El Temple and the Cacín Valley, Granada Province, Spain.

Out for a days birding with Anne for the US.

 

We started the day by visiting a semi derelict Cortijo where we had a good number of Lesser Kestrels (Cernicola Primilla / Falco naumanni), Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), Western Jackdaw (Grajilla occidental / Corvus monedula) and several Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor).

Corn Buntings (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).

We moved on and made our next stop near the village of La Malaha where we saw the first of many Corn Buntings (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra) as well as Common Woodpigeon, Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), Eurasian Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Curruca capirotada), Rock Sparrow (Gorrión Chillón / Petronia petronia), European Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Chloris chloris) and European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

Corn Buntings (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).

The next two and a half hours were spent on the tracks in the El Temple area where we added some nice species including a very nice immature Iberian Imperial Eagle (Aguila Imperial Ibérica / Aguila adalberti) which was sat in a dead tree, a ♀ Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus), Eurasian Stone Curlew (Alcaraván Común / Burhinus oedicnemus), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius), a very nice ♂ Little Bustard (Sisón Común / Tetrax tetrax) which we watched calling, Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Ganga Ortega / Pterocles orientalis) which were only heard by me unfortunately, Eurasian Magpie (Urraca Común / Pica pica), Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Calandra (Calandria Común / Melanocorypha calandra) and Crested Lark (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata), Common Linnet (Pardillo Común / Linaria cannabina), Fan-lipped Orchids (Anacamptis collina) which were all pretty much over, Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus) x4, Large White (Pieris brassicae) x2, Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) x2 and lots of Rabbits (Conejo / Oryctolagus cuniculus).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Crialo Europeo / Clamator gladarius).

We left the El Temple area and drove out through Ventas de Huélma seeing a mixed pair of Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas) onour way to a view point near Cortijo Ochíchar where there were a couple of very distant Short-toed Snake Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus) but as there was a very cool wind we decided to drop into the Cacín Valley.

Just after we passed through the village we made a stop by the Rio Cacín where we spent some time finding some woodland / Riverside species including a pale Morph Booted Eagle which was sat in a tree, Eurasian Blue Tit (Herrerillo Común / Cyanistes caeruleus), Grey Wagtail (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea), Cetti's Warbler (Cetia Ruiseñor / Cettia cetti), House (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus) and Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs) and European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis).

We moved up the Valley and stopped at the Contrembalse, it was fairly quiet but we did find Common Snipe (Agachadiza Común / Gallinago gallinago), Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), Western Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus), Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito ibérico / Picus sharpei) heard only, Common Cuckoo (Cuco Común / Cuculus canorus) which was heard in the distance, White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis) and Yellow Bee Orchid (Ophrys lutea).

Our next stop was down at the Rio Cacín bridge where after parking we checked out a spot for a Eurasian Eagle Owl (Búho Real / Bubo bubo) which I was pleased to see sitting out on a distant crag, we also saw quite a few Iberian Magpies (Rabilargo Ibérico / Cyanopica cooki), Red-rumped Swallow (Golondrina Dáurica / Cecropis daurica), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala), Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Europeo / Certhia brachydactyla), Long-tailed (Mito Común / Aegithalos caudatus), Coal (Carbonero Garrapinos / Periparus ater) and Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), heard Eurasian Wren (Chochin paleártico / Troglodytes troglodytes), Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi) and a couple of very bright ♂ Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) butterflies.

We were going to stop in the pine woodlands but the parking area was blocked by logs as the fallen trees from the storm in January are being cleared.

We continued on up to the crags below Moraleda where we made two stops picking up Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Gavilán Común / Accipiter nisus), Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax), Eurasian Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris) and a couple of ♂ Blue-rock Thrushes (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius).

Looking over to the Sierra Nevada from the Moraleda Fields.

Next we headed up onto the fields above El Turro seeing a nice ♂Montagu's Harrier which was in territorial disputes with a ♀ Western Marsh Harrier, out on the fields we added better views of a Eurasian Hoopoe, Iberian Grey Shrike (Alcaudón Real / Lanius meridionalis), European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Europeo / Merops apiaster), Thekla's Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae) and a very smart Ocellated Lizard (Timon lepidus) before we reached the Motorway and called it a day.

Ocellated Lizard (Timon lepidus).

Ocellated Lizard (Timon lepidus).