Whiskered Tern - Valencia Birding - Guided Bird Watching in Spain

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…

A Spring Day at the Valencian Wetlands

17th May 2023 Maria had contacted me the previous year in order to arrange a couple of days of guided birding as part of their holiday in the Valencia region. She’d managed to arrange a trip that involved a rail journey from the UK to Spain, stopping on the way to visit the Ebro Delta, before travelling onwards to Valencia. The trip was to celebrate her partner Jane´s birthday, so I was very keen to provide the best possible birding days for them. Squacco Heron After many email exchanges, we finally met in person, and travelled to our chosen wetland reserve, where after having a quick coffee, we began our walk. A Squacco Heron was the first bird of the day, soon to be followed by Greater Flamingo, Glossy Ibis and a pair of Marsh Harriers. Whiskered Tern The reed beds were full of the sounds of Zitting Cisticola, Reed Warbler, Cetti’s Warbler and Great Reed Warbler, and from our first observation platform we had good views of Whiskered Tern, Purple Heron, Night Heron, Little Bittern and Purple Swamphen. Purple Swamphen A walk along the coast gave us excellent views…

A day exploring the wetlands of Valencia.

Last week, I spent a very enjoyable day with Rod, Anita, Rudolf and Harrie, exploring the coastal wetlands of Valencia. The trip was organised as a way to celebrate Anita’s birthday, so had an extra special touch. It was their first time at this particular site, so I was determined to try and get the most from the day for them. As soon as we left the car, we saw a Serin in a roadside tree and then heard a Nightingale singing in the bushes. Our first quality view of a bird was actually of one of the day’s target species – the very elegant Audouin’s Gull. Audouin’s Gull As we began our walk alongside a series of coastal lagoons, we enjoyed views of Purple Heron, Red Crested Pochard, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe and Glossy Ibis. We opted to remain at an observation point for a while and to wait to see what would appear. Within a few moments we had views of singing Great Reed Warbler and a pair of Marsh Harriers in flight over the reeds. Movement in a small island of tall vegetation revealed a Little…

Whiskered Tern – Chlidonias hybrida

Here´s a short piece and a brief video on the Whiskered Tern (scroll down to see the video). This is largely a migratory species, typically wintering in Africa, for which the extensive coastal wetlands of the Valencia region provide ideal breeding habitat. They nest in colonies, often close to gulls and feed on crustaceans, insects, small fish and amphibians. In adult breeding plumage, one of the key ID features is the grey breast as well as the dark red stubby bill which is a little shorter on female birds. They have a black cap and white cheeks, the latter said to resemble white whiskers when the bird is in flight, hence the name – although maybe a little imagination is required here! I have spent many happy times watching these graceful birds feeding by catching small fish from just below the surface of the water. They also use the perching poles that have been placed in many of our local reserves as places to rest and preen.

Winter Birding in Albufera de Valencia.

Last week, I provided a day of winter birding in Albufera de Valencia for a client from England. Paul, a lovely man from Exeter was visiting his daughter here in Valencia and wanted to discover in more detail the bird life of the region. He was particularly interested in the wetland species and really wanted to see Bluethroat amongst others. After the short journey from the city, we made our first stop at one of the park´s reserves. Frosty mornings are a rare thing here at sea level, but today was an exception – cold, crisp, no wind and a beautiful clear blue sky providing excellent winter birding conditions. Here we began by a small lagoon where we enjoyed views of Black Tailed Godwit, Marsh Harrier, Black Winged Stilt, Teal and Shoveler, as well as a pair of Greylag Geese, not a common sighting this far south. As we walked back through the woods to the car we had views of Chiffchaff and a Hoopoe. We then had a little time to pay attention to the rice fields before our next visit to another reserve area. So, we drove along…

Birding on your doorstep.

As birding guides, we are especially privileged to spend a lot of our time with clients in the region´s top birding sites and reserves. However, as birders it´s often of great value and interest for us just to spend a little time exploring the bird life that we have quite literally, on our doorstep. This can include urban, sub-urban, agricultural and even industrial environments. One day last week, I had just a couple of free hours in the morning so decided to take a walk along the side of a local canal. The Barranco de Carraixet has its source in the mountains of the nearby Sierra de Calderona, and heads South-East eventually reaching the Mediterranean Sea next to the small town of Alboraya, just to the north of the city of Valencia. I walked the last couple of kilometres from Alboraya to the coast, returning by the same path. Although the barranco has benefitted from some excellent conservation work by local ONGs, it does not immediately strike you as a potential birding spot. However, I was in for a surprise…actually quite a few surprises! Along the course that I walked, its…