Wingspan News

FEB 25TH - PUNTA UMBRIA WALK

2012-02-25T06:12:00.001-08:00

Dawn and I took a late morning walk along one of our favourite tracks which is found just north of the village. We set off in bright, warm sunshine, it was about 16 C with a light breeze.

Over the next 2 hours we logged many woodland species as the track climbed up through a cork oak forest. Many Robins, blackcaps and Chaffinches were singing we also heard Wren, Great Tit, Sardinian Warbler and both Great-spotted & Green Woodpeckers were calling and drumming. Jays, Common Buzzards, Eurasian Nuthatch and Short-toed Treecreeper were found towards the end of the walk.

Some interesting butterflies we on the wing: Spanish Festoon, Brimstone, Cleopatra and Large Tortoiseshell were the most abundant.

THE BAD NEWS IS THAT I DROPPED MY CAMERA AND NOW IT DOESN'T WORK!!

FEB 24TH - RIO GENAL

2012-02-25T02:23:00.005-08:00

A late afternoon walk along my local river, the Rio Genal, produced many winter-migrants. Spring is in the air as several species were singing: Chaffinch, Blackcap, Song Thrush, Robin, Wren and Cetti's Warbler.

A view up to my village, Gaucin, taken from the Rio Genal, you can just see the castle on the brow of the hill.

Soon most of these birds will set off northward to their breeding grounds in Northern Europe.
Two shots of the river, there is a surprising amount of water still flowing even though we have had very little rain this winter.

Our most common winter visitors are:

White Wagtail

Blackcap

Black Redstart

Song Thrush
also we get many:

European Robin

Chaffinch

Common Starling

along with many Goldfinches, Linnets, Greenfinch, Siskin and Blackbird that winter in these parts.

Spring migrants are showing up everyday now: Barn Swallow, House martin, Red-rumped Swallow and Black Kites.Excviting times are ahead!!

ANDALUCIA - DAY TOUR FEB 20TH

2012-02-20T11:04:00.001-08:00

SERRANIA DE RONDA - LAGUNA DULCE - TEBA GORGE

Today I collected Kurt and Ann-Marie from their hotel in Marbella at 8:30am. They are Danish and they had a small list of five 'lifers' for me to find for them.

Rock Sparrow
Black Wheatear
Little Owl
Bonelli's Eagle
Calandra Lark

No problem!

KURT & ANN-MARIE IN THE FIELDS BEHIND LAGUNA DULCE WATCHING CALANDRA LARKS

We drove from Marbella up to Ronda and turned onto the Algeciras road, after 10km we stopped in a mountainous region to look for the first of the 'lifers'. Within seconds of pulling over we found our first target bird as two Rock Sparrows sat on a wall and chirped at us!!!

Then, within 5 minutes, the second bird appeared, a male Black Wheatear flew onto a rock pinnacle just below us! We watched the bird flitting about for a while and then well satisfied with our findings we set off back towards Ronda. Other species seen at this first venue were: Blue Rock Thrush, Red-billed Chough, Spectacled Warbler, Red-legged Partridge, Linnet and Goldfinch.

BLACK-TAILED GODWITS SEEN AT LAGUNA DULCE

Our next stop was at the Encinas Borraches track, there we located two Little Owls within a short walk from the car, target number 3 in the bag. We also saw: Southern Grey Shrike, Corn Bunting, Thekla Lark, Stonechat, Spainsh Sparrow, Meadow Pipit and lots more Goldfinches.

From Ronda we drove towards Teba and Campillos, after 20km we stopped at a good spot from where to see Bonelli's Eagle. Sure enough as we jumped out of the car we saw a bird fly from the nearest cliff-face and was seen to chase off a few passing Griffon Vulutres. Before long we had seen two of these magnificent eagles, they soared and perched for us to admire them, that was number 4 in the bag.

Lastly we drove to Campillos and visited the laguna Dulce and surrounding fields.Our first birds there were Golden Plover, six of them were feeding close to the track. After a short drive into open fields we found several Calandra Larks, they were pairing off, displaying and cavorting on the ground. That was our final bird in the bag and it was only 12:30am.

Other species seen in the area were: Common Buzzard, Marsh Harrier, Common Snipe (seen in a ditch), Lapwing, Skylark, Corn Bunting, White Wagtails. From our vantage point on the fields we could see that the laguna was covered in thousands of birds and that is where we went next.

We ate our picnic lunch sitting in the hide overlooking the laguna. We saw many species there, the best of which were: Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, White headed Duck, Red-crested Pochard, Tufted Duck, Ferruginous Duck, Black-necked Grebe, Greater Flamingo, Common Pochard, Teal, Shoveler, Purple Swamphen and our star find a 1st winter LITTLE GULL.

We drove back to Marbella the same way we had come, except that we stopped at the Teba Gorge, nothing new was seen but the gorge looked good.

My new friends were very happy with their day out and Kurt was over the moon with seeing his 5 'lifers'.

MOROCCO FEB 7TH - 17TH 2012 - SPECIES LIST

2012-02-19T12:51:00.000-08:00

1. Great Crested Grebe

2. Little Grebe

3. Northern Gannet

4. Great Cormorant

5. Balearic Shearwater

6. Little Egret

7. Cattle Egret

8. Great White Egret

9. Grey Heron

10. Purple Heron

11. Black-crowned Night Heron

12. Glossy Ibis

13. Bald Ibis

14. White Stork

15. Black Stork

16. Eurasian Spoonbill

17. Greater Flamingo

18. Common Shelduck

19. Ruddy Shelduck

20. Mallard

21. Gadwall

22. Wigeon

23. Common Teal

24. Northern Shoveler

25. Marbled Duck

26. Western Marsh Harrier

27. Hen Harrier

28. Eurasian Sparrowhawk

29. Long-legged Buzzard

30. Golden Eagle

31. Bonelli’s Eagle

32. Osprey

33. Common Kestrel

34. Lanner Falcon

35. Barbary Falcon

36. Peregrine Falcon

37. Barbary Partridge

38. Common Quail

39. Common Moorhen

40. Eurasian Coot

41. Oystercatcher

42. Black-winged Stilt

43. Pied Avocet

44. Stone Curlew

45. Cream-coloured Courser

46. Common Ringed Plover

47. Little Ringed Plover

48. Kentish Plover

49. Grey Plover

50. Sanderling

51. Little Stint

52. Curlew Sandpiper

53. Dunlin

54. Red Knot

55. Ruff

56. Common Snipe

57. Woodcock

58. Black-tailed Godwit

59. Bar-tailed Godwit

60. Eurasian Curlew

61. Spotted Redshank

62. Common Redshank

63. Common Greenshank

64. Green Sandpiper

65. Common Sandpiper

66. Ruddy Turnstone

67. Mediterranean Gull

68. Black-headed Gull

69. Slender-billed Gull

70. Audouin’s Gull

71. Lesser Black-backed Gull

72. Yellow Legged Gull

73. Sandwich Tern

74. Black-bellied Sandgrouse

75. Rock Dove/Feral Pigeon

76. Eurasian Collared Dove

77. Wood Pigeon

78. Laughing Dove

79. Great Spotted Cuckoo

80. Pharoah Eagle Owl

81. Little Owl

82. Short-eared Owl

83. Pallid Swift

84. Little Swift

85. Alpine Swift

86. Red-necked Nightjar

87. Common Kingfisher

88. Eurasian Hoopoe

89. Levaillant’s Woodpecker

90. Great Spotted Woodpecker

91. Bar-tailed Lark

92. Desert Lark

93. Hoopoe Lark

94. Lesser Short-toed Lark

95. Crested Lark (also Long-billed Crested Lark)

96. Thekla Lark

97. Skylark

98. Atlas Horned Lark

99. Temminck’s Horned Lark

100. Plain Martin

101. Sand Martin

102. Crag Martin

103. Barn Swallow

104. House Martin

105. Meadow Pipit

106. Tree Pipit

107. Water Pipit

108. Grey Wagtail

109. White Wagtail (also Moroccan Wagtail)

110. Common Bulbul

111. White-throated Dipper

112. Wren

113. Alpine Accentor

114. European Robin

115. Bluethroat

116. Black Redstart

117. Moussier’s Redstart

118. Stonechat

119. Desert Wheatear

120. Red-rumped Wheatear

121. Magreb Wheatear

122. White-crowned Wheatear

123. Black Wheatear

124. Eurasian Blackbird

125. Mistle Thrush

126. Song Thrush

127. Cetti’s Warbler

128. Zitting Cisticola

129. Scrub Warbler

130. Dartford Warbler

131. Tristram’s Warbler

132. Spectacled Warbler

133. Sardinian Warbler

134. African Desert Warbler

135. Blackcap

136. Eurasian Chiffchaff

137. Iberian Chiffchaff

138. Firecrest

139. Fulvus Babbler

140. Coal Tit

141. African Blue Tit

142. Great Tit

143. Black-crowned Tchagra

144. Great Grey Shrike

145. Common Magpie

146. Alpine Chough

147. Red-billed Chough

148. Northern Raven

149. Brown-necked Raven

150. Spotless Starling

151. Common Starling

152. House Sparrow

153. Spanish Sparrow

154. Rock Sparrow

155. Desert Sparrow

156. African Chaffinch

157. European Serin

158. European Greenfinch

159. European Goldfinch

160. Eurasian Linnet

161. Crossbill

162. Trumpeter Finch

163. Crimson-winged Finch

164. Hawfinch

165. Cirl Bunting

166. Rock Bunting

167. House Bunting

168. Corn Bunting

MOROCCO - FEB 16TH DAY 10 OF 10

2012-02-16T14:44:00.000-08:00

SOUSS MASSA NATIONAL PARK - OUED SOUS

- a trip organised by Bird ID based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to : www.birdid.no

This was our last day of the tour and it was as good as the first! The weather was superb, clear sky with all day sunshine and fantastic light.

Before we set off we logged Pallid Swift from the hotel car park, our first swifts of the tour. We then drove due south for about 60km, within the bus there was a buzz of excitement as we headed southward from Agadir to Souss Massa, this famous national park promises so much!

There were several species still to find and one of them was Little Swift, after about 30 minutes a shout went up from the bus "Little Swift", we all piled out of the bus and watched about 14 of these small swifts drifting above us.

The approach road into the Souss Massa National park is usually very good for birding, today was no exception, we found a Barbary Falcon on a pylon and it allowed very close approach for the photographers.

We disembarked from the bus on the track which overlooks the river and surrounding countryside, from our high vantage point we found a number of good species within the first half an hour. The first was a small flock of Spanish Sparrows which posed perfectly for the cameras then we found a couple of Plain Martins feeding over the river. Next came a Purple Heron, again, it was seen as it flew over the river.

ONE OF OUR FIRST SIGHTINGS AT SOUSS MASSA - SPANISH SPARROW

The next bird raised a great deal of excitement and appreciation, it was a Black-crowned Tchagra, a bird most wanted by the group. It performed really well and gave exceptional views, at the same time a couple of the group were tracking down a pipit in the next field, it turned out to be a Tree Pipit, a really unusual sighting for Febraury in Morocco!

THE BLACK CROWNED TCHAGRA ALLOWED US TO GET VERY CLOSE

We contiued the walk along the main track towards the river mouth, where we added Laughing Dove, Moussier's Redstart, Spectacled Warbler, Sradinian Warbler, Little Owl, Glossy Ibis, Mediteranean Gull and three more Tchagras to our our daily tally.

By the time we reached the beach it had got very warm, so after a short sea-watch, which produced Northern Gannet, Sandwich Tern, Balearic Shearwater, Arctic Skua and Audouin's Gull, we retired to one of the beach hotels for lunch.

After lunch we spent an hour or so to the south of the village of Massa where we searched the farmland for Moustached Warbler. The warbler failed to show but we did see: Common Snipe, Little Ringed Plover, Great Spotted Cuckoo, a flock of some 10 Water Pipits and many other species. We also, found an active nesting site of the Plain Martin.

The final part of the afternoon was spent back in Agadir at the Oued Sous. We noted most of the birds from yesterday, it was terrific in the afternoon light and the bird life was prolific. In superb weather conditions the sun went down and we logged our final new bird sighting of the tour, a Hen Harrier. A couple of Red-necked Nightjars sang to us as we left the reserve.

ONE OF THE 4 SPOONBILLS SEEN AT THE 'POOLS' AT OUED SOUSS

Our final bird call at dinner reported a trip total of 166 species, it was a grand total indeed for Morocco in February and it would have been even better if we had been lucky with a few birds not found in the desert region!

Everyone said they had enjoyed the trip and were pleased with the results. This was the first ever field trip of www.birdid.no and in my opinion, it was a great success.

MOROCCO - FEB 15TH DAY 9 OF 10

2012-02-15T16:27:00.004-08:00

TALIOUINE – CAPE RHIR (VIA SOUSS VALLEY AND AGADIR) – OUED SOUSS

- a trip organised by Bird ID based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to : www.birdid.no

What an amazing day we had today, we spent 5 -6 hours travelling and yet we amassed an incredible 112 species! This is quite remarkable considering we spent only a few hours in the field but it just shows what a great birding location Morocco really is. The weather was again superb with unbroken sunshine all day and hardly a breeze, it was quite warm too.

We left our Auberge at Taliouine at 8am and set off toward Agadir, after 30km we passed through the town of Alouez then over the Souss river where we stopped to visit the picturesque Gorge.

We spent a good hour finding many species, on the cliffs we were entertained by Common Kestrels which were attacked by a Sparrowhawk, then just after the fight one of the Kestrels took a House Martin in mid air. A pair of Peregrine Falcons was found on the other side of the valley but they didn’t perform for us.

THE SPARROWHAWK HAVING A REST AFTER ITS TUSSLE WITH A KESTREL

On the river and in the wooded valley we produced an impressive list, the best of which included: Black-crowned Night Heron, Kingfisher, Green and Common Sandpiper, Water Pipit, Little and Cattle Egrets, Common Bubul and many common species.

BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON

Moving on westward we dropped down into the Souss Valley, passing kilometer after kilometer of Argana Forest before reaching more open fields with scattered trees and shrubs. This is ideal habitat for the Black-winged Kite. Wes spent half an hour searching the area before finding our first one, what a stunning little bird of prey that one is. Whilst searching for it we also located Marsh Harrier, Long-legged Buzzard, several Black Kites, Crested and Thekla Larks, Great Grey Shrike, Moussier’s Redstart, Corn Bunting and Barbary Partridge.

We drove around the very busy Agadir and then drove northward along the coast, we noted Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed Gulls along the way. On reaching Cape Rhir we came upon a small flock of 14 Bald Ibis feeding by the side of the road. What a great find and a great help as it saved us driving all the way up to Tamri. After admiring this strange looking beast we set off back southward to Agadir and onto the Nature Reserve at Oued Souss.

BALD IBIS

It was now 4:30pm so we had just a couple of hours of daylight left and boy did we use that time effectively. The tide was turning in our favour, as it began to rise the birds began to amass on the muddy banks, these included over 100 White Storks all in a very dirty, muddy state. We counted over twenty new species for our list within the first half hour! The birds ranged in size from Greater Flamingo to Little Stint and from the mighty Osprey to the elegant Avocet.

We walked along the river bank on the heath-land and headed down-river to the shore line, more waders and wildfowl were found there, Dunlin, Knot, Curlew, Curlew Sandpiper, Sanderling, Kentish Plover, ‘shanks’ of the Red & Green and Spotted varieties, In fact our daily wader tally reached 24 species!

Near the shore we found a couple of Stone Curlew and from our vantage point on high sand dune we overlooked a pool which held: Eurasian Spoonbill, Little Egret, Ruff, Common Snipe, Spotted Redshank, Black-tailed and Bar-tailed Godwits, Bl;ack-winged Stilts and Grey Plover.

ZITTING CISTICOLA

It was now getting dark so we moved back up river towards the woodland which surrounds the Palace of the King of Morocco. It was there that we waited for darkness and the appearance of the Red-necked Nightjar and sure enough, right on cue, we saw and heard three or four of them, this was a very apt ending for a very successful day, our last birds of the day were another couple of Stone Curlews, we heard them screaming and trilling overhead in the darkness as we returned to the bus.

THE GROUP ON THE RAISED DUNES

The day finished back at the hotel which was just a few minutes drive from the Oued Souss, we had a spendid 3 course meal washed down with a couple of cold tinnies!

MOROCCO - FEB 14TH DAY 8 OF 10

2012-02-15T16:20:00.004-08:00

MERZOUGA – TALIOUINE VIA AGZE AND THE DRAA VALLEY

- a trip organised by Bird ID based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to : www.birdid.no

It was another glorious day of sunshine, however we spent most of it in the bus travelling over 400 kilometers. We did stop several times but only added I new species to our list but we did see some excellent birds along the way.

We set off at 8am and drove the 37 kilometers to Rissani, during the trip we made a couple of unofficial stops to look at Cream Coloured Coursers, Desert lark and Hoopoe Lark, we also saw several Brown-necked Ravens.

Our first official stop was just outside Rissani on the Alnif road at the river. There we hoped to find Sandgrouse coming to drink but alas, not one turned up. We did see several interesting species such as Moroccan Wagtail, Great White Egret and Ruddy Shelduck.

Between Rissani and Agze we stopped to watch a pair of soaring Lanner Falcons, a couple of Long-legged Buzzards and a pair of Bonelli’s Eagles. We bought our lunch in Agze and ate it just a couple of kilometers outside of the town. From there we travelled to Taznakht, noting Black, Magreb and over 40 White Crowned Wheatears! We stopped to look for sandgrouse just west of Taznakht and found only two Black-bellied. A couple of Desert Wheatears and Desert Larks were also seen.

A BLACK REDSTART - THE ONLY PICTURE I TOOK TODAY

We finally arrived at Taliouine at 5pm where we dropped our luggage into our rooms and set off for a bit of birding, making use of the excellent afternoon light whilst it lasted. We saw many common species all of which had been seen before by some of the group, but some species were seen for the first time by others, these species included Spanish Sparrow, Great Tit, Serin and Laughing Dove.

We ate a lovely chicken Tagine before retiring for the night, our bird log only included one new species for the trip and that was Sand Martin.

MOROCCO - FEB 13TH DAY 7 OF 10

2012-02-15T16:09:00.004-08:00

MERZOUGA – RISSANI VIA KASBAH SAID

- a trip organised by Bird ID based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to : www.birdid.no

Our last full day in the desert region started at 7am with a Moroccan breakfast of bread, jams, pancakes and honey. It was a chilly start to the day with a very cold wind.

GREAT GREY SHRIKE - Elegans, subspecies

Our morning objective was to catch up with the Desert Warbler which had eluded us so far. We searched a couple of wadis along the main road to Rissani without success. We then drove to a large wadi adjacent Kasbah Said, where after just a few minutes we finally found a Desert Warbler, the bird showed very well and all the group had great views of it. During our earlier search we also found another Magreb Wheatear (female) and all the usual desert species.

AT LAST - THE DESERT WARBLER IS FINALLY FOUND!!

We stopped and bought our lunch as we passed through Rissani, we then travelled to the outskirts of the town to look for the Long-billed Crested Lark.

LONG-BILLED CRESTED LARK

Along the way a Hoopoe flew up from the side of the road and we all got out of the bus to watch it. We found the Long-billed Crested Lark very easily and in the same area we saw Great Grey Shrike, Laughing Dove, Common Chiffchaff, Common Bubul, Common Kestrel and several other species.

The rest of the day was spent in the hills along the Alnif road where we spent a few hours looking for sandgrouse, we also spent a good deal of time along the river.

A VIEW OF THE RIVER SHOWING BLACK STORK, GREAT WHITE EGRET, GREY HERON AND LITTLE EGRET.

At the river during two visits we found: Great White Egret, Little Egret, Black Stork, Little Grebe, Ruddy Shelduck, Common Kingfisher, Cetti’s Warbler, Moroccan Wagtail, White Wagtail and another Hoopoe.

RUDDY SHELDUCK

During our trek in search of sandgrouse we found a beautiful male Magreb Wheatear, Desert Wheatear, Desert Lark, Bar-tailed Desert Lark, Spectacled Warbler, Tristram’s Warbler, Barbary Falcon, Black Kite and up to 30 Brown-necked Ravens.

Our last bird of the day was, again, the diminutive Little Owl, we found two of them perched as we passed through the suburbs of Rissani.

MOROCCO - FEB 12TH DAY 6 OF 10

2012-02-15T15:56:00.007-08:00

Merzouga - Erg Chebbi sand dune system and surrounding area.

- a trip organised by 'Bird ID' based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to : www.birdid.no

Most of the group were up at dawn to watch the very colourful sunrise over the Erg Chebbi dunes we then ate a tasty breakfast at 7am. We were soon on the road heading for the North side of the dunes in search of desert species. A few Brown Necked Ravens were our first birds of the day, we stopped to photograph them on the way out of Merzouga.

The ubiquitous White-crowned Wheatear can be seen everywhere in the desert region

In this desert region of Morocco you do not expect to see a huge variety of species but the ones you do see are quality species, today was no exception. Our first stop was just a few kilometers from Merzouga, a shout rang out from the back of the bus as a bird was seen by the side of the road. We all jumped out and began searching the nearest scrubland. Soon we found Desert Wheatear, a couple of fine looking males were vying for the best song posts. Then we saw up 5 Hoopoe Larks, two of which were performing their kami-kazi like display flights.

Not long after, we located a pair of Cream Coloured Coursers, an unexpected surprise, we didn’t expect them to be back on their breeding grounds in February, these were the birds seen from the bus.

Our next couple of stops were to look for Desert Warbler in suitable habitats, but we failed to see any. We did find Great Grey Shrike (elegans subspecies), Trumpeter Finch and more Desert Wheatears.

The Bar-tailed Desert lark can be difficult to identify if not seen well - this one sat just a few meters from us - normally they run around none-stop.

We reached our destination at the side of the Erg Chebbi sand dune system, Cafe Yasmina. This is where we were hoping to find Desert Sparrow. After an hour of looking we had no luck so most of the group set off on foot across the sand dunes. We were told that a Bedouin Camp could be found after about a 45 minute walk, that was our goal, it was very hard going and in hot sunshine. Most of the group made it and were rewarded with excellent views of the elusive Desert Sparrow, they also found a group of Fulvous Babblers.

A couple of shots of one of my favourite desert species - the Hoopoe Lark

Meanwhile, back at Cafe Yasmina, a pair of Desert Sparrows were seen in the tamarisk scrub by the rest of the group. Once we had all reassembled we ate a lovely lunch on the Cafe terrace in warm sunshine.

A male Desert Sparrow - I have yet to capture a good image - better luck next time

We then set off to complete our quest in search of the Desert Warbler. We found another small flock of Desert Sparrows (6) before walking off into a wadi not too far from Cafe Yasmina. We found several Bar-tailed Desert Larks, Hoopoe Larks, and Trumpeter Finches but no warblers. Several more attempts were made before the light began to fade and our legs began to tire. Other birds seen during our search were: Spectacled Warbler (our first for the trip), Tristram’s Warbler, Common Chiffchaff, Great Grey Shrike, Laughing Dove and several common species. At one stage, two White-crowned Wheatears landed on the roof of the bus, they chased one another around and one even landed on the wing mirror, how cool was that?

Two images of the Erg Chebbi sand dune systems near Merzouga

We returned to the hotel just as it was getting dark, we had seen only 26 species but some of them were highly rated and ‘must-see’ species. We planned to continue our quest for elusive Desert Warbler tomorrow!

MOROCCO - FEB 11TH DAY 5 OF 10

2012-02-15T15:22:00.006-08:00

BOUMALNE DADES – MERZOUGA WITH STOPS AT TAGDILT, GOULMIMA & RISSANI

- this 10 day tour was organised by Bird ID based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to :

www.birdid.no

Today was transfer day, we moved from Boumalne Dades to Merzouga, there was plenty of birding along the way in perfect weather. The temperature rose into the mid 20’s for the first time and we began to shed layers of clothing.

In the hotel grounds we found Blue Rock Thrush, Black Redstart, House Bunting and even a Desert Lark which flew onto the garden wall. We set off at 8 am and drove straight to the small pools and the river that we found yesterday along the ‘new road’ to Tagdilt. Hoping for sandgrouse but not finding any, but there were plenty of other birds to watch. Several flocks of Trumpeter Finch were joined by Lesser Short-toed Larks coming down to drink and it was one of the unfortunate finches that was grabbed by a hungry Sparrowhawk as dashed in for breakfast, the poor little lark lost its footing on the ice as the hawk approached. It was a great show for us and was caught on camera by one or two of the group. Other birds seen were: Thekla Lark, Corn Bunting, Long-legged Buzzard, White Wagtail, Moussier’s Redstart, Black Redstart & Desert Lark.

Typical stone-desert plain near Goulmima

We stopped to buy lunch in Goulmima before stopping off just passed the town at a wadi (dry river bed). We hoped to see Fulvous Babbler but had to settle for a more exciting find, Scrub Warbler. We found three of these little gems with their comical feeding method. They literally hop on the sand from bush to bush and then from underneath the bush they jump up to grab food from the lower twigs.

Thekla Lark

A second stop produced another four Scrub Warblers but no Babblers, other birds found were Trumpeter Finch, Crested Lark, Thekla Lark, Great Grey Shrike, Greenfinch and Black Redstart.

Other stops throughout the day produced: Lanner Falcon, a surprising Dartford Warbler, Tristram’s Warbler, Moussier’s Redstart, Stonechat, Chiffchaff and finally a group of 12 Fulvous Babblers.

As we approached Rissani we made a detour to act upon some recent information regarding a location for a roosting Pharoah Eagle Owl. The information proved to be correct and the owl was seen, beautifully, by all of the group. We also added Brown Necked Raven to our list at the same site.

We arrived at our Auberge at 7pm in the dark and our last bird of the day was, of course, a Little Owl seen sitting on a pole along the road.

MOROCCO - FEB 10TH - DAY 4 OF 10

2012-02-10T10:42:00.000-08:00

BOUMALNE DADES - TAGDILT TRACK - DADES GORGE

- this 10 day tour was organised by Bird ID based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to :

www.birdid.no

It was a very cold night followed by an even colder day, the water in my drinks bottle was frozen overnight in the minibus!

However I was with a group from Norway and they thought it was warm? We left the hotel just after 8am and after a nice (but delayed) breakfast. Our first stop was 500 meters from the hotel at a small rubbish dump where we found Red-rumped Wheatear, Trumpeter Finch, Thekla Lark and Desert Lark.

RED-RUMPED WHEATEAR AT THE DUMP.

After an hour or so we drove around to the 'new' Tagdilt Track where we spent the rest of the morning. We found a flock of Lesser Short-toed Larks before we stopped to search an area known to have held sandgrouse in the past. An hour of searching produced several more Lesser Short-toed Larks and quite a few Temminck's Horned Larks

Temminck's Horned Lark - a bad picture but it shows the 'horns'

We then drove onto the Tagdilt Track proper and soon discovered more new species.

The Tagdilt Track looking back towards Boumalne Dades

The 'must see' Hoopoe Lark was a great joy to watch, this very plain looking grey bird explodes into colour as it executes its stunning aerial display flight, a real crowd pleaser.

We walked a fair distance noting several Long-legged Buzzards and then a large flock of Black Bellied Sandgrouse were seen to land in the distance. We had reasonable views of the sandgrouse feeding before our attention was diverted to raptors soaring above us, a pair of Long-legged buzzards were mobbing a Bonelli's Eagle giving us more views of dramatic aerial display.

Over the next hour we watched several species but only added Skylark to our list so we drove to the famous Dades Gorge where we ate a restaurant lunch. later we explored the gorge and found Crag Martin, Black Wheatear, Rock Bunting, House Bunting, Rock Dove and our bird of the day: Tristram's Warbler.

TWO SHOTS OF THE HARD TO FIND TRISTRAM'S WARBLER

After this excitement we concluded our birding with a walk just outside our hotel, we didn't discover anything new but we had a good time watching several common species.

THE SCENE JUST OUTSIDE OUR HOTEL GATES

MOROCCO - FEB 9TH DAY 3 OF 10

2012-02-09T14:30:00.000-08:00

OURIKA – BOUMALNE DU DADES VIA TIZI-N-TICHKA PASS AND QUARZAZATE

- this 10 day tour was organised by 'Bird ID' based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to :

www.birdid.no

This was a long day of travelling, but despite being in the bus for several hours we still managed to see a remarkable 81 species!

We took an early breakfast and departed from the hotel at 8am, it was dull and overcast but it brightened up later. After an hour on the road we stopped to look for Thekla Larks by the roadside, before long we found several, also Moussier’s Redstart, Corn Bunting, Blue Rock Thrush and many African Chaffinches.

A bird ID picture - what is it.

Next we stopped to admire a Great Grey Shrike before stopping to look at the rubbish dump at Ait Ourir. What a sight, 11 birders looking over the wall at rubbish, the Moroccans think we are mad!! However the dump proved very productive for us, there were many White Storks and Cattle Egrets but we also found: Little Ringed Plover, Common Sandpiper, Grey heron and lots of White Wagtail together with several Yellow Wagtails. A small flock of Spotless Starlings held one Common Starling.

Our lunch stop was at the other side of the Tiz-N-Tichka Pass where a small pine forest delivered Common Crossbill, Firecrest, the very bright Moroccan Greenfinch subspecies and Coal Tit. We sat on the terrace of a restaurant in warm sunshine whilst we watched many Black Wheatears, House Buntings, a fly by Black Kite and a very distant falcon species.

A female Crossbill

As we approached Quarzazate, leaving the mountains behind us, we noticed the Black Wheatear was being replaced by the White Crowned Wheatear as the habitat changed. Then we found a great bird in the shape of Magreb Wheatear (formerly Mourning). What a superb little bird and a great find, a couple of Trumpeter Finches were also seen at the same place.

THE MAGREB WHEATEAR

Our last stop was the huge reservoir just east of Quarzazate, we made two stops and drove as near to the waters edge as possible. Over the next 2 hours we amassed a creditable list of species the most notable of which were: Desert lark, Common Quail, Osprey, Western Marsh Harrier, Marbled Duck, Ruddy Shelduck, a Black Stork (a very good find), and good numbers of Shoveler.

A few Wigeon, a single Gadwall and lots of Little & Great Crested Grebes joined hundreds of Common Coot on the water. The water level was very low, a reflection of the low rainfall in Morocco over the last winter and because of this vast areas of dead and dying weeds covered the banks. These areas were, in turn covered in Wagtails, there must have 3-4 hundred, we did find one Moroccan Wagtail and many Yellow Wagtail with the ubiquitous White Wagtail.

THE GROUP AT THE QUARZAZATE RESERVOIR

We left the reservoir as the light faded and made the leg of the journey in the twilight hours, one Little Owl finished our bird count for the day.

MOROCCO - FEB 8TH DAY 2 OF 10

2012-02-09T13:47:00.000-08:00

Ourika Valley – Oukaimedan (Toubkal National Park)

- this 10 day tour was organised by 'Bird ID' based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to :

www.birdid.no

What a great day our first full day proved to be. The weather was fantastic with bright blue sky and all day sunshine. It was cold to start with but even at 2000 meters it was fairly warm later in the day.

THE REAR END OF AN ALPINE ACCENTOR

We started the day at 6:30am with a walk in the meadows below the hotel, it was dark as we emerged from our rooms but as we waited for light near the river we were rewarded with the sighting of a Woodcock, then another good bird for the trip a Barbary Falcon flew over us. We walked to the river and noted lots of Eurasian Chiffchaffs, also many Blackcaps and House Buntings. Other birds seen during the walk were; African Blue Tit, the lovely African chaffinch, Serin, Cetti’s Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Little & Cattle Egrets. During breakfast we were joined by the local Common Bulbuls, House Buntings and House Sparrows.
A FAT MOUSSIER'S REDSTART TRYING TO HIDE BEHIND GRASS STALKS!

The rest of the day was spent driving up to the village of Oukaimedan in the Toubkal National Park. We stopped a few times on the way up, the first stop was very productive. Viewing a rock-strewn hillside from the road produced Moussier’s Redstart, a beautiful male and then a Levaillant’s Woodpecker appeared! Several Black Redstarts were found, also Rock Bunting and up to three Barbary Partridges. In the sky above us we watched a Golden Eagle soaring and a couple of Ravens ‘cronked’ by.

Next stop was a small pine forest, we hoped for a Firecrest sighting but had to be satisfied with Coal Tits, Mistle Thrush, our first Long-legged Buzzard and an Alpine Chough which was flying together with a Raven?
Oukaimedan was absolutely crowed with day visitors, you can’t blame the hordes that drive up from Marrakesh because the whole place is so picturesque and with the snow being so thick many people were skiing. We drove through the village only stopping to admire a Water Pipit and a mixed flock of Red-billed and Alpine Chough.
AN OBLIGING CIRL BUNTING
Our journey finished at the Telecoms tower high above the village, we searched the mountain top for montane species and soon we found a small flock of Alpine Accentors. A buzz of excitement rippled through the group but soon our attention was diverted to a Blue Rock Thrush and then another Barbary Partridge. We walked down the track back towards the village and located a female Black Wheatear, a flock of Rock Sparrows and several Black Redstarts.

Finally we drove to the top car park near the ski-lift, it was manic, hundreds of people milled about. We quickly walked up the mountain pass away from the maddening crowd and found solace in a deserted Berber village in the form of Crimson Winged Finch, Rock Sparrow and Atlas Horned Lark. Job done we returned to the car and found a small flock of the lovely finches sitting on a wall!!!
Driving back down the hill we parked to eat our lunch as we watched Dipper, Wren and Grey Wagtail. Other stops produced more Moussier’s Redstarts, a flock of nearly 200 Red-billed Chough, a single Cirl Bunting and a couple more Long-legged Buzzards.
THE GROUP WALKING BACK DOWN THE VALLEY AFTER FINDING THE CRIMSON-WINGED FINCH

Back at the hotel we sat on the terrace drinking HOT mint tea as we watched another Levaillant’s Woodpecker and ALSO many species seen earlier in the day, a couple of new species for the trip were Eurasian Sparrowhawk and Common Moorhen.

MOROCCO - FEB 7TH DAY 1 OF 10

2012-02-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

Menara Airport, Marrakech – Ourika Valley

- this 10 day tour was organised by 'Bird ID' based in Norway, to test your ID skills go to :

www.birdid.no

The group consisted of 7 Norwegians, 2 Bulgarians and 1 Sardinian.

Our arrival at Marrakech was greeted by bright sunlight, the snow covered Atlas Mountains looked clear and beautiful and it was quite warm. The group arrived in stages throughout the day and those that arrived earlier were soon finding birds around the new terminal building. The Aptly named House Bunting was found inside the terminal building!

A small flock of Spanish Sparrows were found in the gardens together with the loud Common Bubul, there was also Greenfinch, Linnet, Spotless Starling, White Wagtail, Common Kestrel and several White Storks circled up on the thermals.

After everyone had arrived we set off at 4:30pm for the hour long drive to our first hotel in the Ourika Valley. We added a few common species to the list before arriving at the hotel. As we disembarked from the bus we quickly located a singing Rock Bunting and found two hawfinches as they flew over.

THE VIEW FROM OUR TERRACE AT THE HOTEL

We had about 30 minutes of daylight left so we assembled on the hotel garden terrace to watch over the river valley and surrounding mountains. Several birds were heard, Cetti’s Warbler, Robin, Wren, Blackcap and another House Bunting. A couple of birds were seen distantly, Black Wheatear, Grey Wagtail and an unidentified falcon which was probably a Peregrine Falcon.

FEB 6TH - DAY 3 OF 3 DAY TOUR

2012-02-09T13:37:00.000-08:00

RIO GENAL - LA JANDA

Today, I took out Larry and Linda out for their 3rd outing, we were joined by Penny Hale a good friend of mine from Casares.
Linda, John & Penny at La Janda

It was a fabulous day, the weather was beautiful and warm and the bird sightings were just fantastic. We started a little earlier than usual at 8am, we drove down the hill to the Rio Genal to try to see Hawfinches for the second time before setting off to La Janda. We Had great views of a pair of the elusive Hawfinch and a great bonus was the sighting of a Goshawk which circled over the wooded ridge to the west of the river, well that was a great start and a sign of things to come.

After collecting Penny from Casares we made good time to arrive at La Janda by 10am. As we drove down the access track we stopped to watch a grey and black raptor that turned out to be a Black-winged Kite, it perched on a fenceline and posed for us, wow, what a great first bird! Along the same fenceline we noted Reed Bunting, Corn Bunting, Linnet, Goldfinch, Stonechat and a few Greenfinches.
In the surrounding fields we saw a huge flock of Corn Buntings, Lapwings, a dozen or so Skylarks. Next we drove down to the central track and parked on the raised section where we stopped for a quick coffee, courtesy of Penny. Whilst drinking the coffee we found several Green Sandpipers, A Purple Swamphen, Chiffchaff, Zitting Cisticola, Water Pipit, Marsh Harrier, Little & Cattle Egrets, White Stork and the little gem, The Bluethroat. In fact two of them we seen in a nearby ditch, the light wasn’t good but they come quite close and gave short but excellent views.

We then drove the central track and noted more pipits, maily Meadow but also Water Pipits, as well as Common Snipe, a flock of some 30+ Glossy Ibis, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Ringed and Little Ringed Plover and no less than 4 more Bluethroats. In the main canal there were many more Purple Swamphen, Moorhen, Mallard and Coot. We saw a solitary Common Crane in the distance, billy-no-mates!!
As we crossed the bridge and worked our way onto the Benalup track we stopped for a picnic lunch during which we saw, distantly, 2 Imperial eagles and a single Bonelli’sEagle. We padded our list with Common Pheasant, Red-legged partridge but also added Cetti’s Warbler and Hen Harrier. We could hear a lot more Cranes but failed to see them from where we were so we drove to higher ground. However, we didn’t get far before stopping to watch a huge flock of Golden Plover, there were 70+ and later we saw even more, at least 120.

We passed a farm over a ridge as we left the rice fields of La Janda, and we entered new habitat in the shape of dehesa, which comprised of mainly wild olive trees in rough pasture. Before long we found lots of Blackcaps, Black Redstarts, European Robins and Sardinain Warblers, but then it good, really good!!
Penny shouted out “Cuckoo” as we drove slowly along the track, sure enough, perched on the fence, as they always do, was a Great Spotted Cuckoo! It posed well for the cameras and we watched it for a while.

As we walked a little further an owl was seen by Larry, then another and then another!!! We found a roost of Short-eared Owls. At the same time I walked ahead and inadvertently flushed 6 more Short-eared Owls from a roadside bush! Wow, this was fantastic. On closer inspection we counted 16 owls altogether, and to our great surprise 2 of them were Long-eared Owls. Well, we couldn’t top that but we tried! We searched for Penduline Tit but it had become a little windy, we added Little Owl to our ‘owl-tally’ and Jackdaw but not much else. On the return trip we saw many of the birds already listed but we were well satisfied with our day’s birding and went home happy.

This day- trip concluded the 3-day tour with my Amercian friends Larry and Linda, they had seen over 120 species and most of those were ‘lifers’. They are staying for a few more days and are going birding with a good friend, Mike from my village, whilst I am off to Morocco for a 10 day trip, watch this space!!!

FEB 5TH - DAY 2 OF 3 DAY TOUR

2012-02-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

RIO GENAL - LAGUNA TORREGUADIARO - SAN ENRIQUE WOODS - PALMONES

My second day with Larry and Linda started bitterly cold, but it warmed up later, with bright sunshine at the coast. After a lovely breakfast we set off down the hill towards Casares, we stopped at the bridge over the Rio Genal. It was very cold but many birds were moving along the hedges and in the open fields.

Linda and Larry at Palmones with Gibraltar in the background

We quickly added Grey Wagtail to our list and got a brief view of Cetti's Warbler. Blue Tit, Cirl Bunting and Greenfinch we next to be added, but our search for Hawfinch failed.

The sun was well up by the time we arrived at Torreguadiaro, the Little Owl sat in the sun warming up from a cold night. Our walk across the sand dunes produced Corn bunting, Chaffinch, Cirl Bunting, Crested Lark, Stonechat and Serin.

The laguna was also quite productive, we saw Purple Swamphen (3), Little Egret, Common Snipe, Shoveler, Coot, Moorhen, Little Grebe and the star bird, a Little Bittern.

Purple Swamphen

Barn Swallows and Crag Martins hunted over the water and many Chiffchaffs chased flies from the reeds. Further into the walk we found two Hoopoes, much to delight of Linda who wanted to see one so much!

A great shot of a White Stork taken by Larry

Our excursion into the woods proved well timed as we found both Great Spotted Woodfpecker and Short-toed Treecreeper almost together at the entracne track. In the hedgerows and open fields we saw many Blackcaps, Serins, Goldfinches and our main target bird, the Tree Sparrow.

Little Owl

From San Enrique we drove to Palmones where we visited the municipal park on the Algeciras side of the salt marsh.From our vantage point of the raised hide we observed a great flying display from two Ospreys. We also saw a male Marsh Harrier, several White Storks, Eurasian Spoonbills (5), Black-winged Stilts, Grey Plover, a single Ruff and several waders already listed.

Cousins? - Greenshank & Redshank

On our way home we made two stops near Jimena where we watched Common Buzzard, Common Raven and Griffon Vultures. We also noted many finches, including Linnets, Goldfinches and Serins.

This second day produced 72 species and brought our trip total to 90.

FEB 4TH - DAY 1 OF 3 DAY TOUR

2012-02-04T12:21:00.000-08:00

MALAGA AIRPORT - DESEMBOCADURA DE GUADALHORCE -SIERRA CRESTELLINA - GAUCIN

I collected Larry & Linda from Malaga Airport at 10:30am. It was a clear day, lots of sunshine but very,very windy.Larry and Linda are from Colorado, USA and had escaped the recent heavy snowfall out there, but they come to Spain during its coldest spell for years!

Larry and Linda, you can just see the snow capped Sierra Nevada in the background

Within half an hour we were watching our first birds at the west bank of the Rio Guadalhorce. because of the wind there not many species in view but within half an hour we had logged: Common Sandpiper, Kingfisher, Water Pipit, White Wagtail, Stonechat, Chiffchaff, Little Egret, Yellow-legged Gull, Northern Gannet and a nice find - Great Skua.

We walked along the beach and onto the reserve where we scanned the Laguna Grande from the raised hide. White headed Duck was present in good numbers, so was Northern Shoveler, we also saw Black-necked Grebe, Greater Flamingo, Eurasian Teal, Little Grebe, Great Cormorant and Mallard.

As we walked to the next laguna we watched Marsh Harrier, Booted Eagle and Eurasian Kestrel. At the second hide we added Common and Red-crested Pochard, Purple Gallinule and Common Moorhen.

From the east bank we saw a flock of Skylark, Meadow Pipit, European Robin, Black Redstart, Black-winged Stilt, Redshank, Ringed Plover, Little Ringed Plover, Green Sandpiper and we had very close views of Booted Eagle as it flew over and put up all the waders.

Finally we walked back to the car along the beach where we looked at gulls and terns. We also added Crested Lark,Zitting Cisticola and Glodfinch as we made it back to the car.

View along the beach looking towards Malaga - it looks lovely, but it was very cold and windy.

We drove towards Gaucin and spent a little time at Sierra Crestellina before we made the final drive up the 'hill'. At Crestellina we saw several Griffon Vulture, lots of Black Redstarts, Blackcap and more Stonechats. It was now getting dull and very cold again so we called it a day and went home for dinner. We saw 58 species, not bad for half a day.

DAY TOUR - FEB 3RD 2012

2012-02-02T10:42:00.000-08:00

CASARES BEACH - LAGUNA TORREGUADIARO - SAN ENRIQUE WOODS - PINAR DEL REY - PALMONES

Today I collected John and Penny from their holiday home near Estapona and spent the day birding along the coast. I left home at 7am in the dark and in the rain!!

By the time we reached our first destination it was light and the rain had stopped, in fact the clouds began to clear and large areas of blue sky emerged. The cold north wind persisted all day.
At the Casares Beach we logged our first birds, Spotless Starling, Black Redstart, Serin, Sardinian Warbler, Great Cormorant, Ruddy Turnstone ands a few Yellow-legged Gulls.

MONK PARAKEETS

A brief stop was made at the San Diego urbanization where we watched a large group of Monk Parakeets at their nests. The laguna at TorreGuadiaro was as productive as ever. The Little Owl showed well so did Purple Swamphen, Little Bittern, Little And Cattle Egrets, Hoopoe (2), Shoveler, Common Snipe, Crested Lark, Spanish Sparrow, Corn Bunting and plenty of common species.

The woods at San Enrique were also productive, we found lots of Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs, Tree Sparrows, Short-toed Treecreepers, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Serins, Meadow Pipits, White Wagtails and Robins.

THE RELIABLE LITTLE OWL IN THE TOWER AT TORREGUADIARO

We ate our picnic lunch under the pines at Pinar del Rey and our walk afterwards was thwarted somewhat by the wind. However we had good views of Crested Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Jay and Great Tit.

For the rest of the afternoon we visited Palmones where walked the promenade to begin with. A good selection of waders were on show as the tide was just staring to ebb. Redshank, Greenshank, Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Grey Plover, Kentish Plover, Sanderling, Common Sandpiper were all seen easily. Some of the larger waders were located on the far bank: Whimbrel, Curlew and Bar-tailed Godwit, small numbers of Sandwich Terns were loafing with the Gulls and over on the marsh we found Osprey, Marsh Harrier (3 females), Eurasian Spoonbill, White Storks, Grey Heron and Little Egret.

A BAD PICTURE OF A SERIN

After a quick coffee stop we set off for the west side of the marsh looking from the outskirts of Algeciras. The wind had picked up but it didn't stop us enjoying our last hour. From the elevated hide we had great views of four Spoonbills as they fed just beneath us, we also had better views of Osprey, Greenshank, Marsh Harrier (one was feeding on a dead White Stork - gross). A large flock of Griffon Vultures soared above as we were on our way back to the car, we also found a very obliging Kingfisher and after a little wait we found a Zitting Cisticola. Finally as we approached the car a Green Sandpiper called aas it flew passed us.

REDSHANK

We had had a wonderful day and saw just under 70 species, the best was voted as the Hoopoe and the Little Bittern by John and Penny.

SOMERSET LEVELS-WEEKEND BREAK 27TH - 31ST JAN 2012

2012-01-31T10:00:00.000-08:00

SOMERSET BIRDING BREAK JAN 2012 – DAY 1

SHAPWICK HEATH, NOAH’S LAKE AND HAM WALL NATURE RESERVE

The Group assembled at our guest house around 12 noon, we had travelled from several directions to converge in the heart of the ‘Levels’ at WestHay.

A 'string' of Starlings arriving at their roost site at Ham Wall Nature Reserve - it is then that the murmuration starts in earnest.

After quickly moving into our rooms and unpacking our scopes, binoculars and winter clothing we set off for our first destination – Shapwick Heath which also included Meare Heath, Noah’s Lake and Ham Wall.

From the car park we found a number of species feeding on bird-feeders in nearby gardens. We found Blue, Great, Coal and Long-tailed Tit in good numbers, they were joined by Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Chaffinch and Greenfinch.
We were joined on our walk to Noah’s Lake by a rainstorm followed by hail stones, so not much birding was possible. However at the hide which overlooks Noah’s Lake we listed several species of wildfowl. Mallard, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Shoveler, Wigeon, Teal, Pintail and Common Pochard, they were joined by Great Crested Grebe, Mute Swan, Cormorant, Grey Heron and a flock of feral Grelag Geese.
More passerines were added as we made our way to Ham Wall to watch the starling roost. A single Fieldfare, a small flock of Redwings, Treecreeper, Siskin and Goldfinch were all seen.

The sky cleared and the sun shone right up until the point when the starlings began to gather for the roost, it all looked very promising, then it clouded over and the rain came down, and because of this the starling moved their roost site and they failed to display in such numbers as previously recorded. We moved from our position and gained much better views of them coming down into the reed-bed in their hundreds of thousands. It was quite a spectacle in the end but not a classic display. Our final few birds of the day included Pied Wagtails, Marsh Harrier and good numbers of Lapwings.

We hoped for better luck tomorrow!`

SOMERSET BIRDING BREAK JAN 2012 – DAY 2

Ham Wall, Cattcott Low, Westhay Moor, Greylake, Aller Moor and a return to Ham Wall.

We made a full day of it by setting out in the dark before breakfast to watch the starlings leave their roost. It was, again, a fantastic sight, it was like an explosion of tiny black tennis balls as 500,000 starlings flew up in unison in every direction, the sky was literally full of them.
Other birds of note seen during our visit were several of the ducks already recorded plus Great White Egret.

Sleeping Wigeon - outside the hide at Cattcott Low Nature Reserve

After a sumptuous breakfast we set off to visit Cattcott Low Nature Reserve. The water was full of ducks and there was a lot of them. Mainly Wigeon and Pintail but also Mallard, Teal, Shoveler and Gadwall. Not much else was seen at Cattcott.
The rest of the morning was spent at West Hay Nature Reserve where we added Goldeneye, Goosander, and Redpoll. Lunch was taken in the pub at Ham Wall by most of the group but myself and Angela went to have a second look for the Yellow-browed Warbler along the old railway line. We didn’t see the warbler but we added Common Chiffchaff and Goldcrest to our list and just before we left we saw a Merlin flash through the tree tops.

The group along the central 'drain' at Shapwick heath - photo taken just after a rain shower

Next we made a visit to the new RSPB Reserve at Greylake. We had superb views of Common Snipe as several were feeding a few meters from the hide. We also saw a pair of Peregrines and hundreds of ducks and Lapwings.
Our penultimate venue was the flood meadows adjacent to the River Parret near Othery. There we saw 39 Common Cranes, they are part of the re-introduction scheme set up by the RSPB. In nearby fields we saw huge flocks of Redwings and Fieldfares with more Lapwings.

One of my favourite garden Birtds - the Dunnock - it has a beautiful song

Finally we visited the Ham Wall reserve to have a second look at the Starling Roost. It was fantastic, the light was good, there was no wind and the birds performed admirably. Whist watching the starlings a flock of Canada Geese flew over. Up to 50 Pied Wagtails did the same and a Common Buzzard appeared to chase after the flocks of starlings, without success, a great ending to the day’s birding.

SOMERSET BIRDING BREAK JAN 2012 – DAY 3

CHEDDAR RESERVOIR, CHEW VALLEY LAKE & BLACK ROCK NATURE TRAIL

Our third day was spent looking at waterfowl and gulls on two well known bodies of Somerset Water. The first, Cheddar Reservoir, is always a favourite of mine. We set off from our Guest House at 8:30am and headed straight for Cheddar which is a 20 minute drive.

The sky was overcast and the visibility quite bad with a mist shrouding the Mendips, but the air was absolutely still. The Cheddar Reservoir was as still as a mill pond and was covered in thousands of birds. Most were Common Coot, but we also found Common Pochard, a single male Red-crested Pochard, Tufted Duck, Shoveler, Teal, Wigeon and Goldeneye. Both Great Crested and Little Grebes were present along with Common Gull, Grey Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Common Buzzard, Redwing, Song Thrush and several corvids including Raven.

We then drove through Cheddar Gorge and over the Mendips into Chew Valley where we spent most of the day visiting various sites along the vast shoreline of this huge man-made Reservoir. Herriot’s Bridge, Heron’s Green, the Dam area and Woodford Lodge we some of the places we stopped.
Although many birds were present we added only a few new species to our trip list. Ruddy Duck (only 3 seen), Common Shelduck, Red-breasted Merganser (a very good species for an inland body of water), Raven and the Goldcrest was new for most of the group. We searched for the Ring-billed Gull and the Spotted Sandpiper, both rare visitors from the USA, but we couldn’t find either.

Lastly we stopped at Black Rock Nature Trail near the top of Cheddar Gorge, but after an hour we only saw Jackdaw and Wood Pigeon, very disappointing. We intended to drive back to Ham Wall to watch the starling roost but it got darker and it began to rain so we returned to the Guest House an hour earlier than planned.

SOMERSET BIRDING BREAK JAN 2012 – DAY 4

HAM WALL - EARLY am- COOMBE WOOD NATURE RESERVE

This was our last day and it started with dull overcast weather, it was raining but it had turned to sleet and then snow by mid-morning. Despite the bad weather most of the group got up for the pre-breakfast jaunt to the starling roost. The birds performed well considering the conditions but there seemed to be far fewer birds than of late. We also saw a Great White Egret and whilst looking for Bullfinches a female Hen Harrier flew over us.

A typical scene on the 'levels'. Large tracts of land have been decimated by Peat Extraction activities, but with some management the aftermath can be very rewarding for wildlife.

After a real hearty breakfast we set off for the Coombe Woods Nature reserve which is found on the Polden Hills just west of the Levels. The snow increased as we climbed the hills and it was very cold. We found literally hundreds of Blue and Great Tits feeding in the leaf litter, it was a fantastic sight. After about an hour we also caught up with a flock of Chaffinches which held about 10 Bramblings, this was one of our target species. We also saw Coal Tit, Robin, Song Thrush and we heard a Tawny Owl calling, our last bird of the trip was a tiny Goldcrest seen up in the canopy of the pine trees.

Well that was the end of the tour, we returned to our Guest House and drank warm tea and coffee before we all went our different ways home. It was a great long-weekend break, the Starlings were of course the main attraction but other species spring to mind: such as Common Cranes, Water Rail, Hen Harrier, Red-Breasted Merganser, Goldeneye and huge numbers of Pintails.

JAN 20TH 2012 - LA JANDA & TARIFA

2012-01-20T10:20:00.000-08:00

What a fantastic day, superb weather, some great bird sightings with several outstanding species on the list. Yes it certainly was 'quality not quantity' today.

I was joined by Paul from the village, we set off at 7:30am, it was cold with a clear sky.

We arrived at la Janda just after 9am in bright sunshine and no wind. As soon as we began the descent along the track onto the lower plateau we began listing several species. Along the first part of this track we saw Reed Bunting, Chaffinch, Stonechat, Corn Bunting, Zitting Cisticola, Lapwing, White Stork, Grey Heron, Common Buzzard and White Wagtail.

VIEWS OF THE 'RAISED' CENTRAL TRACK - WITH RICE PADDIES ON THE LEFT

Not a bad start, our next stop was on the raised central track, we parked at the beginning near a sliuce gate. An extended scan of the neighbouring fields, paddocks and rice paddies, this produced some great sightings. A Purple Swamphen was feeding in the central canal, several Marsh Harriers quartered the fields and were joined by at least four Hen Harriers (all females)! We saw distant Common Cranes, Cattle & Little Egrets, Linnets, Goldfinches, Red-legged Partridges, Common Pheasant, Skylark and Calandra Lark.

We moved along the central track stopping several times to scan the sky and the fields. We added Cetti's Warbler, Green Sandpiper, Chiffchaff and then it started to get really good. A distant Peregrine was een mobbing a Black-winged Kite and was then joined by two Marsh harriers, it was quite a show!

Next we had incredible close views of a hunting Short-eared Owl, it passed within 10 meters of us.

SHORT-EARED OWL AS SEEN THROUGH THE HEAT HAZE

A little later we stopped to watch some Common Snipe that were feeding on a ploughed rice field, this was a very good move because we found not one, but two, Bluethroats. Both were males and one was in incredible plummage.In the same area we saw more Common Snipe, Ringed and our first Little-ringed Plover of the year, Water Pipit and White Wagtails. A second Black-winged Kite alighted on a nearby pylon.

THE SECOND BLUETHROAT - A VERY WELL MARKED MALE - WE WATCHED IT FOR 20 MINUTES

PURPLE SWAMPHEN - ONE OF ABOUT 10 SEEN IN LA JANDA

By now it was getting quite warm, a heat haze had formed and so had thermals above the fields, this meant one thing - raptors. Over the next hour we found some great species. We had good views of at least 3 Spanish Imperial Eagles, a juvenile Bonelli's Eagle and to our great surprise an adult Golden Eagle!! Wow, follow that!!!

Further watching produce a very high Short-toed Eagle (this bird should be in Africa at this time of year).WealsosawRedKite and lots more Marsh Harriers, other birds seen during the afternoon included alovely male Penduline Tit, Blackcap, Sardinian Warbler and Greenfinch.

On the way home we stopped at Los Lances beach at Tarifa, a little breeze had added a late afternoon chill to the air but we still enjoyed some terrific birds. Caspian Terns (4), Sandwich Tern (25), Audouin's Gull (15) were joined by Yellow-legged, Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed Gull, Dunlin, Sanderling, Grey Plover, Kentish Plover and Ringed Plover.

KENTISH PLOVER - FEMALE IT WAS CHASED OFF BY AN AGRESSIVE, AND BIGGER, RINGED PLOVER

LESSER BLACK BACKED GULL (LEFT) STANDING NEXT TO ITS BIGGER COUSIN THE YELLOW-LEGGED GULL

A VIEW FROM THE HIDE AT LOS LANCES BEACH - GULLS, TERNS AND WADERS JUST VISIBLE

More pipits, larks and buntings were found which included another two Water Pipits. This concluded our best birding day of the year, here is the list:

1. Great Cormorant
2. Grey Heron
3. White Stork
4. Mallard
5. Cattle Egret
6. Little Egret
7. Griffon Vulture
8. Bonelli's Eagle
9. Spanish Imperial Eagle (121)
10. Golden Eagle (122)
11. Marsh Harrier
12. Hen Harrier (123)
13. Common Kestrel
14. Sparrowhawk
15. Black-winged Kite (124)
16. Peregrine Falcon
17. Short-toed Eagle (125)
18. Common Buzzard
19. Red Kite (126)
20. Red-legged Partridge (127)
21. Common Pheasant (128)
22. Purple Swamphen
23. Common Coot
24. Moorhen
25. Green Sandpiper
26. Common Snipe
27. Ringed Plover
28. Little-ringed Plover (129)
29. Kentish Plover
30. Grey Plover
31. Lapwing
32. Dunlin
33. Sanderling
34. Audouin's Gull
35. Yellow-legged Gull
36. Lesser Black-backed Gull
37. Black Headed Gull
38. Caspian Tern (130)
39. Sandwich Tern
40. Barn Swallow (131)
41. Crag Martin
42. Meadow Pipit
43. Water pipit
44. Crested lark
45. Skylark
46. Calandra Lark
47. White Wagtail
48. Bluethroat (132)
49. Robin
50. Blackbird
51. Mistle Thrush
52. Collared Dove
53. Feral Pigeon
54. Wood Pigeon
55. Common Crane
56. Chaffinch
57. Greenfinch
58. Goldfinch
59. Linnet
60. Common Starling
61. Spotless Starling
62. House Sparrow
63. Spanish Sparrow
64. Black Redstart
65. Zitting Cisticola
66. Jackdaw
67. Raven
68. Corn Bunting
70. Penduline Tit (133)
71. Chiffchaff
72. Blackcap

JAN 16TH & 17TH BIRDING TRIPS

2012-01-17T11:10:00.000-08:00

We have had a mixture of weather over the last fews days. It has been cold, cloudy at times and from Sunday 15th until this morning, Weds 17th it has rained!!!

Despite the rain I made a quick visit to Los Lances beach at tarifa whilst I was out shopping at the DIY shops along the coast. I got wet walking from the car to the hide. The tide was high so the pools just in front of the hide were flooded and not many birds were present. However, I logged my first Audouin's Gull of the year.

Birds seen at Los Lances:

Grey Plover
Crested Lark,
Meadow Pipit,
Stonechat,
White Wagtail,
Zitting Cisticola,
L B B Gull,
Sandwich Tern,
Blk Headed Gull,
Audouin's Gull (117th for the year),
Corn Bunting

Today; Wednesday 17th

John and Penny Hale joined me for a visit to Llanos de Libarwhich is a hidden valley found behind Montejaque.

We set off in the dark at 8am and arrived at 8:45
in bright sunshine. The surrounding mountains had a covering of snow and the valley stretched for miles in front of us. We drove a kilometer and parked up where we expected to find one of our target species; Ring Ouzel.

After an hour of searching in very cold conditions we found a solitary bird, a male of the a Alpestris race.

The whole valley is stunning with a great variety of habitats and a place I will returning to for many times.

Despite the lack of Ring Ouzels and our other target species: Alpine Accentor we had a great time watching many other species which included:

Rock Bunting (at least 10 seen - 4 together)
Blue Rock Thrush, (4)
Black Wheatear (4),
Dartford Warbler (1 - 118th species for the year)
Ring Ouzel (1 - 119th species for the year)
Rock Sparrow ( 120th species for the year -a flock of over 100 was a superb find)
Bonelli's Eagle (1)
Griffon Vulture (20-30 soem were perched on the ground close to the track)
Southern Grey Shrike (2),
Thekla Lark (several small flocks)
Linnet (10+)
Stonechat (many)
Goldfinch (large flocks)
Chaffinch (small flocks)
Rock Dove (6)
Blackbird
Spotless Starling (6)
Blue Tit
Mistle Thrush (2)
Crag Martin (seen on the way home)

JAN 9TH & 10TH 2012 - BIRDING NEWS

2012-01-10T08:35:00.000-08:00

Last evening (Monday 9th Jan.) Dawn and I visited Penny and John Hale who live just outside Casares.

Whilst on their terrace we had great views of 2 Eagles Owl. The male flew over our heads calling whilst the female flew up from a nearby ridge. Later the male was seen hovering on the wind just above the ridge as though it were a Buzzard or a Short-toed Eagle, a spectacular sight as he held his legs and talons fully extended.

TUESDAY 10TH JAN -- LAGUNA DULCE, LAGUNA FUENTE DE PIEDRAS - ENCINAS DE BORRACHES TRACK NEAR RONDA.

I went out today with Paul from Gaucin to the lagunas north of Ronda. The weather was cold and overcast to start with, but it did warm up, although there was a cold wind all day.

RED-CRESTED POCHARD

We set off in the dark at 7:30am and arrived at laguna Dulce around 8:45am where we drove around the back of the laguna to view the open fields. A disappointing start really, there were no Little Bustards, Lapwings or Golden Plover. However we did see Calandra and Skylarks, Corn Buntings, Linnets and Goldfinches. A nice surprise was a flock of over 400 Common Cranes and we saw over 100 White Wagtails in a single flock. A couple of Marsh Harriers drifted over and we could see hundreds of Shoveler on the laguna.
FOX

From the hide we enjoyed views of a great find, Ferruginous Duck (3), there was also White headed Duck (30+), Red-crested Pochard (18), Common Pochard (4), Pintail (2), Teal (2), Tufted Duck (9), Gadwall, Mallard, Little and Black Necked Grebes (20+). Greater Flamingos, Coots, Moorhens and 3 species of gull made up the rest of the birds on the water. We did see a Green Sandpiper on the bank along with Black-winged Stilts. Not bad eh!!

We drove the short distance round to Laguna Fuente de Piedras where we saw hundreds more flamingos and cranes. From the Catarrans mirador we found a Hoopoe!! and we saw several more Marsh Harriers.

On the small lagunas near the visitor's centre at Piedras we added a lot more species to our day list. Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit, Water Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Common Snipe, Wigeon, Common Shelduck, Zitting Cisticola, Southern Grey Shrike and two nice surprises: Spanish Sparrow and Reed Bunting. Paul pulled out a superb Lesser Flamingo as we walked back to the car park.

REED BUNTING

On the return trip we stopped at the raptor watch point near Teba Gorge but we only saw Rock Dove, Crag Martin and Griffon Vulture there.

We also made a quick stop at a known Bonelli's Eagle site, two birds were present and both showed well for a couple of minutes.

GREEN SANDPIPER

Just south of Ronda we stopped at our usual walk, the Encinas de Borraches. This open valley full of rocky scree looked quite desolate, windy and cold, but it wasn't that bad on further inspection. In fact the birding was quite good. We found a small flcok of Woodlark (5), then a couple of Thekla Larks, followed by Rock Bunting, Little Owl, Goldfinch, Serin, Linnet and Corn Buntings.
We searched the heath for Dartford Warblers and found Greenfinch and Chaffinch, we scanned the high peaks for wheatears but only found Blue Rock Thrush. A Southern Grey Shrike finished off the tally.

Our last stop was at a gorge a couple of kilometers further south, we glimpsed a Black Wheatear from the car then found 4 more after we had stopped. We also saw Black Redstart but not the Rock Sparrow we were expecting.

THE LESSER FLAMINGO IS THE SMALL RED ONE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PHOTO

all in all a great day out, we saw 70 species!!

I have listed today's birds with last nights owl, those species numbered in brackets refer to my year list tally:

1. (86). Eagle Owl
2. Litte Grebe
3. (87). Black necked Grebe
4. Cattle Egret
5. Greater Flamingo
6. (88).Lesser Flamingo
7. (89).Common Shelduck
8. (90).Wigeon
9. (91).Gadwall
10.(92).Teal
11. Mallard
12. (93).Pintail
13. (94).Red-crested Pochard
14. (95).Common Pochard
15. (96).Ferruginous Duck
16. (97),Tufted Duck
17. (98). White-headed Duck
18. Griffon Vulture
19. Marsh Harrier
20. Common Buzzard
21. Common Moorhen
22. Eurasian Coot
23. (99).Common Crane
24. Black-winged Stilt
25. (100).Avocet
26. (101).Lapwing
27. Common Snipe
28. (102).Black-tailed Godwit
29. (103). Green Sandpiper
30. (104).Common Sandpiper
31. Black-headed Gull
32. Yellow-legged Gull
33. Lesser Black-backed Gull
34. (105).Rock Dove
35. Little Owl
36. (106).Hoopoe
37. (107).Calandra Lark
38. Crested Lark
39. (108).Thekla Lark
40. Woodlark
41. (109).Skylark
42. Crag martin
43. Meadow Pipit
44. Water Pipit
45. Grey Wagtail
46. White Wagtail
47. Black Redstart
48. Stonechat
49. (110).Black Wheatear
50. Blue Rock Thrush
51. (111). Zitting Cisticola
52. Great Tit
53. Southern Grey Shrike
54. (112).Jackdaw
55. Raven
56. (113).Common Starling
57. Spotless Starling
58. House Sparrow
59. (114).Spanish Sparrow
60. Common Chaffinch
61. Serin
62. Greenfinch
63. Goldfinch
64. Linnet
65. (115).Rock Bunting
66. (116).Reed Bunting
67. Corn Bunting
68. Common Kestrel
69. Sardinian Warbler
70. Blue Tit

JAN 7TH - SIETE PILAS WALK

2012-01-08T01:19:00.000-08:00

Dawn and I took a walk with Paul and Janyce, our friends from the village. Another clear blue sky greeted us as we drove out of the village down the route to Cortes de la Frontera. We soon arrived at our turning to Siete Pilas, a small 'hamlet' hidden deep in the valley countryside. The walk took us uphill to the limestone ridge that divides the Guadiaro Valley from the Genal Valley.

It wasn't a birding trip but both Paul and I had our binoculars with us. We saw many common birds and a few Griffon Vultures. I added a couple species to my year list:

83. Southern Grey Shrike
84. Woodlark

From the high ridge the views were amazing and well worth the walk up.

Later in the afternoon, whilst dozing on my top terrace a Raven passsed over calling and I'm certain that an Eagle Owl called twice!! I have heard them in the daytime before.

85. Raven

JAN 6TH - DAY TOUR

2012-01-06T14:10:00.000-08:00

SAN PABLO TRACK - SAN ENRIQUE WOODS - LAGUNA TORREGUADIARO - PALMONES SALT MARSH

A great day with all day sunshine, a little breezy but very warm, top temperature 21 C.

Today I took out John and Mary, our American firends who live just outside the village, Fred, who owns a large house in the village, a Villa fan, and who is here for a few weeks holiday, and Dawn, my precious.
Left to right, Fred, myself, Mary and John

We set off at 8am and quickly drove down the mountainside to San Pablo where we took the San Martin road and turned onto my favourite track. We quickly logged several finches, Corn Bunting, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Stonechat, Common Buzzard, Eurasian Kestrel, Black Redstart, Meadow Pipit, Spotless Starling and Sardinian Warbler.

After a quick coffee-stop we set off for San Enrique and along the way we stopped to admire a couple of Little Owls. We arrived at San Enrique Woods which were quiet and the river had had recent ground-work changes made to its banks which completely changed the ecology of the area to the detriment of the wildlife. We only found Kingfisher, Great Spotted Woodpecker and the usual Tree Sparrows.

The laguna at Torreguadiaro proved to be very productive and we spent a good hour enjoying a nice selection of water birds. Grey Heron, Little Egret, cattle Egret, Moorhen, Coot, Mallard, Shoveler, Little Grebe all took second place behind Purple Swamphen, Crag Martin,Little Bittern (3) and Squacco Heron (2). We also found Little Owl on the tower ruins.Out at sea we watched several Northern Gannets diving for fish and as we walked across the sand dunes we put up two Crested Larks.

The laguna Camelias at Torreguadiaro where we saw Little Bittern, Squacco Heron and Purple Swamphen

At Palmones we made two diverse birding stints. The first, on arrival, was a walk along the promenade in the town. There we found Curlew, Whimbrel, Ringed Plover, Sanderling, Kentish Plover, Redshank, Greenshank, a single Ruff, White Stork, Cormorant, Sandwhich Tern, Black-headed, Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed Gulls.Obersavations were made difficult because we were looking into strong sunlight.

A nice lunch was enjoyed by all before we drove to the west side of the saltmarsh where we watched the marshes from the raised hide. It was a good move because the sun was now behind us and we commanded a great panoramic view of the whole area. We added Black-winged Stilt, Grey Plover, Dunlin, Water Pipit, Grey Wagtail, Common Snipe and Spoonbill. Soon the goodies started to be found. First a Short-eared Owl was found sitting on the ground, then an Osprey, up to four Marsh Harriers, including a superb male and lastly a Peregrine was seen sitting on a concrete block. The Falcon flew up high and proceeded to dive-bomb a Common Buzzard which would turn over with its talons spread open to thwart the Peregrine's attacks, a great aerial display of flying agility and fantastic bird watching.

Viewing from the raised hide at the Palmones salt marsh

We left the marshes at 5pm and drove back to Gaucin via Casares and the Sierra Crestellina where we stopped to look for larks in fading sunlight. A big surprise was the discovery of two Bonelli's Eagles, drifting over and around their nest-site, what a great bird to finish off the day with. But just as we were ready to go we found a Sparrowhawk and a Spanish Ibex, both looking superb in the golden light of the setting sun.

The Soto Grande Lighthouse from the Torreguadiaro beach

Our tally for the day was just under 70 species, we all enjoyed a superb day in glorious weather and we took home some treasured memories. Bird of the day for was the Short-eared Owl but others voted for Little Bittern and Purple Swamphen.

new birds for year list:

56. Greenfinch
57. Little Owl
58. Purple Swamphen
59. Little Bittern
60. Squacco Heron
61. Little Grebe
62. Shoveler
63. Northern Gannet
64. Bonelli's Eagle
65. Common Moorhen
66. Common Coot
67. Bl;ack-winged Stilt
68. Eurasian Curlew
69. Ruff
70. Common Snipe
71. Sandwich Tern
72. Common Kingfisher
73. Grey Wagtail
74. Tree Sparrow
75. Serin
76. Short-eared Owl
77. Spoonbill
78. Peregrine Falcon
79. Great Spotted Woodpecker
80. Crested Lark
81. Water Pipit
82. Stonechat

JAN 4TH 2012 - Gibraltar-Palmones-Gaucin, camino Gibraltar

2012-01-04T08:21:00.000-08:00

We got up early and drove to Gibraltar to do our monthly 'Brits-abroad' shopping, it was all over by 10am, great! We then drove round to Los Barrios for more shopping, (not so great) but we made the inevitable stop at the Palmones Salt Marsh, which was superb.

Later in the afternoon we took a stroll along the Camino de Gibraltar where we saw lots of birds, many Blackcaps, Song Thrushes and Starling were singing! Can't blame them the weather is just fantastic.

A VIEW OF EL HACHO FROM THE GIB TRACK

Birds seen on the journey to Gib included these new ones for our year list:

27. White Stork- many on their nests already.
28. Cattle Egret
29. Collared Dove

At Palmones the tide was rising so not much mud was exposed in the river mouth and many waders were roosting on the sandspit. New Year listers were:

30. Osprey
31. Marsh Harrier
32. Common Sandpiper
33. Greenshank
34. Redshank
35. Whimbrel
36. Bar-tailed Godwit
37. Ringed Plover
38. Grey Plover
39. Kentish Plover
40. Sanderling
41. Dunlin
42. Curlew Sandpiper
43. Great Cormorant
44. Yellow-legged Gull
45. Lesser Black-backed gull
46. Black-headed Gull
47. Grey Heron
48. Little Egret

Birds seen on the return journey to Gaucin from palmones:

49. Common Kestrel
50. Common Buzzard

THE SAME TRACK BUT ON THE WAY BACK UP

During our walk in the afternoon we found both Brimstone and Large Tortoiseshell butterflies on the wing and added several new birds to the growing yearly tally:

51. Meadow Pipit
52. Corn Bunting
53. White Wagtail
54. Linnet
55. Cirl Bunting

I heard a Green Woodpecker drumming as well as a Great Spotted, Dawn said 'oh yes, I saw the Green Woodpecker just now"! The word "Supressor" comes to mind - I can't put Green Woody on the list until I have seen it! Dawn did remind me that it was she that found the Crested Tit and Firecrest yesterday- maybe I'll forgive her, humbug!

A view of the village the way back - uphill!

JAN 2ND & 3RD 2012 GAUCIN - PUNTA UMBRIA WALK

2012-01-03T12:57:00.000-08:00

We have taken the same walk for the last two afternoons in contrasting weather. Yesterday afternoon was very windy, overcast with a clearing cloud-cover later in the day. Very few species of birds were seen.

A view of the south side of Umbria.

We added:

15. Griffon Vulture

to our year list.

Today was totally different, clear blue sky, no wind and plenty of birds to watch and a lovely warm temperature.

Cork Oak along the circular track around Punta Umbria

New species for the year list:

16. Common Chiffchaff
17. Crested Tit
18. Mistle Thrush
19. Great Tit
20. Wren
21. Eurasian Nuthatch
22. Hawfinch
23. Eurasian Sparrowhawk
24. Wood Pigeon
25. Crag Martin
26. Firecrest

There were several Large Tortoiseshell butterflies on the wing, often seen settled on small rocks.
We also saw Iberian Wall Lizards and a snake (probably an Adder)but it was too quick for me to ID it.

JAN 1ST 2012 - A BEAUTIFUL START TO THE YEAR

2012-01-01T09:16:00.000-08:00

After a late start (we didn't get up until 10am) we took a walk down to the Camino Gibraltar. It was a beautiful morning, clear blue sky and a light breeze.

It was so clear that Gibraltar was easily visible.

We saw Black Redstart (1), Blue Rock thrush (2) and House Sparrow (3) from our upper terrace before we set off for the walk.

Over the next hour we strolled into the Genal Valley and saw Robin (4), Jay (5), Chaffinch (6), Goldfinch (7), Spotless Starling (8), Sardinian Warbler (9), lots of Blackcaps (10), Blackbird (11), Song Thrush (12), Blue Tit (13) and a nice surprise.......a House Martin (14).

Not a raptor in sight despite perfect conditions, however we did see plenty of Bermuda Buttercups and sveral other flowers.

ALL TODAY'S PHOTOS WERE TAKEN BY DAWN.

It was just lovely to be out in the warm sunshine again.

BACK IN SPAIN - DEC 31ST 2011

2011-12-31T07:12:00.000-08:00

THE LAST DAY OF 2011 WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR ITS GLORIOUS WEATHER AND OUR HOME COMING. IT IS DELIGHTFUL TO BE BACK IN SUNNY SPAIN AGAIN AFTER SPENDING CHRISTMAS IN THE UK. A WALK TO THE SHOP THIS MORNING WAS GREAT, EVERYONE WE MET SMILED AND GREETED US WITH BUENAS DIAS, EVEN THE SHOP ASSISTANT WISHED US A HAPPY NEW YEAR.

WE HAD A LOVELY CHRISTMAS IN THE UK WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS BUT EVERYDAY WAS DULL, DISMAL AND WET. THE ONLY DRY DAY (28TH DEC) WAS COLD AND WINDY.

ALL PHOTOS WERE TAKEN TODAY AT 3PM FROM OUR TOP TERRACE.

WE SPENT THE WHOLE OF THE 29TH DRIVING THROUGH FRANCE, DULL, WET AND DISMAL. ON THE 30TH WE DROVE FROM TOULOUSE TO GAUCIN PASSING THROUGH THE PYRENEES. ON THE FRENCH SIDE IT WAS PICTURESQUE WITH A COVERING OF SNOW AND ON THE SPANISH SIDE IS WAS DRY AND CLEAR WITH LOTS OF SUNSHINE.

TODAY IN GAUCIN WE HAVE WARM TEMPERATURES, WALL TO WALL SUNSHINE, I CAN'T THINK WHY I'D RATHER BE HERE THAN ANYWHERE ELSE!

IT'S GOING TO BE A GREAT NEW YEAR - WE HAVE LOTS OF BOOKINGS - PLENTY OF BIRDING TRIPS TO DO - WATCH THIS SPACE I AM GOING TO ATTEMPT 150 SPECIES IN JANUARY IN SPAIN!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ONE AND ALL.

Somerset Orchard - Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-24T08:21:00.000-08:00

We are staying with Dawn's sister and brother-in-law, Celia and Martin near Crewkerne, Somerset. I took a wolk out the back of their house to visit a huge commercial orchard complex where thousands of Fieldfare and other thrushes are gathering for the annual 'scrump'.

It's always nice to return to the UK and see the lovely Dunnock, I do miss this little beauty and its melodious song, I'll try to photograph it tomorrow. Other birds in the orchard were: Great Spotted Woodpecker, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Blue Tit and Great Tit.

If the weather is good I shall go there again on Christmas morning or Boxing day morning.

Merry Christmas.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2011-12-24T08:18:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to one and all, hope you all have a great holiday and a healthy, prosperous New Year.

COSTA RICA - DEC 15TH 2011

2011-12-15T18:07:00.000-08:00

OUR FINAL DAY HAD ARRIVED - so I made a special effort to see 10 new species. It was dark at 5am when I set off for the 25km drive to Parrita where a large river (Rio Parrita) gushes into the Pacific Ocean.

It was a bright clear morning when I arrived, the tide was ebbing so small shingle banks and sandy spits were emerging from the water. Many Snowy, Cattle and Great White Egrets were feeding and Green-Backed, Great Blue, Small Blue, Bare-throated Tiger and Tricloured Herons were also present in good numbers. Throughout the next two hours I also recorded White Ibis, the beautiful Roseate Spoonbill, Olivaceous Cormorant and several birds of prey.
The two pictures above are of Roadside Hawk, a very common bird that reminds me of Grasshopper Buzzard from the Gambia. Several waders were persent, both along the river and along the beach pools. Whimbrel (below) was joined by the plentiful Black-necked Stilt, Willet and also Sanderling, Ruddy Turstone and Spotted Sandpiper.

More birds of prey appeared along the beach, Osprey, Yellow-headed Caracara and a new species for me Black Hawk-Eagle, it flew passed me but refused to land and pose for my camera, next time!

The Black Vulture is also very common and many were sitting on the beach looking for dead things.

A sandbar near the mouth of the Rio Parrita held a group of roosting terns, which consisted of Royal Tern (shown above) and Sandwich Terns. Out at sea many more terns were joined by Laughing Gulls, Brown Pelican and Magnificent Frigatebirds.

Back along the track on the way home I stopped to photograph this very noisy Northern Jacana. Behind me there was a shrimp farm with many pools. On the nearest pool there were 100+ Lesser Scaup and one Least Grebe.

Another photograph of an immatureWhite Ibis, I never caught up with the adults, at least not close enough for the camera.

Two of my favourite herons the Small Blue, above, and the Bare-throated Tiger Heron below were both found in good numbers along the river.
Other birds included: Streaked Flycatcher, Tropical Kingbird, Golden-hooded, Palm, Blue and Grey Tanagers, Red-crowned Woodpecker and lots more.

At 11am we set for a slow drive to San Jose, we intended to take all afternoon to do so and indeed it did take that long because of road works, birding stops lunch stop, car accidents and a wrong turn in San Jose. One stop was on the bridge overlooking the Rio Tarcoles where over a dozen gigantic Crocdiles were lying on the river banks!!

Our bird list for this last trip included Scarlet Macaw, several were seen around Jaco. Also the giant Ringed Kingfisher, Grey-breatsed Martins, Barn Swallows, Amazon Swallows, White-winged dove, Ruddy ground Dove and many Turkey and Black Vultures.

I never found 10 new species - only 7!

This will be the last bird report from Costa Rica unless something good turns up in the hotel grounds first thing tomorrow morning - we have to be at the airport by 8am.

Plenty more photographs will follow in the next few days.

COSTA RICA - DEC 14TH 2011

2011-12-14T15:26:00.001-08:00

OUR LAST DAY AT MANUEL ANTONIO - and yes, it rained all afternoon!

I took an early stroll along a local lane, I didn't see much but heard two Spectacled Owls calling, a few Tanagers, some Mealy Parrots, Bananaquit, the Pale-billed Woodpecker with the punk hair style shown below. The load call kiss-ka-dee rung out from several places and several Hummingbirds buzzed passed me without stopping to give their names.

On the way back to the Hotel I stopped to watch more parrots and found Thick-billed Euphonia in the same tree, see picture below.

Thick-billed Euphonia (female)

As it was our last day and we were staying next to the famous National park it would have been rude not to visit. So at 9am we entered the park which has recorded 184 mammals since it opened. We saw 6! Both the Two and Three Toed Sloths, Red Brocket Deer, Raccoon, White-chinned Capuchin and Howler Monkeys. There were very few birds on show but we did find: Shining honeycreeper (new species), Baltimore Oriole (male Shown below), Chestnut Sided Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Fiery-billed Aracari, Golden-naped Woodpecker (new species).

BALTIMORE ORIOLE- MALE

GOLDEN-NAPED WOODPECKER (MALE)

The park backs onto a fantastic white-sand beach, it looks like a scene from the film 'The Beach',
white sand, palm trees, blue sea and ......rain clouds. We manged an hour or so on the beach constantly being pestered by Raccoons, they wanted to raid the picnic box.

Rain started about 3pm as usual, so we departed and on the way out of the reserve we found a roosting Lesser Nighthawk (new species), it was too dark and wet to try to photograph it. The rest of day was spent sheltering from a tropical downpour that is persisting as I write this at 6pm.

COSTA RICA - DEC 13TH 2011

2011-12-13T15:58:00.001-08:00

ANOTHER BEACH DAY! So I had to do my birding at 5:30am, it was overcast with a threat of rain, again. I drove to a recently cropped rice field just north of Quepos and adjacent to the Rio Paquito. First I drove to the banks of the river which held several species of birds: Lesser Yellowlegs was new for my list, a single bird joined a flock of Willet and Black-necked Stilts.

Two shots of the juvenile Bare-throated Tiger-Heron that I found very close to the main road in the rice fields.

Further along the river I scoped Tricoloured Heron (shown immediately below), a juvenile Little Blue Heron (all white), a Green-backed Heron, Spotted Sandpiper as I got a little closer to the bank I noticed some very large Crocodiles, no swimming today then? There were also two Southern
Lapwings on the sand spit - possibly the same two birds recorded on the 8th south of Quepos.

The Green-backed Heron, flew off and landed in a small tree, it posed perfectly for my camera.

Spotted Sandpiper, very common where-ever there is water.

Lesser Yellowlegs and Black-necked Stilt

In the rice fileds I got great views of a number of species from the main road which was quite a bit higher than the fields.

A juvenile White Ibis fed alone not too far away.

One small pool held the Bare-throated Tiger-heron as well as a family party of Northern Jacanas, the male is shown below.

Several Crested Caracara were stalking the rice filed and were quite unconcerned by my presence.

A Greater Yellowlegs is shown below, a bigger bird than the Lesser Yellowlegs, it has a longer and slightly upturned bill, very synonymous to our Redshank/Greenshank pairing.

A Snowy Egret, a juvenile again is shown below.

The rest of the day was spent on the beach and my usual lunchtime walk to the mangroves was rewarded with great views of the Amazaon Kingfisher shown below.

COSTA RICA - DEC 12TH 2011

2011-12-12T19:01:00.000-08:00

At last, a full day-out birding once again! I was joined today by Phil (an American non-birder staying at the same hotel as us), Manuel and Roy both Costa Rican bird guides based at Quepos and Manuel Antonio respectively.

A POOR PICTURE OF SCARLET MACAW HIGH UP IN THE CANOPY

It was an early start, we set off at 5:30am for the 90 km drive north to Carara National park in the dark.

WHITE WHISKERED PUFFBIRD

We then spent all day walking the tracks and trails of this lovely tropical forest reserve. It has a great number of recorded species including those that overlap the north/south Pacific regional divide.

We started in the car park with a pair of Rufous-naped Wrens, they were building a huge nest high up in a tree. We then saw a group of 5 noisy Scarlet Macaws flying over, what a great start. After buying our entrance tickets we drove the short distance to the park entrance.

ORANGE-COLLARED MANAKIN

We then spent 3 hours walking a nice wide glade ad although is was very muddy we managed Ok.The birds came thick and fast: Long-billed Gnatwren, Blue-black Grosbeak, White-collared Puffback, Rufous-breasted Wren, Riverside Wren, Black-hooded Antshrike and Chestnut-backed Antbird. But the star of the show for me was the superb Barred Antshrike - what a stunner, we saw both the male and the superb female.

An open area to our left held a large pool of water and above it, in the overhanging trees a colony of Boat-billed Herons roosted, what an odd looking creature that one is! We also found Green Kingfisher and Roy saw an American Pygmy Kingfisher. Our excitement was increased as we found Tricolour heron, Green-backed heron, Northern Jacana, Northern Rough-winged Swallows and Dusky Flycatcher.

GREEN KINGFISHER (MALE)

On the return trip back to the car park we found: Streaked Flycatcher, Dot-winged Antwren, Slate-headed Tody Flycatcher and yellow-crowned Euphonia.

After a delicious lunch which was taken across the Rio Tarcoles, where we saw several very large Crocdiles from the bridge, we spent the aftern noon on a second trail.

BLUE-THROATED GOLDENTAIL

The afternoon culminated when we tracked down a calling Streaked-chested Antpitta, what agreat little bird this was, it looked like a thrush with a big eye and no tail!! We also had much better views of the Scarlet Macaws and added Turquoise-browed Motmot and White-whiskered Puffbird.
TURQUOISE-BROWED MOTMOT

Rain came in about 4pm and we drove all the way back through torrential down-pours.

COSTA RICA - DEC 11TH 2011

2011-12-11T13:21:00.000-08:00

DAY 3 of our "holiday section" of our visit to Costa Rica, we remain on the Southern Pacific Coast at Manuel Antonio just 3km from the entrance to famous national Park.

BROWN PELICAN - BAD SHOT TAKEN FROM THE BEAUTIFUL BEACH AT MANUEL ANTONIO

I took another early morning birding trip at 5:30am to the Rice fields and Palm Nut farms just north of Quepos. I photgraphed a Yellow-headed Caracara just after I stopped by a bridge over the Rio Sevgre where I watched Grey-breasted martins and a Snowy Egret. My next stop was near a small stream where a party of Orange-chinned Parakeets were feeding, in the same tree I also saw Red-crowned Woodpercker, Tennessee Warbler and a Cherrie's Tanager.

SPOTTED SANDPIPER - IT CLOSELY RESEMBLES THE EUROPEAN COMMON SANDPIPER WHEN IN WINTER PLUMMAGE, SUBTLE DIFFERENCES INCLUDE LEG COLOUR

On telegraph wires and posts I saw Roadside Hawk, Ruddy Ground-Dove and Crested Caracara. On wires over the stream I had great views of Ringed and Amazon Kingfishers.
THE GIGANTIC - RINGED KINGFISHER

At the rice fields there were fewer birds in sight but many more were well hidden in the tall stalks of rice. I saw Great Egret, Northern Jacana, Black-necked Stilt, Spotted Sandpiper and lots of Variable Seedeaters.

A MALE AMAZON KINGFISHER

After breakfast we set off to the beach, but our visit was curtailed by a rainstorm. Before we left however I managed a short walk where I watched many Brown Pelicans fishing, an Osprey, Willet and a few Spotted Sandpipers.

THE YELLOW-HEADED CARACARA - A COMMON ROADSIDE BIRD

COSTA RICA - DEC 10TH 2011

2011-12-10T17:55:00.000-08:00

OUR second day of non-birding, it was a beautiful, sunny day with a nice breeze coming in off the Pacific Ocean. I took an early stroll at 5:30am to a nearby stream. I added Band-rumped Swift (now known as Costa Rican Swift) to my list as well as a Ferruginous Pygmy Owl which I tracked down as it was calling repeatedly. Other species noted were White-Collared Swift, Chimney Swift, Blue and White Swallow, Summer Tanager, Cherrie's Tanager, Bananaquit and quite a few flycatchers.

I also got much better views of the White-billed Woodpecker which is shown above.

After another great breakfast we set off for the beach, I took my scope this time and during a lunch time walk to the mangrove swamp I added a couple more species.

Several Inca Doves were feeding on the grass verges these tiny doves allowed a close approach, when they fly a lovely rufous patch can be seen in their wings, smashing bird.

I almost trod on a small flock of waders on a shingle spit near the mangroves. There were about 10 Least Sandpipers, shown below, and a single Semi-palmated Sandpiper shown above. A few Spotted Sandpipers were also seen. The usual Brown Pelicans, Magnificent Frigate and Brown Booby were flying over the bay. Another two species arrived in the mangroves: Belted Kingfisher , a female with its two bands across the breast and a Green-backed Heron, both good sightings but photos were bad.

The Green-backed Heron which was found skuling at the edge of the mangrove stream on Mauel Antonio beach.

A couple of the 10 or so Least Sandpipers seen today.

At 3pm we left the beach and after a short stop at our hotel we set off in the car to Quepos to look for a parakeet roost. We failed to find the roost but instead found a Grackle roost with hundreds of these noisey blighters flying around.

As a beautiful red sun dropped over the pacific horizon we logged a few terns on the sand spit which include Royal, Elegant, Sandwich and Common, with Willets and laughing Gulls. Two new species then flew out of a mangrove swamp: White Ibis and Wood Stork, a nice end to the day.

Laughing Gulls, Royal Terns and Sandwich Terns.

COSTA RICA - DEC 9TH 2011

2011-12-09T16:03:00.001-08:00

OUR first non-birding day started at 7am!!! we had a two hour lie-in what a luxury says Dawn. It was a bright clear blue sky and we sat on the terrace of the hotel and had a woderful breakfast.

We spent most of the day on the beach reading and dozing. I did take a couple of walks with bins and logged: Brown Booby, Magnificent Frigate, Brown Pelican, Royal Tern out at sea and Ringed kingfisher, Amazon Kingfisher, Spotted Sandpiper and Red-crowned Woodpecker near some mangrove swamps. Inland I found Inca Doves, Summer Tanager, Great-tailed Grackles (everywhere) and both Black and Turkey Vultures.

Back at the hotel I saw Wilson's Warbler, Palm Tanager and Summer Tanager from our balcony and a new bird the Blue -crowned Mot-Mot from the terrrace.

As I didn't take my scope with me today I have no new photographs, but here are a couple of my favourite family of Costa Rican birds the Cotingas.

TURQUOISE COTINGA (taken at Los Cosingas) on the 8th

SNOWY COTINGA (taken at La Selva on the 4th)

COSTA RICA - DEC 8TH 2011

2011-12-08T18:58:00.001-08:00

Today was our last day with our guide and officially our last day of birding, from now on it will be a brief sortie in the morning and then a beach day.

We left the high altitude mountains and headed west for the Pacific Lowlands, the weather was bright and clear but it did cloud over and it rained.

As we dropped down towards the coast we stopped at two interesting places, the first had lots of bird feeder for hummers and the second was the nature reserve based around the home of the founder of Costa Rican birding, Alexander Skutch. It was there that we had our 'Tanager' day.

This speckled Tanger was one of 6 species visiting the bird table in Alexander Skutch's Garden! There was also Cherrie'sTanager, Blue and Grey Tanager, Palm Tanager, Western Tanager and the two shown below:

Golden-crowned Tanager

Bay-headed Tanger

The famous Fiery-billed Aracari - a must-see species of Costa Rica

We also had some great new species for our list found in the surrounding woodlands and garden:
Spotted-crowned Euphonia, Orange-collared manakin, Red-capped Manakin, Blue-crowned Manakinand Riverside Wren. We also saw the fantastic Turquoise Cotinga, Broad-winged Hawk and several more new hummers.

As we dropped down to sea level the humidity rose again and we felt as we stopped for short birding stints. We added Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Southern lapwing, Barn Swallow, Crested Caracara, Grey-breasted Martin and Roadside hawk.

Our first view of the Pacific Ocean was at Quepos where we scanned the bay on low tide, there we found: Willet, laughing Gull, Sandwich Tern, Royal Tern, Elegant Tern, Forster's Tern, Magnificent Frigate bird, Brown Pelican and Green Backed Heron.

Not a bad finsh to the day. We bade farewell to Roy our guide and checked into our next hotel. Later, as we sat on the terrace sipping a cold tinny we heard a Rufous-fronted Wood Rail calling and I knew I was going to enjoy this new venue!

COSTA RICA - DEC 7TH 2011

2011-12-07T17:29:00.001-08:00

We stayed in Sevegre Valley in San Gerardo Region for the whole day and walked two trails based at the Severge Hotel - a wonderful scenic area and a great place to stay.

We started at 5:30am, it was very cold at only 5 C but the sky was clear. We drove the short distance to a well known site for the Quetzal and sure enough after a short wait we saw four
males.

For the rest of the morning we walked the trails at Severge Hotel and found a new set of species in this high mountain terrain. A set of feeders are positioned right outside the reception area and they attract many hummingbirds we added: Grey-tailed Mountain Gem, Purple-throated Mountain Gem, Whiter-bellied Mountain Gem and a Stripe-tailed Hummingbird.

During our walk we found Yellow-thighed Finch, Flame-throated Warbler, Yellow-winged Vireo, Mountain Robin, Rufous-browed Peppershrike (brief glimpses), Elegant Euphonia - a stunning little gem.

The little beauty shown above is the Collared Redstart and is quite common in this region.

Further down the track we also found Brown-capped Vireo, Townsend's Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Black-cheeked Warbler, Tufted Flycatcher and Buff-fronted Quail Dove.

We arrived back at the hotel in time for lunch and during lunch we watched the bird tables from the terrace. The Acorn Woodpecker shown below was superb, there were three of them.

We also added the Flame-coloured Tanager, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Tennessee Warbler (unusual to see a warbler on a bird table). A Red-crowned Woodpecker dropped in for a brief time and joined Hairy Woodpecker and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker onto the daily woodpecker tally.

I can't finish the blog without including a picture of a hummer or two. This one is a Grey-tailed (aka White-throated) Mountain Gem.

This one below is the female Purple-throated Mountain Gem.

COSTA RICA - DEC 6TH 2011

2011-12-06T18:36:00.000-08:00

It was changeover day, we left Tapanti in the cloud forest and travelled to Selvaverde in the highlands. What a contrast with the habitation and the bird life.

Before we left we took an early morning walk amongst the Trout Pools at our Lodge, it produced several new species: an Osprey was circling over the pools and our first Torrent Tyrannulet appeared. Then we found a fig tree full of fruit and birds: Black and White Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-throated Bush Finch, Yellow-bellied Elaenia and Bay-headed Tanager were all new birds.

RESPLENDENT QUETZAL

During the journey we stopped for lunch at a well known lodge where the famous Quetzal can be seen and indeed it was. After a difficult climb up through wet woodland we eventually found one, then another two. During our two walks (before and after lunch) we found several excellent endemic species and had excellent sightings of more hummingbirds at the feeders.

The strangley named Zeledonia (now known as the Wren-Thrush) was a secretive little blighter, but eventually showed well. We also saw Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Black-capped Flycatcher, Gray-breasted Wood Wren, Timberline Wren, Spangled Cheeked Tanager, Wilson's Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Slaty Flowerpiercer. Two special species for me came one after the other, first the Long-tailed Silky Flaycatcher, we saw seven together, then my favourite the Golden-browed Chlorophonia,what astunning little bird - look it up as I didn't get picture.

BLACK-CAPPED FLYCATCHER

Of the Hummers we added Voilet-eared, the endemic Volcano Hummingbird, the Magnificient and the Fiery-throated. As much as 3 hours was spent travelling so our day list wasn't great but most them were new for us.

BLACK-BILLED NIGHTINGALE-THRUSH

FEMALE VOLCANO HUMMER

COSTA RICA - DEC 5TH 2011

2011-12-05T16:20:00.001-08:00

We spent all day at Tapanti. It was nice and clear, at 5:30am, when Roy and I ventured out but it soon clouded over and we had a dull overcast day with plenty of rain showers.

The weather didn't help with bird sightings and instead of racking up 50-60 new species we had to settle with 35.

This Sun Bittern was a nice find which was found feeding along the side of the main track, another good bird was the Crested Eagle (a minature Harpy Eagle) which also showed well but distant.

The Collared Trogan is practically identical to the Orange Bellied Trogon, except that, as shown, it has a red belly. This colour difference can be very subjective in the field and lead to mis-identification.

The Costa Rican national Bird, the Clay Coloured Thrush (or Robin) is very common out here and agressively defends the food on the bird table, in this case, bananas.

Another shot of the Sun Bittern, what a great bird, it has a strange habit of moving its body from side to side whilst keep its head and neck perfectly still.

More pictures of todays sightings to follow.

COSTA RICA DEC 2011 - MORE PHOTOS

2011-12-04T18:46:00.000-08:00

GREENHONEYCREEPER (female)

GREAT KISSKADEE

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK

KEEL-BILLED TOUCAN

RUDDY GROUND DOVE

DUSKY-FACED TANAGER

COSTA RICA - DEC 4TH 2011

2011-12-04T17:53:00.000-08:00

HELICONIA ISLAND - SELVA VERDE - TAPANTI VIA SAN JOSE

Our third day at Heliconia Island started just as the second one did, an early morning stroll around the beautiful gardens and nearby tracks. We were woken by the Howler Monkeys at 5am and as usual the air was full of bird song.

Blue-grey Tanager

Dawn stayed in bed whilst I went for walk, the usual array of colourful species greeted me as I walked the first few yards. A Northern Waterthrush walked around on the lawn, this was new for the list as was a Hawk that flew off carrying a large snake. Over the next hour and a half I must have seen over 40 species with Black Striped Sparrow, Black-cowled Oriole, Smooth-billed Ani, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Southern Rough-winged Swallow, Black-faced Grosbeak, Blue Seedeater, Crested Caracara.

The rest of the morning was spent visitin

g a couple of Lodges and their associated nature trials in order to assess them for future use. During this recce we added Rufuous-winged Woodpecker, Yellow Warbler and a Summer Tanager (a nice male).

The long drive to the Cloud Forest at Tapanti was broken by a couple of roadside stops where we added: King Vulture, White-tailed Hawk, Green Thorntail, Voilet headed Hummingbird and Voilet-crowned Woodnymph.

As we approached the Tapanti Reserve we stopped to watch a

huge flock of Crimson-fronted Parrots, there must have over 100 of this semi-endemic. We found a House Wren taking a dust bath and a quick stop at a mounatin stream produced American Dipper and Black Phoebe.

The prospect for tomorrow was an exciting one, the terraine was totally different with mountain forest replacing that of tropical rain forest, with a different set of tree species. The temperature was much cooler, the air was drier, it had changed from 98% humidity in the tropical forest to 20% in the cloud forest and it wasn't raining every other hour!!! WOOD THRUSH

COSTA RICA - DEC 3RD 2011

2011-12-03T16:43:00.000-08:00

LA SELVA BIOLOGICAL RESERVE AND THE GARDEN AT HELECONIA ISLAND.

An early morning ramble in the gardens produced several new species for the trip: these included Green Ibis, Great Jacamar, Nicaraguan Seed-Finch, Wood Thrush, Pied Puffbird, Olive-backed Euphonia and Great Antshrike.

During breakfast we sat on the terrace and watched the feeders and bird tables where a plethora of birds gathered. We had great views of Green Honeycreeper,Blue Dacnis, Summer Tanager the beautiful Orange-billed Sparrow. BARRED ANTSHRIKE (male)

After a lovely breakfast we drove the short distance to La Selva where we spent the whole day. We hired a guide from the park to escort us and boy was he good. The trails from the main centre stretch for miles into the rain forest and these held many species of birds, including the Trogons, Motmots and woodpeckers shown here. There are several more pictures from today's trip posted on the next blog entry.

BLACK-HEADED TROGON

BLACK-THROATED TROGON

PALE-BILLED WOODPECKER

RUFOUS MOTMOT

COSTA RICA - DEC 2ND 2011

2011-12-02T17:53:00.000-08:00

DAY 2 - SARAPIQUI VIA BRAULIO CARRILLO NATIONAL PARK - HELICONIA ISLAND

We got up early to explore the hotel grounds before taking breakfast at 6am! Our first birds were soon in the bag: Clay-coloured Thrush(the national bird of CostaRica), White-winged Dove and a Kisskadee. A few Martins flew over distantly, too far to identify. A Great-tailed Grackle flew over and a Varigated Squirrel ran passed our bedroom window.

Our guide for the week turned up on time at 6:30am after we had taken our breakfast. We were soon on the road to the cloud forest but first we had to negociate San jose. It was a nightmare, the traffic was horrendous and it took 2 hour sto pass through the city.
SPOTTED ANTBIRD

BALTIMORE ORIOLE

Once back on open roads we settled down and noted some birds, Grackles, Black Vultures and more Kisskadees. Our stop was just passed the entrance to Braulio Carillo Nature Reserve, it is a private site with forest walks. Our first ever Hummingbird was found, the Rufous –tailed variety. Next on the trail we found an ant swarm with some interestingbirds in attendance. We saw Barred Woddcreeper, Spotted Antbird and Ocellated Antbird, lovely birds.

SPECTACLED OWL

Then a small mixed-flock of tanagers flew by. Over the next couple of hours this type of birding was repeated several times and one particular mixed flock had close on 50 birds in it. Some species that stand out in my mind were: Passerine Tanager, Red-legged Honey Creeper, White Shouldered Tanager, Tawny Crested Tanager, Tawny Capped Euphonia, Yellow-crowned Euphonia, White-collared Manakin, Cinnamon Becard, Green Hermit…..oh the list goes on, you get the picture. The dense undergrowth held several species which we could not see and we walked over many lines of Leaf-Cutter Ants.

AMAZON KINGFISHER

After th great excitement of the morning we drove to a roadside restaurant for a lovely lunch of chicken, rice and beans. During lunch we sat on a terrace and logged Laughing Falcon, Bat Falcon, Orange-chinned Parakeet, Chestnut Headed Oropendola, Cattle Egret, House Sparrow, Long-tailed grackle.

Our last stop for the day was our next hotel which is located near Sarapiqui and is called Helconoia Island. It is literally an island hotel, surrounded by a triangle of two rivers and a stream. It has a fantastic 5 acres of stunning garden and a bird list to die for.

PASSERINI TANAGER (FORMERLY SCARLET RUMPED TANAGER)

What a time we had, we must have logged 30-40 species where we stood, it was fantastic. The garden was equally as good, there were many flowering plants which attracted all kinds of species and severalmammalstoo! We saw Monitor Lizards, Otters in the river, both the Tow and Three Toed Sloths, Howler Monkeys and several nice butterflies. Some bright birds spring to mind, Chestnut Mandibled Toucan, Red-lored Parrot, Collared Aracari, Amazon Kingfisher, Mangrove Swallow, Boat-billed, Social, Grey-capped and White-ringed Flycatcher, Long-tailed Tyrant, Bananaquit and many others. The star bird for me was the Spectacled Owl-what a beauty and what a garden.

TROPICAL KINGBIRD