A bit of a wash out but we still saw some good species.
Deb and Renate Day Twelve.
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Purple Toothwort (Lathraea clandestina). |
We got up at normal time and headed out for the most distant spot we were going to visit over in Navarra at Irati where we were looking for Woodpecker species including
Black (Picamaderos Negro / Dryocopus martius) and
White-backed Woodpeckers (Pico Dorsiblanco / Dendrocopos leucotos).
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Monkey Orchid (Orchis simia). |
We drove across trying really hard not to stop every five minutes to look at something interesting on the roadside but as the journey went on the weather got worse and the temperature dropped quickly getting down to just +1 as we passed over a ridge just before the woodlands.
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Monkey Orchid (Orchis simia). |
On the way we did see
Lady (Orchis purpurea),
Pyramidal (Orquidea Pyramidal / Anacamptis pyramidalia) and
Greater Butterfly Orchids (Platanthera chlorantha),
Red (Milano Real / Milvus milvus) and
Black Kites (Milano Negro / Milvus migrans),
Egyptian Vulture (Alimoche Común / Neophron percnopterus),
Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus),
Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo),
Carrion Crow (Corneja Negra / Corvus corone),
Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto),
Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor),
Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros) and in the sleet and rain as we crossed a ridge near to Irati a surprise in the shape of a
Common Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Grande / Charadrius hiaticula) which was running along the road.
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Burnt Orchid (Neotinea Ustulata). |
Once we were in the woods we started the search but the heavy drizzle did not make things easy and we dipped on the Woodpeckers but we did see
Goldcrest (Reyezuelo Sencillo / Regulus regulus),
Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus),
Common Swift (Vencejo Común / Apus apus),
Crag (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris) and
Western House Martin (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum),
Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica),
Grey (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea) and
White Wagtails (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba),
Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus),
European Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula),
Garden Warbler (Curruca Mosquitera / Sylvia borin),
Eurasian Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Curruca capirotada),
Eurasian Blue (Herrerillo Común / Cyanistes caeruleus),
Coal (Carbonero Garrapinos / Periparus ater),
Crested (Herrerillo Capuchino / Lophophanes cristatus) and
Great Tits (Carbonera Común / Parus major),
Eurasian Nuthatch (Trepador Azul / Sitta europaea),
Eurasian (Agateador Euroasiatico / Certhia familiaris) and
Short-toed Treecreepers (Agateador Común / Certhia brachydactyla),
Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs),
Great Spotted Woodpecker (Pico Picapinos / Dendrocopos major),
Song Thrush (Zorzal Común / Turdus philomelos) and in the less wooded areas as we approached the ridge a pair of
Eurasian Bullfinch (Camachuelo Común / Pyrrhula pyrrhula) which flashed across the road. In the woods we also had a few wild flowers including the smart looking
Purple Toothwort (Lathraea clandestina).
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Renate during the climb. |
Up on the ridge we had views of a couple of very damp looking
Water Pipits (Bisbita Alpino / Anthus spinoletta)
and a male
Northern Wheatear (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe) and as we dropped down the other side we checked out a scrubby slope and a grassland area adding
Monkey (Orchis simia),
Green-winged (Androrchis morio),
Tounge (Serapias lingua),
Burnt (Neotinea Ustulata) and Lange's Orchids (Androrchis langei) to the list along with
Red-backed Shrike (Alcaudón Dorsirrojo / Lanius collurio),
Eurasian Magpie (Urraca Común / Pica pica),
Western Jackdaw (Grajilla occidental / Corvus monedula) and
Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus).
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Sierra de Alano. |
As we got into the valley and were approching the site we had a small group of
Alpine (Chova Piquigualda / Pyrrhocorax graculus) and
Red-billed Choughs (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax), a dozen or more
Citril Finches (Verderón Serrano / Carduelis citrinella) and
White-throated Dipper (Mirlo Acuático Europeo / Cinclus cinclus).
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Deb in the snow. |
We drove through the rain to a car park in the middle of nowhere below the very impressive looking Sierra de Alano where we had our first view of the large gap in the ridge called Achar de Alano way way above us which was our target spot. The three of us set off on the track and took the shorter route up on the dirt tracks and ignored the main vehicle track.
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Sierra de Alano. |
On the way we saw several
Citril Finches,
European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis),
European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus),
Common Linnet (Pardillo Común / Linaria cannabina),
Yellowhammer (Escribano Cerillo / Emberiza citrinella),
Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), 1000s of
Elder-flowered Orchids (Dactylorhiza sambucina) as well as
Cowslip (Primula veris),
Large-flowered Butterwort (
Pinguicula grandiflora), Alpine Snowbell (Soldanella alpina),
Daphne mezereum and many more.
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Alpine Snowbell (Soldanella alpina). |
Once we were out on the slopes we continued to climb, I was starting to fell the climb in my legs and lungs and was struggling not to be embarrassed by having 80 year old Renate over taking me on several occasions. Eventually we reached the lower parts of the scree and quickly found the first of several
Alpine Accentors (Acentor Alpino / Prunella modularis), more
Alpine Choughs and then a stunning
Wallcreeper (Treparriscos / Tichodroma muraria) which gave us nice views as it moved around amongst the larger bolders on the bottom of the scree.
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Fly Orchid (Ophrys insectifera). |
As were watching this superb bird the weather then came back to remind us it was not yet summer in the Pyrenees, the rain soon turned to sleet which soon turned into a full blown blizzard of snow, so we decided to end our attempt of making it to the ridge and started down the hill.
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Man Orchid (Orchis anthropophora). |
We eventually reached the car again and made our way slowly back to the hotel calling in at a spot on the road side to photographs a nice looking
Lady Orchid and at the same spot we found our only spikes of both
Fly (Ophrys insectifera) and
Man Orchids (Orchis anthropophora).
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