How to find Dupont's Lark, bustards and sandgrouse in the Steppes of Spain (1 Viewer)

On one of my visits I came to an empty plateau not far off the road. I scanned the horizon and field nothing. I drove down side and there was a small flock of pin tailed sandgrouse - my first.hang on there were 40 no 50 no c.400!!!

I could so easily have passed them by. On both late autumn visits they have been in this area....

One word of caution for this are is if it has rained the road get bogged down - the soil runs off the fields...

Stephen,

It was quite a chilly early March day. It had rained overnight and another heavy rain storm came in that evening

Thank you Stephen for posting your advice, and others for their contributions too. It all looks like excellent advice.

I would like to really emphasise a point that you and one or two others have made about seeing Dupont's Lark, which is to stay in or hide behind your car. In my experience (at Hoces del Rio Duratón Natural Park) these larks are very shy, and the habitat they prefer is difficult to walk through without watching your footing (rather than scanning for birds).

Learning the call, driving along slowly with your car windows down until you here it, then stopping and scanning is the best bet. I have usually seen and heard them in that short period of time between full dark and sunrise, or sunset and full dark. This may be because they are more active then - or other larks are less active and so the Dupont's easier to pick out. I tend to see them perched on low rocks that are about the height of the low vegetation. The obvious rock in your first photo of Dupont's Lark habitat is typical.

For sandgrouse I try to check the edge of bare ground alongside strips or patches of vegetation. In some places it appears farmers leave thin strips of un-ploughed vegetation within the fields - and have wondered if this is to encourage the sandgrouse to feed, presumably for hunting. Is this the case?

Anyway thanks again for the tips, and keep them coming, I'm always happy to learn more, Paul

How to find Dupont's Lark, bustards and sandgrouse in the Steppes of Spain [Part 4]

4. Time of day and its effect on birds' behaviour


Sandgrouse and bustards, are more active before the heat of the afternoon sun forces them to take it easy and so, although by no means essential, it’s better to get on site early.

Annual sunrise and sunset times across Spain can be found here: http://www.sunrise-and-sunset.com/en/sun/spain.

There is certainly more flight activity at this time (and during the latter part of the day) so lookout for overhead flocks.

You may hear them first if you’re close enough but don’t ignore anything flying in the distance as Pin-tailed Sandgrouse can be reminiscent of Golden Plover, or even disregarded as pigeons by the unwary, and I have witnessed Little Bustard, which for the most part keep their wings below the horizontal when they fly, dismissed as ‘some kind of duck’ on more than one occasion (see the attached mid-distant flight shot).

Sandgrouse, of course, are famous for carrying water back to their nestlings soaked in their breast feathers (yet another example of the array of adaptations this habitat brings out in Steppe species) but, as said previously, in my patch there are too many watering holes to make waiting worthwhile.

However, if you do come across one approach it with care, of course, and it might be worth re-checking every now and then, especially if you're struggling.

As this is a strategy I rarely have to rely on and, along with the fact that I have need to visit in the evening even less rarely, I confess that I have little to add re the best time of day to wait at a watering hole beyond what I've read, i.e. that "ten species of sandgrouse drink at dawn, four at dusk and two at indeterminate times".

Apparently this is expanded upon in a chapter on page 520 of A Dictionary of Birds by Bruce Campbell and Elizabeth Lack (1985, ISBN - 0-931130-12-3) and I'd be interested to know where Pin-tailed and Black-bellied Sandgrouse are supposed to fall in this premise if anyone has access to it.

Perhaps readers can add anecdotal evidence. Personally, I recall several encounters with both Pin-tailed and Black-bellied Sandgrouse at watering holes at various times of what one might call an extended morning, i.e. whenever it's not hot!


The heat, even in Summer, can have its advantages though. It’s not as if the birds vanish from existence and I’ve had some of my very best views of Black-bellied Sandgrouse during the highest afternoon temperatures when small groups, unwilling to give up the sanctity of the cooler ground and take to the skies, have been approached with caution and brought car-side.

Dupont’s Lark, as previously stated, contrary to popular assertions, do in fact sing habitually during the day and, although much less frequently, even in winter.

I originally discovered the regular site I take my clients to by hearing two birds singing at three in the afternoon and, at this same site, we have happily watched a rock-perched bird singing after ten in the morning in November. I never understand the obsession with getting on site to hunt them during darkness, and there really is no need, unless you’re happy to tick silhouettes.

For me, better to arrive at or just before first light. It's my experience, and I'm perfectly happy to be challenged on this with evidence from other areas, that after the main event that comes before first light, Dupont's Lark take a break from singing before kicking up again for up to about an hour.

This 'pause' could just be the need to rest and/or feed, but I get the distinct impression that it coincides with the fabulous orchestral movement emanated by sympatric Calandra, Thekla and Lesser Short-toed Larks. Don't get me wrong, I've observed Dupont's Lark singing during this period but, in general, I think it's possible that it just gets too loud to compete with.

In any case, it's during the period that follows it when I get almost all of my results. Birds singing in view, in day light.

That said, if you're late or can't get there early, it's still worth a shot as, once again, I've had many sightings during the middle of the day too.

By the way, this is especially true after rain, when it can seem that the birds have been itching to get started!

The final section next: 'General behaviour and field craft tips'.
.

Really interesting observation - calling before first light and then pausing - this would mirror my first experience when at Lomazza we had a bird calling at first light but then silence at Planeron. Suddenly, they 'kicked off' again.

We knew we were in the right place because there was a sign with a Duponts Lark on it. Typically, we lost patience and got out of the car rather than waiting for the inevitable! This probably extended the wait...

How to find Dupont's Lark, bustards and sandgrouse in the Steppes of Spain [Part 5]


5. General Behaviour and Field Craft Tips

I hope this final section is the most useful but I apologise in advance if my enthusiasm for ethology leads me to over-complicate - or I give the impression that I'm trying to teach elderly ladies to suck eggs!


So, you see a distant flock of bustards or sandgrouse on the ground...


A. How to get closer...

Stop. Be patient and move slowly, no matter how far away they are. The plan is to patiently edge nearer, step by step, for a better view.

With experience one can judge how far away, or how close, a flock can be before it's o.k. to either get out of the car or move closer but, without it, it's better to play it safe. For now, take what you can while you can and get them in the telescope, preferably from the car.

In any case, if they can see you - and that is usually a good thing - between each step, give the birds time to register and get used to you and your vehicle.

Pin-tailed Sandgrouse are not particularly flighty (Black-bellied Sandgrouse require much more caution, and will take Pin-tailed with them if it’s a mixed flock) and as you approach you will notice that, like many steppe birds including Little Bustard and Dupont’s Lark, they will begin to walk away first, as an energy-saving and habitat-specific strategy against predators, before electing to fly.

If you see this, or they raise their heads to look at you, stop all movement and wait until they settle, i.e. all birds have dropped their heads and returned to their previous behaviour such as feeding, even before lifting your binoculars slowly to your eyes. Obviously, you might have to cheat this a little if they're walking into cover.

If care is taken in this way – and it’s not as easy as it sounds, someone in your car will be tempted to lift their bins too soon – it is not uncommon to be able to view them along side the car. And, believe it or not, they'll often stay while you get out of the car and have lunch!

Note that, if you want photos, it is advisable to have your camera sticking out of the window from the off rather than poking it out when you get close and risk flushing them.

I have many examples of the photo of Pin-tailed Sandgrouse attached, when Zac Hinchcliffe had to lean over me to snap it by the driver's door.


B. How to get out....

Slowly. No, slower than that. Each step is a separate movement.

Once you are convinced that the flock has habituated to any threat you might pose, you can consider getting out. Obviously, let the people on the blind side of the car get out first as their exit is less noticeable to the birds.

Everyone keep your eyes on the birds as you move and freeze if they stop what they're doing, continuing only when they do. This is especially important when opening the boot/hatchback to get scopes out.

Rather than everyone separating themselves from the car and setting up their scope on their own, make sure everyone keeps part of their body and scope behind or 'stuck' to the vehicle and each other, thus maintaining the perception to the bird, at distance, that there is only one 'beast' for it to mind.

And watch your noise levels too – a car door closing sounds just like a hunter's gunshot to a bird and the chink of a tripod leg dropping down can be enough to send them to the skies. Once they're used to you however this matters much less and they're unlikely to be spooked.


C. The bird behaviour behind the approach...

Firstly, and most importantly by far, as soon as you see a flock, it's absolutely essential to remind oneself that any birds settled on the ground are perfectly happy where they are. They might have been there for an hour and intend to stay for another hour.

So, once found, take your time as specified above and focus on doing everything you can not to give them a reason to leave.

This is much harder than you might think and many birders just don't get it, rushing in - most people's version of slowly is still far too fast - 'in case they fly off'.

Secondly, from the point at which you find a flock, if you can, keep imagining how the birds see you and might perceive your actions as a threat.

By doing this, I have learned something very obvious. That, although birds will remain in situ while considering the risk of a perceived single threat*, they tend to take flight as soon as they have two things to worry about.

[ *Two people standing next to each other or several people in one car will most likely be perceived as a single threat. However, whether multiple threats can be viewed without turning the head, or splitting focus, is key. Thus, a car full of people at distance is a single threat, but very close and the bird might have to turn its head to view separate threats in the front and back seats. Similarly, if the two people above now walk away from each other they become separate threats and are much more likely to cause the bird to flush. ]

For example, just three days ago we had a Great Bustard by the side window. After 30 seconds or so of deliberating (with us not even breathing never mind reaching for bins), the bird was almost at the point of accepting us and staying when, as soon as it had to turn its head slightly to check out another approaching car, its focus was split and it flew.


D. What to do if you flush a flock...

If you do accidentally startle and flush a flock of sandgrouse there are two things to remember.

Firstly, as with Little Bustard, normally they don’t ALL fly up and so, especially if it’s a handful taking off, check the ground from where they flew as there are usually others ‘freezing’ (another anti-predator strategy).

Secondly, remember that they do have favourite fields so don’t move on too soon as they have a habit of flying in a large radius before returning to roughly the same spot. Back off a little, wait and, if they don’t return, check back some time later.

If they do fly off, persevere with your binoculars until you see where they land in case you can track them. O.K. three things, there are three things to remember.


E. Other notes on bustards...


Little Bustard, if they see you, are initially quite flighty but often they won’t go very far, especially in the breeding season, either landing out of sight just over a nearby rise (with their head poking over) or settling nicely for a mid-distant ‘scope.

Great Bustards are less flighty than their smaller cousins and can usually be seen on the ground without too much hassle as long as you don’t surprise them. Note though that they usually require about 1km clear visibility on three sides so again some patience will be needed.


F. Dupont's Lark...

It’s surprisingly common to see (and hear stories of) fleeting glimpses of Dupont’s Lark running across or along the tracks as one first arrives on site, when a flash of white tail sides or even a glance at a pale crown stripe may be all you get to attempt to confirm the sighting. With a little more forethought and caution as you approach therefore one can turn these uncertain encounters into something a little more substantial.

A little tip for pin-pointing singing Dupont's Lark that I've found invaluable is to use your bins to hear them. Yes, you read that correctly. By having your bins raised to your eyes whilst panning across, it enables you to hear a singing bird 'more' or 'less' in your left or right ear. In this way you can balance the sound equally in each ear and hone in on the little bastard.

Dupont's Lark are not shy, by the way, and personally I don't think it's useful to personify them in this way if you want to understand them. They merely live in a habitat and environment that's not accessible to us, that's not within our usual scope, even when it comes to birds. And, more often than not, we're not aware how our apparently innocuous actions are perceived as a threat.

I have had many close encounters where they've shown great bravado and ignored my presence totally. One time, so close was the singing bird that I could read its ring number, I was able to dig out a pencil and paper and repeatedly put my bins down to scribble. The bird even sang on when I dropped the pencil and had to bend down to pick it up.

Once again, often it's just a matter of how you approach birds.



Have a great trip then and good luck but...


G. Conservation...

...even should you have the worst misfortune in the world, please don’t be tempted to stray from clearly marked footpaths or deliberately flush grounded birds for a flight view, especially in breeding season.

The hope of stopping people being tempted to do this is the main reason behind my decision to disseminate the information in this article.


A higher number of bird species of conservational concern are found on open land than in any other habitat and there are many red-listed or endangered species in the steppes that are on the threshold of local extinction.

They have enough problems with the threat of continued agricultural change without a pair of size eleven boots stomping all over them (that’s size 45 for the Europeans amongst us) and it's much more common than one would hope.

In any case, watch out as the Agents Rurals, or Countryside Police, are quite vigilant.

My local 'agent' has grown tired of the actions of unscrupulous birders and is now intent on prosecuting.

For this reason, I would also make an appeal not to post specific locations of these species in trip reports, or accidentally within the GPS co-ordinates given in some digital photos, as this allows people to hide their actions behind their anonymity, but rather rely on birders contacting you directly for information.

In this way, everyone who visits is known by someone and this in itself, one hopes, will go some way to protecting them.



If you have a mind to, you can check out the birdwatchers’ code here -
http://www.surfbirds.com/mb/Features/birdwatchers-code.html.


H. A final tip...

Hire a guide!

Stephen C said:

I would also make an appeal not to post locations in trip reports, or accidentally within the GPS co-ordinates given in some digital photos, as this allows people to hide their actions behind their anonymity, but rather rely on birders contacting you directly for information.
....

A final tip

Hire a guide!

Click to expand...

What is the point of posting pages and pages of tips to assist people to see such birds, then try to suppress locations? Best fieldcraft in the world is not going to produce a Dupont's Lark or whatever if you are not in a location holding them!

Given the call for suppressing sites was followed by a suggestion to use a guide, perhaps it was all a bit of advertising?

I fully appreciate the call to reduce disturbance, but not all persons are in a position to learn via word-of-mouth from others and there is nothing to suggest fieldcraft will be any better amongst those that learn from others, or via e-mails to others, as opposed to knowing localities via trip reports giving localities. Besides, not saying so for Spain, but in my experience, it is frequently guides that demonstrate the poorer behaviour towards bird welfare.

Suppression?

Jos Stratford said:

What is the point of posting pages and pages of tips to assist people to see such birds, then try to suppress locations

Click to expand...

That's a bit reactionary, I think. You certainly answered within seconds of my posting and before I had finished editing it (to try and choose my words carefully) so I doubt you had read it properly.

I would ask therefore that you please read it again, Jos.

I didn't say site information should be suppressed at all so your points are all invalid.

I simply appealed for (specific, added afterwards) site information not to be posted openly, to anonymous people, but rather to people to whom you can attach a name.

Isn't it easy to Private Message or Email someone after reading a trip report on this group for instance?

So there is no suppression. The same amount of people can have the information but they get it after one more small step. And, by having to request it, there is a psychological difference in knowing someone knows you're there, that might create a kind of 'peer pressure' block to some very tempting inappropriate behaviour which, it has to be said, I witness a lot.

My response to this behaviour, and the point, to answer your question, is to try and protect birds. Whether it works or not I don't know but despite your protestations that 'there is no evidence', it is my belief that it would make a difference so I'm giving it a try.

Something has to be done. Things are getting very bad.

And I've put a hell of a lot of work into it, by the way, so I'll ignore your personal attack. Except to say, do you SERIOUSLY have such little faith in people's intelligence that you think they'll book a tour just because I've added, 'Book a tour' at the end?! I'm sorry if I caused you offense, Jos, but can I politely suggest you re-engage your sense of humour? And after I even added a winky eye to help you.

"it is frequently guides that demonstrate the poorer behaviour". Frequently? Really? On what do you base this quantitative statement I wonder. On reflection, don't you think that's just a bit reactionary too? I have seen some appalling behaviour by guides but, personally, I suspect that the percentage of people who exhibit such poor behaviour is about the same across all sections, whether they're a guide or not.

Anyway, there you go. That is where I will leave it. People are free to judge as they like and I make no apology.

Stephen C said:

That's a bit reactionary, I think. You certainly answered within seconds of my posting and before I had finished editing it (to try and choose my words carefully) so I doubt you had read it properly.

I would ask therefore that you please read it again, Jos.

Click to expand...

Read it again, did so properly first time before your edits, same basic thoughts, don't think reactionary. Of course, I would perfectly understand if you didn't wish to post sites that you visit, no issue.

However, the main purpose of a trip report to assist others to find birds, or at least that is what I thought. If locations are withheld, they basically fail in that. Lucky there are guides waiting to take folk to see the very same birds, huh?

Stephen C said:

Isn't it easy to Private Message or Email someone after reading a trip report on this group for instance? The same amount of people can have the information but they get it after one more small step. And, by having to request it, there is a psychological difference in knowing someone knows you're there, that might create a kind of 'peer pressure' block to some very tempting inappropriate behaviour which, it has to be said, I witness a lot.

Click to expand...

Personally, I don't agree with any of these points - many trip reports do not have e-mail addresses and even if they do, who knows if they answer. Also don't buy the 'peer pressure' argument - if some anonymous (ie unknown) person sends me an e-mail and I send him information, I would be amazed if me 'knowing' this person, or knowing this person is in the field, would have any significant difference. So basically, might as well just post locations anyway or simply not mention the species at all.


Fortunately, for anybody really wanting to see any of the these species, pinpointed localities are easily available via ebird and, with a little more reading, through assorted trip reports on Cloudbirders, etc.

Stephen C said:

"it is frequently guides that demonstrate the poorer behaviour". Frequently? Really? On what do you base this quantitative statement I wonder. On reflection, don't you think that's just a bit reactionary too?

Click to expand...

Just based on observations in assorted corners of the world. Nope, don't think this is very reactionary either, sorry.

Just a quick video addition to complete this thread and thought some of you guys might be interested:

Here's a few great video clips of Dupont's Lark that I was sorting through from last June (2018) and wanted to add.


OK, they don't appear to load (file too big?) so here's the link to them on YouTube.


https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7F..._as=subscriber


At the moment they're the first four clips but, just in case, here are individual links:


1. Juvenile Dupont's Lark following an adult
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta_e0DgOPq4


2. Juvenile Dupont's Lark calling to a nearby adult for food
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aqr9H97tves


3. Dupont's Lark singing with second nearby
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POTXKUgvEBg



4. Quick clip of a standing adult bird taking off
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l37hkK6w6U4


They're all pretty short but interesting footage nonetheless.


Cheers guys