Olive Tree Warblers - a real bogey bird - until Romania!!

If there’s one bird that’s been an absolute nightmare to see on our travels it’s the Olive Tree Warbler. It is another biggish warbler but if anything is even more frustrating than the Barred Warbler (See previous blog). I’ve lost count of the times we’ve tried just to get a glimpse of one, particularly in Lesvos. They have a distinctive scratchy and quite discordant song, so you know where they are, but they are extremely reluctant to show. Again Dimiter knew where there were birds - with the risk of repeating myself - you will never find typically difficult birds like these without local knowledge! We were parked up alongside some bushes, again using the jeep as a hide, but this time the birds started to show fairly well. I could hardly believe that we were seeing these birds that are so difficult to see on e.g. Lesvos, where their sites, (exclusively olive groves there), are so well documented. I have been asked numerous times by other birders on Lesvos if I have seen any and I have indeed asked others the same question - It’s always the same answer – heard them singing but no views! It was therefore, after literally years of frustration, a huge pleasure to get superb views, and an even greater sense of satisfaction to unbelievably photograph what really are very awkward birds indeed.