No, it's nothing to do with Christmas - that's all over and done with, except in the "Kipper Hat Department".
I have booked a week in Olu Deniz, which is on the southern coast of Turkey, in mid May. It's not a butterflying trip, but imagine my surprise when I discovered a place called Butterfly Valley nearby . I have found lots of information online and it looks spectacular, but has any UKB member been there? I cannot proved a specific link, but if you search Olu Deniz Butterfly Valley (images), you will see what I mean.
A non-butterflying friend of mine came back from a trip out there a few years back with tales of the "millions" of butterflies in this Butterfly Valley.
When I saw his photos they all looked like Jersey Tigers - quite spectacular, but not butterflies!!
Thanks for your input guys and welcome to zeynep. It's great to have a correspondant from Turkey using the UKB site.
It's certainly true that Butterfly Valley is most famous for its large gatherings of Jersey Tiger Moths, but its 10 hectares is also said to be home to around 35 species of butterfly - some of which are also seen in large numbers. Only a visit will tell, but in the meantime I continue to be on the lookout for more information, particularly any first hand reports.
Thanks Roger G for the link to the fieldguide. I knew that one existed and have been considering making the investment. I will certainly need one, but it looks like a nice thing to have in its own right.
Don't be fixed on one place only and if you have a car you should explore further inland and higher up.
I was near Fethiye last year for 2 weeks in May and I found interesting species at about 1200m (but you will need a car): grecian coppers, inky skippers, eastern festoons, bavius blues etc.... Lower and near the coast it was quite dry and butterflies were scarce.
Near the coast I found butterflies gathered in damp areas near rivers or lake (Dalyan Lake is well worth it. I found a large colony of large tortoishell and lattice brown). Near a river bed near the coast, I found however some very interesting species: small bath whites, millet skippers, pigmy skippers feeding on minerals of damp patches (always worth a look)
If you have an interest in dragonflies, Turkey is a remarkable place. I saw violet dropwings, lindenia tetraphylla (I was very lucky that day!!), indigo dropwings, scarce chasers (not scarce at all in this part of the world), slender skimmers, small skimmer, epallage fatime etc.. the list is very long.
Don't be put off by the turkish way of driving, they may be dangerous but not aggressive. If you rent a car, be aware of frequent police patrols along the roads (Dalyan to Fethiye especially) and I would advise you to drive slower than other drivers and stick to speed limits when you see them. Car rental and petrol are quite expensive and book with a well known car rental company, you will get a more reliable car.
You can also travel by ' Dolmus' which are buses and have regular services on main roads.
Sylvie
Thank you very much for the information, Sylvie, it is very very helpful. Unfortunately we are only going for a week (and I am meant to be on honeymoon) , so the chances of doing many specific butterflying excursions will be quite limited. However I have been looking for a nice location within Europe that we can regularly visit and I am hopeful that this may turn out to be the one. Your dragonfly information will interest a few people as well. I know of a friend who is visiting two weeks after me who will be quite excited about the prospects of seeing so many species.
If you have any further specifics regarding locations and sites I, and others, would be very pleased to see them.
Congratulations !! You picked the right place for a honeymoon. Unlike the Bodrum Peninsula, the coast around Olu Deniz is very unspoilt and beautiful, you will not be disappointed!
Sites for dragonflies: Lake Dalyan and surroundings is a good spot, there are a lot of small rivers and ponds with reedbeds which attract dragonflies.
Sites for butterflies: the mountains behind Uzumlu are good butterfly habitats and the scenery is beautiful. River beds on the coast are worth exploring even if they appear to be nearly dry.
My boyfriend and I spent several weeks looking on the internet : bird and nature tour reports are good as they normally give you the type of habitats. We used Google satellite map for interesting places to go to. I know it sounds fastidious but I find this exercise to be really worthwhile and enjoyable!!
Also if you have the use of a car, you can plan a trip at random just to explore one day, these trips can be very successful and can bring a lot of nice surprises!
Enjoy your holiday!
Sylvie
Thanks Sylvie, that's brilliant. I completly agree that the holiday planning stage is very enjoyable part of the process. I have just spent a very happy hour researching things and looking at maps. We are planning to go on some organised excursions into the surrounding mountains which I am now looking forward to even more. I see that there is a good dragonfly book which covers the Eastern Mugla Province of Southwest Turkey by Paul Hope, which also looks like a nice thing to have. Uzumlu is reasonally close by (26km), but that may be for another time. I cannot find Lake Dalyan nearby. Do you mean the big lake near Dalyan which is about 6 hours from Olu Deniz?
Sorry I should have been more specific. By Lake Dalyan I meant Koycegiz lake (pronounced like koycheese!). This is a very good area. Dalyan is the closest town. It was about 1 hour's drive from Goecek where we were based. So from Olu Deniz I guess it will take another hour to reach.
If you wish to go there, make sure you have some maps printed from google with the village names and if possible memorize the village names you have been through. There are many cross roads (and potholes) which do not indicate directions and you could easily get lost especially on the West and north west side of the lake. You will also need some cash with you as there is a tunnel after Goecek, if I can remember well the toll was 5TL each way.
Sylvie
Thanks Sylvie, I see it now. It is 79km from Olu Deniz which is just over 2 hours drive. The 6 hour journey time I previously quoted was based on a route which went to Dalyan via the north and west of the lake.
I have not seen the book by P Hope but I use a very good book for identification: Fieldguide to dragonflies of Britain and Europe by Dikstra and beautifully illustrated by Richard Lewington, the plates, photographs and descriptions are all excellent.
You can order a copy on: http://www.nhbs.com/field_guide_to_the_ ... 45735.html
The advantage with this book is that it covers the whole of Europe, North Africa, Turkey and Cyprus. Most of the dragonflies you will find in Turkey are covered in this book.
Sylvie
Thanks for that Sylvie. Every time I see a book like that I always want to buy it but can seldom justify the cost . It took me months to persuade myself that I could not live without the Brooks/Lewington field guide for Great Britain and Ireland. I believe one of the specific advantages of the Paul Hope book is that, because it covers a specific area, it provides maps of the sites where you can see the various species.
Hopefully this thread will be as helpful to others as it has been to myself.
. I have found lots of information online and it looks spectacular, but has any UKB member been there? I cannot proved a specific link, but if you search Olu Deniz Butterfly Valley (images), you will see what I mean.
. It took me months to persuade myself that I could not live without the Brooks/Lewington field guide for Great Britain and Ireland. I believe one of the specific advantages of the Paul Hope book is that, because it covers a specific area, it provides maps of the sites where you can see the various species.
