Mallorca 2020 (2 Viewers)

Hi Gregor,
Yet another amazing day at your place.
I’m definitely in the wrong area, I have seen one Raven all day.
What a fantastic tally of species.
Keep an eye on those harriers, Pallid do come through the Island occasionally.
Great that you now have photos, well done.
Mike

Mike Montier said:

Hi Gregor,
Yet another amazing day at your place.
I’m definitely in the wrong area, I have seen one Raven all day.
What a fantastic tally of species.
Keep an eye on those harriers, Pallid do come through the Island occasionally.
Great that you now have photos, well done.
Mike

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Thanks Mike! 41 in the end with some Scops Owls calling. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for Pallid! It would be a dream to add another raptor species to the lockdown list.

SEVENTEEN SPRINGS- EPISODE 19-2ND-9TH APRIL 2010
SCOPS RENAISSANCE
From BHX with Monarch again this time, leaving in an absolute downpour, surrounded by young footballers off to a tournament in Mallorca. This time we had the best of the best rooms- the 2 family rooms on the top floor with unrivalled views from the Boquer all the way round to the twin peaks of Alcudia. AScops calling quite close was an uplifting end to the day, after last years total blank. Saturday was rather limited, but we did explore the new addition to the hotel- it now possessed a spa and had been renamed slightly as the Pollensa Park Hotel and Spa. The Boquer had mainly old friends, but a Tree Pipit was good- unfortunately Northamptonshire was nearing the end of a terminal decline in the breeding population of what had been a breeder in some numbers when I started birding in the 1970s.
Sunday was church and a stand-in vicar gave the best sermons we had ever heard since we started going in 2000. It was a windy day, and the strangest sight was a group of a dozen BW Stilts on the offshore rocks hanging on for dear life. In La Gola we marvelled at the number of frogs on one of the inlet streams, and could see why the Little Egrets were nearly always in that area throughout our holiday. That night the Scops was tracked down to a tree in the Carrer de Xarxa (pronounced ha-ha) but despite standing right under the bird it remained invisible.
The next day was Albufereta day and we had a nice time there including reading stories to our boys, now aged 11 and 9. In the evening the Scops were in the hotel grounds and even in a tree right outside our room but still impossible to see when in the evergreen pines.
Tuesday was misty and dull. so we stayed local and walked round the harbour, whilst on Wednesday we went to Albufera where a couple of late Starlings were interesting, together with Moustached Warblers showing well at the usual place at the beginning of the Ses Puntes track, and a nice selection of waders.
Thursday was car day and the lady had yet again forgotten the child seats which took a bit of sorting out, but off we went in our black Zafira- brand new and with a modified handbrake which fooled me to begin with. Our tour of the interior continued with a visit to Porreres and a nice cafe run by a German lady called Jessica, then up to Monte Zion monastery nearby, ending with a visit to Cala Mondrago which was certainly beautiful but a bit uneven for Grandad who by now was 85 and a bit unsteady. The wind getting up was also unhelpful. The next day was our regular run via the Depuradora to Arta and the mountains, with lunch at Cap Capdepera for the reliable Shearwaters. Delayed by a cycle race we returned to the hotel to start week 2- little knowing what drama would unfold in the next seven days.............

timsg80 said:

It would be fantastic to have some more birders visit this area, I strongly suspect there are some rarities to find. Last year the fields between Es Capdella and Peguera were fantastic for migrants!

It's been a brilliant day here, the first time I've reached 40 species in one day! The garden held a good number of Willow Warblers again and several more flew over. A Wood Warbler, two Pied Flycatchers and a beautiful male Common Redstart were also in the garden, presumably all of which had stayed from the day before. One of the Pied Flycatchers stayed loyal to the same perch all day, at one point nearly being caught by a Woodchat Shrike. Lots of Mediterranean Flycatchers are around, I wonder if some of them are migrant Spotted.

7 Tree Pipit flew overhead this morning, but things were otherwise quiet overhead until this afternoon when there was a fantastic rush of raptors. Firstly a Black Kite passed low over the house, before a large flock of Vultures appeared, with at least 17 Griffon and 10 Black. A Bonelli's Eagle, several Booted Eagles and Red Kites, two Peregrines and a number of Common Kestrels also passed, but I could scarcely believe my eyes when this appeared, a male Montagu's Harrier! Yet another garden first, and what a Spring it is turning out to be. Shortly after, a small raptor passed distantly over the neighbouring valley, I suspect it was a Eurasian Sparrowhawk, but sadly it was too far away for a positive identification.

A group of Bee-eaters also passed overhead, along with my best day total of House Martins. Additionally I finally added Audouin's Gull to the garden list. The sea is just too far away to make out most of the birds, but probable Cormorants and an apparent Osprey went past. I'll keep trying!

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Wonderful report and I hope we might see each other next winter / spring

SEVENTEEN SPRINGS- EPISODE 20- 10TH-16TH APRIL 2010
OWLS TRACKED DOWN AND A BIG BANG
Saturday was the last day with the car, and by popular demand I drove along the motorway and up past Bunyola to Alfabia gardens for another visit, together with their freshly squeezed orange juice from oranges direct from the tree. Through the tunnel to lunch in Port de Soller, and back over the mountains with a brief stop at Cuber, but as we arrived at about 1630 there was not much about, to be honest. After the evening meal I tracked the Scops down and actually saw them in the trees in the Hotel car park. A touch of El Clasico later as celebration- the non-Catalan supporters very much in a minority as the hotel staff crowded round the TV.
Sunday was church again followed by the Boquer but no Balearic Warblers visible, but there were still lots of nice birds about. In the evening the Scops were calling apparently from somewhere in the Pollentia Hotel- and having commandeered a bird photographer called Steve from Darlington I asked him to take a flash photograph of the top right ventilator at the back of the Pollentia- and bingo! a pair of eyes were peering out at us- and later the owl that had been calling flew out and away- so I had pinned down the new nest site.
Monday saw us slowly proceeding to the Boquer and having a picnic at the pines- enlivened by 6 Booted Eagles in territoral dispute, and later a Stone Curlew showing well in the bottom field near the car park. Tuesday was mainly beach and play area day, but I managed a brief look at Postage Stamp Wood with Firecrests there as usual, and some Crossbills in the pine avenue.
Wednesday and the in-laws kindly looked after the boys whilst Susan and I went on the bus to Can Picafort and along the beach into Son Real- a site now a firm favourite although unknown to British birders until about 2008. 3 Turnstones on the rocks were an island tick, and I also stumbled across my first ever view of a wild tortoise-as a Hermanns was in the dunes area. There was another event to ponder as the beach was full of dead jellyfish.
Thursday was a day never to be forgotten- I went on my own to Albufera and had a good time with a nice selection of waders, Water Pipit and a superb feldegg Yellow Wagtail. On the bus back someone was talking about a volcano in Iceland and some disruption to flights due to volcanic ash- and it became clearer later on that our return flight was not going to happen- so what could we do- well as Christians we prayed, but also started phoning- we could not leave on the Friday but when would we leave? The children had school and so did I- ironically it was the start of the last term before I retired.
on the Friday I was beside the phone in the hotel room for most of the day, and I was very grateful that we had used WildWings as John Brodie Good was on the case- and he eventually rang to say we had been re-scheduled on a flight the next Thursday at 1100- giving us 6 extra days holiday. We just stayed in the same rooms as there were no incoming tourists at all. As a distraction from the problems I guided a British family to see the Scops in the Pollentia that evening.........

H Johnsson said:

Wonderful report and I hope we might see each other next winter / spring

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That would be fantastic! There's a lot of habitat to explore around here!

Another amazing day, this time reaching 46 species!

At dawn there was a wonderful chorus of bird song, including Nightingale, Wryneck, Hoopoe and another Golden Oriole. The Oriole continued to sing until about 730 but sadly I never saw it.

Birds in the garden were much the same as yesterday, with a few apparent new arrivals. There were at least 3 and probably 4 Wood Warblers, along with two Pied Flycatchers (the lighter-coloured male continued to frequent the same perch, while a female was the first I've seen this Spring. The darker male of the past few days has seemingly departed). Willow Warblers were abundant today, I would guess that there were at least 20. A Common Redstart was the only other obvious migrant, though the current abundance of Spotted/Mediterranean Flycatchers does make me wonder. Can they be separated? I thought I heard a different call today, but apparently that is not diagnostic?

It was a fantastic day overhead, with another Tree Pipit over early, followed by a great spectacle of Swifts (including one Alpine and several Pallid among the many Common), House Martins and Swallows. Three groups of Bee-eaters passed over during the day, of which I saw only one!

Raptors started to appear in the mid-afternoon, with several Griffon Vultures among a larger group of Black Vultures shortly followed by spectacular views of a Bonelli's Eagle pair (presumably the same pair passed over in the evening as well). In the mid-morning another male Montagu's Harrier passed overhead, along with a female Harrier that I couldn't assign to a species in the late afternoon. Other raptors seen were Red Kites, Booted Eagles, Peregrine Falcons and Kestrels. Some raptors are far too distant to identify, I really worry about what I'm missing!

The day has ended brilliantly, with an amazing nighttime chorus of Nightingales, Scops Owls, Stone Curlews and, my highlight of the day, my first Nightjars of the lockdown! Last July and August I saw one almost every evening here which was a truly amazing experience.

Another spectacular day and I can't wait for my alarm to go off at 545! For those interested, my ebird checklist of the day is below:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S67656119

timsg80 said:

That would be fantastic! There's a lot of habitat to explore around here!
The current abundance of Spotted/Mediterranean Flycatchers does make me wonder. Can they be separated? I thought I heard a different call today, but apparently that is not diagnostic?
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Hi Gregor, the best and easier way to identify the 2 species of flycatchers is the general colour. Maybe there are some mixed birds, but generally:

Spotted flycatcher: Dark grey head and chest, with dark bars on chest.
Mediterranean flycatcher: General softer colour, with very light grey chest, sometimes almost dark white. Head is also light grey colour, and the bars are quite more softer than in the spotted.
I attach 2 pictures and you will identify perfectly who is who.

Thanks Pep
A very good illustration of the differences between the two flycatchers.
Gregor, you are fast becoming a local celebrity with your sightings, some amazing birds over your way.
Watch out for Honey buzzards which are due now.
I was just going to moan that despite big numbers of Willow and Wood warblers, I have yet to see either. They are normally in the trees very close to me but I dare not go to see them.
I have managed to see Wheatear, Golden oriole, Spotted flycatcher and Nightingale but I have not heard a Cuckoo yet.
On my trip to Lidl just now, I saw a Common Redstart in the trees on the way out.
I’m very excited that Nightjars are in, one of my top birds. There are usually a few pairs in Mondragó so I will get to see them later in the year.
46 species is a fantastic total for a day list, it’s been great reading about all your sightings, keep them coming!
Mike

Bang on time, the first Honey Buzzard came through going north, a fine adult male.
Also:
12 Marsh Harrier
43 Black Kite
11 Migrant Common Kestrel
1 Montagu’s Harrier
With thanks to Juanjo and the Mallorca Raptor Count.
Mike

Lockdown birding is going really nicely here, with some surprising migrants over the past weeks, including a female Ring Ouzel which held the crown of most unusual for a while. However this morning a male and female Rock Thrush blew that out of the water! An amazing male showed really well, and the female briefly, and both were gone by the evening. A good day for other migrants today, with 3 Tree Pipits, 4 Pied Flycatchers, 2 Wheatears, a male Whinchat, female Common Whitethroat, Cuckoo, Hobby and a beaut of a male Common Redstart. Excited for tomorrows #lockdown birding, to see if I can add anything else new. Currently on 70 species since the lockdown began.

An amazing find Jason.
Just like you, I’m wondering what is going to turn up next.
I won’t make any predictions!
Mike

SEVENTEEN SPRINGS- EPISODE 21- 17TH-23RD APRIL 2010
NO ASH WEDNESDAY
Saturday saw me again anxiously trying to find out further details of the volcanic ash situation but all lines were busy. We therefore took out a picnic and went down the Llenaire road, seeing a nice male Whinchat ona wire, and back along the Cami Volantina. At the hotel Monarch rang at 1500 to say the flight was now next Friday at the same time as our original departure- giving a whole week more holiday. The Sunday was calmer as we now knew what was happening, so Church, the Joker and the Boquer were in order, with a nice showy Nightingale in the latter. In the evening I acquired 2 moth pots from a Leicester University (my old uni) team on the island for Botany and Zoology field courses, and I went round various lights in the hotel grounds to see what I could find- just one Silver Y that night.
The Monday started with a phone call to Northampton to inform my colleagues what the supply teacher should teach my classes, and then we walked over the Col de Siller to Cala San Vicenc, and came back on the bus. Back in PP I at last saw the famous seaplanes that are based in the hangar north of the town for the summer- they were practising take-offs and landings on the Bay, and generally being very noisy.
Tuesday we stayed local and the ash news was still bad- no flights that day- so we stayed local and my younger boy won some certificates for boules and archery for his age group at the hotel children's club. In the evening we heard that Thomas Cook was planning to take its customers to Palma port, ferry to Valencia, coach to Caen in France and ferry to Portsmouth- taking over 48 hours.
Wednesday broke with startling news- all the UK airports were suddenly open again! It looked like we would get home by plane on the Friday after all. The Boquer was nice again during daylight hours and the Balearic warblers actually showed, and at night the pair of Scops showed really well to an appreciative group at the back of the Pollentia.
Thursday started with rain and got wetter, so we stayed in the hotel all day, but were shocked to see all the Thomas Cook customers whisked off to the airport with only 2 hours notice- they had to be permanently packed so had lived out of suitcases for days.
Friday was time to go, but the day started really well with a Golden Oriole heard and a party of Bee-eaters seen in the hotel gardens. For the first and only time I had to pay for the week extra that we had enjoyed (all our other holidays were pre-paid), and the bill for 484 Euros was duly taken from my Visa. Lunch was taken in the cafe for locals called l'Ancla- the set meal proving yummy and cheap at 13 Euros for 3 courses. A small bus from Autocares Mallorca (by now owned by the British company Arriva) arrived to take us to PMI and there we eventually departed some 2 hous late but arrived safely back in BHX.
POSTSCRIPT- The refund cheque for the extra week took time to arrive but it did on 4th September- so the volcano basically gave us an extra free week's holiday and a week off work too! A never to be forgotten episode in our tales of Mallorca.

Thanks Josep for the illustration of the differences between Mediterranean and Spotted Flycatchers, I hadn’t appreciated how pronounced the differences are! And thanks Mike, yesterday was another day of more than 40 species, with several Willow Warblers, a Pied Flycatcher and Wood Warbler still in the garden. Overhead, another Black Kite, along with a pair of Bonelli’s Eagles and a Peregrine among good numbers of Red Kites and Booted Eagle, along with several groups of Bee-eaters (groups of 8, 3 and 18 seen, others heard), a Pallid Swift and my first Sand Martin for about a week. Scops Owls and Nightjars were calling again at night.

A great start to today with two Golden Orioles calling at dawn, and, just now, another scarcity, a Western Bonelli’s Warbler seen and heard in the pines behind the house. I’ll try and get a photo!

The Crossbills have been extremely active this morning which is great to see, and I had a fantastic view of a Wryneck. Hopefully a Honey Buzzard will pass over soon!

I've seen the Bonelli's Warbler a couple more times today but it's been a total nightmare to try and photograph. While searching for it, this Tree Pipit appeared, the first I've seen grounded here.

Three Turtle Doves also briefly landed, a garden first for me!

It's been very quiet overhead, save for a handful of flocks of Bee-eaters, an Alpine Swift among a flock of Common, this Bonelli's Eagle (one of a pair seen again today) and a number of the more common species.

I had a surprising third garden tick of the day this evening, when I found two Whinchats, to end a great day for migrants, with final totals of 2 Golden Orioles, a Tree Pipit, a Willow Warbler, three Turtle Doves, the two Whinchats and the Western Bonelli’s Warbler all in and around the garden.

The quartet of Stone-Curlew, Scops Owl, Nightjar and Nightingale are all calling again this evening. What a special time of year!

A quieter but still reasonable day today, with two Willow Warblers, two Pied Flycatchers and a Golden Oriole in the garden, along with a handful of Pallid and two Alpine Swifts, a day total of approximately 80 Bee-eaters, Bonelli’s Eagle and a Black Vulture overhead. Lots of Crossbills around too, they are amazingly active early in the mornings right now. Hopefully there are a few surprises to come this Spring!

An unbelievable flock of Black Kites flew over this evening, I can count 95 in one of my pictures (I’m not sure if the resolution came out well here and if I’ve uploaded the right photo, I’ll count them properly this evening!), and this was just a fraction of the total flock. At least a further 10 went over earlier in the day! The ebird récord for Mallorca seems to be 44?

In addition, a Cuckoo was in the garden first thing this morning before being chased right over my head by a Woodchat Shrike! Also several Willow Warblers still, and lots of Bee-eaters plus a Peregrine overhead.

What a day!

Edit: and now a Nightjar seen flying low over the house!

That’s an extraordinary number of Black Kite Gregor.
Every day I look at the weather charts on Windfinder and I see that strong winds are blowing through the Straits of Gibraltar and smacking straight into the south coast of Mallorca.
High numbers of migrating raptors are normal there so I guess many of them have been displaced to Mallorca.
It will be very interesting to see what tomorrow brings.
Mike

Mike Montier said:

That’s an extraordinary number of Black Kite Gregor.
Every day I look at the weather charts on Windfinder and I see that strong winds are blowing through the Straits of Gibraltar and smacking straight into the south coast of Mallorca.
High numbers of migrating raptors are normal there so I guess many of them have been displaced to Mallorca.
It will be very interesting to see what tomorrow brings.
Mike

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It will be very interesting indeed Mike, I’m hoping I’ll be able to add Honey Buzzard to the garden list in the next couple of days! And who knows what else.

I couldn’t quite believe my eyes when I looked through my binoculars and realised they were Black Kites and not Yellow-legged Gulls! A Marsh Harrier also flew through this evening, which was a garden first. Hopefully you’ll get some raptor movement on the other side of the island tomorrow!

I wish!
It looks like everything will be coming your way, or at least along the south and south-west coasts.
The south-east where I am will be sheltered from the winds and I’m not too hopeful of seeing much at all.
Good luck.
Mike