Bird spotting In Turkey 2013

• My wife and I stayed in a lovely hotel, the Green Nature Resort and Spa, which is in Marmaris. This meant that while I spent some of my time exploring, she could relax by the pool.

Turkey 9-13th July 2012

• The purpose of this short tour to Turkey was to see the recently (re)discovered Brown Fish Owl and to catch up with Krüper’s Nuthatch that I somehow managed to miss during an earlier trip to Turkey...E.J. Alblas reports.

Sarigerme, SW Turkey 1st - 15th October 2010

• I awoke at 7am local time and got straight out – it was a bright sunny morning – it had poured down over night!. Jay’s, Water Rail and Cetti’s Warblers were making a right racket in the marsh...Dougy Wright reports.

South West Turkey 17-24 May 2010

• The first bird I saw as I got out of the car was a female White Throated Robin carrying nesting material into a bush. There were birds everywhere...Gareth Jones reports.

Olu Deniz, Turkey 16th-23rd Oct 2009 .... A short report from Gary Oliver

A family holiday to Olu Deniz area, Turkey 19th August-1st September 2008

• The bird had a black face & white supercilium and perched for approx 2 seconds then flicked right out of sight. I got out of the car to investigate, but the bird had just vanished...Garry Bagnell reports.

South West Turkey, 26 May-1 June 2007

• Several more Syrian Woodpeckers were seen, a superb male Masked Shrike and the only Long-tailed Tits of the trip.  In a gully not far up the track a cracking male Ruppel’s Warbler displayed, which was the first of many...Mark Easterbrook reports

Akyaka Turkey 13th August -20th August 2006

• There is a large reed bed area,river delta  and river system which supports a good number of birds.Whether you are staying in Akyaka or in the vicinity this area is well worth a visit....Mark Graham reports

Dalyan, South West Turkey 28th May-12th June 2004.

• A great country to visit - for birdwatching and a general holiday.  The Turks are fabulously friendly and hospitable and Dalyan itself is a pleasant quiet resort, albeit rapidly expanding outwards....Dominic Bates reports

South West Turkey 6th - 19th April 2003

• The snow was melting fast in this area exposing pastures with colourful crocuses springing up every where. This spot was very rich for birds... I soon located a nice male Finsch's Wheatear and later found a second one. There were also a couple of Black-eared Wheatears. A small flock of 8 Red-fronted Serin fed on the damp pasture land....Bob Swann reports

South Western Turkey (Olu Deniz and surrounding area) 27th July - 10th Aug 2002

• This two week trip was undertaken as a family holiday (hence the date) and not as a birding holiday. From my experiance, the area must surely be of great interest during spring with a wide range of habitats with easy access. The birding during July -August was extremely hard work, not so much thwarted by the extreme temperatures, but by the shear lack of numbers of birds (although anyone with an interest in insects would have a field day!)

South West Turkey 16^th -22^nd October 2001

• We continued north up to Atburgazi and turned left along side the northern edge of Karine Golu (more large coastal lagoons). Here in the distance on a large sandbank were 50 Dalmation Pelicans, which were soon joined by another 30 that glided in to join them. Also on the sandbank were a group of Pygmy Cormorants and there were more on the water beyond them, again about 80 in all. At one stage the pelicans and cormorants all started feeding in a dense flock moving quickly through the water...Bob Swann reports

South West Turkey based at Patara Autumn '95

• My impression of Patara is that the birdwatching potential is very good indeed. Most of these species were seen within a five mile radius of the village. Anyone who has transport could really open up the area and increase the number of species to be seen.... John Bateman reports

South West Turkey based at Hisaronu 12th-26th Sept '94

• The area is certainly well worth visiting, both from a birdwatching aspect but also as a holiday area. The locals are extremely friendly and the cost of living is extremely low. I saw 126 species, over 40 of them new for me, and all this without a car.... John Bateman reports.

Birds of the Middle East R.F. Porter, S.Aspinall: Buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk This is a completely revised second edition of the bestselling field guide to the birds of the Middle East. For the first time, the text and maps appear opposite the plates, and as a consequence there are fewer species per plate than before. The text and maps have been fully revised and many new artworks have been painted. There are more than 100 new species in this new edition, which features more than 810 species in total. It will be the essential field guide for anyone visiting the Middle East.

The Birds of Turkey (Helm Field Guides) Guy M. Kirwan et al: Buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk Detailed accounts of the status and distribution of all the birds ever recorded in Turkey. An indispensible guide for any serious birder visiting Turkey.

Birds of the Middle East R.F. Porter, S. Christensen, P. Schiermacker-Hansen: Buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk If your going to this region you must buy this book. It is a great break through. Comprehensive and complete, it eliminates the need to carry too many books in the field: we know how important that is! The text is well written by experts, and many of the plates are fantastic; those by John Gale especially stand out; just dream about those raptors! Birds of the Middle East" is the first comprehensive field guide dealing exclusively with the birds of this region. It covers all the species, including vagrants likely to be seen in Turkey

Collins Bird Guide Lars Svensson et al: Buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk Europe's best Field guide. If you only carry one field guide on a trip into Europe then this should be it. It provides all the information needed to identify any species at any time of the year, with detailed text on size, habitat, range, identification and voice. Accompanying every species entry is a distribution map and numerous illustrations to show the species in all the major plumages (male, female, immature, in flight, at rest, feeding, etc).

Recommended travel books for Turkey

Lonely Planet: Turkey Tom Brosnahan, Pat Yale, Richard Plunkett: Buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk This guide to Turkey provides details on getting around, places to stay, places to eat, and entertainment options.

The Rough Guide to Turkey Rosie Ayliffe, Marc Dubin, John Gawthrop: Buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk I used this book on holiday in Turkey last year and I found it had all the vital information required to make my holiday a greater experience. Every detail beaches, restaurants, customs, food and what to watch out for were all explained very clearly. On the subject of food, I was advised NEVER to eat mussels sold by locals on the beach, but unfortunately I read the book 1 day too late!