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         Slovakia

 







Eurasian Pygmy Owl Glaucidium passerinum ©Fero Bednar http://www.wnp.sk/

Slovakia is essentially a land of mountains; high, snow-capped, rugged, often wild mountains. Birding here often involves some walking, if not trekking, and the mountains and forests do not always give up their delights easily. But delights there are: Eagle, Ural, Pygmy and Tengmalm`s Owls, Three-toed, White-backed, Middle Spotted, Grey-headed and Black Woodpeckers, Black Stork, Booted, Lesser-spotted, Imperial and Golden Eagles, Black Grouse, Hazel Grouse, Ring Ouzel, Red-breasted Flycatcher, Nutcracker, Common Rosefinch, Alpine Accentor and the enticing Wallcreeper to mention just a few. Though one invariably needs local expertise, incredible luck, or a combination of the two to see them, there are also Brown Bear, Lynx and Wolf in many of Slovakias forested mountain ranges. At the highest elevations, often accessible by cable-car or ski-lift, Chamoix and Marmots are often quite easy to see.

The Pieniny, Mala (Little) Fatra, Nizke (Low) Tatry and the rugged High Tatras are all typical ranges with dense broad-leaved forests at lower levels, mixed beech-conifer higher up, then spruce and alpine zones of dwarf pine and boulder-country around their peaks. But one must be prepared for sudden changes in weather and carry the right equipment, supplies and clothing when birding these mountains. In the very east of the country the Slanske Hills and Vihorlat Range are particularly good woodland birding areas which are not as rugged as the higher ranges and include some old virgin beech-spruce forests particularly good for White-backed Woodpecker. Here in the east, too, there are stable, if not increasing, populations of Saker and Imperial Eagle and in the very northeast the ranges of Thrush Nightingale and Common Nightingale meet.

Another fine area is the Slovensky Kras, a scenic karst, hilly region of gorges, broadleaved woods, scrub and meadows bordering Hungary, with Rock Thrush, Rock Bunting, a good selection of raptors and most of the woodpeckers. Besides mountains and forests Slovakia also boasts some fine lowland habitats, mainly along the Danube flood-plain bordering Hungary. The last Great Bustards in Slovakia hang on here: birds such as White Stork, Syrian Woodpecker, Short-toed Treecreeper, Red-backed Shrike, Golden Oriole, Serin and Icterine, River and Barred Warblers are fairly common in suitable habitat. In the southeast corner of the country the Senne fish-ponds and surrounding agricultural land and grasslands have a bird life more akin to the Hungarian Plain to the south - such as Little Egret, Purple Heron, Little Bittern, Spoonbill, Whiskered Tern, Red-footed Falcon, Bee-eater and Lesser Grey Shrike; and it has a reputation for turning up rarities.

Slovakia is a long narrow country, which stretches from its capital Bratislava in the very southwest, up against the Austrian border, to the Ukraine in the far east. To the north there is Poland, to the south Hungary and, to the immediate west, the Czech Republic. There is an airport at Bratislava but few international carriers land there. A better flight option is nearby Vienna or Budapest in neighbouring Hungary. A very organised outdoor, and in particular winter, sport based tourist industry means that almost wherever one finds oneself in Slovakia there is no shortage of accommodation, invariably inexpensive, ranging from hotels proper, newly established bed & breakfasts, zimmer-frei, camp-sites at lower elevations, mountain chalets and basic but well-placed cabins. Indeed, besides boasting some of Europes best mountain scenery Slovakia also remains one of Europes most affordable countries to visit.

  contributor

 

Gerard Gorman
gerard@probirder.com
http://www.probirder.com

  numbers

 
Number of bird species: 344

  useful reading

 

Birds Distribution in Slovakia

S Danko et al 688 pages, illus. Arbora Publishers 2002
ISBN: 8022407143
Buy this book from NHBS.com

  useful information

 

Proact


Coordinator: Peter Mandzak
Members: 6
Join us at http://www.proact-campaigns.net/team
Contact your coordinator via mailto:info@proact-campaigns.net

  clubs

 

Carpathian Wildlife Society

http://www.cws.szm.sk
The Carpathian Wildlife Society (CWS) is a Slovakian non-profit-making organisation (NGO) bringing together people with a shared interest in the research and conservation of large mammal and bird species in the Western Carpathian mountains. Established in 1994, the CWS is a young and dynamic organisation working to raise national, and international, awareness and increase understanding of the rich and varied wildlife of the Western Carpathians, with particular emphasis on endangered or threatened species. The CWS aims to find real-world answers to conflicts between wildlife and local people.

Slovak Wildlife Society

http://www.slovakwildlife.org
Helping to conserve Slovakia's endangered wildlife - The Slovak Wildlife Society is a not-for-profit organisation established in the UK in 1998. Our goal is to help ensure the long-term survival of endangered species in Slovakia through an integrated approach to solutions for sustainable co-existence with people...

Vitajte na stránke SOS/BirdLife Slovensko

http://www.vtaky.sk/
P0 Box 71, SK-093 01 Vranov nad Topl`ou. +421 931 4461120 sovs@changenet.sk

  reserves

 

Czech Biosphere Reserves Network

http://mab.kav.cas.cz/en/czech_br.html
Czechoslovak National MAB Committee...

Low Tatras National Park

http://www.liptovtravel.com/turistika/nt.html
Nesting birds, such as hawks (Pernis apivorus); golden eagles (Aquilla chrysaetos); irregularly migrating falcons (Falco peregrinus); black grouse (Tetrao tetrix); pygmyowls (Glaucidium passerinum); owls (Aegolius funereus); northern three-toed woodpeckers (Pycoides tridoctylus); and wall creepers (Trichodroma muraria); also live here.

Slovenský raj (Slovak Paradise)

http://www.slovenskyraj.sk/en.html
The National Park Slovak Paradise is situated in the eastern part of Slovakia. In 1964 it was proclaimed the Protected Landscape Area and in 1988 recategorised by the government imposition to be the National Park. The park covers the area of 19,763ha (197,63km2) and the protected zone 13,011ha (130,11km2).

Tatras National Park

http://www.tanap.sk/park/
The buzzard (Buteo buteo) is a permanent nester in subalpine parts of TANAP. It`s the most numerous of all birds of prey throughout Slovakia. It often shares an ecosystem with the Lesser Spotted Eagle.

Wetlands

http://www.ramsar.org
The Slovak Republic presently has 12 sites designated as Wetlands of International Importance, with a surface area of 38,208 hectares...

  trip reports

 

Travelling Birder
http://www.travellingbirder.com
The Travellingbirder.com birding trip report search engine guides you to 7,000+ birding trip reports on the Internet. You can search for trip reports from a specific country and time of year. Not all these reports are in English. So, if you can’t find the trip report you want on this Fatbirder page… give them a try!

2001 [August] - Jerzy Dyczkowski - Imperial Eagles in Slovakia

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/slovakia/slov1/slov2001.htm
Some weeks ago, JD and Pawel Brzek spent a nice birding week in Slovakia. We learned from the Eurobirder group, that this area needs ecotourists, so we produced this trip report...

2001 [June] - John Hornbuckle

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/hungary/hungary3/hung2001.htm
Roy Frost and I visited Hungary and Slovakia for a week at the invitation of my Sakertour friends, Zoltán Ecsedi and János Oláh. The timing was a little late, mid-April – end May being the optimum, because they were occupied with guiding bird tours till then, but was very successful...

2002 [May] - Honeyguide

http://www.honeyguide.co.uk/pdfs/Slov02-web.pdf
A Pdf file

2003 [May] - Honeyguide

http://www.honeyguide.co.uk/pdfs/2003slovakia.pdf
Pdf

2004 [May] - Hasse Berglund - Eastern Slovakia

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/slovakia/slov2/slov-may-04.htm
...The highlights of the area were a pair of Imperial Eagles, which soared above, or sat in a pine on the slope of the hill. They were interested in the Sousliks (European Ground Squirrels) which were abundant on the grazed pastures. Another Souslik hunter was the Saker we managed to spot when passing the hill on our way back towards Kosice! Among other interesting observations were Turtle Doves, Wryneck, Marsh Harrier, Nightingale and Crested Lark...

2005 [August ] - G J White - Slovakia, Poland & Belarus

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/slovakia/slovakia4/slovakia-2005.htm
This report is a compilation of observations during three trips to eastern Europe in 2005; twelve days in Slovakia and southern Poland in June, three days in western Poland in early July and four days in Belarus in early August...

2005 [July] - Brendan Threlfall & Suzanna Ivanic

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/slovakia/slovakia3/CzechRepublic05.htm
...Slanik, South Bohemia – Impressive numbers of birds in the area. Golden Oriole were particularly common. A Green Sandpiper on a small patch of mud on the riverbank was a surprise...

2006 [May] - Richard Dunn

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/slovakia/slovakia-5/slovakia-may-06.htm
...Up very early unable to sleep very well because of the Nightingale singing just outside in the wood across the road, which we saw well when it got light enough to see. Before breakfast we went birding around what appeared to be the local allotments. Many good birds here the highlights being plenty of Golden Oriole a couple of which showed well, a shabby looking white-headed race Long-tailed Tit and territorial Hoopoe’s in the village...

  tour operators

 

Atypus

http://www.atypus.cz/nspecial.htm
We will look for all nine woodpeckers, Great Bustard, Wallcreeper, Imperial Eagle, Saker, Tengmalm`s and Pygmy Owl, Bluethroat, Moustached Warbler and many others...

Birding Pal

http://www.birdingpal.org/Slovakia.htm
Local birders willing to show visiting birders around their area...

Carpathian Wildlife Society

http://cws.szm.com/trip.htm
The CWS strongly believes that eco-tourism has a vital role to play in changing local attitudes and long-held beliefs about wildlife in Slovakia...

Centre for Scientific Tourism in Slovakia

http://www.ecosystems.sk/
Flood plain forests along the Danube are the home of diverse avifauna, such as cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo); avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta); little bittern (Ixobrychus minutus); night heron (Nycticorax nicticorax); green woodpecker (Picus viridis); golden oriole (Oriolus oriolus); black kite (Milvus migrans); white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) etc...

E-Tours

http://www.etours.cz/
We have been organizing the birdwatching tours since 1991. We work for leading UK and world`s birding tour operators and various associations. We have three main criteria in designing the BW holidays : Professional competence and personality of expert group leaders and the local ornithologist Choice of the most interesting sites Smooth organization and a comfortable environment to ensure customer enjoyment and commercial success. E-mail us for a detailed itinerary and birdlists! info@etours.cz

Ecotours

http://www.ecotours.hu
Our company was formed with the intention of popularising birding trips in Hungary, birdwatching, butterfly, wildlife and nature tours in Eastern Europe The natural Choice in Eastern Europe and worldwide

Naturetrek

http://www.naturetrek.co.uk/wildlife-holidays-in-europe/country.asp?ID=35
A 9-day tour in search of the birds and plants of the wetlands, mountains and forests of Slovakia...

Probirder

http://www.probirder.com
Slovakia is essentially a mountainous country with the impressive High and Low (don`t be misled by the term low) Tatras arguably the most well known outside the country. Each range has it`s own character but overall they are typically rugged, forested and some often snow capped.

Sakertour

http://www.sakertour.hu
Established in 1994 by Prof. J. Oláh and field ornithologists. Specialising in bird tours in The Carpathians, covering Hungary, Slovakia and Transylvania...

Sunbird

http://www.sunbirdtours.co.uk/brochure_2003/europe/slovakia/slovakia.html
...Wallcreeper, Nutcracker, and Alpine Accentor. The Slovakian karst could add Pygmy and Tengmalm`s Owls, Three-toed Woodpecker, Rock Thrush, and Rock Bunting...

Travelling Naturalist

http://www.naturalist.co.uk/tours2009/slovakia_butterflies.php
Join us for a special spring tour to Slovakia for a host of Eastern European speciality birds - and an unbelievably close view of Brown Bears in the wild...

  other links

 

Birding Slovakia

http://www.birding.sk/
Bird sightings...

Tatry

http://www.tatry.net/nature/wildlife/
...Tatry Network: complete information on wide Tatry region...

  artists

 

Photographer - Fero Bednar

http://www.wnp.sk/
My name is Fero Bednar. I am a freelance photographer born in Ruzomberok, Central Slovakia in 1973. My main subject of photography is nature, but as an amateur ornithologist I am specialized primarily in avian subjects and their biology. I am a Canon EOS system user. I hope you like my photos...

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