bird photography Valencia - Page 2 of 4 - Valencia Birding

Golden Eagle Photography Hide

One of the recent additions to our range of trips / services is that of a visit to a new Golden Eagle photography hide. Within around one hour´s drive from Valencia, yet in the remote highlands of the interior of the region, this trip offers a fabulous experience as well as the opportunity to photograph one of Europe’s most magnificent birds. The hide comfortably accommodates three people, and is surrounded by Mediterranean scrub. On my recent visit, the weather was perfect, sunny skies with patchy white clouds and very little wind. Having prepared the hide, I closed the door, set up the camera and waited. Swifts were feeding overhead, a Hoopoe made a brief appearance and I could hear passing Bee Eaters. Suddenly, a very smart male Black-eared Wheatear made his first (of many) appearance of the morning. Black-eared Wheatear (male) This very handsome bird made numerous visits, perching on many of the branches and bushes close to the hide, and was soon to be joined by the female, of more subtle markings but whose close proximity allowed a great appreciation of this often overlooked bird. Black-eared Wheatear (female) I…

Mountains, Vultures and Alpine Accentors!

Last Friday I enjoyed a fabulous day in the mountains of Valencia with Wendy McNeill, hoping to spend some time closely watching Griffon Vultures as well as looking for Alpine Accentors which are winter visitors to the peaks of our region. The day dawned bright with clear blue skies and almost no wind, so just to be out in the field was a pleasure. We began with a brief walk past some semi-ruined farm buildings where we found a male Black Redstart feeding on insects on the roof of an old barn. The crags behind the farm gave views of Black Wheatear and as we continued our walk through some woods, we saw Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Sardinian Warbler and Serin. As we moved on towards the higher crags, a Kestrel came to rest in a tree in front of us. Kestrel We drove further into the mountains, before choosing a viewing point from where to scan the cliffs where in the breeding season, there is a sizeable colony of Griffon Vultures. As we arrived, it was fairly quiet, but within just a few minutes, more and more vultures flew in, many…

An autumn day at Albufera de Valencia

Autumn is always an interesting time at the vast wetland site of Albufera de Valencia. The rice fields are steadily being flooded after the recent harvesting and of course post-nuptual migration is underway, especially exciting here as the region is right on a major flyway (its network of coastal wetlands serving as crucial feeding grounds). Last week I enjoyed a day out with Jeff and Dee, experienced global birders but first timers to our region, so they were keen to see what bird life it holds. Audouin´s Gull was top of their target species. Accordingly, we began the day at a small coastal lagoon, separated from the sea by an extensive dune system. Upon arriving, there was a gull on the water not far from us, but once in the binoculars, we found it to be a Slender Billed. A Sandwich Tern was also diving for fish and huge flocks of Common Starlings were wheeling around above the forest. The Common Starling is a winter visitor to this region, and can often be seen with the resident Spotless Starling. Slender Billed Gull Great Crested Grebes were also out on the…

Migration Medley!

“Bluethroat!” Followed closely by… “Squacco Heron!” “Barn Swallow!” “Teal!” All birds that one could expect to see at different times of year here in Valencia, but the wonderful thing about birding during the autumn migration period is the fabulous overlap that occurs. This is exactly what I enjoyed this last week as I spent a morning at my local coastal wetland. After a long spell of hot weather, I was relieved to wake to a cloudy morning with no wind, so headed down to the coast to see what was around. Bluethroat As soon as I began my walk, I heard and then caught a glimpse of a Cetti´s Warbler. Whilst trying to get a better view of this illusive creature, I heard a few Common Reed Warblers calling to each other. As I watched and waited, I saw a group of nine of them, feeding in the reeds and working their way through the reserve. Common Reed Warbler is a summer visitor and breeds each year at this site, but during the morning I saw over thirty birds, all presumably on passage. All the time I was on site,…

Autumn 2020 Bulletin

Dear all, I´d like to begin this Bulletin by sending my sincere and best wishes to you all. 2020 has provided trying times for us all, and I hope that you are all well and that you continue to remain safe and healthy. The lockdown that we all endured only served to reinforce the importance and uplifting effects of having birds around us. Like many, in the early days of the pandemic, I was confined to birding from our balcony for many weeks, and later only in the immediate neighbourhood, before being finally granted the permission to travel further. On that note, I´d like to extend my thanks to all who wrote during this time to share details of their bird sightings. This helped to bring positivity and to underline the fact that we´re all in this together! My local birding experience revealed a few surprises, including the number of raptors that passed over the city of Valencia on Spring migration, including Marsh Harriers, Short Toed Eagles and Lesser Kestrel. I found a pair of Whitethroats that were nesting right next to our apartment, and saw huge numbers of Zitting Cisticolas…

There seem to be some birds that are always with us.

It´s well documented that during the Corona Virus lockdown, many of us found comfort and indeed inspiration in watching the birds that immediately surrounded us. Since the quarantine, I´ve adopted a slower pace to my own personal birding trips, choosing to spend more time standing or sitting still and connecting much more with the nature around me. Only this morning whilst I was having my cup of tea in the garden, a juvenile White Wagtail landed right beside me, chased a few insects and flew off towards the pond. A Sardinian Warbler then flitted between the low bushes next to me. Then, as I was looking out of the kitchen window, a Western Bonelli´s Warbler appeared in one of the nearby pine trees. Special moments indeed. It was during a recent birding session that it occurred to me that there are some birds that have always been part of our lives and seem to accompany us wherever we are. For me, such a bird is the Common Swift. I´m often asked which is my favourite bird, and although it´s a difficult one to answer, I always have to say Common…