El Temple area and the Cacín Valley, Granada Province, Spain.

Out birding with Kiersten and Anne.

Ebird List for Alhendín ES-Granada.

Ebird List for El Temple.

Ebird List for Contraembalse de los Bermejales.

Ebird List for Camino del Turro al Castillo.

 

Looking through the Calima to Sierra Nevada.

I met Kiersten and Anne at Restaurante La Abadía near Padul, from here we went out west and our first stop was at a semi-derelict Cortijo where we had nice views of several  Lesser Kestrel (Cernicola Primilla / Falco naumanni), 2x Yellow-legged Gulls (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis) which were giving a pale morph Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas) some stick, Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito ibérico / Picus sharpei), Eurasian Magpie (Urraca Común / Pica pica), 4x Northern Ravens (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax), Western Jackdaw (Grajilla occidental / Corvus monedula), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Crested Lark (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata) and Red-rumped Swallow (Golondrina Dáurica / Cecropis daurica).

Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax).

Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas).

Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas).

We moved on and headed out on to the tracks around the El Temple area where we had nice views of at least 8 Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax) and heard several more along with Calandra Lark (Calandria Común / Melanocorypha calandra), Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas), Eurasian Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus) and Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).

Little Bustard (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax) male.

Little Bustards (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax).

Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).

Calandra Lark (Calandria Común / Melanocorypha calandra).

Along the field edges we also found Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas), Corn Gromwell (Buglossoides arvensis), Eruca (Eruca sativa), Field Madder (Sherardia arvensis), Fine leaved (Fumaria parviflora) and Common Fumitory (Fumaria officinalis) and Henbit Deadnettle (Lamium amplexicaule).

Red-horned Poppy (Glaucium corniculatum).

Linaria hirta.

Just as we were about to head off along another of the tracks we met Francisco Contreras Parody (Steppe bird expert) and a couple of other birders so we had a chat and then moved on to another area where we saw Red-horned Poppy (Glaucium corniculatum), Roemeria hybrida, Linaria hirta, Black-winged Kite (Elanio Común / Elanus caeruleus), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), Eurasian Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Crested (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata) and Greater Short-toed Lark (Terrera Común / Calandrella brachydactyla) and Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica).

Roemeria hybrida and other Wildflowers.

Roemeria hybrida.

We crossed the road through the site and checked a couple of spots on that side, at the first we found several Fan-lipped Orchids (Anacamptis collina) most of them were finished but there was still one in flower.

Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui).

Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui).

8638 Lithostege griseata (Grey Carpet) being eaten by a Pink Crab Spider (Thomisus onustus).

As we crossed the second area of fields we added Western Jackdaw (Grajilla occidental / Corvus monedula), Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Common Quail (Codorniz Común / Coturnix coturnix), Small White (Pieris rapae), Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui), Pink Crab Spider (Thomisus onustus) and as we were driving off the site we had at least 3x Great Spotted Cuckoos (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

We headed off the area and made our way to Ventas de Huelma where we went into Bernardo Restaurante for a drink and to get a sandwich which we took with us to the Cortijo Ochíchar through the Solar desert that has been created in the name of green power and net zero without any regard for the environment, habitats and wildlife, NET ZERO at ANY COST.

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

As we sat and had our food we saw and heard Thekla's Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Short-toed Snake Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus) and Western Dappled White (Euchloe crameri).

Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).

We dropped down into the Cacín Valley and then drove up to the Contraembalse de Bermejalis where we had some really good views of at least 5 Western Marsh Harriers (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus), Booted Eagle x5, Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Common Pochard (Porrón Europeo / Aythya ferina), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), Common Cuckoo (Cuco Común / Cuculus canorus) heard, Pallid Swift (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus), European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Europeo / Merops apiaster), Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito ibérico / Picus sharpei), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Common Reed Warbler (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus), Barn Swallow, Cetti's Warbler (Cetia Ruiseñor / Cettia cetti), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Common Nightingale (Ruisenor Común / Luscinia megarhynchos), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis), Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus), Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi), Stripe-necked Terrapin (Mauremys leprosa), Yellow Bee (Ophrys lutea) and Mirror Orchid (Ophrys speculum).

Western Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus).

Western Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus) and a Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas) in areal combat.

As we made our way further up the Valley we made a stop in the pines where almost straight away we got views of a very smart Bonelli's Eagle (Aguila Perdicera / Aquila faciatus) and Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Europeo / Certhia brachydactyla).

European Roller (Carraca / Coracias garrulus).

European Roller (Carraca / Coracias garrulus).

We went up through El Turro and on to the road back towards Castillo de Tajarja and then on to Chimeneas, before we reached Castillo de Tajarja we found a very nice, newly in European Roller (Carraca / Coracias garrulus) and 2x more Great Spotted Cuckoos and on the fields near to Chimeneas we had male and female Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus) and at least 2 Iberian Grey Shrikes (Alcaudón Real / Lanius meridionalis).

Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus).

We continued on and made our way back to the meeting point and then on home.