Life on Athens and Kythira

A trip to the Greek capital Athens and the island of Kythira yielded some good times, lovely views, lots of laughs with new(ish) friends, and sightings of quite a few species of bird, invertebrates and plantlife we’d not all “ticked” before. Here are a few snaps of the various species:

Dark Bush Cricket, Pholidoptera griseoaptera

Egyptian Grasshopper, Anacridium aegyptium with its striped eyes on mullein

Blue-winged-Grasshopper, Oedipoda caerulescens

European “Preying” Mantis, Mantis religiosa (juvenile)

Western Marsh Harrier, Circus aeruginosus

Long-tailed Blue, or Pea Blue, Lampides boeticus

European Bee eater, Merops apiaster, on a feeding break during migratory passage

Female Sardinian warbler, Sylvia melanocephala

Male Sardinian warbler, Sylvia melanocephala

Blue Rock Thrush, Monticola solitarius (an old-world flycatcher, not Turdidae)

Sea daffodil, Pancratium maritimum, Aghios Nikolaos bay, below Moudari Lighthouse

Tamarisk, or Salt Cedar, over The Aegean Sea, Kythira

Hummingbird hawk-moth, Macroglossum stellatarum

Southern Meadow Brown, Maniola jurtina janira

Pristine Swallowtail on Bourgainvillea in Mylopotamos

Mediterranean Speckled Wood, Pararge aegeria sp., Mylopotamos

Large White, Pieris brassicae, along the river in Mylopotamos

Mastikha, Pistacia lentiscus, plant on which Sardinian Warbler thrives

Female Praying Mantis joins our yoga class on Kythera

Yellow-legged Gull, Larus michahellis, one of only a couple of gulls we saw

African Monarch, Plain Tiger, African Queen, Danaus chrysippus

Toxic Drimia maritima, Sea Squill, Sea Onion, Maritime Squill

Common Buzzard, Buteo buteo, on the goat track between Karavas and Platia Ammos

Eleonora’s Falcon, Falco eleonorae, along the goat track, we had seen them before

Red-rumped Swallow, Cecropis daurica, one of several flocks, of up to 20, migrating south

Female Violet Carpenter Bee, Xylocopa violacea

Male Violet Carpenter Bee, Xylocopa violacea

Two-tailed Pasha, aka the Foxy Emperor, Charaxes jasius

Blackcap, Sylvia atricapilla, feeding in a fig tree, Green Chafer above

Spotted flycatcher, Muscicapa striata, happy to be photographed by end of week.

Birds
Alpine Swift
Barn Swallow
Bee Eater
Black Stork
Blackbird
Blackcap
Blue Rock Thrush
Blue tit
Booted Eagle
Cetti’s Warbler
Collared Dove
Common Buzzard
Common sparrowhawk
Eleanora’s Falcon
Great tit
Grey Wagtail
Hobby
Honey buzzard
Kestrel
Kingfisher
Lesser Kestrel
Levant sparrowhawk
Marsh Harrier
Peregrine
Raven
Red-rumped Swallow
Redstart
Robin
Sardinian Warbler
Scops owl
Spotted Flycatcher
Swift
Willow Warbler
Yellow-legged Gull

Butterflies
African Monarch
Blue-winged grasshopper
Cleopatra
Clouded Yellow
Dark Bush Cricket
European Swallowtail
Grayling
Large Tortoiseshell
Long-tailed Blue
Mediterranean Speckled Wood
Painted Lady
Red Admiral
Scarce Swallowtail
Skipper (European?)
Southern Meadow Brown
Two-tailed Pasha

Other invertebrates
Ants
Cicada
Common Plume
Scoliid Wasp, Scolia hirta
Dragonflies
Egyptian Grasshopper
Hummingbird Hawk-moth
Oriental Hornet
Praying Mantis
Red-winged grasshopper
Silver Y moth
Small Dusty Wave moth
Southern Skimmer
Striped Shieldbug
Turnip Moth
Violet Carpenter Bee

Plants
Almond-leafed wild pear
Carob
Cypress, funereal, male and female
Fig
Giant fennel
Giant Reed
Juniper
Kephalonian pine
Kermes Oak
Large Mediterranean Spurge
Lemon
Lime
Maiden hair spleen wort
Maritime pine
Mastika
Mulberry
Mullein
Norfolk island pine
Oleander
Olive
Oriental plane
Pomegranate
Portuguese laurel
Prickly Pear
Rock samphire
Sea daffodil
Sea holly
Sea squill
Sharp-leaved rush
Smilax
Spiny asparagus
Strawberry tree
Tamarisk
Tree heather
Umbrella pine

Vertebrates
Brown Rat (deceased)
Cat
Cattle
Dog
Fish
Goat
Lizards (No ID: brown/green, large/small)
Sheep

Scat
Goat
Sheep
Stone Martin