After my patrol around the ridge immediately below the village yesterday, it was Kiersten's turn today and she headed off a little further afield into the north of the Sierra Nevada range to see what she could find higher up in the mountains. Armed with her camera she explored the area above Hoya de la Mora, a bleak, rocky bit of habitat very different from the more forgiving hillsides we're used to around and above the Lanjaron valley.

At around 2,500 metres this patch sits above the ski station and with less variety in the local birdlife we ought to be expecting mountain species...sure enough, she came back with some spectacular shots. We've encountered Choughs at lower altitudes before but they will nest around steep precipices and ravines up to around 3000 metres. The size of a Jackdaw, these metallic, blacker corvids are altogether more glossy and showy...note the distinctive, deeply "fingered" broad wings captured in these images. The adults' long red bills are often visible from some distance away...the brownish-yellow bills of the juveniles could possibly cause confusion with the closely related Alpine Chough but the latter species, in Spain at least, is confined to the Pyrenees.

While Chough are undoubtedly beautiful birds, for sheer size and mastery of the air our Griffon Vultures surely take centre stage. The arrival of these magnificent birds above Lanjaron at the end of summer was for me one of the most remarkable wildlife spectacles I've ever seen. We've debated long and hard over their local seasonal movements...whether they try to cross the Mediterranean to winter in Africa is a question we've asked repeatedly but as these shots show in our region at least we've got Griffons well into November, which can only be a fantastic thing. As always, hope you enjoy the photos and keep checking our postings for all the latest news...