20/06 : Cabo de Gata & Rambla Morales

David E-B and a small select group had quite a good morning's birding. Please note that Dave has made an appeal for help with identifying the dragonflies, but please write to him at  dgebinns(at)gmail.com

On a different note, there has been quite a lot of correspondence in two of the Spanish forums (avesforum and fororoa) about the apparent lack of Barn and Red-rumped Swallows in some areas and I'd be interested to hear subjective comments from yourselves, dear readers, but please include your area of observations. Please send as 'comments' to this blog and which I shall put in below this entry.

     A select gathering of Heather, Jack, Gilly and I headed for the first hide at Cabo de Gata, having had a coffee at the cafe in Pujaire. The water level was as it should be for this time of year. There were lots of Avocets and Black-winged Stilts and it was lovely to see a flock of 23 Black-tailed Godwits, many in breeding colours. On the shoreline the only small waders were Kentish Plover. There were a few Shelducks around. On the causeway I spotted a single Gull-billed Tern amongst the Black-headed and Slender-billed Gulls.

     We had a quick scan over the sea, with a negative result, before we made our way over the steppes to the second hide. The first of a few Southern Grey Shrikes was seen. From the hide we added Little Egret and Little Tern. Gilly did her Greater Flamingo count....an impressive 1061! I then spotted three birds flying in the distance towards the now renovated church - Collared Pratincoles. Luckily they did get closer so Heather and Jack had a better views of a lifer for them. Back at the truck I again had a quick scan over the sea. Way out was a fast, low flying, large brown shearwater, a Cory's.

     Nothing new was added to the list from the public hide, so, as we were in the 4x4, we headed round the rear of the reserve. there were 100+ Audouin's Gulls resting on the salt flat. A couple of Red-rumped Swallows were sitting on the fence. The only waders we saw were yet again Kentish Plovers. We saw a single, then a pair of Little Owl on the ruined buildings. There were Sandwich Terns on the breeding island. LBJs were few. We only saw Zitting Cisticola and Corn Bunting.

     We then headed for the Rambla de Morales through the campsite. On the approach we saw Bee-eater and Greenfinch. On the water were Coot, Moorhen and Black-necked Grebes. A single Whiskered Tern was nice to see. Reed Warblers were singing away in the reeds. Overhead the girls spotted the only Pallid Swift of the day. Some more Black-tailed Godwits were feeding in the shallows together with a Sanderling.

     37 species for the day. Also attached are photos of some dragonflies as I know some of you will be interested. No, I don't know what types they are. Not in my Collins Insect Guide!

  

Our intrepid cyclists, Tony and Val, are now in Budapest! (They're cycling from the Atlantic to the Black Sea!)