Monday 17th April 2017 (b)

BUBO in CORSICA - part 3

Buoyed by our successful morning around Vivario, and with cotton wool clouds gliding across the bluest sky, we headed north to Corte, a town nestled below the higher, central mountains. From here, we took a minor road south west, up a deep valley cutting through the massif, known as Restonica Gorge. 

Restonica Gorge, Corsica

This was a popular tourist area and, since it was clearly a bank holiday on the island, there were plenty of people out and about enjoying the sunshine. If you read the guide books, it says you can drive the scenic road right up to the tree-line, however things had changed since then. We had to park about half-way up the gorge since the road had been washed away in a winter flood, I think just a few months ago. This meant though that we had a great walk, as we could just follow the tarmac road up the valley with no cars passing us. The conditions were fab too, nice and sunny but not too hot for an uphill hike.

Starting our walk up the Restonica Valley

The reason we couldn't drive up the road

The bird life here was not as visible as on our morning's walk through the pine forests, perhaps because it was a busier area. Jays were often seen and, no doubt due to the higher altitude, Ravens seemed to be much more numerous. Below us, in the pines alongside the river we heard Firecrests singing and at one point we picked out a Corsican Nuthatch calling. Looking down from the road, we saw it flitting around the branches of a pine but it wasn't very close and the sighting was very brief. They do seem to be quite elusive beasties.

There were plenty of tits in the woods here - Blue Tits of the race ogliastrae, Great Tits of the race corsus, and Coal Tits of the race sardus, none of which looked especially different to our birds. However, the Long-tailed Tits here - of the race irbii - seemed quite different, with a mid-grey back, very little pink colour, an open face and streaky cheeks. This subspecies of Long-tailed Tit has an odd distribution, occurring in southern Iberia and Corsica only. That's a bit of a gap in between.

Long-tailed Tit - Restonica Gorge

Ian scoping the cliff faces at Restonica Gorge

As we pushed on up the road, the trees were thinning out a little and we kept a close eye on the sky above the ridges, looking out for a particular bird of prey that occurs in these parts. Clearly, the sun shines on the righteous because, as we got higher, a shout came from behind me, and I turned around to see a superb LAMMERGEIER heading towards us! A real shock because, although it was a target species for the trip, we thought it might be a bit of a long shot since only a handful of pairs breed on the island.

It glided right towards us and I managed to take a few snaps, but as it got closer I resisted the camera and watched it pass overhead with my bins, properly taking in such a magnificent beast. This was the first time I had ever seen this species since I had never been anywhere where they breed before. It was such a distinctive bird - pretty massive, with tha odd oval-shaped tail, small head and bright orange underparts. We could even see its tiny moustache. Even though we were looking for one, this really felt like a bonus bird, and it meant five ticks for me within 24 hours of getting here.

Lammergeier, Restonica Gorge

Restonica Gorge

Other species that we saw near the top of our walk included at least 3 Blue Rock Thrushes flying around the top of an escarpment, which were on show only briefly, and a few more Cirl Buntings alongside the track. High above the cliffs we picked up a Peregrine soaring and even further away, like little dots above the snowy peaks, a few Alpine Choughs were seen.

There was other wildlife on offer, the most interesting being the Tyrrhenian Wall Lizards that were common on the roadside rocks and walls. This is one of the many species of wall lizard throughout Europe, this one endemic to Corsica and Sardinia and quite colourful creatures they were. We saw a few insects, including the more orange, less brown form of Wall Brown. The plant life was particularly varied with lots of unfamiliar flowers and trees, some of them endemic species. So we had plenty to look at as we descended the road back towards the car.

Tyrrhenian Wall Lizard, Restonica

Tyrrhenian Wall Lizard - Restonica Gorge

Cistus salvifolius, Restonica Gorge

Illyrian Star Lily, Pancratium Illyricum, Restonica

Illyrian Star Lily, Pancratium Illyricum, Restonica

Descending the Restonica Gorge

Pine bark

We still had plenty of time left of the day but we didn't really want to go further afield, so we decided we may as well go back to the Chalet Restaurant area near Vivario to have another search for Marmora's Warbler, as it wasn't too far out of our way. Unfortunately we couldn't find any this time either and no other new species were noted. Nevertheless we had a very pleasant walk round the meadow, looking at the flowers and the insects mainly.

Chalet Hotel meadow with many Asphodel flowers, Vivario

Small Heath, Chalet meadow, Vivario

Elder-flowered Orchid, Chalet Meadow, Vivario

Carpocoris mediterraneus Shieldbug (or similar species), Chalet Meadow, Vivario

The view from the Chalet Meadows as the clouds rolled in over the mountains.

We headed back to the mobile home, stopping at a bridge on the way where we saw a Dipper on the rocks by the fast-flowing river. Me and Andy climbed down to the rocks below to search some small pools for endemic amphibians, but all we saw was hundreds of bees drinking from the trickles of water. For the only time in the whole trip we managed to get back to U Sortipiani before it got dark and so we were able to enjoy some time on the verandadoing the day's log .

Our accommodation at U Sortipiani

The only evening we arrived back early enough to relax on the verandah

As the darkness started to draw in, Andy and I went down to the side of the river to look for amphibians as there are a few endemic species on Corsica which are not too hard to find apparently. Well we did locate a few tiny frogs, and manage to catch one of them. Looking in the field guide, we wasn't sure which species it was at the time, but since returning home we think it is almost certainly a juvenile Pool Frog, a widespread species in Europe. We also had a couple of moths to the outside light of the accommodation, most notable a Pale-shouldered Cloud, a rarity in the UK.

A young Pool Frog, U Sortipiani

I recorded some amphibians calling from what seemed like the swimming pool after dark. Andy thinks that these may be Green Toads (trilling) and Pool Frogs (quacking).

Pale-shouldered Cloud, U Sortipiani

Brindled Beauty, U Sortipiani

As we were already here, we decided that we would dine on site this evening. When we arrived, Xavier the owner - or Umberto as we were calling him, not catching his name until our last night - gave us another example of one of his home-made spirits, this one based on Myrtle berries apparently. The boys dined on a fine Wild Boar steak, which seems to be the meat of choice in Corsica, whilst I made do with pasta and veg again. We had a few more beers, were introduced to a very drunk Slovakian kayaker, and heard the Scops Owl calling again before we made our way back to bed.

Our walk up the gorge

Monday 17th April 2017 (a)

BUBO in CORSICA - part 2

Target for the first day on the island was the legendary Corsican Nuthatch. To get this species we'd have to climb higher up into the hills and the weather forecast suggested that today would be our best bet for mountain birding, with sunny skies and light winds. Later on in the week there was a bit of rain and wind forecast so we definitely wanted to get our prime target under our belts straight off. Unfortunately we didn't really have anything much to eat for breakfast apart from a few biscuits and milk-less tea but we enjoyed the Red Kite flying over the river. We set off west, up the valley towards the pine forests, the haunt of the enigmatic nuthatch.

We turned off the main road and onto a smaller, windier one crossing the hillside towards our destination. It may have been the heat, as I was wearing too many layers, or it may have been the heady mixture of last night's beer, wine and Clementine moonshine, or maybe just the constant curves in the road, but whatever it was, I suddenly felt the need to stop the car! After a few minutes of fresh air and peeling off a jumper or two, I felt well enough to carry on, luckily with my guts still intact. We made our way southwards towards the town of Vivario where we flushed a Grey Wagtail from the roadside. The woods above this town, below the Col de Sorba, were a well-known spot for the Nuthatch and most people who went there were successful, especially along a certain track a few miles past the town.

Above the town the road hugged the hillside, and as we came to a viewpoint looking down the valley, we saw a few finch-like birds fly down to the edge of the road next to a small wall. We stopped quickly and, through the car window, saw a couple of these were Greenfinch, but feeding with them were about five CORSICAN FINCHES. A distinctive bird with their yellow-green underparts and grey shawl around the nape, they were feeding on the ground, pecking for seeds right by where the cars pull in to look at the scenic view. These birds are very similar to the Citril Finches of the Alps and have only recently been split as a separate species. The big difference in plumage is the darker, browner back which has streaks, unlike the plain green back of the Citril. Also their habits and habitat are different, Corsican Finch being less restricted to Alpine areas. It occurs in Sardinia also but is endemic to this pair of islands and so has a very restricted world range. 

This was a new bird for all of us and we were excited we'd ticked before we'd even started proper birding! We pulled in and piled out of the car and took a few photos of the Corsican Finches, although they didn't seem to stay for long.

Corsican Finch, Belvedere de Pasciolo Lookout, Vivario

The lookout was called "Belvedere de Pasciolo" and was a very nice location to take in the habitat of the area. Looking uphill there were forests of pines, and looking below us there was the scrubby, bushy habitat that is known as the 'Maquis'. There were lots of interesting flowers on the verge including orchids and the ubiquitous Asphodel, and we could hear a Cuckoo calling.

Belvedere de Pasciolo Lookout, Vivario

Pink Butterfly Orchid (I think), Belvedere de Pasciolo Lookout, Vivario

Vivario

Just as we were about to head off again, whilst I was taking photo above, I could hear a distinctive but unfamiliar Sylvia warbler song from the bushes directly below where I was standing. I called the other guys back and we struggled to listen to where it was coming from. It didn't seem very far away and we wondered which species it was, as there are a variety of Sylvias in this neck of the woods. We hoped that it would be a singing Moltoni's Warbler, which we knew breeds in these parts, but we didn't know whether they would be in yet (although Ian had seen Subalpines in Mallorca last week). I tried a quick blast of Moltoni's song from my phone, and straight away a bird flew across and showed well in the bushes below us - a superb male MOLTONI'S WARBLER.

Moltoni's is a relatively new species, created by the split of one of the three forms of Subalpine Warbler - Western, Eastern and the 'middle one', which is this one. It breeds in the Balearics, Corsica, Sardinia and northern Italy and is only subtly different from Subalpine in plumage. You can just make out on the photos below that the underparts are a pale rose-salmon colour with none of the deeper maroon or orangey tones on either the western or eastern birds. The song does have differences I'm sure, but the main clincher is the call which is unlike any other form of Subalpine. Luckily for us, for confirmation, this one called a few times - a distinctive Wren-like rattle. We watched it for a while, being joined by a couple of Blackcaps and a selection of tits, sometimes coming quite close but eluding my camera when it did so. I couldn't believe my luck. Three lifers already and I'd barely walked ten yards! We left the lookout, and drove on to the nuthatch site.

Moltoni's Warbler, Belvedere de Pasciolo Lookout, Vivario

Moltoni's Warbler, Belvedere de Pasciolo Lookout, Vivario

Corsican Pine, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

In just a couple of minutes we had left the maquis and were driving through the pine forests on the steep slopes of the mountainside. We found a pull-in, parked up and set off for a stroll up a dirt rack. The skies were already a bright blue but there was a pleasant chill in the air to keep us cool. We'd had a listen to the calls and song of Corsican Nuthatch before getting out of the car, as we thought this was the key to finding one. The call reminded me a lot of a Whimbrel and we were pretty sure that we could hear one calling almost as soon as we set off but we had to try and get it pinned down.

Ian birding near Col de Sorba, Vivario

As is typical of pine forest birding, we didn't see a huge variety but we did find species very regularly along the track. One of the first we saw was a really nice Great Spotted Woodpecker which flew into a pine ahead of us. We were able to see that the bird had very dusky, almost pale brown underparts, which is typical of the endemic Corsican subspecies of Great Spot - parroti. A surprising species to see in amongst the pines was Cirl Bunting. I suppose if you are used to seeing them in the UK then you don't realise that they have a more varied habitat in Europe. We watched a pair of buntings at really close range and the female dropped down to a puddle on the side of the track to drink. There it was soon joined by a few Corsican Finches and we had some more great views of this species.

Corsican Finch, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

We pushed on and watched a couple of Crossbills in the top of a pine and then round the next corner we were sure we could hear nuthatch again. We listened for a short while looking up the slope, then suddenly I spotted a tiny bullet of a bird fly across and land in an overhanging pine bough. I got the bins on it and saw that it was indeed a CORSICAN NUTHATCH. Hallelujah!

It was a tricky bird to get a good view of as it was quick and kept disappearing amongst the tangles of needles, before popping up a short distance away. Also, it wasn't that close to us and we were looking up a steep slope against the blue sky. After a while of struggling it seemed to disappear and we carried on to see if we could find some more and hopefully get better views. When we got to the top of the ridge the woodland opened out a little and there was a little flurry of activity. A Woodlark sang from a branch and another Great Spotted Woodpecker showed well.

Woodlark, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

I came across a flock of about 15 or so Crossbills who were being very vocal and I managed to record a few of their contact calls. These birds were presumably of the endemic sub-species corsicana which is restricted to these high pine forests in the centre of the island. They are meant to be a slightly darker colour than northern European birds with the females lacking obvious green colouration. The photo below shows quite a dull, brown-grey bird with hardly any green tones, and to me it also seems to have quite a thick conical bill. The calls of Crossbills are notoriously complex group, with many different populations calling slightly differently. I can't find much info about the calls of Corsican Crossbill, but the spectrogram below has a distinctive and consistent pattern.

Crossbill, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

(note, as well as the Crossbills there are a variety of other species calling and singing on the recording)

MPL birding near Col de Sorba, Vivario

After a while of searching we failed to find any further nuthatches and, keen to get better views, we thought it sensible to head back down to where we originally saw the first bird. In the same spot as before we picked out another bird, this one looking like a female compared to the first, which we thought was probably a male, but it was behaving in a similar manner as before and again giving unsatisfying views. So we thought it was about time to crack open the mobile phone and play a few nuthatch calls to tempt it closer. I know that 'tape-luring' is sometimes thought of as bad news, but so long as it isn't persistent, I don't think it can have too much of a negative effect on the birds.

Well, it certainly had a positive effect on our birding, because almost straight away after hearing the sound, the male Corsican Nuthatch came down the hill to see us. It was again very quick and difficult to keep an eye on. As soon as you saw where it landed it was almost always gone when your bins shot up. But eventually it crossed the other side of the track and stayed in one pine for a while, where we all managed terrific views. Photography was still difficult - as the poor efforts below indicate - but it was such a privilege to see up close such an iconic species. When I used to flick through my European field guide as a boy, I never dreamed I'd see such exotic species as Corsican Nuthatch.

Corsican Nuthatch, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

Corsican Nuthatch, near Col de Sorba, Vivario (note that this picture has been heavily photoshopped!)

Corsican Nuthatch, near Col de Sorba, Vivario (another photoshop-heavy pic)

As we were all enjoying the nuthatch, someone shouted out "Gos!" pointing upwards. Above the pines, against the blue sky, a fantastic Goshawk drifted across! I didn't really have time to focus for a good photo but you can get the idea from the pic below. The Goshawks here are of the smaller and darker sub-species arrigonii which is restricted to Corsica and Sardinia, and is apparently quite an endangered bird with only about 150 pairs.

Goshawk, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

After the excitement of hitting our number one target species we strolled back to the car to go and search for some breakfast. Other species we recorded in this forest included four species of tit, a couple of singing Firecrest and Cuckoos, plus 4 or 5 Jays. Like with many other species, the Jays on Corsica are of an endemic race - corsicanus - and are meant to be a little bit darker in body plumage, although this was definitely not obvious (see photo below). We got back in the car and stopped at the Chalet Restaurant at the bottom of the hill to enjoy some well earned nourishment.

Jay, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

Corsican Hellebore, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

Corsican Hellebore, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

A well-earned coffee and pain au chocolat at the Chalet Restaurant

After our break, the sun was starting to get brighter but as we were at altitude we didn't feel too hot, so we decided to have a walk round the meadow on the hillside behind the restaurant, since people have recorded Marmora's Warbler here in the past. After a while we did find a Sylvia warbler singing from a line of bushes which was sounding very Marmora's-like, but it was very elusive. We did eventually get a quick view of it flit between bushes and it looked good, being long-tailed and plain greyish. Again we tried to tempt it out with the song playing on the mobile but it still wasn't being helpful, until it suddenly appeared at the top of the slope and showed us a bright rufous breast - it was a Dartford Warbler.

We did not record a lot of bird species here that were different from what we had seen earlier, the best being an Alpine Swift swooping distantly, high over the valley, but also a Red Kite, Raven, and what appeared to be a few more Corsican Finches. The meadow though was full of insects and there was a wide variety of unfamiliar flowers, so it was a very pleasant walk with plenty of interest to look at. However, as it was now nearly midday, we headed off north to try another part of the mountains for the afternoon.

Meadow behind Chalet Restaurant, near Col de Sorba, Vivario

Trying to tempt out Sylvia warblers behind the Chalet Restaurant

Map of the morning's birding locations.