Another early start and a long drive to start the day. We headed into the mountains to try to see a different set of species, we had perfect weather, clear sky little wind and a nice temperature.
Our first stop was at the Rio Genal found just below Gaucin, the river is almost dry but still has a small flow. It was quite quiet, we logged Linnet, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Serin and Chaffinch, all feeding in a field of wild flowers. Then we found a nice male Cirl Bunting which was singing, a White Wagtail and both Grey Wagtail and Green Sandpiper along the river. A Cetti's Warbler called a few times and we saw Sparrowhawk and Short-toed Eagle before moving on.
After a quick coffee stop in Gaucin we continued our journey towards Ronda making a stop just passed Atajate where from the roadside we listed Black Wheatear, Blue Rock Thrush and Linnet.
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| on the Encinas Borraches track |
Woodchat Shrike, Northern, Black and Black-eared Wheatear, Crested and Thekla Larks, lots of Stonechats and a single Whinchat. A Short-toed Eagle sat high up on the rock pinnacles looking magnificent in rhe superb light, A good of Griffon Vultures circled over the distant ridge.
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| Woodchat Shrike |
From there we drove into Ronda and spent an hour taking lunch and walking around the famous bridge taking in rhe fabulous view trying not to bump into the hoards of tourists.
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| Common Redstart |
The whole afternoon was spent in the beautiful Sierra de las Nieves natural park, I really love the rugged scenery, rhe contrasting open rocky areas, the pine forests and the young oak woodlands.
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| Woodlark |
Our first stop was at the entrance recreational area where open woodland surrounds a picnic site, we found a few Common Redstarts there, also a flock of eight Woodlarks and a couple of Eurasian Chiffchaffs, a small party of Dartford Warblers, also a Jay and a Common Whitethroat.
From there we drove the short distance to a water trough where a number of species were coming to bathe or drink, we listed: Willow Warbler, Iberian Chiffchaff, Pied Flycatcher, Rock Bunting, Blue Tit, Great Tit, a Chaffinch and another Jay.
We made two more stops after crawling along a bumpy track, the first was in an open valley where some cultivated fields, a section of heathland and some wide roadside margins had many juniper bushes. The butterflies found here were superb, many Cardinal Fritillary fed on the junipers with Sage Skippers, Cleopatras, Silver-studded Blues, Clouded Yellows and the occasional Bathe White, a Queen of Spain Fritillary was a nice find.
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| Queen-of-Spain Fritillary by Tony Moore |
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| Cardinal Fritillary - Tony Moore |
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| Chris at rhe ready waiting for the Spectacled Warbler with Tony poised and Mike retiring from the chase |
Finally we stopped near a stream where mature pines, cedars and spruces grew, we had a terrific time with fabulous sightings of Firecrest, there were several around us and one or two came very close. Crested Tit and Coal Tit also showed well, the cameras were clicking again, at one stage it sounded like the paparazzi outside a court house at a celebrity trail!
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| Firecrest - Tony Moore |
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