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Thursday 20 November 2014

Travelling to Malaga and Huétor Fields, Malaga and Granada Provinces.

Meeting the birders and some local birding.

I drove down to Malaga and met the birders I was spending the next few days with, on the way down I pulled off the motorway at Loja to watch a very nice pair of Bonelli's Eagles (Aguila-azor / Hieraetus faciatus) which were soaring over the fields along side of the Rio Genil. Also seen in the area and on the way down to the coast I saw White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Merlin (Esmerejón / Falco columbarius), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Rock Pigeon (Paloma Bravia / Columba livia), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis) and Monk Parakeet (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus).
We drove back up the motorways and then did some birding around the fields to the North of Huétor Tajar where we boosted the list with some of the special species we have wintering on this area which is just 2 or 3 KM from the house. Species seen included Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax), Stone Curlews (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus), Water Pipit (Bisbita Alpino / Anthus spinoletta), Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus), Jack Snipe (Agachadiza Chica / Lymnocriptes minimus), Bluethroat (Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica) and Iberian  Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki) these cracking species were seen along side the commoner Crested (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), Thekla (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae) and Skylark (Alondra Común / Alauda arvensis), Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua), Snipe (Agachadiza Común / Gallinago gallinago), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula), Northern Lapwing (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), Grey Wagtail (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra), Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris) and Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina). 
As the afternoon was heading on towards dusk we headed to the accommodation for an early night so that we were ready for our early start next morning.

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