Birding in Valencia - Page 41 of 49 - Valencia Birding

Easter Birding in Valencia

On Easter Saturday, Yanina and I arranged a day of guided bird watching to the Valencian Coastal Wetlands. At Easter Birding in Valencia is especially rewarding as many of the summer visitors are returning to their breeding grounds in our local wetland reserves. We gathered in central Valencia before making the short journey to the reserve that we´d selected for today´s trip. After a morning coffee, looking out across the calm waters of the Mediterranean, we began our walk along a coastal dune system. The first lagoon gave good views of waterfowl including Pochard, Red-crested Pochard and Little Grebe. As we walked further into the reserve, the second lagoon provided a spectacular sight of seven male White-headed Ducks, one of Europe´s rarest and arguably most attractive ducks. We also had great views of Flamingo, Purple Heron, Glossy Ibis and Marsh Harrier. We then took in an area of coastal scrub, and were treated to views of Wheatear, Stonechat, Whinchat, Sub-alpine Warbler and Spotless Starling. We also had a good view of Audouin´s Gull and the beautiful Collared Pratincole. After a picnic lunch on a pebble beach, we headed inland to an area…

Bird watching in restricted & protected areas of Valencia

As professional and licensed bird watching guides, we clearly work along guidelines and codes of practice to ensure that ethics are applied, and to minimise environmental impact. A special priviledge that we enjoy is that of access to restricted and protected areas of many nature reserves throughout the Valencian region. Last week, I had the pleasure of providing a bespoke birding trip to one of these highly protected areas, a “green filter” reserve within the Albufera de Valencia Natural Park. My client for the day was Oscar, a very experienced birder from Bilbao. We were warmly welcomed by the reserve manager, who outlined the recent sightings. We were very fortunate in that there had been sightings of a rarity – the Citrine Wagtail, so of course Oscar was very eager to see this unusual visitor. He was also keen to see the many wading birds that frequent this wetland reserve. So, we spent the morning very quietly exploring the reserve, and enjoying the spectacular bird life on display. Our patience eventually paid off, and rewarded us with great views of the Citrine Wagtail! The timing of our visit also coincided…

Spring 2015 Bulletin

Birding at Albufera de Valencia and the Valencian Coastal Wetlands These two trips prove to be our most popular birding sites and we´ve had the pleasure of showing these amazing spaces and their rich bird life to clients from throughout the World. As they´re both such popular trips, we´re delighted to be able to improve them both even further.We´ve recently been granted special authorization to enter some wonderful restricted areas that are out of bounds for the general public. This provides our clients with the opportunity to enjoy some very special natural spaces that would otherwise be impossible to visit. For the Albufera de Valencia trip, we can now also offer a new and exciting additional element which is a trip in a traditional Albufera boat. These trips are exclusively for our clients, are allow us to pass quietly by some great areas of wetland and to enjoy a different perspective. New Venues – Mountain Ranges of Valencia & The Lakes and Highlands of Inland Spain The “Mountain Ranges of Valencia” trip is ideal for those who want enjoy a short walk in the mountains amongst stunning…

Bird watching for beginners in Valencia

Last week, Yanina and I provided a guided trip especially designed for a group of beginners from Valencia. They were keen to explore the bird life of Albufera de Valencia and to discover the eco-systems of the park. Rather than maximise the species list, they had asked to focus on key ID characteristics of some the most emblematic species of the area. We began the trip in one of the parks protected reserves, where we were fortunate to see a good range of wildfowl including Shoveler, Teal, Shelduck, Red Crested Pochard and Pintail. A very special sight was a huge flock of Greater Flamingoes in flight. Earlier in the week, a flock of in excess of 700 had been reported. As we watched over a small lagoon, we were also treated to superb views of three Booted Eagles, a magnificent raptor that often hunts over the rice fields of Albufera. We then headed out across the rice fields, which at this time of the year are completely flooded. This makes Albufera an ideal location for bird watching for beginners in Valencia, as it´s possible to enjoy great views of species…

Bird Watching at Albufera de Valencia

Last Saturday I was delighted to provide a day of guided bird watching at Albufera de Valencia for 4 clients from Granada, Spain. It was a sunny and windless day, ideal for exploring the different eco-systems of the Albufera de Valencia Natural Park. We enjoyed many of the classic Albufera species. in particular the herons, egrets and ibis that are resident in the park. We enjoyed a fabulous day and were fortunate enough to see 40 species, including : Marsh Harrier, Common Buzzard, Booted Eagle, Kestrel, Glossy Ibis, Grey Heron, Great Egret, Little Egret, Cattle Egret, Purple Swamphen, Moorhen, Coot, Little Grebe, Back-necked Grebe, Great-Crested Grebe, Common Snipe, Black-winged Stilt, Lapwing, Great Cormorant, Kingfisher, Black Redstart, Stonechat, Bluethroat, Robin, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Moustached Warbler, Cetti´s Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Meadow Pipit, Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Starling, Shelduck, Shoveler, Mallard, Common Pochard, Teal.

Birding from Valencia

Mid October was a strange time in Valencia this year. It was as if autumn had not yet decided to show itself and summer was still well underway. Some of our species that are “officially” summer visitors were still here, although today´s trip was blessed with great views of passage migrants. Valencia´s location, right on the east coast flyway, coupled with its extensive wetlands make it a perfect spot for passage migrants to stop, feed and rest on their autumn voyage to the south. Today was no exception, and we were privileged to have great views of an Osprey that has been enjoying a short stay in Valencia for the past week! Today´s client Judy was a keen birder from the USA and was also enjoying a short stay in Valencia as part of a wider European trip. She was keen to spend a day birding from Valencia, particularly to see some of the wetland species. We began our day scanning the rice fields and canals of Albufera de Valencia, where we had views of Kingfisher, Snipe, Common Tern, Cattle Egret and Little Egret. Swallows and House Martins were passing…