El Temple and Cacín Valley, Granada Province, Spain

A days birding with Kim and Nick.

 

Short-toed Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus).

I met Kim and Nick up at the Cortijo de Tajar and we went along the A92 and turning towards Chimeneas where we parked on the roadside just before the town where we soon started to build a decent day list with Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Barn (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica) and Red-rumped Swallow (Golondrina Dáurica / Hirundo daurica), House Martin (Avión Común / Delichon urbica), Jackdaw (Grajilla / Corvus monedula) and Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Sylvia melanocephala).

Short-toed Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus).

We took to the tracks and parked several times and checked the cereal fields between the Olive and Almond trees where we found Common Magpie (Urraca / Pica pica), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Crested (Cogujada / Galerida cristata) and Calandra Lark (Calandria / Melanocorypha calandra), an immature Roller (Carraca / Coracias garrulus), Hoopoe (Abubilla / Upupa epops), a fine male Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus) and Booted Eagle (Aguililla Calzada / Hieraaetus pennatus) and we also heard Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Ganga Ortega / Pterocles orientalis) and Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus).

Short-toed Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus).

We drove down to the tarmac again and our next stop was near some Oil pits out on another of the many track but on the way we had views of a couple of very smart Black-winged Kites (Elanio Común / Elanus caeruleus), a immature and female type Montagu's Harriers, another 3 Booted Eagles, a fly over Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Iberian Grey Shrike (Alcaudón Real Meridional / Lanius meridionalis), Greater Short-toed Lark (Terrera Común / Calandrella brachydactyla) and Thekla Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae).

Short-toed Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus).

At the Oil pits we added Woodchat Shrike (Alcaudón Común / Lanius senator) and a distant passing Short-toed Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus) before we headed out on to the road over to Cacín finding, Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito Real / Picus sharpei) and another Short-toed Eagle which sat on a pylon before flying of down in to the Valley.

Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua).

Down in the valley we had a pair of Bonelli's Eagles (Aguila-azor Perdicera / Hieraaetus faciatus), Goldfinch (Jilguero / Carduelis carduelis), Common Stonechat (Tarabilla Común / Saxicola torquata) and down by the Roman Bridge we had a male Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius).

Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua).

Further up the valley we mad a stop at the Contra Embalse de Bermejalis and spent a shortish time scanning the water as it was starting to get quite hot, during this short stop we gave the list a boost with Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Common Pochard (Porrón Común / Aythya ferina), Black-necked (Zampullín Cullinegro / Podiceps nigricollis) and Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs) and a calling Golden Oriole (Oropéndola / Oriolus oriolus).

Eurasian Eagle Owl (Búho Real / Bubo bubo).

On our way up the valley we stopped at the bridge over the Cacín where we had our food sat in the shade of a large Pine tree and found Long-tailed (Mito / Aegithalos caudatus) and Coal Tit  (Carbonero Garrapinos / Parus ater), Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Sylvia atricailla), Cetti's Warbler (Ruisenor Bastardo / Cettia cetti), Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Grey Wagtail (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea) and a smart male Blue / Common Emperor (Anax imperator).

We did a short diversion and got some nice views of a Little Owl (Mochuelo Europeo / Athene noctua) before going to our last stop of the day which was looking up at the cliffs near to Moraleda where we had a distant but very nice Eurasian Eagle Owl (Búho Real / Bubo bubo) and we finished off with several Red-rumped Swallow (Golondrina Dáurica / Hirundo daurica).