Huétor Fields, Granada Province.

A quick trip looking for the Bustards and Curlews.

Little Bustard (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax) flock.

Just a quick 45 minutes out on the local patch looking for the Little Bustard (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax) flock and to do a count on the Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus) fields. I started by heading along the Arroya Vilano and as I was watching a distant Merlin (Esmerejón / Falco columbarius) which was sat on a stubble spike a flock of around 40-50 Little Bustards dropped in on to the fields right in front of me, giving me a few seconds to get a few landing shot. Also here there were good numbers of finches and sparrows including Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Brambling (Pinzón Real / Fringilla montifringilla) and both House (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus) and Tree Sparrows (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus).

Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros).

In the same area there were also four species of lark, the comonest was by far Skylark (Alondra Común / Alauda arvensis) with at least 30 birds in a wintering flock, next came Calandra (Calandria / Melanocorypha calandra), then Crested (Cogujada / Galerida cristata) and finally Thekla (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae). As I drove around to the Curlew fields I added Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Song Thrush (Zorzal Común / Turdus philomelos), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa), Northern Lapwing (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula), Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), Grey Wagtail (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Sylvia undata), Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra), Common (Urraca / Pica pica) and Iberian  Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla) and Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula) to the mornings list.

Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina).

On arriving at the Curlew fields I parked on the roadside and started to do a count and before long I reached 420 and just then a chap walked out from one of the far fileds and flushed the lot up so I headed off home. I also added Common Starling (Estornino Pinto / Sturnus vulg aris), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops), Feral Pigeon (Columba livia) and Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus) whilst here.

Finished off with 46 species in just under 45 minutes, not bad going considering the futhers point was only 8 minutes from the house.