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 Vulture, Raven, Buzzard and Blue Rock Thrush. Choughs and Crag Martins were swooping across the face of the cliffs, and Iberian Green Woodpecker was calling from the forest below us.
Griffon Vulture
Our return journey took us across farmland, in which we had views of Linnet, followed by the spectacular Bee Eater.
Bee Eater
After a brief coffee stop on the way back to Valencia, we said our fond farewells. It had been an absolute pleasure to meet Maria and Jane, and to share their company and enthusiasm. I hope that we’ll meet again in the not too distant future.
Written by Dave Warrington.
Valencia Birding.