A semi successful hard going morning with an easier afternoon.
I started the day by driving through to Albarrasín to a spot where I was again going to try and find the very uncommon and difficult to see Southern Hermit (Chazara prieuri) but armed with extra information from Jon Dunn I felt a little more confident and it had been seen a couple of times in the days running up to my visit.
I parked and started the search early on the rocky slopes, straight away I was finding plenty of the very smart Striped Grayling (Hipparchia fidia) as well as a few Grayling (Hipparchia semele) and then after about half an hour I had a butterfly come up from the base of one of the Juniper bushes and straight away I knew it was my target from things Jon had said, it was distinctly larger and and well marked on the upper wings which was really easy to see even in flight but unfortunately it disappeared behind one of the bushes.
I continued on searching and during the next hour or so I saw it twice but it again was elusive off before I managed to get the camera on it, Jon and the Mariposa group then turned up and they searched the lower areas so I continued on the slopes but didn't have any more sightings.
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| Cardinal Fritillary (Argynnis pandora). |
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| Cardinal Fritillary (Argynnis pandora). |
Other butterfly species seen included
Wall Brown (Lasiommata megera),
Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus),
Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus),
Spotted (Melitaea didyma) and
Cardinal Fritillary (Argynnis pandora),
Small (
Pieris rapae) and
Bath White (Pontia daplidice),
Swallowtail (Papilio machaon),
Cinquefoil Skipper (Pyrgus cirsii),
Great Banded () and
Rock Grayling (Hipparchia alcyone).
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| Western Black-eared Wheatear (Collalba Rubia Occidental / Oenanthe hispanica) |
Bird wise
Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus),
Great Spotted Woodpecker (Pico Picapinos / Dendrocopos major),
Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax),
Carrion Crow (Corneja Negra / Corvus corone), Western House (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum) and
Eurasian Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris),
Western Black-eared Wheatear (Collalba Rubia Occidental / Oenanthe hispanica), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola),
Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula),
Eurasian Blue Tit (Herrerillo Común / Cyanistes caeruleus), Dartford (Curruca Rabilarga / Curruca undata) and
Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala),
Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs), Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia) and
European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis) were seen or heard.
Back near the bridge I heard a calling Eurasian Golden Oriole (Oropéndola Europea / Oriolus oriolus), and under the bridge where some dirty git had used the tunnel as a toilet there were several more Striped and a few Tree Graylings ( statilinus) as well as Iberian Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides feisthameli), Lang's Short-tailed (Leptotes pirithous) and Long-tailed Blue (Lampides boeticus).
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| Adonis Blue (Lysandra bellargus). |
After a while I returned to the car for a drink and decided to pop back to a bar just down the road for some breakfast and a couple of coffee's, by the time I returned to the butterfly spot the Mariposa group where back at their bus so I said goodby to Jon and the others before continuing my search.
As I walked in to the site I saw a good number of passage Black Kites (Milano Negro / Milvus migrans) 80+, a single Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo) and a couple of Griffon Vultures (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus).
Once I was up on the slopes again I soon found the Southern Hermit again and this time it landed around 10m away from me and I got the bin's on it to confirm the ID which I was happy with but a few moments later just as I was about to push the shutter button on the camera it was off again and that was the last I saw of it even though I continued to search for another couple of hours.
After a while I dropped off the slopes and walked up the Rambla for a while finding Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius), European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus), Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito ibérico / Picus sharpei), Iberian Marbled White (Melanargia lachesis), Southern Gatekeeper (Pyronia cecilia), Adonis (Lysandra bellargus) and Spanish Chalk-hill Blue (Lysandra albicans).
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| Zapata's Ringlet (Erebia zapateri). |
I returned to the meadows at Moscardón where I again searched to slopes in amongst the Pine Woodlands and I again bumped into Robert who I had met yesterday, we soon found a smart
Zapata's Ringlet (Erebia zapateri) which as Yesterday flicked around but didn't and for any amount of time.
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| Zapata's Ringlet (Erebia zapateri). |
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| Zapata's Ringlet (Erebia zapateri). |
However after while it flew and landed on my leg then it went up onto Roberts watch and started to take salts from his arm, unfortunately this was the only time it stayed still long enough for us to get photo's.
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| Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum). |
Whilst there I also saw
Silver-Washed (Argynnis paphia) and Cardinal Fritillary,
False Grayling (Arethusana arethusa),
Berger's Clouded (Colias alfacariensis) and Clouded Yellow,
Azure Chalkhill Blue (Lysandra caelestissima), Silver-spotted Skipper (Hesperia comma),
Grayling,
Rock and
Great Banded Grayling,
Iberian Marbled White (Melanargia lachesis) and
Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum).
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| Cinquefoil Skipper (Pyrgus cirsii). |
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| Cinquefoil Skipper (Pyrgus cirsii). |
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| Silver-spotted Skipper (Hesperia comma). |
Robert went back to his Motor for some lunch and I dropped back down the road to check in on the puddling spot where I again found good numbers of
Azure Chalkhill,
Oberthur's Anomalous and Common Blue,
Small,
Cinquefoil and
Silver-spotted Skipper,
Knapweed Fritillary,
Berger's Clouded and Clouded Yellow,
Rock Grayling, a
Common Golden Ringed (Cordulegaster boltonii) and Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi). |
| Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus). |
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| Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus). |
By now it was getting hot so I retreated to the Hotel and then later I went down to the Bar again before hitting the pit early as I wanted to give the Hermit another try in the morning before I headed off home.
