SEPTEMBER 23rd - 7-DAY TOUR DAY - 3

RIO GUADIARO - MONTEJAQUE - ENCINAS BORRACHAS

We had a much slower day today after the frantic raptor sightings of Tarifa and La Janda yesterday. It was a dull overcast day with a chilly wind which didn't let up all day. We wore our fleeces as we left the car at 8:30am at the Rio Gudauiaro at Estacion de Cortes.

The river valley was as beautiful as ever and very peaceful. There were both Grey and White Wagtails feeding by the river and a Cetti's Warbler gave us a good showing whilst it sat out singing. We walked for a while and found both Pied and Spotted Flycatchers and glimpsed a Common Redstart. But the lack of sunshine kept the birds at bay, butterflies and dragonflies were not on the wing. We spent an hour watching and area around the dam and logged Southern Grey Shrike, Golden Oriole, Spotless Starling, Cirl Bunting, Garden Warbler, Blackcap, Iberian Chiffchaff, lots of Sardinian Warblers and some distant Jays.

At Montejaque the story was the same, not many species were on show. Blue Rock Thrush, Black Wheatear, a few Griffon Vultures and our best sighting was of Spanish Ibex.

At the 'dam' we added Black Redstart, Crag Martin, Great Tit and Linnet. Then we stopped near a large gate which led into a cork oak woodland. It was a rewarding stop, as we had our best birdwatching of the day when a series of woodland species showed very well. First a Nuthatch called just above us and then landed on a wall in full view, this was followed by at least 3 Firecrests showing down to a few meters. A Great Spotted Woodpecker allowed brief views as did a Short-toed Treecreeper, Blue Tit and Great Tit flitted passed us and a single Spotted Flycatcher was last to show.

After a coffee stop in a local Venta we headed for the Encinas Borraches track where we found several more species. The overcast conditions got worse and a few drops of rain were felt in the air but we persisited with our walk. At a pool we saw Corn Bunting, Linnet, Goldfinch and nearby we found Stonechat, Whinchat, Northern Wheatear, Thekla Lark, Little Owl and another Southern Grey Shrike. As we were leaving we watched an Osprey soaring over the mountainside, it was an odd site seeing this species out of context.

Further down the valley towards Gaucin we stopped to look for Rock Bunting and found two distant birds. Overhead a bit of a migrant raptor passage was in evidence as. first we saw a couple of Marsh Harriers and then a flock of 40 Black Storks, that was impressive. A little further on we watched a swirling mass of Black kites and then a small group of Honey Buzzards, all of them rose above the mountainside and disappeared into the clouds.

We returned early to our apartments and we felt satisfied and less exhausted than yesterday and even though we didn't seem to see many species we logged over 60.