19th & 21st April 2022
Over the Easter break, I provided a 2-day birding trip for a group of birders from Finland, who were staying in Alicante. All experienced and well travelled, this was their first time in this region, so they were full of anticipation, and had a few key species that they’d like to see.
Our first day was spent in the wetlands of Alicante. As soon as we left the car, we were greeted by the sound of Corn Buntings singing in the nearby fields, Zitting Cisticola above us and Common Reed Warbler in the marsh. A local soundtrack for sure!
The first lagoon held Red Crested Pochard, Purple Swamphen, Glossy Ibis and a Common Sandpiper. Having only spent around twenty minutes at the reserve, we were soon enjoying views of two of their target species, Red Knobbed Coot and Marbled Teal, birds for which Alicante is a crucial stronghold.
Red Knobbed Coot
As we strolled across the reserve to visit a couple of hides, we had views of Great Reed Warbler and Little Ringed Plover. A Cuckoo was calling in the distance. The hides gave us fabulous views of another target bird, Collared Pratincole, as well as Avocet, Greater Flamingo, Marsh Harrier and Shelduck.
Great Reed Warbler
As we walked back across the reserve, to a spot where we had our picnic lunch, the Cuckoo that we’d heard flew by, coming to rest in a tree – too far for a quality photo, but we managed a record shot for the day. We also had great views of a Whinchat and a Woodchat Shrike, perched almost beside each other. We ate our lunch, chatting and watching Swifts, Barn Swallows and House Martins feeding on the wing.
Distant “record shot” of Cuckoo!
Then, before returning to the car we spent some time carefully scanning a lagoon. We had good views of more Purple Swamphen as well as a Spotted Redshank, Squacco Heron and Black Tailed Godwit, but the bird I was really hoping for was a Lesser Yellowlegs, that had been around at the site for a couple of days. Our efforts were eventually rewarded, and all of us managed to get a good view through the scope as it continually moved in and out of small islands of reeds!
Squacco Heron
Time was marching on and there were still a couple of sites I wanted to visit. So, we headed back to the car and drove to another hide, this time overlooking a much larger body of water. Fortune smiled upon us again as we had good views of White Headed Duck, Black Necked Grebe, Spoonbill, Purple Heron and Whiskered Tern, all species that the group were eager to see.
White Headed Duck
The weather was excellent, the sun high in a cloudless sky, so before we visited the day´s final spot, we enjoyed a beer at the coast, watching Yellow Legged Gulls effortlessly glide overhead. Our last spot was a coastal saltmarsh, where gulls and terns were our priority. As we scanned over the water and its narrow landbars, we enjoyed views of Slender Billed, Black Headed, Mediterranean and Black Headed Gulls. As for Terns, we had Sandwich, Common and Little, but whilst watching these, a Stone Curlew suddenly popped into view, for sufficient time to allow us all to see it.
Slender Billed Gull
It was soon time to head back to Alicante, and as we walked back to the car, a Kentish Plover made an appearance soon to be followed by an Iberian Grey Shrike which brought the day to a close.
It had been a fabulous day, with plenty of lifers for most of the group. Our next day together was to be spent on the steppe, but for today, the species list included…
Black Winged Stilt, Glossy Ibis, Barn Swallow, Magpie, Kestrel, Rock Dove, Swift, Spotless Starling, House Sparrow, Collared Dove, Skylark, Zitting Cisticola, Sardinian Warbler, Reed Warbler, Red Crested Pochard, Corn Bunting, Common Coot, Moorhen, Cattle Egret, Purple Swamphen, Red Knobbed Coot, Marbled Teal, Common Sandpiper, Mallard, Grey Heron, Little Ringed Plover, Avocet, Common Cuckoo, Little Egret, Great Reed Warbler, Common Pochard, Hoopoe, Cetti’s Warbler, Squacco Heron, Greater Flamingo, White Headed Duck, Marsh Harrier, Little Bittern, Collared Pratincole, Black Headed Gull, Black Necked Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Little Grebe, Shoveler, Black Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Shelduck, Spoonbill, Yellow Legged Gull, Crested Lark, Whinchat, Woodchat Shrike, Purple Heron, Spotted Redshank, Lesser Yellowlegs, Kestrel, Whiskered Tern, Sandwich Tern, Cormorant, Jackdaw, Common Tern, Slender Billed Gull, Mediterranean Gull, Stone Curlew, Little Tern, Kentish Plover, Iberian Grey Shrike, Serin, Wood Pigeon.
Highland plains
In perfect timing, the day between our two trips together brought rain, but as we met on the morning of our day on the steppe, the sky was blue once more, and conditions were fine. Before visiting the usual starting point of the trip, we made a small detour as the group were keen on seeing Lesser Kestrel. The previous day’s downpour had made some of the tracks quite tricky, but after a little “adventurous” driving, we were soon at the spot where we could watch these elegant little raptors in flight.
Great Bustards
Once back on tarmac, we headed further south west to an area of open plains and steppe, where we stopped for a coffee in a small village before heading out in search of Great Bustard. The tracks in this area were impossible to drive on today, so we stuck with the surfaced roads, heading for a few favourite locations. The second spot indeed delivered, giving us excellent views of a sizeable group of Great Bustards. Whilst watching them, we also saw a few Pallid Swifts and Gull Billed Terns passing by.
Black Necked Grebe
On the way to one of the lagoons that we wanted to watch, we saw Red Legged Partidge, Common Buzzard and Linnet. Once at the lagoon, the group had another chance to get quality views of White Headed Duck and Black Necked Grebe. A raptor suddenly flew into view, which we soon noticed was an Osprey, not a bird that I’ve seen much of in this area.
In the afternoon, we drove across the fields, when suddenly a much larger raptor appeared above us. I found a spot to quickly park the car, and we got out to get better views. It was indeed a Golden Eagle! A magical moment for sure, but it wasn’t to end there…just a few moments later, as the Golden Eagle was heading over the hills and eventually out of sight, another huge raptor appeared. Before we had the chance to look carefully, our initial thoughts was that it must be another Golden, but once it was in sight through binoculars, it was clearly not! We were watching a Spanish Imperial Eagle! One of those birding moments that will remain in the memory forever.
Golden Eagle
Our two days had indeed delivered well, so before making the journey back towards Alicante, we stopped for a beer and to update the lists. However, there was still more in store – a Booted Eagle passed low overhead, and as we were watching it, an Iberian Green Woodpecker flew by, coming to rest on a trunk in front of us.
Booted Eagle
Again, it had been a pleasure to provide this trip. Mikko, Kiiki, Lauri and Seija had been a joy to know, and together, we’d seen some fabulous birds. The list for our second day included…
Common Buzzard, Corn Bunting, Lesser Kestrel, Crested Lark, Magpie, House Sparrow, Spotless Starling, Blackbird, Stone Curlew, Goldfinch, Gull-billed Tern, Marsh Harrier, Shelduck, Kestrel, Great Bustard, Gadwall, Pallid Swift, Coot, Carrion Crow, Zitting Cisticola, Black Winged Stilt, White Wagtail, Greater Flamingo, Common Sandpiper, Glossy Ibis, Mallard, Yellow Legged Gull, Little Ringed Plover, Redshank, Red Legged Partridge, Common Swift, House Martin, Black Necked Grebe, White Headed Duck, Cormorant, Osprey, Common Pochard, Barn Swallow, Skylark, Rock Dove, Collared Dove, Black Headed Gull, Stock Dove, Sand Martin, Little Grebe, Golden Eagle, Spanish Imperial Eagle, Kingfisher, Hoopoe, Linnet, Greenfinch, Rock Sparrow, Iberian Green Woodpecker, Booted Eagle, Lapwing.
Written by Dave Warrington.