White-crowned Black Wheatear (2)Oenanthe leucopyga IvanM Morocco 📍 Map Date taken: Mar 16 2011 This bird was particularly funny, as it would spend the cold desert nights inside the (very noisy) dining room of the hotel, usually close to some lamps to get warm! Not always humans are detrimental for birds! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 6 Write comments
European Shag (3)Phalacrocorax aristotelis IvanM Italy (Sardinia) 📍 Map Date taken: Jun 10 2011 Here a funny pic of three adult shags scouting the horizon! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 11 Write comments
European Shag (3)Phalacrocorax aristotelis IvanM Italy (Sardinia) 📍 Map Date taken: Jun 5 2011 Details: juvenile Shags in the Mediterranean belong to a separate subspecies (desmarestii) and only occur around rocky shores, such as in Sardinia. Here they replace the otherwise far more common Great Cormorant. Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 17 Write comments
Great Egret (117)Ardea alba IvanM Switzerland 📍 Map Date taken: Feb 28 2012 Great Egrets are a quite recent addition to the Western European fauna. The species is expanding from the East, and the first breeding records for Switzerland just occurred a couple years ago. It is still more common in the winter though. Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 2 Write comments
Wood Warbler (1)Phylloscopus sibilatrix IvanM Italy (Lazio) 📍 Map Date taken: May 6 2012 Wood Warblers occur on Italian islands in the thousands during spring migration. The islands are a last resort for birds exhausted after having crossed about 500 km of the Mediterranean in one bout. This one was lucky enough to find some aphids to pick off the flowers! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 5 Write comments
Eurasian Bittern (3)Botaurus stellaris IvanM Switzerland 📍 Map Date taken: Feb 7 2012 One more picture of this stunning bird, this time from the side! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 3 Write comments
Eurasian Bittern (3)Botaurus stellaris IvanM Switzerland 📍 Map Date taken: Feb 7 2012 Bitterns are quite common in Switzerland during the winter, but are usually quite hard to see. Except for this one, that moved out of the reedbeds following extensive freezing and looked for food in a canal with open water. When surprised, it adopted its typical posture, forgetting that it was actually not camouflaged at all! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 1 Write comments
Chaffinch (7)Fringilla coelebs IvanM Portugal (Madeira) 📍 Map Date taken: May 30 2012 Details: male The Chaffinch also has an endemic subspecies (madeirensis) on Madeira. The males have a full blue-gray back and very pale pinkish underparts. These bird was expecting to get fed! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 6 Write comments
Firecrest (1)Regulus ignicapilla IvanM Portugal (Madeira) 📍 Map Date taken: May 30 2012 The Madeiran Firecrest is an endemic subspecies of the Firecrest, but is sometimes considered to be a separate species. It has a shorter white supercilium than the nominate. It is very common in the many forested areas on the island. Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 1 Write comments
White-faced Storm Petrel (3)Pelagodroma marina IvanM Portugal (Madeira) 📍 Map Date taken: May 29 2012 Exciting seabirds breed around Madeira! This was an unexpected find during a short pelagic trip off Porto Moniz! This picture is not very good but the bird is amazing! They sort of "dance" over the waves giving little kicks with their feet to the water. Why they do that is a mistery to me, but it might have to do with getting food! Date uploaded: Jul 1 2014 Views: 0 Write comments
