Griffon Vulture (Gyps fulvus)Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea This weekend my wife and I went to Monfrague to the Feria Internacional de Turismo Ornitológico, or FIO, in Villareal de San Carlos. We stayed at with Martin and Claudia Kelsey in their house El Recuerdo near Trujillo. They have a […]
Yearly Archives: 2011
70 posts
2011_02_24 TD – Red-knobbed Coot (Fulica cristata) 02Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea The Tablas of Daimiel is a remarkable part of La Mancha. Covering 1,928 hectares, 4,764 acres, it is a large wetland on the Guadiana river which has been threatened by drought, over-irrigation by agriculture and the subsequent […]
2011_02_09 VV – Dartford Warbler (Sylvia undata) 10Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea The poor Dartford Warbler is on the back foot. Declining at a “moderately rapid rate”, the Spanish population, the largest in Europe at 1.7 to 3 million pairs, is thought to have been reduced by 5.9% between […]
As I mentioned in a previous entry, imperialism is still alive in Spain. Today let´s discuss the nobility beneath that upper echelon. In my mind one of the most noble birds of the steppe has to be the Great Bustard. It´s always dressed like it´s going to an Indian dinner […]
2011_02_07 NM – Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) 18Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea This tiny wader is a not so rare visitor to La Mancha, and can be seen sometimes during the winter, according to my own observations. Being so small though it can easily be missed at only 15-17cm […]
2011_02_04 CdC – Spanish Imperial Eagle (Aquila adalberti) 04Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea Spain may be a democratic monarchy but imperialism still lives on the peninsula. I´m not talking about a movement in favour of taking back the Philippines or most of South America but that of the imperialism […]
Common House Martin (Delichon urbicum)Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea It´s January still, winter in my books, but there are cherry and almond trees in blossom. We still get a bit of frost, hailstone and they are salting the roads every now and again. Oh look a House Martin. Eh? […]
Surprise of the day was a 1st winter Golden Eagle in the hills west of Alarcos Castle. I was watching the usual Marsh Harriers upsetting flocks of Lapwings along the river when I noticed some large birds a few kilometers upriver soaring on the updrafts. I guess they were vultures. […]
2011_01_19 PO – Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) 09Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea Well today was a sort of big up and huge down. I was viewing a Great Egret at the observatory in Peralvillo and let down my binos on the seat, took some photos of said GE and […]
2011_01_14 AL – Little Owl (Athene noctua) 02Originally uploaded by Mike at Sea There´s an old road through the “Dogs-Teeth” landscape in Extremadura where you are always guaranteed Little Owls perched on the rocks. They were something I always wanted to see more of around Ciudad Real. Well, just recently […]