High Tatras, Slovakia (Hohe Tatra, Slowakei) (Magas-Tátra, Szlovákia) 08.2013.

In August 2013 we visited the Slovakian part of the beautiful High Tatras which is one of the most famous national parks of Slovakia. The weather was rather dry and the vegetation was already somewhat autumnal. We also visited the botanic garden at Tatranská Lomnica to see some of the botanic highlights of the Tatras - many of these are endemics. Location: High Tatras National Park. Date: 17-20.08.2013.

High Tatras, Poland (Hohe Tatra, Polen) (Magas-Tátra, Lengyelország) 08.2013.

In August 2013 we spent some days in the High Tatras at the border of Slovakia and Poland. On the Polish side, at a glade called Łysa Polana, the Białka mountain brook provided a great opportunity to photograph the aquatic animal life of the Tatras. Location: Łysa Polana. Date: 19.08.2013.

South-Nyírség, Hungary (Süd-Nyírség, Ungarn) (Dél-Nyírség, Magyarország) 06-07.2013.

Every year I spend some weekends in Nyírábrány and every time I find some nice species. Here are some examples from this June and July. Location: Nyírábrány. Date: 06-07.2013.

Garajonay National Park, La Gomera (Nationalpark Garajonay, La Gomera) (Garajonay Nemzeti Park, La Gomera) 03.2013.

We took a short trip to La Gomera starting from Tenerife in March 2013. This small island is the greenest of the Canary Islands. Its lush laurisilva forest is called Garajonay, also a national park and part of the World Heritage. Location: Garajonay National Park. Date: 24-25.03.2013.

Tenerife: Anaga Mountains (Teneriffa: Anaga-Gebirge) (Tenerife: Anaga-hegység) 03.2013.

The Anaga Peninsula is the gratest place on Tenerife to get away from mass tourism and to find natural laurisilva forests which once covered much of the island. The highest point of the Anaga Mountain Range (Macizo de Anaga) is just over 1000 m, which doesn't count as high on the island, but the peaks are really steep and the valleys are small. This has caused the peninsula to be sparsely populated and to retain its natural beauty.

Badland of Güímar, Tenerife (Malpaís de Güímar, Teneriffa) (Malpaís de Güímar, Tenerife) 03.2013.

The Badland (Malpaís) of Güímar is a special nature reserve on the coast of Tenerife, near the town of Güímar. It is known from its incredible landscape with vulcanic cones, basaltic lava flows and a vegetation extremely adapted for dry and hot conditions - a one-of-a-kind place indeed. Location: Reserva natural especial del Malpaís de Güímar. Date: 19.03.2013.

Teno Massif, Tenerife (Teno-Gebirge, Teneriffa) (Teno-hegység, Tenerife) 03.2013.

The Teno Massif or Teno Mountains form the westernmost part of Tenerife. The mountains here are often covered in clouds and they are sparsely populated. The local vegetation is still quite natural but there are many introduced species here also. We traveled through the mountains and stopped at Masca, a tiny village that was not accessible on road until the 1960's. Location: Teno Alto. Date: 18.03.2013.

Sarandë District, Albania I. (Kreis Sarandë, Albanien I.) (Sarandë járás, Albánia I.) 09.2012.

We spent the second half of our Albanian field trip in the southernmost part of the land. We drove to Sarandë and from there through the Butrint National Park (Parku Kombëtar i Butrintit), which is famous for its archeological sites of different eras. First, we stopped near Shkallë to search for reptiles. This landscape differs greatly from the mountainous, forested areas we visited earlier during the trip. It is covered by maquis shrublands and of course the fauna is also different.

Fir of Hotova-Dangell National Park, Albania (Nationalpark Tannenwald von Hotova-Dangell, Albanien) (Hotova-Dangell Fenyvese Nemzeti Park, Albánia) 09.2012.

We visited the termal ponds of Ura ë Kadiut in the Fir of Hotova-Dangell National Park (Parku Kombëtar Bredhi i Hotovës-Dangelli) and spent two days here. The rapid-flowing river, Lëngarica that flows through the national park created a valley with sludgy rift and the thermal springs are found on the sides of this valley. They are very popular among tourists and local people as well. Some of the thermal springs have dense vegetation, while others are simple rock pools. The chemical composition of the thermal waters varies greatly. After heavy rains, the river even covers some of the thermal pools.

Near Fir of Drenove National Park, Albania (Neben Nationalpark Tannenwald von Drenove, Albanien) (A Drenove Fenyvese Nemzeti Park mellett, Albánia) 09.2012.

In September of 2012 I had the opportunity to take part in a herpetological research trip in Albania organised by the Herpetological Group of the University of Debrecen. We drove from South Hungary all the way down in one day to Korçë in the middle of the country. Here we found a camp site near the village of Boboshticë, at 1000 m above sea level (during the whole 10-day-long trip we camped in the wilderness). Next morning, we started to search through the area near Boboshticë, than, after visiting the famous bazaar of Korçë, we drove up the incredibly steep serpentine road to the beautiful little village of Dardhë, located on the Dardhë Scenic Route. Both areas that we visited are located near the National Park called Parku Kombëtar Bredhi i Drenovës (Fir of Drenove). This park has untouched fir forests and steep slopes with mediterranean bush vegetation.

Austria, Wachau (Österreich, Wachau) (Ausztria, Wachau) 06.2012.

In June, 2012, we traveled to the Austrian Alps with members of the German Spinnen-Forum and the Austrian Spinnenstammtisch for a spider-expedition, with the back-up of some local National Parks. However, we started our expedition outside the Alps, in the beautiful natural-cultural region of the Wachau, part of the UNESCO World Heritage. It is a picturesque valley formed by the Danube. Near the town of Dürnstein, we found species-rich xeric slope steppe habitats among the vineyards.

Vienna, Austria (Wien, Österreich) (Bécs, Ausztria) 04.2012

 

Some photos I´ve taken during this April in Vienna. I tried to present well known and often overlooked plants and animals also.

Vienna, Austria (Wien, Österreich) (Bécs, Ausztria) 03.2012.

I am spending the beginning of the year in Vienna, and in this first post from there I am writing about some early spring plants and animals observed and photographed inside the city. Most of them are well known, yet some are mostly unnoticed despite being almost ubiquitous.

Kelemér, Hungary (Kelemér, Ungarn) (Kelemér, Magyarország) 09.2011.

In the middle of September I went on a cycling tour to the Aggtelek National Park in north-eastern Hungary. I took all my photography equipment with me, because I wanted to take some pictures in the unique peat bogs of Kelemér and at a little lake in Jósvafő. I started my tour in the town of Putnok and cycled up towards the peat bog. There are two such bogs close to each other near the village called Kelemér, and both of them are strictly protected. There are very few peat bogs in Hungary and these are the easternmost ones. The bogs are hidden in a dense forest and inside them so many trees (Downy Birches, willows, poplars) are growing that it is quite easy to walk past them without even noticing them. That is probably one of the reasons that these bogs remained quite intact throughout the ages. They are truly unique habitats in Hungary, where climate and the lack of high mountains do not favour the persistence of such bogs (see here).

Grense Jakobselv, Finnmark, Norway (Grense Jakobselv, Finnmark, Norwegen) (Grense Jakobselv, Finnmark, Norvégia) 07.2011.

On one day on our field trip in Finnmark, we traveled some 60 kms eastwards from Kirkenes to the border area of Norway and Russia. The border is along the small Jakobselva river, and one of the main villages here is Grense Jakobselv (basically just some houses). The avarage population density in Sør-Varanger is 3/sq km, but that of the border area and the adjacent easternmost part of Sør-Varanger is definetly lower! During this trip, we stopped at Jarfjordfjellet, collected some spiders at the Jakobselv river and at the shores of the Barents sea, and than traveled to the uninhabited tundra zone of the border area.

Little Carpathians, Slovakia (Kleine Karpaten, Slowakei) (Kis-Kárpátok, Szlovákia) 05.2011.

At the beginning of May I spent a few days in Smolenice, in the Western part of Slovakia, in the Little Carpathians. These are an about 100 km long, rather low-lying mountain range, covered mainly by decidous forests and a few pine forests. The most famous attraction of the town is the Smolenice Castle, which was rebuilt by the Hungarian Graf József Pálffy in neo-gothic style. The surrounding forests have a rich insect fauna. Location: Smolenice. Date: 03-06.05.2011.

Spiš, Slovakia (Zips, Slowakei) (Szepesség, Szlovákia) 02.2010.

In February, 2010 we participated on a whole-day long trip in East Slovakia, from Spišské Vlachy to Spišské Podhradie through Žehra: about 12 kilometers all in 20-30 cm snow. Due to the cloudy weather I only took a few photos. But actually, the grey background fit the old and impressive Spiš Castle, the destination of our hiking trail. Location: Spiš, Eastern Slovakia. Date: 13.02.2010.

Aggtelek Karst, Hungary (Aggteleker Karst, Ungarn) (Aggteleki-karszt, Magyarország) 08-09.2009.

In August and September of 2009 I visited the villages of Aggtelek and Jósvafő in the Aggtelek National Park in North-Hungary. Location: Aggtelek Karst. Date: 08-09.2009.

Hajdú-Bihar County, Hungary (Komitat Hajdú-Bihar, Ungarn) (Hajdú-Bihar megye, Magyarország) 03-10.2007.

I collected some of my oldest nature photos, taken with a compact camera back in 2007 in Hungary. They mostly show species that I haven't encountered since than or that are otherwise interesting. Location: Hajdú-Bihar County. Date: 03-10.2007.