BirdingInSpain

Gallocanta is the place to see Cranes in northeast Spain at this time of the year, but that doesn’t mean it is the only place. Cranes make a great complement to a winter day’s birding anywhere in Spain. Here we were fortunate to encounter a flock of almost 200 birds on the steppes of Belchite.

Looking for a Dupont’s Lark in the fog was a tough job. The Cranes made it easier to bear the pressure that mounted until we finally set eyes on our target in the early afternoon. They were grey for sure but added a lot of colour to a grey day. The other birds of the day that deserve a mention are Black Wheatear, Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (a big flock of more than 300 birds),  a single Black-bellied Sandgrouse, a Merlin, and plenty of larks.

Then there was a warming cup of tea at our recommended hotel, Rincón del Cierzo, and the smiling proprietoress Olga.

 Alan and Marge on their way to a meeting with a Wallcreeper

Farther along the same path. The sun appears to be winning the battle with the fog. Do we start looking for the Wallcreeper now?

Here are some snapshots from a recent day out birding with Alan and Marge in my part of northeast Spain.

Late January. That on the ground is fresh snow, and that in the air is fog. The sun and blue sky is not far away. 

Farther up the same path the sun shone through the fog. We could see where we were: walking along the base of spectacular sandstone cliffs. The only shame was that we couldn’t admire the wonderful views “You’ll have to come again next time you’re here” I remarked.

Alan has wanted to see a Wallcreeper for more than 20 years now. When these photos were taken he was hopeful of seeing his prized Wallcreeper, but in the end would it be just another day to add to those 20-odd years of waiting? There are rarely any guarantees with birds.

I lagged a little behind, scanning the rock walls and taking some photos of the marvellous landscape. Alan, driven, forged ahead with Marge close behind.

An Alpine Accentor flew up and away half way up the rock face. Crag Martins wheeled one way and then another. A Red-billed Chough hurled itself into the void below its rocky perch, with a startled “Che-err!”. The sun shone resolutely through the mist, we bathed in its warmth and the snow started melting at a surprisingly rapid rate. A Blue Rock Thrush peered over a small pinnacle-shaped rock, its head gleaming satin dusky blue. A Wallcreeper flicked its intensely coloured wings, just for a second, but enough for our  human eyes to catch a glimpse of the movement and locate the avian treasure.  

We all watched as the Wallcreeper worked its way up and across the sheer rock face. Now hopping and prying with its bill, now fluttering around an overhanging with its wings outstretched. The similarity between the Wallcreeper and a large colourful butterfly was quite striking.

As you stand there pressing your binoculars into your eye sockets, contemplating one of the milliard of nature’s true wonders, that tiny figure flickering and flitting across the face of that immense wall, you somehow manage to hold your breath; perhaps fearing that as if by merely breathing you have the power to shatter that magical moment before it can be properly etched onto your memory.

Excerpt from “Flying over the Pyrenees, standing on the plains”

Some Famous “Birding” Quotes

In case you missed them the first time round…
“Do be do be do” Frank Sinatra, dumbstruck, after having stumbled across a mind-shattering rarity.

“Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” Juliet, desperately hoping that her boyfriend Romeo would return before the Black-and-white Warbler that was hopping around in a bush only metres away (and that her loved one had trekked off 4 miles away to the headland to try and find) disappeared.

“We are not amused” Queen Victoria on being regretfully informed that hers was not the biggest life list in the British Empire.

“We’ll find them on the beaches” W.Churchill predicting an auk wreck on the east coast.

“I don’t remember” R.Reagan when asked to describe the characteristics of the bird which he had claimed as the first Lammergeier for the American Continent.

“You’ve never had it so good” Harold Macmillan addressing the British nation’s birdwatchers to assert that it had been one of the best years on record for Nearctic passerines.

“To be or not to be, that is the question” Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, deeply affected by his 15th successive dip. Wishing to avoid exposure to the ridicule of his birdwatching colleagues, he is caught up in an existentialist debate.

Some images from the Catalonia archives to brighten up those miserable winter days.  

 Haven’t Carrion Crows got anything better to do than to pester Golden Eagles everywhere they go?

A White Stork is suddenly and inexplicably gripped with a terrible urge to break the sound barrier.

SO you think there’s nothing tough about a Tree Sparrow? Why don’t YOU try getting through the winter on a handful of millet!

A Thekla Lark is NOT a toy.

Descripció: Bosc de ribera. 90 ha de bosc de ribera (xops, àlbers, verns, salzes) amb zones d’arbustives (tamarius, esbarzers), depressions inundables i un canyissar força extensiu, tot declarat Àrea d’Interès Natural. És un parc municipal ara ben comunicat i molt freqüentat pel públic als caps de setmana, malgrat això és pot preparar la visita per trobar hores o racons tranquils.

Principals espècies

Tot l’any: cabusset, martinet blanc, esplugabous, cigonya blanca, ànec coll-verd, aligot comú, polla d’aigua, rascló, picot verd, tórtora turca, blauet, cuereta torrentera, cargolet, rossinyol bord, teixidor, mallerenga cuallarga, raspinell comú, pardal xarrec, gratapalles.

Estivals: martinet de nit, agró roig, falcó mostatxut, corriol petit, xot, abellerol, colltort, tórtora, rossinyol, boscarla de canyar, balquer, bosqueta vulgar, tallarol de casquet, papamosques gris, oriol.

Hivernants: corb marí gros, bernat pescaire, picot garser gros, pardal de bardissa, pit-roig, cotxa fumada, tord ala-roig, bruel, lluer, pinsà mec, repicatalons, cruixidell.

De Pas: milà negre, aligot vesper, àguila pescadora, xivitona, oreneta de ribera, piula dels arbres, cotxa cua-roja, mastegatatxes, tallarol gros, tallarol de garriga, tallareta vulgar, mosquiter pàl•lid, mosquiter de passa.

Accés
Des de la ciutat de Lleida pel pont de Pardinyes i el camí de la Granyena.

Itinerari
(1) En les hores menys concorregudes és profitós aturar-se uns moments a les comportes del canal de Serós per observar ocells aquàtics com el blauet, la cuereta torrentera, la xivitona, la polla d’aigua, el martinet blanc i, a l’hivern, el corb marí gros, el bernat pescaire i la gavina vulgar.
(2) Travessa el canal i un petit pont sobre un rierol. Busca un lloc discret per aparcar a prop de l’entrada del parc i seguir a peu. Vigila! No deixes coses de valor en el cotxe, un consell aplicable a molts indrets periurbans sense vigilància.
(3) Entre el canyissar a mà dreta i els joncs i esbarzers a l’esquerra és possible detectar espècies com la boscarla de canyar, el rascló, el trist, el rossinyol bord, el teixidor i la tórtora turca als cables de la llum; a l’hivern el canyissar és un important dormider pel repicatalons i el cruixidell.
(4) Més endavant hi ha un bosquet principalment de verns i xops on podem trobar mallerengues i altres ocells del bosc, i segons l’època el lluer, el bruel i el mastegatatxes.
(5) Just abans d’arribar al pont del canal de Balaguer, trobarem un camí a mà esquerra que passa per una zona dominada per esbarzers i tamarius. A la tardor les mores atrauen molts ocells com el tallarol gros, el tallarol de casquet i la merla.
(6) Torna al pont metàl•lic que travessa el canal de Balaguer. Aquí és un dels millors llocs per veure el blauet, la cuereta torrentera i la mallerenga cuallarga, aquesta última en les salzes a la vora de l’aigua.
(7) Gira a la dreta per seguir el camí del canal de Balaguer. En els arbres i arbustos al llarg d’aquest camí tenim bones oportunitats de realitzar observacions interessants en la forma dels ocells reproductors com l’oriol, el papamosques gris, el pardal xarrec i la gratapalles; ocells migratoris com el tallarol gros, el mosquiter pàl•lid i el mastegatatxes; i a l’hivern el pit-roig, el pardal de bardissa i el pinsà mec, l’últim entre els nombrosos pinsans comuns què venen aquí per passar la nit.
(8) A arribar a la tanca que travessa el camí prendrem un altre camí a l’esquerra què, després de passar entremig d’una línia d’arbres es divideix en petites bifurcacions. A seguir una d’aquestes arribarem a la Bassa Gran; aquí des de dintre dels aguaits hem trobat un bon lloc per veure el martinet de nit, el bernat pescaire i el martinet blanc. Altres espècies freqüentes aquí són el blauet, l’ànec coll-verd i el cabusset.
(9) Continua pel camí i a la primera bifurcació gira a la dreta per on arribaràs a un pontet de color verd. Després, si efectues un altre gir a la dreta passaràs per un bosc de xops i àlbers (molt indicat per observar el raspinell comú i, a l’hivern, el picot garser gros) abans de sortir a la passarel•la que travessa el riu Segre. Aprofita la oportunitat de parar al mig del riu a escoltar o veure ocells com la oreneta de ribera, el blauet, l’oriol, el teixidor, el corriol petit, el martinet de nit i una llarga etcètera. En els arbres riu avall és on es posen multituds de corbs marins, bernats, martinets i esplugabous.
(10) La marge dreta té característiques similars a la de l’esquerra, però amb més zones obertes i més trànsit humà. Millor visitar-la a la primera hora del matí o en un dia laboral.

Moltes gràcies a Michele Mendi pel seu permís per reproduïr la seva foto d’aquest Gratapalles

Duració aproximada: entre 2 i 3 hores.

No birders or birds in sight here, just some peaceful scenes from places around Lleida, our little corner of northeast Spain.

Evening light, autumn day.

 Mist rolling in over the hills of Mont-roig.

Morning.

Spirituality – and the hermit came in search of solitude.

Our Lammergeier hides get excellent results, but admittedly are not over spacious.

Photographers getting ready to occupy the Lammergeier hides

Photographers patiently await the arrival of Lammergeiers, Griffon Vultures or Black Vultures. Or perhaps fidget nervously in anticipation of that special shot… the Lammergeier in flight, on the ground, landing, taking off…Either way, there isn’t anywhere for them to go until the designated pick-up time. No wonder they rub and massage their creaking bones when they get out of the hides for a welcome stretch.   

But a few stiff joints are worth it to get that close to the famed bone-breaking Lammergeier.

Lammergeier with bone

Michele Mendi came to us in mid-November and was very pleased with some of the photos he took. He has very generously offered to share some of them with BirdingInSpain.com and our readers, as a preview of some of his work. 

An aerial dispute

Black Vulture, or Black Sheep?

The Griffon Vulture – a handsome bird? 

Many thanks, Michele! Marvellous!

Michele was not alone. Present too was Frenchman Sebastien Beghelli from Naturapics. Sebastien gained a lot of useful experience here, as well as some very good shots which we hope to see in the near future. Come on Sebastien, show us some more!

November visitors also included two of Scandinavia’s top photographers:

Tom Schandy. See some of Tom’s photos and his article  here (someone translate from Norwegian please!)

Brutus Östling from Sweden. See Brutus Östling’s blog article here (English translation available).

And below a couple of the landscapes I enjoy while watching the proceedings from a distance.

Can you identify the flying birds in these photographs?

Photo flying birds number 1: tricky.

Photo flying birds number 2: not so tricky, but not easy.

Photo flying birds number 3: should be easy enough.

BirdingInSpain.com will give a prize to the first 3 correct answers received (all 5 species) which are accompanied with the contestant’s own mystery flight photo.

Part of the autumn maintenance of the BirdingInSpain.com website is the renovation of links to our many recommended hotels. This is the time when the professional establishments that collaborate with BirdingInSpain.com decide if they want to extend their relationship with us for another year, or to say farewell to the birding community.

It should be said that we at BirdingInSpain.com don’t just recommend any old hotel, because if we did we’d be putting our reputation on the line for a very poor return. We either select hotels that we know personally, or hotels which our clients or friends recommend to us. We also apply desirable criteria like an attractive rural setting (with good birding on the doorstep if possible), personal treatment, quality service at a reasonable price and an inclination to understanding a birder’s needs.  

These following hotels have decided to continue their relationship with BirdingInSpain.com and to welcome birders from all over the world:

Delta Hotel, Ebro Delta

Rincón Del Cierzo, Belchite

Allucant, Gallocanta

Castellsdelleida, Montsec

Monestir de les Avellanes, Montsec

Hotel Usón, Hecho Valley

Hospedería Loarre, Sierra de Guara West

Hostería Sierra de Guara, Sierra de Guara East

Hotel Roca Blanca, Aigüestortes East

Hospital de Benasque, Benasque

Hotel Mediodía, Aínsa to Gistaín

Hotel la Garbinada, Drylands of Lleida

Can Navata, Aiguamolls de l’Empordà

Mas del Joncar, Aiguamolls de l’Empordà

La Farinera, Els Ports

Hotel Santa Cruz de la Serós, Hecho Valley

Xalet de Prades, Montsant and Prades

Some others have only just joined us, and are keen to receive birders. Let’s not disappoint them: 

Les Eres, Serra del Cadí

Metsola, Irati and Roncal Valley

Hotel Secaiza, Gallocanta

Casagran, Cardó Massif

Font del Pas, Els Ports

Words from the author himself, Franck Renard:

The title of my new book is Photographier les oiseaux sauvage (Photographing wild birds)

It is a guide for beginners in which I give some information and advice to improve the quality of its images of birds in the nature.

Naturally there are some pictures of lammergeiers and Birdinginspain.com is quoted in the practical information !

The book is available on the site of the publisher in France, at this address : www.image-nature.com/objet_126.html

Franck was with us in the Lammergeier hides in February.

I hope your book sells out, Franck. I’ll be ordering mine very soon (and with it the opportunity to practice my secondary school French reading comprehension).