Sierra de Loja and Cerro Hacho, Granada Province, Spain.

A couple of upland sites.

Sue and Dave, Day five. 
Ebird List for Sierra de Loja 1.

Ebird List for Sierra de Loja 2.

Ebird List for Cerro Hacho.

 

Sue and Dave on their way up to the Goat Cave.

We started the day by driving out to Abades Service area on the east bound side of the A92 where we took the track up Sierra de Loja, our first stop was at the Middle Quarry where we checked the main quarry and then walked down the road back towards the Carretera principal.

In the quarry we picked up a couple of male Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius) and Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor) and during the walk down the track we had Sardinian (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala), Spectacled (Curruca Tomillera / Curruca conspicillata) and Dartford Warblers (Curruca Rabilarga / Curruca undata), Western House Martin (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major) and in the air Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus) and Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Gavilán Común / Accipiter nisus).

I fetched the car and we continued on up along the crag and out onto the tops where we had good views of Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa), Thekla's Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Northern Wheatear (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe) and European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis).

Western Black-eared Wheatear (Collalba Rubia Occidental / Oenanthe hispanica).

We continued on along the Carretera principal adding Maritime Squill (Urginea maritima), a family of Spectacled Warblers, European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), Western Black-eared Wheatear (Collalba Rubia Occidental / Oenanthe hispanica), Black Wheatear (Collalba Negra / Oenanthe leucura) and then headed off up to Charca del Negro where there was a small amount of water in the sump of the pool and it was attracting a good number of Common Linnets (Pardillo Común / Linaria cannabina), Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra) and Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia).

We continued on and checked out the crags down as far as the next junction just passed the far cliffs, on the way there and back down the hill we stopped several times finding Striped Grayling (Hipparchia fidia), Southern Gatekeeper (Pyronia cecilia), Rabbit (Conejo / Oryctolagus cuniculus), Spanish Ibex (Cabra montés / Capra pyrenaica hispanica), a single European Honey Buzzard (Aberjero Europeo / Pernis apivorus), Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Europeo / Merops apiaster), Woodchat Shrike (Alcaudón Común / Lanius senator), a flock of 90+ Red-billed Chough (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax), Pallid (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus) and Alpine Swift (Vencejo Real / Apus melba), Eurasian Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), another Blue-rock Thrush, 2x Tawny Pipits (Bisbita Camprstre / Anthus campestris) and Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs).

We stopped at Dian's Cafe Bar as we came off the hill for coffee before heading over the Genil Valley to Cerro Hacho, we stopped on the parking area near the Pine and did a walk around part of the lower loop picking up the wanted Common Crossbill (Piquituerto Común / Loxia curvirostra), Western Subalpine Warbler (Curruca Carrasqueña Occidental / Curruca iberiae) as well as Pallid (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus) and Alpine Swift (Vencejo Real / Apus melba), European Bee-eater,  European Pied Flycatcher (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca), Common Redstart (Colirroja Real / Phoenicurus phoenicurus) and Striped Grayling.

Striped Grayling (Hipparchia fidia).