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A day exploring the wetlands of Valencia.

Last week, I spent a very enjoyable day with Rod, Anita, Rudolf and Harrie, exploring the coastal wetlands of Valencia. The trip was organised as a way to celebrate Anita’s birthday, so had an extra special touch. It was their first time at this particular site, so I was determined to try and get the most from the day for them. As soon as we left the car, we saw a Serin in a roadside tree and then heard a Nightingale singing in the bushes. Our first quality view of a bird was actually of one of the day’s target species – the very elegant Audouin’s Gull. Audouin’s Gull As we began our walk alongside a series of coastal lagoons, we enjoyed views of Purple Heron, Red Crested Pochard, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe and Glossy Ibis. We opted to remain at an observation point for a while and to wait to see what would appear. Within a few moments we had views of singing Great Reed Warbler and a pair of Marsh Harriers in flight over the reeds. Movement in a small island of tall vegetation revealed a Little…

An early spring morning in the mountains of Valencia

Early spring is an exciting time – migration is underway so summer visitors are arriving on a daily basis. Some of the region’s winter visitors are still here, and as the Valencia region is located right on a major migration flyway, passage migrants are regular occurences too. The weekend prior to my trip to the mountains saw big numbers of Short Toed Eagles passing over Valencia, so this was a bird I was on the look-out for. I had only just left the outskirts of the city when I saw a raptor from the car, flying low over orange fields. It was indeed a Short Toed Eagle! My first of the spring. After little under an hour’s drive from Valencia, I was parking beside a river with pine woods and high crags on either side. Upon leaving the car I immediately heard Chaffinches and Serins in full song, and a few Long-tailed Tits were flitting between trees next to me. I quickly scanned the crags, whose shapes and profiles are long since familiar to me. That’s why I instantly noticed a different shape on the skyline – a magnificent Griffon…

Wetlands of Alicante

The autonomous region of the “Comunidad Valenciana” comprises three provinces – Castellon, Valencia and Alicante. In terms of a birding destination, perhaps the best known is that of Valencia, especially for its huge wetland site of Albufera. However, the province of Alicante contains some fascinating habitats, including some excellent wetland reserves where a great deal of critically important conservation work takes place. Over the years, I´ve enjoyed many trips to this region with clients and friends, so was looking forward to spending last Friday there. The wetlands of Alicante, with its mountainous interior in the background Together with friends Itzy and Bea, I began the day at a coastal saltpan where we saw huge numbers of Greater Flamingo, large gatherings of Great Crested Grebe and Northern Shoveler as well as Audouin´s Gull and Slender-billed Gull. That was all within the first five minutes! We wanted to devote most of our time to the vast wetlands that have played such an important role in the conservation of Marbled Teal and Red-knobbed Coot. This area also provides wintering grounds for Spotted Eagle, which migrate from north east Europe. Their return is always…

Mountains, Vultures and Alpine Accentors!

Last Friday I enjoyed a fabulous day in the mountains of Valencia with Wendy McNeill, hoping to spend some time closely watching Griffon Vultures as well as looking for Alpine Accentors which are winter visitors to the peaks of our region. The day dawned bright with clear blue skies and almost no wind, so just to be out in the field was a pleasure. We began with a brief walk past some semi-ruined farm buildings where we found a male Black Redstart feeding on insects on the roof of an old barn. The crags behind the farm gave views of Black Wheatear and as we continued our walk through some woods, we saw Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Sardinian Warbler and Serin. As we moved on towards the higher crags, a Kestrel came to rest in a tree in front of us. Kestrel We drove further into the mountains, before choosing a viewing point from where to scan the cliffs where in the breeding season, there is a sizeable colony of Griffon Vultures. As we arrived, it was fairly quiet, but within just a few minutes, more and more vultures flew in, many…

Migration Medley!

“Bluethroat!” Followed closely by… “Squacco Heron!” “Barn Swallow!” “Teal!” All birds that one could expect to see at different times of year here in Valencia, but the wonderful thing about birding during the autumn migration period is the fabulous overlap that occurs. This is exactly what I enjoyed this last week as I spent a morning at my local coastal wetland. After a long spell of hot weather, I was relieved to wake to a cloudy morning with no wind, so headed down to the coast to see what was around. Bluethroat As soon as I began my walk, I heard and then caught a glimpse of a Cetti´s Warbler. Whilst trying to get a better view of this illusive creature, I heard a few Common Reed Warblers calling to each other. As I watched and waited, I saw a group of nine of them, feeding in the reeds and working their way through the reserve. Common Reed Warbler is a summer visitor and breeds each year at this site, but during the morning I saw over thirty birds, all presumably on passage. All the time I was on site,…

Re-introduction of Ospreys to the Valencia Region

Absolute dedication to one of Europe´s most magnificent raptors : The re-introduction of Ospreys to the Valencia Region I was recently very kindly invited to spend the evening with Itzy Colodro Sainz and María José García Roselló of the organisation Magic&Nature to see up close the work they are doing on a project to re-introduce Ospreys to the wetlands of the Valencia Region. This project is supported by local government, specifically Conselleria de Medio Ambiente CV and is backed scientifically by Fundación Migres. At a local level, it is also supported by the Town Halls of Pego, Oliva, Denia and Jávea and is collaborated in by Magic&Nature and Acció Ecologista Agró. Ospreys are often seen on passage in our region, especially during post breeding migration when they stop to rest and feed at many of the coastal wetlands that make the Valencia area so bird-rich. However, as a breeding species, they became extinct in the Valencian Community in the 1980´s, their final nesting site being in Alicante Province. They managed to cling on to breeding territories in the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, but due to many and varied…