With bad weather through the week had to make the most of the weekend…headed off on Sunday up the hillside to the east of the village, hoping for the best. I have to say the day couldn’t have started any better. Before very long we found one of the region’s most spectacular summer visitors, our first Egyptian Vulture of the year! Striking black and white plumage, with the yellow detail on the face of the bird clearly visible. Had great views as it soared overhead before drifting away. Fantastic. We drove on following what is becoming a regular local route and soon came across a Woodchat Shrike, another Alpujarran seasonal favourite, perched at the top of a bush waiting for prey.
Northern Wheatear look to have arrived in some numbers now, and we saw maybe half a dozen as we slowly climbed higher. Red-legged Partridge broke cover from right alongside the road. Good to see Linnets along the way, a familiar farmland and upland bird from back home but the first I’d actually seen in Spain.
Stonechat and Crested Lark showed well and then, for me at least, one of the absolute highlights of the year so far…my first ever Rock Thrush. A male, back from its wintering grounds south of the Sahara, with a rusty red chest and powder blue head. Usually found at higher altitudes than the closely related Blue Rock Thrush, so to have both species on our doorstep is a real bonus. With luck they’ll be local for the summer months. Hopefully the photographs will do it justice…
Recovered from the excitement enough to watch a pair of Ravens, a Lesser Kestrel and a dark form Booted Eagle, with tell-tale pale “palms” and “V” shaped pattern on its back. As we progressed the habitat changed and in the oak woodland we watched a Short-toed Treecreeper intently searching the tree trunks for grubs and spiders. On the drive down two or three Jays added a noisy splash of colour and as we approached Soportujar we found more Woodchat Shrikes. One settled on a wire next to the road, another dropping onto the roadside after insects from a nearby bush.
With a little time to spare we took a short detour and dropped into the valley below Lanjaron on a track just before the village. Quickly found another Woodchat Shrike watching its patch intently and then another first..a Corn Bunting. A year long Spanish resident but a bird I’d yet to encounter here. True to type, delivering its jangling song from its perch, sounding like rattling keys and broken glass.
Setting off back up towards the village there was one more surprise left…a pair of Whinchat, my first of the year. Not long back from Africa and maybe on passage, shortly to move north. They had yet to develop full summer plumage but their agitated tail twitching and “tek tek tek” calls were a give away. Another brilliant day of Alpujarran birdwatching, clearly demonstrating how rich and varied it can be. Migrants back every day now, and it’s still only April…
