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Spring Birding in Azerbaijan
Tour Code: AZE01An 11-day birding tour of Azerbaijan in search of the passage visitor, summer migrant and resident birds of this exciting destination.
£4,695
£3,795
Highlights
Tour Itinerary and Reports
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Summary
Straddling the border between East and West, Azerbaijan remains a little-known location for international birdwatchers, making it a very exciting destination for the keen naturalist! The short distances between wide-ranging habitats including dry steppes, lakes, subtropical forests, and picturesque mountains – notably the ‘Candy Cane Mountains’, uniquely coloured by oxidised trapped iron – ensure its popularity in years to come.
Azerbaijan really comes alive in the spring. The countryside is in bloom, the temperature is pleasant, and returning breeders – adorned in their summer best – join the residents in their droves, with all species at their most conspicuous as they sing and display, driven by the insatiable urge to reproduce. What is more, huge numbers of northbound migrants move through on their way to higher latitudes, where they will soon fill the vast expanses of steppe, taiga and tundra across Siberia.
On an itinerary crafted by expert local ornithologists, we'll explore Azerbaijan for its stunning landscapes and the region's most exciting species including Caucasian Snowcock, Caucasian Black Grouse, Black Francolin, Shikra, White-tailed Lapwing, Terek Sandpiper, Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, Great Spotted Woodpecker (ssp. poelzami), Bimaculated Lark, Western and Eastern Rock Nuthatch, Wallcreeper, Rosy Starling, Güldenstädt's Redstart, Raddes’ Accentor, Red-fronted Serin, Caucasian Twite, Great Rosefinch, Crimson-winged, Trumpeter, Desert and Mongolian Finch, Grey-necked Bunting and more!
- Superb Western Palearctic birding; Caspian Tit, Finsch’s Wheatear, Shikra, Black Francolin, Semi-collared Flycatcher, Pallas’s Gull, Chukar and more
- The alpine birdlife includes such species as Asian Crimson-winged Finch, Caucasian Snowcock, Güldenstädt's Redstart, Great Rosefinch, Mountain Chiffchaff, Caucasian Grouse, Steppe Eagle
- Search for the birdlife of a range of habitats, breathtaking landscapes and varied climate zones within a short distance of one another
- Participation in this tour supports scientific research, young ornithologist capacity building, and bird conservation.
- Led by an expert local ornithologist
Grading
Slow-paced day walks but in this mountainous country some of the walking will inevitably be on paths of varying steepness at over 3000m. Some remote areas are only accessible by 4x4 (Ladas) and therefore this tour is not suitable for any person who has underlying health conditions that may be agitated by travelling using this method away from tarmacked roads.
Outline Itinerary
Dates & Prices
2025
Tour Leader: Richard Bashford
Richard was born in Sandy, which played no small part in his early interest in birds. After leaving school, he began working for the RSPB on a variety of contracts until undertaking an environmental degree. In 1995 he worked for the British Trust for Ornithology, running the Breeding Bird Survey, but has worked back at the RSPB in Sandy since 2001 running projects such as the world's biggest wildlife survey - Big Garden Birdwatch. Richard has travelled widely in search of wildlife and has taken part in ornithological projects in Kenya, Botswana, Jordan and Albania and China (the latter searching for Spoon-billed Sandpipers). He has been leading tours since the 1980s and has led Naturetrek holidays throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, Middle East, North and Central America. He is very active in his home county of Bedfordshire, supporting survey work and spending much of his free time searching for birds, butterflies and moths.
2026
Prefer to Travel in a Private Group?
For any interested natural history club or society, we can arrange for a private departure of this tour.
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