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Birdwatching trip report - HungaryPeriod: 19.3.2008-22.3.2008Author(s): Gerry Westdean Key sites visited: HUNGARY 19-22 March 2008
March 19 2008 The Easyjet flight took 2 hours and 30 minutes and we arrived in Budapest about an hour late. Birding was thus restricted to what we could see from the car, until we stopped at 1840 at an Eagle Owl site. By now it was already dark and the bird did not respond, so we proceeded to our hotel where we would stay for the next three nights.
March 20 2008 We were up and out by 0600 and birded in the Bukk hills until 0830. The temperature gauge of the car showed minus 15C and upon our return it had become a pleasant plus 5C. Even allowing for false readings it was very cold at first. One Black, two Middle Spotted, and two Grey-headed Woodpeckers were seen very well. There were also 35 Hawfinches and 2 caudatus Long-tailed Tits in the woods. After breakfast we set out to drive south to the Hortobagy, stopping first to watch a Syrian Woodpecker and then at a roadside tree to view 35 roosting Long-eared Owls. Views were very good indeed. We met our guide, Sandor, who drove us around the Hortobagy in a Land Rover. Some of the birds seen were 50 Spoonbills, Whooper Swans, Grey Lag Geese, many thousands of Greater White-fronted Geese, seven Red-breasted Geese, 20 Garganey, 18 Ferruginous Ducks, four White-tailed Eagles, an immature Golden Eagle, Marsh Harriers 15 Hen Harriers, 2 Rough-legged Buzzards, many Common Buzzards, and a Peregrine. The huge female Goshawk, sitting on the ground and hunting Susliks by running and flying after them, was truly something to behold. The nearest tree or bush must have been over a kilometre away. Moustached Warbler was one species that was on the wanted list. They had just arrived back and several birds were in song. No other warblers were in the reeds so they were easy to find and views were good. Later, when they are breeding and not singing, they can be impossible to find. Two Yellow Wagtails were a surprise, and six Tree Sparrows were seen. It had been an excellent days birding.
March 21 2008 Today we rose at 0700 and left the hotel at 0750. In Hungary this was ´Big Friday´, in the UK it was ´Good Friday´, but for us this was just another good days birding. Somewhere we saw 15 Hawfinches, 2 caudatus Long-tailed Tits and 15 Tree Sparrows. We drove to a huge old quarry where there was a wintering Wallcreeper and some Alpine Accentors. Although present very recently, we saw neither. There was a very cold wind blowing and it was minus 6C. A lot of Ravens were flying around the quarry, and the air was full of their calls. Nearby we saw a Black Woodpecker and a second bird was seen later in the day. We tried to find some Imperial Eagles at a known site, but without luck. We were compensated with four Hen Harriers and superb views of two Rough-legged Buzzards. Two Great Grey Shrikes were seen. At about 1300 we drove north to the Zemplen Hills, one of my favourite areas. Here we met our guide in Tokaj and transferred to a Land Rover. Our target here was Ural Owl. We drove for about 15km into the forest, and then parked and went searching for the roosting birds, whose territory we were in. I did not feel very confident, but with no leaves on the trees, it should be possible, after some walking, to find one or both birds. The stiff wind that kept blowing ensured that the birds would not be in the treetops. I paused to look at a nestbox. This, I was told, had been empty the day before, but it was now clearly occupied, as the birds´ tail could be seen poking out the top. There was a little mirror above the box so we crept closer to see what it showed. We could see part of a Ural Owl and then its face. When it moved it was possible to see that it had laid its first egg. We continued our walk through the woods and located the off-duty bird. We were able to watch this for some time. We then left the area. While driving back across a vineyard, a migrating adult White-tailed Eagle flew closely overhead. A few minutes later it was followed by a second adult, both heading perhaps to somewhere on the north Russian coast. The local eagles had been incubating for nearly four weeks, and our guide told me that he noticed a small passage of these migrants at the same time every year. It was getting near to the end of the day and we headed towards a quarry above Tokaj. Before dark an Eagle Owl began calling, and I was surprised that it was not a loud call. It then flew out and perched in the leafless bare branches of the small trees that grow above the quarry. It moved around a small area, still calling, and scope views were good. From Tokaj it took an hour and a half to drive back to our hotel in Eger.
March 22 2008 When we woke and looked out the window it was disappointing to see that it was raining. After breakfast we checked out at 0800 and headed for the Bukk Hills. The rain turned to snow. We saw 20 Hawfinches and frustratingly a White-backed Woodpecker was heard calling, tapping and drumming but we could not see it. Most birds were avoiding the rain. One of yesterdays´ Great Grey Shrikes was seen in a bedraggled state. At another known site for Imperial Eagle both birds were seen perched near to the nest. Unfortunately we could not view for long as we were parked on the side of the main road. A Saker Falcon nest site that we had intended to drive close to, now became an impossibility, as the ground had become very waterlogged. But elsewhere we saw a distant pair on the wires close to the nest platform. When we reached Budapest Airport at 1600 the rain had stopped and the sun was shining. Our flight left on schedule.
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