, the surrounding area below this white village or
‘pueblo
blanco
‘
known as La
Janda
had been
receiving
thousands of new migrant birds that arrive in the southern tip of the European mainland and feed up in preparation for their onward journey across The Strait of Gibraltar to Africa
A European Roller was a pleasant surprise to see passing through this vast former laguna and now mechanised agricultural area
Five Little Bustards were also seen, nowadays quite a rare sight. They were feeding on insects at a newly cut grass field that’s used as winter silage
I managed to get some flight shots as the birds took to the air
Little Bustard
Here’s a typical scene at La Janda with a young Montagu’s Harrier hunting over the rice-fields
Thousands of White Storks are now feeding in this huge fertile agricultural area, artificially controlled with water to keep the various crops of rice, maize, sunflowers and cotton irrigated
Huge spiralling flocks of White Storks take to the air, the young birds practicing their soaring and gliding techniques on the hot thermals that build up during the day
…some birds even do a casual in-flight preening as the warm currents of air lift them effortlessly higher into the blue skies above western Andalucía
Back on the ground the smaller passerines are moving through the county. Here’s a Reed Warbler skulking in the reed-beds
Sedge Warblers were also seen as were Western Olivaceous Warbler, Willow Warbler, Subalpine Warbler, Spectacled Warbler and Bonelli’s Warbler
Glossy Ibis have also bred successfully over the years with breeding colonies firmly established in and around the La Janda area. They favour mixed flock roosts and comunal nesting groups. Their nests can be found amongst other wetland species that nest in trees and higher bushes. Other nesting birds here include Little Egret, Black-crowned Night Heron, Purple Heron, Squacco Heron and the ubiquitous Cattle Egret that alone has thousands of nesting pairs in La Janda
A Grey Heron takes of as a Little Egret decides to stay put
Great Egrets have apparently nested in Cadiz but as yet I have not found any nest
Two juvenile Black-crowned Night Herons fly past
A Little Egret take to the wing
This is a very fresh looking Purple Heron on the edge of a rice-field
Another youngster, a Glossy Ibis practices flight
A shot of a departing Squacco Heron flying across an unusually verdant August landscape at La Janda
Stephen Daly, has been birding since he was eight years old in his native Scotland. After living in Germany and France he established Andalucian Guides the successful birding and wildlife tour company on The Strait of Gibraltar in Spain and has been living here since 2001. Photographing birds in flight is one passion and his photos can be found in many books, magazines and journals. Studying bird behaviour and bird migration are two other positive aspects of being based on one of the busiest migration routes on Earth.
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