Arxiu de la categoria: Wallcreeper

Pyrenees Winter Break 2026, Trip Report

Deixa un comentari
  • Dates: February 8th to 12th, 2026
  • Participants: 6
  • Number of species seen: 134
  • Tour leader: Carles Oliver

Day 1. After picking up all our guests from their accommodations around the Barcelona International Airport, we moved to our first stop, very close to the airport. Sunrise was coming, and with the very first lights a couple of Iberian Green Woodpecker produced nice views. The first Hoopoes of the day started moving in the area and along the next half an hour we got nice views on Zitting Cisticola, Sardinian Warbler, Great Tit, Eurasian Greenfinch, European Stonechat, European Serin and a very nice flock of Long-tailed Tits. Along with them, a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was noted, and during the next couple of minutes I fought to put everyone on this bird. Not easy, since it was very restless. A large flock of Meadow Pipits appeared from alfalfa fields around us.

It was time to leave, but when leaving we were surprised by a Hooded Crow, a very scarce species with only a few pairs nesting around Barcelona that started to colonised the area only seven years ago.

Iberian Green Woodpecker posing for us as we arrived to our first stop of the trip..
This Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was moving in the tree above us for a couple of minutes, not always easy to see!

From here, we drove directly to the Pyrenees, where we were committed to do a first stop in a large farming spot close to Lladurs. There, a large flock of White-winged Snow Finches had been settled for a couple of months.. We arrived and started scanning the fields. Small parties of Skylarks were moving around along with large flocks of Common Chaffinches, but no sign of the Snow Finches. Suddenly, a large flock of white-winged birds were seen at the other side of the fields. No doubt, they were our birds! They flew in a very compact flock and, as usual in this species, avoiding to mix with other species of Sparrow or Finches.

Soon, the flock moved our way and flew several times above our heads, providing wonderful views on this high mountain bird! In the wires of the area we also saw 17 Rock Sparrows, and a few Woodlarks were taking advantage of the sunny morning to sing their hearts out while the very first Griffon Vultures of the trip were noted circling around.

On the Snow Finches here, please note that this is species is normally seen in winter in mountain passes and at the top of a few, selected mountains. Never below 1000 meters, and never in farming areas. But this solid flock (at the end we counted 62 Snow Finches) was about 700 metres high in a farming area, and they stayed there for almost two months. It must be said that this situation it was coincident with a long episode of very bad weather in the top of the Pyrenees..

Snow Finches provided great views in the Pyrenean stop of the trip.
At some point, they came extremely close!

After enjoying one of the birds of trip we went to have a coffee and something to eat. Yes, we still have to had some breakfast.. After a nice coffee with a wonderful mountain landscape in front of us, we moved to explore one of this great mountain passes were high mountain birds normally hung around. But in the mountain pass the movement of small birds was minimal. After weeks and weeks of snowfall, the amount of snow was quite impressive, leaving very little room for the species feeding on the ground. Still, a couple of stops produced 2 Golden Eagles, and a few Eurasian Griffons. From here we moved to nice patch of boreal forest, where we got a very close Golden Eagle flying over the forest and enjoyed good views on Common Crossbills, Goldcrests, Crested Tits and Short-toed Treecreepers. It was already the afternoon, and small flocks of Mistle Thrushes and Fieldfares were moving up in the sky, probably moving to their overnight shelter.

It was late afternoon, but we still got a final stop before arriving to our accommodation. Here, we enjoyed good scope views on Woodlarks singing with the lovely evening light, and we also improved the views on Common Rock Sparrows. European Serin, Cirl & Corn Buntings, Yellowhammer and Red-billed Choughs were also seen, and we ended day with a lovely Iberian Grey Shrike before arriving to our lodge, have some rest and go for a great evening meal..

Common Crossbill in the high mountain forest.
Iberian Grey Shrike very close to our accommodation.

Day 2. A cold and cloudy morning high in the Pyrenees. Around our accommodations we got great views on Eurasian Siskins but also Nuthatches and Crested Tits. From here, we went for a short walk around our accommodation gave us a nice list, even if all the birds were distant. Here we got a couple of Fieldfares, 1 male Yellowhammer, Crested Tits, Greenfinches, Goldfinches and 3 Eurasian Bullfinches. Distant views on Iberian Green Woodpecker were also noted.

Inside Andorra we got excellent views on Dipper, plus a good number of Eurasian Griffons and a nice pair of Lammergeiers flying above the valley. They were distant but, still, a great first view on this iconic species. We also got 1 Golden Eagle and 1 unidentified large bird of prey, probably a Bonelli’s Eagle.

Back in Catalonia, we had a picnic stop next to a large cliff, with little movement there. From here we drove West, to explore a tiny village next to the cliffs, a wonderful location, always! En route, we got another adult Lammergeier despite the challenging weather. Once arrived to our final destination, a bit of sun was helped the birds of prey to move and we soon had 30+ Eurasian Griffon moving above our heads. Along with them, we got minimum 2 more Lammergeiers (1 adult + 1 3rd year). The walk around the village was very productive, and we got 2 Citril Finches flying around, 1 female Rock Bunting (scarce this year), a couple of Chiffchaffs, 1 distant Blue Rock Thrush, 6 Alpine Choughs flying around the church of the village and, as we were about to leave, we got a very distant Wallcreeper flying from one cliff to the next. We tried to relocate this Wallcreeper, but was impossible to relocate. From here we went to our accommodation in Lleida, right in the center of the plains..

Dipper, a urban bird in many Pyrenean valleys, also in Andorra.
One of the Lammergeiers that we enjoyed while searching for Alpine Accentors.
One of six Alpine Choughs flying around the group while exploring Vall de Meià.
Griffons were very busy adding nesting material to their nests..

Day 3. After enjoying a great buffet breakfast, we moved back to the Pyrenees. Just as we arrived, we had a Bonelli’s Eagle posing for us at the top of the cliff, in a majestic view that was to mark our morning. The morning was grey and cold, and we had a couple of light rain events during the next hour. Still, our eyes were fixed on the rocks, and even if Northern Shoveler, Firecrest and Eurasian Griffons were all noted, our mind was only in trying to find a Wallcreeper. Even more when another group of birdwatchers had a distant Wallcreeper very early in the morning.. But the morning was passing on, and we got nothing. Suddenly, a small flock of birds flew from the cliffs; 5 Alpine Accentors just crossed the gorge, stopping in a very distant outcrop. Even if far away, we got them in scope, popping in and out of the mountain range. This is the largest flock of Alpine Accentors that I have ever had at this particular spot. Definately a good sign. But, beyond this, nothing was moving in the cliffs.

After almost three hours of search, we decided to give up, and we were already moving back to the van when suddenly a Wallcreeper moved in the cliff, not far away from the group. The next 30 minutes were incredible. At first, we were able to move very close to the bird, allowing amazing views as the bird came low in the cliff. This allow us to see the bird catching a couple of preys while moving up and down in cliff. But later we got the Wallcreeper in the scope for over 20 minutes as it was standing still in the rocks. First preening, then eating a small prey, then slightly moving aside to go back to its original position. It went and went and went. We managed to show the bird in the scope to some local people that was walking around and the whole episode truly ended in walk-away views. It took us longer than expected but it was an every-minute-worth-experience. Unforgettable!

It took us longer than expected, but it was worth it!
We enjoyed long and close views on this mountain jewel..
Here, Wallcreeper showing out the colours..

After such a great views, we went for celebration coffee that turned out in a light lunch at a local coffee shop. Some of the typical Catalan delicatessen enjoyed here included “croquetes”, “trinxat” and “botifarra amb seques”. Delicious.

From here, we went to check a nearby pond. We were glad to find 6 Common Pochards, a few Common Shelduck, Eurasian Teals, a couple of Gadwalls and a lovely male Ferruginous Duck that was the best bird of stop despite being very shy and despite the 50+ White Storks sitting next to the pond.

The afternoon was still young, so we drove a bit West to check a first Sandgrouse hotspot. There, we got first views on Calandra Larks as well as Red-billed Choughs and Jackdaws. It was windy, so it means gor for birds of prey. We were lucky, and Wayne found a majestic male Hen Harrier flying low over the fields right before John got a distant flock of 15+ Pin-tailed Sandgrouses moving away from us! We still had a little bit of time, enough to enjoy two close Golden Eagles (young and full adult) flying around our van and good views on Corn Bunting and Red-legged Partridge despite the wind.

The last stop of the day was devoted to a tiny valley with cliffs. Arrived right at sunset, we were listening the evening chorus when the extremely impressive and unforgettable call of an Eagle Owl came from somewhere in the slope right in from of us.. After a few seconds of scanning, we found a wonderful Eagle Owl standing up on one small rocky wall.. It called for a few minutes, allowing us amazing scope views and some shots right before flying away to hunt some rabbits in the nearby plains..

Common Pochards were easier to photograph than the very shy Ferruginous Duck..
We got gorgeous views on Golden Eagle..
Red-billed Chough feeding on the plains.
This Eagle Owl was hooting at dusk, please note the white gorge, only visible while hooting.

Day 4. Transfer West from Lleida, to explore the large plains in Central Aragon. During the transfer we enjoyed several Red Kites and Marsh Harriers and, once arrived to the proper spot, it didn’t take long to locate the first superb Great Bustard standing up in the low grass fields. Soon after, we had a nice flock of 9 individuals resting on a field. They were surprisingly close to the lane, and slowly but majestic, they marched away from us in the endless plains..

In flight, we got here a couple of Hen Harriers and a distant Merlin before moving South. After some miles of plains, the terrain became every time more and more broken, until we arrived to proper habitat for Black Wheatears. Again we did it very well, and enjoyed here 3 Black Wheatears including two males chasing each other, probably fighting for the territory. Along with them, we got a distant Golden Eagle circling, solid views on Thekla Larks, several Sardinian Warblers and a few Dartford Warblers that gave us proper but short views as they were moving inside a small, dense pine.

This Great Bustard was the gorgeous welcome commitee of the plains to our group..
Great Bustard in flight, always a treat!
This very nice flock of males Great Bustards were one of the stars of the day!
Black Wheatears offered very nice looks as we crossed a number of crocky slopes.

It was a cloudy day (as you can see in the image) and the weather forecast was pointing out a lot of wind in the afternoon and the next day. So, even if solid midday, we decided to go straight for Dupont’s Lark in one of the typical places, and we were lucky..

As arrived, we checked out one of my favourite spots. Mediterranean Short-toed Larks (formerly referred as Lesser Short-toed Larks) were all around, and very active. After a bit of drive and wait situation we found a first Dupont’s Lark feeding not far away from the path. It was picking the soil, running through the bush and sometimes watching us from behind a bush. We all got nice views, even if not the best. Happy after this first views we decided to check a second spot. The wind was starting to pick up, and we all knew that we didn’t have many time left to go. The second spot produced a couple of other fast views on Dupont’s Larks as we found a pair moving in the steppes along with Meadow Pipits and Thekla Larks. We still waited a bit more, but the weather was becoming very bad, with poor light and strong wind.

By the time we arrived to the accommodation the wind become very strong, and during the night there were peaks of 70 to 80 kilometers per hour..

Mediterranean Short-toed Larks are not big fans of singing from an exposed perch. That afternoon we were lucky as this male was surprised singing briefly from a rock..
Dupont’s Lark in the run in the steppe land.
For a few seconds, the bird was staring us from a small bush..

Day 5. Very last day of the trip. It was a extremely windy this morning but we were still keen to improve our views on Sandgrouses. The last day, as we were arriving to Belchite, we saw 2 Black-bellied Sandgrouses resting in a field, that immediately went away. So, after having breakfast, we left the accommodation to go to that same spot. Soon, we found a minimum of 8 Black-bellied Sandgrouses feeding in a large resting field. Using the minibus as a protection against the wind, everybody enjoyed great scope views on the Sandgrouses, but always with half of our brain concentrated in our scopes not to be blown away by the wind.. Here we also got Merlin and a few Pin-tailed Sandgrouses moving around. Happy with the views, we decided to go on with our plan. Yes, the previous evening we all agreed to move to devote some time of this last day in famous Ebro Delta, a wonder of birdlife. But before we had to improve the views on Black-bellied Sandgrouses..

Once this was sorted out, we moved back to the main road. And then we found a paddle. A paddle in our way. A very, very muddy one (there were strong rains only a few days ago in that area) that put one of our wheels deep into the earth and made us work very hard to line our van back on movement.. Unfortunately, we lost almost half an hour in that paddle, but after a coffee and cleaning stop and some drive we arrived to Ebro Delta to enjoy some birding. At Ebro Delta was also windy, but not as windy as it was in the plains.

Here, we went straight to the location where a Sociable Plover had been reported. Here, with strong winds, we scanned the large paddy fields full of flocks of very mobile birds. We counted at least 70 Pied Avocets, tens and tens of Glossy Ibises and well above 100 European Golden Plovers and Northern Lapwings. In the distance, we counted at least 30 Ruffs, 4 Spotted Redshanks, Dunlins, 1 Common Ringed Plover, Green Sandpipers, Greenshanks, 5 Ruddy Turnstones and 1 Eurasian Curlew was seen in flight. Our scan took long, but we finally found the young Sociable Plover moving along with Lapwings and Golden Plovers. But the flocks were mobile the wind never played in our way.. Here, we had our picnic lunches and we left the area when a flock of 100+ Greater Flamingoes were moving around, making all the smaller birds move all over.. But before heading to the motorway, we still got time for a fast stop in the Northern bay of the delta, where Caspian Tern, Slender-billed Gull, Mediterranean Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull and Great Crested Grebe were added to our list!

Please, note the images of Sociable Plover are from a couple of days later..

Caspian Tern, a last minute species to be add in our trip list..
Slender-billed Gull already showing its summer plumage.
Sociable Plover feeding in a paddy field

List of birds seen during the tour:

  1. Red-legged Partridge (Alectoris rufa)
  2. Common Pheasant (Phaisanus colchinus)
  3. Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
  4. Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
  5. Eurasian Teal (Anas crecca)
  6. Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)
  7. Gaswall (Marecca strepera)
  8. Common Pochard (Aythya ferina)
  9. Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca)
  10. Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata) – 20+ individuals
  11. Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Pterocles orientalis) – 9 individuals
  12. Feral Pigeon (Columba livia sp)
  13. Common Woodpigeon (Columba palumbus)
  14. Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
  15. Water Rail (Rallus aquaticus)
  16. Eurasian Coot (Fulica atra)
  17. Great Bustard (Otis tarda) – 13 individuals
  18. Black-necked Grebe (Podiceps nigricolllis)
  19. Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus)
  20. Little Grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
  21. Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber)
  22. Pied Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta)
  23. Common Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula)
  24. European Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria)
  25. Northern Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus)
  26. Sociable Plover (Vanellus gregarius)
  27. Dunlin (Calidris alpina)
  28. Ruff (Calidris pugnax)
  29. Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata)
  30. Common Snipe (Gallinago gallinago)
  31. Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
  32. Common Redshank (Tringa totanus)
  33. Spotted Redshank (Tringa erythropus)
  34. Greenshank (Tringa nebularia)
  35. Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus)
  36. Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleuca)
  37. Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)
  38. Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)
  39. Mediterranean Gull (Ichtyaetus melanocephalus)
  40. Caspian Gull (Larus cachinnans)
  41. Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis)
  42. Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus)
  43. White Stork (Ciconia ciconia)
  44. Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
  45. Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)
  46. Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)
  47. Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
  48. Western Cattle Egret (Ardea ibis)
  49. Great White Egret (Ardea alba)
  50. Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)
  51. Bonelli’s Eagle (Aquila fasciata)
  52. Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)
  53. Hen Harrier (Circus cyaneus)
  54. Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus)
  55. Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus)
  56. Eurasian Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)
  57. Red Kite (Milvus milvus)
  58. Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
  59. Eurasian Griffon (Gyps fulvus)
  60. Lammergeier – Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) – 6 individuals
  61. Little Owl (Athene noctua)
  62. Eurasian Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo)
  63. Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) – heard only
  64. Eurasian Hoopoe (Upupa epops)
  65. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dryobates minor)
  66. Iberian Green Woodpecker (Picus sharpei)
  67. Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
  68. Merlin (Falco columbarius)
  69. Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)
  70. Monk Parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus)
  71. Rose-winged Parakeet (Psittacula krameri)
  72. Mediterranean Short-toed Lark (Alaudala rufescens)
  73. Eurasian Skylark (Alauda arvensis)
  74. Crested Lark (Galerida cristata)
  75. Thekla Lark (Galerida theklae)
  76. Calandra Lark (Melanocorypha calandra)
  77. Woodlark (Lullula arborea)
  78. Dupont’s Lark (Chersophilus duponti) – 3+ individuals
  79. Eurasian Crag Martin (Ptyonoprogne rupestris)
  80. Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
  81. White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
  82. Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)
  83. Alpine Accentor (Prunella collaris) – 5 individuals
  84. European Robin (Erithacus rubecula)
  85. Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros)
  86. European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola)
  87. Black Wheatear (Oenanthe leucura)
  88. Blue Rock Thrush (Monticola solitarius)
  89. Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
  90. Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
  91. Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris)
  92. European Blackbird (Turdus merula)
  93. Eurasian Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla)
  94. Sardinian Warbler (Curruca melanocephala)
  95. Dartford Warbler (Curruca undata)
  96. Zitting Cisticola (Cisticola juncidis)
  97. Cetti’s Warbler (Cettia cetti) – heard only
  98. Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)
  99. Goldcrest (Regulus regulus)
  100. Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)
  101. Eurasian Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)
  102. European Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus)
  103. Great Tit (Parus major)
  104. Coal Tit (Periparus ater)
  105. Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus)
  106. Eurasian Nuthatch (Sitta europaea)
  107. Wallcreeper (Tichodroma muraria)
  108. Iberian Grey Shrike (Lanius meridionalis)
  109. Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica)
  110. Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius)
  111. Western Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula)
  112. Carrion Crow (Corvus corone)
  113. Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix)
  114. Common Raven (Corvus corax)
  115. Red-billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax)
  116. Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus)
  117. European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
  118. Spotless Starling (Sturnus unicolor)
  119. Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus)
  120. House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
  121. Common Rock Sparrow (Petronia petronia)
  122. White-winged Snow Finch (Montifringilla nivalis)
  123. Common Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)
  124. Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla)
  125. European Serin (Serinus serinus)
  126. Eurasian Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
  127. Eurasian Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)
  128. Citril Finch (Carduelis citrinella)
  129. Eurasian Siskin (Spinus spinus)
  130. Linnet (Acanthis cannabina)
  131. Common Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
  132. Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella)
  133. Rock Bunting (Emberiza cia)
  134. Corn Bunting (Emberiza calandra)

Pyrenees Winter Break 2024

Deixa un comentari
  • Dates: From February 6th to 10th, 2024
  • Tour participants: 5
  • Number of species seen: 110
  • Tour leader: Carles Oliver

All images in this trip report by tour leader Carles Oliver unless otherwise specified. All rights reserved.

Overview: 10th Pyrenees Winter Break issue. This winter in the Pyrenees has been specially unnormal. The winter started normally, with the first snowfall happening in early November. Soon, the trend changed and we faced several weeks without any snowfall and the high temperatures melted the few snow left. With temperatures ranking 25ºC in January, some high mountain specialties changed their normal routines, especially affected were Snow Finches and Citril Finches, but also Alpine Choughs. This anormal situation, made the tour a bit harder than usual. Despite all of this, we got excellent views in the high mountain specialties and many of the steppe birds, with stunning views on both Wallcreeper and Dupont’s Lark, and 8+ Lammergeiers & 5+ Cinereous Vultures seen.

Day 1. After gathering all the tour participants from their accommodations around the city and enjoy tea & coffee stop we headed to the first birding stop of the tour. During the next hour, we walked around a mosaic landscape with some large trees, bushland and crops.

Here we were delighted to see the first Iberian Green Woodpeckers of the trip, quite active in the early morning. The morning was a bit cloudy and, once again, warm for what we can expect in Barcelona in early February. Small flocks of Common Chaffinches were getting out of the fields, and along with them we saw European Serins and Eurasian Tree Sparrows. Our walk around had a nice start, with a showy Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was calling and drumming from the top of the canopies, and we had really good looks on it for almost five minutes. In this same spot we also got Iberian Green Woodpeckers and a Ring-necked Parakeet exploring some nesting holes. Both Great & Blue Tits were active in the area, and a juvenile Peregrine Falcon did a couple of fast flights in the area, hoping to catch one of the several small birds moving. Other interesting birds here included Eurasian Hoopoe, Eurasian Jay and Common Pheasant. 3 Rock Buntings flew out from the bushes, but unfortunately none of the tour participants had a proper view on them

From the lovely plain in the Llobregat Delta we drove to a small garden around Barcelona where a White-throated Sparrow had been seen. We waited for almost one hour but, unfortunately, the Sparrow didn’t show for us. Still, a nice flock of Red-billed Leiothrix was a great entertainment for us, with some Eurasian Blackcaps and Coal Tits also showing well.

After a short stop for coffees and logistics, we drove up to the hills, with the next stop in the top of the one of the highest mountains between Barcelona and the Pyrenees. Here we had the longest walk of the trip, aiming to connect with the small population of Alpine Accentors living there. Fortunately we didn’t have to walk a lot before a lovely flock of at least 12 Alpine Accentors came to us to offer the group wonderful and very long views, with some of the birds performing right in front of us for several minutes! It was midday and in this small peak, normally covered with snow in early February, the sensation was of being late September! We had a comfortable 15ºC when being at 1700m above the sea level! Even in such a conditions, it was very surprising to find a female Hen Harrier hunting in the slopes of the mountains, and moreover, to see 3 Dartford Warblers singing and chasing each other in the tall vegetation. This is only a summer visitor to this habitat, normally covered by snow. Dartford Warblers spend the winter at lower altitudes, waiting for the snow to melt and temperatures to arise up (this is normally happening by late March or early April).

From here we covered the short distance of driving to the first hillsides of the Pyrenees where, even before arriving to the planned stop, we had to do a stop in one of its minor roads, that appeared covered by hundreds of Finches. Here we got the first excellent views on Common Crossbill, with some superb males singing from the top of the Mountain Pines. Hundreds of Eurasian Siskins were calling and singing here, probably moving North to their nesting grounds in Northern Europe. Eurasian Goldfinch, Coal & Crested Tits, Goldcrest and Mistle Thrush were all seen here, some of them providing great looks. At least 2 Citril Finches were noted inside this massive flock of birds, but they flew over almost unnoticed and I fell to put anyone in the group on the Finches, that fastly disappeared in the forest.

The afternoon was well advanced when we had our last stop of the day. This time to have some time in a lovely subboreal forest. Here, we were again surrounded by Common Crossbills and Siskins and only one minute after leaving the van we had a Black Woodpecker calling not far away. It took us only a pair of minutes to contact with the bird, that was active with a variety of calls to finally stop in a large, dead trunk. There we enjoyed long views as the bird was first calling and then preening before going away. We still had some more time in this lovely habitat, but it didn’t produce anything else out of a pair of showy Great Spotted Woodpeckers and 1 Eurasian Nuthatch.

Close up on Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) to start the tour.
Red-billed Leiothrix (Leiothrix lutea) has a small population in the forests around Barcelona.
Alpine Accentor (Prunella collaris) was worth every step un the hill!
Common Crosbill (Loxia curvirostra) has been a common sight along this winter in the Pyrenees.
We enjoyed rather distant but long views on Black Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius).

Day 2. After enjoying our breakfast in our quiet accommodation in La Cerdanya valley, we spent the next couple of hours exploring the valley immediately beside. Here, a number of selected stops produced a good list of birds that included large numbers of Mistle Thrushes and Redwings with some Fieldfares but also really good views on Short-toed Treecreeper, Common Crossbills, Crested Tit and, especially, gorgeous looks on Rock Buntings that seemed very active and ready to start the nesting season.

From here, we drove inside Andorra. All the main mountain passes in this area of Catalonia had no snow at the moment, and our only hope to find Snow Finches was to go inside Andorra and do some stops along a mountain pass reaching 2500 metres above the sea level and sky resort located nearby. Once there, we saw that the amount of snow was also really thin, and the sunny weather reduced our chances to connect with the Finches even thinner. Still, we enjoyed very lovely views on Alpine Choughs as they were feeding around the sky resort but also acting almost as Wallcreepers in the buildings around!

Crossing Andorra, we headed South towards the most impressive spot for large raptors in the Pyrenees. Even if the intense Andorran traffic made us go slowly, we arrived to the hillsides around Isona with the sun well high in the sky. Moreover, in our way out of Andorra we got excellent views on White-throated Dippers.

The rest of the afternoon we drove along a pair of tracks, with several stops to enjoy the many birds of prey in the sky. After three hours, a conservative count showed out 7 Lammergeiers, hundreds of Eurasian Griffons and 12 Cinereous Vultures. We got several excellent views, with adult Lammergeiers passing only tens of metres away from the van; Lammergeiers circling along with Cinereous Vultures; or a flock of 15 Griffons and 4 Lammergeiers all circling together to name some of most celebrated sights. Due to the multiple stops to enjoy the several raptors in the sky, we arrived to our accommodation a bit later than expected, but with some unforgettable memories!

Rock Bunting (Emberiza cia) singing his heart out for us.
Alpine Chough (Phyrrocorax graculus)
Alpine Chough close up in our visit in Andorra.
Lammergeier (Gypaetos barbatus), one of the several enjoyed.
A pair of Lammergeiers almost touching wings.
Cinereous Vulture (Aegypius monachus) has a small but healthy population in the Pyrenees.

Day 3. After breakfast, we covered the short distance from Lleida to the first gorges in the Pyrenees. Once there, we spent a couple of hours enjoying the rocky outcrops. Blue Rock Thrush had a short appearance, but Firecrests and Goldcrest gave us long views. In the cliffs, Griffons Vultures were nesting along with Rock Sparrows. In the river along the gorge, Dippers were moving up and down along with Grey Wagtails. Other birds here included Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Cirl Buntings and Sardinian Warbler.

But the main reason to come was another, and a really important one. To be fair, the Wallcreeper overwintering in the gorge didn’t take long to appear, but we had to wait a bit before everybody in the group could connect with it. Still, we were really lucky, and a Wallcreeper appeared at its typical place a bit after 10:00 in the morning. The bird was half way up in the cliff, and not very showy. We had to wait for 5 minutes before the bird, suddenly, decided to come down by the tarmac! The next 10 minutes were some of the most intense in our Pyrenean outings this winter, with extremely close views on this Wallcreeper, while the bird was moving really low along the gorge. At times, we had ti sensation of be able even of touching the bird!

Wallcreeper (Tichodroma muraria) at close range. Image by Mark Dowie.
Another great shot on Wallcreeper. Please note the delicate design of the undertail coverts. Image by Mark Dowie.

After enjoying such a wonderful views on the one of the main specialties living in the mountains we drove down to the plains. There, large flocks of European Golden Plovers and Northern Lapwings were waiting for us. We have our lunch stop by a small pond, where we had Northern Shovelers, Common Pochards, Little Grebes, Eurasian Coots & Teals, 2 Green Sandpipers but also large flocks of White Storks in the move from their roosting places around Lleida. The area was also good for small birds and European Stonechat, Meadow Pipit, Eurasian Skylark, Crested Lark, Chiffchaff, Linnet, Reed Bunting and Eurasian Tree Sparrow were noted.

After lunch we changed to a second pond, and our visit was granted with nice views on 7 Ferruginous Ducks, a very scarce bird in Catalonia!

Driving East, we arrived to an area with a very different landscape. Here, small but cleverly managed fields still allow a good density of Little Bustards. This species, formerly fairly common in Iberia, had become almost a scarcity, and its winter flocks have been severely decimated. A first stop was done to try to connect with a pair of Black-winged Kites nesting in the area, but we only got a small flock of Woodlarks, several Corn Buntings and multiple views on Red Kite & Marsh Harrier. A bit further, 4 Little Bustards were seen by the road, and we got good views from the van to don’t disturb the birds.

The last stop of the day was deserved to the desert-like ambients South of Lleida, where we had a short walk to enjoy the first Thekla’s Larks of the trip along with lovely flocks of Red-billed Choughs, Spotless Starlings, Rock Sparrows and a Black Wheatear that refused to show for the group! It was already quite late, but we decided to have a very last stop, and our effort was very worth. We still had to get out of the van when we listened and Eurasian Eagle Owl calling from somewhere in the valley. After a fast scanning, we decided to go for a slow short walk, and after a few metres Mark got the bird singing from a dead branch up in the hillside. During the few minutes, we got amazing scope views on the bird while some Redwings were attending their roosting site. A superb way to end another very good day!

Part of the flock of Ferruginous Ducks (Aythya nyroca) seen around Lleida.
Little Bustard (Tetrax tetrax) female feeding.
Eagle Owl calling from its perch. Image by Mark Dowie.

Day 4. After a sunny start of the trip, this was a grey and rainy day. A difficult weather to search for the specialties living in the steppes. Still, we went to explore the endless plains in central Monegros. A first stop in a small salty lagoon produced the only Kentish Plover of the trip along with Common Shelducks and Black-headed Gulls. From here, we got in the plains, but the muddy tracks made difficult for us to arrive to some locations. Still, we were lucky enough to contact with 2 nice Black-bellied Sandgrouses that provided flying views. 1 Little Owl was also a nice sight while flocks of Calandra & Skylarks were flying over the fields. After a couple of hours checking around the rain became heavier, and we decided to go for a service stop. It was a fortunate choice since the sky cleared right when we were leaving the coffee shop.

Back to the plains, we managed to arrive to a nice spot and soon we found a nice of 11 Pin-tailed Sandgrouses that stayed on a field for us for about 20 minutes. Here we had nice scope views with some good photo and video chances. Several Calandra & Crested Larks were singing here, and as the sun became stronger, the first Mediterranean Short-toed Larks (aka Lesser Short-toed Larks) of the trip were noted. From here we moved into a different section of the plains, and we were lucky to find a nice flock of 31 Common Cranes feeding on the ground at close range, and a closer flock of Eurasian Griffons on the ground, waiting for the weather to improve. Here we also got a nice male Hen Harrier flying over the large fields, and 2 extra Little Owls! But unfortunately the rain started again, even heavier than before and we decided to move away, trying to put some distance from the mud and the rain.

But when we arrive to our new accommodation, the rain was also there for us, and we decided to end the day after enjoying a distant view on a new Little Owl.

Pin-tailed Sandgrouses (Pterocles alchata) feeding under the rain.

Day 5. After enjoying breakfast, we headed out to the large steppes immediatly South of Zaragoza. This is a wonderful are to enjoy steppe birds, with multiple places where to go and try to find the different specialties living in the region. After the generous rain of the previous day, we woke up in a sunny day with only some clouds.

We started driving in the minor tracks crossing the steppes and soon got 2 Black-bellied Sandgrouses in a farming area. Beyond, both Calandra and Mediterranean Short-toed Larks started singing, offering both really good looks. It didn’t take long before we got a first Dupont’s Lark singing. It looked like far away, but then a second bird started singing a bit closer. Some Short-toed Larks were around, feeding and providing some photo opportunities. The wind started to pick up, but both Dupont’s Larks were still singing. We put out the scopes, trying to see them in the ocean of grass in front of us, but we couldn’t contact with the bird..

After 40 minutes of scan we decided to move away and try a different spot. By that time the wind was already strong. A new Lesser Short-toed Lark in good light was welcome by the photographers in the group, but suddenly a second bird appeared right behind the Short-toed Lark. A Dupont’s Lark sitting in the top of a small bush only 10 metres away from us!! Soon we were all having the bird and celebrating our luck.

Mediterranean Short-toed Lark (Alaudala rufescens).
Lovely views on a singing Dupont’s Lark (Chersophilus duponti) after a couple of hours of waiting! Image by tour leader Carles Oliver
Thekla’s Lark (Galerida theklae) close up to end our exploration of the steppes.

Leaving the steppes, we still had a pair of Red-billed Choughs displaying around and 2 Black-bellied Sandgrouses plus a pair of superb Golden Eagles in the highway. But certainly the wind had picked up in the last minutes. We started the final transfer to Barcelona, having a stop in a lovely lagoon with a wonderful reedbed. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived to the lagoon the wind was so strong that it was almost not possible to stand up, and we had to search refuge in a blind and even inside the van to enjoy our packed lunches. Here, we only got Gadwalls and Great Crested Grebes and the very strong wind made no possible to contact with any passerine living in the reeds.

Despite the strong wind, we still had something to add to our list and a small detour to explore a sheltered gorge produced a nice male Black Wheatear in the top of a small cliff, providing good views to all the members of the group. This very last minute sight was really appreciated, since the first contact with this species, a couple of days before, was poor and not everyone in the group actually so the bird.

After this short stop, we just transferred back to Barcelona to end our tour around the airport by mid afternoon.

List of birds seen during the tour

  1. Red-legged Partridge (Alectoris rufa)
  2. Ring-necked Pheasant (Phaisanus colchinus)
  3. Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
  4. Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
  5. Gadwall (Anas strepera)
  6. Eurasian Teal (Anas crecca)
  7. Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)
  8. Common Pochard (Aythya ferina)
  9. Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca)
  10. Little Bustard (Tetrax tetrax)
  11. Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Pterocles orientalis)
  12. Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata)
  13. Feral Pigeon (Columba livia domestica)
  14. Stock Dove (Columba oenas)
  15. Common Woodpigeon (Columba palumbus)
  16. Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
  17. Eurasian Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)
  18. Eurasian Coot (Fulica atra)
  19. Common Crane (Grus grus)
  20. Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus)
  21. Little Grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
  22. Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus)
  23. European Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria)
  24. Northern Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus)
  25. Greenshank (Tringa nebularia)
  26. Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus)
  27. Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis)
  28. White Stork (Ciconia ciconia)
  29. Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
  30. Western Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)
  31. Great White Egret (Ardea alba)
  32. Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)
  33. Lammergeier (Gypaetus barbatus)
  34. Eurasian Griffon (Gyps fulvus)
  35. Cinereous Vulture (Aegypius monachus)
  36. Red Kite (Milvus milvus)
  37. Hen Harrier (CIrcus cyaneus)
  38. Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus)
  39. Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus)
  40. Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
  41. Eurasian Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo)
  42. Little Owl (Athene noctua)
  43. Eurasian Hoopoe (Upupa epops)
  44. Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
  45. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dryobates minor)
  46. Iberian Green Woodpecker (Picus sharpei)
  47. Black Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius)
  48. Eurasian Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
  49. Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)
  50. Rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri)
  51. Mediterranean Short-toed Lark (Alaudala rufescens)
  52. Eurasian Skylark (Alauda arvensis)
  53. Crested Lark (Galerida cristata)
  54. Thekla’s Lark (Galerida theklae)
  55. Woodlark (Lullula arborea)
  56. Calandra Lark (Melanocorypha calandra)
  57. Dupont’s Lark (Chersophilus duponti)
  58. Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
  59. White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
  60. Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)
  61. White-bellied Dipper (Cinclus cinclus)
  62. Alpine Accentor (Prunella collaris)
  63. European Robin (Erithacus rubecula)
  64. Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros)
  65. Black Wheatear (Oenanthe leucura)
  66. European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola)
  67. Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
  68. Redwing (Turdus iliacus)
  69. Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
  70. European Blackbird (Turdus merula)
  71. Blue Rock Thrush (Monticola solitarius)
  72. Eurasian Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla)
  73. Sardinian Warbler (Curruca melanocephala)
  74. Dartford Warbler (Curruca undata)
  75. Cetti’s Warbler (Cettia cetti)
  76. Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)
  77. Goldcrest (Regulus regulus)
  78. Firecrest (Regulus ignicapillus)
  79. Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)
  80. Eurasian Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)
  81. European Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus)
  82. Great Tit (Parus majors)
  83. Coal Tit (Periparus ater)
  84. Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus)
  85. Red-billed Leiothrix (Leiothrix lutea)
  86. Short-toed Treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla)
  87. Wallcreeper (Tichodroma muraria)
  88. Iberian Grey Shrike (Lanius meridionalis)
  89. Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica)
  90. Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius)
  91. Western Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula)
  92. Carrion Crow (Corvus corone)
  93. Common Raven (Corvus corax)
  94. Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus)
  95. Red-billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax)
  96. European Starling (Sturnus unicolor)
  97. Spotless Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
  98. Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus)
  99. House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
  100. Common Rock Sparrow (Petronia petronia)
  101. Common Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)
  102. European Serin (Serinus serinus)
  103. Eurasian Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)
  104. Eurasian Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
  105. Eurasian Siskin (Spinus spinus)
  106. Linnet (Acanthis cannabina)
  107. Common Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
  108. Cirl Bunting (Emberiza cirlus)
  109. Rock Bunting (Emberiza cia)
  110. Corn Bunting (Emberiza calandra)

List of mammals seen during the tour

  1. European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)
  2. Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
  3. Red Deer (Cervus elaphus)