I was intrigued to know whether the White-winged Snowfinch had decided to become a 'long-stayer' or if it was a brief visit only. Whilst preparing to set off, there were a few interesting sights around the apartment this morning. A male Siskin in tree outside. A smart Yellow-legged Gull on our roof. and an Azure-winged Magpie in the garden. On our way out to Aljezur again, we pulled over at the turning to Pincho - an area of excellent mixed woodland and an opportunity to find more woodland birds. My target bird was Lesser Spotted Woodpecker which is hard enough to find at home, but does frequent this area. The first birds were Long-tailed Tits, 2 Wrens and a Nuthatch calling nearby. A familiar call led me to my first Bullfinches in the Algarve and 3-4 Waxbills flew over. Many of the lichen-covered cork oak trees had woodpecker nest holes and within twenty minutes, I traced a calling Lesser to the top of a telegraph pole. Hastily (and badly) shooting into the light, I tried to get a few photos before it flew, on seeing me below. Great to see our smallest Woodpecker. We arrived at the coastal site near Aljezur and I began to scour the ground in the same field as before. Pied and White Wagtails, a good flock of Corn Buntings also held two Cirl Bunting. Two Serins were on the ground and very difficult to pick out. A female Black Redstart was much easier! Within a couple of minutes, I found the Snowfinch still looking brilliant and constantly feeding amongst the short grass and small plants. Considering the rarity in terms of Portuguese records, I was surprised no one else was looking, especially on a Saturday. I stayed with it for a while, taking even more photos. Perhaps it thought the daisies were a carpet of snow - it looked like it !!
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