Wednesday 10 April, Gaucin, cloudy am, mostly sunny pm, light W-NW wind, 20C

A super Spring day at last (though Monday and Tuesday weren't bad either, just tempered by a cold wind)! Monday morning I was walking around the San Martin de Tesorillo area but there was little bird activity of note, 30+ Griffon Vulture over Cerro Gordo, a couple of Booted Eagle and a couple of Short-toed Eagle, Little Egret, Alpine Swift, several Common Nightingale and Zitting Cisticola, many Woodchat Shrike and a single Northern Wheatear. This morning I was back there and there was more about; turning off the Jimena de la Frontera-San Roque road towards San Martin de Tesorillo at 0900hrs there were at least 75 Black Kite on the ground in a field; later around Cerro de Galgo there were 3 Montagu's Harrier, Booted and Short-toed Eagle, Sparrowhawk, Common Cuckoo, 20+ Woodchat Shrike (including a pair displaying millimetres apart on a fence wire right in front of me), Crested Lark, 15+ Common Nightingale, Melodious Warbler, Sardinian Warbler and Blackcap; Cetti's Warbler was heard.

There was a Blue Rock Thrush still singing strongly around Calle Convento area yesterday and in the evening at about 2300hrs, just as a light mist descended on the village, there was a burst of alarm call from an Eagle Owl directly above Calle Convento - unfortunately, the mist prevented me from seeing it but it flew around calling for at least 15 minutes.