Valencia Birding - Page 12 of 27 - Valencia Birding

Bird watching in Valencia in the breeding season

Last week I had the pleasure to provide a bird watching trip for two experienced birders from the UK. They were visiting Valencia City and they wanted a day off to explore the birdlife of this area. It was their first birding trip in our region so I decided to take them to a coastal wetland which provides a large variety of species and a significant breeding colony. This trip involves some walking beside the sea and salt marshes lagoons. In the first stop we enjoyed nice views of White-headed Duck, Red-crested Pochard, Great Reed Warbler and Little Bittern. Whiskered Terns were flying overhead. We kept walking by the beach up to the next hide, which at this time of the year is the hotspot of the reserve because it´s home to breeding colony of species such as Collared Pratincole, Sandwich Tern, Little Tern, Common Tern, Black-winged Stilt and others. You could spend a full day just in this spot! It was also interesting having a male White-headed Duck feeding very close to us. After a picnic lunch, we headed inland, hoping to see Purple Heron, Purple Swamphen and Hoopoe. We were…

2 Day Bird Watching Break: Steppe and Coastal Wetlands

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of providing a 2-day birding break to the steppe and to the coastal wetlands for returning clients from UK. Joy and Margaret are experienced birders who had been birding with us before at Albufera de Valencia and they wanted to explore new habitats and areas close to Valencia City where they were staying. Day 1 – Steppe Having collected them from their hotel in the city, we made the journey inland and up onto the high steppe area close to Valencia. After a morning coffee stop and a briefing on the species that we were likely to see, we headed across the rolling plains where had great views of Crested Lark and Hoopoe. But what was surely by far the most impressive was a Golden Eagle flying directly over us. The lagoons were magnificent, with White-headed Ducks and Black-necked Grebe. On the way to the high steppe area we spotted a Lesser Kestrel recently arrived from Africa, and a good sized flock of Calandra Lark. Of course the goal of the day was the Great Bustard and we managed to see plenty…

Birding at the Valencian Coastal Wetlands

Last week, I enjoyed a fabulous day of birding at the Valencian Coastal Wetlands with returning clients from UK. Although chilly and quite breezy, we enjoyed a truly wonderful day. As we only had one day, we aimed to maximise habitat diversity, taking in coastal scrub, dunes, beach, sea, farmland, reed beds and fresh water lagoons. As both John and Jackie are owl lovers, the first planned stop was to see Little Owls and Barn Owls, although we were delayed by 8 Booted Eagles which were flying around very close to us. After a short drive, we started a pleasent walk beside the sea, where we had good views of Audouin’s Gull and as soon as we arrived at the first hide a Dartford Warbler stopped just in front of us. Little Grebes and many waterfowl species plus a freshwater turtle made it a very special stop. We then walked to another hide from which we had good views of Kentish Plover, Common Sandpiper and two Hoopoes. Next stop was the most exciting for Jackie as she wanted to see Purple Swamphen, and we were fortunate to enjoy great views of…

Photographic Trip to Albufera de Valencia

Today I was delighted to provide a photographic trip to Albufera de Valencia for two clients from Manchester, UK. Having collected them from their apartment central Valencia, we drove for half an hour to a reserve area in the heart of the natural park. Even though it was raining lightly, it didn´t stop us from having a fantastic birding day. The first stop was after a short walk by the forest to some hides located in a restricted reserve area, where we enjoyed great views of a large varity of waders, such as Bar-tailed Godwits, Black-winged Stilts and Little Stints. Next stop was in a green filter and reserve area where we got nice shots of a Booted Eagle. We also had great views of Purple Swamphens and Glossy Ibis. Driving by the rice paddies gave us great views of of raptors such as Common Buzzards, Marsh Harriers and Kestrels, we also enjoyed a Black Stork in flight. To finish a magnificent birding day, we stopped in a small lake close to the sea, where we were delighted to see Black-necked Grebes and Audouin Gulls. It had been a great…

2-Day Birding Break on the Steppe and in Albufera

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of providing a 2-day birding break on the steppe and in Albufera de Valencia for a family from Slovenia. However, the real birder of the group was Maks, a 14 year-old boy with an amazing knowledge. Day 1 – Steppe Having collected them from their hotel in the city, we made the journey inland and up onto the high steppe area close to Valencia. After a morning coffee stop and a briefing on the species that we were likely to see, we headed across the rolling plains where had great views of Crested Lark and Hoopoe. The first lagoon held Greater Flamingoes and Lesser Black backed Gulls. We stopped by an old farm where we enjoyed views of Corn Buntings, Rock Sparrows and Spotless Starlings. The high steppe eventually gave us views of one of the day´s key species – the Great Bustard. Initially we spotted two males, albeit at long range. Then our patience was rewarded with great views of a group of 12 birds. At the same time, we were also fortunate enough to see two Little Bustard, and Little…

2-Day Bird Watching Trip from Valencia

I recently provided a 2-day bird watching trip from Valencia for an experienced birder from UK. Colin wanted to discover the birdlife of the region, but only had two available days. So, we designed a trip that would maximise his time and enjoyment. Day 1 – Albufera Natural Park After a brief coffee stop, we visited a number of natural reserves, where we had great views of Booted Eagle, Flamingos, Purple Swamphen, Spoonbill, Whiskered Tern and a huge diversity of waders. Albufera is an excellent site for waders in autumn. After an interesting drive through the rice paddies where we had fantastic views of thousands of egrets and herons, we finished the day with a brief visit to a sports field where we had great views of Hoopoe, Crested Lark and Serin. The species list for the day included… Booted Eagle, Marsh Harrier, Kestrel, Flamingo, Glossy Ibis, Spoonbill, Purple Swamphen, Moorhen, Coot, Little Bittern, Squacco Heron, Great Egret, Grey Heron, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Great-crested Grebe, Black-necked Grebe, Little Grebe, Mallard, Teal, Shoveler, Red-crested Pochard, Gadwall, Shelduck, Great Cormorant, Black-winged Stilt, Avocet, Ruff, Spotted Redshank, Common Redshank, Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit,…