Motril area, Granada Province, Spain.

A morning looking for birds, butterflies and more, then a swim in the afternoon.

Ebird List for near Playa Motril.

Ebird List for Desembocadura río Guadalfeo. 

Ebird List for Playa Maruja García.

Monk Parakeets (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus).

Paqui and I headed down the coast near Motril where we started the morning with a coffee in Estrella del Mar before going just up the road to a spot near the Playa Motril where I was hoping to see or at least hear a Rose-ringed Parakeet (Cotorra de Kramer / Psittacula krameri) which had been around for a whill but we were unlucky and only found a couple of Monk Parakeets (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus).

Monk Parakeets (Cotorra Argentina / Myiopsitta monachus).

Other Species included Feral Pigeon (Paloma Bravía / Columba livia), Common Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Eurasian Collared Dove (Tórtola Turca / Streptopelia decaocto), Black-headed (Gaviota Reidora / Chroicocephalus ridibundus), Yellow-legged (Gaviota Patiamarilla / Larus Michahellis) and Lesser Black-backed Gull (Gaviota Sombria / Larus fuscus), Glossy Ibis (Morito Común / Plegadis falcinellus), Grey Heron (Garza Real / Ardea cinerea), Sardinian Warbler (Curruca Cabecinegra / Curruca melanocephala), Spotless Starling (Estornino Negro / Sturnus unicolor), Common Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), European Pied Flycatcher (Papamoscas Cerrojillo / Ficedula hypoleuca), House Sparrow (Gorrión Común / Passer domesticus), White Wagtail (Lavandera Blanca / Montacilla alba), European Greenfinch (Verderón Común / Chloris chloris) and European Goldfinch (Jilguero Europeo / Carduelis carduelis).

European Honey Buzzard (Aberjero Europeo / Pernis apivorus).

European Honey Buzzard (Aberjero Europeo / Pernis apivorus).

We moved on along the coast to the Desembocadura Río Guadalfeo where after parking we could hear a singing Great Reed Warbler (Carricero Tordal / Acrocephalus arundinaceus) and whilst we were trying to see the bird we added 4 migrating European Honey Buzzards (Aberjero Europeo / Pernis apivorus), 2♂ and 6♀ Copper Demoiselles (Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis) and a ♀ Violet Dropwing (Trithemis annulata).

Copper Demoiselle (Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis) ♂.

As we walked along the River to the sea, we saw Small White (Pieris rapae), Perez's Frog (Rana Común / Pelophylax perezi), Mallard (Anade Azulón / Anas platyrhynchos), Common Woodpigeon, Eurasian Collared Dove, Common Moorhen (Gallineta Común / Gallinulas chloropus), Eurasian Coot (Focha Común / Fulica atra), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Crested Lark (Cogujada Común / Galerida cristata), Sardinian and Cetti's Warbler (Cetia Ruiseñor / Cettia cetti), Common Blackbird, Common Waxbill (Estrilda Ondulada / Estrilda astrild), Red Avadavat (Bengali Rojo / Amandava amandava), House Sparrow and European Serin.

Red Avadavat (Bengali Rojo / Amandava amandava) ♂.

Red Avadavat (Bengali Rojo / Amandava amandava) ♂.

On the beach and out at sea we found 2x Eurasian Whimbrel (Zarapito Trinador / Numenius phaeopus), Black-headed, Audouin's (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii), Mediterranean (Gaviota Cabecinegra / Larus melanocephalus), Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed Gull, Sandwich Tern (Charrán Patinegro / Thalasseus sandvicensis), Scopoli’s (Pardela cenicienta mediterránea / Calonectris diomedea) and Balearic Shearwater (Pardela Balear / Puffinus mauretanicus) and a nice Common Kingfisher (Martin Pescador Común / Alcedo atthis).

Audouin's Gull (Gaviota de Audouin / Larus audouinii).

Common Kingfisher (Martin Pescador Común / Alcedo atthis).

Again we returned to the car and moved back to the east and to a spot for a couple of butterfly species, we saw several Plain Tigers (Danaus chrysippus) x12 and a couple of Monarchs (Danaus plexippus) x2 as well as Lang's Short-tailed Blue (Leptotes pirithous) x2, Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) x3, Scarlet Darter (Crocothemis erythraea) x2♂, Crimson Speckled (Utetheisa pulchella), Booted Eagle (Aguila Calzada / Aquila penntuas), another singing Great Reed Warbler and Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis).

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus).

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus).

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus).

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus).

Monarch (Danaus plexippus).

Monarch (Danaus plexippus).

Scarlet Darter (Crocothemis erythraea) ♂.

Our last birding spot of the day was a spot given to me by friend Juan for Black-rumped Waxbill (Estrilda Culinegra / Estrilda troglodytes), we parked and soon found a good sized group of Waxbills feed in the shade of some Giant Reed (Arundo donax), most were Common Waxbill but as I scanned the birds which were feeding low down on what looked like Goose Grass (Eleusine indica) I counted at least 4 of the target Black-rumped Waxbills before a guy came along the fields edge and flushed them all.

Zitting Cisticola (Cistícola Buitrón / Cisticola juncidis).

Immature Common Waxbill (Estrilda Ondulada / Estrilda astrild).

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus alcippus).

Other species seen in this area included African Grass Blue (Zizeeria knysna), Plain Tiger, Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta), Eurasian Collared Dove, Western Cattle Egret (Garcilla Bueyera / Bubulcus ibis), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Crested Lark, Zitting Cisticola, Sardinian Warbler, European Stonechat (Tarabilla Europea / Saxicola rubicola), Northern Wheatear (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe), House Sparrow, Western Yellow (Lavandera Boyera / Motacilla flava) and White Wagtail and European Serin.

We again returned to the car and made our way to Torrenueva Costa where we had some lunch before spending some time on the beach and having a nice swim in some nice clear looking water.

Later we headed back to Huétor after a very nice day, on the way we saw a Golden Eagle (Águila Real / Aquila chrysaetos) and a second pale morph Booted.