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Birding in Alicante Province (1 Viewer)

Well that's my pre-Xmas week over, back home tomorrow with a grand total of 128 species icluding 2 "lifers" - Black-bellied Sandgrouse and Short-toed Treecreeper. :t:

For my final day, I asked Graham Critchell to show me the location for possible Alpine Accentors in the Sierra Espuna park - well there weren't any AAs up there, and nothing else either! Although the sun was shining, the wind was howling across the tops, and the temperature felt about minus 10, no wonder the birds weren't showing...:C

In the forested slopes we had excellent views of the STC and a very obliging Crested Tit, with plenty of Crossbills, Jays, Chaffinches and Coal Tits in evidence as well.

Finally it was on to the plains around Guadalentin, where we picked up a pair of very distant Black-bellied Sandgrouse and a Water Pipit. Unfortunately this good site for the Sandgrouse and also Little Bustard which have been seen in the area is under a lot of agricultural development which is destroying the habitat for these birds :C

A final note for Barred Wobbler - the situation on the Vistabella Road at the moment is that the work stops over the weekend and access is possible to the hide along that road. The bad news is that the hide is being rebuilt, when I was there yesterday the hut had just been completed and creosoted, but there were no windows or seats in place yet. The good news is that this has happened during the last week, so by the time you're there in January the work should be finished both on the hide and on the new drainage system. :t:

It will be interesting to see how things have developed by next month - I should be back out here in March or early April!
 

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Great to find this thread here! As my in-laws have retired out to La Marina, we go out there 2-3 times a year, and as I am - at best - an enthusiastic amateur, I am always on the look out for somewhere I can get a second opinion!

Despite the criticism the area gets, I love it there! And even though I have relatively little time to go out exploring and looking for birdlife, due to the demands of 4-year-old twins, I feel I have found some great places to go. I tend to gravitate towards El Pinet and the estuary at Guardamar del Segura. Have not made it to El Hondo as yet, but maybe next trip (coming up in March/April)

Some sightings that got me excited:
- watching a beautiful roller soaring from wire to wire across an orange grove next to the Urbanizacion La Marina
- watching the acrobatics of 4 or 5 collared pratincoles on El Pinet
- the huge number of different warblers singing in the Spring, especially the brilliant vocals of the great reed warblers!
- getting our girls involved by helping them spot (and differentiate between) flamingos, spoonbills, avocets and stilts
 
For information... which is the Vistabella road...?! I looked on Google maps, and most roads aren't labelled! If I am heading along the Dolores-Elche north road towards Elche, which way do I go?

Thanks!
 
Hi Iazza
If you are in La Marina, take the Elche road going northwards (CV860). You come to a roundabout where the CV855 Dolores-Elche road joins it from the left, continue straight ahead (the road is now the CV855).
The next junction is a crossroads, turn left along this and you are on the Vistabella road.
This map may show it better, zoom in on the bottom right of the green patch which is El Hondo.
Continue along for about half a mile and you will see the reedbeds on the right-hand side. Go on another half mile, you will see a bridge over the canal which gives you access to the reedbed hides, and further along is Vistabella House opposite the South Gate to El Hondo (no access into the reserve here, but very good birding along this part of the road). Go further along and the reedbeds ends, there is a track on the right which you can drive along a short way and park, further access to the reed beds from here, and look out for raptors on the wires and other birds in the rough patch to the left.

Hope this helps!
 
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Thanks :)

Looking forward to our April trip. Those reedbeds are sure to hold some beautiful/noisy singers!
 
Hi Mark

Thanks for all the information. Apologies if this request has already been dealt with elsewhere but I've just registered with the Birdforum.

We are camping at Marjal Costa Blanca (Catral) and would love to do some birding at El Hondo. Our only means of transport are our bikes as the motorhome is "plugged in" and a pain to move.

Is there much we can see within a 10km bike ride radius from Catral and where would you recommend?

Thanks
 
Hi Ralph

You couldn't be much closer to El Hondo if you tried! Have a look at a map online and you will see that you are about 15 minutes by bike (guesstimate - I don't cycle!) away from the reserve, and what's more the various tracks around Catral leading to El Hondo go through agricultural areas which in themselves are pretty good for birds.

Go Northeast to San Felipe Neri then east to reach the visitor centre, go due east to get to the Vistabella Road. This map will give you a starter!

I will be out there in a couple of weeks time, apparently the drainage work is just about finished now so we'll see what improvements have been made.
 
Thanks Mark, appreciate your help, time to get the bikes out!

We are new to Spain after 5 years driving a 4x4 around southern Africa so Spanish birdlife is a bit of a mystery. Got excited spotting what we think was a crested lark yesterday on the campsite, makes a change from the wagtails and sparrows!

We spotted a small duck in one of the drainage channels near Catral the other day, very fast underwater diver, sadly it shot up an adjacent drain as we approached so never got an ID. Any ideas?

Many thanks

Ralph
 
Hi Ralph

Your "small duck" is likely to be a Little Grebe - there seems to be at least one in every drainage channel in that area! The only other regular drainage channel bird is Moorhen, but that doesn't dive.

Crested Larks are common in that area, you might also get Thekla Lark which is a b*gg*r to separate from Crested, even to the experts :h?:

When you get to El Hondo, keep your eyes on the sky above you - you will certainly get Booted Eagles and Marsh Harriers soaring overhead at this time of year, and more importantly there are at least 4 Greater Spotted Eagles on site :t:
 
Hi Mark

Have been to El Hondo a couple of times, nice place, thanks for bringing it to our attention.

We got the booted eagles (a first for us), loads of marsh harriers, our first Purple Swamphen and Iberian Shrike. Nice place to pass a morning or afternoon.

Hope to see the Greater Spotted eagle next time.
 
So, my first trip to Spain since learning of El Hondo's existence, and today made my first visit. Took a slightly different route than suggested, heading to the main visitor centre via Catral and San Felipe Neri.

And spent the full morning there from about 09:30 until 1pm.

First sightings were a wheatear and three stonechat in the car park, which was a nice start. Lots of singing, jingling corn bunting also along the track to the car park. At the first hide, there were lots of pochard and coot, plus two red-crested pochard, several little grebe and a single great-crested grebe.

The reeds were full of great reed warbler screeching and scratching away - heard but not seen - and I think also some reed warbler, although not quite sure. There were also many Sardinian warblers, very visible but not vocal, and a lot of zitting cisticola being much more confiding than I'm used to.

On the way to the second pool, a marsh harrier glided over, and the skies were full of swift (not sure if there might have been pallid swift among them). At the second lagoon, there were many more pochard and little grebe, joined by a large number of black-necked grebe - a lifer for me! Then straight after, a second lifer, and one of the reserve's primary species, white-headed duck, with three asleep in the distant reeds but three more quite close to the hide showing very well. Also in the reeds were several moorhen and two little egret.

Next, I headed out to the southern part of the park, along a path parallel to a canal where there were several showy serin and plenty of gulls flying over, mostly Mediterranean gulls as far as I could tell. Every now and then there was the same unidentified song coming from out of the shrubs, a very loud and musical whistle that I have no clue about (reminding me of how poor my song recognition is)! Further down the canal path the gulls gave way to terns, a few little tern, but mostly whiskered terns, a third lifer for the day!! Also visible in the same large lagoon were avocet, stilt and collared pratincole, and two grey heron on the far side.

I couldn't find my way out of the southern end of the park, as there were large gates erected (although I later found out that I could've got round them) so headed back to the visitor centre which had opened by this point, and where there were several spotless starling.

And finally back to La Marina via Dolores and San Fulgencio, turning up a couple of fighting/displaying(?) kestrel by the main road, a greenfinch in a tree by the La Marina turn off, two white wagtail in an empty car-park, and finally a woodchat shrike dashing low over a field of artichokes!

So, although no spotted eagle (already flown north) or marbled duck (not arrived yet), IMHO not bad for a morning's birding!
 
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A brief trip to El Pinet this morning. Nothing too unusual there, but a good number of flamingos, avocets and stilts, also with several collared pratincole and slender-billed gull, a couple of redshanks, many many Med gull and common tern. Also, a pair of shelduck arrived just as I was leaving. The highlight, however, was on the way down from La Marina Urbanizacion on my bike, via some tracks through the scrubland, where I picked up a little owl. Along the same track, there were also countless serin, several Sardinian warblers, and a hoopoe. Have often seen roller along the same track, but not today - too early perhaps?
 
I think Rollers won't be back for another two weeks or so, but you should be able to find Bee-eaters by now - I had them on the 19th March!

If you take the Elche road from La Marina (CV853) and turn left just before a sharp right-hand bend about 1 Km after going under the N-332, go along this road for about 2Km and you will come across a series of electrical pylons. If you don't get Bee-eaters perching on the wires somewhere along here you will be very unlucky! (My Avatar piccy was taken there!). I've also had Rollers there but as I said it might be a bit early.

There is a semi-derelict monastery building further along on the right-hand side, take the track to the right (rough but quite driveable), there may be more Bee-eaters in the fields on your left, and a good chance of Woodchat Shrike too. You can continue along this track which will bring you out just short of the crossroads which starts the Vistabella road.

Good hunting!
 
Thanks Mark. Sadly, it was a brief trip - just a long weekend - as I had to be back at work this week. But as the family are out there the whole Easter break, I though it would be worth a few days away!

I thought I might be too early for rollers, but I didn't get bee-eaters either. The Urbanizacion where my in-laws live is quite good for bee-eaters, especially late afternoon. Their call is unmistakable. Also, I remember on a couple of excursions on my bike that I've had them just off the CV855 on the way to Elche, on the parallel track that descends into the small river valley (Vinopolis?).

Looking back, Easter was much later last year, when I got my first roller. There was also a marked difference in the number of calling warblers. The great reed warblers were very vocal this time, but the Sardinian warblers weren't singing much, so I guess that this must start in the next week or two.
 
If you take the Elche road from La Marina (CV853) and turn left just before a sharp right-hand bend about 1 Km after going under the N-332, go along this road for about 2Km and you will come across a series of electrical pylons. If you don't get Bee-eaters perching on the wires somewhere along here you will be very unlucky! (My Avatar piccy was taken there!). I've also had Rollers there but as I said it might be a bit early.

I just had a look on google maps, and I know just where you mean. In fact, the track that goes off left (directly south) from this bend in the CV853 is a track I use a lot on the mountain bike. It's where I picked up the Little Owl and the hoopoe that I mention in the earlier post! And it is where I've seen rollers a couple of times.
 
Had an excellent 11 days in southern Alicante. 113 species recorded and missed a few easy ones. Great variety in passage migrants with the pick being a Tawny Pipit at La Mata. 4 Lifers with Rock Bunting at Maigmo, Great Spotted Cuckoo at El Hondo (plus another at La Mata), 23 Griffons at Alcoy plus the aforementioned pipit. Got about 20 Spain ticks as well. Very good fun. Will put a full write up on the blog.
 
Hi, just to let locals know that there was an Azure Winged Magpie last Thursday in the pines north of Santa Pola (on the road to the Airport).
For anyone visiting El Hondo over the next period bring strong insect repellent as they took a fancy to me last weekend!

derek
 
Hi, just to let locals know that there was an Azure Winged Magpie last Thursday in the pines north of Santa Pola (on the road to the Airport).
For anyone visiting El Hondo over the next period bring strong insect repellent as they took a fancy to me last weekend!

derek

Apparently the AW Magpie was at El Clot but I couldnt find it when I was there. I got 29 bites to face and neck at El Hondo despite being in a hoodie. Viscious!
 

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