The view from Tarifa, across the Straits of Gibraltar, to Morocco. Photo: Steve Rooke
No other Mediterranean country offers the birding riches of Spain. This tour is designed to take in the very best birdwatching this country can provide, at a relaxed pace.
We’ll travel almost the entire length of this fascinating land, beginning in the steppes north of Madrid, where the search for Dupont’s Lark will take us through ancient villages frozen in time. We’ll visit Extremadura, home to the highest concentration of raptors in Europe, before exploring the fragile wilderness of the famous Coto Doñana, where we’ll look for such famous specialties as Greater Flamingo and Marbled Duck. We’ll wander vast plains where Great Bustards still gather and mighty Spanish Imperial Eagles drift overhead, then finish on the shores of the Mediterranean, at the point where Europe almost touches Africa and where returning spring migrants will be flooding back to their breeding grounds.
This is a comprehensive tour, but we’ll have plenty of time for shady picnics, delicious local meals accompanied by good Spanish wine, and abundant opportunities to sample the unique Spanish way of life.
Day 1: Our tour begins with a flight from London to Madrid, where we’ll transfer the short distance to our hotel. If time permits, we’ll do some birding en route, and our first taste of Mediterranean birding may come in the form of a White Stork, Booted Eagle, or Eurasian Hoopoe flying over the road. Night in Sepulveda.
Day 2: We’ll be up early today to search for one of Europe’s most elusive birds, Dupont’s Lark. This species typically sings only at dawn, so we’ll be in place early for the best chance at seeing el diablo as the sun rises. The lark’s strange, mournful song is not difficult to hear, but there will be competition from the voices of Greater Short-toed, Calandra, and Eurasian Sky Larks. We’ll return to this area after breakfast; breeding birds here include Eurasian Griffon Vulture, Red-legged Partridge, Southern Gray Shrike, Tawny Pipit, Spectacled and Sardinian Warblers, and Rock Sparrow. We’ll have all day to search for these species, while the nearby town also holds Red-billed Chough, and roadside wires may produce our first European Bee-eaters or a Woodchat Shrike. Stunted junipers can shelter Dartford and Western Orphean Warblers, and the rocky terrain is favored by Northern and Black-eared Wheatears. Night in Sepulveda.
Day 3: We’ll have another chance to search for Dupont’s Lark this morning, and if we’re lucky we may bump into a Eurasian Stone-curlew, Great Spotted Cuckoo, or Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush. After breakfast we’ll check an area of deciduous woodland that has in the past held breeding Eurasian Wryneck, sharpei Green Woodpecker, and Nightingale, along with Serin and Short-toed Treecreeper. We’ll then begin our journey south towards Extremadura. We’ll check a good area for Citril Finch before continuing west of Madrid, where we’ll start to see classic dehesa, pastureland with scattered oaks and no substantial understory. In some years we might see Black-shouldered Kite. If time allows, we’ll check an area of steppe habitat near our hotel for Great and Little Bustard and maybe our first Montagu’s Harrier. Night near Trujillo.
Days 4-5: We’ll have two full days to explore the wonders of Extremadura, dividing our time between Monfragüe National Park and the steppes. Monfragüe has one of the highest concentrations of breeding raptors in Europe, and if the weather is favorable we’ll see hundreds of Eurasian Griffon Vultures, as well as Eurasian Black and Egyptian Vultures, Red and Black Kites, and a fine variety of eagles: Booted, Short-toed, Golden, Bonelli’s, and—hopefully—the globally rare Spanish Imperial Eagle. Such other highly sought-after specialties as Black Stork, Eurasian Eagle Owl, Alpine Swift, Red-rumped Swallow, Crag Martin, Blue Rock Thrush, Subalpine Warbler, and Rock and Cirl Buntings also breed in the park. Our day on the steppes may be no less exciting, and we’ll make several stops to look for Great and Little Bustards, Black-bellied and Pin-tailed Sandgrouse, Little Owl, Great Spotted Cuckoo, European Roller, Wood Lark, and possibly Black Wheatear. The density of breeding Montagu’s Harriers can be impressive, and Zitting Cisticola and both Crested and Thekla Larks can be found in many places. The town of Trujillo holds breeding Lesser Kestrels and Pallid Swifts. Nights near Trujillo.
I’ve toured with James Lidster in Sweden and in Spain, and recommend him most highly to both beginners and expert birders. His personality makes his tours a pleasure, each and every day, and I look forward to birding with James again, hopefully soon!
Steve Weis
Day 6: We’ll continue our journey south today, aiming to be in the famous Coto Doñana by afternoon. Our hotel is a real gem on the shores of the marismas, and we could see our first Greater Flamingos and Eurasian Spoonbills within a few hundred yards of our rooms! If the marismas and lagoon at El Rocio are low, we may see flocks of Curlew Sandpipers, Whiskered Terns, and Collared Pratincoles hawking for insects; if levels are high, then species such as Avocet and Black-winged Stilt may find it to their liking. The reedy edges often hold singing Great Reed Warblers, and careful scanning of the shoreline often produces Squacco and Purple Herons, sometimes Glossy Ibis, and occasionally Little Bittern or the rare Red-knobbed Coot. Night in El Rocio.
Days 7-8: The Coto Doñana is one of Europe’s last great wilderness areas, and our two days will be enough for just a sample of of its rich and varied habitats. We’ll spend a whole day birding the maze of tracks to the José Antonio Valverde Visitor Center, where there is a fine colony of Purple Herons and Glossy Ibis, with smaller numbers of Black-crowned Night-Herons, Cattle Egrets, and Squacco Herons mixed in. This used to be a good area for Marbled Duck, but they have become more difficult in recent years. The roadside ditches offer a chance at Little Bittern, while Purple Swamphen, Eurasian Turtle Dove, and Corn Bunting are all surprisingly common. Open water areas can have Great White Egret, Greater Flamingo, Gull-billed Tern, and various waterfowl and shorebirds, while drier areas support Lesser Short-toed Larks. There can be so many birds that it is hard to guess how long it will take us to get to the visitor center!
Closer to our hotel is a series of trails and blinds that offer excellent chances at Red-crested Pochard, Iberian Chiffchaff, Cetti’s Warbler, Firecrest, and Eurasian Tree Sparrow. If time allows, we may head west towards Huelva for more chances at Red-knobbed Coot, Osprey, and shorebirds around the salt pans. We’ll stay out late one night to try for Red-necked Nightjar. Nights at El Rocio.
James is a very competent birding leader, but that’s not his only strength: his easy manner and sense of humor put everyone at ease and made for pleasant times around the dinner table and while traveling. All in all he is a very personable young man. This was my first tour with James, and after such a successful trip I am sure it won’t be my last.
Gillian Collyer
Day 9: It’s always hard to leave the Doñana, but today we’ll be searching for more of Spain’s special birds as we head to the coast and the very tip of the country. First up is a visit to the Bonanza salt pans, one of the more reliable sites for Slender-billed Gull; in addition to migrant shorebirds such as Little Stint and Greenshank and residents like Avocet and Kentish Plover, we may run into a surprise or two, perhaps a Red-necked Phalarope or a group of Black-necked Grebes. After lunch we’ll check an area where Little Swifts have become very regular in recent years. Known from only a handful of sites in Europe, this species, common in Africa, seems to be on the increase, and we’ll be checking all the swifts and swallows carefully. Night on the coast near Zahara.
Day 10: The southern shores of Spain and the Straits of Gibraltar are famed for their raptor migration, and if a flight is taking place, we’ll hope to connect with it today. In some years the first European Honey Buzzards are making their way north, perhaps joined by a Short-toed Eagle, Marsh Harrier, or Black Kite. The local beaches can hold Audouin’s Gull along with migrant shorebirds and terns. Cory’s and Balearic Shearwaters occur offshore, and coastal woodlands and scrub hold Iberian Chiffchaff, Western Bonelli’s Warbler, and any number of potential migrants, from Eurasian Hoopoes, Bee-eaters, and Golden Orioles, to Spotted and Pied Flycatchers, Common Redstart, and Serin. Night near Zahara.
Day 11: We’ll have the opportunity for some final birding along the coast before we make our way to Malaga airport for a flight to London, where the tour ends.
Updated: 06 May 2009
Prices
- 2010 price about $4,490
- Single Occupancy Supplement $490
Notes
This tour is limited to seven participants with one leader, 14 with two leaders. If a second leader is needed, it will be James Lidster.
Participants who prefer to meet the group in Madrid should contact the WINGS office.
This tour is organized by our British company, Sunbird.