Hi,
Once again visiting Villafáfila, the mecca in Spain to see great bustards.
You can see the complete list of species, and pictures in my blog.
As always, Villafáfila was really interesting. The landscape was incredible, with all the fields with beautiful green colours. The rain during the previous days was intense, which made that not only the fields, but also the lacoons were full of water, and so, also of life. And great bustards were all around in the fields.
Our first stop was in the lacoons around the information center. They were full of species, and as a rarety, at least for me, there was a greater scaup. We also enjoyed with our first lesser kestrels, and I took some pictures to some of the captive great bustards.
Near the Barillos lacoon there is a white stork colony nesting in trees. From there, I managed to locate the groups of great bustards. Later we moved to the unpaved roads nearby to try to see them better.
Finally, in the abandoned village of Otero de Sariegos, we saw the breeding colony of lesser kestrels. In the Laguna Grande, ducks were really abundant (shelduck, northern shoveler,..).
Before sunset, we moved to the Sta. María de Moreruela monastery (see my blog for details). This is building dating back from 12th-13th century, located near the village of Granja de Moreruela. It is located at about 25 minutes by car from Villafáfila. To its cultural importance, it adds the interest to have a breeding colony of white stork in its walls, and a nearby colony in trees of grey herons, night-herons and some kites of both species.
Regards,
Antonio
Once again visiting Villafáfila, the mecca in Spain to see great bustards.
You can see the complete list of species, and pictures in my blog.
As always, Villafáfila was really interesting. The landscape was incredible, with all the fields with beautiful green colours. The rain during the previous days was intense, which made that not only the fields, but also the lacoons were full of water, and so, also of life. And great bustards were all around in the fields.
Our first stop was in the lacoons around the information center. They were full of species, and as a rarety, at least for me, there was a greater scaup. We also enjoyed with our first lesser kestrels, and I took some pictures to some of the captive great bustards.
Near the Barillos lacoon there is a white stork colony nesting in trees. From there, I managed to locate the groups of great bustards. Later we moved to the unpaved roads nearby to try to see them better.
Finally, in the abandoned village of Otero de Sariegos, we saw the breeding colony of lesser kestrels. In the Laguna Grande, ducks were really abundant (shelduck, northern shoveler,..).
Before sunset, we moved to the Sta. María de Moreruela monastery (see my blog for details). This is building dating back from 12th-13th century, located near the village of Granja de Moreruela. It is located at about 25 minutes by car from Villafáfila. To its cultural importance, it adds the interest to have a breeding colony of white stork in its walls, and a nearby colony in trees of grey herons, night-herons and some kites of both species.
Regards,
Antonio
