Towering above the crystal clear waters of the Euphrates River, sandstone cliffs have for thousands of years played host to the bald ibis, returning from Ethiopia during the spring migration. But when modern dangers upset this delicate age-old balance, a coalition of local wildlife enthusiasts and international conservation efforts rescued this majestic bird from the […]
Tag: Northern Bald Ibis
This bird came back from extinction – now scientists in an aircraft are teaching it to migrate
The northern bald ibis was extinct in central Europe for 300 years. Now, it has returned – and scientist “foster parents” aboard a tiny plane are teaching the birds to fly their long-forgotten migration routes. Thirty-six of these endangered birds are now following an ultralight aircraft 1,740 miles (2,800km ) from Austria to Spain, on […]
Highlights from this year’s Spring Tour on The Strait of Gibraltar – April 2015
Here’s a quick photo summary of some of the birds we watched down in Andalucia on one of my spring birdwatching tours. Each spring we offer such small tour group holidays to go out in the field and see what bird species are arriving from Africa. The close proximity of the two continents makes this […]
Melanistic Montagu’s Harrier and other Raptors
Here are some of the raptor photos we managed to see with my Swiss group from Arcatour last week. The wind direction swung around to give us moderate to strong Levante (easterlies) for five days and only died down on our last two days. Still, knowing what the migrating raptors do and where they will […]
La Janda News
Good news that aerial crop spraying is now limited to only a few specific controls for health and agriculture. Natural sprays are used against mosquito control in La Janda although to be honest the problem with such insects is the same in the pine forests. Most of the fertiliser spraying that takes place is showering […]
Migration across to Europe
It’s quite a long photo post this week and please scroll down and enjoy the views we’ve been having. I’ve been quite busy and wanted to write up more but I was out in the field most days and had lots of emails and other office work to do. Black-eared Wheatears continued to show up […]
More Movement on The Strait
Across La Janda the Common Cranes are getting restless and have been flying around in the warm air getting onto thermals that have been rising across the flat landscape. Family groups have been calling noisily as they exercise their flight muscles and prepare for the long flight home. More cranes arrived this week from Morocco, […]
Late Ortolans
The wet weather continued north and southern Spain was once again bathed in sunshine. Saying that though, rain is forecast for the coming weekend. Back out in the field, La Janda’s tracks are passable with care and you can get through to Benalup from the main N340 road. There are a few sticky bits with […]