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Birdwatching in Straits of Gibraltar & La Janda (3 Viewers)

Hi Eddie, read your thread regarding the photographic course. Im birding in the area this March and would be very grateful if you could recommend me the agency who run the photographic course you mention, is it for bird photography, dslr, bridge cameras?

Any info regarding pricing, value for money or any other info would be most welcome,

Cheers.

I can also recommend a local photographer naturalist. Also feel free to download my notes (see my site below) and would be happy to field any questions if you PM me with your email address,
 
Bird photography courses

Hi Eddie, read your thread regarding the photographic course. Im birding in the area this March and would be very grateful if you could recommend me the agency who run the photographic course you mention, is it for bird photography, dslr, bridge cameras?

Any info regarding pricing, value for money or any other info would be most welcome,

Cheers.


Hi Zebra,

We conduct these tours/courses/workshops you ask about.

Plz end me a PM and il forward any info you may require :)

I leave you with some images.
 

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We arrived at La Janda at about midday today to find ALL the wind turbines not working! Bonus no wind! We gave the place a good grilling and saw some good birds but the real biggies were somewhere else! We saw: maybe 25 Kestrels 15 Buzzards 10 Marsh Harriers, one cracking male Hen Harrier, 2 Spoonbills, 1 Water Rail (site tick) 1 Griffon Vulture, 3 Bonelli's Eagles, 2 Black-shouldered Kites 2 Kingfishers. So a big fat zero of Imperial or LS Eagles, Palid Harrier, Bluethroat or Penduline Tit- any specific directions for the latter would be appreciated. Oh we did see a few Barn Swallows heading north.
 
I am so sorry for not posting lately what with the UK and Tenerife visits I had to get some of the domestic chores finshed in case my Spanish neighbours think I am not looking after myself.They are so helpful I cannot even sneeze unless they send for an ambulance.Anyway back to the birds the lesser spotted eagle was seen twice last week once on the Cañada and once at the cattle egrets nest site,neither by me I must add.An eagle owl is often present at nightfall on one of the small pylons as one leaves for the eastern exit and I have seen a short eared owl on one of the fence posts in the same area.In fact I have just received a whatsapp to say they are there at this very minute 19.30 CET.
Yesterday I had a day out and started at the osprey nest at the Barbate reservoir near to the Los Barrios /Jerez motorway and an adult bird was near to the nest on the pylon eating a very large carp and another was perched nearby.Also at the waters edge were male and female pintail,male and female common teal,Shoveler ducks and a pair of shelduck together with mallard little egret and white storks.
I then moved to the Laguna Medina near Jerez a site I have not visited for a while because of reports of very few birds so I was not surprised to see only 2 coot,3 mallard,6 cormorants a raft of black headed gulls and the distant views of a female marsh harrier.I am told the birds have left this site for the lack of food as a great number of carp have been eating the weed and algae that the birds feed on.I am sure the authorities are aware and as carp are quite valuable for restocking something could be done to ease the problem.
I then moved to the Salinas at Bonanza not quite in the Straits area but always interesting.Seen were slender billed black headed and yellow legged gulls,sanderling,dunlin,redshank.avocets,black winged stilts, pochard,black tailed godwits common snipe and flamencos.The only bird of prey seen was a very skitish osprey that would not let me get near it.I then went on to the freshwater lagoon called Tarelo in the pine forest and saw white headed duck,pochard red crested pochard mallard a pair of black crowned night herons.
I then returned to Vejer De La Frontera to the Barca to be precise and was pleased to find that 7 pairs of Northern Bald ibis were in residence and were begining nest reconstruction.This is the first reported sighting this year of these birds at the nest site.Then on to La Janda via the Vejer entrance and to be honest not much to report.One male and two female Marsh harriers,one black winged kite,common buzzards and kestrels,several spoonbills, a hoopoe and my first booted eagle of the year.I left before dark so did not see the owls.Kind regards to all ....Eddy
 

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Hi Eddy

Nice mini report of your birding. Sometimes life is hectic and other things get in the way of your hobbies ..as they do

Nice to have people who care living closeby who care about you though :gh:

OH and I will be going to Menorca in October this year.... due to some health issues of my own and 2 major operations myself.
I dare not risk a trip in May time as I may undo all the work with my arm to get me better...by sailing a dingy boat!!!!

Will miss May time but as you say life is always busy and that is what makes it interesting

Regards
Kathy
x
 
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I then moved to the Laguna Medina near Jerez a site I have not visited for a while because of reports of very few birds so I was not surprised to see only 2 coot,3 mallard,6 cormorants a raft of black headed gulls and the distant views of a female marsh harrier.I am told the birds have left this site for the lack of food as a great number of carp have been eating the weed and algae that the birds feed on.I am sure the authorities are aware and as carp are quite valuable for restocking something could be done to ease the problem.
....Eddy

I'm told the problem is that there's a carp fishery fairly close the the laguna and when there's heavy rain fish escape, swim along a small stream and into the lake. When this happened previously the authorities drained the lake and took out 4 tonnes of fish. However, given the parlous state of the Spanish economy, there isn't the money to do so again so the carp are likely to remain. Even if they did get rid of them it'd only happen again the next time there's heavy rain since the junta apparently doesn't have the power to close the fishery.
 
Talking of the migration,regular sightings of Egyptian vultures,short toed eagles,black kites,the odd Griffon vulture and all types of hirundines now crossing whenever favourable conditions are in....Eddy.
 
Well, that's the September trip booked. Arriving last weekend in August again.

A long, long time ago (c2000 - 2002) I had a rush of blood and knocked off a bunch of drawings using pastel pencils that I'd been given, based on the few bird photos I'd taken in the days before digital and my early attempts at digiscoping once I'd realised that I could take photos with my work's digital camera through my scope. The reason for those early digishots was actually to try to get material for drawings. The photos themselves were crap, but they served their purpose.

Then in 2002 I bought my own digital camera and soon, as results got better the photos took over and the drawings quickly fell by the wayside. It's about 7 years now since I did a pastel and apart from a few pen and inks I knocked out in 2009 I've not touched a drawing in years.

Stuck in the gloom today and failing to fight off boredom I decided to do a drawing based on a booted eagle I photographed at Tarifa a couple of years ago. So far I've just done the preliminary sketch and I might get around to getting the colour on over the next few days if the mood is still with me.

Here's the sketch. It's supposed to be that colour - it's in pencil on grey paper.
 

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I had a complaint that I had not posted here in weeks.Well basically I went out of the area for the first time in years and did a round trip to Malaga Sevilla Huelva and then onto Extremadura and the birdfair.Eight days of birding and 2,400km later I arrived back home.
Loubirder a newcomer on here contacted me and we went on a day trip starting at the Embalse de Barbate where we saw the Ospreys, a life bird for Loubirder, and pintailed ducks, grey herons,cormorants and of course white storks.A force 6 easterly was blowing and the Embalse looked like the sea and what birds there were were in the most sheltered areas.We then went onto La Janda and the Cañada between Benalup and Facinas but there were few birds but did see skylark,crested lark, calandra lark and many corn buntings,No birds of prey were seen and for those anticipating doing this route the last 5/6 km are impassable in places in a car and are nearly impassable in a 4x4.That is at the Facinas end.
We then went on to the marismas at Barbate but again very few birds with black winged stilt,sanderling and ringed plover being the only shows.At the barca de Vejer no northern bald ibis were at the site.They must have been out feeding somewhere.Then onto La Janda propper with again very few birds seen,the odd marsh harrier cattle and little egrets,lapwing a family of three cranes and the little owls on the rocks in the dehesa,a life 1st for loubirder.All in all not a very good day due to the hellish easterly which at time you could only just stand up in.
I was a Punta Carnero on Thursday last my first time there this spring,and my hopes were high as a light westerly was forecast.Arriving at 9.30 am my first birds were a large group of black kites cerca 250 came in directly overhead but did not circle and went over the nearby hills.A bank of fog was forming near the African coast and only a few black kite,egyptian vultures,booted and short toed eagles together with sparrowhawks and a lone male Montague´s harrier and a group of 14 black storks made the crossing during the whole day I was there.So once again although the conditions were favourable for a mass crossing at the onset the weather once again spoiled what could have been a spectacle after the recent run of strong easterly winds.
kind regards to all ...Eddy.
 

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Ah good, migration is well under way, I'm arriving in Jimena on Wednesday for a couple of weeks.....
Mind you I ringed 3 Chiffchaffs and a male Blackcap today - so migrants are trickling through here too!
 
Alan you are indeed a talented man and I look forward to the finished sketch....Eddy.

You're too kind Eddy. I'll post a scan if and when I get it finished. I've done the sky today but other stuff got in the way and I need a clear day and a clear mind before I to start to lay a pencil on the bird.

We're looking forward to seeing you again when we get there. The Pavo Real beckons.
 
Well it's a bit wet here in Jimena!

Went to San Pablo today and took a look at the river. A wire across had some hirundines on it, and looking along, there were lots of Swallows and House Martins, a few each of Sand Martins and Crag Martins, and a bonus Red-rumped Swallow!

Later in the Campo, a lone Woodchat Shrike.

5 Lesser Kestrels over the castle this morning. Maybe 12 Griffons today. Waiting for it to warm up. Sunday is the concensus!
 
Well, that's the September trip booked. Arriving last weekend in August again.

A long, long time ago (c2000 - 2002) I had a rush of blood and knocked off a bunch of drawings using pastel pencils that I'd been given, based on the few bird photos I'd taken in the days before digital and my early attempts at digiscoping once I'd realised that I could take photos with my work's digital camera through my scope. The reason for those early digishots was actually to try to get material for drawings. The photos themselves were crap, but they served their purpose.

Then in 2002 I bought my own digital camera and soon, as results got better the photos took over and the drawings quickly fell by the wayside. It's about 7 years now since I did a pastel and apart from a few pen and inks I knocked out in 2009 I've not touched a drawing in years.

Stuck in the gloom today and failing to fight off boredom I decided to do a drawing based on a booted eagle I photographed at Tarifa a couple of years ago. So far I've just done the preliminary sketch and I might get around to getting the colour on over the next few days if the mood is still with me.

Here's the sketch. It's supposed to be that colour - it's in pencil on grey paper.


Some slight progress since last week.

After doing the sky last weekend I grew some cajones this afternoon and started to put some colour to the bird. At this rate I'll be back there seeing the real thing before this is finished.

I need to be in the mood.
 

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Like the progress BW. Take your time and get it right - it'll be worth it in the end!!

Rain still holding up migration here in Jimena. It stopped (ish) at about 5, so I went for a drive, but not until I was nearly home did I find a Black-shouldered Kite! Also 3 groups of Lesser Kestrels - 9, 7 and 22! Finally blown away by 120 or so Black Kites, which drifted down, many landing on wires and pylons for the night, as the rain set in again.

More - I hope - anon.
 

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