Three whimbrels in my LP

Good morning!

Yesterday I was able to localize three whimbrels in the northern shore at Zolina's reservoir.
Two birds were seen the day before (Jorge Nubla) so I could't pass the oportunity to try and observe them.
As soon as I arrived to the parking,I manage to see their portruding silouettes feeding continously in the muddy wheat fields (that night it rained heavily in the patch).
I was happy to observe a third bird that made this record even more interesting.
Curlews and Whimbrels are really scarce here and is always a treat and a pleasure to have them here as guests normally for a short period of time.

Records of the last five years (number of bird per year):

• 2018-1
• 2017-5
• 2016-1
• 2015-3
• 2014-1

Whimbrels (3ex)/170419



Also a saw various black tailed stilts (15ex) scattered all around the shore and 10 redshanks easily identifiable at long distance thanks to their flaming long red legs.

A couple of little ringed plovers have been seen here various days with their nuptial flights included , so may be we are lucky this year and they are able to breed successfully.

Good birding and protect your local patches!!

My best pictures in the journey.

Spring getting close...

Spring is just a few days away and as usual few arrivals have been shown at my local pach , Zolina reservoir. On tuesday a took my telescope and in the distance I saw my first year avocet, a lonely bird standing on the shore with a laughing gull just behind. At first glimpse, I thought that both were gulls (just white spots at 500 meters....). 

Just close by a couple of redshanks were lingering around feeding in the surrounding crop fields, still wet due to the last showers. 

I could manage to observe two more individuals mobbing each other at the dam estructure.

Little ringed plover/190319/Zolina

When I went back to the car, two tiny silouettes running away give me the chance of a closer view, I could tick a pair of little ringed plovers , always a wellcome bird in the place. 

I hope that this season they will be able to breed in the patch (difficult task due to the abundance of water that doesn't permit good nesting spots).

Snipes in the dam.

Last saturday 19/01/19 in a short birding trip with my father and son, I saw four common snipes in a place that I wouldn't spect, a muddy island in an artificial dam. Possibly those individuals are wintering birds in the area and linger around finding good spots  were they can find food and surely protection like this isolated earth patch. I went before to another and bigger dam but didn't see any wader at all.

Common snipes (4ex) Balsa de Monreal  190119

A bunch of snipes

Saludos camperos!!

I had yestarday (021218) a nice moment watching a sedimented group of common snipes (125 aprox) with as many lapwings in Figarol ricefields. With this mid tempered autumn, many waders are still lingering around. Yesterday temperatures reached 12 degrees! I suposse that numbers will drop down when freeze comes at nights.

Other waders that I could observe:

Golden plover (only one).
Green sandpiper (a dozen)
Ruffs (eight)
Dunlin (one).

Sadly birds were very nervous and the different groups flied away when we tried to observe them from a good distance with our telescopes. I went with my friend David.


                      Common snipe/Figarol ricefields/021218 from ornitocampero on Vimeo.

A good may day.

Saludos camperos!

Here is a small chronicle of a nice birding morning that I had in mid spring. 

I was lucky enough to see some waders because in migration period the same area can be completely without a single bird.

Common sandpiper.

Only saw a pair of them that were lingering around some water ponds created by the recent rainfall.

Bar tailed godwit.

Very scarce bird inland. It keept feeding the whole time that I stayed in observation.

A solitary black winged stilt. They breed here.

The most numerous species that morning, common redshanks and black headed gulls.

The mild tempered spring hasn't entered yet and the surrounding snowy mountains are present in the horizon.

The only avocet that I saw mobbed by a BHG.

Very elegant wader that is not normally seen alone.

A prenuptial ruff with its exquisite feathers.

The bird star of the morning ,a spring feathered knot!!

It was the only one I saw.

Is always a hard bird to encounter inland. Those ricefields are one of the best spots in Navarra to do so.

A group of ruffs  "landing" in one of the different rice parcels.

Short stop and change of site. I saw a ringed bird buy I was unable of reading the color codes.

Thanks for reading and have a nice day!!!

Picture date;130518 

Site;Arguedas ricefields.Navarra/Spain

And before leaving, let me recomend you an extraordinary brand of ecological rices (and other crops) that are harvested in the area were those waders find protection.

If those products are not consumed, it will not be long before this place becomes a "desert" of corn plants and a place without value  for waders.

Some waders in Deltebre

Saludos camperos.

Last summer I took some spare time without my family while I was on vacation with them close to the Deltebre narural area to spend some hours birdwatching.

In general I could't find many waders due to the time of the year,mid of july, were most of them are still in their reproductive areas.

Young BWS inthe recently flooded rice field.

Solitary Oystercatcher in the tidal mudflats. Always a scarce bird in the area.

Common redshanks,kentish plovers and a turnstone that I didn't expect to see around at this time of the year  around here. Probably it was back in its southern migration after not having a succesfull breading seasson.

One of the gems that breeds in the delta. Always a vulnerable bird if the colony sites are not respected by people that sometimes go with their untied dogs close to the dunes.

Youn pranticole in the beache's sand.

A pair of oystercatchers in the shoreline.

Those pictures were taken in july of 2018.

Thanks for reading the blog. Have a nice day!