Caleta de Velez, Cerro Gordo, Laguna de Navaseca and Tablas de Daimiel, travelling North.

Travelling North on our way up to Santander.

Pre tour day one with Brian and Jo.

Red-footed Booby (Piquero Patirrojo / Sula sula).

Jo, Brian and myself headed off down to Malaga, on the way we saw Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua), House Martin (Avión Común / Delichon urbica), Iberian  Magpies (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Common Swift (Vencejo Común / Apus apus) and Yellow-legged Gull (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis).

Audouin's Gull (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii).

We collected the van for the trip and then went into Malaga centre where we dropped Brian and Jo's hire car off and then made our way east along the coast to Caleta de Velez where we visited the port to look for the reported Red-footed Booby (Piquero Patirrojo / Sula sula) which had been around for a while. 

Audouin's Gull (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii).

When we arrived we checked the tallest of the light clusters and found the bird sat on the most western post where it stayed for the whole of our visit but it was great to see this super rare bird with less than 10 records in Spain.

Lesser Black-backed Gull (Gaviota Sombria / Larus fuscus).

In the same area we had a number of Cory's Shearwater (Pardela Cenicienta / Calonectris diomedea) which were following in the fishing boats in to port along with Black-headed (Gaviota Riedora / Larus ridibundus), Mediterranean (Gaviota Cabecinegra / Larus melanocephalus), Audouin's (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii), Lesser Black-backed (Gaviota Sombria / Larus fuscus) and Yellow-legged Gulls, Sandwich Tern (Charrán Patinegro / Sterna sandvicensis) and in the port we saw Monk Parakeet (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis) and Pallid Swift (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus).

Yellow-legged Gull (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis).

We continued on east along the coast and called in at Cerro Gordo but dipped on the White-rumped Swift (Vencejo Cafre / Apus caffer) however we did get lots more Pallids, Red-rumped Swallow (Golondrina Dáurica / Hirundo daurica) and Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

Greater Flamingo's (Flamenco Común / Phoenicopterus roseus).

We drove from here along to Motril and then North past Granada and on towards Daimiel adding Golden Eagle (Águila Real / Aquila chrysaetos), Feral Pigeon (Paloma Bravía / Columba livia), Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica), Black Kite (Milano Negro / Milvus migrans), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Raven (Cuervo / Corvus corax) and Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata).

Red-crested Pochard (Pato Colorado / Netta rufina).

We arrived at the next spot and parked near the hide which looks over Laguna de Navaseca and we soon started to pile on the species including Greater Flamingo's (Flamenco Común / Phoenicopterus roseus), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Gadwall (Anade Friso / Anas strepera), Common Pochard (Porrón Común / Aythya ferina), a single female Eurasian Teal (Cerceta Común / Anas crecca), lots of White-headed Ducks (Malvasia Cabeciblanca / Oxyura leucocephala), Shelduck (Tarro Blanco / Tadoma tadorna), Greylag Geese (Ansar Común / Anser anser), Whiskered Tern (Fumarel Cariblanca / Chilidonias hybridus), Black-headed Gull (Gaviota Riedora / Larus ridibundus), Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Little (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis) and Black-necked Grebes (Zampullín Cullinegro / Podiceps nigricollis), Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Reed Warbler (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus) and Great Reed Warblers (Carricero Tordal / Acrocephalus arundinaceus), a pair of Little Bitterns (Avetorillo Común / Ixobrychus minutus), Black-winged Stilt (Ciguenela Común / Himantopus himantopus) and a couple of Avocets (Avoceta Común / Recurvirostra avosetta).

Red-crested Pochard (Pato Colorado / Netta rufina).

It was getting warm but we decided to have a walk around to the far end of the reed beds adding Small White (Pieris rapae) and Clouded Yellow (Colias Común / Colias corcea) on the way. Near the second hide we soon heard and then saw a singing Savi's Warbler (Buscarla Unicolor / Locustella luscinoides), Cetti's Warbler (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti), Northern Lapwing (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), a Common Redshank (Archibebe Común / Tringa totanus), Little Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Chico / Charadrius dubius), Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra), a brief view of a Western Swamp-hen (Calamon Común / Porphyrio porphyrio) and a fly over Honey Buzzard (Aberjero Europeo / Pernis apivorus).

Whilst we were in this area a car pulled up and out jumped Bob Wright from Caleta de Velez where we had been earlier, we had a chat and got some info before Bob headed around the lake and then we met again on the boardwalk at Tablas.

European Pond Terrapin (Emys orbicularis).

We returned to the van and then went across country towards Tablas checking the banks of the Rio Guadiana where we had flyby Rollers (Carraca / Coracias garrulus), Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops), Great Crested Grebe (Somormujo Lavanco / Podiceps cristatus), Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo), lots of Greylag Geese, European Bee-eaters (Abejaruco Común / Merops apiaster), White Stork (Ciguena Blanca / Ciconia ciconia) and Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus).

Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica).

We parked up at the main visitors centre and did the short walk out along the boardwalk and back round to Car park, on the walk we came across Bob again and several Bearded Tits (Reedling) (Bigotudo / Panurus biarmicus), Nightingale (Ruisenor Común / Luscinia megarhynchos), Red-crested Pochard (Pato Colorado / Netta rufina), Little Egret (Garceta Común / Egreeta garzetta), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Blue Tit (Herrerillo Común / Parus caeruleus), Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), a calling Penduline Tit (Pájaro Moscón / Remiz pendulinus) as well as European Pond Terrapin (Emys orbicularis), Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi), Black-tailed (Orthetrum cancellatum) and Long Skimmers (Orthetrum trinacria), Scarlet Darter (Crocothemis erythraea) and Norfolk / Green-eyed Hawker (Aeshna isoceles).

We drove back into Daimiel and found a place to stay for the after deciding to stay in the area.