Cacín Valley, Granada Province.

A day looking for birds and insects on the local patch.

Day two with Bent Halfdan Pedersen from Denmark.

Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo).

I again picked Bent up from his hotel in the City and we headed back down the A92 to Moraleda and then out on to the fields nearby, on the way we saw Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica), Common Swift (Vencejo Común / Apus apus), Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus) and House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus).

Hoopoes (Abubilla / Upupa epops).

Once we were out on the fields we soon found the first Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Ganga Ortega / Pterocles orientalis) but we only got flight views this time but we had several brds on the ground later. In the same area we found flocks of Hoopoes (Abubilla / Upupa epops) and on one stubble field we counted over twenty birds. We drove around the site on several different tracks adding Short-toed (Terrera Común / Calandrella brachydactyla), Calandra (Calandria / Melanocorypha calandra), Crested (Cogujada / Galerida cristata) and Thekla Larks (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), good numbers of Turtle Doves (Tórtola Europea / Streptopelia turtur), Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito Real / Picus sharpei), Woodchat (Alcaudón Común / Lanius senator) and Iberian Grey Shrikes (Alcaudón Real Meridional / Lanius meridionalis), 3 Rollers (Carraca / Coracias garrulus) 2 adult and an immature, Golden Oriole (Oropéndola / Oriolus oriolus), European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Común / Merops apiaster), Melodious Warbler (Zarcero Común / Hippolais polyglotta), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) and Bath White (Pontia daplidice).

Ornate Shieldbug (Eurydema ornata).

Once we had covered the fields well we dropped down into the Valley and stopped at the bridge over the Riverwhere we walked towards the dam and then over the bridge to scan the ridge where we found the best bird an Eagle Owl (Buho Real / Bubo bubo) and in the same area we had Ornate Shieldbug (Eurydema ornata), Reed Warbler (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus), Melodious Warbler, Common Crossbill (Piquituerto Común / Loxia curvirostra), Cetti's Warbler (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti), Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Golden Oriole, Blue Tit (Herrerillo Común / Parus caeruleus), Grey Wagtail (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea) and several Copper Demoiselles (Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis).

Booted Eagle (Aguililla Calzada / Hieraaetus pennatus).

Further down the valley we stopped above the gorge where we had very nice views of an immature Bonelli's Eagle (Aguila-azor / Hieraetus faciatus) as well as both House (Avión Común / Delichon urbica) and Crag Martins (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris).

We made our way back up the valley a short way and then had a very quite drive over the ridge and then headed back in towards Granada but added a very nice pale Morph Booted Eagle (Aguililla Calzada / Hieraaetus pennatus) on the way. Once we were back in the city I dropped Bent off as close to the centre as it was possible, said goodbye and then headed back home.