Whilst I was busy working my way northwards on a Ryanair from Malaga to East Midlands, Dave and his Arboleas Bird Group were having much more fun as they explored Cabo de Gata and the neighbouring Rambla de Morales. Interesting photo of a juvenile Wigeon that could, in the field, well have been mistaken for a Common Pochard at first glance.
Cabo de Gata and Rambla de Morales
Wednesday 5th October 2016
As
Gilly was working, I was, after getting her breakfast in bed, a free
agent to leave for Cabo de Gata whilst it was still dark. Heading for
the far end of the reserve, I spotted a pair of Raven and some Lesser
Black Backed Gulls on the beach.
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| Raven Corvus corax (PHOTO: David Elliott-Binns) |
I
stopped for a "Thermos" coffee before commencing my slow drive round
the rear of the reserve. There was a constant strong breeze from the
east which was quite cool. My first bird was a power line perched
Iberian Grey Shrike, closely followed by a Grey Heron. There was still
no water in the salinas till you reached the only hide about half way
round. I had Sardinian Warbler, Zitting Cisticola and Crested Lark. A
Cattle Egret flew over. Amazingly and disappointingly there were no
waders at all. I did see Greater Flamingo in the salinas beyond my
pools. The occasional Barn Swallow passed by.
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| Greater Flamingos Phoenicopterus ruber (PHOTO: David Elliott-Binns) |
I
met up with 10 other members of the group in the Pujaire cafe for a
cuppa before heading to the first hide, John seeing a Black Wheatear in
the village. From the hide we could see many Greater Flamingos as well
as Avocets, Ringed Plovers, Dunlin and the odd Little Stint, Sanderling,
Kentish Plover and Redshank. There was a line of distant Black Tailed
Godwit. Kevin found some Shelduck and I spotted a Kestrel on a pylon.
Numerous Slender Billed Gulls were feeding.
Moving
towards the second hide, I saw an Eurasian Curlew on the beach, which
was later seen to fly onto the savannah by Richard. As we parked up a
small flock of Greenfinch were disturbed. We added a Stonechat as we got
to the hide. John and I observed a small raptor flying away which we
concluded was a Sparrowhawk, which was later seen by Jim flying low and fast passed the hide. John, Rod and I all spotted the two
Spoonbill flying from the right to land with another individual the far
side of the salina. As we walked back we saw both Sardinian and
Spectacled Warbler, the latter being a first for some of the members.
Some of us had already driven towards the public hide when Richard saw a
large bird flying towards them. A Black Stork came very close to them
before returning to the salina. I, meanwhile, was taking a few photos of
the Raven that were still on the beach.
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| Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica (PHOTO: David Elliott-Binns) |
From
the hide we saw a large resting flock of Shoveler, mostly females,
sheltering on one of the islands. There were also about half a dozen
Greenshank. Troy, bless her, then found the bird of the day. A large
female Peregrine Falcon sitting by the waters edge presumably letting
her recent meal settle in her stomach! To the right there was a long
line of Audouin's Gull on the rocky causeway, but not the usual Sandwich
Terns. John also found a Turnstone.
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| Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus (PHOTO: David Elliott-Binns) |
We
stopped for a tostada and drinks at the beachside cafe in Cabo
village. We seawatched adding Yellow Legged and Black Headed Gulls to
the list. A Cormorant flew passed.
We
convoyed along the beachside track to the Rambla Morales, where last
week a Buff Breasted Sandpiper had been seen by local guide Jesus
Contreras. Numerous hirundines were seen. Mostly Barn Swallows, but also
a few Sand Martin. John found a Red-rumped Swallow. He also found a
Mediterranean Gull amongst the hundreds of Black-headeds. Further down
we added Coot and some White Headed Duck. We heard a Cetti's Warbler. We
walked back towards the vehicles. John and I checked out the estuary
end. There was a pair of Bar Tailed Godwit together with Sanderling,
Little Stint, Ringed and Kentish Plover. A pair of Yellow Wagtail were
seen. After I left to head to the campsite exit, John and some others
saw a Sandwich Tern. I meanwhile had found a small flock of Shoveler
and with them was what I think to be an immature female Wigeon. I
apologise for the quality of the photos. It was very windy and most were
distant shots! We ended with a very respectful 54 species for the day. Dave Elliott-Binns
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| Juvenile Wigeon Anas penelope (PHOTO: David Elliott-Binns) |
Check out the accompanying website at http://www.birdingaxarquia.weebly.com for the latest sightings, photographs and additional information.
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