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Wildlife and Bird Watching in Valencia

Last week I spent a wonderful day with two great clients from my native Yorkshire. There were on a journey through France and Spain and wanted a day of guided wildlife and bird watching in Valencia. Not only keen birders, they were also particularly interested in ecology and natural history in general. I designed a trip with this in mind, hoping to provide a bespoke day. After a short drive from their hotel in the city of Valencia, we stopped for a morning coffee and discussed plans for the day, before heading to one of Albufera´s best nature reserves. We walked through the reserve where we enjoyed views of Ruff, Little Ringed Plover, Snipe, Little Bittern and Marsh Harrier. The lagoons held Greater Flamingo, Great Egret, Purple Swamphen and Shoveler. Upon scanning some nearby pylons, we were fortunate to see not only an Iberian Grey Shrike but also an Osprey. This area is regularly used by Ospreys as a stopping-off and feeding point on their migration to and from their wintering grounds in Africa. We were then treated to a fascinating presentation by the reserve staff, which focussed on the…

Bird Watching at Albufera de Valencia

On Tuesday 8th January, together with two local birders, I enjoyed a leisurely day in the Natural Park of Albufera de Valencia. We began our day by generally exploring some of the rice fields on the west side of the park. The usual Little Egrets, Cattle Egrets and Grey Herons were in abundance in amongst which were a five Great Egrets. A female Marsh Harrier passed low over the stubble, flushing out a Snipe. A pair of Stonechats were flitting around the edges of a field and an Iberian Grey Shrike spent a few minutes on an overhead cable close by. Then seemingly from nowhere, a Booted Eagle appeared. It passed by very low before catching a thermal and rising into the air until it was nothing more than a dot. It circled over the fields then made yet another low pass, the winter sunlight catching its contrasting colours beautifully. We moved further north on to another favourite spot where we enjoyed superb views of over 100 Glossy Ibis. We remained in this spot for a good while, and our patience was rewarded with views of Bluethroat, Meadow Pipit and…

A Christmas Birding Trip to the Steppe & Lagoons of Eastern Spain

On 22nd December, we provided a guided bird watching trip to the steppe and lagoons for a client from the Netherlands. Norbert, a very well travelled and experienced birder was holidaying in the Valencia area and was keen to see the bird life that this superb region has to offer. The morning had dawned bright and clear but as we climbed up onto the steppe, it became quite cloudy with a little light drizzle in the air. After a coffee in a local farming village, we set out across the fields towards the day´s first lagoon. Something caught our eye way off to the left so we stopped to take a closer look…indeed, it was a pair of Great Bustards – one of the day´s target species. After a few minutes they took flight, remarkably elegantly for such huge birds. The first lagoon gave good views of Shoveler, Shelduck, Greater Flamingo, Golden Plover and Teal. Although quite far off, we also had views of a Merlin. The nearby telephone cables were occupied by a large flock of Corn Buntings whilst flocks of Serin were flitting around the trees at the…

Bird Watching in Valencia.

On Wednesday 18th April, I spent a day bird watching in Valencia with a group of 7 clients. The Valencian Coastal Wetlands are superb throughout the year, but are especially so in Spring when the breeding season is upon us. There was a cool breeze as we set out along the coastal path towards the first lagoon, and this seemed to be keeping most of the smaller birds down in the reeds. However, we soon had good views of White Headed Duck, Great Crested Grebe, and Red Crested Pochard. We also enjoyed views of Great Reed Warbler and Fan Tailed Warbler. A further stroll along the coast provided great views of a beautiful Collared Pratincole, it´s delicate facial markings showing clearly in the sunlight. Our next stopping point gave super views of Kentish Plover, Little Ringed Plover, Redshank and Curlew Sandpiper. As we continued our walk we could hear the iconic song of a Corn Bunting and soon found it sitting in the top of a nearby tree. As we progressed through the reed beds we could pick out the calls of Cetti´s Warbler, Savi´s Warbler and more Great Reed…

Winter Birding in Castilla de la Mancha

Today´s trip was a joint effort arranged by Valencia Birding and La Safor Ornithological Society, a Spanish group based in our local town of Gandia. The area visited was the same as that taken in on our “Steppe & Lagoons” trip and visits the high plains of Castilla de la Mancha, just over a hour´s drive from the Mediterranean coast. To make the most of the day and to have the best chance of seeing the target species we left our home base at 6.30am and after a couple of pick ups we were up on the steppe by 8.30am. The early start was rewarded by a stunningly beautiful and crisp morning. The temperature gauge was showing -6 degrees C and a sharp frost was evident although fortunately there was a complete lack of wind as we made our first stop. As we scanned across the vast plains we were fortunate enough to see a dozen Great Bustards resting in the early morning sunshine. Having enjoyed some super views we headed back to the van and drove along our usual track out over the fields. We made a few brief…

Valencian Coastal Wetlands Trip – 2nd October 2011

Together with Nick & Christine from Barnsley, South Yorkshire we spent a full day walking around the coastal wetlands of Valencia. Despite being into October, the weather was still hot and dry so we were all interested to see what was still lingering and what new visitors had arrived. The day proved to be very interesting. Our first sightings of note included a Reed Warbler and Marsh Harrier. As we sat overlooking one of my favourite lagoons, our patience was rewarded with excellent views of White Headed Duck, Purple Gallinule, Fan Tailed Warbler and Little Ringed Plover. We walked across the reedbeds and enjoyed Whinchat, Wheatear, Sardinian Warbler, Stonechat, Redstart and Bluethroat. Our picnic lunch by another body of water was complimented by super views of the usually elusive Water Rail. A Glossy Ibis flew over as did a Lapwing plus hundreds of Barn Swallows, in amongst which were a few Red Rumped Swallows. As we continued the walk across the reserve, we had great views of Iberian Grey Shrike, and watched as the movements of Swifts, Sand Martins and Swallows continued. We were fortunate enough to pick out a handful…