Asphodel foliage back on 26th December, now blooming.
Sat. 8 Jan.
work has been done lately central east forest, preparation for new planting, esp by crossroads where many trees felled, the 'bare patch'
Cool, raining on and off last couple of days, east watercourse trickling today and many little pools along the way.
Gazelle: 10 in east field between olive grove and steeper north slopes of windsurfer, grazing, running, including one adult male.
work has been done lately central east forest, preparation for new planting, esp by crossroads where many trees felled, the 'bare patch'
Cool, raining on and off last couple of days, east watercourse trickling today and many little pools along the way.
Gazelle: 10 in east field between olive grove and steeper north slopes of windsurfer, grazing, running, including one adult male.
Hyrax: not about, too damp.
East field on boulder near hill/cistern dirt track: immature wheatear )?)
Black redstart: none seen in last few days in usual places
Chaffinch: some calls, glimpses
Chiffchaff: contact calls
European robin:tacking calls heard from bank briefly
Stonechat: east field, end of last week
White wagtail:some calls heard, one seen flying into dense tree on Rchov Elias
Blackbirds: calls at dusk some days lately
Chukarpartridges:
Collared doves: again between ground SW east field and trees, and between trees. Not calls but heard wings, glimpses.
Eurasian Jays: occasional calls in trees.
Eurasian sparrowhawk:occasional glimpses last few days, end last week
Feral pigeons: on, over buildings.
Graceful warblers: today, calls by bank
Great tits: calls in pines down from valley road today.
Greenfinches: some song(?) or similar bird
Hooded crows: calls, in tops of cypresses by SW east field
Laughing doves: foraging on ground in garden
Stone curlews: heard from house end last week
Sunbirds: some calls in garden
Syrian woodpeckers: some calls in woods end last week
Tristram's starlings: calls and flying over street
House sparrows:chirps in garden
Jackdaws: flock and calls, flying over and congregating on windsurfer hill
Monday 10th, Tuesday 11th Jan
cool/cold, raining on and off.
Gazelle: Mon: east field, three subadults. Tues. Adult male chasing female by small olive grove, another gazelle near them, female?
Tristram's starling: about and flying over lower part of neighbourhood, calling again.
Black redstart (?) female or immature up on line edge of buildings, near start of ramp down to valley road.
Garden: laughing doves foraging on ground, house sparrows as usual.
Hooded crows, jackdaws, feral pigeons about as usual. Today hoodie flock perched top of windsurfer hill.
Sunday Jan 16th
more raining off and on.
Observations pretty much similar lately.
Today, 6 gazelle: Two adult males together in woods nr bat cave, eucs by north watercourse, likely those males we've seen together in that area before. A female alone a short way west of them, a fourth grazing alone close to watercourse, two more by central trail.
End of last week, several subadults west slopes windsurfer hill.
blackbird in SONG in woods near central trail. light drizzle falling, almost sunset.
about a dozen white wagtails flew into that round dense tree on Elias, shortly after 4.30 p.m.
Almost 6.15 p.m. and raining again , thank God.
In garden earlier, laughing doves foraging on ground, alarm calls of sunbird in cape honeysuckle.
Sat 22 Jan
Some rain on and off, weather, cold to mild.
Gazelle, a few sightings midweek, brief of the longer horn male gazelle in east field in proximity with at least 1 female. Also the other male gazelle in cistern area, He seems to use area from forepart of gazelle field, through cistern area to olive grove.
No foxes at all sighted recently.
Birds: today in forest: some great tit calls, blackbirds at dusk, black redstarts seen, one at rubble and one on dry stone wall by cypress grove, by cistern/windsurfer trail, where seen before. I think we can assume both these birds have been holding these territories continuously even though we have seen them intermittantly, we have often arrived at their habitats too late or when it was too windy. I also expect there are many more black redstarts about that we have not located, on bank, forepart of gazelle field, shaft area and other suitable habitat. Collared doves SW corner of east field as usual, also jackdaws, hooded crows, latter getting more vocal.
Stone curlews have been calling lately, have been able to hear them from the house evenings.
Sunbird calls in garden, laughing doves
Sun 30th Jan
cool/cold, rain on and off last couple of days. westerlies
Today still some flow in east watercourse late afternoon and some flooding onto field around look-out corner
Adult male gazelle seen crossing central trail approaching look-out corner, north to south.
Asphodels seen in bloom for the first time today! By valley road and in woods alongside. Also, graceful warbler heard, jackdaws, blackbird song yesterday. Hooded crows restless flying over east woods, white wagtails calling overhead, heading to roost. black redstart and hyraxes not seen, no doubt somewhere dryer, in deep foliage, under rocks.
More stone curlew calls after dark, lately, increasing.
cool/cold, raining on and off.
Gazelle: Mon: east field, three subadults. Tues. Adult male chasing female by small olive grove, another gazelle near them, female?
Tristram's starling: about and flying over lower part of neighbourhood, calling again.
Black redstart (?) female or immature up on line edge of buildings, near start of ramp down to valley road.
Garden: laughing doves foraging on ground, house sparrows as usual.
Hooded crows, jackdaws, feral pigeons about as usual. Today hoodie flock perched top of windsurfer hill.
Sunday Jan 16th
more raining off and on.
Observations pretty much similar lately.
Today, 6 gazelle: Two adult males together in woods nr bat cave, eucs by north watercourse, likely those males we've seen together in that area before. A female alone a short way west of them, a fourth grazing alone close to watercourse, two more by central trail.
End of last week, several subadults west slopes windsurfer hill.
blackbird in SONG in woods near central trail. light drizzle falling, almost sunset.
about a dozen white wagtails flew into that round dense tree on Elias, shortly after 4.30 p.m.
Almost 6.15 p.m. and raining again , thank God.
In garden earlier, laughing doves foraging on ground, alarm calls of sunbird in cape honeysuckle.
Sat 22 Jan
Some rain on and off, weather, cold to mild.
Gazelle, a few sightings midweek, brief of the longer horn male gazelle in east field in proximity with at least 1 female. Also the other male gazelle in cistern area, He seems to use area from forepart of gazelle field, through cistern area to olive grove.
No foxes at all sighted recently.
Birds: today in forest: some great tit calls, blackbirds at dusk, black redstarts seen, one at rubble and one on dry stone wall by cypress grove, by cistern/windsurfer trail, where seen before. I think we can assume both these birds have been holding these territories continuously even though we have seen them intermittantly, we have often arrived at their habitats too late or when it was too windy. I also expect there are many more black redstarts about that we have not located, on bank, forepart of gazelle field, shaft area and other suitable habitat. Collared doves SW corner of east field as usual, also jackdaws, hooded crows, latter getting more vocal.
Stone curlews have been calling lately, have been able to hear them from the house evenings.
Sunbird calls in garden, laughing doves
Sun 30th Jan
cool/cold, rain on and off last couple of days. westerlies
Today still some flow in east watercourse late afternoon and some flooding onto field around look-out corner
Adult male gazelle seen crossing central trail approaching look-out corner, north to south.
Asphodels seen in bloom for the first time today! By valley road and in woods alongside. Also, graceful warbler heard, jackdaws, blackbird song yesterday. Hooded crows restless flying over east woods, white wagtails calling overhead, heading to roost. black redstart and hyraxes not seen, no doubt somewhere dryer, in deep foliage, under rocks.
More stone curlew calls after dark, lately, increasing.
