I've not long returned from a guided birding trip to Extremadura in Spain. I last went there about 8 years ago and it's even better than I remembered.
Extremadura is situated in west/central Spain adjoining Portugal. It's one of the semi-autonomous Regions and is relatively undeveloped and well off the usual tourist trails.
Our small group were based in a very rural location a few miles from Trujillo which is just about bang in the middle. For five nights we were based at this very nice hotel overlooking open countryside. It's one of Spain's Hoteles Rurales network. It was family run and all the food was home cooked. We were treated as though we were members of the family. All the other guests were birders so word is getting about.
When you arrive to the sound of Nightingales singing in the garden you know you've come to a good place. Every morning before we set off for our day's birding you could hear Golden Oriole, Hoopoe, and Cuckoo singing and there were always the elusive Azure-winged Magpies flitting about the garden.
As you can imagine I took loads of photos but in truth many of the birds were rather distant so the results are not that good. Some of them are really rather good birds which I hope you might like to see even if the quality isn't up to scratch.
Trujillo
Trujillo is a rather nice town with a bit of history. It was the birthplace of Pizarro who was the conqueror of Peru and of course there is the inevitable statue.
And a castle overlooking the town.
The skies were filled with birds including Barn and Red-rumped Swallows, Black Kites (which I'll show later) and screaming Swifts.
White Storks were nesting everywhere including the bell tower of the church. Hope they don't ring the bell when they were in residence otherwise it would have given them a bit of a headache.
One of the highlights for me of the visit to Trujillo were the Lesser Kestrels. These are cousins of our well known Common Kestrel but unlike them they like to nest communally. The local bullring is a favourite hang out for them. Here's a few shots.
Male on the roof. Time to go hunting?
I've only shown this one to give a sense of scale.
Has it caught something?
Oh yes, very succulent looking. Marjus will identify it for you. LOL
Another rather heavily cropped shot of one hovering.
That's all for now. I'll add to the thread later with more photos from other sites.
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Tony
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Not bored at all.
That displaying bustard is a fabulous shot and I love the cuckoo - wrong settings or not. I think my favourite is the crested lark looking very much at home amongst the wild flowers.
I had the privilege of flying a black kite during a falconry day - my goodness he was big!
Roll on the next batch of pics.
Cheers, Linda.
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Hi TJ
Cracking photos and report, glad you had a great time and lets hope that nice weather follows you back to the UK
Regards Shane
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Bored? Never! Kept the report going and more photos, please!
I know someone who organises trips down there - you have prompted me to try and visit...
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Great shots of the 'birds of the plains'. I've never had a decent view of a Great Spotted Cuckoo, they are spectacular, aren't they? In Spain they mainly parasitise Magpies and Azure-winged Magpies. Great Bustard is one of the world's heaviest flying bird, though the Kori Bustard of Africa weighs about the same.
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Hi Teejay
Enjoying your photos, as last month I went on a birding trip to Extremadura - and in fact stayed in the same hotel!
My photos are vastly inferior, but some of the top birds we saw on the plains, in addition to the ones you've mentioned, were a Roller and Black-winged Kite, and Black Vultures. Loved the storks nesting on derelict farm buildings, and the tops of the holm oak trees.
Unknown said:Enjoying your photos, as last month I went on a birding trip to Extremadura - and in fact stayed in the same hotel!
Thanks Sue. Quite a coincidence. Did you like the hotel? I saw Roller, Black Vulture and Black-winged Kite too but too distant to get any photos. Storks were great, I liked the the constant clacking of their bills. I'm going to post more photos from the trip soon.
Cracking report and photos TJ, I shall have to rethink my decision not to renew my passport, would really enjoy this sort of holiday. Off to Wales next week, 4 days birding, and 4 days doing our own thing. Prob won't be a patch on your experience, but will enjoy it anyway.
Take care all, Stich.
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No boredom her TJ fabulous photos, a birders paradise
Of all creatures, man is the most detestable, he is the only creature that inflicts pain for sport, knowing it to be pain. ~ Mark Twain
TJ - Yes the hotel was a fascinating place, I expect you remember the Moorish style fountain with the blue frogs.
Did you go up to Monfrague National Park? Looking forward to seeing your photos of that.
Unknown said:Yes the hotel was a fascinating place, I expect you remember the Moorish style fountain with the blue frogs.
I do indeed, Sue. The whole garden was lovely although we didn't get much time to enjoy it. We did pre-breakfast birding and then out all day. Monfrague is next on the list.