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Birdwatching in Straits of Gibraltar & La Janda (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Birdman7
- Start date
Jon Turner
Well-known member
Car Hire.....
That story beggar's belief. In my very early visits I used Europcar, but got fed up with them when they insisted on the car returning with a full tank, trying to charge me €40 when it was clearly over half full once, I demanded the keys and went off to fill it up, cost €16.
In recent years at Malaga, I have always used Malagacar.com - they never make extra charges. and have been very understanding - even when I have bent the cars (a bit) and even though one of them was not insured for the extra (it was about €8 a day, so I declined) another car was broken into, and earlier, in the same car, someone reversed into me on a garage forecourt. It was admittedly a well used car - one that I was given when I turned up a day late and they didn't have any but the guy just found this old jalopy and let me have it (it was at about 1 in the morning, and he felt sorry for me). Last time we went to Gib and I used another company, like you on our return the girl came out and had a quick look then said fine. Never heard from them again.
This 'extra' cleaning is a con - all the cars are valeted and put through the car wash anyway. The cars I hire have always been spotless, but look pretty well used when I return them (too many dirt tracks!)
That story beggar's belief. In my very early visits I used Europcar, but got fed up with them when they insisted on the car returning with a full tank, trying to charge me €40 when it was clearly over half full once, I demanded the keys and went off to fill it up, cost €16.
In recent years at Malaga, I have always used Malagacar.com - they never make extra charges. and have been very understanding - even when I have bent the cars (a bit) and even though one of them was not insured for the extra (it was about €8 a day, so I declined) another car was broken into, and earlier, in the same car, someone reversed into me on a garage forecourt. It was admittedly a well used car - one that I was given when I turned up a day late and they didn't have any but the guy just found this old jalopy and let me have it (it was at about 1 in the morning, and he felt sorry for me). Last time we went to Gib and I used another company, like you on our return the girl came out and had a quick look then said fine. Never heard from them again.
This 'extra' cleaning is a con - all the cars are valeted and put through the car wash anyway. The cars I hire have always been spotless, but look pretty well used when I return them (too many dirt tracks!)
John Cantelo
Well-known member
Thanks for this I will put a warning in the next 'edition' of my birding notes. I'm disappointed with 'Do You Spain' as I have always found them very helpful in such situations - however, I guess that if the supplier won't budge then there not a lot they can do beyond the 'nuclear option' of not dealing with them at all. Either way you're still probably better off goinf through an agent than not at all.
Barred Wobbler
Well-known member
After coming to a dead end with the car hire complaint I decided to let the bank know what was going on, just to keep them informed and I let Do You Spain know that I had done so. As I said above I wasn't bothered about the 20 euros, it was the principle.
This was Do You Spain's response;
'If you have started a dispute throgh your bank or credit card company I am afraid we won't be able to help you further. From now on the rental company will only deal with them and not with us.
Do not hesitate to contact us again should you have any further questions or comments.'
The bank phoned me back yesterday and I told them I had email records of what had gone on. They didn't seem bothered about it and they told me that as the sum involved was less than £50 it would be refunded without question. Perhaps it is this reaction that the scammers in the car hire business are relying on, plus the reluctance of people to complain about trivial sums (supposing they noticed in the first place).
At least I have the consolation of knowing that the bank has been provided with the information, so that in the future if they decide to get off their backsides and do something about these frauds I might have contributed in some small way to help stop them.
This was Do You Spain's response;
'If you have started a dispute throgh your bank or credit card company I am afraid we won't be able to help you further. From now on the rental company will only deal with them and not with us.
Do not hesitate to contact us again should you have any further questions or comments.'
The bank phoned me back yesterday and I told them I had email records of what had gone on. They didn't seem bothered about it and they told me that as the sum involved was less than £50 it would be refunded without question. Perhaps it is this reaction that the scammers in the car hire business are relying on, plus the reluctance of people to complain about trivial sums (supposing they noticed in the first place).
At least I have the consolation of knowing that the bank has been provided with the information, so that in the future if they decide to get off their backsides and do something about these frauds I might have contributed in some small way to help stop them.
StuartReeves
Local rarity
I'm not long back from our trip to southern Spain so here's a quick update on what we saw during our visit to Cadiz province and adjacent areas.
After a late afternoon arrival on Monday, we started Tuesday in superb winter sunshine at Laguna Fuente de Piedra. A large flock of greenfinches feeding on the dried mud next to the shallow pools on the approach to the car park also held a few Spanish and Rock Sparrows, with other birds in the same general area including Wryneck, Hoopoe and a few Woodlark. The deeper pool near the visitor centre held a sleeping drake White-headed Duck among other waterbirds and was also the feeding area for a solitary House Martin. The Laguna itself held a reasonable amount of water but relatively few flamingos, with no more than 100 present and none that we could turn into Lesser Flamingos. We saw a flock of 100 or so Cranes land in the fields to the north of the Laguna, but our attempts to get closer views were unsuccessful. A circuit of the laguna added Stone Curlew to our list but little else.
Our next stop was the gorge at Teba. This proved to be a rather more picturesque location to see Blue Rock Thrush than a Cotswold housing estate. Other birds present included Black Wheatear, Chough and Griffon Vulture, but our most unexpected sighting was a fine Spanish Festoon butterfly. We then headed for our accommodation for the next two nights at Alcala de los Gazules, where, appropriately enough, our last bird of the day was a fine male Lesser Kestrel as we unloaded the car.
The next day was exceptionally cold and windy so we didn't venture far from the car during our exploration of La Janda. Our exploration was limited to the area north of the big sluice gate thanks to a particularly wet, muddy and rutted stretch of track that we thought better of taking the car over. Nonetheless we managed a good selection of birds, including two Black-shouldered Kites, a ringtail Hen Harrier, a flock of around thirty Stone Curlew, as well as a few Spoonbills, Purple Swamphens, Bluethroats and a single Squacco Heron.
A visit to the Marismas de Barbate didn't add anything to our list, although a distant ringtail harrier which looked very small when in direct comparison with a Marsh Harrier looked intriguing. We finished the day with a stop at La Barca de Vejer to admire the Bald Ibis on the cliffs there.
The cold, windy weather continued the next day and it was certainly too cold and exposed at Chipiona for anything more than a brisk walk along the prom to the lighthouse and back. This proved surprisingly productive, with new birds including a fly-by Grey Phalarope, Great Skua, Sandwich Tern and a good scatter of Med. Gulls. Given the weather however, we assumed that, resident or not, any self-respecting Little Swifts would be seeking refuge in warmer climes; there were certainly none visible while we were there.
Moving inland along the Guadalquavir estuary we didn't hang around at the Bonanza Pools. Although they produced close views of White-headed Duck and Purple Swamphen it's not the most attractive of sites. In contrast, the Laguna de Tarelo proved to be a much more appealing place. A swarm of hirundines feeding at the surface was dominated by House Martins, with smaller numbers of Crag Martins and Barn Swallows and a single Sand Martin also present. The trees on the north side of the laguna held at least 80 Night Herons; two smart Penduline Tits fed in the reeds in front of us and our first Booted Eagle of the trip drifted overhead. The highlight came when at first one, then two, then eventually a total of eight Little Swifts appeared and fed above our heads.
Our last stop on our way north was the pools at the northern edge of the Guadalquivir marshes. Here, a pale duck roosting on the shore of one of the islands removed its head from under its wing for long enough to confirm our suspected ID as a Marbled Duck.
All in all, a successful start to our trip with me gaining two lifers in the space of a couple of hours; it's been a long time since I managed that in Europe. Thanks to all on this thread who provided advice on likely sites for my wish-list species, particularly John Cantelo for all the work he has but into preparing and updating his essential Cadiz site guide.
After a late afternoon arrival on Monday, we started Tuesday in superb winter sunshine at Laguna Fuente de Piedra. A large flock of greenfinches feeding on the dried mud next to the shallow pools on the approach to the car park also held a few Spanish and Rock Sparrows, with other birds in the same general area including Wryneck, Hoopoe and a few Woodlark. The deeper pool near the visitor centre held a sleeping drake White-headed Duck among other waterbirds and was also the feeding area for a solitary House Martin. The Laguna itself held a reasonable amount of water but relatively few flamingos, with no more than 100 present and none that we could turn into Lesser Flamingos. We saw a flock of 100 or so Cranes land in the fields to the north of the Laguna, but our attempts to get closer views were unsuccessful. A circuit of the laguna added Stone Curlew to our list but little else.
Our next stop was the gorge at Teba. This proved to be a rather more picturesque location to see Blue Rock Thrush than a Cotswold housing estate. Other birds present included Black Wheatear, Chough and Griffon Vulture, but our most unexpected sighting was a fine Spanish Festoon butterfly. We then headed for our accommodation for the next two nights at Alcala de los Gazules, where, appropriately enough, our last bird of the day was a fine male Lesser Kestrel as we unloaded the car.
The next day was exceptionally cold and windy so we didn't venture far from the car during our exploration of La Janda. Our exploration was limited to the area north of the big sluice gate thanks to a particularly wet, muddy and rutted stretch of track that we thought better of taking the car over. Nonetheless we managed a good selection of birds, including two Black-shouldered Kites, a ringtail Hen Harrier, a flock of around thirty Stone Curlew, as well as a few Spoonbills, Purple Swamphens, Bluethroats and a single Squacco Heron.
A visit to the Marismas de Barbate didn't add anything to our list, although a distant ringtail harrier which looked very small when in direct comparison with a Marsh Harrier looked intriguing. We finished the day with a stop at La Barca de Vejer to admire the Bald Ibis on the cliffs there.
The cold, windy weather continued the next day and it was certainly too cold and exposed at Chipiona for anything more than a brisk walk along the prom to the lighthouse and back. This proved surprisingly productive, with new birds including a fly-by Grey Phalarope, Great Skua, Sandwich Tern and a good scatter of Med. Gulls. Given the weather however, we assumed that, resident or not, any self-respecting Little Swifts would be seeking refuge in warmer climes; there were certainly none visible while we were there.
Moving inland along the Guadalquavir estuary we didn't hang around at the Bonanza Pools. Although they produced close views of White-headed Duck and Purple Swamphen it's not the most attractive of sites. In contrast, the Laguna de Tarelo proved to be a much more appealing place. A swarm of hirundines feeding at the surface was dominated by House Martins, with smaller numbers of Crag Martins and Barn Swallows and a single Sand Martin also present. The trees on the north side of the laguna held at least 80 Night Herons; two smart Penduline Tits fed in the reeds in front of us and our first Booted Eagle of the trip drifted overhead. The highlight came when at first one, then two, then eventually a total of eight Little Swifts appeared and fed above our heads.
Our last stop on our way north was the pools at the northern edge of the Guadalquivir marshes. Here, a pale duck roosting on the shore of one of the islands removed its head from under its wing for long enough to confirm our suspected ID as a Marbled Duck.
All in all, a successful start to our trip with me gaining two lifers in the space of a couple of hours; it's been a long time since I managed that in Europe. Thanks to all on this thread who provided advice on likely sites for my wish-list species, particularly John Cantelo for all the work he has but into preparing and updating his essential Cadiz site guide.
Jon Turner
Well-known member
Good stuff. That wind can be a b.....
Did you look in at the Laguna Dulce at Campillos? It's near Teba and often has good birds in winter. I stopped there once when there was NO water at all and a flock of 150 or so Little Bustards circled in to roost! This was at about 4pm as dusk was setting in.
Did you look in at the Laguna Dulce at Campillos? It's near Teba and often has good birds in winter. I stopped there once when there was NO water at all and a flock of 150 or so Little Bustards circled in to roost! This was at about 4pm as dusk was setting in.
John Cantelo
Well-known member
Thanks, Stuart, for your kind endorsement - it's positive feedback like yours that keeps me going!
StuartReeves
Local rarity
We did drive past Laguna Dulce, but it was completely dry so we didn't stop. This was in the middle of the day so hopefully we didn't miss any bustards.
Barred Wobbler
Well-known member
After some days of me wondering where they all were, the honey buzzards were streaming in in their thousands this afternoon in unusually calm conditions on the Strait.
Spectacular!
Spectacular!
Jon Turner
Well-known member
Leave some for me! I arrive next Sunday for a fortnight!
John Cantelo
Well-known member
Good to see this thread waking up! Keep us posted.
Barred Wobbler
Well-known member
I missed the best of the action yesterday.
The wind changed to Easterly after the almost calm westerly air of Saturday. It was just a light breath at Los Barrios, but when I got to Punta Comorro it was blowing a hoolie. Not much was happening with migration and I reasoned that maybe the birds were being blown in further up the coast. A short stay at La Pena gave us a small group of griffons and a few honey buzzards, but nothing to get excited about. Maybe they were further on. Punta Paloma - nowt. The wind there was much gentler. Maybe Saturday was all we were getting for the time being, so we decided to give La Janda a go.
What a mistake that was. The rice fields are still being tilled/seeded and are all bone dry. The place was birdless, apart from some very colourful cattle egrets at the nesting colony that made the illustrations in the field guides look drab. To cap it, when I got to the fields next to the potholed road between the turn off to Presa de Celemin and Benalup that had been so productive of waders, wagtails and ibises last year I found that they'd improved the drainage and there were no rice shoots, no pools, no waders, just bare soil.
Today I spent some time photographing a nearby bee eater colony before going down to the Strait. The weather was very similar to yesterday, calm at Los Barrios, half a gale at Tarifa. The difference as I was about to find out was that today there was no migration. After an hour or so at Comorro all that I saw coming in were a handful of griffins, one honey buzzard and a few black kites. The story was the same elsewhere, nothing at Sierra de la Plata, Punta Paloma or Los Lances. Everyone I spoke to was remarking on the absence of honeys.
The observers were puzzled.
They rubbed salt in my wounds when I was told that while I was wasting my time scanning soil at La Janda yesterday a thousand or so honey buzzards were coming in during the afternoon at Los Lances. Sod's Law.
Today's visit to Los Lances was perked up by my first ever sighting there of lesser-crested tern. My first on that beach after years of missing them, and only my second for Spain.
The wind changed to Easterly after the almost calm westerly air of Saturday. It was just a light breath at Los Barrios, but when I got to Punta Comorro it was blowing a hoolie. Not much was happening with migration and I reasoned that maybe the birds were being blown in further up the coast. A short stay at La Pena gave us a small group of griffons and a few honey buzzards, but nothing to get excited about. Maybe they were further on. Punta Paloma - nowt. The wind there was much gentler. Maybe Saturday was all we were getting for the time being, so we decided to give La Janda a go.
What a mistake that was. The rice fields are still being tilled/seeded and are all bone dry. The place was birdless, apart from some very colourful cattle egrets at the nesting colony that made the illustrations in the field guides look drab. To cap it, when I got to the fields next to the potholed road between the turn off to Presa de Celemin and Benalup that had been so productive of waders, wagtails and ibises last year I found that they'd improved the drainage and there were no rice shoots, no pools, no waders, just bare soil.
Today I spent some time photographing a nearby bee eater colony before going down to the Strait. The weather was very similar to yesterday, calm at Los Barrios, half a gale at Tarifa. The difference as I was about to find out was that today there was no migration. After an hour or so at Comorro all that I saw coming in were a handful of griffins, one honey buzzard and a few black kites. The story was the same elsewhere, nothing at Sierra de la Plata, Punta Paloma or Los Lances. Everyone I spoke to was remarking on the absence of honeys.
The observers were puzzled.
They rubbed salt in my wounds when I was told that while I was wasting my time scanning soil at La Janda yesterday a thousand or so honey buzzards were coming in during the afternoon at Los Lances. Sod's Law.
Today's visit to Los Lances was perked up by my first ever sighting there of lesser-crested tern. My first on that beach after years of missing them, and only my second for Spain.
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Barred Wobbler
Well-known member
Nice gentle westerly breeze today and Punta Carnero looked the place to be. Light but steady movement late morning of black kites and a few honey buzzards, with a supplement of booted eagles. Just before midday these were replaced by groups of short-toed eagles and griffon vultures, which soon started coming in in good numbers. At 1pm it was still going well with griffons, short-toed eagles and a couple of Egyptian vultures. It was looking like the makings of a good afternoon.
Then it stopped.
Dead.
Conditions were perfect, if anything they were better than mid morning when cloud obscured the Moroccan coast and honey buzzards were coming in with the black kites. The clouds had gone, the sun was shining, the wind was light, yet there were no birds. The vagaries of migration.
A handful of booted eagles and a honey buzzard made up the entire count until I gave up defeated at 16.00 and went to photograph the lesser kestrel colony at San Isidro church at Los Barrios
The weather is due to change from tonight. Lots of cloud tomorrow and heavy showers including thunder storms are forecast on Thursday and Friday. That might cause a bottleneck that releases at the weekend. Good luck to those arriving, but I'll be off on Saturday. Roll on late August when I'm back for the return leg.
Then it stopped.
Dead.
Conditions were perfect, if anything they were better than mid morning when cloud obscured the Moroccan coast and honey buzzards were coming in with the black kites. The clouds had gone, the sun was shining, the wind was light, yet there were no birds. The vagaries of migration.
A handful of booted eagles and a honey buzzard made up the entire count until I gave up defeated at 16.00 and went to photograph the lesser kestrel colony at San Isidro church at Los Barrios
The weather is due to change from tonight. Lots of cloud tomorrow and heavy showers including thunder storms are forecast on Thursday and Friday. That might cause a bottleneck that releases at the weekend. Good luck to those arriving, but I'll be off on Saturday. Roll on late August when I'm back for the return leg.
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Jon Turner
Well-known member
Visited La Janda yesterday. Slow going, but oddly productive! 4 Swamphens in various places 5 Spoonbills dotted about. About a million Cattle Egrets mostly in the colony along with a few nesting Gossy Ibis, of which more were in the now flooded fields. Several pairs of Blck-winged Stilts prospecting. Away over by the bridge near Benalup, a juv type Night Heron flew over. There were 3 Red-rumped Swallows there too. I drove up the track towards Facinas for a little way. Glad I did. At the top of the first hill a huge raptor turned out to be an adult Golden Eagle. Next up was what I'm pretty sure was a Long-legged Buzzard! Booted Eagle, Black Kite, Little Owl, Bee-eaters, Griffons. Stopped at the sluice at the eastern end of the Egret colony, and found a very obliging adult Night Heron. On the bridge at the other end of the colony, I met a small group in a 'Birding Tarifa' van who were good enough to point out the distant Black-shouldered Kite. Further along towards the Vejer road was a singing, but annoyingly unseen Great Reed Warbler.
One Transmitter laden Bald Ibis at Montenmedio. Anyone know who to report these to?
Pics when I get home. Which sadly is tomorrow.
One Transmitter laden Bald Ibis at Montenmedio. Anyone know who to report these to?
Pics when I get home. Which sadly is tomorrow.
Jon Turner
Well-known member
John Cantelo
Well-known member
There should be no problems since they've constructed a purpose built slip road to the watchpoint.
Barred Wobbler
Well-known member
Alvaro Peral
Well-known member
Dear Alf, you won't have any trouble to access Cazalla viewpoint AS LONG AS you drive in the direction from Algeciras to Tarifa.
Enjoy the high numbers of storks and black kites at the moment!
Alvaro Peral
Thanks all. We come from the Barbate direction ( I've done it many times before) so go along to the Estrecho mirador to turn around and avoid the attentions of the police.
Has the parking situation at Cazalla been affected at all and is access available at all times?
Has the parking situation at Cazalla been affected at all and is access available at all times?
