When: 5 days in mid September 2026
Where: Białowieża Forest & Biebrza Marshes
Who: Suzie, Neil, Angela & Matthew from UK, Danny from US, Catia & Eric from Hong Kong
Type of the tour: Autumn tour
Highlights: woodpeckers (White-backed, Middle spotted, Grey-headed, Black, Three-toed, Lesser Spotted), Pygmy Owl, Lesser & Greater Spotted Eagles, Hen Harrier, Crane, Woodcock + Bisons, Elk (heard only), Wild Boar, Wolves (howling), Beavers, Red Deers, Red Fox, Red Squirrels, Roe Deers.
Trip report
After collecting all of the participants in Warsaw, a journey to Białowieża Forest was set up, arriving around 3 p.m. After a short check-in at a lovely guesthouse, the afternoon exploration began. We decided to visit some old-growth woodlands with a hope for woodpeckers & then try around sunset for some mammals. Weather was nice & sunny so soon we found some birds active around – Siskins, Greater Spotted Woodpeckers, Jays and finally, a local speciality – White-backed Woodpecker. Red Deers were also already rutting there but when we reached our spot for mammals at sunset they became more active. However, no visual observation of any mammals there – only Kestrel & a few Yellowhammers.
We started Day 2 early with a plan to search for European Bisons. We want to make use of a weather window around sunrise as later the rain were expected to come. And we did it perfectly – firstly, a herd of ca. 20 European Bisons in first light of the day & then later after some search we found another herd of ca. 40 European Bisons which stayed in the open much longer. It was a comfortable ovservation of at least half an hour when they were feeding, trying to mate and then finally move back to the forest. After that we continued with hope of finding some more of them but we only had Roe Deers, Red Fox & a pair of Common Cranes.
After breakfast we were planned to do a visit to the Strict Reserve of Białowieża National Park. At 10 p.m. the ranger led the way and provided a forest ecology lesson, revealing how European woodlands should look like. Wildlife sightings were good – Grey-headed & Middle spotted Woodpecker showed up there nicely.
After that we had some break before our evening activity – a short walk in the forest followed by evening exploration of forest edge to listen for some Red Deer stag activity. It was still warm & sunny in the evening so the birds were not super active, yet we had a good observation of Marsh Tit & Nuthatch. In the evening however Red Deer stags gave a phenomenal concert – at least 10 stags were calling & we even watched them walking in thermal camera. Also Wild Boar were feeding under apple trees nearby – quite a rarity in Białowieża Forest in recent years.
On early morning of Day 3 we planned to visit a place where Wolves caught Roe Deer a day ago. On the way Nightjar & Tawny Owl were spotted in minibus lights. But when we reached the spot we realised nothing was left there except for leg, even Ravens were absent so wolves will definitely not return to this spot to continue feast. We moved to the nearby forest to look for some morning bird activity & that was a good decision – Black Woodpecker & lovely Pygmy Owl were nice additions to our list. Red Deer stags were rutting nicely in the woods nearby. What an atmospheric morning!
After breakfast, Siemianówka Reservoir and a neighbouring bird ringing camp were visited. On the Reservoir which actually due to recent dry years became meadows we observed Marsh Harrier, Greater Spotted Eagle & Hobby hunting over reedbeds. In the nets some good birds were also caught – mostly Tits (Coal, Blue, Great, Marsh), but also Dunnocks & Chiffchaffs.
For the evening we planned to drive through the area where wolves were active on that day (we knew it thanks to the trailcams). We drove into the woods & left Danny who wanted to record forest soundscape for some time alone there. Inside remote areas of Białowieża Forest we were firstly stopped by Grass Snake in the middle of the road. Next stop was actually super fruitful – Three-toed Woodpecker was feeding on the tree nearby while Black Woodpecker flew over our head, Lesser & Greater Spotted Woodpecker called nearby & Middle Spotted Woodpecker was trying to feed on acorn on the neighbouring tree. 5 sp. of woodpeckers in one spot!
For sunset we stopped on the road crossing & waited for mammals to show up on the road. After some time of waiting & listening to rutting Red Deer stags 4 European Bisons showed up on the road. We watched them comfortably and they were only mammals seen on that day. When it got dark we went back for dinner seeing a few Woodcocks on the road & picked up Danny who recorded a whole pack of wolves nearby. It was however too far from us (4kms) to hear it… But you can listen to the proffesional recording under the trip report.
On early morning of Day 4 we wanted to again search for Wolves in the area where they were active yesterday. First bet was a small meadow inside the woodland – no wolves, but amazing close observation of 5 European Bisons in the mist. Next stop was a road crossing but there only female & male Red Deer were seen. On the roads fresh Wolf feaces but no animals itself. It was a nice morning anyway!
It was a transfer day so after breakfast we packed our luggage up to the car & departed for a journey towards Biebrza Marshes. On the way we watched amazing Lesser Spotted Eagle hutning by foot nearby the road. A stop at Dojlidy Fishponds yielded plenty: a huge flock of Common Cranes, White-tailed Eagle, Great White Egret, Lapwings, Wigeons, Gadwalls & even Red-necked Grebes (which should be gone from breeding grounds by then). Also Red Squirrel posed nicely in the neighbouring park.
We arrived to the accomodation in the afternoon and soon headed to the Marshes for some evening exploration. This year Elks (Moose) were difficult to find due to drought so we wanted to look for it thoroughly. We chose a spot next to the edge of fen mire & forest but only saw Roe Deers & Hen Harrier there.
After dinner, a Beaver boat trip was planned. At least five Beavers were seen comfortably – what an end for such an amazing day. When we got back to our hotel we watched Milky Way above us & listened to Red Deer rutting around.
We still wanted to find Elk so tried again at sunrise. Red Deers were rutting & so do Elk bull in the distance. We tried to reach it closely & were really close (several dozen metres) but didn’t see the animal, we failed. We watched some Common Cranes waking up from roosting site there as well as White-tailed Eagle that flew nearby. We returned to our accommodation for breakfast, after which we had some free time. At lunchtime, we set off for Warsaw, where the trip ended at around 2 p.m.
