"Butterflies and Birds of North Macedonia" - 'Naturetrek' Trip, June - July 2025

 Every year I take a wildlife holiday to somewhere in the world that I have not previously visited. In 2023 it was Japan, in 2024 it was The Gambia and this year I chose a shorter holiday, closer to home, in North Macedonia (formerly part of Yugoslavia). Two of my major wildlife interests (bird watching and butterfly photography) were well catered for and there was the chance to see other wildlife (particularly invertebrates and reptiles) that are not encountered in the UK and Western Europe. Unfortunately, the original leaders had to pull out due to illness. They were replaced at short notice by Slave, who proved to be an excellent and knowledgeable bird guide and leader, and Marek, the butterfly expert, who came all the way from the Czech Republic and proved to be a very keen and enthusiastic leader on all things 'butterfly'. Our group of 14 clients contained a considerable amount of expertise and I found that, as in The Gambia, that whilst at home I may be considered the 'local expert', here I was of little help in species identification. The party included some very keen 'moth-ers', who brought their moth traps with them and were up at 4.00am to check what the traps had captured.

North Macedonia is a small and beautiful country of mountains and plains. It is also very hot, with temperatures above 30C being 'the norm' for the time of our visit. In fact, temperatures reached 40C on our first two days, when most of our wildlife watching was done early or late, before returning to normal (around 30 - 35C) for the rest of the trip. The food was good and plentiful (perhaps too plentiful at times, as we were treated to some large lunches in cafes and restaurants). The first hotel (three nights) was good, although the air conditioning in the second hotel (four nights) left a lot to be desired and led to some poor sleeps. Only 'Wizz Air' departures from Luton fly directly to and from Skopje (the capital of North Macedonia) and they depart late in the evening, meaning that our arrival at the first hotel (12.30am) and our arrival back at Luton (2.00am) led to sleep deprivation (a common factor, it seems, on my wildlife holidays). I'll deal with the wildlife in three sections, Birds, Butterflies and Everything Else.

Typical Scenery in North Macedonia

Birds

I didn't come out with a 'wish list' of birds to see on this holiday. I have seen most of Europe's breeding birds and was more interested in getting good photos of (preferably) some of the species that we don't get in the UK. In fact, only three of the species that we were likely to see (Eastern Imperial Eagle, Ortolan Bunting and Rock Partridge) would be new to me. We saw the eagle on the first day and the Rock Partridge (which I thought at the time I had previously seen but in fact hadn't) later in the holiday, but the Ortolan Bunting remained elusive, despite Slave's best efforts to find one for me and one being seen by one of the other clients on the holiday. Ironically, an Ortolan Bunting was being 'twitched' in England whilst I was away! There were some good sightings nonetheless, including Lesser Spotted Eagle and both Dalmatian and White Pelicans. In all, we saw 138 species on the trip. Here are a few of my images.

Male Crested Lark, Singing

Male Lesser Kestrel

White Stork (they were nesting just up the road from our second Hotel)

Tawny Pipit

Black-headed Bunting

Butterflies

Around 200 species of butterfly can be found in North Macedonia, and we ended up with a trip list of 117 species (about twice the total number of species that can be found in the UK, and bear in mind that not all those species will be on the wing in midsummer). I had decided beforehand that I wouldn't make a big effort to see as many as possible, but would try to photograph a good variety. Marek was an enthusiastic 'netter' and a few of my fellow travellers also used nets to catch and, in some cases, place the butterflies in containers before (of course) releasing them after others had seen them. In this way, I probably saw all but a handful of these species although this wasn't an entirely satisfactory way, for me, of getting 'ticks'. We saw the Macedonian Grayling, the only North Macedonian endemic, as well as the very rare Yellow-legged Tortoiseshell Butterfly. As always, it was very difficult to sort out the rarer 'blues' from the masses of Common Blues, Small Blues and Brown Argus butterflies that were present everywhere we looked. Sometimes, as many as 200 could be seen 'puddling' in the mud together. Very few Swallowtails were seen, but Scarce Swallowtails were everywhere and at one site around 40 were seen together, picking up minerals from the mud. Many different species of Fritillary were seen, and it was interesting to note the hugely variable markings on the Lesser Spotted Fritillaries and (the commonest Fritillary), the Queen of Spain. Look at the following two images, both of Queen of Spain, for example.

Queen of Spain Fritillary, 'Standard' Markings

Queen of Spain Fritillary. Note the darker, heavier markings than on the Butterfly above

Common Blue, Small Blue and other Butterflies 'Puddling'

Eastern Greenish Black-Tip, a rare and localised Butterfly

Everything Else

One of the pleasures of the holiday was in seeing invertebrates, reptiles and amphibians that are rare or absent from Western Europe, such as the Four-lined Snake that was in the process of strangling a poor Blue Rock Thrush chick when we came across it near the entrance to a road tunnel, and the many Hermann's Tortoises that we saw. A good variety of dragonflies were seen, of which the Small Pincertail (image below) was the commonest. Giant Bush-crickets and huge Lacewings were encountered, as well as a variety of lizards. Very few mammals were encountered, but there was so much of everything else that it didn't really matter. I can heartily recommend North Macedonia for those who have a general interest in wildlife, in particular birds and invertebrates.

Small Pincertail Dragonfly

Four-lined Snake

Green Lizard

An attractive species of Ascalaphid

Valencia Wildlife Sightings, October 2023

 Towards the end of October my partner and I spent a few days in Valencia in south-east Spain. This was not only a holiday break, but a chance for us both to do some (particularly architectural) photography in Spain's third city, which is situated on the Mediterranean coast. The weather was very warm (mid-20s Celsius during the day) and dry, very different to the weather that I had been subjected to back home. In addition to some spectacular architecture (foremost being that of the City of Arts and Sciences), Valencia is situated very close to the Albufera National Park, which we visited for a few hours on one day.

Our hotel was near the beach and a very short distance from the harbour and docks. Every morning I went on pre-breakfast walks in various directions, always close to the sea. Familiar gulls seen were Black-headed, Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed, but I was also pleased to see a number of Audouin's Gulls, always singly. This is a comparatively rare gull, that nests nearby and over-winters here. Valencia has several parks and green spaces and I read somewhere that three species of parakeet can be found here. However, the only parakeets that I came across were Monk Parakeets, an introduced species (as all Europe's parakeets are), which is becoming common and widespread in many parts of Spain. Crag Martins were seen hawking insects around the coastal hotels, but small passerines other than House Sparrows and Robins were thin on the ground. The commonest species of bird appeared to be Collared Doves (seen practically everywhere) and the ubiquitous Feral Pigeons.

Audouin's Gull, Valencia, October

Monk Parakeet, Valencia, October

Our visit to Albufera produced several species not seen elsewhere on the trip, including Greater Flamingo, Black-winged Stilt, Ruff, Common Redshank, Common Sandpiper and some warblers, tentatively assigned as Common (not Iberian) Chiffchaffs, although my photographs - one seen below- are not conclusive.

Greater Flamingo near the Visitor Centre, Albufera National Park, October

Chiffchaff (?), Albufera NP, October

We saw several raptors in Albufera, including an Osprey that was carrying a rather peculiarly-shaped fish (I thought at first that it must have got its talons stuck in a branch), Black Kites and several Marsh Harriers. Spotless Starlings were present in their thousands, and one huge ball was attacked by a Peregrine (or was it just toying with them - it certainly didn't catch any). Kestrels and a Sparrowhawk were also seen. Water birds included Mallard, Shelduck and a flock of 100+ Red-crested Pochard.

Spotless Starling 'Ball', Albufera NP, October

Osprey with (I presume) a Fish, Albufera NP, October

Invertebrates seen included several unidentified Dragonflies and a few common butterflies. The best sighting was of a Plain Tiger butterfly, a new species for me, which looks similar to the Monarch butterfly. Its stronghold appears to be in North Africa, but presumably it is spreading northwards due to climate change.

Plain Tiger Butterfly, Albufera NP, October

Trip to Japan - January - February 2023

 The Covid-19 pandemic from 2020 put an end to my wildlife globetrotting adventures for some time. Planned holidays were postponed and then, in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, my planned trip to Kamchatka and Chukotka, originally organised for 2021, was cancelled. I decided to transfer to a winter visit to Japan in early 2023, in the hope that that country would open up for visitors without having to undergo a period of quarantine, which it thankfully did in November 2022.

Getting in to Japan was still not straightforward but, having satisfied all the entry requirements, I eventually arrived on 31 January after a thirteen hour flight. Our party of eight 'Naturetrek' clients and our leader spent a day in Tokyo before heading up to the northern island of Hokkaido for a five night stay - for me, the main part of the holiday with so many bird watching highlights. We transferred back to Tokyo for another night, before heading north west for a two night stay in the town of Nagano, from where we would visit the 'Snow Monkeys' for the final winter highlight of our trip. Then it was back to Tokyo for a final night and, whilst some stayed on for an extension, I came home on a fourteen hour eastwards flight, to complete a circumnavigation of The Earth.

As westerners who have been to Japan will probably agree, this country is unique in many aspects. The food is very different and the people are incredibly polite and helpful. However, I was surprised to find that vehicles drive on the left hand side of the road! On escalators people also (logically) stand on the left, rather than on the right as in the UK. Japan has undergone much stricter Covid-19 protection procedures than the UK and the wearing of face masks indoors in public places was obligatory. Whilst there had recently been a relaxation of face mask wearing outdoors, many Japanese continued to wear masks at all times in public, except when eating and drinking. I could say a lot more about the country itself, but I was there to see the wildlife!

Tokyo

Although we spent three nights in Tokyo, bird watching was restricted to an afternoon on the first day, spent in a park adjoining Tokyo Bay, and a later morning in the gardens of the Imperial Palace. Whilst these walks, accompanied by good weather, were peppered with new species for me I was surprised by how many water birds were familiar to UK bird watchers. Mallard, Gadwall, Teal, Wigeon, Pintail, Greater Scaup, Tufted Duck and Goosander were all seen here, as were Great Crested, Little and Black-necked Grebes. Spot-billed Duck was a new bird for me, but a particular highlight was seeing a flock of Falcated Ducks in the Imperial Palace gardens. I have only seen these birds in collections before - the male is a truly beautiful bird.

Male Falcated Duck, Imperial Palace Gardens, Tokyo, 7 February

Other Tokyo highlights included seeing Japanese Pygmy Woodpeckers, Japanese Tits (a very common bird and closely related to the Great Tit), colourful Varied Tits and Japanese White-eye.

Hokkaido

Hokkaido is the northernmost of Japan's main islands and is a very special place for wildlife. Indeed, my main reason for visiting was to see some of its special birds. In early February, when we visited, it is covered in snow and has temperatures ranging from -5C by day to -20C by night. There was heavy snowfall on the first night of our stay. The UK would have ground to a halt under such conditions, but Hokkaido (literally) ploughs on and we were able to get around unperturbed in our minibus/small coach. The first special birds that we concentrated on were the Red-crowned Cranes. This extremely rare bird almost became extinct in Japan. Thankfully, it is now recovering, helped by the provision of winter feeding stations in southern Hokkaido. We visited two of these stations. The cranes are photogenic birds, particularly when photographed against the snow on the ground and the dense woodland in the background, and I spent happy times taking images of them flying, landing, taking off and displaying. The red crowns are not very obvious at this time of year, so I had little hesitation in converting images to monochrome - a typical example is shown below.

Red-crowned Cranes, Hokkaido, 2 February

Moving on, we headed north and east, heading for Rausu on the coast of Hokkaido. Rausu is known for its spectacular winter gathering of Steller's and White-tailed Eagles, which sit on the harbour walls and will snatch fish from the sea when these are thrown out from the many boats that take tourists out to watch and photograph them. We went on two boat trips, a mid-afternoon one when the birds must have been satiated, because very few were coming for fish, and an early morning one, where we set off at dawn (6.30am) when the recorded temperature was -14C! On the early morning trip, the eagles were only too happy to swoop down and pick up the proffered fish, but I struggled again to get enough light into my Nikon D7500 camera with 100-400mm lens (as I had struggled in Georgia last October) in the available half-light. Nevertheless, these trips were a great experience and I doubt whether I will ever get the chance to get so close to wild eagles again.

White-tailed (left) and Steller's Sea Eagles, Hokkaido, 4 February

Whilst in Rausu we made a couple of evening visits to a local hide, with a set-up for seeing one of the rarest owls in the world, Blakiston's Fish Owl. The hide overlooked a river and, at the side of the river, a pool had been dug in the ground where a number of fish were placed every evening. The 'arena' was lit by a strobe light, such that if we set our cameras to 1/80 second and used a very high ISO, we could capture images of the owls, as and when they arrived. On the first night we had two visits from these huge, fluffy owls and I was able to capture a few images of the sequence as the owls arrived, dropped into the pool, emerged with fish and flew off. On the second evening there were no visits but on both occasions, as we walked back to the minibus, we could see the pair of owls perched in a bush by the side of the river.

Blakiston's Fish Owl with Fish, Rausu, Hokkaido, 3 February

We saw another Blakiston's Fish Owl at the hotel where we had our final night's stay in Hokkaido. There were bird feeders by the side of a stream, that passed just outside the lobby of the hotel, with a wonderful indoors viewing area where we were able to watch Eurasian Jays, Dusky Thrushes, Japanese and Marsh Tits, Japanese Pygmy and Great Spotted Woodpeckers and other birds at close quarters: a photographer's dream! Despite getting very little sleep due to continuing jetlag and having to suffer in the exceptional cold, the visit to Hokkaido was a wonderful experience that I will never forget.

Nagano - Snow Monkeys

Having travelled to Nagano, situated in a hilly region north-west of Tokyo, by bullet train (we returned in a minibus) we were able to spend a day and a half in the region doing a bit of bird watching, but also visiting the Jigokudami Monkey Park, where the 'Snow Monkeys' bathe in a pool of hot water, produced by hot springs (there is much volcanic activity in the region). Normally there is a lot of snow in this region, but on our visit there was little around and the crampons that we had brought along with us were not really needed. There wasn't much bathing going on on the visit, although one monkey was enjoying herself in the pool (image). However, the various antics of the monkeys (adults and young) kept us amused for a pleasant few hours. Bird watching in the Nagano area produced Japanese Green Woodpecker, Japanese Grosbeak, Japanese Accentor and Meadow Bunting, amongst many others. Other mammals seen on the trip included Steller's Sea Lion (Hokkaido), Sika Deer and Red Fox (common everywhere).

'Snow Monkey' (Japanese Macaque), Jigokudami Monkey Park, 8 February

Over the holiday I saw 88 bird species, of which 31 were 'lifers'. Other group members saw a few additional species and those who flew south for the holiday extension would have seen many more. However, I was very happy with what I did see on what was another wildlife 'holiday of a lifetime'.