Mallorca 2014 (1 Viewer)

[bob freeman]

Drove down South to Salobrab De Campos on Saturday,long hot drive but stopped in at a few places on the way,great sight to see that many Flamingo and Avocet flying about also plenty of distant waders too.
Think i made big mistake going on a weekend as road to car park was well packed with cars,thought at first a Mega had turned up or somebody was giving money away but seemingly they were all headed to some beach down that way.
A dozen Curlew Sandpiper were flying about with one or two Little Stint and Stone Curlew in field down by posh spar further along the road.
Would have loved to have seen the Flamingo arriving in the sunrise,that must be some sight right enough but would probably mean setting off from the North at 0400 to make it down there in time,will have to look at other accomadation nearer the South for future visits

Bob

 

[honeym]

Salbufera today,
Sa roca, 27 marbled ducks, 64 stone curlew, wood sand, green sand, snipe, ruff
Bishop hides, 40 spotted redshank, 4 greenshank osprey
Main canal little bittern, great reed warbler singing. 3 Reed warblers
Power station hide wheatear, 8 sp. Redshanks, 4 greenshanks, 2 common sands.
Sa roca mid day, juv monties, 2 little stints, dunlin
Depuadora black necked grebe 4 hoopoes, 4 green sands, 2 common sands
Also met a lovely young lady from menorca who is helping martin with his moth I'D.
Steve.

Hi Steve

You had some good birds, especially the Monties. I´ll have to get out to the hides more!

Yes, the girl you met was Marina and she was also here in the Spring and is really getting in to moths - which is great as that´s what our course is all about, training young locals with an enthusiasm for all things to do with nature and the environment. It also helps me with my studies of the Balearic Islands Lepidoptera.

The weather turned last night and we´ve had some slightly heavier rain so, hopefuuly, something may have dropped in.

Just off to the hides.

Martin

 

[honeym]

Very quiet in the hides. One Curlew and 27 Marbled Duck in front of Sa Roca. Nothing in front of Es Cibollar I as a Peregrine had been through and was still sitting on top of one of the dead trees.
A juvenile Merlin was seen this morning at s´Albufereta, very active and hunting small passerines.
Martin

 

[Ben Nevis]

Great photos Bob.Very Impressive. :t:

 

[Jeff Hopkins]

Love the avocet shot, Bob.

 

[s.g.]

Thanks martin and keep up the good work, she did seem keen and knowledgeable.
Bocquer early morning, in between heavy rain, 2 mamoras, 3 eleonoras, 6 restarts, 3 wheaters, female pied fly, 8sp. Flys, blue rock thrush, raven.
Depuradora, black n. Grebe, 5 serin, 12 red l. Partridge
Sillot, tem. Stint, 6 L. Stint, wood sandpiper
Steve.

 

[honeym]

Hi Steve
Yes, she´s certainly keen. She will be off to help out with the bird ringing campaign on Saturday in the Illa de l'Aire, off the south eastern tip of Menorca. This often turns up interesting migrants
(e.g. http://rareresesornibalears.blogspot.com.es/2014_04_01_archive.html).
I also did the Depuradora today but no sign of the Black-necked Grebe so must try again.
In fields at the back of the park there were many Wheatear and Whinchat but no Squacco´s.
One juvenile Flamingoe in the large water body between the power station and the sea at Alcudia.
We would probably have seen more but it was heavy rain throughout.
I´m not mothing tonight due to the rain so may get a chance to do an early trip around the hides.
Martin

 

[honeym]

Mnaged to get up relatively early and went to Sa Roca hide, where I met Steve. Nothing much to report apart from 1 Wheatear, a few Yellow Wagtail and what appeared to be a Pipit but it vanished as soon as I spotted it.
Two Kingfisher, one near the mound and the other by the first bridge. On the walk down to Es Cibollar hides there were some birds giving alarm calls in the trees on the left. I knew that a cat had been seen around the Parc so I thought it might be somewhere nearby, there were Sasrdinian Warblers, Great Tits a Blackcap and a Nightingale. I then noticed what wa causing the alarm - a roosting Barn Owl just feet from the path, looking a bit bedraggled. After a few poor attempts at a photograph I was able to show it to Steve as he was already coming back from ECII. ECI was, again, very quiet with a small group of Spooted Redshank, 1 Greenshank, 1 Kestrel and another Wheatear. At ECII there was one Redstart, my first for the trip.
After some shopping in Ca´n Picafort I called in at s´Illot where there were some LRPs, Ketntish Plover and 2 Dunlin.
Back at s´Albufera just as the thunder and lightning started.
If I could work out how to resize my photos I´d post a few images :h?:
They only change this evening were 2 Ruff and a Dunlin at Sa Roca.
Martin

 

[Mike Montier]

Took our daughter and partner for a trip out and managed to end up at Cap de ses Salines, funny that. In only half and hour I saw 11 Honey buzzard, 2 Hobby and a Black kite. Later in the day five Red-rumped swallows flew over Santanyi. The storm certainly has stirred things up a bit. Mike

 

[Mike Montier]

...and a female type Golden oriole on the way back along the approach road to the Cap, about half way! Mike

 

[honeym]

I´ve finally managed to suss out how to resize pictures so here are a couple of low-res pictures.

 

[s.g.]

Thanks for the barn owl martin, nice surprise that was!, and well done mike, will have to get down there!
Had poss. Slender billed gull in the wet area to the left/behind the hide by power station, difficult to see through the reeds and trees so not 100% sure, 11 greenshank by hide.
Also great view of little bittern on way back and managed to show young Dutch couple who were well pleased!
Went pollenca so called in to postage stamp wood, saw wood warbler, lesser whitethroat, 5 willow warblers.
Late visit to sillot produced, tem. Stint, 7 L. Stint, 2 wood sands, green sand, 2 common sand.
Steve.

 

[Mike Montier]

Nice photos and thanks for all the records. Steve, Lesser whitethroat is very rare indeed, any photos? Mike

 

[honeym]

FOR ANYONE VISITING S´ALBUFERA
Rather annoyingly, especially since I wear glasses, I´ve lost one of the rubber eye-cups off my Nikon bins. If anybody finds one would they please hand it in to reception.

As luck would have it I just popped out to teSa Roca hide and a couple in there saw my badge and handed me my eye-cup!
What a relief.

2 Wood Sand., 1 Little Stint, 1 Dunlin, 2 Greenshank, 2 Green Sand. and one flyover Curlew plus 24 Marbled Duck (at least 2 are ringed with metal rings and one also has a red plastic ring on its right leg). Apparently some more Marbled Duck are being released in Eivissa and Mallorca next week. They will be ringed and wing tagged so if anyone sees any, please report it.

2 adult Flamingoe reported from Es Cibollar.

Best wishes

Martin

 

[Mike Montier]

Still a couple of trips of Dotterel around the central plain, some at Maria de la Salut which I have just been to see and others near Villafranca. Also a young Merlin was seen and a few common Starling are now arriving. Mike

 

[honeym]

Hi Mike
I had about 50 Starling along the road to the Depuradora this afternoon, having seen about a dozen almost a week ago. I guess numbers will build up steadily from now on. I hope to get to see the Dotterel as it would be a new bird for me - but I hear that they can be hard to find. I´ve seen some superb shots of them - and of the Merlin (at s´Albufereta), so there´s hope.
Martin

 

[Mike Montier]

Hi Martin, yes, they were hard to see today but it was raining and they were quite distant. Once spotted, they are much easier to relocate but getting your eye in for the first one is hard! Good luck if you go, Mike

 

[s.g.]

Sorry Mike, no photo, was getting followed by a tramp so dident hang about.
6 honey buzzard at cap sallines,
No sign of tem. Stint at sillot, just 3 L.. Stint.
Steve.

 

[Mike Montier]

Hi Steve, I have sent a PM twice but it has been returned as undelivered.
The directions are a bit complicated but once on the right track, you should be OK.
From Maria de la Salut, leave town towards Muro and there is a large roundabout, go straight on towards Muro. After about 1km on the right hand side there are some trees and a few reeds/bamboo. Turn right immediately after the trees on a narrow unmade track. Follow this to the end, about 2km, never mind the bumps, you are in a rental car. At the end there are two small houses that are being renovated and a very large white house with arched windows a bit like a church. The birds, now 14 I understand, are in the field in front of the white house. They can be hard to see but once spotted, they are easy to relocated. If they don't move they can stay hidden for ages. Good luck, I doubt they will leave in this weather. Mike

 

[honeym]

A quick trip around the hides didn´t produce much after the winds and rain last night.
One Whinchat in the field opposite reception. One Great White Egret, 18 Marbled Duck, one Dunlin and a few Spotted Redshank and Greenshank at Sa Roca. Two Eleanora´s on the way down to the Es Columbar hide. Not much there either but did bump into Steve. He had seen a Garganey at Sa Roca, which I missed, plus 17 Marsh Harrier. He´d also seen a Black-necked Grebe and I managed to relocate it in the pool just after the turning to the Es Columbar hide.
I met him again in Sa Roca and have passed on the directions for the Dotterel - many thanks for those Mike as I will probably head that way after a little siesta (I had a very disturbed night last night as a result of numerous mozzies - one of the perils of staying in a reedbed!).
Martin