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Diary of Bird Life in the La Drova Valley

Here is a brief summary of what goes on in “our valley”. Together with fellow birder Ian, we regularly watch our patch and from now on will use this blog to post brief records of what happens. Full species list can be seen on the specific post. January 25th Things are a little more lively this morning. The Meadow Pipit has become a regular garden visitor of late, as are a pair of Chiffchaffs. It´s only 1015am and in the garden we´ve already had a pair of Blackcap, a family of Long Tailed Tits, Great Tits, Spotless Starlings, a Sardinian Warbler and a female Crossbill on the bird bath. January 12th This morning, a pair of Meadow Pipits have joined the Chiffchaffs that regularly feed on my lawn. Another new garden visitor for this week has been a Coal Tit. Still no sign of Siskins though which is strange… December 9th Following a slightly unsettled spell of weather, normality has been restored and we´re now enjoying some beautiful winter sunshine. This week has seen the first of this year´s early morning frost and the nights are beginning to feel a little chilly, although…

Species List for La Drova & Barx Valley

As a point of reference, general information and interest, here is the species list for the valley in which we are situated. Species are listed alphabetically and include residents, summer visitors, winter visitors and birds seen occasionally or on passage. Alpine Swift, Barn Swallow, Black Redstart, Blackcap, Blue Rock Thrush, Blue Tit, Booted Eagle, Chaffinch, Cirl Bunting, Coal Tit, Common Chiffchaff, Common Cuckoo, Common Hoopoe, Common Kestrel, Common Magpie, Common Nightingale, Common Raven, Common Stonechat, Common Swift, Corn Bunting, Crested Tit, Dartford Warbler, Dunnock, Eurasian Blackbird, Eurasian Buzzard, Eurasian Collared Dove, Eurasian Crag Martin, Eurasian Golden Oriole, Eurasian Griffon Vulture, Eurasian Jay, Eurasian Siskin, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, European Bee-eater, European Goldfinch, European Greenfinch, European Robin, European Serin, European Starling, Firecrest, Golden Eagle, Great Grey Shrike, Great Tit, Green Woodpecker, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Hawfinch, House Sparrow, La Drova, Long-tailed Tit, Meadow Pipit, Melodious Warbler, Northern House Martin, Northern Wryneck, Peregrine Falcon, Pied Flycatcher, Red Crossbill, Red-billed Chough, Red-legged Partridge, Red-rumped Swallow, Redwing, Rock Dove, Rufous-tailed Robin, Sardinian Warbler, Short-toed Treecreeper, Song Thrush, Spain, Species list, Spotless Starling, Spotted Flycatcher, Tawny Owl, Western Rock Bunting, Whinchat, White Wagtail, Whitethroat, Woodchat Shrike, Woodpigeon,…

An October Morning in the Mountains.

This year, October is proving to be a summer month! Each day has peaked at around 30 degrees so far. With that in mind, I ventured into one of my favourite mountain valleys in the province of Alicante to spend a couple of hours in the shade and to see what was around. The summer theme continued as the first bird that I saw upon leaving the car was a male Whinchat perched in a nearby bush. There were still quite a few Swallows passing by too. As I made my way into the gorge, I enjoyed close views of Black Redstart, Sardinian Warbler, Chiffchaff, Blackcap and Coal Tits. As I sat in the shade, the silence of the gorge was wonderful – only interrupted by the occasional call of a Wren. I decided to take the easy way out and to sit and wait for the birds to come to me! Within 10 minutes I was fortunate to watch closely as up to 7 Black Wheatears worked their way down the cliffs, the flash of white tail feathers betraying their presence. I also spotted a Short Toed…

Steppe & Lagoon Tour – 6th October 2011

Having enjoyed the Valencian Coastal Wetlands Trip, Christine & Nick were keen to spend another day´s birding. Their preferred option was the Steppe & Lagoon Trip as Great Bustard and Little Bustard were targets for their Life List. We arrived on the plains of Castilla de la Mancha in glorious sunshine despite a cooling early morning breeze. Having enjoyed a breakfast of coffee and toast in a local café we explored an area of reed bed and marsh adjoining some cereal fields. Our first bird of the morning was a Corn Bunting, which was followed by an Iberian Grey Shrike and then a Whinchat. Having spent a while scanning the fields, we saw Crested Lark in good numbers plus a steady stream of passing Swallows. We then set off across the plains in search of the target birds of the day. Kestrels were plentiful as were Wheatear. Patience was eventually rewarded with close-up views of a female Little Bustard. However, despite our optimism, we failed to find the Great Bustards. Lunch time was approaching so we decided to picnic by a favourite lagoon. During a leisurely lunch we were able to…

Albufera de Valencia

Albufera de Valencia is considered to be one of the premier wetlands in the whole of Europe and boasts a huge species list. A lot of excellent conservation work is being done by some truly dedicated groups and each year the entire site improves. However, for the visiting birder, it can be difficult to make the most of a visit without some local knowledge. With that in mind, today´s visit was organised for a local birder who simply wanted to make the most of his time and to get to know the area a little more. Our day started at the visitor centre where a new hide is under construction to compliment the existing one. We were fortunate to be able to enjoy superbly close views of Avocets and Little Stints. Up to 5 Marsh Harriers at a time were quartering the reed beds, whilst a handful of Greater Flamingoes snoozed in the morning sun. Other highlights included Curlew Sandpiper and Little Ringed Plover. Having happily spent a couple of hours there, we decided to move on. We visited a few local hot-spots before having coffee in a local bar. Once refreshed,…

Valencian Coastal Wetlands – 8th September 2011

The summer continued into September with cloudless blue skies and another beautifully warm day. Even before we left the vehicle, we enjoyed magnificent views of over 20 White Storks passing through. We set off to explore the wetlands, stopping off at the favourite points along the way. The warm sunny day only added to the relaxed pace of the day but our efforts were truly rewarded with a species list of 42. September can be a little strange as the summer visitors have started to disappear and many winter visitors have not yet arrived. However, the trip proved to be superb, providing some of the best views of Spoonbill that we´d ever had. The Greater Flamingoes, still in stunning breeding plumage were as ever spectacular. Other highlights of the day included a Glossy Ibis, Avocets, Little Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Marsh Harrier, Purple Gallinule, Marbled Duck and a Curlew Sandpiper. At one point our patience was rewarded with one of those extra special birding moments when we had a Marbled Duck and a Purple Gallinule in the same bino view! Other favourites of the day included hundreds of passing Bee Eaters, an Iberian…