Seven Red-backed Shrikes and Eleven Eleonora's Falcons.  This morning we headed out for Fassouri Reedbeds on the Akrotiri Peninsula.  Also known for its RAF base and the Red Arrows practice flights, this area has a number of prime birding sites which on our last trip here had proved very fruitful.  Could they be so good again?By this time of year, many of the wet areas of Cyprus have dried up so wetland birds concentrate on a few choice sites, Fassouri being one of them.  In no time at all, we'd picked up Wood Sandpiper, Little Stint, Ruff and smartest of all in full breeding plumage, Curlew Sandpiper.  A closer look amongst the base of the reeds revealed Little Crake, Garganey and Glossy Ibis, with competition from Blue- and Black-headed Wagtails.  Overhead Common and Alpine Swifts circled when, looking up at them, Alan spied an Eleonora's Falcon, one of our target birds.  We all watched as this elegant laid-back aerial master lazily flew away from us, but not too disheartened as we had another prime Eleonora's site still to come.  Then sharp-eyed Glynis pointed our a reddish-brown blob, perched up on a distant snag.  Closer inspection with the scope proved that yes, it was a male Red-backed Shrike, another of today's target new birds.Then on to the church, a regular migrant trap, to see what had dropped in.  Spotted Flycatcher was dish of the day with no fewer than five individuals doing their bit to control the insect population, and another four migrant Red-backed Shrikes.  The church here is a simple elegant sandstone building with arched roof and stubby bell-tower but it was birds rather than salvation that had us rushing into the churchyard to check the willows here.  A large grey warbler gave us the runaround for a long time and ultimately eluded us but we did catch up with a female Pied Flycatcher - if only it had been Collared or Semi-collared, either one a new bird for us!  Nice but no cigar, bet the one that got away was a real mega!Who can resist a trip to a sewage works?  Well, in this case a pool next to a sewage works, same smell, same flies.  As so often is the case, the grottier the location, the better the birds.  A pristine Marsh Sandpiper fed with its distinctive bottom-up posture next to yet another male Citrine Wagtail.  Thought these things were supposed to be scarce in Cyprus!  To complete the scene a stunning male Red-backed Shrike hunted from dead sticks only metres away from the glowing wagtail.The pools at Lady's Mile had largely evaporated but good numbers of Little Stint and Kentish (Snowy) Plovers congregated in the remaining wet bits.  After checking the area carefully - nice but no new birds - we headed back westwards calling in at Kensington Cliffs, a spectacular viewpoint.  We hoped to get a much better look at Eleonora's Falcons here and we weren't disappointed.  One bird obligingly perched on a cliff allowing us to scope it while others swooped overhead.  We held our breath as one bird folded its wings and dived in a headlong stoop over the cliff only to power back up again overhead.  In all some eleven Falcons entertained us in this glorious setting.  Cobalt blue sky above, pristine white cliffs with turquoise sea below.  What a backdrop for these beautiful raptors in all their glory - who could ask for more?Bird species total: 2197Posted 9pm, 17th May, Paphos, Cyprus