Long-eared Owl (Asio otus)

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus), a photo by bill kralovec on Flickr.

This past weekend I had one the most amazing birding experiences in my life. We visited the town of Kikinda, located in the northern plains of Serbia near the border with Romania. The town square is populated by hundreds of long-eared owls during the winter as they communally roost and breed during this time. It is like a big love fest!

As I wrote above, there are hundreds of owls in the trees in the central park of the city. This is the biggest communal roosting site in the world. The conditions around Kikinda are a paradise for the owl. The inefficient agriculture of Serbia, as opposed to the industrial farming techniques of North America and Western Europe, leave enough grains in the fields after harvesting to support a huge population of voles. Voles are a rodent that is the favorite food of the owl. They are prolific breeders and in a couple of generations, there are millions of them. Also, the small patches of forest combined with open fields, are the ideal habitat for the long-eared owl.

My friend, Dr. Milan Ružić, is working to conserve and promote this awesome roosting site. He showed us the owl exhibition site in the town’s museum and taught us about the natural history of the owl. Absolutely amazing experience. An owl sighting is quite rare, but here in Kikinda, there were so many owls. There were also thousands of owl pellets, which are great to dig through to see what they are eating. 85% of their diet are voles.

I highly recommend visiting Kikinda in the winter. There have been up to 500 owls in the square and a record 165 in own big conifer near the church.

Owen with Dr. Ruzic

Finally, there were two things I learned about owls from Milan. First, is they have the softest feathers of any bird, and second, they are so smart that they can only get mist-netted once. They learn to identify the nets, and unlike other birds, learn to avoid them in the future.

In Serbian it is known as the Utina.

Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia)

Wild Flower, a photo by bill kralovec on Flickr.

We found this Harebell at 1,976 meters in the Kopaonik National Park. The Harebell is found in the Northern Hemisphere throughout the world and in the US it is known as the “bluebell.” The petals are fused in the shape of a bell. I learned in my research that the flower is dedicated to the Catholic saint Dominic, the founder of the Dominican order of the Church.

Least Weasel (Mustela nivalis)

On my way to school this week I sadly came across this weasel. It was killed by a car the night before.. It is on the main road of Dedinje (Ulica Užička) and about 50 meters further on was a big hedge hog. I always stop for road kill, as it is a good way to learn about the animals that live in the neighborhood.

i think this is a weasel, as most of the locals identified it as one (Ласица – lasica) It is the biggest weasel I ever saw. According to my research, they do vary greatly in size. It is quite common throughout both Europe and North America. They are adaptable animals that can live in a variety of habitats. They have high metabolisms and are excellent, strong hunters. Most of their diet are mice and other rodents.

Grey Heron (Ardea cinera)

Grey Heron (Ardea cinera), a photo by bill kralovec on Flickr.

I am back after a long absence. I was on summer holidays in Bolivia and Vermont and now am back in Belgrade. We went on a boat tour of the Sava River. Near the dock on the Zemun Kej, I immediately spotted a Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) on a small island in the middle of the river. It was sitting quietly with a lot of mallards close by, as you can see one on the lower right of the photograph.

The Grey Heron is a large, impressive looking bird. It has greatly benefited from its ability to thrive in urban environments. Besides fish, it is a scavenger on food scraps and garbage. There is plenty to eat on the Sava River. In the Serbian language, it is called a Siva Čaplja, which means, Grey Heron.

Vetches (Vicia sp.)

Vetch, a photo by bill kralovec on Flickr.

On a walk in the Fruska Gora National Park we spotted many wild flowers in the open areas near the forests. I’ve seen vetches all over, including Friendship Park in New Belgrade. Their are 140 species in the genus Vicia. Vetches belong to the bean (legume) family and are important “nitrogen-fixers.” This means they have nodules on their roots that take nitrogen from the air and incorporate into the soil. They are an important source of fodder for ruminants.

Speckled Wood Butterfly (Pararge aegeria)

I photographed this in a meadow just outside the woodlands of the Fruska Gora National Park. The edge of woods is its prime habitat and it is commonly found throughout Europe. In Serbian, it is known as Šumski pegavac. The Speckled Wood species is a member of the sub family “the browns,” which belongs to the Brush-footed Butterflies. We were in a meadow near Bukovac, Serbia, which is near Novi Sad.

European Fire-bellied Toad (Bombina bombina)

You can see why they are called Fire-bellied Toads

Last weekend we were hiking through the Fruska Gora National Park and in the puddles in the trail, we saw quite a few of these small toads. They were quite easy to catch and my son Owen was so excited to catch one! They are slightly noxious to humans, although we didn’t get any reaction from handling them. They have a typical toad dark back (see below) but underneath they are brightly colored. This is a warning to predators that they do not taste good. I was tempted to take some home as pets, as the oriental species of the genius are quite common pets. The toad is also not an endangered species.

The puddles were quite small and must dry up. I read that April and May are the breeding season and tadpoles are develop in July. They must move to bigger areas of water to lay the eggs. A nice species of toad and I’ll be looking for more of them in future walks.

Cockchafer (Melolontha melolontha)

Cockchafer, a photo by bill kralovec on Flickr.

My uncle noticed this large beetle on our balcony on April 30, 2011. The beetle was climbing on the railing in our third floor apartment.

After some research, I identified it as the Cockchafer, or as it is known colloquially, as the May Bug, or Billy Witch, or Spang Beetle. It is a member of the Scarab Beetle family. The reason it has so many colloquial names is that it used to be a major agricultural pest, kind of like the flocks of locusts in the Bible. They are now under the control of pesticides, but they still do cause damage. They often are seen attracted to lights at night.

I am not sure why they are called “cockchafers” or what the name of the beetle is in Serbian. They are called May Bugs because they emerge as adults in late April and early May.

This particular specimen is a male – identified by the seven lobes on its antenna. It didn’t fly when we let it go and it was the only one we found.

Lawn Daisy (Bellis perennis)

Daisy, a photo by bill kralovec on Flickr.

I snapped this photo on a beautiful spring day Sunday. It was early morning in our yard and the daisys were just opening up. They get their name from “days eye” which comes from this habit of the petals opening during the day. The pink fringe on the petal shows when they are closed like this. The Daisy is native to Europe, but spread throughout the world. I’ll have to make a “daisy chain” with Ocean.

It never ceases to amaze me the wonders of nature even in the back yard!

First Signs of Spring in Belgrade

The Common Primrose (first rose – Primula vulgaris) announces that spring (proleće) has arrived in Belgrade. The garden in our new apartment was full of them. I learned in my research that the Primrose was former UK Prime Minister Ben Disraeli’s favorite flower and he founded the Primrose League as a conservative political party. I also read that they were edible so of course Owen, Oliver, and I had to try them. They tasted like lettuce.

I’ll be blogging a lot more with the spring flowers as I usually do. It was a long, quiet winter for me on the nature scene.

Our yard is blooming with Primroses

W