Malaga City, Sierra Crestellina and Casares, Malaga Province, Spain.

Birding in Malaga city and visit a friend on my way down to Palmones ready for a Pelagic tomorrow.

 

Egyptian Vulture (Alimoche Común / Neophron percnopterus).

I started the day by driving down to Malaga City where I parked and went for a walk in Parque de Málaga where I wanted to see Rose-ringed Parakeet (Cotorra de Kramer / Psittacula krameri).

As I walked there were plenty of the much more common Monk Parakeet (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus) which were flying through the trees making a right racket, I also saw Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), Common Swift (Vencejo Común / Apus apus) and Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor) before I found three Rose-rings sat together in a tree nice and quiet.

Egyptian Vulture (Alimoche Común / Neophron percnopterus).

I fought my way out of the city through the traffic and headed down the coast to Manilva and then up to the side of Sierra Crestellina where I parked in a supposed Raptor viewing point but soon got moved by the dust from the lorries going to the construction site below. However I did see a few Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus) before dropping down to see friend John Hale for a while.

I had hoped and planned to call and see Penny and John but it was with great sadness I heard a week before that Penny had passed away, it was very sad news to get and she will be dearly missed by John, her Family and many, many people in the Moth world down here in Spain and back in the UK.

Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus).

I got to the Finca and soon found John and we spent the next 7 hours chatting (could not believe we had been there that long) and going over memories sat out on the terrace, we were distracted many times by passing Griffon Vultures but also had a fine adult Egyptian (Alimoche Común / Neophron percnopterus) which was my second year tick of the day.

Other species included Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Cirl Bunting (Escribano Soteno / Emberiza cirlus), Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius), Woodchat Shrike (Alcaudón Común / Lanius senator), Alpine Swift (Vencejo Real / Apus melba) and a fly over Peregrine Falcon (Halcón Peregrino / Falco peregrinus).

Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus).

I said goodbye to John at just after 18.00 and headed for my hotel in Palmones where I sat in a bar opposite the hotel and had a few beers before hitting the pit. 

Good day and great to spend some time with John and plan a trip for later in the year.