14th April 2022
When Stuart contacted me to arrange a day´s birding for him and his son Alex, I immediately began to look forward to our trip. More than anything because Alex is just 9 years old, and it’s always a privilege to be able to support and inspire young birders.
We met at one of Valencia’s many wetland sites, and after a chat about the plans for the day, began our walk. It was immediately clear that Alex was not only extremely enthisiastic, but that he knew his stuff too! The day got off to a great start as our first bird was a Woodchat Shrike, which perched nicely for us, allowing great views.
Woodchat Shrike
Our first small lagoon gave views of Purple Swamphen, and whilst on that theme, a Purple Heron flew by. Looking to the sky revealed plenty of Swifts, House Martins and Barn Swallows as well as a Marsh Harrier. A small bird caught our attention as it flicked up into a low bush. A little patient searching eventually gave us views of a Sub-Alpine Warbler, a new bird for Alex. We then looked out to the sea where a small flock of Little Terns were diving for food.
Purple Swamphen
The coastal scrub and grassland was absolutely full of Yellow Wagtails, most of which were on passage in large flocks. Whilst looking through them, we also saw Crested Lark, Cetti’s Warbler and Zitting Cisticola. A raptor suddenly appeared in the sky, which was a very exciting moment for Alex – once he found it, he immediately identified it as an Osprey, which was fabulous as this was one of the birds that he was very keen on seeing.
Osprey
We headed for a hide that overlooked another lagoon and enjoyed some great birds there – Mediterranean Gull, Red Crested Pochard, White Headed Duck, Marbled Teal, Greater Flamingo, Sandwich Tern and Avocet among others. We then continued our walk to another viewing platform, where we had lunch in the sunshine whilst watching Great Crested Grebes and Whiskered Terns, plus a Black Necked Grebe and a Pied Flycatcher that Alex found.
Pied Flycatcher
We strolled back to the car, stopping to watch Willow Warbler, Greenfinch, Common Sandpiper and Blackcap, before making the short drive to an area of pasture towards the interior of the reserve. To end the day, we took a leisurely walk through a few fields with some tree cover. This gave us sightings of Wood Warbler, Whinchat, Tree Sparrow, Serin and another Pied Flycatcher. As is so often the case, the day had a special ending in store for us – this time a Booted Eagle circling above us!
Whinchat
It had been a thrill to see such a young birder so full of enthusiasm and knowledge, and I hope that we’ll get the opportunity to enjoy more trips together in the future.
Our species list for the day included…
Woodchat Shrike, Audouin´s Gull, Magpie, Purple Swamphen, Purple Heron, Shoveler, Black Winged Stilt, House Martin, Marsh Harrier, Barn Swallow, Common Swift, Crested Lark, House Sparrow, Yellow Wagtail, Sub-alpine Warbler, Cetti’s Warbler, Mallard, Cormorant, Zitting Cisticola, Cattle Egret, Kestrel, Mediterranean Gull, Little Tern, Common Tern, Osprey, Great Egret, Yellow Legged Gull, Stonechat, Red Crested Pochard, Gadwall, White Headed Duck, Greater Flamingo, Collared Pratincole, Little Grebe, Marbled Teal, Great Crested Grebe, Common Pochard, Sandwich Tern, Avocet, Greenfinch, Sardinian Warbler, Pied Flycatcher, Teal, Whiskered Tern, Black Necked Grebe, Willow Warbler, Goldfinch, Moorhen, Great Reed Warbler, Common Sandpiper, Spotless Starling, Blackcap, Whinchat, Tree Sparrow, Robin, Wood Pigeon, Booted Eagle, Collared Dove, Chaffinch, Wood Warbler, Serin, Hoopoe.
Written by Dave Warrington.