bird watching trips Valencia - Page 2 of 20 - Valencia Birding

Alicante Wetlands in the Summer

Today´s trip was my first since my illness caused by the tick bites that I suffered in June, so it felt good to be back in the field with clients, especially as Bruce and his son Archie were returning clients, so we already knew one another. As Red Knobbed Coot was on their list of priority species, we headed for the southern wetlands of Alicante, one of the best areas in Spain to see this bird. Birding in Alicante is often surprising, and it’s also home to some of Spain’s most successful conservation projects. After a quick coffee, we got straight to work, looking across a small lagoon that held Squacco Heron as well as a pair of Moustached Warblers that were flitting around at the base of the reeds. Within minutes we had our first views of Red Knobbed Coot – a pair with young. Red Knobbed Coot A stroll across a raised boardwalk gave us views of Purple Swamphen, Greater Flamingo, Black Winged Stilt and Glossy Ibis, all extremely regular species throughout the region. Although it was quite hot, there seemed to be some quite good bird activity,…

TICK BITES – A Personal Health Scare and a Warning to Others

I’m writing this post having just spent almost two weeks in hospital. I can honestly say that I’ve never felt so ill in my life. Prior to this episode, I was fit, strong and healthy. I will return to being so, but I want to share my story with you all. Why? Because the same could happen to anyone, but with some prior knowledge and safety measures, it can be avoided. The problem – A TICK BITE. A few weeks ago, I was in Scotland, collaborating in a conservation project. With only a few days left of the trip, I woke one morning to find two ticks attached to my body. They were quite large, round and had obvioulsy been feeding on my blood for a while. I carefully removed them, and cleaned the bite areas but didn’t think much more about it, and decided not to mention anything about them to my partner. The rest of the trip passed without any problems, and no rash nor marks appeared on my body. A tick feeding on human blood – extreme care is needed when removing such We’d been back in…

A Day in the Mountains

19th May 2023 My second day with Maria and Jane was spent in the mountains of Valencia. We made the comfortable journey into the highland interior, stopping for a coffee and to pick up sandwiches before we enjoyed a walk along a wooded riverside path. Searching for Golden Oriole! A raptor soon flew into view before circling above us, and turned out to be a dark-form Booted Eagle. A Black Wheatear made a brief appearance before disappearing into a nest crevice on a crag above the woods. We then heard the wonderful song of Golden Oriole, my first of the year. These stunning birds, despite their bright colours, have an amazing ability of disappearing once they fly into the treetops! However, we were determined to find them, and eventually succeeded. Our walk continued, the woods full of the song of Nightingale and Wren, both of which we saw. A Spotted Flycatcher was catching insects in flight before returning to its perch, and Blackcaps were flitting through the undergrowth. Spotted Flycatcher We returned to the car and drove up into the mountains from where we enjoyed some fabulous views of Griffon…

2-Day Birding Trip : Wetlands & Mountains

8-9/5/2023 At the beginning of this week, I had the pleasure of spending two days with a fabulous couple from the UK. They were travelling around the region, and as keen birders and environmentalists, were eager to discover the region´s bird life. To provide two very different days, we spent day 1 at the wetlands and day 2 in the mountainous interior of the area. Day 1 – Wetlands Our first day began with blue skies and very little wind – perfect for our intended walk. Highlights of the morning included Purple Heron, Night Heron, Great Egret, Great Reed Warbler and eventually good views of Zitting Cisticola! Zitting Cisticola We spent some time in a hide from where we had great views of Mediterranean Gull, Little Bittern and Collared Pratincole. Collared Pratincole After a further walk into the reed beds, we watched across a small lagoon which held Purple Swamphen, Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, Little Ringed Plover and a Greater Flamingo with young. Greater Flamingo We had lunch in another hide, enjoying our sandwiches whilst watching Squacco Heron, Marsh Harrier, Spoonbill, Common Tern and Whiskered Tern. Common Tern The return leg…

A day at the coastal wetlands of Valencia

22/4/23 Today I had the pleasure of meeting Michael and Paula from the UK, who were spending some time in Valencia and had previously booked a day with me. As they were happy to include a walk in the trip, we decided to spend the day at one of Valencia´s coastal wetlands. Once parked by the reserve, we began our walk and the day got off to a great start with almost immediate views of Little Bittern, Night Heron and Greater Flamingo. We headed along the coast, looking across a series of lagoons and reed beds that held White Headed Duck, Black Winged Stilt, Zitting Cisticola and Purple Heron. Night Heron Our first observatory gave us the opportunity to enjoy views of Moustached Warbler, Collared Pratincole, Squacco Heron and Audouin’s Gull. We walked further along the coast to a hide from where we saw Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, Great Reed Warbler, Avocet and Ringed Plover. Collared Pratincole After enjoying our picnic lunch, we strolled through an area of scrub and pasture towards another lagoon. This held Purple Swamphen, Wood Sandpiper, Spotted Redshank and a Garganey. We caught sight of a…

3 Days Birding from Rural Alicante

I recently had the pleasure of welcoming back to Alicante Caroline and Jonathan from my home city of Sheffield. They have been on many trips with me over the years so it was very special to see them again. Day 1 – Alicante Wetlands We chose rural Alicante as a base, and on our first day we spent some time exploring the vast wetlands of the region. The day began with a flurry of species including Wood Sandpiper, Redshank, Spotted Redshank and a rarity – Lesser Yellowlegs! Purple Swamphen As we walked through the reserve, we had excellent views of Red Knobbed Coot, Whiskered Tern and a flock of Gull Billed Tern. A male Hen Harrier passed over and a pair of Little Bittern moved through the reeds. Purple Swamphens were feeding close by and Great Reed Warblers and Cetti’s Warblers were singing all around us. Cetti’s Warbler From the hides we saw Marbled Teal, Collared Pratincole, Avocet and a Black Tailed Godwit in its breeding plumage (we normally only see them here in winter in their much duller winter plumage). Black Tailed Godwit, Avocet & Collared Pratincole After lunch…