GAUCIN (RIO GENAL AND CHESTNUT WOODS) - RIO GUADIARO AT ESTACION CORTES - LLANOS DE LIBAR (MONTEJAQUE) - RONDA - DOLMENES DE ENCINAS BORRACHAS TRACK
Another superb birding day in the beautiful surroundings of the Serrania de Ronda, the weather was fantastic too, bright sunshine all day with a lovely cooling breeze.
We set off from the village at 8am and drove down the valley towards Casares, we then turned onto a track next to the river Genal and parked up. Our first glimpse of the river produced both Grey and White Wagtails, Chiffchaff sp. Blackcap and we heard Long-tailed Tits calling in the distance.
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| Cirl Bunting at Rio Genal |
Along the track we had a short glimpse of a male Golden Oriole as it flew from a fig tree into an oak tree, but the bird disappeared and we never saw another one. Other birds in the fig tree were Blackcap and Garden Warbler. A Cetti's Warbler called frequently but it never showed itself but we did get good views of Great Spotted Woodpecker, Cirl Bunting (4), Serin, Great Tit and Spotted Flycatcher. A couple of Griffon Vultures flew over and a Eurasian Sparrowhawk dashed across our field of view.
Our next venue took us back up through the village and down into the Guadiaro valley where we parked at the riverside for an hour or so. We had some excellent species for the list and spent a relaxing time sitting by the bus waiting for birds to come to us. Common Sandpiper, Grey Heron, Grey and White Wagtails, Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff sp, Sardinian Warbler and a nice flock of Rock Sparrows all performed well. A sizable flock of House Martins held Barn Swallows too and over the hillside we saw Booted Eagle and the ubiquitous Griffon Vulture.
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| the group at Gaucin woods |
At Llanos de Libar we got to grips with a number of truly mountainous species as we watched Black Wheatear (5 males), Blue Rock Thrush, Crag Martin, Black Redstart, Southern Grey Shrike, Rock Sparrow and our first Woodchat Shrike of the tour. A single Short-toed Eagle sat high on the ridge and a number of Honey Buzzards circled very high up in the sky, way above the Griffon Vultures.
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| Llanos de Libar |
After a short stop in the centre of Ronda (where Raven was added to the day list) and a short coffee stop we arrived at our last destination the Encinas Borrachas track. Our last couple of hours of the day were spent walking through this wonderful rocky terrain watching a number of key species. We found Southern grey Shrike, Spectacled Warbler (a family party of 4), Dartford Warbler, Thekla Lark, lots of Goldfinches and Corn Buntings. High on the rocky ridges we saw Black Wheatear, Blue Rock Thrush and a single Short-toed Eagle.
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| Black Redstart |
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| Black Wheatear |
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| Southern Grey Shrike |
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| Spectacled Warbler |
The light was superb even at this late hour of 6pm it was hard to drag ourselves away from the wonderful scenery but we had to return home for a lovely home cooked dinner. Our list today was quite small but we saw some quality birds in quite outstanding surroundings
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