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Monday 24 September 2018

Huétor Fields, Balsa de Rigedor and Moraleda Fields, Granada Province, Spain.

Out and about locally with Kate and Jim from the UK.
Day One.
 
Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis).

I met Kate and Jim (who where here to photograph wildlife) up at the Cortijo de Tajar near the A92 and we headed out on to the fields to the North of Huétor.
Rosy Grizzled Skipper (Pyrgus onopordi).
We started off along the irrigation ditches on the Mesia side of the site seeing House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Iberian  Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Common Redstart (Colirroja Real / Phoenicurus phoenicurus), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Cetti's Warbler (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti) along with Bath White (Blanqiverdosa / Pontia daplidice) and Clouded Yellow (Colias Común / Colias corcea).
Egyptian Grasshopper (Anacridium aegyptium).
Along the Arroyo Vilano we added Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops), Reed Warbler (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus), Yellow (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae), Grey (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea) and White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra) and Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo).
Western Willow Spreadwing (Lestres viridis).
In the Juncus patch we found Egyptian Grasshopper (Anacridium aegyptium), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Common Waxbill (Estrilda Ondulada / Estrilda astrild), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula) and Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica).
Little Owls (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua).
On the Small (Pulicaria vulgaris) and Sticky Fleabane (Dittrichia viscosa) plants we had Small White (Pieris rapae), False Mallow / Mallow Skipper (Carcharodus tripolinus / alceae) and Rosy Grizzled Skipper (Pyrgus onopordi) which was kindly Identified by Ed MacKrill later.
Sage Skipper (Muschampia proto).
We passed through Huétor again and made our way to Balsa de Rigedor, a small lake on the side of the A92 where we were looking for Dragonflies, we soon found quite a nice selection including Long Skimmer (Orthetrum trinacria) x3♂, Lesser Emperor (Anax parthenope) x5♂, Blue / Common Emperor (Anax imperator) x2♂ 2♀, Black-tailed Skimmer (Orthetrum cancellatum) x4♂, Desert Darter (Sympetrum sinaiticum) x1♂, Red-veined Darter (Sympetrum fonscolombii) x10♂ 8♀, Violet Dropwing (Trithemis annulata) x20+♂ 6♀, Orange-winged Dropwing (Trithemis kirbyi) x3♂, Western Willow Spreadwing (Lestres viridis) x1♂, White Featherleg (Platycnemis latipes) x3 and Iberian Blue-tail (Ischnura graellsii) x8♂.
False Mallow / Mallow Skipper (Carcharodus tripolinus / alceae).
We also saw Cardinal Fritillary (Pandora / Argynnis pandora), Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria), Swallowtail (Papilio machaon), Hummingbird Hawkmoth (Macroglossum stellatarum), Carpentor Bee (Xylocopa violacea), Ornate Shieldbug (Eurydema ornata), Stripe-necked Terrapin (Mauremys leprosa), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula), Rock Pigeon (Paloma Bravia / Columba livia), Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica) and Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus).
Oberthür's grizzled skipper (Pyrgus armoricanus).
We crossed the A92 and headed out towards the fields near to Moraleda but called in on the Little Owls (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) on the way seeing just a single bird who sat nicely for us and was a tad too close for Kate and Jim's Kit.
Oberthür's grizzled skipper (Pyrgus armoricanus).

On our wa back to the fields we made a roadside stop by some patches of the Sticky Fleabane where we saw several more Bath Whites and False Mallow / Mallow Skippers as well as Sage Skipper (Muschampia proto), Large White (Pieris brassicae), Common / Southern Blue (Polyommatus icarus / celina) and a Oberthür's grizzled skipper (Pyrgus armoricanus).
Large White (Pieris brassicae).
Once we were out on the fields we quickly located a pair of Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Ganga Ortega / Pterocles orientalis) in some Almonds but as we approached they walked out into a roughly ploughed field and even though they were still quite close we lost the male behind a tussock but the female sat very nice by Sandgrouse standards and gave Kate and Jim chance of some nice shots.
Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Ganga Ortega / Pterocles orientalis) female.
Also seen in this area were Northern Wheatear (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe), Thekla Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Rock Sparrow (Gorrión Chillón / Petronia petronia), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Sparrowhawk (Gavilán Común / Accipiter nisus), Short-toed Lark (Terrera Común / Calandrella brachydactyla), Rabbit (Conejo / Oryctolagus cuniculus), Iberian Brown Hare (Liebre ibérica / Lepus granatensis), Wall Brown (Lasiommata megera), Scarce / Spanish Swallowtail (Chupaleches / Iphiclides podalirius / Iphiclides feisthameli) and Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina ssp hispulla).
Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Ganga Ortega / Pterocles orientalis) male.
On our way back towards the hotel we made a stop by a section of the Rio Cacín Irrigation Channel where it went under the road and where very surprised by the good selection of Dragons including a new species for Kate and Jim. The new species was a Epaulet Skimmer (Orthetrum chrysostigma) x2♂ 1♀ and to go with these we added Blue-eye (Erythromma lindenii) to the day list as well as several more Orange-winged x5♂ and Violet Dropwings (Trithemis annulata) x7♂.

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