Bird Watching Valencia - Page 15 of 34 - Valencia Birding

A exciting find on one of the hottest days of the year in Valencia, Spain – Terek Sandpiper!

It was one of the hottest days for 150 years in Valencia. I was booked to provide a guided birding trip to the huge wetland site of Albufera de Valencia but a few days before the trip, the clients contacted us to ask if we should move the date. As the forecast for the duration of their stay was more or less constant, I suggested that we stick with the original day but take sensible precautions. It was over 30 degrees C when I collected the clients from the city centre in Valencia – that was at 7:30am! After a short journey we arrived at Albufera Natural Park, one of Spain´s most important wetlands. Located on one of the major migration flyways of the Western Paleartic, Albufera de Valencia is an extensive wetland which is immediately south of the city of Valencia, right on the Mediterranean coast and in 1990 was designated as a Ramsar site. It was declared a Natural Park in 1986 and holds an huge variety of ecosystems. It was originally formed by sediment that was deposited by the region´s two principal rivers, the Jucar and the Turia, both of which…

Guided bird watching trip to Albufera of Valencia

A few months ago I was delighted to provide a guided bird watching trip to Albufera of Valencia for Rene from Denmark. He was on a business trip to Spain and he had a day off so wanted to spend it birding in one of the Valencian wetlands. He is an experienced birder who wanted to discover the diversity and ecosystems of Albufera Natural Park. After I collected him from a meeting point agreed in advance in Valencia city, we drove straight to the natural park. First stop was in the main pier of the Albufera Lake to enjoy good views of Sandwich Terns and Marsh Harrier. Next stop was in the main reserve area of the park, after a short visit to the visitor centre we headed into forest. Immediately we were stopped by the call of a Sardinian Warbler, after a few minutes trying to have a clean view we succeeded, it was a beautiful male. Also Cetti’s Warbler – a tricky bird to see in the open was happy to show up. Once we arrived to the restricted area, we spent a long time scanning with the…

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…