A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of providing a trip to the coastal wetlands of Valencia for two experienced birders from Scotland. After I collected them from Valencia city where were staying, we drove to a nearby reserve area. This time of the year is magnificent in terms of diversity of species.
We began the day with a walk by the sea crossing several brackish lagoons where we saw Red-crested Pochards, Little Grebes and lots of Whiskered Terns displaying and fishing.
Red-crested Pochard
The first stop was on a platform where we had great views of a Little Bittern and White-headed Ducks and large flocks of Glossy Ibis in flight.
White-headed Duck
We continued our walk to the next hide, where we enjoyed views of some very special birds such as Collared Pratincole, Avocet, Flamingo, Little Tern, Garganey and many more.
Flamingo
After a picnic lunch by the beach enjoying lovely views of Audouin’s Gulls, we walked into the inland area of the reserve. Here we had fantastic views of Booted Eagle, Purple Heron, Purple Swamphen and Marsh Harrier.
Purple Heron
We ended the day with a short drive through some local farmland, where we saw Hoopoe, Iberian Grey Shrike and Little Owl. It had been an amazing day spent with a couple of lovely people.
The species list for the day included…
Booted Eagle, Common Buzzard, Kestrel, Marsh Harrier, Little Owl, Shelduck, Mallard, Garganey, Shoveler, Red-crested Pochard, Gadwall, Common Pochard, Goldeneye, Little Grebe, Great-crested Grebe, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Little Egret, Cattle Egret, Squacco Heron, Night Heron, Glossy Ibis, Spotted Crake, Little Crake, Purple Swamphen, Moorhen, Coot, Black-winged Stilt, Avocet, Kentish Plover, Little-ringed Plover, Ruff, Common Sandpiper, Collared Pratincole, Black-headed Gull, Mediterranean Gull, Audoin’s Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Little Tern, Whiskered Tern, Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, Hoopoe, Magpie, Monk Parakeet, Crested Lark, Sand Martin, House Martin, Barn Swallow, Swift, Cetti’s Warbler, Chiffchaff, Bonelli’s Warbler, Moustached Warbler, Reed Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Sardinean Warbler, Stonechat, Wheatear, Spotless Starling, Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Serin, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow.