Bird Watching in Spain - Valencia Birding - Guided Bird Watching in Spain

As summer draws to a close, we look forward to a new season of birding trips.

The summer is drawing to a gradual close, and the Ospreys of the reintroduction project in this region (of which Valencia Birding is a collaborator) are beginning to migrate south. As the intense heat of summer is reducing and the autumn migration begins to get underway, our guided birding trips recommence. Mid September has been a busy time, with a number of trips to the wetlands of both Alicante and Valencia. Red Knobbed Coot Recent trips to Alicante gave us the opportunity to enjoy views of aquatic species such as White Headed Duck, Marbled Teal, Red Knobbed Coot and recently arrived Northern Shoveler. Some summer visitors were still present, notably Roller and Little Bittern, whilst birds that were seen passing through, heading south, included Bee Eater and mixed flocks of Red Rumped Swallow, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow and House Martins. Clients from the UK enjoying a day in the wetlands of Alicante A recent trip to Albufera de Valencia, for one of our most loyal clients, John from the UK, coincided with the beginning of the rice harvest. Recently harvested fields held huge numbers of Glossy Ibis, Great, Little and…

Watching Albufera Grow During the Spring

Throughout the months of April and May of this year, I’ve spent a lot of time in the wetlands and rice fields of Albufera de Valencia, principally trips with clients from the UK, USA and Ireland. It’s been fascinating to see the changes that take place during the spring, especially in terms of habitat and environment. In April, the rice fields were dry, so held very few birds, so we focussed more on the wetland reserve areas. During May, the rice farmers began to flood their fields and sow the rice, instantly attracting large gatherings of Glossy Ibis, Greater Flamingo, Little , Great and Cattle Egrets. Glossy Ibis In terms of bird movement, our trips in April still gave us sightings of a few later passage migrants, including Oystercatcher, Little Stint, Grey Plover and Curlew Sandpiper. However, as the month progressed, colonies of breeding birds began to form, the largest of which included Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Gull Billed Tern, Mediterranean Gull, Black Headed Gull and Audouin’s Gull, the latter choosing as usual to nest away from other gull and tern species. Sandwich Terns, Common Terns and Slender Billed Gulls…

A Special Day at One of Valencia’s Coastal Wetlands

April 2024 Some days, everything just seems to come together – nice weather, lovely people, newly arrived summer visitors and some interesting passage migrants. I was fortunate enough to enjoy one such day a couple of weeks ago with Roy from England. A keen birder, he was visiting Valencia and had previously contacted me to arrange a day’s birding. Roy, photographing Glossy Ibis on a shallow lagoon We met at a convenient spot and then headed to the coastal wetlands. This is usually a fabulous location in spring, but today’s visit seemed to turn up something special at almost every stage of the day. The first lagoon gave us views of Purple Swamphen, Red Crested Pochard, Great Reed Warbler and Whiskered Tern. A little patience and scanning was rewarded with sightings of White Headed Duck, Little Bittern and Purple Heron. Spot the Whimbrel! As we strolled along the pebble beach, a Whimbrel flew into view, then landed way off in front of us, blending in extremely well with its surroundings! A few Audouin’s Gulls glided along the beach too, but our next objective was to get some quality views of…

Another great day at Albufera.

April 2024 I’m delighted to say that April was a very busy month, packed with some great birding trips. One such day was spent at Albufera with Dominic and Elaine from the UK. They were on a rail trip through France and Spain, and had included a day’s birding with me in their plans. Albufera is a wetland of international importance for many reasons, not least of which is its geographical location on a migration flyway, so early spring is always an exciting time here. Greater Flamingo Elaine was keen to see Greater Flamingo, so we began at a reserve where it’s possible to get great views of them from a hide, without running the risk of disturbing them. We did just that, seeing them together with Black Winged Stilt, Avocet and Shelduck. We also spent some time scanning through a colony of Mediterranean Gull, Common Tern and Sandwich Tern, picking out a few Whiskered Terns and Slender Billed Gulls in amongst them. From the same hide we also enjoyed watching Redshank and Green Sandpiper. Little Stint As we strolled back to the car, a White Stork passed overhead. After…

3-Day Birding Trip from Valencia

April 2024 Early this month, I planned a 3-day birding trip for Jason, an experienced birder from the USA who was spending some time with his wife near Valencia and wanted to include a birding trip in their plans. Day 1 – Albufera. Our first day together was spent at Albufera de Valencia, a huge wetland and rice growing area just to the south of the city. We spent the morning at a reserve where we enjoyed the sights and sounds of a mixed breeding colony that included Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, Black Headed Gull, Mediterranean Gull and Slender Billed Gull. Whiskered Terns were also feeding on the wing and Cetti’s Warbler were singing from the nearby scrub. Shorebirds included Pied Avocet, Black Winged Stilt, Common Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Redshank and Glossy Ibis. Sandwich Terns, Mediterranean Gulls, Slender Billed Gull and Black Headed Gull In the afternoon, we moved closer to the coast where visited a small lagoon and enjoyed views of Purple Heron plus other shorebirds such as Kentish Plover, Little Stint and Little Ringed Plover. Audouin’s Gull were also around in good numbers, obviously preparing to nest. The…

Two more January days in the wetlands of Valencia

I’ve spent the past two days out in the field with clients, both at the wetland site of Albufera de Valencia. I was honoured to spend these days with two lovely couples, from Sweden and the UK respectively. Flooded rice fields and big, blue skies provide typical Albufera winter scenes Greater Flamingos At this time of year, the majority of the rice fields are flooded, and many of them contain huge gatherings of Glossy Ibis, Cattle Egrets, Little Egrets, Lapwings and mixed flocks of gulls, namely Lesser Black Backed, Black Headed and Yellow Legged. Perhaps the most striking of these spectacles however, are the Flamingos which gather in their thousands! Marsh Harrier We also enjoyed great views of some of the area’s wintering species, including Water Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Bluethroat, Crag Martin and Marsh Harrier. The latter is present in small numbers throughout the breeding season too, but the population rockets in winter, when central and northern European birds move south to spend the cooler months here. Slender Billed Gull A stroll along the beach gave us views of Crested Lark, Stonechat, Sardinian Warbler and Black Redstart in the scrub…