I am off to Quinta do Lago next week. Does anyone have any advice as to where best to spot birds and what birds will be around? Thanks
I'm presuming you're staying somewhere in the Q. do Lago complex so just drive down to the main car park for the beach/estuary, from here you can walk left along the seashore to an obviously new hide at the start of a track, this overlooks a large tidal lagoon. From here take the track above and parallel to this track that leads to another hide overlooking the main lake with reedbeds etc. Carrying along this track will bring you to Ludo saltpans and saltworks and if you wanted to Faro Marshes near the airport.
All this area is great for birding with a good number of species usually seen including waders, gulls, terns, herons, spoonbills etc on the estuary side and passerines on the landward side and around the lake - Azure-winged Magpie, Hoopoe, Serin, Bluethroat, Waxbills, Sardinian and Fan-tailed Warblers to name just a few, while on the lake Little Bittern, Glossy Ibis, Purple Gallinule, various duck etc are usually present.
There is a large lagoon on the right just after the roman ruins on the track from the lake to Ludo saltpans, good for Flamingos, more duck, grebes etc while Marsh Harriers quarter the area regularly and Black-winged Kite is often seen. Looking inland from Ludo pans Booted Eagles winter and hunt the area.
Going back to the main car park, if you turn right instead of left and follow this track it can be good for close views of warblers, Bluethroat, Hoopoe, Crested Lark etc. etc plus the birds on the estuary, I usually walk to the end of the lake here, have a look at the pools at the rear of the lake and return to the car park.
If you are staying in the complex there are lots of good birds to be seen by just walking the area and the golf course, there are other small lakes around the edges of the golf course worth a look.
No matter where you look around the area you're bound to see plenty of birds, it's a brilliant place to be at this time of year.
P.S. Have a look through the Trip Report section, there's quite a few reports worth a look.
Many thanks -that is really helpful. Very grateful and I will post what I see. I guess that many of the birds will be new to me - exciting stuff - the other times I went there I was playing tennis! Ah, youth...