Corfu birds
There are many birds on Corfu and they can be divided into two big categories: The ones that stay permanenty on Corfu and the ones that spend some time on Corfu and then migrate to other places. We'll try to give a little more info on some of the birds, but you can also skip to the beautiful photo gallery at the bottom of the page to admire some beautiful birds!
Seagulls
First of all there are the seagulls. Always there near the sea, with their characterisitc screams. There are several different species of seagulls on Corfu and maybe sometime we will ask a biologist to sort them out for Green Corfu. For now we just have to say that they basically feed on fish and so keep company to fishermen's boats, but as smart birds they have adapted to consumerism and now also feed on our garbage...
Scops owl
The Scops owl is one of the most characteristic birds of Corfu becaus of the sound it makes. At night these owls communicate through a very short, rhythmical scream, that sounds like a whistle. Sometimes you can hear three or four of them talking to each other, all with a slightly different tone and a slightly different frequency/rhythm. These owls are about 20 cm high, with a wingspan of 50 cm and hunt at night on mice, rats, snakes, frogs, toads and other little titbits! One night, a scops owl came into our house by accident and stayed with us a whole day! It's an adorable creature with a very impressive gaze! That's why in Ancient Greece they were associated with Athena, the goddess of Wisdom.
Buzzard
The buzzard is one of the largest predator birds of Corfu. They are about 50 cm high and have a wingspan of between 1 and 1.5 meters. They usually live alone but sometimes you see them in couples (probably during the breeding period). They eat almost anything, even carrion. What should be noted is that while they were very rare 20 years ago, their numbers seem to be increasing lately. One very plausible explanation is that some years ago the spraying of the olive trees with pesticides by plane was finally stopped. All those poisons probably accumulated up the food chain and poisoned the predators. Fortunately, things seem to be going better!
Swallows
Swallows come to Corfu in February-March and stay until October-November. They are said to "bring the summer" with them! They nest on rocks but are not afraid of humans and also build nests in many houses using mud they carry in their mouth, as you can see in the first video.
At dusk, swallows seem to all go for a fly downtown... If you happen to be in Corfu town around sunset, you will no doubt hear and see literally thousands of swallows flying over the old town and chirping all together. No idea if they are going home or just out to meet other swallows, but it sure is impressive, as you can see on the second video!
The funny thing is that swallows that are born in a nest manage to find that same nest next year, after a great journey that takes them to Africa and back! Great sense of orientation! And one more thing about swallows: they are extremely clean! From a very young age they learn to turn with their tail outside the nest to poo so that their droppings fall on the ground. So, if you have a swallows nest, just putting a tile or a newspaper under their nest should be enough to keep your balcony clean. And never tear down a swallows nest! They bring good luck!
Migratory birds
A lot of birds spend some months on Corfu or use it as a short stop on their journey to the North or South. Especially the lakes of Korission in the south and Antinioti in the north of the island serve in the spring and fall as a sanctuary of great numbers of migrating birds. If you are lucky, you may even come across a great flock of Flamingo's!
Corfu birds
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