Page 24 - Out Birding Issue 109 Winter 2022

Extremadura 2: Better Late Than Never
As members of the original, pre-Covid Extremadura GBC group, Barry and I were disappointed that I had to work when the trip finally went ahead in March this year. Extremadura had piqued our birding interest and a week’s holiday in early June would allow us to dodge the Jubilee celebra􏰀ons.
A􏰁er a nightmare 7-hour flight, and stressful 3-hour drive from Madrid, we arrived at Las Canteras late in the evening. Chulo, the hotel’s super-friendly dog, noisily barked our arrival. We were warmly welcomed by the owner Francisco and his mother Pilar, who very kindly rustled us up a three-course meal.
A􏰁er a welcome night’s sleep, a bill-clapping colony of White Storks, with almost fully grown chicks, provided entertainment during breakfast. I knew to expect a pair of Li􏰂le Owls, but was more surprised to see a Stone Curlew. This was to be pre􏰂y much the end of our success in picking out birds on the plains; a no-bustard holiday for us.
A􏰁er that, we had the most brilliant week, birding all round Extremadura’s main habitats, its steppe, scrub, cork-tree ‘dehesa’, rivers, reservoirs, and, best of all, the mountainous area of Monfragüe Na􏰀onal Park. Missing the exper􏰀se of the earlier GBC group, our Collins App guided some of the trickier ID calls: chestnut-crowned Spanish versus familiar House Sparrows (easy enough); diffuse-streaked Thecla’s versus dis􏰀nct-streaked Crested Larks (tricky); and dark-clawed Common versus pale -clawed Lesser Kestrels (blimey, glad we packed the scope). As for Common and Pal- lid Swi􏰁s, how anyone can pick up the “faint hint of dark ‘saddle effect’”, on birds flying at swi􏰁-speed is beyond me. Best just to enjoy the spectacle. In any case, Al- pine Swi􏰁s, Crag Mar􏰀ns and Red-rumped Swallows are all exo􏰀c enough to Bri􏰀sh- based birders, and a whole lot easier to iden􏰀fy!
Monfragüe delivered its magic. As well as countless Griffon Vultures, rising on the thermals, we got three of our target birds within five minutes of arriving at the Peña Falcon viewpoint. A male Blue Rock Thrush and a Rock Bun􏰀ng appeared, true to their name, on the rocks just below the look-out. The Rock Thrush looked stunning as it perched up even closer for its photo in the sunshine. This was immediately fol- lowed by a Black Stork lazily dri􏰁ing through, before landing by its nest, where three li􏰂le white fluffy chicks with bright orange bills sat out in the open.
Therea􏰁er, avian delights aplenty. White Storks, Griffon Vultures, Black Kites, Lesser Kestrels, Woodchat and Southern Grey Shrikes, Hoopoes, Bee-eaters and Azure- winged Magpies were ‘everywhere’ birds. Feeling lucky to see the occasional single in the UK, it was wonderful to come across whole fields of Corn Bun􏰀ngs. Camera- shy Golden Orioles were surprisingly common, a daily flash of the most brilliant yel- low in flight or their languid, tropical song when hidden among the trees. Rollers, another key target, were unexpectedly difficult. We finally got a great view, and ter- rible photo, on our penul􏰀mate day.
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