Loja Wildlife, Granada Province, Spain.: Playa de la Cagadilla and Cerro Gordo, Granada Province, Spain.

Wednesday, 1 October 2025

Playa de la Cagadilla and Cerro Gordo, Granada Province, Spain.

A dip down on the coast with Lynn and Steve.

Ebird List for Playa de la Cagadilla.

One of the wet areas on Playa de la Cagadilla.

I met Lynn and Steve down at Mercodona car park and we headed out towards Granada and then took the motorway south to a spot not too far from Charca de Suarez on Playa de la Cagadilla, we parked and walked along a track down to the beach seeing Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus) and Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi).

Little Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Chico / Thinornis dubius).

We found the beach pool where our target bird had been seen and we started to scan the area from a distance but could only find a couple of White Wagtails (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba) an adult and an immature bird which had me hoping for a while, longer than it should have really.

Bluethroat (Ruiseñor Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica).

Other species seen as we sat on the sand and scanned the pool were Little Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Chico / Thinornis dubius), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Bluethroat (Ruiseñor Pechiazul / Luscinia svecica), Whinchat (Tarabilla Norteña / Saxicola rubetra), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala), Red Avadavat (Bengali Rojo / Amandava amandava), Common Waxbill (Estrilda Ondulada / Estrilda astrild) and Western Yellow Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava) which were all passing to the west.

Northern Gannet (Alcatraz Atlántico / Morus bassanus).

As the Wagtail was not there we moved on down the beach and checked out to sea, two smaller areas of water and some bigger pools, out to sea we had Black-headed (Gaviota Reidora / Chroicocephalus ridibundus) and Yellow-legged Gull (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis), Sandwich Tern (Charrán Patinegro / Thalasseus sandvicensis) and Northern Gannet (Alcatraz Atlántico / Morus bassanus).

The larger pools.

Greater Flamingo (Flamenco Común / Phoenicopterus roseus).

Along the beach and around the pools we recorded Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), European Golden Plover (Chorlito Dorado Europeo / Pluvialis apricaia), Common Sandpiper (Andarrios Chico / Actitis hypoleucos), Greater Flamingo (Flamenco Común / Phoenicopterus roseus), Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis), Western Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus), immature Eurasian Penduline Tit (Pájaro Moscón / Remiz pendulinus), Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Common Reed Warbler (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus) and Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor).

European Golden Plover (Chorlito Dorado Europeo / Pluvialis apricaia).

Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis).

Over head the whole time we were there we had good numbers of Barn Swallows (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica) all heading west along with a few Red-rumped (Golondrina Dáurica / Cecropis daurica).

We also had Iberian Bluetail (Ischnura graellsii) x2♂, Blue / Common (Anax imperator) x2♂, Vagrant (Anax ephippiger) and Lesser Emperor (Anax parthenope) x2♂ and x1♀, Long Skimmer (Orthetrum trinacria) x2♂, Red-veined (Sympetrum fonscolombii) x3♂ and x1♀ and Scarlet Darter (Crocothemis erythraea) x5♂, Desert Orange-tip (Colotis evagore), Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi) and Stripe-necked Terrapin (Mauremys leprosa).

Whinchat (Tarabilla Norteña / Saxicola rubetra).

On our way back to the car we added Willow Warbler (Mosquitero Musical / Phylloscopus trochillus), Spotted Flycatcher (Papamoscas Gris / Muscicapa striata), European Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), a ♂ Common Redstart (Colirroja Real / Phoenicurus phoenicurus) and a couple more Whinchats.

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus).

Monarch (Danaus plexippus).

Desert Orange-tip (Colotis evagore).

From here we went to a spot at the back of the Charca de Suarez nature reserve where we found a good number of Plain Tigers x20+, Monarch (Danaus plexippus) x1, Swallowtail (Papilio machaon) x1, Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) x1, Small White (Pieris rapae) x3, Desert Orange-tip x3, Blue / Common x1♂, Vagrant x 1 and Lesser Emperor x1♂, Long Skimmer x1♀, Red-veined Darter x1♂ and x1♀, Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus) and Eurasian Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris).

Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas).

Our last stop of the day was further along the coast at Cerro Gordo where after parkig we walked out to the Atalaya de Cerro Gordo finding Maritime Squill (Drimia maritima), Swallowtail, Two-tailed Pasha (Charaxes jasius), Orange-winged Dropwing (Trithemis kirbyi) x1♀, Epaulet Skimmer (Orthetrum chrysostigma) x5, Lesser Emperor x1♂ and Red-veined Darter x2♂ and x1♀.