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Saturday, 20 January 2018

Sierra de Loja and Huétor Fields, Granada Province.

A mornings birding with good friend Juan Pérez Contreras in the mountains and later down on the fields.

I met Juan on the far side of Huétor and we headed along the motorway and entrered the Sierra from the service area and made our first stop at the small lower quarry where we soon started the day list off with Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / E-rithacus rubecula), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia), Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor) and Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula).
Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia).
We then drove up along the crags seeing Common Starling (Estornino Pinto / Sturnus vulgaris), more Rock Buntings and as we crossed over to the area of Hawthorn trees where the wintering Thurshes are usuall seen we added Iberian Grey Shrike (Alcaudón Real Meridional / Lanius meridionalis), Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa), Cirl Bunting (Escribano Soteno / Emberiza cirlus), Rock Sparrow (Gorrión Chillón / Petronia petronia), Thekla Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Spanish Ibex (Cabra montés / Cabra pyreaica) and Broad-leaved Iris (lirio de invierno / Juno / Iris planifolia).
Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa).
Once we arrived at the Hawthorn tree area but the Thrushes had been very busy since my last visit and all the trees were bare and there we very few Thrushes around but we did find Blackbirds (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus) and Wren (Chochin / Troglodytes troglodytes). We parked on the top track and then walked down to the lower pools and then back up to the far point on the track and then back to the car, during this stroll we picked up Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra), Black Wheatear (Collalba Negra / Oenanthe leucura), a pair of Mallards (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos) on one of the pools, Thekla Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Red-billed Chough (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), Water Pipit (Bisbita Alpino / Anthus spinoletta), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina), Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops) and eventually we found a couple of Ring Ouzel (Mirlo Capiblanco / Turdus torquatus).
We dropped down off the hill and stopped at a passing place in the pine woods where we added Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Sylvia undata), Firecrest (Reyezuelo Listado / Regulus ignicapillus), Long-tailed Tit (Mito / Aegithalos caudatus), Iberian  Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita) and Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Común / Certhia brachydactyla).
Next we headed out towards the Huétor Fields site and started off on the Loja side of the area where we picked up Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax), Northern Lapwings (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), Golden Plover (Chorlito Dorado Europeo / Pluvialis apricaria), Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) and Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis).
Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua).
We moved then over to the Mesia side of the site where we picked up White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), Bluethroat (Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica), Cetti's Warbler (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major) and finished the morning of seeing several Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus).

Friday, 19 January 2018

Huétor Tajar, Granada Province.

An hour down on the Mesia side of the patch.

Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs).
At about 15:00 I slipped away for an hour down on the patch to see what was arond on the eastern side of the site. I headed out to the bar at the bottom of the road seeing the regular Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) on it's usual perch in a small walnut tree, several Iberian  Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki) which flew across the road through the Olive trees and some Western Cattle Egrets (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis) which were rooting around in a roadside Lucerne field.
Northern Lapwings (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus).
On the river I stopped at the ford and scanned the reeds in the water picking up Cetti's Warbler (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Meadow (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis) and Water Pipits (Bisbita Alpino / Anthus spinoletta), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs) and a very smart male Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris).
Bluethroat (Ruiseñor Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica).
A little further along the Northern bank I stopped and scanned the fields and the river again seeing a single Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus), a mixed flock Spotless (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor) and Common Starling (Estornino Pinto / Sturnus vulgaris), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Snipe (Agachadiza Común / Gallinago gallinago), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Woodpigeons (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus) up on the wires and at the far end of this bank just before I moved away from the river Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), on my way out towards the Mesia road side of the site several Western Cattle Egrets and the largest group of Ravens (Cuervo / Corvus corax) I have ever had on the patch totaling 13 birds in to close groups.
Bluethroat (Ruiseñor Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica).
Down at the site just of the Mesia roads I parked and checked the burnt off reedbed area and soon found a single Wryneck (Torcecuello / Jynx torquilla), 2x male Bluethroats (Ruiseñor Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricapilla), a group of around 16 Siskin (Lúgano / Carduelis spinus), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica), a single low flying Jack Snipe (Agachadiza Chica / Lymnocriptes minimus) which ditched into a Garlic field after I flushed it up and on the other side of the irrigation canals a flock of 110 or so Northern Lapwings (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), 20+ Skylarks (Alondra Común / Alauda arvensis) and another male and two female Bluethroats
Bluethroat (Ruiseñor Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica).
On my way back to the house I followed the river on the opposite side to earlier and added Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula) and a Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo) sat in a roadside tree.
Siskin (Lúgano / Carduelis spinus).
Back at the house there were a good number of Siskins feeding on the seeds and feeders, several more Blackcaps and a pair of Great Tit fighting with the Siskin's for the Sunflower Seeds. 
Siskin (Lúgano / Carduelis spinus) male.

Tuesday, 16 January 2018

Huetor Tajar, Granada Province.

Some birds from the last few days down on the fields North of Huétor Tajar.

During several drives up and down to Huétor and Loja I recorded several species of interest including 61 Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax), Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus), 300+ Northern Lapwings (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), 14+ Golden Plovers (Chorlito Dorado Europeo / Pluvialis apricaria), 43+ Western Cattle Egrets (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), 3 Grey Herons (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), a female Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus), 70+ Iberian  Magpies (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki), Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus) and back at the house 30+ Siskins (Lúgano / Carduelis spinus) and a fly over Eagle Owl (Buho Real / Bubo bubo) at dusk one evening.