Sunday 14th April 2019 (a)

BUBO in ESPAÑA - part 6

Sunday morning and me and Andy were up nice and early to pack our bags, as we were about to leave our base in Plasenzuela and head north. Our next destination was to be the Gredos Mountains, the snow-capped peaks visible in the background of many of the previous photos. We had a final stroll around the village before loading the car, and calling in on Ian and Daniel to say goodbye, since they were flying back from Madrid that afternoon. Much credit must go to Daniel for putting up with us boring old blokes for a long couple of days - he had the patience of a saint.

Our base for exploring the mountains was on the north side of the sierra so we had to skirt a little to the west first. Our plan was to right a wrong from the previous afternoon, and we were determined to tick off Red Avadavat before we left the area. We had looked at the maps on the eBird website and saw that there was a nice cluster of sightings in the agricultural area west of Plasencia which wasn’t far off our route. We called at the ‘moth garage’ for petrol and breakfast/provisions and drove to Cacares, then north along the quiet highway through more wide open plains.

Before we reached Plasencia, we turned west and headed towards the small town of Galisteo and took a small dirt track north of the road. It was a pretty cloudy morning, and the habitat here was nothing special, mainly fields and hedges, but we supposed these Avadavats could be literally anywhere. We stopped at the first available spot and wandered down the track a little way. It just didn’t feel right for Avadavat as there weren’t any wet areas apart from a concrete drainage channel. There were plenty of commoner birds though with Stonechats and Sardinian Warblers seemingly more common here than further south, Cetti’s Warblers and Nightingales in the bushes, and we had an Iberian Grey Shrike over the far side of a field. There were also Speckled Woods flittering along the track, which were so orange, with large spots, that they looked more like Walls.

Speckled Wood - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

We returned to the car and drove further up the bumpy track, which we couldn’t really tell was public or private. Crossing the main road we got to a farmyard where another Iberian Grey Shrike was perched up showing much more closely. Alongside this farm was a reedy drainage ditch which looked a lot more likely for Avadavats, so when we saw three tiny finch-like birds fly across then we thought we were in. However, like yesterday, upon lifting the bins we saw that these were again Common Waxbills! Undeterred, we drove on, looking for more good habitat.

Common Waxbills - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

Common Waxbill - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

Iberian Grey Shrike - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

A little further on, we came across an actual marsh, with open water and a pretty extensive reedbed, and we were sure that this must be the place where the Avadavats hang out. We parked up and gave it a bit of time to find one. Scanning the marsh, we were very surprised to see a migrant Spotted Crake wandering around right out in the open. It didn’t stay out for long though and, as soon as it realised it was being watched, ran like the clappers into the safety of the reeds. It was a nice little spot for birding and we had a Snipe fly across, as well as my first Whitethroat of the trip. The usual Black-winged Stilts waded around, a Grey Heron flapped across, Fan-tailed Warblers zitted and a Yellow Wagtail flew up from the grass, perhaps a local Iberian.

The marsh at Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

Spotted Crake - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

We did have a couple of brief sightings of very small birds flying briefly in and around the reedbed, but they were so quick it was difficult to tell if they were avadavats, waxbills or Fan-tailed Warblers. We were considering whether to try somewhere else when we saw another of these tiny birds further down the track drop down towards the fence. Rushing down there it then appeared in the middle of a bush to the right hand side and, peering through the branches, we could the see brown and buff plumage and the little black mask behind the red bill of a RED AVADAVAT. Thank heck for that! It didn’t stay long and disappeared, but soon after three birds appeared from nowhere and one of them sat out on the fence so I could get a snap. They were spooked very easily though and they soon departed back into the reedbed.

Red Avadavat - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

Red Avadavat - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

Hoopoe - Galisteo, 14 Apr 19

We didn’t hang around and were soon on the road again. We wanted to get to our location as quickly as possible so that we could get plenty of birding in during the afternoon. The road took us past the town of Plasencia where we drove under a Short-toed Eagle and yet another Black Vulture. It then headed north-east up the Jerte Valley. This valley may not have been the very quickest route timewise, but it was a pleasant drive through the verdant countryside. The valley seemed to be a centre for fruit growing and especially cherries as there was cherry-related paraphernalia and signs everywhere, as well as fields full of cherry trees. Also, we seemed to time our journey perfectly for the Palm Sunday celebrations, and in the villages we passed through on the way literally everybody was walking around holding a branch of a cherry tree - nearest they could find to a palm frond I guess. It was now lunchtime and we stopped in the village of Navaconcejo. Andy bought a sandwich from a surprisingly Athletic Bilbao-themed shop and we ate on a bridge overlooking the river Jerte. As well as the ubiquitous Serins and a Nightingale singing away, we had a Grey Wagtail and a Kingfisher by the water below.

Navaconcejo, 14 Apr 19

The road slowly climbed up to the pass and the vegetation started changing. There was a car park at the top to enjoy the view down the valley and we could see the route we’d just taken. A Subalpine Warbler was singing from the scrub just below and a streaky bunting we saw briefly was no doubt a female Cirl Bunting. We didn’t notice initially but there was a terrific Rock Bunting feeding in amongst the picnic tables giving excellent views. It doesn’t appear to be a common species, but when you find one they seem to be very confiding. We also saw a lizard on a fence but even with good photos I found the identification a little difficult. It stands a good chance of being the restricted-range Guadarrama Wall Lizard, but it looks like Common Wall Lizard might be at its south-westernmost point here. It may even be a type of Rock Lizard. I think I needed to take close up pics of the scales on the nose - I’ll know for next time!

Valle del Jerte, 14 Apr 19

Rock Bunting - Valle del Jerte, 14 Apr 19

Rock Bunting - Valle del Jerte, 14 Apr 19

Rock Bunting - Valle del Jerte, 14 Apr 19

wall lizard sp. - Valle del Jerte, 14 Apr 19

We now had left Extremadura and were now driving through Castilla y Leon province. We skirted the north slopes of the Sierra des Gredos and still had almost an hour’s drive through the foothills before we got to the area we were staying in. I commend Andy for his excellent endurance driving on these small roads. But we didn’t have time to waste because I had to get straight back out birding to search for a couple more lifers before bedtime.

Saturday 13th April 2019 (b)

BUBO in ESPAÑA - part 5

After lunch we snaked around the contours of the north slope of the Tagus river valley, heading east across Montfrague. When the road dropped down, almost to water level, there was a pull-in at the Mirador La Tajadilla and we stopped for a quick scan. The cliffs opposite were too distant and there were too many people around so we didn’t stay long. However, as we were getting back into the car we saw a Black Vulture come up over the hill behind us. It was soon followed by a second bird and, rather than flying away like all the others had done so far, these bird actually glided across the sky towards us. I finally managed a close look at the species and some very pleasing photos were taken.

Black Vulture - Mirador La Tajadilla, 13 Apr 19

Black Vulture - Mirador La Tajadilla, 13 Apr 19

Black Vulture - Mirador La Tajadilla, 13 Apr 19

The road crossed a dam, one of many in this part of Spain which turn these valleys into long, slender reservoirs, and then wound upwards to the Mirador La Buscela high over the valley, an excellent raptor-watching spot. We had three species of vulture from this spot - the obligatory Griffons, two Black Vultures (possibly the same as we saw just previously) and a single Egyptian. I was getting quite warm and sweaty although it wasn’t especially hot for Spain in the spring, but it was very bright and it was difficult to see birds against the sky. A male Subalpine Warbler showed really well singing atop a dead tree just next to the watchpoint where a Clouded Yellow flicked about. I had a little wander, mainly looking for more butterflies and came across a lizard in the leaf litter which I managed to photograph and later identify as a Large Psammodromus Lizard, one of the most common species here.

Raptor-watching at Mirador La Bascula, 13 Apr 19

Large Psammodromus Lizard - Mirador La Bascula, 13 Apr 19

We then went north, crossing the next ridge and back down to the waterside, stopping at the same spot as the very first evening, Portilla de Tietar. It felt ages ago that we had come here, but was actually less than 48 hours before. You try and fit so much in when you are birding away from home that the time stretches and stretches and the four or five day trip can feel twice as lengthy. We saw pretty much the same range of species here as we saw on Thursday, including Blue Rock Thrushes and Black Redstarts way across the ravine, Crag Martins and Red-rumped Swallows racing back and forth, and even two Spanish Imperial Eagles soaring. They were initially showing much lower than before and I managed better pics, but both birds soon gained height. The Griffon Vulture colony had active nests and we even saw a couple of very young birds there with the adults.

Portilla del Tietar, 13 Apr 19

Spanish Imperial Eagle - Tietar, 13 Apr 19

Griffon Vulture - Tietar, 13 Apr 19

Whilst there, we got chatting with two Spanish birders from the Madrid area and they told us of a couple of other interesting species’ nests that were visible from the roadside a short way further south down the ravine. Following their directions we pulled up and scanned across the water. The first nest we found was a Black Stork nest on top of a dropping-spilled rock, quite low down near the water. Then from the same spot, just a little further south we found the Egyptian Vulture sat on its nest in the shade, probably even closer to the water than the stork.

Black Stork on nest - nr Tietar, 13 Apr 19

Egyptian Vulture on nest - nr Tietar, 13 Apr 19

It was now well into the afternoon and our plan was to head east out of Montfrague Park and visit the larger Reservoir of Embalse de Arrocampo. We had a few reasons to visit here - it’s always nice to visit a wetland site when on a trip to get to see a larger selection of species, also the area is well known for being good for Black-winged Kite, and - *whispers* - it is a known site for the naturalised - *coughs* - Red Avadavat. The drive across took us from the rolling hills and crags of Montfrague into a flatter, open landscape where crops were growing in many of the fields. We drove through the town of Saucedilla and found the visitor centre. The boys went inside to get some gen whilst I waited by the drainage ditch watching Swifts and Bee-eaters overhead and a White Stork tidying its nest on top of a small pylon.

The first hide at Embalse de Arrocampo nature reserve, 13 Apr 19

White Stork - Embalse de Arrocampo, 13 Apr 19

We went into the first hide using the key collected at the visitors’ centre and we scanned across the marsh at the north-east corner of the lake. It didn’t really get us much closer to the water, but the extra height meant we could see a lot more. The selection of common waterbirds was typically sparse for these southern European wetlands - mainly Coots, Cormorants, Little Grebes, Stilts - but we picked up a few extras. One or two Purple Herons were seen flying across the tops of the reeds, and a Spoonbill did likewise. Marsh Harriers surveyed the beds regularly, joined by both Black and Red Kites on occasion. Cupping our ears we picked out a couple of Savi’s Warblers reeling above the raucous Reed Warblers. This site is apparently one of the best in central Spain for the patchy-distributed and local Savi’s Warbler. Way in the distance we thought we saw a small gull flying up and down but it revealed itself to be a Gull-billed Tern. One of the highlights of the whole trip was not actually seeing a gull all week!

After a while we decided to go for a walk around the edge of the lake and the sun was getting quite blazing. My neck and face definitely felt a little taut next morning. Fan-tailed Warblers were common along the pathside and we were on the lookout for small finch-like birds with red beaks. As the path got close to the next bit of water we found a Spanish Terrapin in a tussock of rush that we could have picked up if we’d wanted, and we also noticed a few dragonflies in action. We didn’t recognise them and I presumed that they were probably the same species as the Western Clubtail we saw the previous evening. I managed some decent photos and, analysing them at home afterwards, saw that the species involved was Long Skimmer. This is an African species that has only recently colonised Iberia and is clearly moving north quickly. This location was well north of the distribution as shown on the map in the field guide. The other species here was the intense Scarlet Darter, which was a little more shy of the camera.

Long Skimmer - Embalse de Arrocampo, 13 Apr 19

Scarlet Darter - Embalse de Arrocampo, 13 Apr 19

As we got close to the second hide, there was a little bit of open water to the right which had a smart Ferruginous Duck swimming around amongst the Coots. We thought we had some small finch-like birds in the vicinity but we lost them before we could have a chance at identification. Looking around this area, we also had a single Purple Gallinule/Swamphen crash down into the reeds and also a Little Bittern popped out and gave a wee fly-past over the reed tops - two quality species. At the edge of a field, a migrant Wheatear was flushed and I was startled by a huge 4 inch grasshopper, which turned out to be Egyptian Grasshopper.

Egyptian Grasshopper - Embalse de Arrocampo, 13 Apr 19

We decided that the third hide was far too far to walk in our tired states and we headed back towards the car. I had a second Purple Gallinule fly over and plunge into the reeds like a plummeting biplane and then I picked up three small, finch-like birds fly in and land on the track way in front of me. Through the bins I managed to see a red beak and I shouted back to the boys that I’d found the Avadavats! This would be a new species for me and a Western Pal tick for Andy (Ian and Daniel had seen some a few days ago somewhere else). However, the birds took flight almost immediately and seemed to go in three different directions. Luckily one landed on the fence level with me and I quickly took a couple of snaps before it seemed to vanish into thin air. The others had now caught up with me and we stomped around, failing to refind them. It was only then that I looked at my photos on the camera and realised that I’d been reckless with the ID. I had presumed that a tiny red-billed exotic finch here would certainly be the “advertised” Avadavat. However, I had totally forgotten the other tiny red-billed exotic finch that is also at large in these parts, a species I had seen in similar circumstances only last year - the Common Waxbill - and this bird was certainly one of them, and NOT an Avadavat!

Common Waxbill - Embalse de Arrocampo, 13 Apr 19

As we were getting back into the car, Andy saw another Little Bittern drop into the tiny clump of vegetation in the concrete drainage channel right next to the road. Despite us looking from all angles it refused to be seen - what an elusive beggar! We set off north, back through the village of Saucedilla following the directions of the visitor centre woman, who had told the lads some good areas to look for Black-winged Kite. At a crossroads halfway to the next town we took a minor road west and looped back around towards the reservoir. There were lots of scanning spots here and we did indeed scan rather a lot, checking every piece of sky and the infinite perching posts, but we found no tiny kites. We picked out plenty of hovering raptors but they all turned out to be Kestrels. At one location we were entertained by a small flock of Bee-eater chasing insects. We found a nice pond with a migrant Redshank feeding with the ubiquitous Stilts. This pond, along with most ponds and streams here, was densely packed with Water-crowfoots as can be seen on the stilt photo below.

Bee-eater - nr Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

Black-winged Stilt amongst Water-crowfoot - nr Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

We retraced our steps and tried a road to the east of the crossroads. This side was a little less flat and over the first rise we came across a really beautiful rolling, grassy meadow where we soon saw an even more beautiful Black-winged Kite. We dived out of the car and we could ‘scope it up as it perched on the top of a dead tree at the far side of the field. Totally unmistakable with its ghostly pale plumage and unusual shape. Something we wee not aware of beforehand was the strange tail-pumping behaviour of the bird. It would slowly lift its tail high and vertical above its back before dropping it down again just as slowly, and it did this almost constantly whilst perched.

Fields north-east of Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

Black-winged Kite - Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

Black-winged Kite - Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

Black-winged Kite tail pumping - Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

The bird took flight after a while and started soaring around where the distinctive shape and plumage were again obvious. What an enigmatic species, unlike any other. After it perched again on a more distant treetop, a second bird suddenly appeared next to it flying in with legs dangling. Perhaps this was an explanation of the tail-pumping, maybe some kind of display. Although I was happy to have ticked the species two days ago on a speedy drive-by, it was great to be able to watch a (presumably) breeding pair amble around their picturesque natural habitat, with a stunning backdrop of snow-capped mountains. What a treat.

Black-winged Kite - Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

Black-winged Kites - Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

Black-winged Kites - Saucedilla, 13 Apr 19

We couldn't think of a better way to end the day and we started to head back, driving past another Iberian Grey Shrike at the back of the kites’ field. We stopped off for some dinner at a restaurant alongside the main road back to Trujillo, where I ordered - you’ve guessed it - Spanish omelette again. I was relieved that, this evening, I was free of any headaches and was able to relax and enjoy a couple of beers in the hotel. Saturday night was clearly locals night, and we were entertained by a bevy of slightly merry local farmers spending their jamon money and enjoying “El Banter”, one of which decided to do a little jig in his overalls in the middle of the bar. You’re not gonna get that kind of ‘authentic’ entertainment on the Costa del Sol!

Our route for the day

Locations in Montfrague Park