Huétor Fields and Sierra de Loja, Granada Province, Spain.

A morning on the fields and then a few hours on the hill.

 

Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis).

We started with a drive around the fields where we were looking for Bluethroat (Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica) so we started checking the irrigation channels, on the way we found Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis) in one of the cut maze fields, Collared Doves (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Crested Lark (Cogujada / Galerida cristata), Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica) and Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus).

Whinchat (Tarabilla Nortena / Saxicola rubetra).

We stopped several times along the railway line and there were several species sat up on the Chainlink fence including Whinchat (Tarabilla Nortena / Saxicola rubetra), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Common Redstart (Colirroja Real / Phoenicurus phoenicurus), Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala) and under the railway bridge on the wires we saw a roosting Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua).

Whinchat (Tarabilla Nortena / Saxicola rubetra).

By the Irrigation Channel on the track out to the Mesia road and waited, whilst there we had large numbers of Goldfinches (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis) and several Reed (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus), Willow (Mosquitero Musical / Phylloscopus trochillus) and Cetti's Warblers (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti) and a nice male Bluethroat which sat up for the camera's a couple of times.

Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua).

In the same area we also had Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Corn Bunting (Triguero / Emberiza calandra) and Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula).

Spotted Flycatcher (Papamoscas Gris / Muscicapa striata).

Further along the channels we stopped by one of the Lucerne fields were we watched several Hoopoes and Iberian  Magpies (Rabilargo / Cyanopica cooki) coming down to feed whilst European Bee-eaters (Abejaruco Común / Merops apiaster) hawked the skies above us for insects.

Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Sylvia undata).

We made our way back in to Huétor, on the way we had a Spotted Flycatcher (Papamoscas Gris / Muscicapa striata), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula) and Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Carduelis chloris).

Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Sylvia undata).

We had some lunch in Huétor before going up on to the lower slopes of Sierra de Loja as the areas above 1000 meters are closed to cars until the 15th October. On the track up to and in the quarry we had views of Black Wheatear (Collalba Negra / Oenanthe leucura), Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris) and a pair of Golden Eagle (Águila Real / Aquila chrysaetos) passed high over head. 

Golden Eagle (Águila Real / Aquila chrysaetos).

On the slopes as we dropped back down the hill we had a pair of Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Sylvia undata), Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia), Pied Flycatcher (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca) and Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major).