A second Golden Oriole in the garden today. This is either a female or a sub-adult male. Looks kind of cool against that green background. It was squawking back and forth with the adult male. #BirdingHungary #orioles #birds #birding

Finally managed to get an adult male Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus) out in the open long enough to grab a pic. Such a spectacular bird. You can see why it likes to stay under cover. That retina-blasting yellow is a visual magnet for predators. #BirdingHungary #orioles #BirdsSeenIn2026

Syrian Woodpecker (Dendrocopus syriacus). It shuns the deep forest and instead likes to hang out in suburban parks and gardens with lots of open spaces. Most of the time when I see them, it's around human habitation. #BirdingHungary #woodpeckers #WoodpeckerWednesday

Two weeks ago, there were few #shorebirds around. Just the resident breeders like lapwings, stilts & avocets. Then boom! This weekend there were lots of species. This was the commonest of the new arrivals.. Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola) #BirdingHungary #sandpipers #waders #WaderWednesday

Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria). In Europe, where the plant is native, I have never seen it form the large, dense, choking stands that make it such a problematic invasive species in North America. #WildHungary #wildflowers #WildflowerPower

Black-winged Stilt (Himatopus himantopus) #BirdingHungary #stilts #shorebirds #WaderWednesday #waders

Can you spot the male Black Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius) in this tangle of willow branches? I waited and waited for him to come out but no dice. He just flew off in the other direction. 😛 #BirdingHungary #woodpeckers #WoodpeckerWednesday

This baby Roe Deer was licking at a big pothole in a country road. Maybe trying to get some minerals from the rocks or sand? Not sure, but it was reluctant to move when I approached in the jeep. Anyway, I had to give it a lecture about standing in the road. 😄 #WildHungary #deer #OhDeer

I guess this is the bird version of UberEats. 😅 European Roller (Coracias garrulus) delivering a big fat beetle to a fledgling. #BirdingHungary #rollers #BlueMonday #MondayBlues

A svelte lady 😀 Montagu's Harrier (Circus pygargus). About 25% lighter and slimmer than Hen Harrier or Northern Harrier. Big wing surface area for a bird that only weighs about 450 g (1 lb) so it can float on the breeze. #BirdingHungary #BirdsSeenIn2026 #BirdsOfPrey #harriers #hawks

Eurasian Hoopoe (Upupa epops) looking very sharp. Lots of these around right now as the young are leaving the nest. #BirdingHungary #BirdsSeenIn2026 #hoopoes

When I told the Golden Oriole he was going to be famous, he did a little song and dance for me along the branch. 😄 #BirdingHungary #orioles

Here's one for #SundayYellow Juvenile male Eurasian Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus). The only oriole in these parts. Belongs to a different family than the #orioles in North and South America. #BirdingHungary #BirdsSeenIn2026

Another portrait of yesterday's male Bearded Reedling (Panurus biarmicus) #BirdingHungary #reedlings #BirdsSeenIn2026

Juvenile male Bearded Reedling (Panurus biarmicus). You hear them a lot more than you see them as they like to stay deep in the dense reed beds. But on occasion they pop out. Their legs are so black, it looks like they put shoe polish on them. 😄 #BirdingHungary #BirdsSeenIn2026 #reedlings

Fall migration is in full swing. 14 species of shorebird today including this pair of Temminck's Stints (Calidris temmincki) #BirdingHungary #shorebirds #waders #stints #peeps #sandpipers

Right at sunset yesterday... this ♂️ Eurasian Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) was flying around in circles with half a mouse in its beak. If he ain't gonna eat it right away, he should put it in the fridge. 😂 #BirdingHungary #falcons #raptors #BirdsOfPrey

Post-breeding dispersal is in full swing. So many juvenile #birds around right now and many of them have not yet learned to be afraid of humans. Here's a fledgling Whinchat (Saxicola rubetra) #BirdingHungary #flycatchers #FlycatcherFriday

A pair of European Bee-eaters (Merops apiaster) trying to hang on in the wind 💨 😀 #BirdingHungary #Bee-eaters #birtds #birding

Mom and dad White Storks are getting ready to par-tay. 😀 Their teenagers will be leaving the nest soon. #BirdingHungary #storks #bigbirds #waders #birds #birding

A bevy of Pintado Petrels (Daption capense). One of the commoner #seabirds in southern oceans. #SouthShetlandBirding #petrels

Here's a very cool seabird... Light-mantled Albatross (Phoebetria palpabrata). The blue sulcus on the lower mandible makes it look like they are always smiling. Just enjoying their freedom on the open ocean. 🌊 😀 #seabirds #albatrosses #SouthShetlandBirding

This bird beefcake is a Southern Giant Petrel (Macronectes giganteus). Big and strong. An apex predator / scavenger of the southern oceans. About 1 in 10 birds is a white morph like this one. #seabirds #DrakePassage #petrels #GiantPetrels

Male Red-backed Shrike (Lanius collurio). These #shrikes will be around through September but in the late summer, it is almost all juveniles. #BirdingHungary #birds #birding

Lesser Gray Shrike (Lanius minor) with a big, tasty beetle for lunch. These birds migrate early. By mid-August, they will be scarce. #BirdingHungary #shrikes

How about a #MeadowlarkMonday ? 😄👍 Here's one from the archives... Long-tailed Meadowlark (Leistes loyca) on the Falkland Islands #BirdingFalklands #birds #birding

European Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur). Nothing to do with the reptile. I guess somebody thought "turtur" was Latin for turtle but it's actually a reference to their call ... a soft "turrrr... turrr". #BirdingHungary #doves #pigeons #birds #birding

Another one for #MacroMonday Marbled White (Melanargia galathea). #WildHungary #butterflies #bugs #insects #lepidoptera

🎵 It's just another #MacroMonday 🎸 😀 This dapper dude is Platycnemis pennipes aka White-legged Damselfly #WildHungary #damselflies #dragonflies #bugs #insects

Cuteness overload! 😄 European Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) grabbing a quick snack. A favorite prey of so many predators but very hard to catch. They like the steppe because the short grass makes it easier to spot danger. #WildHungary #squirrels #rodents #groundsquirrels

A young male Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus) #BirdingHungary #harriers #hawks #BirdsOfPrey #raptors

This European Roller (Coracias garrulus) probably spent all morning combing its tail. Then the wind came along and made a mess of everything 😂😂😂 #BirdingHungary #rollers #birds #birding #BigBlueBird

Check out these aerodynamics ✈️ Like a tiny missile. 😀 Howling wind today so this European Bee-eater (Merops apiaster) would face into it and flatten itself to minimize resistance. Otherwise it had trouble staying on the fencepost. #BirdingHungary #Bee-eaters #birds #birding

Any #lacrosse players out there? Check this out. I saw a cloud in the shape of a lacrosse stick. 😀 🥍 #clouds

In the 40 celsius (104 F) heat, the three species that are most active are Bee-eaters, Lesser Gray Shrikes and these guys... European Roller (Coracias garrulus). The common name comes from their acrobatic display flights. #BirdingHungary #rollers #birds #birding

♂️ Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus). For the past couple of weeks in the north Kiskunság, it seems like 80% of the #harriers I see are males. Where are all the chicks? Where are all the juvvies? They must be on vacation. 😄 #BirdingHungary #hawks #raptors #BirdsOfPrey

I always wanted that killer shot of a Common Hoopoe in flight but could never seem to manage it. They just ain't coöperating, even when I tell them they could be a social media ⭐ 😂 This is the only image I could manage this week. #BirdingHungary #hoopoes

A lady European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) #BirdingHungary #FlycatcherFriday #flycatchers

During the hottest days of summer, this is almost a "trash" bird around here. 😄 European Bee-eater (Merops apiaster). Their specialty is snagging bugs in the air, but sometimes they land on the ground to search for some easy pickings. #BirdingHungary #Bee-eaters

Short video of Sunday's Little Owl (Athene noctua). Notice on the back of the head there are two darker patches with a white line over them, that from a distance, resembles the pattern on the face. I think that's to confuse predators. #BirdingHungary #owls #raptors #BirdsOfPrey

I think the Little Owl (Athene noctua) was very excited about my visit. 😂 #BirdingHungary #owls #BirdsOfPrey #raptors

Super bright, sunny & hot day ☀️☀️☀️ ... and this Little Owl (Athene noctua) was sitting on a post right next to the road. Cars, tractors, motorcycles were going by just meters away and it didn't give a shyte. Just sat there for 10 minutes. 😀 #BirdingHungary #BirdsSeenIn2026 #owls #BirdsOfPrey

Closer view of one of today's Great Bustards (Otis tarda). Like so many birds, they open their beaks when it's hot to dispel excess body heat. #BirdingHungary #bustards #BigBirds

The time of year when Great Bustards (Otis tarda) can be hard to find. The crops are high and the heat (39 celsius - 102 F) makes them inactive. But today, I saw a flock of 23. Just heads sticking out of a field. 😀 #BirdingHungary #BigBirds #bustards

Singing male Barred Warbler (Curruca nisoria). Most of the Sylvia and Curruca #warblers around here like to sing under cover, so hard to get a decent photo. #BirdingHungary #BirdsSeenIn2026

#Birds don't sweat. So when it's very warm, they will open their beaks to dispel body heat. Many birds are inactive during the hottest part of the day, but not the European #Bee-eaters (Merops apiaster). They love the heat because it brings out the bugs en masse. #BirdingHungary

A short video of Savi's Warbler (Locustella luscinioides). With sound you can hear a dry buzzy trill that sounds like an insect. That's its song. Very iconic spring sound in the Hungarian wetlands. All the Locustella #warblers around here sound like bugs. 😀 #BirdingHungary

Male Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus), the common summer harrier in these parts. #BirdingHungary #harriers #raptors #BirdsOfPrey #hawks

Lesser Gray Shrike (Lanius minor) with lunch.... a slightly mashed beetle. 😋 #BirdingHungary #shrikes

I'm fond of alliterative hashtags so how about #WhinchatWednesday 😁 Here's a fledgling male Whinchat (Saxicola rubetra) trying to figure out what to do with his life. Here's a quick guide 1. Find bugs. 2. Eat bugs. 3. When it gets cold, go to Africa. That's about it. 😃 #BirdingHungary