July 1, 2009
Even the quietest month of the year for birds, brings some surprises!
56 Species of birds were seen in the Alcossebre area this June.
Two new species were added to the list Tawny Owl and a Cockatiel.
A juvenile Kentish Plover was a first June record here.
The full list of birds seen with comments follows:-
A maximum of four Northern Gannets were seen, normal numbers for June here.
It is the quietest month for Shag and Cormorant, with only one Shag seen and singles of Cormorant.
A single adult Black-crowned Night Heron passed through on the 8th June, and the next day a juvenile caught a Marsh Frog at the Sewage Pond (see photos).
Up to six Grey Herons were seen passing this month, non-breeding birds from the Ebro delta.
It is always a joy to see flocks of Greater Flamingos flying past – this month a flock of 18 birds and a flock of 40 birds flew east over the sea.
Egrets were scarce this month, again normal. Only four Cattle Egrets ,and two Little Egrets seen.
The only duck species seen this month was a female Mallard which spent 10 days at the Sewage pond from the 13th to the 23rd.
One or two Short-tailed Eagles were seen throughout the month, mainly sitting on electric pylons. This raises the hope that they are successfully nesting in the area.
A single female and a single male Montagu´s Harrier were seen hunting over the rural farmland, no doubt from the breeding area of the Cabanes El Prat nature reserve.
There were at least two pairs of Common Kestrel holding territory.
Normal breeding numbers here.
The first Eleonora´s Falcon of the year was seen on the 22nd June, flying from the Sierra de Irta montains and heading out to sea –the nearest breeding colony is on the Columbrete Islands, some 28 miles offshore. So a fair distance to go to feed.
Moorhens continue to hold territory at the Sewage Pond and Torre de Capycorp Pond, but as yet no young have been seen.
The only Black-winged Stilt seen this month flew east on the 22nd June.
My first June record of Kentish Plover turned up on the 26th, at the Capycorp Lagoon.
Their were only two sightings of Black-headed Gull this month. 23 birds flew east on the 23rd, and 19 birds flew south on the 24th.
Audouin Gulls and Yellow-legged Gulls were seen daily as they scavenged the tourist beaches at dawn and dusk.
Sandwich Terns were also seen daily, with a maximum of 15 birds on the 25th. Single birds could be seen on the bright yellow buoys put out on the sea as a warning to boats.
Three Whiskered Terns flew east on the 8th June.
Both Wood Pigeon and Collared Doves are in increased breeding numbers this year.
While there only seems to be one pair of Turtle Doves holding territory.
One of the species that gives good entertainment this month is the noisy juvenile Great Spotted Cuckoo´s. Shouting at their Magpie foster parents to bring them food! There are still up to four juveniles in the area. The adult birds have gone.
After my concern about the low numbers of Little Owls last month, they have become more vocal and visible, especially at dusk. There are at least eight pairs holding territory.
Now for one of the new species seen in the Alcossebre area – a Tawny Owl! A friend (Georgina) told me she was pretty sure that she had a pair of Tawny Owls near her house in El Pinar. I was a bit skeptical because in my eight years here I´ve not seen one here. However he did manage to get some record shots of one and e mailed the photo to me – yes it was definitely Tawny Owl. So well spotted Georgina!
Another bird that continues to entertain anybody that is out and about at dusk is the Red-necked Nightjar. Usually most folk tell me about a strange call they hear. Some of the lucky ones seen it hawking for insects, over or past their house, and guess what? I still hav´nt managed to get a photograph!
Both Common and Pallid Swifts have been feeding in their hundreds.
Some mornings I have lost count of the number of birds coming in from the sea, and heading inland to their breeding places.
There are still two pairs of Bee eaters holding territory, and I think one pair has had three young.
For some reason Hoopoe numbers have gone very low – I only counted a maximum of three birds this June, whereas last June I counted up to 10 birds. So a real mystery there.
A maximum of 10 Crested Larks counted is normal June numbers here.
Both Barn Swallow and House Martins are maintaining good levels of breeding pairs. Young birds are swelling the daily count numbers.
There are at least one pair of White Wagtails holding territory this year. Which is good news because they don´t nest every year here.
The Nightingale population is also on the up. A total of 14 Nightingales were heard singing and holding territory from the first bird on the 3rd April to the last arrival on 18th April
Of the 14 birds, 3 males gave up singing after one to six days, and moved elsewhere. Three males started off in one area and moved into another. 8 birds stayed and sang in the same area.
The star singer was the male at the Sewage Pond which sang for a total of 60 days out of 88!
While the male sang the female fed the young - see photo.
There seems to be at least three pairs of Blackbird nesting this year, good numbers for here.
Fan-tailed Warblers continue an eight year high with about 17 pairs holding territory.
Melodious Warblers are also doing very well this year. 17 males advertised their territory from the 23rd April until the last arrival on 31st May. Five males gave up after one to three days.
Of the 12 remaining pairs, six were proved to breed by the pairs alarm calling.
One male sang for 25 days out of 64. Not as intensive as the Nightingale.
12 to 13 pairs of Sardinian Warbler are just below the eight year high of 16 pairs in 2004.
There only seems to be one nesting pair of Spotted Flycatchers this year. Normally there are two to three pairs holding territory.
One bird at the coast on the 29th June was either a very late migrant or an unsuccessful breeding bird.
Great Tits on the other hand are having their best year yet with at least seven or eight pairs holding territory. At least three pairs have been seen with young.
My May estimate of four pairs of Golden Orioles turns out to be lower than is the case, there are at least six pairs holding territory!
There is cause for concern with the local Woodchat Shrike breeding numbers. The normal breeding population here is up to four pairs.
This June I have only seen one male bird.
Dispite the Great Spotted Cuckoos taking advantage of the Common Magpie as foster parents, they are doing very well on their own right.
A maximum of eight pairs holding territory.
Finch numbers are increasing by the day as more and more family groups join together in the rural farmlands.
It looks as if Linnet bred for the first time here, as I saw five to ten birds – adults and young – throughout the month.
Buntings are not doing as well as the finches. In May there were three pairs of Corn Bunting holding territory, and one pair of Cirl Bunting.
However in 25 days of observation in June I´ve only seen Corn Bunting four times and no Cirl Buntings.
Alcossebre Weather in June, 2009.
Overall it was a hot dry month with light winds.
The average daytime temperature was 30C (86F).
The highest temperature was on the 21st and 28th with 34C (93F)
The coldest day was on the 8th at 25C (77F).
The average night temperature was 19C (66F).
The coldest night was on the 1st at 14C (57F).
The warmest night was on the 16th at 25C (77F).
Total rainfall for the month was 0.2 inches (6mm) over three days.
The heaviest rain fell on the 20th & 25th with 0.1 inch (3mm).
Wind strengths were predominately light or gentle.
We only had a moderate breeze on four days.
Wind directions were mainly from the north or north west for a short time in the morning, then changed round to the east or south east from mid morning, through to evening, when they usually died out.
Compared to 2008 it was a lot drier, 0.2 inches of rain compared to 1.7 inches.
It was on average 2c warmer in both day and night temperatures.
There were also more fine sunny days 21 days compared to 17 days last year.