Far and Wide

Last November I set myself a target of 200 species in Spain by the end of this summer. I realised that to achieve my goal I would need to travel a little further afield and my first destination was Sierra Magina in Jaen province. It was a bitterly cold day with frost on the ground at the higher altitudes and few birds showing. We were lucky enough to catch sight of three Golden Eagles soaring above the mountain peaks and a Ring Ozul (a lifer) feeding on berries. The only other excitement for the day were a few Crossbills that sat obligingly on top of the pines. 

The next few trips were to the north of Cordoba. In Sierra de Andujar we a saw a couple of Lynx as well as great views of a Spanish Imperial Eagle. In the ZEPA Alto Guadiato we watched Cranes coming into to their nighttime roosting sites, their loud trumping calls alerting us to the presence before we could even see them. They spend the day feeding on acorns and other seeds before gathering to fly to their roost sites. We watched them landing on a small island in the reservoir which offered them protection from terrestrial animals such as foxes. They winter here and their arrival is also one of the highlights of the colder months. Oddly, there was the belief in Doñana that eating crane meat which had been cooked on a grill with seven different types of wood would result in a long life. I am glad that this belief no longer exists!  

Cranes

In the same area we observed a group of Great Bustards in a distant field. And nearby, at the Castillo de Santa Eufemia we had superb views of a Black Vulture, a Golden Eagle, Griffon Vultures, Kestrels and Black Wheatears.

View from the castle at Santa Eufemia

Winter soon turned to spring and I was still about 20 birds short of my target. A trip to Cadiz for work gave me the perfect excuse to go to Vejer de la Fronter in search of one of the world's most threatened birds - the Bald Ibis. Listed as Critically Endangered on the ICUN Red List, this population of 80 or so birds is as a result of a reintroduction programme. A newly constructed viewing platform allowed us to observe these comical-looking birds at close quarters as they collected material to repair their nests.

Bald Ibis

In May I travelled to Brazo del Este near Seville, which is fast becoming one of my favourite birding sites because of the sheer number of birds it is home to. With much help from my friend Ron, we got 58 species in one day including Montagu's Harriers, Black Kites, Little Bitterns, a Squacco Heron, Purple Herons, Spoonbills, Flamingos, Glossy Ibis, Avocets, Curlew Sandpipers, Wood Sandpipers, Redshanks, a Stone Curlew, Collared Pratincole, Gull-billed Terns, Whiskered Terns, Great Reed, Warblers, Black- Headed Weavers, and a Roller.

Flamingo

The star of the day was a Savi's Warbler which was calling loudly from the top of a reed. Its distinctive song made distinguishing it from other members of the warbler family quite easy, once Ron told me what to listen for. The days birding gave me four new species for my list and brought me ever closer to my target.

Great Reed Warbler

We also found this large nest which I presume is home to either the Yellow-Crowned Bishop or the Black Headed Weaver.

In July I heard of a real rarity, a Red-footed Booby, which had been sighted in Caleta de Velez, Malaga. Ron and I set off in search of it but were disappointed to see that it was not on what we had been told was its favourite floodlight nor in the surrounding area. The local population of Monk Parakeets, with their bright green plumage, provided a brief distraction as they squawked loudly from the palm trees around the harbour area. Not a native species to Spain, SEO estimates that there are at least 20,000 of them across the country. They were brought here as pets and escaped or released birds have quickly formed a 'healthy' population in many Spanish cities. This rapid growth has led to calls for them to be eradicated because of the damage they cause to native flora and fauna. 

Monk Parakeet

We continued our wait  and watched a Cory's Shearwater skillfully gliding over the waves off the coast and Audouin's Gulls on the beach.

Audouin's Gull

After an hour or so we concluded that the Booby had probably gone out to sea to feed and so we drove on to La Charca Suarez in Granada province. This is a site I had read a lot about but had never had the chance to visit. It is a haven for wildlife surrounded by apartment complexes and industrial estates. The infrastructure for birders is great with many hides overlooking the lakes around the park. And despite only having an hour to look around before they closed the gates, it did not disappoint. We had close views of a Squacco Heron, Purple Swamphens, Red Crested Pochards, Little Grebes and Red Knobbed Coots, which were another first for me. These are one of the most endangered birds in Spain and were released here in the 90's as part of a reintroduction programme. The look very much like a coot except for two red nodules on their heads which they have during breeding season.

Red Knobbed Coot

After stopping for a drink we decided to call in again at Caleta de Velez on our way home. It proved to be a good decision as we immediately located our target bird, the Red-footed Booby. It was busy preening and seemed quite unaware of the gulls which were put out at losing one of their perches to this strange foreigner. I say this as it is usually found around 9,000 kilometers away in the Caribbean. This juvenile, with its brown plumage, blue eye contour and red legs, had caused quite a stir in the birding world. It is what the Spanish call a 'megarareza' and had even had an article devoted to it in El Pais. We watched it for about half an hour, hoping it would take off to allow us to see it in flight but it didn't oblige. It was another one for my Spain list (even if it isn't in my Collins) and meant that I was on 199. Just one more to go!

Red Foot Booby

After travelling far and wide across Andalucia to find some rarities, number 200 came closer to home in the Sierra Morena. Again with the help of my friend Ron we saw a pair of Western Bonelli's Warblers. They were quite hard to get in the binoculars because they were constantly moving as they hopped between branches looking for small insects and occasionally picking one up from the ground before darting back to the cover of the leaves. Of a similar size to a Willow Warbler, what really made them stand out was their silky white underparts. 

There are of course many more birds which I have yet to see in Spain, some quite common, and with the variety of habitats that Andalucia has to offer I am sure it won't be too long before I can add them to my list.