Tavira Still Delivering Birds

Today was dry and cool to start with but the Sun came out and temperatures rose. I decided to walk the edge of the salinas where there was some scrubland and it brought rewards. 1 each Nightingale and Hoopoe 😃. A Buzzard flying over drove a load of waders into a frenzy. When they landed I noticed a cracking pair of Spotted Redshank 👍 still in non breeding plumage.

The place was crawling with Zitbags and I copped for a pair of Stonechat. 2 singing Cettis Warbler, 4/5 Crested Lark. On the return leg a Little Ringed Plover showed at distance 😊.

At the back of the hotel a YLG provided some light entertainment.

Day Six In The Algarve

Started off cloudy and windy but remained dry then gradually we got us some sunshine.

A pr Linnet near the River Gilao bank was unexpected and I’m sure I never got the species here last time.

Other ticks for the holiday were: singing 🎶 Sardinian Warbler, Grey Heron & singing Greenfinch.

A Caspian Tern took off and was seen flying around the salinas frequently.

An Iberian Chiffchaff was singing.

A Grey Plover kindly got within camera range as did Blacktailed-Godwit & Black-winged Stilt.

 

11 Shelduck 12 Great Flamingo 🦩. 4 Spoonbill, 1 Whimbrel and the supporting cast.

Tavira Split Sessions

Morning short walk around the old town. A Whimbrel flew over the River calling. The Gulls here are used to people and don’t take flight too readily. 1 Cormorant.

Afternoon on the Salinas: 6 Flamingo 🦩 in flight. 2 Black-tailed Godwit. Usual Suspects.

A juvenile Gull on the floor remained motionless until the second time I encountered it a couple of hundred yards away. It had walked and I noticed there were a few primaries on the right wing missing so flight was out of the question😢.

A Wet Windy Tavira Session

Heavy rain and windy early am but the rain stopped so off I went a birding. There had been a fair bit of wader dispersal but I still managed to get a couple of newbies 😁.

A Whimbrel flew over from the SE calling loudly and frequently. I noticed a large wader alongside a Grey Plover. Lo and behold it was a Bar-tailed Godwit 👍

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At the ferry terminal a Cafe worker threw out some kind of seeds or perhaps cooked rice. Immediately the place was rocking with gulls and house sparrows.

They were joined by a Turnstone which hadn’t read the rules: Never Ever let a nasty Homo Sapiens near you!

I took 3 photos of it at a short distance but the bird kept on feeding as I passed within 2 yards of it twice 😳.

Plenty of Avocets around and a pr White Wagtail on the Hotel lawn.

A local Dog thought better of eating me.

Tavira Keeps Delivering Birds

Just like the UK the Algarve is subject to inaccurate weather forecasts. It was supposed to rain all day but after an early morning downpour it stopped so off I went to what I call the far side. This being over the river and the opposite end of town.

6 White Stork 2 on their nests in town and 4 flying over the wetlands 😛.

40 Great Flamingo 

2 singing Blackcap ditto Serin & Iberian Chiffchaff 👍.

Zitbags were all over the joint and 3 of them need doctors appointments; they actually stopped for a couple of seconds and showed themselves.

4 Sandwich Tern. Pr Shelduck. 6 Black-tailed Godwit

A Reed Bunting provided a break from the many House Sparrows lining the road.

Got my first Common Swift on the way back to the hotel.

Tavira This Morning

A slow start owing to a naughty wind from the SE but I managed a few more morsels for the year 😃.

A Flamingo flew over low passing close to the hotel and a Spoonbill flew low > E.

Got me a very flighty Slender-billed Gull. A few House and a couple Sand Martin joined the Swallows. 3 Zitting Cisticola and a Cettis Warbler the latter sang briefly

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Another for the wader list; Little Stint numbers in the low teens.

Also another Curlew Sandpiper 2 Little Egrets and Sanderlings.

Overwhelmed In Tavira Portugal

I arrived at the Hotel early afternoon did minimal

unpacking then shot down to the massive coastal wetlands just a couple hundred yards down the frog n toad.

I almost went into shock at the wader species I saw some in large groups some down to doubles.

Curlew Sandpiper, Grey Plover, Ringed & Kentish Plover, Avocet, Black-winged Stilt, Dunlin, Sanderling, Redshank and a lone Oystercatcher. 4 Spoonbill seen at distance & a couple of Little Egret.

A big surprise was Caspian Tern; a pair of the belters on a lagoon beach surrounded by numerous LBBG and a few YLG. 

Another stunner was a passerine I’ve not seen since dinosaurs roamed; a Bluethroat 😅. Several Swallows flying around. 2 Grey Wagtail ditto White, one of which chased House Sparrows from its patch.