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Turkey Birdwatching Tour
When: Sun 16 May - Sat 5 Jun 2010
Leaders: Chris Doughty and Emir Unsal |
Turkey Birdwatching Tour
Melbourne/Melbourne (20 days) $9,185
Single Room Supplement $970
Ground Conetent (ex Istanbul) $6,993 |
| Turkey lies at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa and has always occupied a position of global importance; it has a long and turbulent history and for thousands of years has been home to great cultures and civilizations. Archeological reminders of this colourful history are found throughout the country, with numerous Hitite, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman sites and ancient monuments. Turkey is a land of endless horizons and combines together some of the wildest and the finest scenery and some of the most exciting and rewarding birding in the whole of Europe and the Middle East. While parts of its Aegean and Mediterranean coastlines may have become popular with tourists and to some degree Westernised; the rolling steppe that covers much of the interior, particularly in the east of the country, where we will be spending most of our time, is extremely relaxed and unhurried and harbours the very best of this countries exceptional birds and mammals. Here we find remote, lofty mountains that lie snowbound for half the year. Below the snow-capped mountains there is endless rolling steppe, where colourful nomads tend their herds of sheep and goats as they roam freely across a vast expanse of empty space. Change comes slowly to these areas; there are vast distances between the small towns, where the hotels are small and simple. At this time of year our Turkey Birdwatching Tour will see stream of migrant birds arriving from Africa has grown into a veritable flood; European Bee-eaters adorn roadside telephone wires, Woodchat Shrikes perch conspicuously on roadside bushes and the air is filled with the song of countless Nightingales and warblers. We begin our journey in Istanbul, from here we drive high into the rugged and spectacular Taurus Mountains; in search of specialities such as Lammergeier, Caspian Snowcock, Chukar, Radde's Accentor, Eastern Bonelli's Warbler, Finsch's Wheatear, the wonderful Wallcreeper, Red-fronted Serin and Crimson-winged Finch, all set amidst dramatic alpine scenery. Reluctantly leaving the mountains we travel south to the beautiful Mediterranean coast. Here we will visit the bird-rich Goksu Delta, home of Marbled Duck, Grey-headed Swamphen, Collared Pratincole and Spur-winged Lapwing. Travelling further east along the coast, we spend a couple of days based in Birecik; here we will watch the highly endangered Northern Bald Ibis, at the gorge where they nest. The Euphrates River cuts through an arid plateau of grassy steppe, where we shall search for Pale Scops-Owl, the range-restricted See-see Partridge, Chestnut-shouldered Petronia and the beautiful Dead Sea Sparrow. Leaving the coast we travel to the rocky scrub-covered hills of southeastern Turkey, not too far from the border with Iraq. Here we shall search for a host of specialities which include Bimaculated Lark, White-throated Robin, Red-rumped Wheatear, Upcher's Warbler, Eastern Rock Nuthatch, Desert Finch and Cinereous Bunting. |
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