Coracias garrulusCoraciiformes – Coraciidae This pair has established their nest at 1.50m high in an old tree trunk of which the main branches have been cut off. I dearly hope the landowner will leave what’s left for these birds and for the different species of sparrows nesting in its heart. Cette paire a fait un […]
Tag: Spain
Butterflies, Bugs and other Insects
Weather dominates the lives of all living things and changing weather patterns have an effect on the life cycles of most species on the planet. We talk about the weather all the time and European weather, if not global weather are going through changes. In south-west Spain we are feeling and experiencing unsettled and abnormal […]
Thread-winged-Lacewing (Nemoptera bipennis)
One of the most beautiful Iberian insects is the Wood Fairy or Thread-winged-Lacewing (Nemoptera bipennis), known as Duende in Spanish which translates as an elf or a fairy. My two younger daughters and I went out to look for them in one of the smaller pine woods on the edge of Barbate Marismas. Within a […]
The European bee eater
Merops apiaster Coraciiformes – Meropidae They are back from their African winter quarters end of may in the South of France but mainly in Spain early in may. As Carrion crows, Black kites and some parrot species, they live as couples within a same colony and mate for life. It is awesome and inspiring to […]
The Little Bustard
Tetrax tetrax – Otidiformes – Otididae – It is the only species of this Tetrax genera and is very endangered on french territory. Also in decline in Spain although still in larger numbers, it lives in dry opened areas. The male does somewhat of a “flamenco dance” on a specific spot about 30 cm wide […]
Migrating Over a Carpet of Flowers
The last few weeks have been pretty busy for me with lots of tours and finding lots of migratory birds. This year’s early rain through the month of March was extreme but all along we knew that it would be a spectacular spring and hence have been rewarded with carpets of amazing multicoloured blooms covering […]
Passerines seen in April
In the dictionary the word passerine is described thus: passerine |ˈpasərin, -ˌrīn|Ornithology adjective – of, relating to, or denoting birds of a large order distinguished by feet that are adapted for perching, including all songbirds. noun – a passerine bird; a perching bird. The order Passeriformes comprises more than half of all bird species, the […]
Blue Rock Thrush Displaying
I had the opportunity to take a series of photographs of one of our local male Blue Rock Thrushes displaying. I made this collage of his movements through the blue sky. Not only did it delight me but also John-Patrick and Cathrine clients from London that I was with yesterday.