Birdwatch Gaucin

Sunday 30 March 2014, Gaucin, partly cloudy, light NW wind, 13C

Following 7mm rain overnight it was a damp start to the day but it cleared quickly. A couple of 'armchair' observations....

1100hrs: a flock of 11 Black Stork just south-west of the village
1120hrs: 1 Black Kite low over the valley just south of the village

Walking from Puerto Espina to Algatocin and back mid-morning I saw, of note:
20+ Griffon Vulture, Booted Eagle, 2x Red-billed Chough, Blue Rock Thrush, Woodlark, Stonechat and Rock Bunting.

Over the past few weeks I've been struck by the relative lack of birds around, in particular smaller passerines; I thought I was being overly-pessimistic but two people have, without prompting, mentioned the same thing to me. Could be nothing, or is there something amiss??

Distant Woodlark!

Snow on the Sierra de las Nieves

Saturday 29 March 2014, Gaucin, partly cloudy, light W-NW wind, 12C

A drier day than yesterday with 11mm rain falling Friday night-Saturday morning but feeling quite cold in the wind. I walked to Punto Umbria mid-morning and saw the following species of note: Griffon Vulture, Booted Eagle, Great-spotted Woodpecker, Firecrest, Long-tailed Tit, Blackcap, Common Wren and Serin. Common Cuckoo, Green Woodpecker, Eurasian Nuthatch, Chiffchaff (Common?) and Crested Tit were heard.

During the day the following were seen over the village: At 1230hrs there was dark morph Booted Eagle above Casa Antonia; at 1630hrs a male Montagu's Harrier and at 1700hrs two dark morph Booted Eagle and a Short-toed Eagle.

Friday 28 March 2014, Gaucin, cloudy, rain, light-fresh NW wind, 6C

Spring came to a grinding halt today, after two days with a reasonable amount of sun but a chilly north-westerly wind, as the temperature peaked at 6C and 27mm rain fell between 0800hrs and 2200hrs. There are now at least 8 Swift sp. around Calle Convento/Calle del Pino, at least 4 of them being Pallid Swift; other than that, precious little to report bird-wise.

Tuesday 25 March 2014, Gaucin, partly cloudy, light-fresh W-NW wind, 19C

Just a few Black Kite moving through with 7 over the village at 1130hrs, 4 at 1145hrs and a single bird at 1715hrs. The local pair of Short-toed Eagle around to the South for most of the day as usual.

Monday 24 March 2014, Gaucin, sunny, light NW wind, 20C

A Common Cuckoo was calling from just South of Gaucin from 0730-0830hrs. At 1230hrs a group of 7 Black Kite passed high over the centre of the village (they were very high, I only picked them up because I was checking a lower, but still quite high, group of Griffon Vulture); at 1300hrs there was an unusual sight of 45 Great Cormorant high over the Rio Genal just South-East of Gaucin - they circled for a few minutes before heading upstream. During the afternoon there were at least 2 Short-toed Eagle and one pale morph Booted Eagle and a Common Kestrel around to the South of the village.

Sunday 23 March 2014, Gaucin, sunny, light W-NW wind, 20C

A much better day than yesterday but, although seemingly ideal for raptor passage over the village, there was nothing to be seen. There was, however, a pale morph Booted Eagle over the centre of the village at 1200hrs and 3 Short-toed Eagle together at 1300hrs; also Blue Rock Thrush and Sardinian Warbler in full song below Gaucin castle.

A few butterflies around including these two....