Danube Delta Photography

It was my first time leading a photography trip to the Danube Delta in Romania and it didn’t disappoint. The purpose-built hides, fantastic accommodation and excellent wildlife made for a very productive stay. We stayed on a private reserve, set on the north-eastern limit of the Danube Delta in Romania, just across the river from Ukraine.

The great thing about this trip is the flexibility and the number of different hides on offer. We focused our efforts on a few species – pygmy cormorant, kingfisher, little owl, bearded tits, grey-headed woodpecker, white pelicans, golden jackals and numerous other woodland birds we are familiar with here in the UK. Our first morning was a fantastic introduction to the reserve’s thriving population of golden jackals. With at least seven individuals providing numerous photographic opportunities, the group managed to capture some stunning shots. We were also hoping to photograph white-tailed eagle from the same hide, but these magnificent birds evaded our cameras for the entirety of the trip (although we did see them on a boat trip).

Some of the most rewarding hide photography opportunities were with common kingfisher and little owl. I appreciate both species can be photographed within the UK, but here we were blessed with some excellent photographic opportunities. I have never had such intimate portraits of a kingfisher, completely filling the frame.

In September many of the species have finished breeding and are busy feeding before their autumn migration south to Africa, this included European roller and bee-eater as well as other species such as black redstart and collared pratincole. These birds are not so easy to photograph, but we had excellent sightings of roller and bee-eater in particular. On one morning, while patiently waiting for a roller to visit a hide, we were surprised by a speedy otter as it ran across the open ground in front of us.

One of the real highlights of any visit to the Danube Delta is going in search of the white pelicans (and Dalmatian pelicans too if you are lucky). These huge birds spend the majority of their time on the lakes in the middle of the delta and can often be found in large squadrons (the collective noun for a group of pelicans) as they fish in these rich waters. We went out at dawn on a small boat and were amazed by the sheer numbers of mute swan, Eurasian coot, marsh harrier, gadwall, ferruginous duck, kingfisher, squacco heron and of course the pelicans. The night herons eluded us, but a hobby made a welcome appearance and the group managed to capture some stunning images of the pelicans and a particularly obliging squacco heron.

We had an amazing time in the Danube Delta, built up our portfolios and had the most amazing weather. I hope to return soon.

Be sure to join our Focus on the Danube Delta tour in May 2020 for first class wildlife photography when the breeding season is in full swing. Contact our wildlife experts for more information.