Spanish Travels - Part 1

I recently managed to escape the yucky British weather and in particular storm Ciara's fury by taking a short break in Spain with my wife. As usual we visited the Costa del Sol and stayed in the resort of Benalmadena from the 8th of February until the twelfth and while it was not a dedicated wildlife holiday it did deliver some highlights.

Chiffchaff and Black Redstart.

Resorts in Spain usually look way too commercialised to provided any interest to the would be wildlife watcher and without the swifts screaming around the buildings or the many martins and swallows feeding it seems even less interesting. Appearances thankfully can be all too deceptive and a closer look and listen revealed quite a bit of interest. Winter brings migrants escaping the chill of the northern European winter and the commonest of these appears to be Chiffchaff, I couldn't go anywhere without hearing or seeing them. Scarcer though still present in numbers were Meadow Pipits and any grassy spot seemed to attract at least a couple. Other species included Blackcap, Robin and Grey Wagtail though my favourites were the Black Redstarts. Small numbers were noted daily and they included one on the hotel opposite my room.

Monk Parakeet and Crag Martin.

Town parks supplied spots for foraging for Spotless Starlings and White Wagtails while sea front hotels in Fuengirola provided a roosting site for many Crag Martins. They spread out over the surrounding countryside soon after sunrise but provide excellent views as they twitter and bicker before departure. Kestrels are another part of the urban scene and I frequently heard them calling as I was walking around. Hearing anything though above the raucous squawkings of the many Monk Parakeets was difficult though, their numbers seem to grow year on year. Another sound that I couldn't escape was the tinkling trills of singing Serins, they seem to be everywhere.

Meadow Pipit and White Wagtail.

Gulls featured strongly with masses of Black-headeds being drawn to the free hand outs offered to the ducks and coots on the lake at the Parque de Palomas in Benalmadena. They were joined by many Yellow-legged and some Lesser Black -backeds which used the lake as a bathing spot. Fuengirola's beach at the mouth of the river played host to a small flock of Mediterranean Gulls which looked stunning in the early morning sunshine and both Sandwich Terns and Cormorants could be seen out to sea.

Mediterranean Gulls and Yellow-legged.

Fine sunny weather had stimulated the locals insects into activity and among them were the impressive looking carpenter bees visiting the flowers in parks and gardens. A surprising number of butterflies were on the wing too with whites and Speckled Woods being noted. Other urban wildlife included terrapins and frogs which frequented park lakes and the Rio Fuengirola.

Terrapin and Speckled Wood.