Loja Wildlife, Granada Province, Spain.: Charca Suarez, Granada Province and Caleta de Velez and Rio Velez, Malaga Province.

Saturday 18 March 2017

Charca Suarez, Granada Province and Caleta de Velez and Rio Velez, Malaga Province.

A couple of year ticks at Granada's best wetland.

Male Ferruginous Duck (Porrón Pardo / Aythya nyroca).

Jayne and I set off for the coast of Granada where we were going to met Juan Pérez Contreras, Jayne went off for a walk along the coast and later we worked out that she did nearly 10km on the sand of the Playa Granada before we met up at 12:00.

Female Ferruginous Duck (Porrón Pardo / Aythya nyroca).

Juan and I went into the reserve and we started with a look out over Laguna del Trebol where we started the list off with Eurasian (Focha Común / Fulica atra) and Red-knobbed Coots (Focha cornuda / Fulca cristata) with at least three with out collars and one sat on a nest, Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Northern Shoveler (Pato Cuchara / Anas clypeata), Sedge Warbler (Carricerin Común / Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) the first of many as we saw them from every hide in good numbers, Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Barn Swallows (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), House Martins (Avión Común / Delichon urbica) and Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

Male Little Crake ( Polluela Bastarda / Porzana parva).

We moved around to the main hide over looking Laguna de las Aneas seeing male and female Ferruginous Duck (Porrón Pardo / Aythya nyroca), Common Pochard (Porrón Común / Aythya ferina), Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo), Western Swamp-hen (Calamon Común / Porphyrio porphyrio), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Red-rumped Swallow (Golondrina Dáurica / Hirudo daurica), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Stripe-less Tree Frog (Hyla meridionalis), Stripe-necked Terrapin (Mauremys leprosa) and lots of Yellow flag-iris (Iris pseudacorus).

Male Little Crake ( Polluela Bastarda / Porzana parva).

We next walked around towards the hide over looking the new Laguna, we added Snipe (Agachadiza Común / Gallinago gallinago), Eurasian Teal (Cerceta Común / Anas crecca), Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), a Bluethroat (Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica) which flew across the pool and dived into the reeds, Sardinian (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala) and Cetti's Warblers (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti).

Eurasian Teal (Cerceta Común / Anas crecca).

Next we were at the hide I had been looking forward to since we arrived which looks over the southern end of Laguna del Taraje and after a short while we were watching the species I had most wanted, a male Little Crake ( Polluela Bastarda / Porzana parva) a stunning little bird which showed well but was on the far side of the pool and dodged continually in and out of the reeds. We also had more European Teal, Sedge Warblers, Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), a calling Water Rail (Rascón Europeo / Rallus aquaticus) and Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor).

Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra).

After not seeing the crake for a while we decided to go and have another look at the New Laguna but we did not see anything new so I went back to see if the Crake was showing whilst Juan went back around to the main hide.

3x Green Sandpipers (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus).

Whilst I was in the hide I was amazed to find that the one male Little Crake was feeding in the same spot as earlier but there was a second male off to the right in the reeds. The first male then made a dash for the reeds just to its side and the female which had been seen a few days earlier flew out and around to the back of the pool, quickly followed by the male.

Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis).

Just as I was ringing Juan he turned up and we both managed to see the two males but the female remained elusive. At 12:00 I left Juan to the birds and went out to meet Jayne who had finished her long walk along the beach and we went for Lunch on the sea front at Torre del Mar at one of the beach bars.

Monk Parakeet (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus).

Whilst we were eating we could continually hear Monk Parakeets (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus) and we also had House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros) and out to sea several Northern Gannets (Alcatraz Atlántico / Morus bassanus) amongst the Gulls and a single Black-winged Stilt (Ciguenela Común / Himantopus himantopus) which flew along the beach.

Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo).

Later I dropped Jayne at the shopping centre and went down to the port at Caleta de Velez where I scanned through the gulls and found lots of Great Cormorants, Mediterranean Gulls (Gaviota Cabecinegra / Larus melanocephalus) in large numbers and in all sorts of plumages as well as Audouin's (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii), Lesser Black-backed (Gaviota Sombria / Larus fuscus), Black-headed (Gaviota Riedora / Larus ridibundus) and Yellow-legged Gulls (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis), Sanderling (Correlimos Tridáctilo / Calidris alba), Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina) and Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis).

Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo).

After finding nothing else I went for a quick look at the Rio Velez but found that the perverts were more prolific than the birds so it was brief.

Mediterranean Gull (Gaviota Cabecinegra / Larus melanocephalus).

Whilst I was there I found several Vagrant Emperors (Emperatriz emigrante / Anax ephippiger) including a male which I photographed in flight. New birds included Little Egret (Garceta Común / Egreeta garzetta), Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae), Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata) and Blue Tit (Herrerillo Común / Parus caeruleus).

Mediterranean Gull (Gaviota Cabecinegra / Larus melanocephalus).

I then picked Jayne up and we made our way back across country via Zafarraya and picked up Calandra (Calandria / Melanocorypha calandra) and Thekla Larks (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Iberian Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki) and Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica), Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra), Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) and Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo).