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Thursday 25 September 2014

Rincon del la Victoria, Malaga Province.

A day on the beach !!!

Barb, Jayne and I headed off down to the coast at Rincon and found somewhere with OKish sunbeds and settled down on the front row just above the waves which was great as I could sit there quite happily getting some rays and sea watching at the same time. During the day I picked up both Balearic (Pardela Balear / Puffinus mauretanicus) and Cory's Shearwaters (Pardela Cenicienta / Calonectris diomedea) in good numbers, smaller numbers of Northern Gannets (Alcatraz Atlántico / Morus bassanus), Sandwich Terns (Charrán Patinegro / Sterna sandvicensis), Great Cormorants (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo) along with Black-headed (Gaviota Riedora / Larus ridibundus), Mediterranean (Gaviota Cabecinegra / Larus melanocephalus), Audouin's (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii), Lesser Black-backed (Gaviota Sombria / Larus fuscus) and Yellow-legged Gulls (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis). all day long there was a constant stream of hirundines heading west along the beach and further out to sea, most were Barn Swallows (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica) but I also saw plenty of Red-rumped (Golondrina Dáurica / Hirudo daurica) along with both Sand (Avión Zapador / Riparia riparia) and Sand Martins (Avión Zapador / Riparia riparia). Surprisingly three species of Dragonfly were also seen out on the sands, singles of Orange-winged Dropwing (Trithemis kirbyi) and Vagrant Emperor (Anax ephippiger) and several Red-veined Darters (Sympetrum fonscolombii).

Monday 22 September 2014

Huétor Fields and at home, Granada Province.

A walk through the local Patch.

I dropped the car off at the garage for a few bits that need taking care of before the guarantee finished and walked back to the house across the fields. Around the factory buildings I started the list with House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata) and on the first field a small group of around a dozen Western Cattle Egrets (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis). Along side the road in the ditches I had brief views of a couple of calling Cetti's Warblers (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti) and the first of dozens of Reed Warblers (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus) which I was seeing all along the walk in and on the edge of Maze fields and in all the ditches and irrigation channels.
On the airfield there were a couple of Northern Wheatears (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe), 8+ Whinchats (Tarabilla Nortena / Saxicola rubetra), a couple of Common Stonechats (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata) and a single Tawny Pipit (Bisbita campestre / Anthus campestris) was mixed in with a flock of around 20 Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae) on the oposite side of the road in a flooded Lucerne field. I scanned the fields from the first railway bridge and had a small group of Stone Curlews (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus) roosting on the edge of a distant Asparagus field and 41 Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax) which were just showing from their necks up in another Lucerne field.
Over the fields there were good numbers of Barn Swallows (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica) and House Martins (Avión Común / Delichon urbica), which were joined by smaller numbers of Sand Martins (Avión Zapador / Riparia riparia), Red-rumped Swallows (Golondrina Dáurica / Hirudo daurica) and a couple of late moving Pallid Swifts (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus). 
I continued on along the road and turned on to the track towards the Cuatro Caminos Bar and in a small patch of fruit trees I picked up a couple of Blackcaps (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), Willow Warblers (Mosquitero Musical / Phylloscopus trochillus), a single Common Whitethroat (Curruca Zarcera / Sylvia communis), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis) and several Iberian  Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki) and on the opposite side of the road the first of three Pied Flycatchers (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca) in a small Olive plantation.
Along side the Arroyo Vilano I had a Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), Little Egret (Garceta Común / Egreeta garzetta), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), an immature Woodchat Shrike (Alcaudón Común / Lanius senator) and several Turtle Doves (Tórtola Europea / Streptopelia turtur) on the fields on the far bank. 
Once I had passed the bar I followed the ditch up towards the house seeing a couple more Common Whitethroats, lots of Willow Warblers, a Garden Warbler (Curruca Mosquitera / Sylvia borin), Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus), Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops) and Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra) before getting home.