bird watching trips Valencia - Page 15 of 40 - Valencia Birding

Birding and Photography in the Mountains of Valencia.

I was delighted when we received an email from Stephen and Pennie to say that they were returning to Valencia and wanted another day out with us. We´d previously enjoyed two trips to Albufera de Valencia, during which we´d discussed the bird life of the mountains, especially during Spring. Stephen is a well travelled bird photographer whilst Pennie enjoys bird watching very much, so we arranged a day of birding and photography in the mountains of Valencia. After a pleasant journey from the city into the highland interior of the region, we stopped briefly for a coffee in a village bar. As we were walking back to the car, Pennie spotted a raptor soaring above us. We grabbed the binoculars and camera and were soon enjoying views of a Booted Eagle…a good start to the day! Our first stop was to look around some ruined farm buildings. This is a good place to see Black Wheatear, Serin, and Blue Rock Thrush. Today we saw all three species, and Stephen was able to get some shots too. A short stroll by the river was very pleasant, with Griffon Vultures gliding overhead…

A day on the steppe.

Last week, Yanina and I were privileged to provide a day of bird watching for Dominic Mitchell, founder and managing editor of Birdwatch Magazine and BirdGuides. He was in Valencia on a short break and wanted to include a day of birding. Having spoken about his target species, we decided upon a day on the steppe with a brief diversion at the end of the day to a coastal lagoon close to Albufera where we would look for Audouin´s Gull. We made the journey from central Valencia into the uplands of the interior where we made a brief stop at an area of scrub where Great Spotted Cuckoo had been seen during the previous days. Despite our efforts it didn´t show, but we did have views of Rock Sparrow, Crested Lark, Red Legged Partridge and Stonechat. After a coffee stop in a farming village, we stopped at a good vantage point to scan. Although quite a way off, we managed to see a small group of Great Bustards as well as a sizeable flock of Calandra Larks and a Thekla Lark. The next stop by an old farm gave views…

2 day guided birding break from Valencia

I recently had the pleasure to provide a 2 day guided birding break from Valencia for a couple of returning clients from England. It was fantastic to welcome Saff and Andy back to Valencia and spend these days together with them. They first came last autumn when they were guided by Dave to the wetlands of Albufera de Valencia. They became good friends and decided to meet for a coffee the day before the trips. They were keen to see different species and habitats this time, so we decided to visit the steppe and the mountains to provide them with their target species in these diverse environments. They were staying in the city centre combining a cultural city break with a couple of days of birding. On day one, we made the trip to the steppe, the goal of the day was Great Bustard. So after a journey to the area of interest we started birding as soon as we arrived, scanning the fields. At first we had good sightings of Crested Larks, Thekla Lark, Rock Sparrow and Iberian Grey Shrike. On the way to the next site, we had…

3 Day Birding Holiday

Last week, Yanina and I provided a 3 day birding holiday for returning clients and friends from the UK. Rab and Jan have been on numerous trips with us over the past years and this time they were accompanied by their friend Pete from my home town of Sheffield. Our main objective was to provide as much diversity as possible in the three days that we had together. So on day 1, I collected them from their holiday home in Javia and we drove south to visit the salt pans of Alicante. Here we were focussing on gulls, and soon had the two key species – Audouin´s and Slender Billed as well as Yellow Legged. After a morning coffee, we headed to one of the region´s premium wetland sites where we began by searching for Bluethroat. Eventually, our patience was rewarded and we enjoyed great views of this ever popular little bird. Having spent a little time watching Little Ringed Plover and Purple Swamphen, we then turned our attention to one of the region´s conservation success stories, the Red-knobbed Coot, and were treated to some excellent views. A visit to…

Winter Birding in Albufera de Valencia.

Last week, I provided a day of winter birding in Albufera de Valencia for a client from England. Paul, a lovely man from Exeter was visiting his daughter here in Valencia and wanted to discover in more detail the bird life of the region. He was particularly interested in the wetland species and really wanted to see Bluethroat amongst others. After the short journey from the city, we made our first stop at one of the park´s reserves. Frosty mornings are a rare thing here at sea level, but today was an exception – cold, crisp, no wind and a beautiful clear blue sky providing excellent winter birding conditions. Here we began by a small lagoon where we enjoyed views of Black Tailed Godwit, Marsh Harrier, Black Winged Stilt, Teal and Shoveler, as well as a pair of Greylag Geese, not a common sighting this far south. As we walked back through the woods to the car we had views of Chiffchaff and a Hoopoe. We then had a little time to pay attention to the rice fields before our next visit to another reserve area. So, we drove along…

Winter Birding in the Mountains of Valencia.

Yesterday, I was delighted to kick-off the new year at Valencia Birding with a trip for a fantastic couple of clients from Germany. Olaf and Marina are experienced and well travelled birders and had requested a day of winter birding in the mountains of Valencia as part of their new year break. The weather forecast was perfect – cool but sunny and with little or no wind. After a comfortable journey from their apartment in Valencia, we arrived at our destination and once fuelled with coffee we began our walk. The first twenty minutes of the route that lead up through semi-open mountain forest was fairly quiet, but after that we were soon enjoying great views of Crested Tit, Coal Tit and Long-tailed Tit. As we approached the high point of the route, we paused to check out some movement in a pine tree and were rewarded with views of Firecrest. A few more minutes walking took us to the summit of a rocky peak where we were hoping to see Alpine Accentors, one of the day´s key target species. A little searching revealed two birds, feeding on a rocky…