bird watching costa blanca - Page 9 of 16 - Valencia Birding

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,…

Re-introduction of Ospreys to the Valencia Region

Absolute dedication to one of Europe´s most magnificent raptors : The re-introduction of Ospreys to the Valencia Region I was recently very kindly invited to spend the evening with Itzy Colodro Sainz and María José García Roselló of the organisation Magic&Nature to see up close the work they are doing on a project to re-introduce Ospreys to the wetlands of the Valencia Region. This project is supported by local government, specifically Conselleria de Medio Ambiente CV and is backed scientifically by Fundación Migres. At a local level, it is also supported by the Town Halls of Pego, Oliva, Denia and Jávea and is collaborated in by Magic&Nature and Acció Ecologista Agró. Ospreys are often seen on passage in our region, especially during post breeding migration when they stop to rest and feed at many of the coastal wetlands that make the Valencia area so bird-rich. However, as a breeding species, they became extinct in the Valencian Community in the 1980´s, their final nesting site being in Alicante Province. They managed to cling on to breeding territories in the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, but due to many and varied…

Birding in the Wetlands of Alicante

Having spent much of the summer birding around the area surrounding my house in the highlands of the interior of Alicante, last week I was happy to enjoy a change of scenery and to visit one of the region´s premium wetland sites with Wendy McNeill. A keen birder, Wendy is also an accomplished musician, and often finds inspiration in nature for much of her work. She is currently working on a number of projects where she uses art as a vehicle to get across the message of how we should value and protect nature. Today was about discovering a new area for her but also to provide such inspiration from what she saw. So, instead of working to develop a tick list, we focussed much more on looking carefully at the environment, its bird life and some of the stories behind its key species. Our first stop was to simply watch with amazement the thousands of Greater Flamingo that were feeding and resting in the salt marshes. This year, Greater Flamingo has successfully bred in Alicante – the first time in 37 years! Greater Flamingo As we watched them, we…

A note from the hills of Alicante.

As the World remains constrained within the grip of the Corona Virus pandemic, like so many others, I´m finding such peace and inspiration from the birds around me. As every year, I´ve moved away from Valencia to spend the summer months in our little house in the hills in the rural interior of Alicante Province. The house is exceptionally simple but is surrounded by rolling hills, crags and olive groves. I often base myself here when working with clients who wish to discover this almost unknown corner of Spain and I always love to share this very special place and the joy that its bird life brings to others. As this year, for obvious reasons, that´s not possible, I´d like to share a few special moments with you by writing. I´ve been here for around two weeks now, and the first week is usually a busy one, preparing the house and doing a few repair jobs. However, on most days, a group of Griffon Vultures have appeared, circling over the valley. A Hoopoe often visits the garden and the Bee Eaters are once again nesting in the lane that leads…

Fabulous News – Greater Flamingo Breeds Successfully in Alicante.

A combination of factors have combined to provide the ideal conditions for Greater Flamingo to breed successfully at one of Alicante´s salt marshes for the first time in 37 years! This site is one that we usually include in our multi-day birding breaks and is very reliable for Greater Flamingo, but the news that they have been able to successfully breed there is delightful. More about the factors that have provided such ideal conditions… In January of this year, the region suffered from huge storms with incredibly high rainfall. Following this, early Spring in Alicante was also much wetter than usual. This resulted in the water levels at all wetland sites increasing, but as this sudden increase was due to rainfall, it also reduced the salinity of the water. The reduction in salinity then resulted in a huge increase in the population of the brine shrimp Artemia salina, the principal food of Greater Flamingo. The birds also enjoyed a period of relative calm, firstly as there were far fewer humans around because of the Corona Virus lockdown, and secondly because predators such as foxes could not get close to the…

The Lives of Griffon Vultures.

Griffon Vultures – Magnificent Birds of the Spanish Mountains Often misunderstood, or at least badly portrayed! Spain is home to around 17,000 pairs of Griffon Vultures. That sounds like quite a lot, but the sobering thought is that this figure accounts for approximately 75% of the World´s population. The wingspan of an adult bird is almost 3 metres, and they can live for over 30 years. They are often seen as “flying planks” high in the blue skies of Southern Europe. But what of the lives of these mystical creatures? “Vultures!” is often a phrase, an insult indeed for someone who preys on the vulnerable, the weak, for their own easily gotten gains. No wonder then, that this carries over to the image of these most noble of birds. I beg to plead in their defence! Firstly, on a “personal” basis, they are monogamous, usually pairing for life. As these photos show, they breed on mountain crags, building their nests from sticks. The lay a single egg, which is incubated for 50-60 days. Four months after hatching, the chick is fledged and can fly, but usually needs further care and…