Mirador del Alto de Hondonero near Villanueva del Rosario, Malaga Province, Spain.

A good morning of Birds, Butterflies and Orchids.

Deb and Ian, Day Thirty Three.

Ebird List for Mirador del Alto de Hondonero. 

 

Bringing in the Bails.

We headed headed across the border into Malaga Province and up to the Mirador del Alto de Hondonero where we were looking for Butterflies and Orchids, we started by driving straight up to the top car park and then going for a walk down on to the nearby meadows.

Lizard Orchid (Himanthoglosum hircinum).

Black-veined White (Aporia crataegi).

Black-veined White (Aporia crataegi) on a Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalia).

Up near the to we found lots of over with spikes of Southern Early Purple (Orchis olbienis), some nice condition Lizard (Himanthoglosum hircinum) and a few Small Tongue Orchids (Serapias parviflora).

Looking up to the crags.

As we reached the sloping meadows we were soon aware that there were a good number of Black-veined Whites (Aporia crataegi) were on the wing along with several Knapweed Fritillaries (Melitaea phoebe), Large Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus), Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus), Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) and Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina).

Western Subalpine Warbler (Curruca Carrasqueña Occidental / Curruca iberiae) male.

Western Subalpine Warbler (Curruca Carrasqueña Occidental / Curruca iberiae) female.

In the bushes and trees along the top of the meadows we had a couple of singing Eurasian Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Curruca capirotada), Western Subalpine Warbler (Curruca Carrasqueña Occidental / Curruca iberiae), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula) and a calling Common Cuckoo (Cuco Común / Cuculus canorus).

Large Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus).

Knapweed Fritillary (Melitaea phoebe).

Knapweed Fritillary (Melitaea phoebe).

Small White (Pieris rapae).

We walked down the slope and checked the areas around the pools which were all full of water and the margins were muddy, as we walked around this area and the leveler of the meadows we found Small (Pieris rapae) and Large White (Pieris brassicae), Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus), Southern Brown Argus (Aricia cramera), Chapman's (Polyommatus Thersites) and Southern Blue (Polyommatus celina), Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus) and Wall Brown (Lasiommata megera).

Chapman's Blue (Polyommatus Thersites).

Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus).

Southern Brown Argus (Aricia cramera).

Knapweed Fritillary (Melitaea phoebe).

On the lower meadow we searched for the Spanish Fritillary (Euphydryas desfontainii) but we only managed to find a single rather tatty insect but at least we got one.

Spanish Fritillary (Euphydryas desfontainii).

Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria).

Spanish Gatekeeper (Pyronia bathseba).

Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina).

Iberian Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides feisthameli).

We took the track down hill from the lower meadow, as we walked we saw Iberian Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides feisthameli), Spanish Gatekeeper (Pyronia bathseba), Southern Marbled Skipper (Muschampia baeticus), Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) and False Mallow / Mallow Skipper (Carcharodus tripolina / alceae).

Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas).  

Upright Yellow-Flax (Linum strictum).

Deb coming back up the track.

Ian finding some shade and watching the Farm activates below on the fields.

Along the lower track.

There was a good show of flowers as well which included Boar Thistle (Galactites tomentosus), Purple (Phlomis purpurea) and Yellow Phlomis (Phlomis lychnitis), Wild Carrot (Daucus carota), Italian Bugloss (Anchusa azurea), Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas), Upright Yellow-Flax (Linum strictum), Mallow-leaved Convolvulus (Convolvulus althaeoides), Pitch Trefoil (Bituminaria bituminosa), Tufted Vetch (Vicia cracca), Tassel Hyacinth (Muscari comosum), Rosy Garlic (Allium roseum) and Love-in-a-Mist (Nigella damascena).

Libelloides ictericus.

Hummingbird Hawkmoth (Macroglossum stellatarum).

We returned to the meadows and added Small Woodcock (Ophrys picta) and Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalia), Libelloides ictericus, Hummingbird Hawkmoth (Macroglossum stellatarum), Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui), Spanish Festoon (Zerynthia rumina), Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides), Lang's Short-tailed (Leptotes pirithous), Panoptes (Pseudophilotes panoptes) and Long-tailed Blue (Lampides boeticus).

Small Woodcock Orchid (Ophrys picta).

Small Woodcock Orchid (Ophrys picta).

Southern Blue (Polyommatus celina).

We got back to the car and then dropped down to a spot near the Observatorio Lagunas de Hondoner where we walked across to the pool checking the grassland and bushes on the way finding another pair of Western Subalpine Warbler (Curruca Carrasqueña Occidental / Curruca iberiae) as well as 3 passing Red-billed Chough (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax), Great Spotted Woodpecker (Pico Picapinos / Dendrocopos major), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala),Eurasian Wren (Chochin paleártico / Troglodytes troglodytes), Common Linnet (Pardillo Común / Linaria cannabina), Common Crossbill (Piquituerto Común / Loxia curvirostra), European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis) and a singing Cirl Bunting (Escribano Soteño / Emberiza cirlus).

False Baton Blue (Pseudophilotes abencerragus).

False Baton Blue (Pseudophilotes abencerragus).

Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides).

Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides).

Insect wise we picked up False Baton Blue (Pseudophilotes abencerragus) and Blue / Common Emperor (Anax imperator) and on the plant front a good number of spikes of Ophrys algarviensis which were quite variable in colour, Sweet Scabious (Sixalix atropurpurea), Slender Salsify (Geropogon hybridus), Catananche caerulea,   

Ophrys algarviensis.

Ophrys algarviensis.

Ophrys algarviensis.

Ophrys algarviensis.

Ophrys algarviensis.

As we were all feeling quite tired we decided to drop back down the hill and head for a coffee and then back to the house to chill.

Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalia).

Catananche caerulea.

Red-billed Chough (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax).

European Turtle Dove (Tórtola Europea / Streptopelia turtur).

On the way down we had a much larger flock of around 40 Red-billed Chough, European Turtle Dove (Tórtola Europea / Streptopelia turtur) and Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) before we headed off.