Travelling North to the Salamanca area.

The first day of our birthdays trip to the North with a Spanish lifer at Laguna del Cristo.

Ebird List for Laguna del Cristo. 

Dawn.

We set off early for a few days in the North as both Paqui and myself have birthdays over the next few days, we first headed out West to Sevilla picking up Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Little Egret (Garceta Común / Egretta garzetta), Black Kite (Milano Negro / Milvus migrans), a Black-winged Kite (Elanio Común / Elanus caeruleus), Common Buzzard (Busardo Ratonero / Buteo buteo), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Western Jackdaw (Grajilla occidental / Corvus monedula) and Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor).

Heading North from Sevilla.

One of the Osborne bulls seen on the way north.

We had some breakfast just north of Sevilla and then continued on along the Autovía Ruta de la Plata as far as Plasencia where we had some Lunch, during this section of the journey we saw Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus), Cinereous  / Eurasian Black Vulture (Buitre Negro / Aegypius monachus), Red (Milano Real / Milvus milvus) and Black Kite, Common Buzzard, Short-toed Snake (Culebrera Europeo / Circaetus gallicus) and Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas), Western Marsh Harrier (Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental / Circus aeruginosus), Monk Parakeet (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus), Northern Raven (Cuervo grande / Corvus corax) and Iberian Magpie (Rabilargo Ibérico / Cyanopica cooki).

Laguna del Cristo.

After lunch we continued on seeing Griffon Vulture, Red Kite and Booted Eagle again before we arrived at Laguna del Cristo where I was hoping to see a long staying Smew (Serreta Chica / Mergellus albellus), after a while searching through the many birds on the water I found the redhead feeding on the far shore and diving regularly.

Smew (Serreta Chica / Mergellus albellus).

Smew (Serreta Chica / Mergellus albellus).

Other species seen Northern Shoveler (Cuchara Común / Spatula clypeata), Gadwall (Anade Friso / Mareca strepera), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Little Ringed Plover (Chorlitejo Chico / Thinornis dubius), Northern Lapwing (Avefria Europea / Vanellus vanellus), Common (Andarrios Chico / Actitis hypoleucos) and Green Sandpiper (Andarrios Grande / Tringa ochropus), lots of Little Grebes (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis), Great Crested Grebe (Somormujo Lavanco / Podiceps cristatus), Great Cormorant (Cormorán Grande / Phalacrocroax carbo), Eurasian Spoonbill (Espátula Común / Platalea leucorodia), Little (Garceta Común / Egretta garzetta) and Great Egret (Garceta Grande / Ardea alba), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Western Marsh Harrier, Common Buzzard, Red Kite, Eurasian Blue (Herrerillo Común / Cyanistes caeruleus) and Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Sand (Avión Zapador / Riparia riparia) and Western House Martin (Avión Común Occidental / Delichon urbicum), Western Bonelli's (Mosquitero Papialbo / Phylloscopus bonelli) and Willow Warbler (Mosquitero Musical / Phylloscopus trochillus), Eurasian Nuthatch (Trepador Azul / Sitta europaea), Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Europeo / Certhia brachydactyla), Spotless Starling, Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Spotted (Papamoscas Gris / Muscicapa striata) and European Pied Flycatcher (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca), Common Redstart (Colirroja Real / Phoenicurus phoenicurus), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis) and European Serin (Serin Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

Little Grebe (Zampullín Común / Tachybaptus ruficollis).

Whilst there we also had Rhodometra sacaria (The Vestal), Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus), Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus), Great Banded Grayling (Brintesia circe), Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina), Lesser Emperor (Anax parthenope), Scarlet Darter (Crocothemis erythraea) and False Meadow Saffron (Colchicum montanum).

Rhodometra sacaria (The Vestal).

False Meadow Saffron (Colchicum montanum).

It was getting warm so we returned to the car and found a hotel nearby which turned out to be a good choice in La Fuente de San Esteban, the Hostal-SPA Mare Nostrum was outstanding.