Latest Birding News and Sightings - Bird Watching in Spain

Birding in Albufera Natural Park

Last week I had the pleasure of guiding two clients from Holland to the Albufera Natural Park. They were both experienced nature photographers and birders who wanted a day off from the city. The Albufera Natural Park is located just 18 Km from Valencia city centre and is one of the most important wetlands in Europe, so it makes for a very easy birding trip. We began by visiting one of the best reserve areas in Albufera. Once inside the reserve, we enjoyed great views of Black-winged Stilts, Little Grebes and Flamingos. After a short walk through the forest we arrived at the second hide, from where we saw hundreds of Black-tailed Godwits and Lapwings resting on the lagoon. Next stop was at a restricted reserve area where we had lunch whilst enjoying great views of Great White Egret, Marsh Harriers and Gadwalls. In evening we decided to stop beside a lake beside the sea, an amazing hotspot for Black-necked Grebes and Audouin’s Gull. We ended the day in the rice paddies where we hoped to see Booted Eagle and Glossy Ibis. It had been a great birding day spent with…

Guided bird watching trip to the Valencian Coastal Wetlands

A few days ago, I had the pleasure to organise a guided bird watching trip to the Valencian Coastal wetlands for clients from London. They were visiting the city of Valencia and wanted a day out to discover the area´s bird life. It was a sunny autumn day – fantastic for birding. I designed a trip that involved some walking through different ecosystems to maximise the quantity of species. As soon we started walking we stopped to enjoy great views of one of the target species of the day, White-headed Duck. Right beside 6 examples of this very special duck there was a Water Rail enjoying a morning bath! We kept walking beside the sea and stopped again for good views of Audouin’s Gull and a flock of Red-Crested Pochard in flight. In the next lagoon, we were delighted by Little Grebes and Purple Swamphens.. one of the highlights of the day. After a picnic lunch by the sea, we headed inland enjoying a lovely walk searching for raptors. We succeded…we had great views of 6 different Booted Eagles, as well as Common Buzzards and Marsh Harries that were enjoying…

Birding on the Steppe

One of the pleasures of being based in Valencia is the ease of access to many different habitats. One of our favourite trips takes us up onto the steppe and cereal plains of Castilla de la Mancha, little over an hour´s drive away. I recently had the pleasure of providing a trip to this region for clients Doreen and Jim from the USA. Both very experienced birders they were on a tour of Spain and wanted to see some of the area´s bird life, particularly on the steppe. They were staying in the historical town of Xativa, so having met nearby we drove up to the birding area where we began with a morning coffee in a small farming village. Our first stop was beside a small lagoon surrounded by cereal fields. It was still quite early so a cold wind was blowing. Despite this we enjoyed views of Pochard, Lapwing and Stonechat. Once back in the warmth of the car we made our way to another favourite viewing area where we put on extra layers! Here we had good views of Great Bustard, one of the day´s target species. …

Autumn 2017 Bulletin

The Mediterranean summer is finally drawing to a close and despite clear blue skies, we´re starting to put on long sleeves to go out birding! Autumn is a delightful time of the year and the past couple of months have been extremely busy. We´ve been exceptionally fortunate to spend time with some fabulous clients, many on return visits with us. As for the birds, most summer visitors have now headed off for Africa and many winter visitors are beginning to arrive. We´ve also had a few surprise vagrants and rarities and plenty of passage migrants heading south on the East Coast fly-way. A particularly exciting morning recently gave us Pectoral Sandpiper and Red Necked Phalarope in the same view! Bird Photo-Hides We´re delighted to bring to you news of a selection of completely new trips that include sessions in professionally managed bird photo-hides. Within easy reach of Valencia, these offer superb opportunities to capture great images of an array of passerines and raptors. These include Bonelli´s Eagle, Goshawk, Crossbill, Hawfinch, Crested Tit, Short-toed Treecreeper, Rock Bunting, Ring Ouzel and many more. These trips have proved to very popular, often as a…

Cultural City Break & Guided Bird Watching.

We´re delighted to inform you of a new collaborative arrangement between Valencia Birding and Adhoc Hotels of Valencia. This brings top levels of service to our clients, as well as extremely competitive and authentic accommodation in the heart of the historical quarter of the enchanting city of Valencia. This allows us to offer a unique short break that combines the rich culture of this beautiful Mediterranean city, its architecture, history and gastronomy with guided bird watching to some of Spain´s best sites, all of which are within very easy reach. All trips are completely tailor-made and are available for individuals, couples and small groups. Click here for further details. We look forward to welcoming you to Valencia and sharing some of Europe´s best bird watching sites with you.

2 Day Birding Break in Valencia

Last week we were delighted to provide a 2-day birding break in Valencia for a group of 3 clients with whom we´ve been in touch with for a while. All living apart (France, England and Wales) they had arranged to meet up in Valencia and to include in their holiday a 2-day guided birding trip with us. We´d been fortunate enough to meet one of the group at Birdfair in the UK in August, so were really looking forward to welcoming them to Valencia. To provide two very different trips, we´d decided to spend one day at the extensive wetland site of Albufera de Valencia and the second up on the high steppe. Very different habitats indeed. On day one, I collected the group from their apartment in the city and we made the short journey to Albufera, discussing their wishes and priorities for the trip. We drove into the Natural Park and made our first brief stop by some rice fields where we discussed the rice growing cycle whilst watching Cattle Egrets and Marsh Harriers. A Lesser Black Backed Gull passed over us and a large flock of Spotless…