La Linea, Cadiz Province, Spain.

A Spanish Lifer in from the East.

Olive-backed Pipit (Bisbita de Hodgson / Anthus hodgsoni).

I drove down to La Linea i some extreamly wet weather, as much as we need it I could have done with it later in the day but still I arrived before light and sat by the beach for it to stop raining and get light.

Olive-backed Pipit (Bisbita de Hodgson / Anthus hodgsoni).

I walked down to the area in Parque Princesa Sofía where the target bird an Olive-backed Pipit (Bisbita de Hodgson / Anthus hodgsoni) was last seen.
With directions from local English birder Ricky Owen I Walked around the areas of longer grass but I did not see the bird so I waked to another part of the Park where I heard and had a brief view of a Yellow-browed Warbler (Mosquitero Bilistado / Phylloscopus inornatus).

Olive-backed Pipit (Bisbita de Hodgson / Anthus hodgsoni).

The rain continued and I continued to search finding Yellow-legged Gull (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala), Zitting Cisticola (Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), Pied Flycatcher (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto) and Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo).

Olive-backed Pipit (Bisbita de Hodgson / Anthus hodgsoni).

After a while I sent a message to Ricky to say that I had seen the Yellow-browed Warbler but had not found the Pipit, Ricky returned the message and said he would come and check I was looking in the correct place.

After a short while Ricky arrived on his motor bike and confirmed I was in the right place and typically just a minute or two after he arrived the bird flew up from the long grass and showed well, I think it was so surprised to see Ricky with out Camera and Bins it wanted to check the ID.

Olive-backed Pipit (Bisbita de Hodgson / Anthus hodgsoni).

It showed well and then dropped down again, Ricky went back to work (Thank you Ricky for your help) and I walked back to the car in the rain and collected a chair and tripod and walked back again.

I spent the next 1.5 hours sat in the chair and waited for the bird to pop up again, after an hour and 10 mins it came up and spent some time preenng in the rain. I was happy with the views so I headed back to the car and made my way to Estapona where I dropped some idems off to a friend before driving back home.