Loja Wildlife, Granada Province, Spain.: Sierra Nevada, Granada Province.

Friday, 27 May 2016

Sierra Nevada, Granada Province.

A visit to the Serra Nevada looking for Butterflies.

Kate and Jim Day Two.

Kate, Jim and I headed out to El Purche on the lower Western slopes, we parked and searched a steepish flower covered slope and soon started to find some very nice species of butterfly

including a cooperative Moroccan Orange-tip (Anthocharis belia), several Provençal Fritillaries (Melitaea deione), Large (Pieris brassicae) and Small Whites (Artogeia rapae), Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas), Southern (Polyommatus celina) and Lorquin's Blues (Cupido lorquinii), Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui), Spanish Gatekeeper (Lobito listado / Pyronia bathsheba), Spanish Brown Argus (Aricia cramera) and Clouded Yellow (Colias Común / Colias corcea). As we were photographing the Moroccan Orange-tip a pale phase Booted Eagle (Aguililla Calzada / Hieraaetus pennatus) circled above us, in the area we also had singing Cirl Bunting (Escribano Soteno / Emberiza cirlus), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar /

Fringilla coelebs), Blue (Herrerillo Común / Parus caeruleus) and Great Tits (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Golden Oriole (Oropéndola / Oriolus oriolus), Red-billed Chough (Chova

Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula) and Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus). Other species seen included 9100 Acontia lucida (Pale Shoulder), 5611 Synaphe Moldavica, Andalusian Storksbill (Erodium recorderi), Bitting Stonecrop (Sedum acre), Cliffhanger (Chaenorhinum villosum), Common Grape Hyacinth (Muscari neglectum), Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas), Dove's Foot Cranesbill (Geranium molle), Eruca (Eruca sativa), Ground-pine Germander (Teucrium pseudochamaepitys), Meadow Saxifrage (Saxifraga granulata), Mediterranean Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria), Navel-wort (Omphalodes commutata), Ox-eye Daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare), Purple Bugloss (Echium plantagineum), Rabbits bread (Andryala integrifolia), Rock phagnalon (Phagnalon

rupestre), Southern Knapweed (Centaurea pullata ssp pullata), White Mignonette (Reseda Alba) and White Rockrose (Helianthemum apenninum).

Our next stop was further up the hill at the botanical gardens where we walked down to the lower meadows and pools checking the many flowering plants as we went down. Almost straight away we had a very smart Western Dappled White (Euchloe crameri) and a good many of the buttefly species already seen but lower down we saw an egg laying Scarce Swallowtail (Chupaleches / Iphiclides podalirius feisthameli), Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus F lyllus), Knapweed Fritillary (Melitaea phoebe), Southern Marbled Skipper (Carcharodus boeticus), Southern Gatekeeper (Pyronia cecilia) as well as Large Psammodromus (Lagartija colilarga / Psammodromus algirus), Moorish Gecko (Tarentola mauritanica), Yellow Phlomis (Phlomis lychnitis), White stonecrop (Sedum album), Woad (Isatis tinctoria), Tassel Hyacinth (Muscari comosum), Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), Grey-leaved Cistus (Cistus albidus) and Curry Plant (Helecrisum stoechaes). Birds included Woodlark (Totovia / Lullula arborea), Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Firecrest (Reyezuelo Listado / Regulus ignicapillus), Crested Tit (Herrerillo Capuchino / Parus cristatus), Common Crossbill (Piquituerto Común / Loxia curvirostra), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón /

Phoenicurus ochruros), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus), Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia) and Great Spotted Woodpecker (Pico Picapinos / Dendrocopos major).

We had spent quite a while in the gardens and had met up with Juan Jesus the warden at the site who very kindly gave Kate and Jim a lift back up the slope to the car, we then dropped back down and took the old road down towards Guejar-sierra. Not far from the visitor Centre we stopped on the roadside and photographed some smart wildflowers which included Linaria aeruginea subsp aeruginea, Saxifraga erioblasta, Blue Hedgehog Broom (Erinacea anthyllis) and Onosma tricerosperma ssp granatensis. We continued on down the hill a short way and parked on the roadside and searched a small area of rocky grassland where we had a single spike of Lange's Orchid (Androrchis langei), Saponaria ocymoides, Lesser Spotted Fritillary (Melitaea trivia), Sage Skipper (Muschampia proto), Cleopatra (Cleopatra / Gonepteryx cleopatra), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Red-rumped Swallow

(Golondrina Dáurica / Hirudo daurica), Green Woodpecker (Pito Real / Picus viridis), Jay (Arrendajo / Garrulus glandarius) and European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Común / Merops apiaster).
We dropped further down the hill and made a stop near the river in the bottom of the valley, Jim and I had a stroll down to the water and found another Lesser Spotted Fritillary as well as a couple of Marsh Fritillary (Euphydrayas aurinia beckeri), a Queen of Spain Fritillary (Issoria lathonia), Spanish Festoon (Zerynthia rumina), Grey Wagtail (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea), Dipper (Mirlo Acuático / Cinclus cinclus) and several Crag Martins (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris). We then dropped back down past Granada and back to the house.

Photographs from the top: Moroccan Orange-tip (Anthocharis belia), Provençal Fritillaries (Melitaea deione), 2x Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus F lyllus), 2x Saxifraga erioblasta, Onosma tricerosperma ssp granatensis, Linaria aeruginea subsp aeruginea, Lange's Orchid (Androrchis langei), 3x Lesser Spotted Fritillary (Melitaea trivia) and Marsh Fritillary (Euphydrayas aurinia beckeri).

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What the guest thought of their Granada Wildlife tours.

More recent feed back and comments on Trip Advisor.

Pierre & Magdalena 21st April 2016.

Hello Mick,

Its been 2 weeks now we have finished our city-trip to Andalucia & I finally got some sparetime to review the pictures of our wildlife tour to the Granada countryside. Its great beeing out with you discovering the variety of your local birds on the fields, on the rocks and in the wetlands. This was one of our very first birding trips & we want want to thank you for giving us the appetite for spending more time on this fascinating subject ... we really have another look now at the birds in our garden & on our own countryside. We had a lovely sunny day together in the Cacin country, in good company, with some tasty bocadillos at a local tienda, great views to the mountain ranges of the Granada province, lots of flowers & of course lots of birds ... Thank you for documenting all this on your blog. We appreciated very much your way of showing us around, as well as your expertise. Hopefully when I am pensioned in a few years we can visit you and your wife in Loja and have some more birding trips in the south of Spain (Extremadura, Sierra de Cazorla, ...).

Thank you Mick.
Wishing all the best to you and your family.

Greetings from Pierre & Magdalena.
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Stephanie and Ken Logan (South Africa).

Dear Mick

Just a very quick note of thanks for a marvellous time birding with you in Spain. We could never have enjoyed such success without your non-stop attention to finding the targets for us… even at 110kmph down the Madrid motorway! Thanks too to you and Jayne for such a comfortable “ home base” at the start of our stay.
Ken will be in contact once he has sorted thru the 000s of photos!!!!

Very best wishes and thanks again Stephanie and Ken
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Stuart and Melanie (Australia - May 2014).

We enjoyed a great day of bird-watching with Mick in the Granada region. Thanks to his fantastic Knowledge of local environs and habitats we were able to view a wide range of birds; from common resident species to migrants, finches, birds of prey, warblers, waterfowl and waders – each enthusiastically identified and pointed out. Mick carefully and accurately described the features that differentiate similar species so we were able to confidently identify the birds and appreciate the wonderful variety of avifauna. For us, highlights included seeing Egyptian Geese and a wonderful moment of watching a Nightingale sing. We also found Mick to be very knowledgeable about butterflies, flowers, landscape change and agricultural activities, which allowed us to develop a much richer awareness and appreciation of the Spanish environment, beyond the usual guidebooks and tourist brochures.

Melanie and Stuart.
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Paul & Helen Brock, United Kingdom.

May 2014.

Dear Mick

Still trying to process numerous photos from our 3 night stay 14-17 May 2014! We packed in so much, thank you for taking us to delightful sites to photograph pristine, well behaved butterflies such as Cardinal and Spanish Festoon (and not so well behaved Spanish Marbled Whites!), also dragonflies, damselflies and many other insects we kept stopping to photograph; one could hardly expect more. A Death’s-head Hawk-moth in the moth trap was an unexpected bonus, as was the fireworks display in Loja you kindly took us to. The accommodation has everything needed for a comfortable stay and we will be back for longer in 2015.

Regards Paul and Helen.

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Monique Kors, United Kingdom.
2014.

Dear Mick,

It seems to be ages ago since we were watching birds in Spain. Thank you for making this possible. What I greatly appreciated was that you picked us up in Granada, as we did not hire a car and took us to the country side. My high lights were the little owl and the hoopoe. Probably because they were so close by. I am not a twitcher, so rare birds from a distance are less impressive to me. However it was nice to see as many different kind of eagles. Maybe one day we will meet again as I would love to see loads of Flamingo's.

All the best, Monique Kors.
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The Leslie family from Scotland.
6th April 2014.

"Dear Mick,

Thank you ever so much for putting together a day's itinerary which catered for family members from ages 5 to 70! My 8 year old son has told us that the day on "Mick's Moor" seeing Natterjack Toads and Salamanders was one of the highlights of his holiday, and can still quote all of the orchid species seen on the Sierra Loja.
You were very patient with all of us, making sure that we all saw the Spanish Ibex, and answering a myriad of questions. On the day I not only saw 72 species of birds but also a great selection of flowers and butterflies.
I was especially grateful that you went out of your way not only to try and locate my wanted list of bird species, but also to give me the information to allow me to go out on my own to see such specials as White-headed Duck and Eagle Owl. I would certainly recommend your services to others."

Kind regards

Richard
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Craig and Tana Runyan, Vancouver, B.C. Canada.
1st April 2014.

Thanks so much for a wonderful day of birding. Tana and I enjoyed it immensely. It is a real privilege to witness such a variety of new species and habitats in one day. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience with us, including other natural history to complement our bird focus. We also very much appreciated your attention to timely and thorough communication in setting up the tour.
All the Best.
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Gilbert and Elly, Holand.

Thank you for a wonderful birding day. We had asked you to show us around in your area in one day, such that we can make photographs of birds that are unique to Andalusia. You started the day with a drive up to Loja Mountain, where we got nice shots of the Rock Buntings, Thekla Lark and Black-eared Wheatear. Next you showed us around in the Cacin Valley, where you managed to find us Little Busterds, Little Owl and various Eagles including the rare Benelli’s Eagle. We feel that your knowledge about the birds (and plants), and your knowledge of the area, really gave us the most we could possibly get out of one day. And you are also a kind person working hard to get the experience that your customers ask for. Much appreciated, most likely we will be back. We do wish you a lot of success with your business.

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Helen and Douglas Fulton, Scotland, Great Britain.

Hi Mick. Imagine 4 Eagle species on one day so early on in the season. Mind you the Cormorant trying to swallow a Carp nearly as big as itself was also a one off. Thanks again for such an informative and enjoyable day. Will send pic of cheetah's. Regards Helen and Douglas
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Jackie and Neil Bygrave, Exeter, Devon, UK.
20th -21st December 2013.

Mick we just wanted to thank you for two amazing days birding. We cannot believe just how much there is to see in this wonderful part of Spain. Neil and I are newcomers to the delights of Andalucia and meeting someone that we can trust to help us to discover its delights has been a real find.
Within a very short amount of time we could see just how knowleadigble you are with regards to birdlife and nature more generally, just what we were looking for.
Seeing over sixty species on day one and in winter was a real surprise and then to add to that on day two was excellent.
We will most definitely share with others the value of hiring someone like you to make the most of an area, and will try to treat ourselves each year to more time in your company. Keep up the good work and thank you.
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Andrew and Naomi, Nottinghamshire, UK.
23rd November 2013.

Although the weather was rather against us, we had a great day out seeing quite a few new species for us.
Highlights for Andrew were the Violet Drop-wing, the Wasp Spider (which he's been hoping to see for a long time) and the white buzzard.
With Micks help, Naomi has finally worked out how to tell the difference between the Crested Lark and Thekla's Lark. Wood Larks sang for us and three Black-bellied Sandgrouse stayed in the air long enough to give us a really good view through the binocs.
It is quite obvious Mick is very knowledgeable in so many wildlife subjects and the places where they can be seen: birds, dragonflies, butterflies and moths, and he told us about some good spots where we might find orchids. I suspect he knows quite a lot of other natural topics, too.

Thanks once again Mick, we will be back!
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Gretchen Merrill, Utah, United States.
29th and 30th June 13.

Mick -- Thanks very much for two days of superlative birding around Granada last weekend! I know it wasn't the prime birding season for southern Spain, but it was the only time my schedule allowed, and the season did not hinder adding dozens of new species to my life list. I really appreciated your efforts to help out a mid-level birder (perhaps that is putting too good a face on my abilities) get some great looks at wonderful birds. From excellent views of the famous Bee eaters, Hoopoes, and Rollers to the Short-toed Treecreepers, Lesser Kestrels and Stone Curlews, to name a few, it was a great outing. In addition to your in-depth knowledge of the habitats and nest sites, I appreciated that you knew the best cafes for coffee stops and lunches. Best of luck with your new business and I hope to go birding with you in the future!
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Sue and Geoff Tucker, Milford on Sea, Hampshire, UK.
28th June 2013.

Dear Mick. Just a quick email to say thank you for a brilliant birding day last Friday. It was certainly worth the early start. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves (apart from those flies!!!) and it was great having someone so knowledgeable showing us the fantastic birdlife of this area. As you probably gathered we’re not hard-core birders and this area and its birdlife was totally new to us, however we do love seeing wildlife in all its forms in its natural habitat. We would consider coming back to the region another time and would have no hesitation in contacting you again to show us around. I’ll be sending the eagle photos one by one in the hope that they don’t clog up your system completely – they are big files. Please choose whichever you think is best for your blog. That was certainly a highlight at the end of day. Since we’ve been back at the Casita we’ve spotted a pair of Sardinian Warblers in the Holm Oaks, however the Golden Oriole is still as illusive as ever and keeps teasing us with his song. We’ve given our hosts feedback from our day and they’re happy to pass your details around. Thanks once again.
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Jane Hibbert, Leicestershire, Great Britain.
10th-12th June 2013.

Hi Mick, Arrived home safely yesterday after a great time in Spain. Wanted to say again a big thank you for the fantastic birding trip we shared, it was amazing. Out of 124 species to have 50 first time sightings is awesome! Also thanks to you and Jayne for making me feel so welcome in your home. The accommodation is first class and well set up for two people. The views from your terrace are fabulous.
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Pam and John, Norwich, Norfolk, Great Britain.
31st May-7th June 2013.

Each time we visit I am amazed at the ability you both share to make a stay with you a real treat for the Bird / Butterfly / Dragonfly / Flowerwatchers, and equally for their other halves.
Thank you, Pam and John.
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Deb & Ian Hopton, Meadows, South Australia.
20th-28th May 2013.

Dear Mick and Jayne.

We can't thank you enough for such a fantastic stay, we will be back!! Mick your knowledge of the area and it's flora and fauna is amazing and your determination to get us the best views and photographs of the birds was incredible.Highlights were probably the Rufous Bush Robin hovering in front of the windscreen having a good look at the birders and getting so close to a Great Spotted Cuckoo we had to get out of the car to check it was alright!!! The Rollers, Spanish Imperial Eagle, Black Vulture, Both Bustards and Alpine Accentors (ect ect) were also hard to beat. The flora was also stunning and our favorites were probably the Spanish Rusty Foxglove and Nigella Papillosa. The Butterflies and other insects were pretty special too. We have never used a guide before and to have someone who knew the area and it's flora and fana so incredible well was fantastic. Thanks for taking us to the local Tapas bars and for being such great company, we had a ball!!! The accommodation was perfect, we loved Jayne's cooking and all also the evening chats while watching the Red-necked Nightjars. Hopefully you will come and visit us in Australia!!

SIERRA de LOJA.

Friday, 27 May 2016

Sierra Nevada, Granada Province.

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