Breeds colonially on cliffs or buildings, often in town centres but also in isolated farms. Feeds mostly in open country, often sitting on telegraph wires. The males are relatively easy to separate from Common Kestrels. They have plain rufous backs and blue panels in the upperwing and the lack of a dark moustache gives them a more gentle baby-faced expression. From below, their pale underwing contrasts with a darker, rather peachy-coloured body but beware that even Common Kestrels can look very pale in the strong Mediterranean light. Female and juvenile Lesser Kestrels are much harder to identify.

(also. turkish (ak karinli sagan)

In bulk, Alpine Swifts are over twice as big as Swifts and so they make an even more impressive spectacle when they whirl in flocks low over their breeding sites. The sight and sound of them screaming low over the streets of Istanbul is particularly memorable. Apart from their greater bulk, Alpine Swifts can be told from other swifts by the striking white patch on the belly and the fact that the rest of the plumage is much browner than on other swifts. Beware that some 'swifts with white bellies' turn out to be partial albino swifts so check that the belly is neatly defined, that the plumage is brown, not sooty, and, if you can, try to see the white throat patch which would be diagnostic of Alpine Swift.

Breeds in towns and cities and occasionally in old trees. Swifts appear most closely similar to swallows but they have longer, stiffer, more sickle-shaped wings and their plumage is all dark almost black except for a paler chin.

The Hoopoe is a bizarre creation with crazy black and white banding across its wings and tail, an eccentric black-tipped crest, long, down-curved bill and an orange coloured body. Its dramatic plumage is best seen when the bird flies with floppy, rounded, fingered wings, flicking like a big moth.

Breeds in parks, orchards, copses and gardens.

Bee-eaters, with their fantastic combination of rainbow colours and streamlined shape, are virtually unmistakable when seen well.

Breeds in holes in sandpits, riverbanks and quarries. Feeds in open or at least semi-open country.

Nests in holes in trees, rock faces or buildings. Feeds in open or semi-open areas often perching on wires. Rollers are unmistakeable birds, except perhaps in silhouette when their large heads and floppy-winged flight may recall a Jackdaw. In decent light though the blue wings and underparts and rich red mantle are easy to see even on the duller juveniles.

Still numerous in parts of Turkey.

Resident in dry open areas, especially extensive rolling plains and flood-plains. Short-toed Larks are readily told from most other larks by their plain, mostly white, underparts which are usually unstreaked except perhaps at the sides of the neck where there may be a few streaks or neat little black horizontal marks. They have a neat, pale supercilium which separates the crown from the rest of the head and can create a surprisingly obvious ‘capped’ effect. In shape they look dumpier than Skylarks with shorter tails, thicker necks and more conical bills. The lack of a white trailing edge to the wing separates them from Skylarks in flight.

Breeds in towns and villages and on farm buildings, bridges and occasionally cliffs. A House Martin is easily identified by its obvious rectangular white rump, not found on either Swallows or Sand Martins. It can be distinguished from Red-rumped Swallow by its squarer tail and whiter underparts and face.

(also. turkish kir kirlangici)
(also barn swallow)

Breeds mostly in farm buildings. Feeds in the air usually over open country. Swallows are slimmer and more elegant than the martins, a feature exaggerated by the long tail streamers of the adults. The dark throat and, of course, the all-dark rump separate them easily from House Martins and Red-rumped Swallows.

Summer visitor to sandy or stony heaths. The almost complete lack of streaks on the underparts is one of the best ways to tell a Tawny Pipit which also looks bigger and leggier than other pipits. The pale sandy plumage, bold eyestripe and prominent line of black feathers on the median coverts are also useful features. Juveniles are similar to Richard's Pipits, but are slimmer with a distinctive dark line from the bill to the eye.

Large numbers in Turkey.

Breeds in damp, rushy pastures, water meadows and hay fields. The races which have grey heads may look superficially like Grey Wagtails but they usually have greener or browner backs. The shorter tails and different calls of the yellow wagtails are always conclusive.

When a Nightingale does become visible it is seen to be a rather disappointing plain brown bird characterised only by whiter underparts, a richer chestnut colour on the tail and a conspicuous large, black, staring eye accentuated by a white eye ring.

Breeds in woodland, copses and thickets with lush undergrowth.

Breeds in rocky hillsides with scattered bushes. Male White-throated Robins are unmistakable; grey-blue above, orange below and with an immaculate black-and-white face pattern. Females aren’t so immediately recognisable; their grey upperparts and orange flanks might bring to mind Red-flanked Bluetail but the robin looks more like a small thrush or large nightingale and it has a black tail and prominent white undertail feathers.

5,000 breeding pairs in southern Turkey, part of a larger population distributed across Asia Minor.

Male Redstarts are delightfully gaudy birds, especially when flashing their red tails, trying to attract their partner to a potential nest site. The eye-catching red tail separates the Redstart from all other small birds except the darker, duller Black Redstart. Even the dullest female Redstarts have a pale throat and hints of orange in their underparts, unlike Black Redstarts.

Breeds mostly in deciduous woods, but also on heaths, parkland and moorland edges.

(also. northern wheatear)
Breeds in holes in the ground or in walls in areas of short turf such as moors, downs and cliff-tops. It is said that the name Wheatear derives from the expression 'white arse', a perfect description of how this bird appears as it flies away. Indeed, it is the white rump contrasting with the inverted black 'T' in the tail which separates a Wheatear in any plumage from all other British birds. Males in spring are handsome birds with blue-grey backs and black eye masks. Females and first winter birds are brown above and usually lack the dark eye patch.

Breeds in areas with tall bushes or trees such as olive groves, riversides, parks and gardens. Olivaceous warbler is a plain, rather non-descript bird whose most striking feature is its long-looking head and bill. The long, sloping forehead and relatively plain face indicate that this is one of the Hippolais warblers but it is smaller and slimmer than Olive-tree or Upcher’s Warblers and lacks the yellow tones of Icterine or Melodious. If, in the strong Mediterranean light, you’re not sure how much yellow is in the plumage then you should note that it clearly lacks the rounded head of a Melodious Warbler and the primary projection, pale bill and pale wing panels are nowhere near as striking as on an Icterine Warbler.

Breeds in olive groves and areas of damp woodland with bushes. Olive-tree Warblers are surprisingly easy to identify thanks to a combination of large size, striking pale wing panel and the way the massive orange bill contrasts with the bluish-grey head. Like Upcher’s Warbler they are bigger than Olivaceous Warblers and have a habit of waving around their dark-looking tail but the prominent pale wing panel, long-headed look and almost blue-grey upperparts should prevent confusion even if you’ve never seen either species.