Day 3 - Grasslands towards Caceres. With a clear blue sky and the sun rising steadily, we loaded the car with our birding equipment and refreshments for the day. Passing through Torrejon el Rubio once more, we took a right turn and headed out on the EX-390 towards Caceres. The landscape comprised mostly of cork oak woodland or 'dehesas' and before finally leaving this scene, we made a short stop at a nest site for White Storks. What surprised us here, on getting out of the car was the deafening sound of hundreds of Spanish Sparrows! The storks were nesting in the tops of various pine trees and each nest (of colossal proportions) was in turn, the nesting place for the Spanish Sparrows. This is a common happening where both these species occur. The White Stork presumably tolerates the many 'chirping' sparrows under its feet! A dark form Booted Eagle stooped into one of the pines and was probably also nesting there. We continued our drive, watching the landscape change slowly and trying to assess where would be a likely place to find our sought after 'sandgrouse'. Just as the the fields were starting to look a little more stoney and the vegetation thinning out, we were confronted with a massive solar farm extending for a considerable distance on one side of the road. Undeterred we made a stop here, as the other side of the road looked very promising indeed. The first sounds we heard came from a small Bee-eater colony on sandy ground by a nearby farm. A small lake at the farm had Black-winged Stilts and a Greenshank wading in the shallows. Larks were singing everywhere, Calandra Larks seemed to be the most numerous and were performing their flight songs around us. The Calandra is a large lark with a stout bill and conspicuous black breast patch. In flight, the black underwing shows well and a white trailing edge is also visible usually. Thekla's Larks were also seen in small numbers and two Short-toed Larks settled in front of us at some distance away. Chris saw a large bird flying into the field and called out 'Great Bustard'. It settled down on the ground and remained difficult to see, a long way off. It turned out to be the only Great Bustard we did see so we were pleased with that sighting at least. We moved on, looking for a different location and still hoping for our target birds. A difficult aspect turned out to be the few places to stop safely, as both sides of the road slope away for drainage and the land is fenced, always. We found another ideal location where, on dry-stoned walls, Northern Wheatears were seen. In the same place, smart Black Redstarts were hopping on the wall and I was hoping very much that just one bird would turn out to be a Black Wheatear. Scrutinising each bird carefully, I then noticed around ten pigeon-sized birds flying towards me, above the wall. I quickly called out to Chris and we both stood in awe as a small flock of Pin-tailed Sandgrouse passed in front of us. The Pin-tailed Sandgrouse was a new species for me. The fact that this was the only time I had left the car without my camera (!!) didn't lessen my delight, as I watched them fly close by, showing all the necessary features distinguishing them from the Black-bellied Sandgrouse. We saw numerous other species around here and there were always raptors in the air, between searching the fields. On the way back, another stop off by a river led to us finding a Purple Heron, which we hadn't anticipated at all. I've barely covered the fascinating birds and landscape to be found here - much more time is needed in this vast natural area. Day 4 - Castillo de Monfrague. Our final day before leaving for Madrid began at the Castle and Hermitage, set high on the hill where it gives the best views possible of the superb raptors. The walk up to the hill is best done slowly and steadily, checking the surrounding trees for small birds like this brilliant Subalpine Warbler. Finally we reach the castle and the views are breath-taking. Now, we are among the magnificent vultures. Without a doubt, an experience never to be forgotten! The walk back down the hill saw us looking at a pair of subadult Golden Eagles, one of which was clearly giving a display flight. We made a final visit to Puente del Cardenal before saying goodbye to Chris and Sue there. The Egyptian Vultures were showing well once more and we added a Cirl Bunting to our long list of species found on this great trip. A timely adult Bonelli's Eagle completed our raptor list, flying gracefully across the river. * * * * * * *
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