Loja Wildlife, Granada Province, Spain.: Huétor Fields, Granada Province.

Friday 8 February 2019

Huétor Fields, Granada Province.

Out on the patch with Steve Jones.

Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis).

After a visit Loja with Jayne during the morning and having a coffee and cake in Huétor we returned home to find Steve catching up with his notes from the last three days.

Reed Bunting (Escribano Palustre / Emberiza schoeniclus).

Once he was sorted we had a run out on to the local patch and started on the track at the back of Venta Cuatro Caminos where we soon had both Meadow (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis) and Water Pipit (Bisbita Alpino / Anthus spinoletta) x1, Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), a Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) which was sat in one of the chimneys of a nearby Cortijo and off on the fields opposite a group of 21 Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax).

Reed Bunting (Escribano Palustre / Emberiza schoeniclus).

We drove along the track to the Eastern end of the Arroyo where we sat between an area of reeds and scanned the reed bed opposite and soon picked up a nice male Bluethroat (Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica), winter plumage male and female Reed Buntings (Escribano Palustre / Emberiza schoeniclus), a couple of Grey Wagtails (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea), masses of Common Chiffchaffs (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea) x3, Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), 3x Barn Swallows (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica) which cruised up and down for a while having a feed on the local bugs and a couple of Cetti's Warblers (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti).

House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus).

Slightly further on we had bathing Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris), Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina) and House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus).

Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis).

At the far end of the track we sat for a while watching a group of around 30 or so Common Waxbill (Estrilda Ondulada / Estrilda astrild), Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), a passing Kingfisher (Martin Pescador / Alcedo atthis) as it whizzed along the Arroyo, Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala) and a big group of 30+ Iberian Magpie (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki) and a distant calling Wryneck (Torcecuello / Jynx torquilla).

Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina).

We moved around to the Mesia road end of the site where we walked along the ditches and around the reed bed adding Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), around 250 Northern Lapwings (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), several Tree Sparrows (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus) and 5x Common Starlings (Estornino Pinto / Sturnus vulgaris).

Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina) and Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

We made one last stop just out side the town and scanned the fields where we found a flock of 41 Golden Plovers (Chorlito Dorado Europeo / Pluvialis apricaria) and 11x Western Cattle Egrets (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis).