As we start our eighth week of lockdown in Cordoba the weather is changing. Temperatures are starting to rise and the skies are clear again after a rainy April. The rain was much needed and the garden is looking green with lots of wildflowers such as poppies, sticky willy and thistles, which attract Goldfinches. Despite the unsettled weather, spring migration carried on as normal with large numbers of black kites passing by almost on a daily basis, sometimes in groups of more than a hundred.
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| Black Kites in migration |
White Storks, a lone Black Stork, Griffon Vultures and a few Honey Buzzards have also been heading north-west over the garden in small groups. And within a few days of the first sightings of bee-eaters on the south coast I heard and then saw them passing here.
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| White Stork |
Meanwhile the resident birds have been busy preparing for the next generation. Blackbirds and White Storks have been building and making repairs to nests. House Sparrows wait patiently on the telephone cables until they spot a passing insect to bring to their young. And the Spotless Starling chase off competition and defend their nests.
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| Blackbird with nest material |
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| Spotless Starling preening |
While many of the birds seem to be in a hurry to make the most of spring the Collared Dove seems to take life at a gentler pace. This is at odds with the fact that they conquered Europe in such as short space of time. They spread south down the Iberian peninsula arriving in Andalusia in the 1990s. Between 1998 and 2012 they underwent a remarkable seventeen-fold increase in the region. This spread is even more intriguing when you realise that they are sedentary birds, although young birds have been recorded moving several kilometres. In my garden there are several pairs and they spend their time gently cooing from their perch.
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| Collared Dove |
The resident raptors have also been active over the last few weeks. Short-toed Eagles frequently pass above the house scanning the ground for prey and there are a number of local Booted Eagles. One afternoon, we watched as one dived down behind a neighbour's house before coming up again with a Moorhen fledgling in its talons. A Black-winged Kite sometimes makes an appearance and the Common Kestrels mob larger birds such as Griffon Vultures or Booted Eagles. One afternoon we had a Golden Eagle circling fairly high above the house before gliding off in the direction of the mountains. A great sight to see and a new tick for the garden list. At night, with fewer cards passing by we can hear a Little Owl calling nearby.
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| Dark phase Booted Eagle with young Moorhen |
I read other people's lockdown reports with envy and there is a real sense that I am missing out on the best months of birding. My lockdown list currently stands at 34 species, which doesn't feel very impressive. However, considering that I live in a fairly built up area I can't be too disappointed, especially as some of the species I have seen are not common in an urban area. And spending more time scanning the skies from the terrace also means that I have seen species that I hadn't seen in the garden before, such as Glossy Ibis, Night Heron, Cormorant and Hoopoe. But most of all I feel fortunate that I can continue my hobby at home. Birdwatching is my stress relief, my way to switch off. At a time when others complain about the negative effects of being cooped up at home, I am fortunate that I can still unwind from the comfort of my garden
Lockdown list from the garden:
- Collared Dove
- Feral Pigeon
- Blackbird
- Serin
- Sardinian Warbler
- Goldfinch
- Greenfinch
- Bee-eaters
- House Sparrow
- White Stork
- Black Stork
- Common Swift
- Pallid Swift
- House Martin
- Barn Swallow
- Common Kestrel
- Black Kite
- Black-winged Kite
- Common Buzzrd
- Booted Eagle
- Short-toed Eagle
- Golden Eagle
- Griffon Vulture
- Glossy Ibis
- Night Heron
- Cormorant
- Little Egret
- Cattle Egret
- Spotless Starling
- Jackdaw
- Raven
- Crested Lark
- Hoopoe
- Honey Buzzard
