Guided birding Valencia - Page 7 of 12 - Valencia Birding

Bird watching in Albufera

I´ve just returned home from a day of guided bird watching in Albufera de Valencia with a couple who were on a Mediterranean cruise. Well travelled and experienced naturalists, they had a stop-off and free day in Valencia and had previously booked a day trip with us. Having met them at the cruise terminal in Valencia, we made the short drive to the Albufera Natural Park where we began our day at one of the areas best nature reserves. We were immediately treated to great views of Night Heron, Purple Heron, Squacco Heron and Cattle Egret. Glossy Ibis were constantly flying over, and Black-winged Stilts were around in good numbers in the adjoining rice fields. As we made our way through the reserve, we had views of Little Bittern. The reed beds held plenty of warblers including Cetti´s, Savi´s, Fan-tailed, Reed and Great Reed. The first lagoon gave views of Gull-billed Tern and Great Egret. We then made a stop at the visitor centre where the staff gave a presentation on the ecology of the reserve, the environmental challenges that the region faces, and the work that is being done…

Guided birding in Valencia

Last Sunday I was delighted to provide a day of guided birding in Valencia for an experienced birder from Australia. Jillann was in Valencia for work but on her free day she wanted to discover the bird life of the Albufera de Valencia Natural Park. After I collected her from her hotel in the city, we went to a protected reserve area where there´s one of Europe´s largest Tern colonies, comprising mainly of Sandwich Terns and Common Terns. We also enjoyed seeing different species of ducks and waders with their young. Jillann was amazed to see the large populaton of Avocet. The Marbled Duck is an endangered species which we´re delighted to see breeding in this reserve. We were fortunate enough to see it with 4 young. Next stop was in a Mediterranean pine forest where we enjoyed a picnic lunch, relaxing for a while in the Spring sunshine and listening to the calls of Serin, Long-Tailed Tit and Sardinian Warbler. Then we went to the rice paddies where more than 100 Flamingos were feeding in the fields, then an amazing drive through the marshes with great views of Night Heron, Purple…

Bird watching in the mountains of Valencia

Last Monday I had pleasure of providing a guided trip for a couple from England. They were very keen to go bird watching in the mountains of Valencia, especially to see the raptors and “specialist” species that live in this habitat. Jan and Ossie are two experience birders who are involved in a conservation programme for Barn Owls. As they knew that I am also heavily involved in a similar project here in Spain, it was wonderful opportunity to share our experiences in working with these magnificent creatures. After the short journey from Valencia, we stopped for a coffee break and spoke about the plan for the day, and of the species that we were hoping to see. It was a fantastic sunny day and after a short drive through the mountains we arrived at the ravine where we began our walk. No sooner had we left the car when we immediately saw Griffon Vultures, Blue Rock Thrush, Serin and Sardinian Warbler. As we began our walk, we enjoyed views of Crag Martins, Ravens, Chough, Serin, Firecrest and Black Redstart. As we neared the end of the trail, the sky…

Birding at Albufera de Valencia

One of the most enjoyable aspects of being a birding guide is meeting some truly nice people, and spending time in fabulous surroundings, combining the bird life with great company. This certainly proved to be the case last week when I was fortunate enough to provide a day of guided birding at Albufera de Valencia for a family from Belgium. All experienced ornithologists, they were on holiday in Valencia and were keen to see the areas bird life and habitats. We began our day at one of my favourite reserves, and were immediately treated to views of a pair of Merlin. This was closely followed by Glossy Ibis, Purple Heron, Snipe and Black-winged Stilt. As we walked through the reserve, scanning the reed beds and lagoons, we had great views of Purple Swamphen, Marsh Harrier, Squacco Heron and Fan-tailed Warbler. Although not seen, we heard the calls and song of Cetti´s Warbler, Savi´s Warbler and Reed Warbler. Perhaps the highlight of the trip for our clients was a great view of an Osprey. These magnificent birds of prey regularly stop at Albufera de Valencia during their Spring and Autumn migration….

Birding trip to Albufera de Valencia Natural Park

Today I had pleasure of providing a birding trip to Albufera de Valencia Natural Park for a client from England. She is a keen birder who loves to travel and discover new species. She wanted to explore the wetland bird species near the city of Valencia where she was staying on a business trip. After I collected her from her apartment, we went to a protected reserve and “green filter” area of Albufera de Valencia which is an amazing hotspot for birding at this time of the year when rice fields are dry. At such times, most of the birdlife remains inside these very special places. We had a long but relaxing walk through the reserve and when we arrived at the management centre, we were delighted to discover that the reserve staff were ringing birds. It was a fascinating experience for Jo to see the ringing and recording process. After a morning in the wetlands, we spent the rest of the day at the Devesa Forest where we found many woodland species were alreay well into their breeding cycle. We´d enjoyed the day very much, with a species list…

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…