European Bee-Eater - Hajdudorog, Hungary
At no time in my life have I ever thought I’d be visiting Hungary, but wildlife photography changed that. We’ve just returned from a thoroughly enjoyable trip, based in the superb Bibic Nature Lodge in Balmazújváros. https://www.bibiclodge.com The people are very friendly, nothing is too much trouble, food and accommodation is superb. Hungary itself is a very beautiful country and I was impressed to only see one item of discarded rubbish (a beer can down a country track) throughout the whole week we were there.
The trip was purely hide-based affording close views of a good number of species and guests are free to choose which hides they want to use on any particular day. We were part of a group of six photographers and the arrangements worked well for us all. A typical day started at 5am with a return for lunch around midday and then a second session from 3 or 4pm until 8pm, dependant upon species and location. Additionally there are a couple of all day sessions, with a slightly later start and earlier finish.
The only reservation we had about the trip is that most hides require shooting through glass, with the inevitable effect on image quality. If images are shot at 90deg to the glass the problem can be dealt with fairly simply with the latest post processing software, but as the angle to the glass gets more acute, the issue cannot be rectified.
Getting the dates right for the trip are quite important, but require a deal of luck as well. There is a finite window when the chicks of each species have hatched, but before they fledge and naturally this can vary from species to species and year to year. We were fortunate in having the maximum opportunity, despite only one of the three pairs of Hoopoe being successful. Only the Jackdaws fledged while we were there, but we had already photographed the adults prior to that.
It’s unlikely we’ll repeat the trip, but there are others in the same area covering different species that are appealing and we’d happily go for those in the future. As ever, anyone reading this and interested to know more, please get in touch through the Contact tab.
Basic species list for this trip:
Hoopoe
Kestrel
Red-footed Falcon (including backlit shots)
European Roller (including backlit shots)
Lesser Grey Shrike
Sparrowhawk
Hawfinch
Turtle Dove
Eurasian Jay
Little Owl
Marsh Harrier
Buzzard
European Bee-eater
Red-backed Shrike
Brown Hare
If you’re very lucky, Pine Marten too.
