Sunday to Wednesday, 15-18 October
Off down and way out west with a great bunch of members from the
Andalucia Bird Society to spend four days in Huelva based at Marta's lovely apartments (*) in Punta Umbria. Sunday saw us arrive close to the
Dehesa de Abajo where we had been informed, en route, that the lake was absolutely dry. However, there was water in the small pools created by. presumably, either gravel or clay extraction and here we were not to be disappointed. The real problem, however, was not so much the clear blue sky but the temperature mid to late-afternoon reaching a massive high of 37C! Time then, with others, to check out the birds.
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| Squacco Heron Garcilla Cangrejera Ardeola ralloides |
In the pool area some had already found Night Heron and Dartford Warbler but for us it was the lone
Squacco Heron patiently waiting for us all to get a good, long look on the opposite side of the road. Yes, we had
Moorhen,
Green and
Common Sandpiper along with White Wagtail but all the action was on the recently harvested rice fields. Numerous
White Storks and an over-flying
Black Stork along with regular sightings of
Marsh Harrier and even a visit from a female
Hen Harrier. Large flocks of
Glossy Ibis and feeding
Little Egret and
Grey Heron added to the general scene. A single
Purple Heron put in an appearance plus passing
Jackdaws and, as might be expected here, a mixture of both
House and
Spanish Sparrows.
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| Male Yellow-crowned Bishop Tejedor Amarillo Euplectes afer |
Time to journey on through the rice fields around
Isla Mayor but a quick message from Rick Owen brought a few of us back to the dry lake as he had found a pair of
Yellow-crowned Bishop. What a marvellous sight is the male bird in brilliant custard-yellow and that black bib, yet even the female was not without beauty and showing a very large, creamy-coloured supecillium, not so different from below as looking at a large
Zitting Cisticola - which was also seen on the wires.
From here we made our way over to our apartments in
Punta Umbria and before leaving the park we had a view of many
Buzzards and
Common Kestrel plus the above female
Hen Harrier. A
Raven looked down on us form its perch on top of a pylon and then we very much into "
Magpie Country" with both
Common and
Azure-winged species. Others birds recorded on this first day included
Blackbird,
Serin,
Goldfinch,
Crested Lark to name but a few along with the noisy
Cetti's Warbler.
Monday 16 October
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| Black-tailed Godwit Aguja Colinegro Limosa limosa |
The first full day saw us over in the
Odiel Marshes, the Marismas del Odiel, where we had a wonderful time recording all sorts of lovely species and especially waders. The small pool next to the salt works may have been very short of water but it still produced, along with many
Black-winged Stilts,
Mallard,
Shoveler,
Gadwall and
Teal. Small waders included
Dunlin,
Green,
Common and
Curlew Sandpiper along with
Little Stint and
Ringed Plover. And, of course, this was our first sighting of the many
Black-tailed Godwit in the area.
On the other side of the road we had many
Flamingos in the salinas along with
Redshank and
Greenshank and ere long we were also able to add
Turnstone. In the air and on the water were
Black-headed,
Yellow-legged and
Lesser Black-backed Gulls and, once at the Juan Carlos parking area, having stopped to admire the resting
Osprey, we soon added both
Whimbrel and
Curlew. No shortage of
Stonechat and
Crested Larks near the road edges and even a handful of
Greenfinches before walking to the edge of the lagoon where we found our first
Shelduck and
Oystercatchers.
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| Three Black-winged Stlits Ciguenuela Comun Himantopus himantopus with friends |
A look at the shore produced first
Grey Plover then
Sanderling and flying over the nearby Atlantic we had
Cormorants,
Gannet and even a
Great Skua. It was now that we saw our first
Sandwich Tern of the visit. Notwithstanding, we still had time to watch the few remaining
Northern Wheatears feeding on the nearby ground.
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| Grey Plover Chorlito Gris Pluvialis squatarola |
Working our way back most recorded Kingfisher and at the Visitors Centre I was also able to add both
Pied Flycatcher and
Chiffchaff along with a small charm of
Goldfinch. However, it was possibly the single
Wood Warbler rather than the previously seen
Bonelli's Warbler that gave most pleasure. In the trees outside this sheltered hide were a number of
Blackcap.
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| Spoonbills Espatula Comun Platalea leucorodia with Grey Heron Ardea cinerea and Great White Egret Egretta alba |
A visit to the fresh water lake at
El Portil on the way back to the apartments added both
Little and
Great Crested Grebes plus
Pochard and
Coot. Indeed, along with a few
Moorhen I also noticed a collar-ringed
Red-knobbed Coot; now how did that individual arrive at the water?
Tuesday 17 October
The promised thunder storm arrived just as we were setting off for the
Castro Marim reserves on the other side of the river border and into Portugal itself. But, after about twenty minutes the rains stopped, just a few spots on arrival and the day turned out fine and sunny by afternoon. Returning later we discover that the heavy rains had lasted for about three hours in Punta Umbria!
As soon as we arrived we had numerous
Corn Bunting along with
Azure-winged Magpie and a
Zitting Cisticola. The first
Iberian Grey Shrike was seen within minutes along with both
Sardinian Warbler and
Stonechats. Indeed, not long before we added
Snipe and
Red-legged Partridge and, in the first of the pools,
Redshank,
Ringed Plover,
Avocet and
Black-winged Stilts. Both
Heron and
Kestrel were seen overhead along with the first
Spoonbill of the day. It seemed to be only minutes before the distant
Marsh Harrier came into sight and having seen one the next soon appeared. A
Little Owl posed on top of a small ruin and then a handful of
Cormorants passed overhead.
On the water we had both
Common and
Green Sandpipers and from the
Visitors Centre we were able to look down on
Dunlin and
Grey Plover. Finally, looking over the main water-filled salinas we were able to find resting
Black-headed Gulls, a pair of
Caspian Terns, many
Dunlin and
Ringed Plover plus a rather handsome looking
Ruff.
Following a break for coffee a few of us set off to explore the ditches, salinas and ponds near
Tavira and we were not to be disappointed. Not just lots of
Crested Larks but a large flock of over 100
Spoonbill,
Cormorants,
Herons and
Little Egrets. It was probably at this point that we managed to see both the largest and smallest terns of the country when we recorded first
Caspian then
Little Tern having already watched a few fishing
Sandwich Terns.
Whilst we still had
Black-headed,
Yellow-legged and
Lesser Black-backed Gulls we also saw a number of
Mediterranean Gulls and a handful of
Slender-billed Gulls. Closer inspection also revealed a similar number of
Audouin's Gulls. Running around on the ground were both
Ringed and
Kentish Plovers and, at a much reduced pace, a number of
Turnstones. The score or more of
Grey Plovers seemed quite happy to just stand around and rest. Along with the
Mallard on the water we also found
Shoveler and a pair of
Teal plus a single
Little Grebe.
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| Osprey Aguila Pescadora Pandion haliaetus |
Up in the air not so much the regular flypasts by the
Sandwich Tern but the arrival of the fishing
Osprey that certainly grabbed our attention. It also scattered the
Spoonbill albeit one certainly was not too pleased and did its best to try and distract the raptor. Add on both
Lapwing and
Oystercatcher and our day was just about complete. Returning to the apartments, Marta had arranged a rather splendid reception for our group with invitations to other guests along with representatives from the local Junta and all recorded by the Canal Television Company. Thank goodness we had guests Manu Mojarro and Laury Grenon, local ABS bird guides, present and even our own Ricky Owen was invited to put in his contribution. But will anyone see the resulting programme?
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| Our Osprey and being "seen-off" by a persistent gull |
Wednesday 18 October
The final day so off relatively early and a short stop at the Visitors Centre at the Odiel where we found the water at low tide. On the river's muddy banks we found first a
Whimbrel then
Ringed and
Grey Plovers,
Common and
Curlew Sandpipers,
Dunlin and
Cormorant. More searching soon produced
Green Sandpiper and
Redshank along with B
lack-headed and
Yellow-legged Gulls and a
Sandwich Tern.
The pond still had
Mallard,
Shoveler,
Teal and
Gadwall along with
Black-winged Stilt and there were numerous
Flamingo on the other side of the road as both the
Azure-winged Magpie and (Common)
Magpie passed over the car park area.
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| Azure-winged Magpie Rabilargo Cyanopica cyanus |
Our second stop on the return journey hoe was at the
Abucete Visitors Centre just past Matalascanas. Lots of
Azure-winged Magpies here and also their Common cousins but, having been informed that there was some water to took a look from the first hide. Very little to add apart from
House Sparrow and
Spotless Starling but we did record
Stonechat,
Corn Bunting,
Crested Lark and an
Iberian Grey Shrike as we made our way to the SEO Centre at
El Rocio. Then, there were the
Kestrel and
Buzzard and even a
Raven to add. The Centre itself produced
Goldfinch and
Serin along with
Cattle Egret and a good-sized herd of
Red Deer.
A stop before lunch at the dry
Dehesa de Abajo gave us chance to add
Zitting Cisticola and, on the other side of the road in the wet fields we had very many
White Stork and
Little Egrets along with
Glossy Ibis,
Lapwing, a
Great White Egret and even another
Yellow-crowned Bishop. Strange to see a good number of
Flamingos but not, perhaps, the
Cormorants,
Cattle Egrets and
Collared Doves. At last, very clear views of
Spanish Sparrows.
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| Hundreds of Spanish Sparrows Gorrion Moruno Passer hispaniolensis were seen in the Braza del Este |
By way of a change we took the small car ferry across the mighty Guadalquivir and within 500 metres of landing we had not just a
Kestrel but a very close
Black-winged Kite on the wire next to the car. A ghastly drive along the rutted tracks but we did add very many
Crested Larks and a couple of
Northern Wheatears. However, not the
White Storks,
Little and
Cattle Egrets or
Grey Herons that had us counting but the total of nearly thirty
Black Storks. Similarly lots of
Marsh Harriers and even a resting
Booted Eagle. There must have been a flock of at least 100
Spanish Sparrows which gave a photo opportunity and then a quartet of
Red-legged Partridge.
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| Black-shouldered Kite Elanio Comun Elanus caeruleus |
Our last drive was through the
Braza del Este which proved, in the end, a little worrying. No problem early on as we drove along the hard, wide track watching mirmerations of thousands of sparrows, scores of
Mallards and very many
Herons,
Little Egrets and even a flock of
Glossy Ibis. In the same way, plenty of
White Storks to be seen in the fields. Not so many
Purple Swamphen as I had expected and as the hard track gave way to a muddy variant so we saw the last of the
Crested Larks.
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| Record shot of Black Stork Ciguena Negra Ciconia nigra |
Very much a question of following in the tyre tracks of the previous car until we caught it up on a narrow track where previously we had found both Night Heron and a colony of weavers. And that's were, fortunately, we stopped about ten metres short when we realised something was wrong. The car had been abandoned, material under the front wheels where the German owner (judging by the number plate) had tried to recover the car as it sank ever further into the soft mud of the track. far too narrow to pass and, if we tried, we, too, would surely have dug ourselves into the soft track. The car appeared empty and no signs of footprints so, presumably, the driver had set off in the same direction to seek help. Fortunately, assuming all was well, he/she was within 100 metres of the turn back towards the main road and would have covered the journey in under an hour whereas I had to back up about 300 metres making sure that I both kept the wheels turning whilst remaining in the existing tyre tracks before being able to turn the car. But at least I was able to stop the following birder from entering this same stretch of track. So all the way back to the beginning and an extra 10kms at least. Once we had "spun off" the accumulated mud we were able to finally start on the way back to Mezquitilla (recording our final bird of the day, a
Red Kite, as we left Los Palios) where we safely arrived just before 9pm - the final stretch from Antequera in pouring rain but, at least, it managed to wash off most of the mud! What a day and experience but we did manage to top the hundred mark for the visit.
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| Whimbrel Zarapito Trinador Numenius phaeopus |
(*) Apartamentos Costaluz, Punta Umbria plus also Ayamonte, Isla Canela and El Portil. Special rates for ABS members.
Birds seen:
Shelduck, Gadwall, mallard, Shoveler, Teal. Pochard, Red-legged Partridge, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Gannet, Cormorant, Squacco Heron, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Glossy Ibis, Great White Egret, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Black Stork, White Stork, Spoonbill, Flamingo, Osprey, Black-winged Kite, Red Kite, Marsh Harrier, Hen Harrier, Booted Eagle, Buzzard, Kestrel, Moorhen, Purple Swamphen, Coot, Red-knobbed Coot, Oystercatcher, Black-winged Stilt, Avocet, Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Grey Plover, Lapwing, Sanderling, Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Ruff, Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit, Whimbrel, Curlew, Redshank, Grenshank, Green sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, Turnstone, Mediterranean Gull, Black-headed Gull, Slender-billed Gull, Audouin's Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Caspian Tern, Sandwich Tern, Little Tern, Rock Dove, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Little Owl, Kingfisher, Crested lark, White wagtail, Bluethroat, Whinchat, Stonechat, Northern Wheatear, Blackbird, Cetti's Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Sardinian Warbler, Blackcap, Bonelli's Warbler, Wood Warbler, Chiffchaff, Pied Flycatcher, Iberian Grey Shrike, Azure-winged magpie, magpie, Raven, Spotless Starling, House Sparrow, Spanish Sparrow, Waxbill, Serin, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Corn Bunting, Yellow-crowned Bishop.
Check out the accompanying website at http://www.birdingaxarquia.weebly.com for the latest sightings, photographs and additional information
