16 January (part 1) : the rest of the day!

Bob Wright and I escaped today with myself venturing afield in to the hinterlands of Málaga province with an essay into Granada province. The first thing that Bob managed to show me, somewhere to the north of Zafarraya, was small group of 4 Bramblings - 2 males, a 1st winter male and a female, a species which I have never seen in Spain, and also a singing Mistle Thrush, although we could hear at least 4 more singing in the area.
From there we went on to visit the Pantaneta de Alhama, which was loaded with Coots and Pochards, with a few Shovelers. According to a chap from Medio Ambiente, the Red-knobbed Coot that got there by foul means in October (see earlier blog on the subject) was still present but invisible, not that we really tried very hard to find it.

Time was batting on by then, so it was time to retrace tracks and stop at Zafarraya. En route we saw a few Azure-winged Magpies - they are attractive birds - and a single proper Magpie, these being on the limit of their distribution here, as are the Azure-wings. After a quick and much needed coffee it was one to the railway track and walk westwards along it for a few hundred metres. The encounter with the Golden Eagle which stupidly upset the Peregrine has been recounted in the previous blog for today, along with Bob's photos. There was a nice flock of Red-billed Choughs, one or two very bonny male Black Redstarts and the rather more dowdy female and several Blue Rock Thrushes.

And thus homewards and the end of a very pleasant morning in a different environment with some good birds and good company. What more can one want? I must go up that way more often.