Destinations
The air holidays shown are ATOL Protected by the Civil Aviation Authority. Our ATOL number is ATOL 3253. ATOL Protection extends primarily to customers who book and pay in the United Kingdom. Click on the ATOL logo if you want to know more.
Crete 10 – 17 April 2012
Conservation project
The lammergeier conservation project is run by the Hellenic Ornithological Society, BirdLife Greece. In the Balkans, lammergeiers occur only in Greece, with the bulk of the population on Crete. Alongside survey, monitoring and raising public awareness, the long-term survival of Europe's rarest vulture is being tackled by site protection, food provision and the encouragement of traditional grazing systems.
Thank you letter from HOS for the donation of €812 in April 2011 here.
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There is a network of Important Bird Areas in Greece, details of which are on HOS's website. This link takes you through to the Crete page. Crete is a big island and many of the IBAs are off-islands, distant peninsulas or mountain ranges, distant from our itinerary. However Kourtaliótiko Gorge, close to Plakias, is listed, where lammergeiers and Bonelli's eagle are seen regularly. |
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Records from the group in April 2011:
Lammergeier (Bearded Vulture) Gypaetus barbatus
1 Kourtaliótiko Gorge 6 April; 2 Kourtaliótiko Gorge 8 April; 1 Kourtaliótiko Gorge 9 April
Bonelli’s eagle Hieraetus fasciatus
1 Kourtaliótiko Gorge 8 April; 2 Kourtaliótiko Gorge 9 April
More information about the work to protect bearded vultures - as they prefer to call them in Greece - here on the website of the Hellenic Ornithological Society and the Natural History Museum of Crete.
Why bearded vulture? Lammergeier translates to 'lamb vulture' which conveys the wrong image and wrongly suggests they may take live prey.
Lammergeier
– or bearded vulture
