It's the last week of our long winter stay (thanks to the Visa) and I returned to where we had begun in September, now seeming a long time ago. In September, the chance of seeing Alpine Accentors at Cape St. Vincent would be very unusual. As the Winter hardens in the Pyrenees, these birds move a little further South and one or two individuals can been found regularly on the Cape cliffs, most winters. I was most surprised that one of these accentors was the first bird I saw on the cliff top, having not even left the car! I was able to take many close up photos of this confiding accentor, by sitting on the low car park wall until it edged its way back to the cliff edge. On the cliffs below, a second accentor was found showing a more distinctive white chin. After a little while, the first accentor returned to the cliff top again. A marvellous opportunity to have detailed views of these rare but regular winter visitors. Leaving the Cape itself, I returned towards Sagres where a Ring Ouzel spectacular was going on after recent rain showers. This area of bushes held at least eight Ring Ouzels, a Redwing, Song and Mistle Thrushes and of course, many Blackbirds. No 'cropping' on this Ouzel as it perched next to the car. Many other species were in this location and a Starling 'bath time' featured both Spotless Starling and their Northern relatives in glorious winter plumage. A Swallowtail butterfly was found on the headland at Atalaia.
I liked the idea of some woodland birding for today's outing and set off towards the lower slopes of the Monchique hills. The weather was ideal, with no wind to disturb the trees and a bright start. The area I settled on contained a good mix of both deciduous and coniferous trees, together with some open ground where small isolated dwellings existed. There was plenty of bird song going on, particularly from Nuthatches and 'drumming' woodpeckers. Jays were screeching and flying through the trees but even they couldn't compete with the loudest of them all - the tiny Wren! I began to compile my list with Blue and Great Tit, Crested Tits were high up in the tallest conifers. Robins were plentiful, as were Blackcaps and several Blackbirds. A few nice surprises were bound to occur, beginning with my first Rock Bunting in two years. Taking a break for a coffee after my first walk, I found a pair of Rock Buntings right by the car!! A hastily crumbled cheese sandwich kept these two occupied and gave me some excellent records. They really are the most colourful birds and seemed very confiding. It didn't take long while listening for Short-toed Treecreepers before I found my first two of several seen in the woods. Absolutely ideal habitat with cork oaks, covered in moss and lichens. A rather surprising species seen in someone's garden was this Grey Wagtail, looking like a 1st year male. I had two further encounters without accompanying pictures. The first was a singing Iberian Chiffchaff which I saw, but it soon vanished and the second, an Iberian Woodpecker which sat high in a distant tree. My count continued, with Chaffinches, Greenfinches, Serins and a Sardinian Warbler. The small flock of Chaffinches produced a wonderful surprise - a small number of Brambling were feeding with them. Quite how many there were, I wasn't sure. Certainly three seen together, one of which was an almost full summer male, shown here. I was really appreciating what a great day this was turning out when, a Ring Ouzel turned up in a bush next to the Bramblings! Although I had watched the sky from time to time, other than passing Woodpigeons and one Grey Heron, there hadn't been any sign of raptors at all.
I completed my woodland bird count with a lovely Firecrest which for once, fed at eye level! Situated adjacent to Lagos aerodrome, this land is one more area seeking to gain better environmental protection, in view of its richness in wildlife. Friends of mine who know far more historically about this place, recognise its potential importance and I, as a visitor have seen my share of rare birds from time to time. While visiting here a couple of weeks ago, I said to my friend Chris "that piece of ground down there is just right for a rare Crake species." Imagine my delight this morning when, within ten minutes of scanning the wetter areas, a fine Spotted Crake was seen feeding in open water. This Spotted Crake is without doubt the smartest example in terms of plumage, profusely spotted and the red spot on the bill showing well. Remaining in the open, I was able to watch it feeding in shallow water for a considerable time. The crake has almost certainly arrived overnight and was very settled in this location. It did scurry for cover when the huge White Storks dropped in and, when a Marsh Harrier overflew the fields but soon emerged to resume feeding. What an experience and how it justifies retaining these small but vital wetlands.
The cytisus or white broom bushes are looking splendid in the fields surrounding the lagoons at Salgados. The purpose of today's visit was to locate at least one of the Jack Snipe (Lymnocryptes minimus) which have been found by other birders. A much sought after rarity, it is four years ago since I saw my first Jack Snipe for my Algarve records and I was keen to get a further sighting. I had a fair idea where these birds may be located and a first look certainly showed plenty of Common Snipe were about. After a while, we took a break to walk the boardwalk and identify the remaining birds on the site. There was a noticeable increase in House Martins in the air, flying with the Swallows and Crag Martins. Hundreds of gulls were on the lagoons, mostly Mediterranean and Audouin's together with a further flock of Black-headed Gulls towards the bridge end. On several occasions, the gulls were startled by the hunting Marsh Harriers, the entire bird population taking to the air as a dark form Booted Eagle made its presence known, flying low over the lakes. I returned to the 'snipe' area and settled down for another wait. The Wood Sandpiper, seen on my last visit was still here and a little more confiding this time. The hours passed by, I widened my search area slightly still hoping for a glimpse of a Jack Snipe. Re-checking some previously seen Common Snipe, I was lucky to see a Water Rail on the same small island. It may have been roosting in the reeds, as it emerged stretching its wings and legs before strolling around between the Snipe. I had given as much time as I could, walking briskly back to the car past the first area I had waited, there was minutus, in almost full view. The Jack Snipe had probably seen me first, almost crouching it remained 'frozen' to the ground. I took some photos which are partially obscured with reeds, but didn't go any nearer to this super little rarity. The Jack Snipe is around 6cm smaller than the Common Snipe, the bill being clearly shorter. The top of the head has a more pointed appearance and in good light, a green colour shows well along the back.
Our final opportunity to enjoy the wonderful birding experience on this trip to the Alentejo. We planned to be away by mid afternoon, which gave us around five more hours in the field. Saying goodbye to our hosts at the Hotel Vila Verde, we left Castro Verde and took the turning to Geraldos, stopping off at a river location. Here we listened to Cetti's Warblers and tried to see two rapidly moving Kingfishers darting along the river. Continuing through Santa Barbara de Padroes, we scanned the fields carefully through the small hamlet of Sete and stopped at a small lake where I had once seen Gull-billed Terns. There was little water present this time and apart from a Little Owl in the vicinity, rather quiet with birds. I haven't travelled the route further than this, but banking on a circular tour at some point, we carried on as far as Tacoes. It was here, while wondering which road to take that I noticed a long tailed bird sitting on a power line. An adult Great Spotted Cuckoo. One of the earliest migrants to return from Africa, our chances of seeing one in the first days of February were very slim indeed. This was a beautiful bird with its grey crest and white spotted wings. Close to where it perched was a copse of pine trees, no doubt containing caterpillars and this may have accounted for its presence here. The cuckoo made its loud 'che-che-che' call several times and suddenly, a second male was seen flying around the pine plantation. We went on to add Calandra Larks to our ever increasing list which finally totalled 82 species.
As I said yesterday, certainly my best trip to the Alentejo over twenty years. Of course, the trip was made all the better having Chris and Sue for company and, a fun-packed trip throughout. The Hotel Vila Verde in Castro Verde town provided a comfortable rest and 'nice' breakfast, before our team set out for a full day's birding. With much excitement and a 'certain air of confidence', we headed North towards Entradas. A small river runs around one side of the small town of Entradas and at one point it runs across (literally) a minor road. The river is held back slightly by a small dam wall, providing a lake which has become a well watched area for birds. This White Stork looks over the lake and appears to have 'adjusted' the tree to its liking! Among the first birds to show at the lake were two Black-winged Kites which flew around for a while, with a little courtship display going on too. It is a very pleasant place to watch, small waders such as Green Sandpiper, Common Snipe feed at the water's edge and Swallows were drinking from the surface, while in flight. A further ten species went on the list here, including Cattle Egret, Kingfisher, House and Crag Martin and a Common Buzzard perched nearby for us. A flock of perhaps thirty or so Waxbills fed in the grass and occasionally popped up on the dam wall. After a coffee break, we continued on this minor road to a completely new site for us, which has the name of Acude da Aparica. This is a substantial area of water but is not actually seen from the minor road and requires a little back-tracking on a rather rough road. I'm not sure what the access requirements are here and there were plenty of signs relating to hunting or fishing rights. It was completely fenced from the track, as much of this area is and we decided to observe what we could from a raised vantage point. This was probably not a bad idea as, with a large number of wildfowl on the water, going much closer would have resulted in a mass departure of most of our species. On the subject of wildfowl and I'm not bragging about this, I found an Egyptian Goose! Not to everyone's liking but a first on my Portugal List and about time too!! There were several other wildfowl species - Teal, Mallard, good numbers of Shoveler and a single drake Wigeon (on a smaller nearby water). Of the more interesting birds, two Common Crane could be seen distantly, resting among Spoonbills. A single Great-crested Grebe swam on the lake and Snipe, Greenshank and a Dunlin made up the wader count. A peculiar drawn out call alerted us to a small number of birds flying across in front of us. They were straightaway confirmed as Black-bellied Sandgrouse. We had an idea we saw three earlier as three 'rear ends' disappeared over a hill Of all the times I have visited the Alentejo, I can think of perhaps two other when these sandgrouse have shot over a hill and out of sight. Today, we were in for a treat as several small flocks of Black-bellied Sandgrouse flew around the fields, circling and calling before dropping to the ground. Some of the ground here was particularly bare and reddish in colour. Although we couldn't quite see them, due to the rolling nature of the landscape, I'm sure they were liking this area. While still reeling from this superb viewing, three Great Bustards casually flew across the field to our right, continuing on towards Sao Marcos. How do we follow that, we all remarked? Well perhaps with a juvenile Spanish Imperial Eagle pursuing a Red Kite! At this time, around midday, another large raptor was not far from this juvenile imperial eagle and as all were flying rather too high, we logged it as another Golden Eagle. Now I am working on the images, it is clear to see the white leading edges on the wings. Coupled with the overall dark colouring, this bird must be an adult Spanish Imperial Eagle and the first record of one for me. ........ then more Black-bellied Sandgrouse Here we eventually see a pair of Sandgrouse much closer. The male (upper) shows a grey breast with an orange chin patch, while the female has a brown mottled breast pattern. Before leaving this amazing site, the 'presumed' adult Black Stork from Horta da Nora circled the lake for a while before dropping in. There was one other location we wished to visit on this day, the monastery at Nossa Senhora de Aracelis. We stopped firstly at Salto where we were greeted with another flock of Little Bustards. Also in the sky but a considerable distance away, we saw a huge raptor being mobbed by Red Kites. Looking like a black rectangle with head and tail at either side, there was no mistaking a Black Vulture. We saw the vulture fly away but strangely, met it again perched in a field, seen from the monastery at Aracelis. We commenced our drive back to Castro Verde and finished the day beautifully with a stunning male Hen Harrier and yes, more Great Bustards. Probably the best day's birding I have had in the Alentejo, but wait a minute - there's the climax tomorrow!!
In the past, visits to Castro Verde in the Alentejo have been all too brief. Always a day trip from somewhere on the Algarve coast and under a time constraint in which to find and enjoy the desired bird species. In such a vast area, there is no guarantee that you are going to see any of the rarer species and perhaps the worst thing you can do, is to start rushing from here to there. After talking with Chris and Sue, we hatched a plan to stay two nights in Castro Verde and really put some time in, with more pairs of eyes! We travel from different parts of the Algarve so while waiting to rendezvous with Chris and Sue, a visit to the local Long-eared Owls in their daytime roost revealed three owls. Our meeting point was the lake at Horta da Nora on the Casevel road from Castro Verde. Many of the more common species were accounted for quite quickly, for example the Grey Heron, Spoonbill, White Stork and Little Egret. Waterside birds were made up of Common Sandpiper, Lapwing, Black-winged Stilt and Snipe. A single adult Lesser Black-backed Gull was more unusual, though the star bird here was undoubtedly a fine adult Black Stork. Photographing it into the sunlight was not very effective, but we will return to this bird later as we found it the following morning on another lake. We took in the first few Alentejo birds such as the Carrion Crows, numerous Red Kites and Iberian Grey Shrikes. Thirty five species were attained at this site alone. From Horta da Nora we travelled the short distance to the LPN Educational Centre. In a few months time, both Lesser Kestrel and Roller can be found here. We were aware of this but also know other great species can be found here. Before even setting off to search, 13 Little Bustards flew across the landscape at some distance. Walking one of the permissible tracks added another 16 species to our rapidly expanding lists. Lapwing flocks contain large numbers of birds at this time of year. Often associated with them are the Golden Plovers, shining brilliantly in the sunlight. Jackdaws are plentiful around the old buildings, our first Ravens were seen and a female Marsh Harrier flew over the Reserve. More and more circling Red Kites drew our attention to three large raptors high above us. One was soon established as a juvenile Spanish Imperial Eagle, the other two were much darker birds. These two Golden Eagles stayed for a while, circling high up and not giving much away, as to their age. As these eagles departed, we watched more kites, both Red and Black-winged. The Marsh Harrier showed up again and Common Buzzards showed occasionally. The sky was becoming alive in the warm afternoon, 'crowned' by the re-appearance of the Little Bustards giving brilliant views as they circled the fields more than once. We made our way slowly back to Castro Verde where Chris and Sue caught up with the Long-eared Owls - taking in more sightings along the roads. Iberian Grey Shrike. We had seen two of Portugal's rarest eagles and for me, my first opportunity to look at Little Bustards in flight.
An excellent first day and tomorrow we will be at more locations around Castro Verde. |
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