Dave & Gilly in Extremadura

Dave and Gilly have been beating up Extremadura orntihologically and here is Dave's chronicle. I have had to cut one or two photos because of the length. The climb up to the hermitage is a real killer, Dave. Mary Carmen and I did it years ago.

   

Gilly and I left Arboleas at 5am and headed for our first stop at Fuente de Piedra to check out any Lesser Flamingos there. Unfortunately there was fog on site. We could hardly see anything across the Information Centre car park let alone over the water so with no further ado we headed to Sevilla and then north towards Merida and into Extremadura. Before reaching the border we had Stone Curlew and a magnificent male Hen Harrier. Our "holiday" list started as we crossed into Extremadura. We had 20 species before we stopped at the Embalse de Guadiloba, just east of Caceres. These included White Stork, Azure--winged Magpies, Southern Grey Shrike, Raven and numerous Black Kites. It being a Sunday there were quite a few anglers, but it didn't seem to deter the hundreds of Corn Buntings perched on the barbed wire fencing next to the track.
 

Above us there were Griffon Vultures and a continual flow of Black Kites passing by. Gilly then spotted a group of Great Bustards over to the right . There were 32, mostly males, some displaying (see later photo) Also seen were Stonechat, Woodchat Shrike, Crested Lark and

Meadow Pipit. "Water" birds included Yellow-legged and Black-headed Gulls, Green and Common Sandpipers,Great Crested Grebes, Little Egret and Gadwall.

     We then moved a few kilometres east and turned towards Santa Marta de Magasca. The village is at the apex of a triangle that takes you back to the main Caceres to Trujillo main road and the newish motorway. Immediately to the left as you leave the main road is a power line with nest boxes on each telegraph pole intended for Rollers. No Rollers, but there were many Lesser Kestrels.

 One box was occupied by Spanish Sparrows.

Male Northern Wheatear! What an obliging cracker! We carried on towards the village, stopping at various telegraph poles where Black Kites were perched to get a photo, but they were very skittish and flew off. Adding a Common Buzzard we headed to Trujillo where we booked in to the Hostal Julio. After a well deserved siesta we had an evening visit to the Belen Plain, a few kilometres further 

east. Lots more Corn Buntings (of course) and Calandra Larks. Also seen were feeding White Storks, Cattle Egrets and Little Owls. We saw more Great Bustards but the star of the show was this Little Bustard. Such a delight for it to be showing so well.

Well satisfied we returned to Trujillo, walking up to historic main square where we had a coffee with 17 Lesser Kestrels gliding over us with many Common and Pallid Swifts.

     We were up early the next morning to have breakfast before we headed to Monfrague (pronounced Mon-frag-way) National Park stopping off at various bridges over lush meadows and fast flowing rivers

The sun was just coming over the surrounding hills and there was a light mist over the water. We could hear Cetti's Warblers and Common Cuckoos. A Cormorant flew over and Little Ringed Plovers were on the waters edge. Gilly also spotted a Grey Wagtail and captured this photo of a male Blackbird. Always thought the beak was yellow. Never noticed the eye ring before!

We then drove up to the parking area on the way up to the hermitage.

The trek up to the top is not for the faint-hearted but well worth it! On the way up we saw a male Blue Rock Thrush. He followed us all the way to the top eventually singing away from the top of the mobile phone mast.   

The view from the top is magnificent. We were a bit early to see the Griffon Vultures gliding past at eye level or below you. We did have good views of Blue Tit and Rock Bunting.

Over towards the Penafalcon cliff face we could see a few Black Vultures amongst the hundreds of Griffons. The star of the show awaited us at the bottom car park. As we drove passed it I thought I heard a woodpecker. We could see some birders looking into a tree, so we obviously stopped. There, giving extraordinary views, was a Nuthatch. A cracker of a bird!

We drove round to park opposite Peñafalcon. Here is a normal view of it showing Griffon Vultures effortlessly circling it.

I don't normally promote products but I have to praise our new Canon Powershot SX50. The picture below was from the same location taken of Griffons on the peak, 4-500 metres away.

Closer still was a Griffon's nest with a chick. Also seen round the cliff face was a Peregrine Falcon, Egyptian Vultures and a nesting pair of Black Storks.

Moving on we drove a large bridge where hundreds of House Martins were nesting underneath together with a few Alpine Swifts. After lunch at the Information Centre we headed over the dam to another cliff face. Spot the bird.......it's very large but here's a closer view......

Yes, an Eagle Owl with a bundle of fluffy chick below it's head. We also saw a Short-toed Eagle here and had good views of a Wren and a not very flattering pose for a Long-tailed Tit.

Making our way back we stopped at a small picnic area with tables under some pines. On a previous visit some years ago we'd put crumpled Ryvita biscuits on the table and had got visitors. Today we tried our luck with the remains of Gilly's tuna baguette. Sure enough, from nowhere twenty or so of them arrived! Azure-winged Magpies, taking only seconds to clear the table!

We headed back to Trujillo for a break before going for an evenings search for Sandgrouse. We drove back to where we'd seen the Lesser Kestrels & Spanish Sparrows using the nest boxes and took a track off that road going back towards Caceres where we'd had success before.

We saw our first Rollers of the year, a Short-toed Lark, Montagu's Harrier and a Merlin struggling to fly carrying a Corn Bunting! Eventually I spotted two distant Pin-tailed Sandgrouse flying past.

     Up early again today, stopping for breakfast on our way to the Arrocampo nature reserve. It's a large lake supplying water to cool the Nuclear Power Station. (Armed guards unhappy if you point a large lens in their direction......been there, done that!) As there was low lying mist over the main body of water we headed through the village of Saucedilla, passed the information centre to some smaller lakes (near hide 5 for info) I spotted some Woodpigeons over the far side of the lake, but there was something else grey coloured with them. Got the scope on it - a Black-shouldered Kite. Also had Black-tailed Godwit, Marsh Harriers and a passing Egyptian Vulture. We returned to the information centre where, above a water gully, numerous Sand Martins were resting up.

We walked towards the hide close by, Gilly spotting a Purple Swamphen. We both heard and saw Savi's and Cetti's Warblers. Once we'd settled down in the hide we scanned the reeds. There were at least 10 Purple Herons.

Something was nesting in the roof above us. Yes, I know it's "only" a male House Sparrow, but I had to get the photo in!

The other highlights from this hide were Little Bittern, Ferruginous Duck and Gull-billed Terns. We also passed the landmark 100 species with a Little Grebe! We headed back to the main body of water which was now clear of mist. We added Reed Warbler and I got a photo of a flying Purple Swamphen.

     We cut through from the motorway to come in to Monfrague from the north, stopping first at the Eagle Owl cliff face with parent and chick showing well! 

We were then blessed with a good view of an adult Spanish Imperial Eagle flying above the rock face showing the white leading edges of its wings brilliantly. We added Sparrowhawk and Honey Buzzard on the way back to Trujillo. We walked up to the castle above the main square so we were eye level with the nesting

     We headed south to a village called Robdillo de Trujillo the next morning where we'd been shown Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers some years previously. Didn't see them but did manage 7 Hawfinch, Cirl Bunting and Sardinian Warbler. From there we went to the castle above Montanchez, where in winter Alpine Accentor (my bogey bird) can be seen. Here we added Black Redstart, Linnet and had good views of Goldfinch.

 We started to make our way back towards Trujillo. Suddenly Gilly shouted "Stop!" She grabbed the camera and took this picture of a Common Cuckoo.

We had a siesta at the hostel before heading back on to the Belen plain. As promised here is a picture of a displaying male Great Bustard.......whatever turns you on! The females must see something I can't!

     Here endeth the lesson! We eventually got 110 species. The weather was kind to us as well.

I hope the photos all appear where they're supposed to!

08 April : Fuente de Piedra

A fairly brief entry after the rather nice morning that Ron and I had at Fuente de Piedra on Tuesday morning. We made the tactical decision to try and  get there before the noisesome and rowdy masses of uncontrolled little children and their apparently gormless teachers descended from the two coaches - which was a wise decision!
The result was some 40 species and we walked the board walk and beyond, checked from the mirador and had a look at the laguneto del Pueblo behind the information centre.
The main onjective was waders and we weren't defrauded as we saw some 11 species, the best being some 18 Ruffs - none in breeding plumage, 14  Curlew Sandpipers with some showing first signs of breeding plumage, 27+ Little Stints but no signs of Temminck's, 13+ Avocets, 6 Wood Sandpipers and the same number of Redshanks, with Dunlin (2) and a Common Sandpiper, plus the usual Little Ringed Plovers and Black-winged Stilts.
The laguneto del Pueblo gave 2 pairs of White-headed Ducks, 4 pairs of Red-crested Pochard - the males in splendid plumage, as well the usual Mallards and Shovelers while there were 4 Shelducks out on the main lake. There were some 20 or so Whiskered Terns and a single Black Tern as well as Gull-billed Terns moving to and fro over all the area throughout the morning. A single 1st summer Little Gull was a nice and rather unexpected surprise.
We heard Bee-eaters passing over on several occasions and were also rewarded with views of male Yellow Wagtails which stood out like the proverbial sore thumbs,even at long range, which makes one wonder how or why more aren't wiped out by Sparrowhawks. Corn Buntings did their usual impression of squaky gates and Ron was delighted with a superbly coloured Melodious Warbler, his 200th species for his various winter visits over the years, this year staying longer to get more spring migrants.
A very good morning, not quite sure how many species but certainly in excess of 40.
PS: A Ring-necked  Duck was reported from Rambla Morales yesterday by Rai Martín.

02 April: Embalse de Puentes - Adrian's patch

After having shipped my sister back to the UK where the Moslem Brotherhood have apparently shrouded southern England in desert dust (not quite as good as listening to Billy Connolly on the subject of Jihadist bomb-makers, suicide bombers and virginal burkhas, - it's on youtube) I got down to the serious business of trying to sort out photos for the talks and label them, the rain helping put me off the idea of getting out birding, of which there has been a serious lack, in spite of Common Swifts flashing past the window whilst I write, which could account for more than the usual number of typo errors as I am multi-tasking by also listening to Act 2 of Il Barbieri di Seviglia, very recommendable. 
By the by, and apropos of absolutely nothing, apart from the fact that you lot seem to spend half your time having a refreshing cuppa of tea (no wonder the British Empire disintegrated!), Cattle Egrets in Oz have bright orange-ochre heads and necks so that they look like a totally different species. 
And just in case you missed the news, part 1 of the Antipodes trip, the introduction and parrots all in glorious technicolour, is in the costa blog just before this blog. So, herewith Dave's account of their trip to 'Adrian's Patch' today.
   Have a good trip, Dave and Gilly! Today we headed back up between Puerto Lumbreras and Velez Rubio to be escorted by Adrian round his patch. All twelve of us met up at junction 6 on the A91 for a cuppa before convoying off into the wilderness. Spotting birds as we went we added Collared Dove, Jackdaw, Magpie, Barn Swallow, Wood Pigeon and Crested Lark before stopping by some disused farm buildings. The garage appeared to be the nesting site for Red-rumped Swallows. Also seen were Rock Sparrow, Linnet, Cirl Bunting, Jay, Great Tit and Red-legged Partridge.

Further along the road we stopped again. On the ridge above was a medium sized bird perched which flew off before being "scoped". It could have been one of two Common Cuckoos we heard shortly afterwards. Adrian spotted a large eagle flying away. Silhouetted against the skyline I believed it to be a Short-toed Eagle by the level position of the wings whilst gliding. Searching for raptors towards the "Grandmother's Molar" mountain, I could only claim a Kestrel. Below us in the shrubs, Dartford and Sardinian Warblers showed well. John and Alan saw a swift species.    On the way to the next location we saw a Little Owl on a ruined barn. We stopped next to a running brook in a rambla with reed beds. We could hear Cetti's Warbler and Gilly spotted a Zitting Cisticola. A Common Sandpiper flew off as we arrived. The water attracted Serin, Greenfinch, Goldfinch and a pair of Meadow Pipits. 

Heading for the Embalse de Puentes dam we saw two Great Spotted Cuckoos on the way. Immediately upon arrival we heard but didn't see Bee-eaters. There were three Cattle Egrets on the pump house roof. There was very little on the water. Great Crested Grebe, a pair of Mallard and a flotilla of Coot. I spotted three distant Griffon Vultures. A female Kestrel posed well on the dam's floodlights. We first heard then later saw a Red-billed Chough. Crag Martin, White Wagtail and Rock Dove were added to the list.

We then descended to the pine forest for a picnic lunch. No woodland birds seen, but John saw a possible Lesser Black-backed Gull on the reservoir some distance away.

A good days birding. Thank you, Adrian. 

    Kevin Borman, one of our members has just had his book Flamingos in the desert published. It deals with his explorations and experiences in the Almeria region.

     Gilly and I are off to Extremadura next week so I've left Rod Prout in charge.

DOWN UNDER 1 : Introduction & Parrots

INTRODUCTION
As many of you know, I was gracing the Antipodes with my presence from 21 January through to my return on 25 February. This involved stopping over in Brisbane with birding friends from university days (many moons ago and we remain friends! in two sections, the first from 21-25 January and then on the return from 21-24 February. My friends David and Florence live on the outskirts of Brisbane in a place called The Gap and there I saw in those days of intensive birding within a 50km radius of The Gap David and I saw some 168 spp. of which only around 153 were new!
The interim period was spent in New Zealand, first doing a three week with Wrybill Tours - www.wrybill-tours.com - which I recommend most highly, from 26 January through to 16 February, after which I went back up to Kaikoura for three days extra pelagicking. The tour leader was Brent Stephenson, co-author of the recently published 'Birds of New Zealand - a photographic guide' and also co-rediscoverer of the New Zealand Storm-petrel a decade since (and of which more anon once I sort out all 2.400 or so photos) which promises ot be a long task. If my NZ total is correct I saw 153 spp. there, of which only 99 were new, but some of these had already been new across in Oz.
However, it seemed that I ought to put something in to titillate the ornithological appetite, so here is a selection of the parrot photos from around Brisbane and from New Zealand, including the infamously destructive Kea!
I should point out that photographing some of these species if virtually impossible as they either flash across or feed high in the swaying tops of the eucalyptus trees, hence the relatively slim selection, although the Kea's and Sulphur-crests made up for it! The Australian species are taken from the South Queensland list order.
GALAH Seen occasionally, always in small flocks, a splendid and colourful species.
 
LITTLE CORELLA : Scarce, we found only two or three small flocks around Brisbane.

 

SULPHUR-CRESTED COCKATOO : As a youngster I always wanted of these splendid birds and we saw them daily as a flock fed on the grass and gravel at a local primary school and we saw them daily there or flying across over the house as they went to roost!

 
 

 KING PARROT : Seen freqently and especially at a bar/restaurant J.M. Jones on Mount Nebo out in the boondocks where you get a handful of sunflower seeds and wild birds fly down to feed from your hand (and arm) and occasionally squabble over and on you!

Other species seen  although not photographed around The Gap and Brisbane included Scaly-breasted Lorikeet, Rainbow Lorikeet which were seen daily but diabolically difficult to photograph as they fed high in the eucalyptus tops around David and Florence's home and the only two shots aren't worth putting in here; Little Lorikeet; Crimson and Pale-headed Rosellas.

Once over in New Zealand, home of so many introductions, we did see a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo and an Eastern Rosella. We saw both Red-crowned and Yellow-crowned Parakeets - again I got no decent photos as they were usually high in the canopy and I make no pretensions to be a top bird photographer, and on an island cleared of pr4edators we were extremely lucky when a very photogenic and very rare Orange-crowned Parakeet made a brief 30 second appearance in full view after a long time waiting to see one.

We also succeeded in seeing Kaka well in rather unnatural circumstances where the species was being reared and birds hacked out with food available for them (note the rings), although we also saw and heard truly wild ones.

And finally in New Zealand, up at Arthur's Pass on the South Island, the famous - or infamous - Keas which love ripping off the rubber parts of any vehicle such as windscreen wiper blades, door and windscreen sealings, and so on and for which the insurance companies will not pay. At least one loved car-surfing, which involved staying - heaven knows how- on the roof of the car whilst it drove off until enough was enough and it flew back to wreak more havoc on fresh arrivals!

Guard has to be mounted on the vehicles to prevent vandalisation by these avian delinquents! Which ends part 1 of the trip report!