The calm blue Atlantic I've become so used to, looked more like the North Sea this morning. Storm 'Emma' is moving in from the South-west and bringing with it no doubt, much needed rain for the Algarve. Before the onset of squally showers this afternoon, I spent a fair while watching the sea start to whip up and with it, a total of six Great Skuas came into the bay in the space of thirty minutes. Flying in an Easterly direction along the coast, there were few gulls and terns to pursue and so they often spent time sitting on the sea before moving on again. Some unusual wing markings on this individual, found on some juveniles. Gliding Great Skua.
After seeing my first Great Skua of the winter, passing across the bay at Alvor yesterday, I made a point of looking out from the apartment this morning. Within half an hour a Great Skua was seen harassing some Yellow-legged Gulls, close in to the shore. This skua flew out and joined a second Great Skua, sitting on the sea. The two flew East after a while and a third bird also flew East later. Some amorous action from the White Storks. ........ and for my next trick
Two of the three Richard's Pipits found feeding together at Salgados this afternoon. Jack Snipe are a rarity in the Algarve and on my third visit to this site, not only did one of these little wonders make an appearance, but two. A small version of the Common Snipe, they were difficult to see at times, easily getting lost behind a Ruff or Godwit.
Shorter billed than the Common Snipe, the head is heavily streaked and with a strong supercilium. Two broad streaks down the back look anything from gold to an olive green, depending on the light which was proving tricky this afternoon. One feature I didn't see on these birds was the typical 'bouncing' action when feeding. I've always seen Jack Snipe do this but these birds didn't do it at all. I was delighted to add these rarities to my Portugal list, I'm sure they occur at other locations but can prove very difficult to find, unless they venture into the open. A short walk before breakfast didn't produce many birds at all, except for the call of Hoopoes warming in the early sunshine. A check on the sea and I found a Razorbill just offshore. I usually come across one or two here each winter, though many more can be found at Cape St. Vincent passing along the West coast. Otherwise, usual numbers of Cormorants and Yellow-legged Gulls, with a few passing Gannets and the odd Sandwich Tern feeding close in. Walking the estuary from Alvor towards Abicada, I caught sight of an Osprey being followed by a second bird, another Osprey. There appeared to be a fair amount of interaction, almost display flying between the two, and I considered they may be a breeding pair. They certainly look like male and female as the female tends to have a darker breast band, and this did show, comparing the two birds.
Neither of the two were the resident Alvor Osprey, as it is ringed and I found him sitting on a sandbank in the estuary, a while later. I've been walking this area for a while now - Santa Filomena, or as I call it, the ground opposite Pingo supermarket!
The land comprises a good variety of small trees, mainly almond, fig and some conifers. The ground is rough and unspoilt with many tracks crossing it and leads to views over the estuary above Alvor. So far, I've found some interesting species in there including Hoopoe, Firecrest, Ring Ouzel and plenty of Thrushes and Blackcaps. This winter, I've learnt the type of habitat you may just find that little speciality that has remained hidden in previous years, and on today's walk I found it - Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. I've had two fleeting glimpses of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in recent months so this time, I was determined to stick with this beautifully marked male as it moved from tree to tree. It seemed to favour the bare fig trees and I was relieved to be able to watch it, for a full half hour. It felt warm quite early this morning, not a breath of wind and in a blue sky the hills of Monchique made a superb backdrop when viewed from Alvor. (Image taken earlier this month). After driving along to Portimao, a turn on to the N124 is the start for a leisurely and colourful drive , slowly gaining height towards the foothills of Monchique. The road leaves Portimao at the side of the estuary and follows the River Arade for quite some distance. Any chance to pull over near the river can be rewarding. I once saw my only otter along here and now, frequently find Kingfisher, Common Sandpiper, Cetti's Warbler and Grey Wagtail. Chiffchaffs are just beginning to sing their 'chiff-cheff' song after being silent all winter and Blackcaps are getting into song too. A little further along is a length of road with many White Stork nesting. Several just cleared the car roof this morning, as they glide in to settle on their telegraph pole nests. After the turn off to Silves, the road becomes the N266 and climbing steadily, an area of acacia mimosa trees provides a stunning array of colour in February. Believe it or not, the acacia mimosa is an invasive and undesirable species. I can think of more undesirable things to get rid of first - the fire-fuelling eucalyptus trees, which birds seem to neither nest nor feed in much. At Caldas de Monchique which I have covered in my blog several times, I noticed the hazel catkins were out and a number of Siskins were in those trees. There was a tremendous amount of colour in all the trees in this valley. Having passed through the town of Monchique, the road rises through a small area of cork oak woodland. A Green Woodpecker was calling as was a Great Spotted Woodpecker. These trees are an excellent habitat for many small birds including the Short-toed Treecreeper, Nuthatch, Great and Crested Tit and finches. The cork bark has been removed some years ago on these trees and now look a little eerie. The next rise in elevation passes through a eucalyptus belt and then, out into open heathland with rocky crags, just before the summit. Not looking like a birder's dream, complete with radio masts, cafe and craft centre, the views from here are stunning. Looking South (always into the sun!) the expanse of Algarve coast, to the West coast and to the North is unspoiled countryside. The terrain here is excellent for the Rock Buntings and are usually found with little difficulty, check any overhead wires. The scrubby heathland has Stonechats, Robins and Black Redstarts, together with Sardinian Warblers and this little gem, the Dartford Warbler. The other target bird up here at Foia has to be the Blue Rock Thrush. They sometimes show really well and it's worth checking the radio mast towers as they will perch on them. If there are many tourists, they will be elusive. Today I found a female showing very well. If there is much disturbance at Foia, take the road over the summit and check out this outcrop. Blue Rock Thrush can be here and I've seen Alpine Accentor here last winter.
After the previous visit was called off due to fog, a sudden decision on a beautiful clear morning meant a return to one of my favourite regions of Portugal. The moment you arrive in Castro Verde, you are aware of the sheer expanse of grassland much of it farmed and home to some superb bird species. On the outskirts of Castro Verde, Red Kites were wheeling in the air, a couple of Ravens were perched on an old building and having stopped the car engine, the only sounds were numerous larks and jangling Corn Buntings. An initial scan of the nearest hilltops produced a nice start in the form of a Stone Curlew, standing out against the background sky. The Stone Curlew was miles away but worth a record shot, being the only one I have seen this winter. Before long, a peculiar call which was quite unfamiliar resulted in a Great Spotted Cuckoo, flying across the same field as the Stone Curlew I had been watching. Today, I was determined to find some Common Cranes which winter here in large numbers and feed in the cork oak woodlands. After taking a wrong road I came into a small town I had visited before, the one with a resident Long-eared Owl. Although my mind was on finding Cranes, I thought I'd check out the 'owl tree' as I was passing through anyway. Sure enough a male Long-eared Owl was sitting in the tree watching the town go about its business. He's a beautiful owl and so much obscured by foliage, he goes completely unnoticed. After taking the above images I moved to one side and in doing so, got the surprise of my life. Sitting behind him was a slightly darker, female owl - he had found a mate! The female Long-eared Owl. On to the cork oak woodlands and three isolated Common Cranes were found along the IP2 road. Even in February, heat haze was causing a problem for me with these very wary cranes. I didn't find any large flocks of cranes after travelling along miles of cork woodland. Four more were found near a small lake later on in the afternoon, flying off to join a further fifteen under the trees. A trip to the Alentejo wouldn't be complete without a lookout for Great Bustards. A good flock of 42 individuals were roaming the LPN's estate, seen from the N123 road. Great Bustard compared to size of Lapwing. Several 'whiskered' males in the flock.
Another great day in this area, no eagles present at all and the sandgrouse still elude me! The above site is one of the few remaining freshwater lagoons in the Algarve. It is currently, almost totally fenced off as it waits approval for a developer to drain and construct a supermarket here. The exact location is, adjacent to Aldi supermarket which is next to Apolonia supermarket - there is much opposition locally and from environmental bodies but sadly I fear, money talks as usual. The site is an important resting place for the many hundreds of Glossy Ibis which live in this part of the Algarve and is also an important wader wintering site. Carl Hawker who reports from here almost daily, achieves around 40 species on a short visit. As well as the wintering Black-tailed Godwits, there are currently around 11 Ruff, 1 Wood Sandpiper, 20 Common Snipe and the rare Jack Snipe as well as other wader species and wildfowl. A few of around 300 Glossy Ibis coming in to rest. Wonderful colouring on these ibis, when in good light. Black-tailed Godwits with the Glossy Ibis. Pleased to find the Wood Sandpiper emerging from behind an ibis. Wood Sandpiper. A female Kestrel sitting nearby.
This Hoopoe caught my eye this morning. Not only was he standing ornately on a rooftop, but was in full 'poe-poe' song also. Along the dam-controlled section of estuary, the water level was lower than usual. This had the effect of bringing the Greater Flamingo flock close up to the approach road. As they scratched about at the water's edge, Redshanks, Greenshanks and Dunlin were intermingled between the long legs of the flamingos. Anyone lost a Flamingo? Several of these birds were ringed and are all of Spanish origin. Grey Herons, Spoonbills and Little Egrets were all getting in on the shallower water available. Dunlins leaving the upper reach of the estuary. On the road to Quinta da Rocha, a stop was made among the trees as I have before except that today, I was successful in finding the tiny Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. I heard the light 'drumming' on a branch, a mini version of the Great Spotted's hammering and eventually caught sight of this male, in a bird's nest of a tree! Red cap in the middle? Keeping one eye on the sky as I do, I was pleased to see this raptor moving North. An adult Short-toed Eagle was very unusual at this time, was it an early migrant? It was flying very high and some quality was lost making an identifiable record.
An area of coastal scrub to the West of Sagres was the search area today, following the remarkable find of what will probably be Portugal's third record of Rustic Bunting. I was delighted when the finders - Joanne Grierson and her husband contacted me with information as to its whereabouts and, having seen the image of what looks every bit a Rustic Bunting, it was down the road to Sagres. We met with their friends - Peter and Jane in the said area, and commenced a thorough look around. There was much activity, mainly from thrush species and a good number of Blackcaps and Sardinian Warblers flitted between the bushes. The attraction here seemed to be the puddles left from recent rain, which were providing a source of fresh water for all the wintering birds. There was no sign of the Rustic Bunting for us unfortunately. Georg who had joined the search found a Wryneck which showed briefly and I saw it in bounding flight. Birds were arriving all the time around the pools of water, the Blackbirds first were quickly joined by Ring Ouzels. I took some photos from the car which was parked a good way off, as I didn't want to risk the birds not showing at all - particularly a Rustic Bunting! Any little puddle was providing valuable drinks and each pool had its own story. What I saw next came as a complete and unexpected surprise. As a Blackbird hopped away into the bushes, a FIELDFARE emerged and began drinking. A Fieldfare becomes the latest addition to my Algarve list of 258 species, being a winter rarity and in some winters, none at all. To my knowledge, this is only the second record this winter - a bird was around the Cabranosa watchpoint in December for a few days. It showed twice on the ground in a short space of time, but not again. Some more images from around Sagres this afternoon.
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