BLUE ROCK THRUSH
It took me 5 years to eventually spot and photograph this wonderful bird. The blue rock thrush is the same size as a song thrush, but it has a long bill. From a distance, the male looks dark, but in sunlight or close up the beautiful blue-grey plumage is visible. The blue-grey covers the whole bird apart from its darker wings. The female has dark brown upperparts and paler brown, scaly underparts.
The blue rock thrush is a lover of rocks and boulder strewn ravines. Here on Kefalonia it can be found in the valleys around Mt Ainos, at Livadi Marsh and in old, disused quarries. This bird nests in rock cavities, recesses in cliffs and walls. The nest is a grassy cup and hosts 4 to 5 eggs. 2 broods can be accomplished from May until July. The young are fed with various insects, whilst the adult birds will add small reptiles and amphibians to their diet. Pub quiz info, the blue rock thrush is the official national bird of Malta.
