Baltic Flyway Tour: Lithuania Latvia Estonia

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1 Baltic Flyway Tour: Lithuania Latvia Estonia Baltic flyway is one of the most imortant birds migration route in Wester Palearctic. Each spring millions of birds pass along the Baltic Sea towards breeding grounds in Scandinavia and Russia. Geese, ducks, seabirds, raptors, waders, passerines all of them are passing over the Baltic s and landing to the particular areas to have a rest and feed before continuing their journey. During this tour in short time we will visit the best 6 birdwatching hotspots from all three countries: 1. Nemunas delta Regional Park a huge nature complex of the flooded meadows, shallow bays of the Curonian Lagoon, oxbow lakes, mires with flooded forests of the Nemunas delta create unrivaled conditions for hydreds of thousands of swans, ducks, geese and waders to stop and rest in spring at the half-way point to the breeding sites in the North. The site is also important breeding place for various threatened bird species ducks, waders, terns, raptrors and others. Geese in Nemunas delta. Photo Marius Karlonas 2. LT. Curronian Spit National Park on the western shore of the Curonian Lagoon there is a 100km long and up to up to 3km wide arm of sandy dunes called the Curonian Spit. This natural phenomenon is the only place in the Baltic states where birds, especially passerines and rapotors, use as a highway and the numbers passing through on the season s peak days surpass one million. The Baltic Sea s coastal waters are an important stopover and wintering area for seabirds; espacially seaducks and divers.

2 Curonian Spit. Photo Marius Karlonas 3. LV. Liepaja city and surroundings including NATURA2000 site Liepaja lake. City is located at the bottle neck between the lake and Baltic sea. Despite of name "city" this area and surroundings are very important stopower place for many migrants. Seaside, dunes and harbor area with piers as well as lake and its coastline creates a very diverse habitat. Latvia`s only known place with resident Crested Lark population. Liepaja lake and wet meadows around it creates perfect conditions not only for waterfowl, geese and waders, but also for many passerine species includind rare thrushes, like Ring Ouzel. White-tailed Eagle. Photo Eugenijus Drobelis

3 4. LV. Kemeri National Park to offer some relief after the spectacle of Western Lithuania s and Latvia s bird migration the route travels towards Northeast to Kemeri National Park. Birdwathers knows this Park well for it s great variety of woodpeckers and grouses (White-backed, Middle-spotted, Grey-headed, Black woodpeckers and Hazel Grouse). Three-toed Woodpecker. Photo Armandas Naudžius 5. LV. Lubans area after Kemeri NP route goes even more deep into the Wester Taiga forests Northeastwrds to biggest lake in Latvia Lubans lake wetland area. This spot is almost perfect for birds and birdwatchers: in the fishponds it is posible to observe waterfowl, White-tailed Eagle and waders and the surrounding forests are rich of rare forest species: Ural Owl, Pygmy Owl, Three-toed Woodpecker, Hazel Grouse, Capercaille and many more. Capercaille. Photo Eugenijus Drobelis

4 6. EST. Saaremma almost 80 km long island in the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia makes perfect conditions to observe migration and rare seabirds. Despite spectacular geese, waterfowl, passerines migration here we will have great oportunity to find rare Steller s Eider! Steller s Eiders. Photo Marius Karlonas Target Species: Thousands of geese (White-fronted, Bean, Pink-footed, Lesser White-fronted, Barnacle, Brent, etc.); various duck species (Steller s Eider, Common Eider, Velvet Scoter, Black Scoter, Goosander, Smew, Long-tailed duck, Pochard, etc.); Black and Red-throated Divers; gulls (Greater and Lesser Black-backed, Caspian, Little, etc.); waders (Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, Redshank, Curlew); Lesser and Greater-spotted Eagles, White-tailed Eagle, Ural Owl, Pygmy Owl, Capercaillie, Hazel Grouse, Three-toed Woodpecker, White-backed Woodpecker, Middle Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Woodpecker, Black Woodpecker, Common Crane, Great Grey Shrike, Nutrcacker, Crested Lark. Up to 130 different species will be seen during this tour.

5 Itinerary: March 31st Starting in the morning from Klaipėda - birding in Nemunas river delta - in the evening driving to Nida (Curonian Spit) April 1st Birding in Curonian Spit - in the evening dirving to Latvia Liepaja. April 2nd Birding around Liepaja - in the evening driving to Kemeri NP April 3rd Birding in Kemeri NP - in the evening driving to East Latvia- Lubans area April 4th Birding in Lubans area - noon driving to Saarema. *Long drive (8hours) and ferry to Saaremma. April 5th Birding in Saarema April 6th Leaving Saarema and driving to the airport in Talin. Details Date: 2018 March 31st April 6th. (7days / 6nights) Starting point: Klaipėda Tour ends: Talin (posible transfer to Riga or Vilnius if your flight is late in the evening of April 6 th or next day) Group: min - 6, max - 15 persons. The tour can start only with minimum number of customers. Language: English Tour leaders: Karlis Millers, Marius Karlonas Distance: ~1800km Accomodation: 5 high quality local hotels in the countryside. Food: included three meals per day. Price: 990 eur/ pp. Registration deadline: 2018 January 15 th Registration birding.lithuania@gmail.com Additional information: If the most birders of the group will wish, we will organize transfer of customers from Klaipeda to the Nemunas delta immediately after the end of the Conference, i.e. on the 30th March. This allow to have more time for birding on the 31st March. However, the accomodation will be on the own budget of the customers, although organizers can make booking of high quality hotel for resonable price in Ventė Cape.