SIERRA de LOJA.

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Thursday, 26 March 2026

Huétor Fields, Rio Genil in Huétor Tajar and Rio Genil in Loja, Granada Province, Spain.

A walk with Paqui and then some birding with Juan Perez.
Ebird List for the Rio Genil Huétor Tajar.
Ebird List for the Rio Genil Loja.
 
♂ Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus).
I started the day by heading down to the Fields for an early walk, I was very pleased to see friend Paqui already walking back towards her car but was very happy when she turned around and walked back out to the Gate and back again.
♂ Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus).
♂ Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus).
♂ Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus).
As we walked and talked we saw several Montagu's Harriers (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), Eurasian Magpie (Urraca Común / Pica pica), Western House Martin (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum), Sardinian (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala) and Cetti's Warbler (Cetia Ruiseñor / Cettia cetti), Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Crested Lark (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata), Grey (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea) and Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Common Linnet (Pardillo Común / Linaria cannabina), European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis), European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus) and Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).
Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae) .

European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola) .
European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola) .
We also saw 
Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides) ♀, Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus), Western Dappled White (Euchloe crameri), Large (Pieris brassicae) and Small White (Pieris rapae) and Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui).
Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui).
Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides) .
Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides) .
Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus).
Once we got back to the cars we said goodbye and I headed down town to Mercodona and then went out to the Rio Genil where I parked and started to check the trees in the area, almost straight away I could hear 2 Eurasian Wrynecks (Torcecuello / Jynx torquilla) and then one showed well, these were followed by a ♀ Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Pico Menor / Dryobates minor) which showed first but I then had briefly views of the  before it flew of to the East.
Eurasian Wryneck (Torcecuello / Jynx torquilla).

Eurasian Wryneck (Torcecuello / Jynx torquilla).
Eurasian Wryneck (Torcecuello / Jynx torquilla).
Before Juan arrived I also picked up an unexpected Black-winged Stilt (Ciguenuela Común / Himantopus himantopus), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Iberian Magpie (Rabilargo Ibérico / Cyanopica cooki), Eurasian Blue (Herrerillo Común / Cyanistes caeruleus) and Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Western House Martin (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum), Willow Warbler (Mosquitero Musical / Phylloscopus trochillus), Eurasian Blackcap (Curruca Capirotada / Curruca capirotada), Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Europeo / Certhia brachydactyla), Eurasian Wren (Chochin paleártico / Troglodytes troglodytes) and Common Nightingale (Ruisenor Común / Luscinia megarhynchos).
♀ Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Pico Menor / Dryobates minor).

♀ Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Pico Menor / Dryobates minor).
 Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Pico Menor / Dryobates minor).
 Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Pico Menor / Dryobates minor).
 Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Pico Menor / Dryobates minor).
Juan then arrived and we spent a while here looking for the Woodpeckers but we didn't see them again, so we decided to head to another spot nearby but again we didn't see anything new so we moved off to the Genil on the edge of Loja where we walked from Near the Sports Stadium under the Puente Gran Capitán and then the under the A-4154 before we turned around and back to the car.
The Riverside Track.
The Riverside Track.
Part of the walk was along a riverside track which was being worked on so we could only go part of the way before we turned around and then followed the river, species seen during the walk included 
Western Bonelli's Warbler (Mosquitero Papialbo / Phylloscopus bonelli) and 8x European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Europeo / Merops apiaster) which were 2 year ticks.
Neapolitan Garlic (Allium neapolitanum).
Other new species were 
Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi), Rabbit (Conejo / Oryctolagus cuniculus), Neapolitan Garlic (Allium neapolitanum), Wild Grape Hyacinth (Muscari neglectum), Holly Blue (Celastrina argiolus), Pallid Swift (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus), Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), Common Chiffchaff (Mosquitero Común / Phylloscopus collybita), European Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba) and a small flock of Eurasian Siskin (Jilguero Lúgano / Carduelis spinus).
European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola) .
European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola) .
European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola) .
Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus).
Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus).
Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae) .
Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae) .
Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae) .
We got back to the car and I dropped Juan back to his at Huétor and he headed home, I went back up to the fields where I spent a while sat near the weed patch and photographed Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus), European Stonechat and Spanish (Yellow) Wagtail.

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