Bird Watching Valencia - Page 15 of 34 - Valencia Birding

3 day Spring birding break.

In late April I was delighted to welcome back Justin from Sheffield. We did a trip last summer whilst he was on holiday with his family and had discussed the possibilities for a return visit. This time he travelled alone on a short break that we´d designed together, his trip being timed to enjoy the Spring migration. Day 1 Easter this year was a complete wash-out on much of the Mediterranean coast, and in the Valencia region it was the wettest in 74 years! The first day of Justin´s trip was timed to perfection as it was the first dry day after 5 days of torrential rain. We were hoping to see plenty of birds on the move, and indeed we did. It was as if the migration “plug” had suddenly being pulled and the flow of birds was spectacular. We spent the first day at one of the region´s wetlands, which itself is on a flyway. The skies were full of House Martins, Barn Swallows and Swifts heading north. The first lagoon gave great views of White Headed Duck, Red Crested Pochard, Whiskered Tern, Great Reed Warbler and Zitting…

Bird Photography in Early Spring.

Thanks to the continuing support of our client base, this Spring has been an exceptionally busy time for us here at Valencia Birding. Therefore, there are still many trip reports to write which I´m sure will bring back some very happy memories for Yanina and I. However, here´s a brief report on a multi-day trip that we provided for a returning client who wanted to enjoy some bird photography in early Spring. Stephen has been on many trips with us so knows the area well. This time he wanted a combination of field and hide photography. The highlights of the trip included a long day of field photography in the Alicante area. Here, he was most interested in species including White Headed Duck, Red Knobbed Coot, Marbled Teal and Purple Swamphen. It was a long day but very worthwhile. Despite rain during the journey from Valencia, by the time we arrived in the south of our region, the weather had dried up and we were able to get some great photos. We started the day by getting shots of Purple Swamphen before moving to Red Knobbed Coot and Marbled Teal….

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…

2 Day Birding Break in Valencia

I recently provided a 2 day birding break in Valencia for a couple of returning clients from my home town of Sheffield. It was fantastic to welcome Jonathan and Caroline back to Valencia and to spend these days together with them. They first came last autumn when they visited the wetlands of Albufera de Valencia and the mountains with us. They were keen to see Albufera again, but in winter and also wanted to visit the steppe, in particular to see Great Bustards. This time they were visiting with friends and were combining a cultural city break with a couple of days of birding. On day one, we made the short trip to Albufera, and started birding as soon as we began the journey by watching a Booted Eagle who has made Valencia port his winter home this year. We then visited a reserve area where we sat in a couple of hides for a while and enjoyed views of Shelduck, Teal, Marsh Harrier and more Booted Eagles. We then spent a little time watching a rice field that held plenty of Snipe and in the surrounding reeds we saw Tree…

Birding and seawatching trip to Albufera of Valencia

I recently provided a birding trip to Albufera de Valencia for two clients from England who as experienced birders had travelled to Spain many times but never to the Valencia region. After I collected them from their accommodation in the city centre, we made the short journey to Albufera Natural Park where we stopped in the main pier of the Albufera lake to enjoy nice views of Sandwich Terns and Marsh Harriers. Our next stop was in the main reserve area of the park, and after a short visit to the information center we headed to the observatories in a restricted area where we were surprised by a juvenile Night Heron. We realized it was injured so I manage to catch it to take it to the recovery center. After this episode we continued birding in the reserve. From one of the observatories we had views of an Iberian Grey Shrike, Flamingos and Zitting Cisticola. Later from the observatory tower we enjoyed good views of thousands of Red-crested Pochard, Pintail and many waterfowl that winter in this area. Our next stop was planned to be in the Village of El…

Birding in Valencia with a loyal client.

A few days ago I was delighted to provide a day of birding in Valencia with a loyal client. Gavin´s done many trips with us over the past few years and of course he has been to Albufera Natural Park before, but as he´s an experienced birder he knows that every day is different and birds can always surprise us. He was once again in Valencia on business but he managed to get a free day to go birding. Winter time is always exciting in Albufera as it´s an ever changing landscape. It was a sunny winter day and we were keen to get out and see what was around. The first stop was in the main reserve area of the natural park where we enjoyed the first good views of Booted Eagles, Garganey and a Hoopoe. From the observatory tower we had fantastic views of Red-crested Pochard, Wigeon, Pintail and many more waterfowl, it is a great spot where thousands of ducks spend the winter. Next we explored the southern rice fields to search for waders and the like. After a few minutes we found a tractor ploughing the…