1 weeks birding trip to majorca started with a 5pm flight from glasgow ,so no chance of any birding on our arrival,an early morning start which started with serin and sardinian warbler on the hotel grounds,a walk down to the coast CAN -PICAFOR where there was lots of audoins gulls ,sandwich tern and balearic shag ,wee walked to a little nature reserve where i saw nightingale ,cetti-s warbler there is also a small pool with little egrets,mallard and coots,SAN BALOU RESERVE
got the car at noon with some mix-up with europa-car,went to the albufera which in my mind is the best area for birds in majorca,from start to finish birds where popping up left ,right and centre,lots of cattle egret,night heron and little egrets nesting in the trees along the river,cetti-s singing, great -reed also good views of moustached warbler at bottom of the reeds,the CIM hide was the best great white egret,whiskered tern gull billed tern and common also present,black winged stilts kentish and little/r/plover all on nests,1 adult male red footed falcon flew over followed by an adult booted eagle,at the back of the reserve their is a deprudora which has raised platform with red creasted pochard ,shelduck,gadwall,little grebe,common sandpiper,yellow wagtails .looking back across the fields wee also had hoopoo,bee-eater stone curlew,marsh harrier ever present...
the next day wee went to the cubar,a good walk round the waters edge produced cirl bunting,tawn pipit,sardinian warbler [everwhere].osprey fishing on the water fishing which i missed due to the small trees on the bank,2 black vulture,red kites ,black kites, kestrel,peregrine and ravens and hundreds of yellow legged gulls,blue rock thrus just at the bridge but their was no sign of the male rock thrush that was supposed to be at the quarry area where dave later spent the full day trying to get,a helicopter was collecting water which chased most of the bird away, wee stopped at the morrtix winery and got firecrest,
the next day after that it was of to the formentor ,2 elenoras falcon where flying over head with a turtle dove down below the wall surrounding the lighthouse,a superb male blue rock thrush sat well for us,a short drive stopping at some parking point brought us 3 peregrine chicks that where almost ready to fly,pallid swift ,woodchat shrike,crossbill ,wee went to the boquer valey looking for marmoras but failed,garden warbler ,icterine warbler at the base before the first gate spotted flycatcher,red legged partridge and a distant flying wheatear but could not i.d,
a drive down to the betlam area brought us a thekla lark,crag martin and a stunning wryneck which was a good bit away but still managed to photograph ,a roller shot passed us at some great speed, pied flycatchers and wren,redstart, goldfinch,corn bunting,chiffchaff lots of swallow sand martins and common swifts
the next day wee spent most of the day at the albufera area again ,bishops hide 1-2 are not as good as they where 5 years ago but saw a lovely water rail from both hides pochard,purple heron ,squacco and a distant spoonbill ,a cuckoo was present for most of the day at the raised platform,red knobbed coot present great creasted grebe,collard dove ,wood pigeon ,great tit and blue tits,a lovely summer plumaged black-necked grebe was at the deprudora and a pair of peach-faced lovebirds most likely escapees
some more picture
Nice report there Wee Kayso. It's about 9 years since I was at S'albufera, and you are making me pine for another visit.