Serbia is perhaps not the most obvious destination for ornithologists, but David Lindo, aka The Urban Birder, is hoping to change perceptions. According to David, Serbia's birdlife has to be seen to be believed.

Travel the Unknown's Serbian Owls & Birds of Prey tour runs from 16th – 23rd May 2015 is led by broadcaster, writer, naturalist and photographer David Lindo, aka the Urban Birder. David is a passionate promoter of birds that inhabit cities and beyond, and he will be guiding guests through a wide range of habitats in the wildlife-rich Pannonian Plain through to urban habitats home to golden orioles, nightingales and long-eared owls. Guests will discover a rich birding region as well as being treated to heart warming Serbian hospitality.

Itinerary highlights include:

• Breeding red-footed falcons and common kestrels in Rusanda, a highly saline, shallow wetland in the Vojvodina region, one of the last remaining salt lakes in Serbia.
• Kikinda, the town dubbed The World Owl Capital, as its town square is home, in the winter months, to 750 roosting long eared owls.
• Raptors and Syrian woodpeckers in the Vrsac mountains.
• Wetlands around the Tamis River for black and whiskered terns, considered to be one of the finest birding spots in the whole of Serbia.
• Long-legged buzzards and tawny pipits in the Deliblato Sands, a unique wilderness area comprising 33,000 hectares of grasslands, farmlands and mixed forest, bordered by the Danube, Tamis and Karas rivers and home to rich flora and fauna.

Around 360 bird species have been recorded in Serbia, 240 of which nest there; approximately 40 per cent are included in the Species of European Conservation Concern list, including five globally endangered species. With careful planning it is possible to see over 150 species of birds in 10 days.

Starting and finishing in the capital Belgrade, this 8-day tour costs from £950 per person including accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis and some meals, or £1,250 including flights from the UK.

For more information contact Travel The Unknown (www.traveltheunknown.com) tel 020 7183 6371

If you're interested in this tour, but can't make the dates, there is also the Long Eared Owls of Serbia tour, also escorted by David Lindo 29th November – 3rd December 2015:

Further information on birding in Serbia

Please contact Jovanka Ristich on +44 (0) 7889 425 725 or email, Jovanka@ipr-online.co.uk