A day birding with friend Barbara, Derek and Steve.
Ebird List for the Fields.
Ebird List for Sierra de Loja.
I was up early and as I was getting sorted I could hear the newly arrived Red-necked Nightjar (Chotacabras Cuellirrojo / Caprimulgus ruficollis) in the Olives along with Common Nightingale (Ruisenor Común / Luscinia megarhynchos) and a Eurasian Golden Oriole (Oropéndola Europea / Oriolus oriolus), once I was down in town I checked to Park and soon heard and saw the two regular Monk Parakeets (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus).
I met Barbara and Derek Etherton and Steve Powell at Combustibles Gómez where we had some breakfast before heading to the fields where the Montagu's Harrier (Aguilucho Cenizo / Circus pygargus) put on a good show for us.
Whilst there we also had a single Black-winged Kite (Elanio Común / Elanus caeruleus) which was the first time I have seen this species for a while, when the large number of Harriers turned up the regular pair disappeared but guessing this is one of them.
Other species included Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Common Swift (Vencejo Común / Apus apus), Common Sandpiper (Andarrios Chico / Actitis hypoleucos), Little Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Chico / Thinornis dubius), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Crested (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata) and Greater Short-toed Larks (Terrera Común / Calandrella brachydactyla), Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis), a singing Common Reed Warbler (Carricero Común / Acrocephalus scrpaceus) which remained unseen in the vegetation, Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), Western House Martin (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Common Nightingale, European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Gorrión Molinero / Passer montanus), Grey (Lavandera Cascadena / Motacilla cinerea), Spanish (Yellow) (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava iberiae) and Western Yellow Wagtail (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava thunbergi), European Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Chloris chloris), Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus) x4 and Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) x2.
We returned to the car and then went along the A92 back towards Loja where we took the track up Sierra de Loja, the first section was quite upsetting as the route for the new high speed rail link cuts through the lower slopes and the amount of destruction is incredible all to save a few minutes of travel time but as with most things these days the wildlife and countryside come second, even when It's for supposed green infrastructure.
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| Yellow Bee Orchid (Ophrys lutea). |
Anyway as we started the trip up we saw some
Yellow Bee Orchids (Ophrys lutea) along the roadside and in what remains of the Pine woodlands we picked up
Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris), Common Woodpigeon,
Common Blackbird,
Mistle Thrush (Zorzal Charlo / Turdus viscivorus), Common Redstart (Colirroja Real / Phoenicurus phoenicurus), Western Bonelli's Warbler (Mosquitero Papialbo / Phylloscopus bonelli), Coal (Carbonero Garrapinos / Periparus ater) and
Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs) before we turned up the track to the middle quarry. |
| Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa). |
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| Wild Tulip (Tulipa sylvestris). |
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| Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalia). |
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| Viola dementria. |
After parking we walked back down the track almost as far as the junction, as we walked we saw and heard Red-legged Partridge (Perdiz Roja / Alectoris rufa),
Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica),
European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola),
Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax),
Woodchat Shrike (Alcaudón Común / Lanius senator),
Dartford Warbler (Curruca Rabilarga / Curruca undata),
European Pied Flycatcher (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca), Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Europeo / Certhia brachydactyla),
European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus),
European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis),
Clouded Yellow x2,
Provence Orange-tip (Anthocharis euphenoides) x5,
Painted Lady x7,
Large Psammodromus (Psammodromus algirus), Spanish Ibex (Cabra montés / Capra pyrenaica hispanica),
Mirror (Ophrys speculum),
Yellow Bee (Ophrys lutea) and
Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalia), Cerastium gibraltaricum, Bladder Campion (
Silene vulgaris), Brown Bluebell (Dipcadi serotinum), Eruca (Eruca sativa),
Dianthus pungens ssp brachyanthus,
Cloven Petalled Campion (Silene colorata), Thapsia villosa, Common Stork's-bill (Erodium cicutarium),
Field Marigold (Calendula arvensis),
Mallow-leaved Convolvulus (Convolvulus althaeoides),
Pitch Trefoil (Bituminaria bituminosa), Ramping Fumitory (Fumaria capreolata), Rusty-back Fern (Ceterach officinarum),
Tassel Hyacinth (Muscari comosum), Viola dementria, White Rockrose (Helianthemum apenninum), Wild Grape Hyacinth (
Muscari neglectum), Wild Tulip (Tulipa sylvestris) and
Starry Clover (Trifolium stellatum).
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| Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax). |
Once we were out on the tops we saw the first of a good number of Thekla's Larks (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae), Common Swift (Vencejo Común / Apus apus), European Bee-eater (Abejaruco Europeo / Merops apiaster), Eurasian Hoopoe (Abubilla Común / Upupa epops), Western Black-eared (Collalba Rubia Occidental / Oenanthe hispanica) and Northern Wheatears (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe), Spectacled Warbler (Curruca Tomillera / Curruca conspicillata), Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum baeticum), Iris Subbiflora, Wild Peony (Paeonia broteri), Blue Hedgehog Broom (Erinacea anthyllis), Spanish Festoon (Zerynthia rumina) and Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas).
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| Thekla's Lark (Cogujada Montesina / Galerida theklae). |
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| Western Black-eared Wheatear (Collalba Rubia Occidental / Oenanthe hispanica) ♀. |
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| Iris Subbiflora. |
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| Iris Subbiflora. |
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| Photographing the Iris Subbiflora. |
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| Iris Subbiflora. |
We drove past Charca del Negro and just after we passed the fossil cave we started to see several
Griffon Vultures (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus) dropping in just around the corner and when we got there we found around 30 or so birds feeding / fighting over the remains of a sheep Caracas, in the same area we had
Eurasian Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris),
Rock Sparrow (Gorrión Chillón / Petronia petronia),
Blue-rock Thrush (Roquero Solitario / Monticola solitarius) and Corn Bunting (Escribano Triguero / Emberiza calandra).
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| Griffon Vultures (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus). |
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| Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus). |
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| Limestone areas on the hill. |
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| Looking out to the west. |
After watching them for a while we continued on around to the crags near the
Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) scrub, here we heard and had nice views of ♂
Western Orphean (Curruca Mirlona Occidental / Curruca hortensis) and ♀
Western Subalpine Warblers (Curruca Carrasqueña Occidental / Curruca iberiae),
Short-toed Snake Eagle (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus), Pallid Swift (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus),
Red-billed Chough (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax),
Spotted Flycatcher (Papamoscas Gris / Muscicapa striata), and right up on the top of the crags a pair of the beautiful
Common Rock Thrushes (Roquero Roja / Monticola saxatilis) with the ♂ making several display flights.
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| Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus). |
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| Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus). |
On the way back down we reached the spot where the Vultures were again but we soon realised that the Griff's had been joined by 2 massive
Cinereous / Eurasian Black Vulture (Buitre Negro / Aegypius monachus), further on we caught up with an
Iberian Grey Shrike (Alcaudón Real / Lanius meridionalis) which we were surprised we hadn't seen earlier.
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