I and the Bird #35 by Dan Rhoads

I and the Bird #35

Report of the Yearbook- July to September 2006

You can consulted the best intersting records of the birds of Burgos, during last the three months, July, August and September.
Third report of the Yearbook of the Birds of Burgos

Remarkable records:

8 records of the Red-rumped Swallow (Hirundo daurica).
New records of the Lammergeier (Gypaetus barbatus), Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)and Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus caeruleus).

Conferences of Steppes

These days this being celebrated in Caleruega (Ribera del Duero), province of Burgos, conferences on the steppe birds, organized by the Fundación Oxígeno.
Something very interesting, since great amount of species is disappearing the steppe zones and with them that are unique and that they are in extinction danger, one of the cases is the one of Dupont’s Lark (Chersophilus duponti) , (bird of the year by SEO) that counts in Burgos with a population very reduced and that if the destruction of steppes continues the extinction of this species will be a fact.
More information Here.

Yellow-legged Gull, Subadult

Although the weather has not been very good, we have made a new visit to the reservoir of river Ebro.
The objective, to see if there were Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) or some specie of Goose in migration, we were not able to see none.
Even so from the observatory, located near of city of Reinosa, we have seen several species, some of them in numerous groups, like the dispersed groups of Sky Lark (Alauda arvensis)
, and in the river a group of 53 Black-headed Gull (Larus ridibundus)
An eight Northern Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) resting.
Several ducks, Eurasian Wigeon (Anas penélope) , two Pintail (Anas acuta) , quite Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), and Common Teal (Anas crecca) .
Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) up to six specimens.
A Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) in flight by the zone.
Five juvenile of Great Cormoran (Phalacrocorax carbo) .
But the showy thing was the presence of Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis), that although this fact is quite normal, the unusual thing was to see two birds, one of them with the own characteristics of the species and an adult, but the other with all the plumage of an adult, except very tenuous dark feathers, in the auricular zone, and the difference had in legs and bill, greenish legs, at no moment with clear tonality and the bill with a black spot a little greater than the red spot that has the adults.

After reviewing bibliography and receiver the answer of Xabi Varela , I draw a conclusion at that is a Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis) of possibly was a four-winter or subadult, with the plumage already from adult but having conserved coloration from a third winter, in legs and bill.

Subadult and adult of Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michaellis)

Ornithological Yearbook of Burgos. Volume 1

One of the most interesting projects on the birds in Burgos has been finished.
The Ornithological Yearbook of Burgos has published the Volume 1, an historical revision from the publication of the Breeding Bird Atlas of the Province of Burgos.
In this first volume, several years are included until the 2005, updating the data of the Atlas with respect to the breeding Birds.
Also one adds all the information available on the rest of species, migrate birds, wintering birds and rare birds.
With this a study of 299 species of birds is completed that of a form or another one have been detected in the province of Burgos.
Of each species his is indicated the status and the population esteem, to date of 2005, being able to compare with the reflected one in the Atlas of 1996, the most showy records and its situation comments.
Of some species a evolution graph is contributed and others with a small map of distribution.
In the end four works are contributed about the birds in Burgos, about the Dupon´s Lark (Chersophylus duponti), White Stork (Ciconia ciconia), Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus) and Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni).

One of the aspects more interesting than contributes this work is that of the 53 people, between authors and collaborating, who we participated in the project of the Atlas in 1996 has gone to 163 people between coordinators and collaborating.


Graphics and Maps for some specie

All the work of the Yearbook, also this available in the Web, in :

http://www.avesdeburgos.com/anuario.htm

http://www.avesdeburgos.com/anuario/anuario1/AOBUvol1.htm

With the following mails, you can buy the book.

anuario@avesdeburgos.com

anuariodeburgos@yahoo.es

Thank you very much to the coordinators (David Gonzalez Ortega, Fernando Román Sancho, Rufino Fernández González y José Luis Lobo Cueva) by the work that, without a doubt, will benefit the birds from our province.

I and the Bird #34 by Pam Shack

I and the Bird #34.

Rosy Starling in Burgos

Towards time that was not a rare bird in Burgos, this time has been a Rosy Starling Sturnus roseus. More in Rare Birds in Spain.