I spent six days over the Christmas period in Extremadura in Spain. For those of you not familiar with its location it is a province in central Spain just north of Andalucia and up against Portugal. It's one of the most unspoilt parts of Spain and a top spot for birds. I've been to the area twice before but in the Spring so this was my first visit in the Winter. It was quite a relief to get away from all the Christmas hype in the UK and do some birding.
Our group stayed in a rural hotel about 15km outside Trujillo set in open countryside with lovely views to the east. The hotel was comfortable enough and although food was plentiful it was rather basic but the wine was all included so that was a bonus. I took a bottle of my home made Morello Cherry liqueur to share with the group and help the festivities along. You can see where my priorities lie.
The weather wasn't kind to us. The first day was dry, bright and sunny but went rapidly downhill after that with wind and rain setting in. On Christmas Eve it rained heavily all day and I didn't get the camera out of the bag. Christmas Day started similarly but gradually improved although the rest of the week remained very unsettled and none too warm. I think we suffered from the same depression that swept across the UK. It didn't stop us going out though but I'm afraid my photos are not the best as a result.
Anyway to the birds. Extremadura is a great wintering spot for birds. Everywhere you go there are masses of small birds like Sparrows, Starlings, Larks of all types and finches; the reason is that agriculture is of low intensity and there is food for them to eat. This is so unlike Britain with our intensive agriculture leaving little for wildlife.
Bustards which breed in Spain gather together in the winter to feed on the open plains and fields. They are very wary and easily spooked and hard to get close to.
These are Little Bustards just poking there heads above the vegetation.
I did a bit better with the Great Bustards .......
........ before they took fright.
Small birds are quite difficult to get close enough to photograph but here's a few that we picked up along the way.
Red-legged Partridges
Thekla Lark
If you ever wondered where Chiffchaffs went in the winter, they're all in Spain, well a lot of them. Here's some rather feeble attempts at capturing them flycatching over water.
I really needed Bob's_ retired_now skill for these.
There were quite a few Iberian Shrikes around but his is the only half decent photo I managed.
Common Cranes winter here in huge numbers mainly in the rice fields. I managed to get a few flying over.
They are also easily spooked but I managed to get these as they were taking off. You can see how misty it was and the others behind still feeding through the gloom. The sound they make whether feeding or flying is truly a call of the wild.
At another location we were lucky to come across a pair of Bonelli's Eagle. I didn't know this but they are resident unlike some of the other species of eagle like the Short-toed and Booted. This was the only half decent shot I managed. It looked like it had a full crop.
At a wetland reserve we found the normally quite shy Purple Swamphen (Gallinule). This pair were quite obliging.
No trip to Extremadura would be complete without a visit to the internationally famous Monfragüe National Park. It is home to the largest population of Griffon Vultures in Europe. They are huge birds which drift about obligingly on the wind,and sometimes perch close enough for decent shots.
Even bigger are the rarer Black Vulture. What fantastic "fingers" they've got.
Last but not least one of the rarest eagles in Europe; the Spanish Imperial Eagle. A pair has been nesting in Monfragüe for a number of years and we were lucky enough to see them on our visit. A distant crop of one of them perched ........
........ and a bonus of another in flight.
Although these are large birds it was noticeable how small they looked in comparison with the vultures.
That concludes my account of the trip to Extremadura. Although we saw many more birds than I have mentioned I hope it gives you a sense of the numbers and variety of species that exist in this part of Spain.
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Tony
My Flickr Photostream
Thanks for all your kind comments. I'm glad you enjoyed the photos.
Extremadura is a very special place for birds in both winter and spring as it is relatively unspoiled. In the spring you get all the summer visitors including Bee-eaters, Hoopoes, Woodchat Shrikes, Golden Oriole and various warblers. Short-toed Eagles and Booted Eagles return as do the Black Kites and Lesser Kestrels. The vultures are resident as are the bustards. If you are lucky enough to see the Great Bustards displaying it's quite special.
The winter is characterised by large flocks of birds that have escaped the northern European winter particularly cranes, geese, larks and finches. One thing that surprised me was the number of Red Kites. They were easily the most numerous of the raptors. According to our guide they were probably from Scandinavia and other northern European countries. Quite why the Black Kites migrate to Africa when the Red Kites were clearly finding plenty to eat escapes me.
Well worth a visit to the area if you get the chance.