SPRINGTIME IN LESBOS
The popularity of a springtime visit to Lesbos has snowballed amazingly in the past six years. Much is due to good publicity, marketing and the possibility of visiting at an earlier date than normal on a package holiday. Generally speaking Greece is 'shut' until the beginning of May. That is rather late in the year for the main passage of birds using the island as a staging post on route to their breeding grounds elsewhere.
For photographers and bird watchers alike this lovely, unspoilt Aegean Island is a wonderful place to see and photograph a wide variety of waders, herons, birds of prey, passerines etc. There is also a good population of breeding birds to be found on Lesbos including European Bee-eater, Kreuper's Nuthatch, Middle Spotted Woodpecker, Cretzschmar's Bunting, etc., etc. Birds of prey can be found in the more inaccessible upland areas.
Although locals seem bemused by the antics of us crazy Brits they are a friendly people and generally speaking access to the land is unrestricted. The exceptions are the many military establishments scattered around the island, particularly to the north where the close proximity of the Turkish mainland causes a certain 'twitchiness' among the military. The poking of long lenses through car windows near any military establishment is not to be recommended.
In May last year two of us were doing just that on the north coastal road and suddenly realised there was an army lookout post about a ¼ of a mile away, with a soldier looking at us through binoculars. We thought no more about it and continued on our way, stopping frequently to admire and photograph the abundant wildlife and flowers. Eventually we turned around and some two hours later passed the lookout again. This time soldiers with guns stepped out into the track and stopped us. At first they spoke Greek then, realising we were English, one of them asked us for a light; obviously an excuse to investigate our identity. Although they appeared satisfied it does underline the need for a sensible approach to photographic activities in a sensitive area such as this.
Lesbos, or Lesvos as it is sometimes called, is the third largest Greek island located in the North East of the Aegean Sea. It is about 40 miles by 25 miles in size and so, despite many ill maintained roads, it is possible to reach most parts of the island in about 1 to 1½ hours from Skala Kalloni.
Skala Kalloni is probably the best centre to operate from. A small coastal resort with an active fishing harbour, it has several hotels, apartment blocks and pleasant tavernas. Small supermarkets where all necessary purchases to supplement or replace packed lunches can be made. An excellent little bakery by the town square supplies a variety of pastries, bread and cakes; all baked in a wood fired oven built into one wall of the bakery. Scrumptious but very fattening, be warned! Accommodation in the hotels and apartments is on a par with most Greek hostelries of my experience; clean but very basic.
It is very necessary to pre-book a car in Britain, or immediately on arrival. As much photography is done from the vehicle it is important not to have more than two occupants per car, as each person needs to be able to move from side to side. Camouflage material is useful, attached to the window areas it breaks up the outline of the occupants enabling a closer approach to birds to be made more easily.
The condition of the vehicles varies from quite good to diabolical. When you have driven on some of the Lesbos roads you will appreciate the short life a car can have there. Consequently hire is very expensive, you feel you are buying the vehicle rather than hiring it. Most of the roads and tracks are very quiet; on some journeys you may meet more donkeys and flocks of sheep than other vehicles.
Much of the bird photography is from vehicles which double up well as a hide. A lens of 500mm minimum is required for most of the work. I often use 1.4x or 2x converters as well. The loss of light when using converters necessitates film of at least 200 ISO to obtain a fast enough shutter speed to avoid both camera shake and subject movement. Various camera supports for use in the car are available. Personally I find a bean bag very satisfactory for the job. This is carried empty from home and a suitable filling of dried beans or other seeds can be bought at the supermarket. The owner now recognizes bird photographers when they buy two kilos of dried beans and makes a point of saying so! A hide is very useful if you can pack it in your luggage and gives an extra dimension to the type of photography available.
The book 'Birding in Lesbos' by Richard Brooks contains very useful information about bird species and sites and includes some sketch maps to aid first time visitors to Lesbos. Richard has now produced an updated version called 'Birding on the Greek Island of Lesvos' which is much more detailed with added sites and clearer, more accurate maps.
Sites best suited to bird photography are scattered all over the island, but around Skala Kalloni there is a concentration of good places. The East River, driveable on both sides, offers many opportunities, particularly in early morning, when waders such as Greenshanks; Marsh, Wood and Common Sandpipers, White-winged Black Tems, Little Egrets, Squacco Herons, Glossy Ibis and White Stork plus a wide variety of warblers, shrikes and other small birds, are quite approachable with care. The West River is an extensive area of marsh and scrub with birds such as Kentish and Little-ringed Plovers nesting alongside the odd pair of Stone Curlews.
The 'inland lake' is found about two miles inland from Skala Kalloni where birds like Night and Squacco Herons, Little Bittern, Black-winged Stilts and occasional Purple Heron are frequently seen. Near to here are roadside channels where it is often possible to get very close to Little Bittems as they hunt for tadpoles in the water; or just sit motionless pretending to be an extension of the vegetation at the edge of the channel.
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To the east of Skala Kalloni on
the main road out through Kalloni town (towards the
capital, Mytilini) we find, after some two miles,
extensive salt pans holding a large variety of birds
including many species of wader, herons and ducks. Due to
the continuous flow of migrating birds at this time
different species can often be found in the same day, one
type replacing another. The anticipation as one drives
down the road alongside the pans causes excitement as you
never know what may be feeding within photographic range.
Behind the salt pans is a large expanse of scrub and marsh. This is a good place to search for Pratincoles, which feed in small groups amongst the marshy scrub. They can be approached closely by car, although care is needed not to drive into soft ground and get bogged down. In another area behind the salt pans last year I witnessed a large fall of Red-footed Falcons. They were feeding on big, black, beetles which they ate both on the wing and on the shrubs scattered around the area. |
Moving further afield in 1998 we found nesting Cretzschmar's Buntings, Sombre Tits, Rock Nuthatches, Bee-eaters and Middle Spotted Woodpeckers, some of which were in suitable sites for bird photography. It is impossible to mention all the sites worth visiting during a stay on Lesbos. Suffice it to say you will never be at a loose end during a 2 or 3 week stay on the island, every day is packed with opportunities.
In previous years there have been slight conflicts of interest between bird watchers and photographers, the former able to view birds satisfactorily from a much greater distance through telescopes whilst photographers need to be much closer to obtain a usable image size on film. This indicates the popularity of Lesbos in spring but with a bit of give and take on both sides it need not be a major problem.
Birds are by no means the only worthwhile subjects to keep nature photographers happy. There is an abundance of flowers including fields with drifts of the brightest poppies I have ever seen. The roadside verges and banks display a range of colourful flowers to excite the botanist and flower photographer. Orchid specialists will not be disappointed either as many species can be found on Lesbos. The area on and around Mount Olympus is probably the best place to find the greatest variety of orchids (and many other flowers). The most sought after species is the very rare Koniper's orchid, flowering around the second or third week in May.
Insects are found in large numbers too. The wet areas are excellent for dragonflies and damselflies whilst the flower meadows and road verges contain many butterfly species including both Scarce and Common Swallowtails, Eastern Festoons, Cleopatras and a variety of blues and fritillaries.
Reptiles and amphibians are very common throughout the whole island. Spur-thighed Tortoises can often be seen crossing the roads as you drive along. I have stopped many times to move more than one away from danger, hoping I have placed it on the side of the road it was heading for. Two types of terrapin are plentiful on the waterways, often basking in an untidy heap on the banks just above the water line.
Several lizards are found on Lesbos including the Agama lizard which sits on the top of a rock nodding its head up and down; and the beautiful Balkan green lizard, large but wary. Usually if you park and wait they often return to the same favourite basking point when all is still. Snakes are also very common on the island being found almost anywhere. Included in these are the Balkan Whip Snake, the Dice Snake, Montpellier Snake and the Ottoman Viper. Only the latter is venomous. The lakes and marshes are home to many amphibians. Walking near one of these places in an evening the sound can be extremely loud and is generally made by the frogs and toads. The lovely bright green Common Tree Frog, measuring about 1¼ inches in length, is plentiful and a fine subject for a photograph.
To sum up, the island of Lesbos has much to offer all wildlife enthusiasts and photographers. The unspoilt nature of the place is most uplifting to visitors and there are few who do not find it a 'come again' island, as 1 do.
As well as the arranged visits to Lesbos by people like Richard Brooks, George McCarthy and others 1 can recommend the Hotel Aegeon (opening early for the first time in '99 in April) in Skala Kalloni for those wishing to 'do-it-themselves'. (Hotel Tel/fax in Winter 00-30-251- 6004673 - other times 00-30-0253-22309. NB international codes shown not clear on brochure).
Richard Brooks new book 'Birding on the Greek Island of Lesbos' at £17.95 including postage in the UK is available from Richard at 24, Croxton Hamlet, Fulmodeston, Fakenham, Norfolk, NR21 ONP. Tel/fax 01328-878632.
Colin Smith FRPS