Mallorca 2020 (1 Viewer)

Some nice birds detected in the last days.
In Inca, where I'm recording migrants during the night, I've detected not expected birds as coots (Inca is just in the middle of the island, far from any wetland), little grebe, purple and night herons, some waders (black winged stilt, ringed and little ringed plovers, common sandpiper) and, best of all, a yellow-browed warbled. I just couldn't believe it! I've attached the sonogram of the bird calling above my house.

In Albufera and Albufereta some good birds too. Garden warblers, winchats, golden orioles, oystercatcher, sanderling, temminck stint, whiskered tern, red footed falcons and rollers.

Best wishes,

Oh Maties! All those wonderful birds and we can’t go and see them!
I think Monday we will be able to go. It’s going to be a busy day if we can go, I will be like a headless chicken, wondering where to go first. It’s going to be a long weekend just waiting for the off.
Fantastic records Maties, that’s a great idea, I will look into that and have a go myself.
What extraordinary results with the sonogram. Who would have believed Coot and Yellow-browed Warbler?
Some mouth-watering species at the reserves too.
Mike

Amazing records Maties! It really makes you wonder how much is going unnoticed. And fantastic records from s'Albufera and Albuferata!

We've had a strong southeasterly wind blowing today, which is far from conducive for migrants but still a new Golden Oriole and a Wood Warbler in the garden.

How fantastic it would be if we can get out on Monday!

Good numbers of Honey Buzzard seen today, certainly over 20.
I just wonder where they have been entering the Island with these strong south-easterlies, not round my way, that’s for sure, the skies have been empty except for a dozen Barn Swallows and local Common swift screaming around the balcony.
They are great to watch and they come so close I can almost touch them.
Mike

SEVENTEEN SPRINGS- EPISODE 26- 29TH MARCH- 5TH APRIL 2013
BINLESS WONDERS
This year we travelled again with Monarch, but from a different airport- Gatwick- as Susan found mid-day flights better so as not to reduce her sleep which can affect her health with her M E. Unfortunately i made a major mistake when we left our house as I forgot to put my binoculars round my neck- and only discovered this on the M25 near Cobham services. Fortunately Susan had her small pair of 7x20s with her, but it did hinder the quality of birding a bit. We reached the hotel and had two adjoining rooms on the top floor, but looking out over the poll and the view to Alcudia. The Scops were calling but not showing that evening.
Saturday involved finding a new supplier for our midday rolls as Rosa was now retired- but fortunately one of the other supermarkets was willing to take us on. It was a very windy day and we just managed a quick trip to La Gola for lunch, and then we came back to the hotel for a rest. We heard no owls that night and went to bed early to make up for putting the clocks forward. Sunday was the usual church- Boquer- lunch pattern and it was still windy- and at the Boquer foot the remains of the big field had been sowed with a crop instead of just being left with sheep among the Olive trees- and some of the Olives had been rooted out, unfortunately. Still, the birds were still around, and Black and Common Redstarts together was novel for me.
Monday was by now established as family Albufereta day, and so back on the bus (driven by an Englishman from Birmingham!) to the crumbling Posada Verano and through the small pinewood to the mound for a couple of hours. A Great White Egret and a few Flamingos were nice to see. In the evening nothing from the owls again. Tuesday we slowly wandered down the Llenaire road, and back along Cami Volantina, for a picnic, and then the rest of rthe family went back to the hotel while I investigated the new screen and hides at the Can Cuarassa, The screens had been damaged by the wind, and were not much use in screening me from the birds, but nice views of a hunting Osprey were pleasant, as was the sight of a number of Scopoli's Shearwaters following a fishing boat into the harbour as I arrived back at the hotel.
On Wednesday we got a lift to Albufera with the now-retired Rosa and her family, and wandered round the hides. A Spoonbill at Es Cibollar 1 was a Mallorca tick, as were the 2 Temminck's Stints at Es Ras on the way back to the bus. The Scops was calling well from the big tree at the Uyal Hotel in the evening, but keeping well out of sight.
Thursday was car day, and to add to the variety this year we had a Skoda Fabia estate. It was cool and cloudy as we braved the cyclists up in the mountains- and a brief walk at Cuber found Black Vultures only. Lunch at Port de Soller was followed by another visit to Alfabia Gardens, and in the evening I missed seeing the Scops fly out of the tree by 5 minutes. Friday was explore day and we went South having drinks in Son Servera and then to Porto Colom for lunch, followed by s'Algar bay where both Shearwater species showed well. As we got back to PP the clouds darkened and the wind got up, and a huge storm began with very heavy rain- would we be able to go very far the next day.............

Not such good news after all on the conditions of phase one of the easing of lockdown.
As of Monday, we can drive with members of our family in the car, but we are unable to leave our municipality.
This means I can’t go to any of the reserves as they are all out of my area.
Cap de Ses Salines it is then.
Mike

Mike Montier said:

Not such good news after all on the conditions of phase one of the easing of lockdown.
As of Monday, we can drive with members of our family in the car, but we are unable to leave our municipality.
This means I can’t go to any of the reserves as they are all out of my area.
Cap de Ses Salines it is then.
Mike

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No Mike, during Fase 1 you can move around the whole island, you can do differents things around the island, it is not clear if we can be a whole day birding or if the reserves will be open, but the municipality is out.

That’s a relief Pep, thanks.
I thought that was the case but several people have told me we can’t go out of our municipality.
I’m very glad they are wrong!
Mike

A good day in the north apparently with several Honey Buzzard through and a couple of Hobby.
With the winds as they were, my luck here changed for the better.
I saw a falcon coming in-off the sea but by the time I got my scope on it, I only saw the rear end. I’m pretty sure it was a Hobby though.
I also saw a raptor circling above Sant Salvador. It was very misty but I thought it was a Honey Buzzard.
Just as I was about to post it as a possible, Jason posted a video of the same bird confirming Honey Buzzard.
My first this year and very nice to see.
My position here in the south-east is very dependent on the wind direction so it was very nice to see some migration after many days drought.
Mike

Very exciting to hear that we can go birding outside the municipality on Monday, let’s hope it is for the full day! Although I must say, it will be difficult to tear myself away from the garden

A really unexpected garden tick early this morning, with a Purple Heron low over the house early this morning. I followed it for some time and it ended up landing in the valley at the bottom of Es Capdellà. As far as I know there isn’t any water around here besides a trickle of a stream, so I wonder if there’s a hidden pond somewhere in there!

Besides that, much the same as the past few days, but for the first time in about a month (so far today at least!), there are no migrants in the garden. Some Bee-eaters and a Black Vulture overhead have been the highlights. The weather looks quite promising with a storm and southerlies tomorrow, let’s hope there are still a few more migrants to be found!

At least three churring Nightjars in Mondragó this evening, a good showing.
Last year, I only heard one so it’s encouraging that there appear to be more again this year.
I go to watch them at least once a week so it will be interesting to see how things develop.
Mike

My understanding of the rules for Phase One is that we are allowed to go out birding, anywhere across the island (including outside our municipalities), but that it must be between 6 and 10am and 8 and 11pm. Does anyone know if that is correct?

I was also wondering if anyone knows whether reserves will be open, and if we'll be allowed to be out driving (ie returning from birding) outside our specified exercise times? As fantastic as Es Capdella has been this Spring, I'm absolutely desperate to get out!

Thanks!

timsg80 said:

My understanding of the rules for Phase One is that we are allowed to go out birding, anywhere across the island (including outside our municipalities), but that it must be between 6 and 10am and 8 and 11pm. Does anyone know if that is correct?
I was also wondering if anyone knows whether reserves will be open, and if we'll be allowed to be out driving (ie returning from birding) outside our specified exercise times? As fantastic as Es Capdella has been this Spring, I'm absolutely desperate to get out!
Thanks!

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I think nobody knows the rules, i am completelly lost, it seems you can go Alcudia for a coffe but not for birding, but nobody knows.
Reserves will be all closed.

Josep Manchado said:

I think nobody knows the rules, i am completelly lost, it seems you can go Alcudia for a coffe but not for birding, but nobody knows.
Reserves will be all closed.

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Thanks Josep, hopefully we can get some clarity soon! We’ve got some strong southerly/southwesterly winds here tonight, so I’m tempted to stay here and see if they bring any late migrants to the garden tomorrow.

SEVENTEEN SPRINGS- EPISODE 27- 6TH-12TH APRIL 2013
SNOW AND STORK
Saturday was probably the coldest day I have ever spent in Mallorca, with the temperature as measured by the hire car only reaching 8 degrees Celsius, as we drove west along the motorway and round the edge of Palma- but there was a beautiful view up to the mountains where Massanella and Puig Mayor were covered in snow, for the first and only time in my 17 springs on the island. We were headed for Son Marroig, the Archduke's house which was very nice but with no heating, and then we found a car parking spot in Deia where the stream down to the sea was full and thundering down as a series of waterfalls. A Blue Rock Thrush singing from a housetop was the only bird interest, as everything else seemed to be hiding from the cold.
Sunday was Church- Joker- Boquer as usual, and at the end of the valley I eventually got brief views of the Balearic Warblers, and then back to the hotel in warming temperatures, where i saw a large white bird spiralling up in the thermals- A White Stork which was a Mallorca tick. Later in the evening it reappeared so it must have balked at attempting the sea crossing and another birder saw it come down in the Albufereta. On the Monday we got the bus to the southern end of Can Picafort and continued down the beach into Son Real, where there were Thekla Larks and a Tawny Pipit and a lovely chorus of Nightingales. The Scops Owl was as usual mocking me as it called invisibly from the tree at the Uyal Hotel.
Tuesday was a local day on the beach but a quick stroll into Postage Stamp Wood got me Firecrest and Pied Flycatcher. In the evening at last a sighting of the Owls as they were at the usual site at the back of the Pollentia, and showing on and off. Wednesday was my free day on my own- only one place to go- Albufera, and I decided to walk all the way round for the first (and only) time. After great views of Moustached Warbler, I then went down to the western edge of the park and ticked Crane for the island, also seeing Squacco Heron and lots of Great Reed Warblers and Nightingales, and a few of the witherbyi Reed Buntings. A great day but rather tiring.
By Thursday the cold of the previous weekend was but a memory as the temperature rose, there was blue sky and hot sun, and all the migrants flew over without stopping- so that just left packing and shopping and a quiet flight back to Gatwick on the Friday- although Gatwick is a longish way from Northampton and it was a relief to get home at last and retrieve my binoculars from where I had left them a fortnight earlier.

timsg80 said:

Thanks Josep, hopefully we can get some clarity soon! We’ve got some strong southerly/southwesterly winds here tonight, so I’m tempted to stay here and see if they bring any late migrants to the garden tomorrow.

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I think you can go anywhere, just dont be very obviously stopped birdwatching, and if some cop ask you, tell him you are going the nearest village to drink a beer in a terrace and just stopped because you have seen some rare eagle.

Josep Manchado said:

I think you can go anywhere, just dont be very obviously stopped birdwatching, and if some cop ask you, tell him you are going the nearest village to drink a beer in a terrace and just stopped because you have seen some rare eagle.

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Perfect, a beer after some birding sounds nice anyway so that should definitely work!

I just saw that restrictions on what time we can exercise have been lifted outside major urban areas, so it should be feasible to do some proper birding now. I can’t wait!

As the guidelines seemed so unclear, I decided to just go birding.
I started at the central plain where Quail were calling, a slim Harrier went through very distantly so I will never know. I will be going back often so hopefully I will get a second chance.
One male Red-footed Falcon was on the wires and then began to hunt but the southerly winds were tiresome.
Short-toed larks were active as were many other common species.
I then went to the salt pans at Salobrar. A Gull-billed tern was present and another tern species was in the far distance, it looks like Common tern from my fuzzy photos.
The wind was howling so I thought another time might be more appropriate.
Mike

SEVENTEEN SPRINGS- EPISODE 28- 5TH-12TH APRIL 2014
CHECK IN- CHEQUES OUT
Back this year to a slightly nearer airport- East Midlands, but still with Monarch who had flights from a range of places to PMI. The flight was good and a quick transfer saw us back at the Pollensa Park, still overlooking the pool but on the 6th floor this time, and we found out that the hotel was about to change names, as the Cabot group which owned the PP had sold it to the bigger, Spanish, Fergus Group- but the major changes were not yet happening- see episode 30 for them! The owls were calling but invisible that evening.
On the Sunday my now teenage elder son delayed us all in the morning and I missed church- but a potentially bigger problem arose- with the change of owners there was no longer any facility to cash Traveller's Cheques at reception. This could leave me cashless- I had always resisted the possibility of using the local ATMs as I had a fear of losing my card in the hole in the wall and being unable to reclaim it. However, by now the Traveller's Cheque was an endangered species, so I thought I would go to a bank the next day and get my cash from them. With all the panic I only got to the foot of the Boquer, but the Blue Rock Thrush was displaying and a Stone Curlew flew around briefly.
On Monday I went early to the Colonia Bank in Port de Pollenca, but was told that they no longer changed Traveller's Cheques either- so mild panic ensued until the cashier said she knew a shop which might be able to help. Thus after breakfast to a shop with the interesting name of Trip Trap- it was a jeweller's and changed the Cheques with no problem, so I breathed a sigh of relief and got on with the holiday. Our Monday Albufereta visit eventually happened with Great White Egret the biggest attraction apart from the seaplanes scooping up and dropping water on their practice runs in Pollensa Bay, but in the evening a remarkable thing happened- I actually heard and then saw the Scops Owl from the balcony of our room- mainly because the leaves on the trees seemed less advanced than on most years.
Tuesday got off to a good start with a Whinchat in the hotel garden, then after lunch we walked down the Llenaire Road and actually up to the extremely posh 5* Llenaire Hotel, where I saw a Blue Tit, which started a long-running discussion about their distribution and altitude preferences on the island. The hotel may have been posh but the waiter did not get away with charging us for 5 drinks when there were only 4 of us! I walked back round by Cami Volantina, and the Can Cuarassa hides but the birds there were fairly standard.
On the Wednesday my wife was very tired, and so stayed with the boys so they could hire bikes in the afternoon, whilst I was allowed to go to Albufera on the bus. The highlight was a world tick in the form of a Red-throated Pipit at EC2, which I picked up first on hearing the distinctive call, and equally a highlight was a brief meeting with Martin Honey who is so helpful on all things insect as well as birds on this thread. I kept meeting retired Geography teachers on this day,and in the evening I met Professor David Harper, a noted ecologist from Leicester University who was helping run their Easter field course that year.
Thursday was car day, and another Skoda Fabia, but this time grey, and we tested it by going right up to the top of Albercutx, so the boys could climb the tower, and we could see the fabulous views over Formentor. Then we tried out the Victoria area near Alcudia, and the boys enjoyed swimming and rock climbing on the coast.
Friday we went again by popular demand to La Granja- the old manor house NW of Palma, and I went round the nature trails again, and a Red Kite showed well. After depositing the family back at the hotel, I was detailed to go back to Albufereta to look for a sharp knife (very useful for removing orange peel) my wife had mislaid on our Monday visit. Remarkably I managed to find it, and on the way back to the car a Grey Plover flew in and landed on one of the islands in the lake nearest the sea.
Saturday started with a remarkable sound of a Moustached Warbler singing in the hotel garden, but it buried itself deep in the reeds and would not come out in plain view. Our exploration went via Maria de la Salut to Randa again, as my eldest boy, who is on the autistic spectrum at the high achieving end, was very keen to see the radio masts again, and I was outvoted when i suggested Cuber! The last thing I did with the car was to briefly revisit Can Cuarassa, and I was glad I did as a Mallorca tick was forthcoming with 2 Spotless Starlings going in and out of a nest hole in the roof of the Club del Sol........

A really nice walk around Torre de Cala en Basset near Sant Elm today. A good number of Balearic Warblers were singing, with at least 8 seen, in addition to good views of Blue Rock Thrush, at least 8 Eleonora's Falcons (mostly flying above Dragonera), an Osprey, a group of Bee-eaters overhead and multiple Scopoli's and Balearic Shearwaters offshore. I was also pleased to find a pair of Common Whitethroats near the tower, hopefully there are still a few more migrant songbirds to come.