Autumn colors of Transylvania
Second part of October usually the best period to photograph color rich autumn landscapes in Transylvania. In this season the weather was unusually dry and warm, practically no rain from August. In many places the forests looked more brownish than yellowish, although we managed to find some lovely places with bright autumn colors. During the nights the temperature goes regularly under zero Celsius therefore the deciduous woodlands looked amazingly nice, some tree species canopy turn even into red. The first snow fell in the first week of October and was still visible over 2000 m high peaks of the Carpathians.
The Bicaz Gorges-Hasmas Mountain National Park (Photo: © Joan Rocca)
Bucegi Natural Park (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Piatra Craiului National Park (Photo: © Joan Rocca)
Colors (Photo: © Joan Rocca)
Beech forest in October (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Rimetea`s colors (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Together with our Spanish photo partner we reached our goals and hopefully in the next year’s landscape photography trips/workshops could starts in this mystic region!
Yours sincerely,
Sakertour team
One day on the Harghita Mountains
20th of September together with 4 British birdwatchers we spent a full day on the Harghita Mountain to find some special forest birds. The weather was excellent, sunny and little bit windy in the higher elevation.
We started the morning with roaring Red Deers around our accommodations than continued to reach the Three-toed Woodpeckers habitats as early as possible. On the way we stopped several times and easily found feeding Nutcrackers, two Black Woodpeckers, a Dipper, several Grey Wagtails and a Ring Ouzel.
Birding just below the highest peak of the Harghita produced a single male Three-toed Woodpecker in short time. We saw it for a quite long time while feeding and preening just above our heads. (Here the Eastern “alpinus” subspecies live which has barred back – does it???)
Three-toed Woodpecker (Photo: Paul Wilson/tour participant)
On the way down we were lucky to see a fine male Hazel Grouse just at the edge of the forest road. We saw it briefly first but later it flew across the road in front of our car. Brief but definetely tickable views of this rather shy bird!
Male Hazel Grouse (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Other highlights of the day were 3 Crested Tits, 2 Hawfinches, 1 Firecrest, 1 Osprey above the nearby reservoir, 1 Great Grey Shrike and the 3rd Black Woodpecker of the day just flew overhead.
Crested Tit (Photo: Paul Wilson/tour participant)
Later in the afternoon we have visited a bear hide where we saw 1 Brown Bear and 9 Wildboars. Next day we tried again the bears and this time we got very good views of 2 Brown Bears and a female Red Deer!
Carpathian Brown Bear in the Harghita (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Yours sincerely,
Zoltán Baczó
Sakertour team
Two days in Transylvania
As a part of Carol`s birding trip to Eastern Europe 2 full days were spent in the end of June, in Transylvania. She previously visited Bulgaria and Hungary (Hortobágy National Park) and we mainly looked for birds which Carol not seen yet. In this short report I focused mainly on these species.
First day morning we have visited the Harghita Mountains where we quickly saw some targets such as a single Three-toed Woodpecker, Crested Tit, Common Crossbills and a Nutcracker family.
Tree-toed Woodpecker in the Harghita Mountains (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
In the afternoon along the Homoród Valley we successfully observed a fine male Red-breasted Flycatcher, Lesser-Spotted Eagles and unsuccessfully tried the White-backed Woodpecker. We finished the day with River Warblers, Garden Warblers, Thrush Nightingales and Corncrakes. The Corncrake site were amazing with at least 7-8 singing male of which we saw 2 birds well!
Second day we have visited the Gheorgheni basin where we had excellent view of 2 male Common Rosefinch, 2 singing Grasshopper Warbler, several Fieldfares and a Great-Grey Shrike family with 4 fledgling youngsters.
In the way back to Odorhei we had an unexpected bonus, a Brown Bear! It was a young one, maximum 3 year old and just want to access through the road in front of our car.
Brown Bear (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
We finished the day with a female Grey-headed Woodpecker, Garden Warblers and Icterine Warbler.
Sakertour team
The first days of summer
In the first part of June I visited the Gheorgheni basin to find Transylvania`s one of the most colorful and localized breeding birdspecies, the Common Rosefinch. Romania`s main breeding population can found here along the upper section of river Mures wet meadow sites.
During my visit I have found 6-7 territorial males and 1 female as well. The males were very territorial and allow to make some picture from a pair.
Male Common Rosefinch (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Female Common Rosefinch (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Among others I have found a Common Snipe, which is most probably another localized breeding bird of the site. This species breeds in small number in the neighborhood Ciuc basin as well, along the upper section of river Olt.
The wet alpine, meadow fields of the Gheorgheni basin this time is covered by flowering Meadow buttercup (Ranunculus acris) and create endless yellow carpet landscape, excellent habitats for Corncrakes.
Alpine meadow with Meadow buttercup (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
A little bit south, along the Homorod Valley I spent some time to photograph European Bee-eaters near a colony site.
In the afternoon lights these birds looks amazingly colorful.
European Bee-eater (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Close to the colony 4-5 Corncrake start singing in the afternoon. This year looks a bit exceptional because this species is present much widely in the suitable habitats than previous years.
Corncrake in the Homoród Valley (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Other observed and interesting breeding birds of the area were Great Grey-, Lesser Grey- and Red-backed Shrike, Hoopoe, Icterine Warbler, Yellow Wagtail, Whinchat, Stonechat, Whitethroat, Lesser Spotted Eagle…
Xanthophrys type Yellow Wagtail with yellow supercilium (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Yours sincerely,
Sakertour team
Brown Bears in the Carpathians
Spring time, including late April is one of the best and most reliable period to see the magnificant Brown Bears of the Carpathians, where – in some part – they are still abundant. Though it is never easy to find one of these shy animals just by chance, so local knowledge is almost essential. In two evenings, this time we managed to see no less than five bears: two large and three smaller ones.
One of the bigger ones… (Photo: Simay Gábor)
and one of the smaller ones (Photo: Simay Gábor)
While one drives to the Carpathians in the surrounding and also on route there are of course a lot to see, and many interesting bird species can be met. Some of them just arrived in late April, or just started to sing, thus for many of them this is the peak activity period. A few examples of these species:
Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush (Photo: Simay Gábor)
Rock Bunting (Photo: Simay Gábor)
Ortolan Bunting (Photo: Simay Gábor)
Sakertour team
April in Transylvania
Central part of Transylvania is the coldest region of Romania, therefore the spring always late here.
This time of the year the higher peaks of the Carpathian Mountains still snow covered while in the lower altitude the forests start to become greener every day.
I have start to discover the lower regions and visit some interesting habitats after birds around Odorheiu Secuiesc and Sighisoara.
Unusual White Stork nest on a dead tree top (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Sanpaul wetland in the Homorod Valley is one of the most important spot for waterbirds. I have observed in the second half of April amongst other the first Purple Herons, Black-crowned Night Herons, Bitterns, Little Crake, Hobbies, Whiskered Terns; migrating Red-necked Grebe, Red-footed Falcons, Montagu`s Harrier, Mediterranean Gulls, Little Gulls, and different forms/hybrids of Yellow Wagtails.
On 26th of April appeared again an adult male Citrine Wagtail as well!
A friendly Black-crowned Night Heron (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Some Lesser-Spotted Eagle is still in migration others already occupied their breeding territories.
Soaring Lesser-Spotted Eagle (Photo: Zoltán Baczó)
Pure beech forests of the Kalonda plateau is quite calm, Mistle Thrushes song continually, first Common Redstarts occupied their breeding territories but the most interesting event was that a pair of Ural Owl choose to use as a nesthole one of our artificial nestbox, tested successfully in the Zemplén Hills.
Mixed woodlands around Sighisoara with beech, oak, common hornbean and wild cherry trees looks very different. This woodlands has the most active birdlife in this time. I have observed 6 species of woodpeckers included a pair of White-backed Woodpecker which is a scarce species in Transylvania, Collared Flycatchers, Common Redstarts, Hawfinches and the first singing Wood Warbler in this year.
I have found here a pair of Ural Owl sunbathing in the tree crown. They were so relaxed and allow to observe from underneath without disturb their siesta.
Ural Owl (Photos: Zoltán Baczó)
Yours sincerely,
Zoltán Baczó
Winter bird count on the Carpathian lower Danube
We made our annual winter waterbird count from 4th to 6th February, on the lower part (Carpathian Basin section) of the River Danube from Orsova to Bazias, in Transylvania.
This ca.130 kilometer long stretch of Danube usually holds 25,000-30,000 waterbirds in winter. Numbers also depend on ice cover of the upper Danube sections (mainly in Hungary) as well as the weather generally.
View Larger Map
This year the count was only 18,459 waterbirds, of which the outstanding result was the record number of Smews. We counted a total 2,062 wintering birds of this lovely bird. The only species which was far less numerous as usual was the Coot. We only counted 1542 individuals which barely compares with the 8000+ last year though the water level of the Danube was very high!
The Kazán-pass along the Danube (Photo: Zoltán Petrovics)
Smews in a mixed diving duck flock along the Danube (Photo: János Oláh)
Other highlights included a Bernacle Goose (very rare bird in Transylvania), 5 Scaup, 3 Velvet Scoter, 7 Red-breasted Merganser, 47 Goosander, Sombre Tits and several Cirl Buntings. The latter two species are rare and restricted breeding birds in the Carpathian Basin.
Velvet Scoters (Photo: Dániel Balla)
Male Cirl Bunting (Photo: János Oláh)
Female Cirl Bunting (Photo: János Oláh)
Yours sincerely,
Sakertour team
Happy Holidays!
Birds and Bears in September
September is one of the most beautiful period to find birds and bears in Transylvania. During this month I have visited several different habitats in the Harghita Mountain surroundings.
In the woodland habitats woodpeckers were very active and found easily after the call or the feeding noise Great Spotted-, Middle Spotted-, Grey-headed, Green and Black Woodpeckers.
The bushy riversides vegetation were full with migrating Passerines, such as: Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler, Long-tailed Tits, Robins, Common and Black Redstarts, Goldcrests, Blue- and Great Tits.
In mid-September the last Lesser Spotted Eagles leave the breeding territories and will come back only in the second half of April. In this period an immature Greater Spotted Eagle come to winter regularly in the Homorod Valley and this bird is the single known wintering bird in Transylvania!
The first part of the month Red-backed Shrike migrates to south and only the Great Grey Shrike spend the winter here. I counted 8 birds in the end of September along the Homorod and Olt Valley perched on the wire along the road.
Higher in the Harghita Mountains Brown Bears visit more and more frequently the feeding places. This time of the year a lot of fruit is still available in the forest and they are not afraid to visit orchards as well, closer to the villages, mainly after the plum fruit.
Yours sincerely,
Zoltán Baczó
