour or so is the most amazing experience as somewhere around 26,000 cranes come in to roost (the number from the official count two days ago).  It is impossible to describe the feeling of watching such a spectacle... the scale of it... so many birds all flying and calling and landing in the densest mass of birds out in the water simply has to be experienced first-hand.  The noise, the never ending stream of birds flying in, the birds calling from right overhead, the sound of their wings, the sheer number of birds in the air at one time when the mass of birds from the fields all come flying in to roost on the lake itself... it is surely one of the world’s great wildlife spectacles.  At times we are all speaking at once then at other times just standing in silence trying to take it in and fix it into our memories. 

The noise of the birds is still very loud as the darkness falls and few birds are still coming in and at this point we start our walk back in the dark to the van.  It is quite a long way but once back we have a coffee and biscuits stood around in the dark with our torches and it feels rather like chatting round a camp fire!  The sound of the cranes is now more distant but still showing no signs of the birds becoming quieter and Balazs tells us they continue all night like that!  Finally we head back to the hotel spotting a Fox in the headlights as we go and several Common Voles.

Day 4
We wake up to find thick fog outside!  We drive through it for some way as we are heading out over the flat lands towards the Bukk Hills and as we start gaining height we at least leave the fog behind and start seeing more woodlands and towns.  It is nice to see some of the architecture as pass through some smaller villages and then go through the town of Eger, and Balazs tells us bits and pieces about the history and culture of the people and a little of the Turkish and more recent Russian occupation.  Arriving in the Bukk Hills Balazs picks up a key to a forestry gate so we can drive up into the woodland and eventually park close to a quarry.  We also meet up with two local birders, Arpad and Peter who know the area well.  The autumn colours are beautiful as we walk up through the trees towards the quarry and there are small flocks of birds in the trees which are mainly great Tits and Blue Tits though we find a Marsh Tit in with them and the occasional Nuthatch.  In the quarry there are a couple of Black Redstarts but soon we find what we are really looking for - a Wallcreeper!  This is a known wintering site for this species but we are very pleased to find one so quickly.  It shows quite well for a few moments then disappears and we spend some time watching the area where it disappeared but for a little while there is no further sign.  The occasional raven flies over but it is several minutes before one of the local guys calls us from the far end of the quarry, he has another bird there.  Soon we are all getting fantastic views of this bird as it works a vertical rock face, sometimes sitting still long enough for everyone to get excellent scope views, then suddenly a second bird flies in and the two begin an aerial chase.  We then get some wonderful flight views as the two birds chase after one another all around us, the red, black and white in the wings showing up very well indeed.  Sometimes they split up and one bird will land in full view for a few moments, even on a rock face just a few feet away allowing us the most incredible close views.  It even lands right beside a superb male Black Redstart. By the time we finally leave the quarry we are totally thrilled with our sightings of these birds and grinning from ear to ear. 

Back at the vans we enjoy a coffee and while there Daphne spots a Noctule Bat circling around high over the trees!  This is a very good area for bats and we can only assume it is desperately feeding up ready to hibernate.

We drive higher up to park close to the top of the quarry and from the car park get prolonged views of two Goshawks circling high over the forest.  From here we walk to the quarry taking a path round the edge and suddenly Balazs shouts “Nutcracker!”  They are hard to get onto as they are flying directly away and into the sun but a couple of people manage to see them.  This is actually a new Hungarian bird for Balazs!  Further on a butterfly flits past and settles on the gravel and we delighted to see it a Nettle-tree Butterfly - quite a scarce species here and one none of us have seen before.  We finally arrive at a point high above where we had seen the Wallcreepers earlier and the view is spectacular.  We have our lunch enjoying the view and scanning the cliffs and limestone pinnacles below for Alpine Accentors.  We spot a Jay and a small flock of Bramblings fly past then suddenly Balazs hears an Alpine Accentor calling down below us.  Suddenly they appear on the rocks and we spot perhaps four of five in total as they flit around amongst the pinnacles and on the grassy ledges.  They look great in the telescope and stay on show for quite a while.

We walk back to the van enjoying more good views and as we arrive a Grey-headed Woodpecker calls from the trees.  A bit of whistling back soon gets a response and after a bit of flying back and forth it finally settles where we can see it and we enjoy some excellent views through the scopes.

From here we drive slowly down to one of the villages lower down with scattered trees and some woodlands and a small pond.  It is a lovely spot and we have not been there long when we hear a Middle Spotted Woodpecker calling.  It doesn’t take long to find it and we get very good views as it works one of the large oak trees.  Laurence gets a bit of a shock when his leg disappears down a manhole with an insecure lid that is covered in leaves!  We are very relieved that he isn’t hurt... and at least it didn’t stop him seeing the woodpecker!  There are Nuthatches here too and we get very good views of two Marsh Tits. A couple of Goldcrests are feeding in one of the gardens and we spot Jay and a Green Woodpecker.  There is a distant Hawfinch perched right on one of the treetops and we spend a little while enjoying that before having a quick coffee at a hotel that Balazs knows very well.  We then finish the day by heading up to another quarry where we are hoping to see an Eagle Owl as it leaves its roost.  Sadly there seem to be too many people about, with some people investigating a cave and others coming back from a walk and the light finally fades with no sign of the bird.  The drive back in the dark produces a brief view of an Eastern Hedgehog (also known as White-throated Hedgehog)

Day 5
There is some frustration at the start of the day as there is thick fog everywhere but it doesn’t stop us enjoying excellent views of a Syrian Woodpecker right outside our rooms before we set off for the day!  We make a stop at small cluster of trees and bushes at the edge of the marshes in the Hortogágy where Firecrest has wintered in recent years, but there is no sign this year, just a mixed flock of tits and a Wren.  Daphne finds a Common Darter that is covered in little drops of water and makes a lovely subject for a photo, and Balázs shows us a Penduline Tit’s nest.

We have a brief look at a pool to see if there are Ferruginous Ducks visible through the fog but it is simply too thick and then Jane says she would really like to see the famous Grey Hungarian Cattle and the equally famous ‘Woolly Pigs’ that are ancient breeds that originated in the Hortobágy.  This is easily arranged with a visit to the Farm Zoo at Hortobágy village so we head there next.  This turns out to be far more fun than I think any of us were expecting!  The Woolly Pigs are simply wonderful!  Their proper name is Mangalica Pigs and they apparently come in three colours (well perhaps more but they have three here).  There are blonde ones, that really do look like sheep with pigs noses, ginger ones and some with the top half black and the bottom half white, but all are covered in thick curly hair like sheep’s wool.  They are so funny looking you can’t help but laugh and we decide they may even win the vote for species of the trip they are so endearing!  Then there are the Racka Sheep, which also come in different colours, black or white, but both with long spiral horns rather like corkscrews.  We then discover that there is a pond with some ‘Frizzly Geese’!!!  This isn’t our name for them, this is what they are called on the sign and this results in much hilarity as we re-label the pigs as ‘Frizzly Pigs’ and start using the word wherever we can.  The geese are indeed pretty frizzly and there are some rather frizzly pigeons in the aviary too!  We have a look in the heron well and discover several Fire-bellied Toads and Common Frogs in there then finally we walk over to the large pen where the Grey Cattle are kept but they are barely visible through the fog.  They have enormous horns and actually look pretty impressive through the mist (not frizzly at all!) and we all stand solemnly looking at them and taking photos - it is a bit like the film Gorillas in the mist - except with cows.  It is never easy to put into words these funny moments but having laughed ourselves silly we head back to the van and enjoy a coffee in the company of Tree Sparrows and Goldcrests before deciding what to do next.

With the fog still thick we decide to head to the village where there is a well known Long-eared owl roost.  This turns into an incredible experience!  We arrive at the school where the owls roost in trees in the yard and Balázs pops in to speak to the people who run the school.  Its ok for us to go in so we creep into the yards immediately spotting a couple of owls silhouetted in the tallest tree at the back.  We don’t go too close and set up the scopes to look at them in close up but then Balázs point into a spruce tree right beside us and we realise there are at least three in there really close.  A couple fly out into the tree at the back but the others stay put and stare down at us with brilliant orange eyes.  It is incredible how the more you look the more you find and looking more carefully into these spruces which at first seem to have just two or three birds in them, we realise there must be at least ten!  The big tree at the back is the same as a first scan through reveals perhaps ten birds but by slowly moving round and looking from different angles we count about fifty birds in here!  What a treat it is to see these wonderful birds so close in so many postures and colours.  Some look very grey while others seem much browner, soon seem incredibly thin and upright while others are all fluffed up and almost look like Eagle Owls they seem so much bigger.  While we watch many of them clearly become more relaxed and fluff up or close their eyes and go back to sleep and we are simply transfixed by them.  We just can’t believe there are so many and close enough to see every detail of every feather.  We have plenty of time to enjoy them as well and goodness knows how many photos we have taken between us all!  Finally we leave them be and sneak quietly back out of the gate but outside a guy who lives over the road comes over and starts pointing out more owls in trees along the road.  My final count is 76 but I know I have undercounted as they can be very hard to spot in the thicker foliage and I believe that there would have been easily over a hundred birds here... what a wonderful treat it has been.

While we have been here the fog has completely cleared so next we decide to head round to the fishponds where the Greater Spotted Eagle has been to have a second attempt at finding it.  We arrive to find raptors everywhere!  There must be over a dozen Common Buzzards in the air plus Kestrels, Marsh Harrier and Hen Harrier and at least two White-tailed Eagles, one a superb adult with clean white tail.  There are lots of Cranes feeding in the fields in the background, several Grey Herons perched in the trees, but no sign of the Spotted Eagle.  We drive round to the other side of the trees and have a lunch by the vans before going for a walk.  We have not gone far when the Greater Spotted Eagle is suddenly there in one of the trees!  No-one saw it fly in or anything and we can’t help wondering if it had been on the ground below the trees.  We get excellent scope views of it perched and then in flight as it heads away back to its roost site... brilliant!

Our walk takes us past a large reedbed and on the track we are pleased to find a European Pond Terrapin, a very nice find.  He hides in his shell when we arrive but later comes right out and walks across the track surprisingly quickly.  The walk then passes through some agricultural fields with rough edges where there are quite a lot of flowers and the thistles here are attracting a lot of butterflies.  They are mostly Eastern Pale Clouded Yellows but there are also a few Small Whites, a Red Admiral and a Peacock.  We get great views of another adult White-tailed Eagle as it flaps heavily along, just above the reeds.  The weather is now fantastic and with blue skies and sunshine it is almost too hot!  Eventually we arrive at a huge drained fish pond and scan through an enormous number of birds.  They are mainly duck and geese plus lots of gulls however there are also waders and careful checking reveals Spotted Redshank but also a few Grey Plover, some Dunlin, Snipe, lots of Lapwings and several Avocet.  There are dozens of Great White Egrets and a few Grey Herons and as we leave Penny spots a Kingfisher.

The van comes down the track to meet us and we drive round to the other side of the lake where, with the light already fading, the Common Cranes are starting to gather.  There are a few hundred there when we arrive and stood beside the farm buildings they won’t be disturbed by our presence as more and more come flying in and landing in the fields where they gather before moving across to the lake.  There are hundreds of geese on the move as well, all White-fronted Geese and Greylags.  As the light fades further and the sky turns red more and more Cranes appear and soon there are thousands of them, all calling and again we are treated to the most moving of experiences as they pass by in huge flocks before wheeling round and landing on the mud of the drained lake.  Some pass through the red sky looking beautiful and some lovely photos are taken, then thousands take off from the fields and wheel around over the lake.  At this point Roy spots what at first he thinks is a pelican!  It is big and white with black flight feathers and in amongst the cranes but as it bank round he realises it is in fact a white crane, an albino with the exception of the flight feathers which are black.  For a few moments we wonder if we have found one of the species of white cranes that there are round the world but it isn’t just black wing tips, all the flight feathers are black which rules them out and we follow it as it drops down with the other cranes to roost.  It is wonderful how each of the three crane roosts we have seen have all been so different to one another with this one perhaps giving us our closest views of birds flying in and also in the best light.  All have been simply wonderful and we head back to the hotel feeling elated.

En route we pick up Gabor who is going to show us a selection of his photographs, all taken in the Hortobágy.  It is an absolutely stunning set of pictures and we are told that this is the first year he has been taking digital photos rather than slides and that he has even better slides!  His shots of the wildlife are superb and many of his scenery shots are simply beautiful.

Day 6
Despite this being the day on which we fly home, our flight is not until the evening which gives us plenty of time to do some birding before heading to the airport so we decide to head out to the Bukk Hills again and some very nice woodland there.  We arrive and as we are getting out of the vans we hear a calling Lesser Spotted Woodpecker!  Sadly is doesn’t respond to our playing of a little of its call and we don’t see the birds but there are a few other birds around and we soon find a couple of Siskins in one of the conifers and as we set off on our walk a pair of Crossbills appear.  They fly across to a small stand of spruces and we get great views as they feed on the cones there.  A flock of Long-tailed Tits pass through and we are surprised to find that there are two races in one flock with most of the birds being white headed birds whilst a few are just like ours at home.  The white headed ones are much cuter!

The woodlands here are looking lovely with the autumn colours and we walk through mainly a forest of Beech trees with clear ground below them allowing you to see well into the trees.  There are occasional flocks of tits with Nuthatches amongst them and also Treecreeper but we have not gone very far when we hear a Black Woodpecker calling.  We search carefully but only get brief glimpses as it flies from one tree to the next and eventually disappears.  Further on we are delighted to find a male White-backed Woodpecker, a species we were really hoping for today but which can be tricky to find, however you wouldn’t believe it with the views we are getting and we watch it for ages through the scope as it works a dead tree.  A Great Spotted Woodpecker then appears which makes for a nice comparison.  Walking on further we are amazed to find a second White-backed Woodpecker, this time a female and again we get excellent views.  It is getting on towards lunchtime so we head back finding more Long-tailed Tits, a lovely male Bullfinch and then get brilliant views of a soaring Goshawk!

We enjoy lunch in the sunshine scanning the hills as we eat but there only seem to be Buzzards and Ravens above the hills, then we go through the checklist one last time before we head off towards the airport.  We also decide this would be a good time to ask everyone what their species of the trip, their favourite place and their magic moment were... oh yes, and we also ask about their domestic animal of the trip after the fun this morning!  Although several species get a mention the birds of the trip, with easily the most votes was Wallcreeper, though Long-eared Owl also did very well.  The Hortobágy scored the highest for favourite place though today s woodland walk also scored well as did the quarry with the spectacular views.  The magic moment also included votes for owls with Dotterel also getting a mention but by far the most votes went to the various Crane roosts with the second crane roost with its 26,000 birds scoring the most... and what a moment it was.  Domestic animal of the trip was always going to be those frizzly pigs!  Everyone agrees it is remarkable however that such a short trip provided so many wonderful moments and so many quality birds making it \remarkably hard to choose and we all thank Balázs for doing such a great job for us.

Time is flying now and it is time to start our journey to the airport though we have built in time to look for Eastern Imperial Eagles on the way as we do pass through several territories.  We are soon on the motorway and after some time Balázs starts pointing out eagle nests as we whizz by.  Finally we pull over into a parking area which offers views of a nest and to our delight there are there Eastern Imperial Eagles perched in the trees nearby!  The nearest is a young bird with pale brown plumage, a little further away an even paler bird and just beyond that an adult!  They all look fantastic, especially when the adult and a young one go for a little fly around.  We have been here a while when we spot something moving in the field and suddenly realise that there is a fourth bird, a really beautiful pale immature that is flapping around trying to catch a Brown Hare!  The Hare doesn’t seem all that bothered and lopes away without seeming in any particular rush while the eagle watches it go... bizarre!  We spend some considerable time enjoying the sight of these birds and also a Merlin and a Hen Harrier whilst there are Common Buzzards everywhere!  Eventually two of the immatures fly past us giving wonderful flight views as they go.  It has been a great finish to a brilliant trip – then it is back into the van and on to the airport for our flight home.

Birds 
Black-necked Grebe  
Little Grebe  
Great Crested Grebe  
Great Cormorant  
Pygmy Cormorant  
Great Egret  
Grey Heron  
Mute Swan  
Greylag Goose  
Bean Goose  
Lesser White-fronted Goose  
Greater White-fronted Goose  
Mallard  
Gadwall  
Eurasian Wigeon  
Common Teal  
Northern Pintail  
Northern Shoveler  
Tufted Duck  
Greater Scaup 
Common Pochard  
White-tailed Eagle  
Eastern Imperial Eagle  
Greater Spotted Eagle  
Marsh-Harrier  
Hen Harrier  
Rough-legged Buzzard  
Long-legged Buzzard  
Common Buzzard  
Northern Goshawk  
Sparrowhawk  
Common Kestrel  
Merlin  
Peregrine Falcon  
Saker Falcon  
Common Pheasant  
Water Rail (heard) 
Common Coot  
Common Crane  
Great Bustard   
Avocet  
Stone-Curlew  
Northern Lapwing  
Grey Plover  
Dotterel  
Ruff  
Dunlin  
Spotted Redshank  
Eurasian Curlew  
Black-tailed Godwit  
Common Snipe  
Black-headed Gull  
Caspian Gull  
Common Gull  
Feral Pigeon (introduced) 
Stock Dove  
Eurasian Collared-Dove  
Barn Owl  
Long-eared Owl  
Little Owl  
Tawny Owl (heard) 
Common Kingfisher  
Black Woodpecker  
Great Spotted Woodpecker  
Middle Spotted Woodpecker  
Syrian Woodpecker  
White-backed Woodpecker  
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (heard) 
Green Woodpecker  
Grey-headed Woodpecker  
Skylark  
Crested Lark  
Meadow Pipit  
Water Pipit  
Stonechat  
Winter Wren  
Alpine Accentor  
Robin  
Black Redstart  
Mistle Thrush  
Fieldfare  
Common Blackbird  
Goldcrest  
Bearded Tit (heard) 
Long-tailed Tit  
Penduline-Tit   
Blue Tit  
Coal Tit  
Marsh Tit  
Great Tit  
Wood Nuthatch   
Common Treecreeper
Wallcreeper   
Great Grey Shrike   
Jay  
Magpie  
Common Raven  
Rook  
Hooded Crow   
Jackdaw  
Nutcracker 
Common Starling  
House Sparrow  
Tree-Sparrow  
Chaffinch  
Brambling  
Bullfinch  
Goldfinch  
Serin 
Greenfinch  
Siskin  
Linnet   
Hawfinch  
Common Crossbill 
Reed Bunting  
Corn Bunting  
Yellowhammer  
 
And of course Frizzly Goose!

Mammals
Roe Deer
Red Fox
Brown Hare
Common Vole
Eastern Hedgehog
Noctule Bat 
Przewalski’s Horse (reintroduced)

Amphibians and reptiles
Fire-bellied Toad
Moor Frog
European Tree Frog
Common Frog
European Pond Terrapin

Butterflies and dragonflies 
Clouded Yellow 
Eastern Pale Clouded Yellow 
Small White 
Red Admiral 
Peacock 
Nettle-tree Butterfly 
Blue sp. probably Common 
Common Darter 
Migrant Hawker 
Lesser Emperor

November 2008, Roy Atkins, Speyside Wildlife