Purple Heron Ardea purpurea is a widely distributed member of the heron family Ardeidae. It breeds in Africa, central and southern Europe, and southern and eastern Asia. Our Western Palearctic populations migrate between breeding and wintering habitats, whereas the African and tropical-Asian populations are primarily sedentary, except for occasional dispersive movements. Note: Above … Continue readingBird of the Month – July 2021
Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe hispanica our bird of the month and here the header photograph shows a male Black-eared Wheatear, so called black-throated morph in the foreground. The other form of male can be seen in the background, the pale-throated morph has a distinct black eye … Continue readingBird of the Month – May 2021
Bird of the Month – Yellow Wagtail There are three species of wagtail that we’re likely to see here in Andalucia; white, grey and yellow. Of these the White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) is an abundant winter visitor and a trip to wet or coastal grasslands … Continue readingBird of the Month – April 2021
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica rustica. For those of us with roots in northern Europe, the swallow has always been the harbinger of spring. The arrival of our swallows, back here as early as January in some areas, is always a cause for celebration. Although there … Continue readingBird of the Month – March 2021
Redwing Turdus iliacus. Redwing are a widespread and elusive winter visitor to our province. Often, they can be seen in the company of their close relative the Song Thrush, which is an unfortunate choice given those wonderful songsters are hunted unmercifully by the barbaric ‘Huns … Continue readingBird of the Month – February 2021
Bird of the Month Chiffchaff(‘s). As a young birder in the NW of England, there was the Chiffchaff, a summer visitor that really only needed sorting out from the closely related willow warbler and of course if they sang it was easy. Whilst there were … Continue readingBird of the Month – January 2021
Common Snipe Gallinago gallingo is a familiar and widespread species of wader here in Andalucía. It is a winter visitor and migrant to our region, although I have seen them throughout the summer months at various wetland locations. It does breed in the Iberian Peninsula, … Continue readingBird of the Month – December 2020
The Eurasian Siskin (Spinus spinus) is a small member of the finch family Fringillidae. It is also called the European Siskin, Common Siskin or just Siskin. It has a wide distribution and so it has unsurprisingly attracted many names according to geographical zones, these include Black-headed Goldfinch, Barley Bird and Aberdevine. It is common throughout Europe and Euro … Continue readingBird of the Month – November 2020
As we move further into autumn our winter birds begin to arrive in numbers. One of these is the Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis). Here in the Iberian Peninsula it is extralimital and as a breeding species confined to the far north where less than 100 … Continue readingBird of the Month – October 2020
