Arroyo Marin, Laguna Dulce, Pena Rubia, Vulture Feeding Station, Laguna de Capacete, Laguna de Fuente de Piedra in Malaga Province, Spain.

Back out birding with Brian.

Ebird List for Hoz de Marín.

Ebird List for Laguna Dulce.

Ebird List for Cerro del Búho.

Ebird List for roadside stop. 

Ebird List for Laguna de Capacete. 

Ebird List for Fuente de Piedra.

 

I did the same as yesterday with breakfast at Venta del Piña before Brian and I headed out west to the Arroyo Marin where we first checked the Quarry at the start of the track finding male Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius) and Black Wheatear (Collalba Negra / Oenanthe leucura).

We drove a short way along the track and then parked again, as we walked we picked up Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), Great Spotted (Pico Picapinos / Dendrocopos major) and Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito ibérico / Picus sharpei), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), a couple of Common Firecrest (Reyezuelo Listado / Regulus ignicapilla) which Brian wanted to see (he had better views next day with Derek as the light was better), Eurasian Wren (Chochin paleártico / Troglodytes troglodytes), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala), Eurasian Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Curruca capirotada), European Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), lots of Iberian Magpie (Rabilargo Ibérico / Cyanopica cooki), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis) and European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

I walked back to the car and picked Brian up on the way up to the chain where we again parked and walked further along the valley finding Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), Long-tailed (Mito Común / Aegithalos caudatus), Great (Carbonera Común / Parus major), European Crested (Herrerillo Capuchino / Lophophanes cristatus) and Eurasian Blue Tit (Herrerillo Común / Cyanistes caeruleus), Eurasian Nuthatch (Trepador Azul / Sitta europaea), Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Europeo / Certhia brachydactyla), Meadow Pipit (Bisbita Pratense / Anthus pratensis), Common Crossbill (Piquituerto Común / Loxia curvirostra) heard and European Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Chloris chloris). 

A cloudy wet Laguna Dulce.

We returned to the car and made our way back to Archidona, then onto the motorway and onwards to Laguna Dulce where we spent quite a while in the hide dodging several showers and finding Gadwall (Anade Friso / Mareca strepera), Eurasian Teal (Cerceta Común / Anas crecca), Northern Shoveler (Cuchara Común / Spatula clypeata), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis), Common Crane (Grulla Común / Grus grus) which was another of Brian's target species, Pied Avocet (Avoceta Común / Recurvirostra avosetta), Common Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Grande / Charadrius hiaticula), a flock of over a 100 Northern Lapwings (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus) tucked in on the far shore, Green (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropusa) and Common Sandpiper (Andarrios Chico / Actitis hypoleucos), several Common Snipe (Agachadiza Común / Gallinago gallinago), Greater Flamingo's (Flamenco Común / Phoenicopterus roseus), Black-headed Gull (Gaviota Reidora / Chroicocephalus ridibundus), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), a Red Kite (Milano Real / Milvus milvus) which had several clashes with a female Western Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Common Blackbird, Cetti's Warbler (Cetia Ruiseñor / Cettia cetti), Common Chiffchaff, Eurasian Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris), Eurasian Hoopoe, European Robin, Great Tit, Meadow Pipit, White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Common Chaffinch, a single female Common Linnet (Pardillo Común / Linaria cannabina) and several Rabbits (Conejo / Oryctolagus cuniculus).

Low cloud at Pena Rubia.

On our way to Pena Rubia we had a stunning Black-winged Kite (Elanio Común / Elanus caeruleus) hovering at the side of the road and whilst there, we saw Common Chiffchaff, Great Tit, Small White (Pieris rapae), Mandrake (Mandragora autumnalis), Broad-leaved Iris (Iris planifolia) and a Buttercup species which I still need to name.

Mandrake (Mandragora autumnalis).

Mandrake (Mandragora autumnalis).

Broad-leaved Iris (Iris planifolia).

Buttercup species which I still need to name.

After a while we started to head back towards Campillos and the turned off to check out the Vulture feeding station in the area, we decided not to bother driving up to the site but scanned the fields finding 6 Griffon Vultures (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus) which were sitting on the ground drying out.

Just a little further along the road we stopped again and had some very nice views of an Iberian Grey Shrike (Alcaudón Real / Lanius meridionalis), Crested Lark (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata), Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax), Sardinian Warbler, Common Chaffinch, Common Linnet, European Goldfinch and Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra). 

We continued on along the minor roads around to Laguna Capacete, we went up onto the rock which overlooks the pool where through the scope we saw Mallard, Gadwall, Common Pochard (Porrón Europeo / Aythya ferina), Northern Shoveler, White-headed Duck (Malvasia Cabeciblanca / Oxyura leucocephala), Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Black-necked (Zampullín Cuellinegro / Podiceps nigricollis) and Little Grebe, 3x Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Greater Flamingo, Crested Lark, a minimum of 75 Eurasian Crag Martins, Cetti's Warbler, European Robin, European Stonechat, Meadow Pipit, Spotless Starling, White Wagtail, Common Chaffinch, European Serin and Corn Bunting. 

Iberian Grey Shrike (Alcaudón Real / Lanius meridionalis).

We returned to the car and made our way across to Fuente de Pierda seeing some more Common Crane and a Song Thrush (Zorzal Común / Turdus philomelos), once there we decided to have a coffee as it was raining when we arrived, later we drove to the main car park and then checked out the roadside pool, back track and boardwalk where we saw Northern Shoveler, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), European Robin, European Stonechat, Common Blackbird, Common Chiffchaff, Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Crested Lark, Meadow Pipit, White Wagtail, Spanish Sparrow (Gorrión Moruno / Passer hispaniolensis), European Goldfinch and European Serin.

From the end of the boardwalk we walked the Tamarisks and then up to the Mirador, on the way we saw Common Snipe, Eurasian Hoopoe, Cetti's Warbler, Common Chaffinch and Corn Bunting.

From the Mirador we scanned the main Laguna, finding over a 100 Common Shelducks (Tarro Blanco / Tadoma tadorna), Common Ringed Plover, Greater Flamingo's, Black-headed and masses of Lesser Black-backed Gulls (Gaviota Sombria / Larus fuscus) and Western Jackdaw (Grajilla occidental / Corvus monedula). 

Red-crested Pochards (Pato Colorado / Netta rufina).

Next we went around to check the two hides overlooking the two freshwater pools, from the Observatorio El Laguneto we had views of Mallard, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Common and 10 Red-crested Pochards (Pato Colorado / Netta rufina), Eurasian Teal, White-headed Duck, Common Moorhen, Eurasian Coot, Grey Heron, Western Marsh Harrier, Eurasian Crag Martin, Eurasian Blackcap, Sardinian Warbler, European Robin, European Stonechat, Spotless Starling, White Wagtail, European Serin and Rabbit (Conejo / Oryctolagus cuniculus). 

At the Observatorio de las Palomas Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Common Moorhen, Eurasian Coot, Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Gavilán Común / Accipiter nisus), Common Linnet and European Greenfinch.

We walked back to the car via the view point at the far end of El Laguneto but only heard a Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Curruca undata), we then drove back to Loja where I dropped Brian off at the Bus station for his trip down to Malaga and I went off home.