Lagoon of Miranda de Ebro

The province of Burgos is not characterized to have many wetlands, but the few that it has are really interesting.
One of that I have followed since I began with birdwatching is the lagoon complex next to the city of Miranda de Ebro.
Three small lagoons very next to the city and surrounded by highways, but that even so are able to lodge a good amount of species of birds. Luckily, from year 2002 a good sum of money has been reversed to prepare them, and now one of them has an observatory.
These lagoons were on the verge of disappearing, as it happened with other many in Spain, used like tip, burned the vegetation…
Now it is possible to be enjoyed a good number of birds and the proximity to the city causes that they are possible to be used by the schools to bring back to consciousness to the children and to teach to them to the importance of the water, wetlands and birds.
The other day in a two hours I could see the next birds:

Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Common Buzzard
Great Cormorant
Eurasian Coot
Common Moorhen
Corn Bunting
Common Red Bunting (3)
Marsh Harrier (1)
Common Snipe (16)
Barn Swallow
Cetti’s Warbler
Magpie
White Stork
European Greenfinch

Yearbook, last quater of 2008.

A new quarterly report already is available in the web page of the Yearbook, corresponds to the months of October , November and December of 2008. Here.
With this report, the yearbook 2 finalizes and will be published next.

These are, for my, the most interesting records of the quarter, some really spectacular *:

Great Bittern (Botaurus stellaris)*
White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons)
Egyptian Goose (Alopoche aegyptiacus)*
Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea)*
Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
Smew (Mergus albellus)*
Black-winged Kite (Elanus caeruleus)
Eurasian Black Vulture (Aegypius monachus)
Eurasian Coot (Fulica cristata)*
Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus)
Alpine Accentor (Prunella collaris)
Wallcreeper (Tichodroma muraria)
Snowfinch (Montifringilla nivalis)

Hot Spot of River Ebro

These days the water reservoir of the river Ebro is a hot spot for birdwatching.

It is not difficult to make a route in a day and to see near 50 species of birds.

Some of them considered Rare Birds in Spain and very rare others in the north of the Iberian peninsula.

Waders, Herons, Gulls, but mainly birds of the Anatidae family.

Remarkable birds:

Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos).

There has been a great arrival from these birds to many places of Spain (to see analysis in Rare Birds in Spain Blog). A bird registered in the water reservoir.

Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca). A bird, although the presence of this species can indicate that it is of captivity, have already been several the homologations of this species in the peninsula.

Smew (Mergellus albellus). Another species of doubtful origin, with many possibilities of natural origin.

Smew (Mergellus albellus) photo by Manuel Estébanez

Red-knobbed coot (Fulica cristata). It is not the first registry in the north of Spain, before has been observed some bird in Galicia. But very rare bird in the north of spain.

Red-knobbed coot (Fulica cristata) by Manuel Estébanez

Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea): Three spectacular birds. Birds of uncertain origin too.

Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea)

Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna): Four birds.

Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna) by Manuel Estébanez

Common Shelduck below and Ruddy Shelduck above

Red-crested Pochard (Netta rufina). 450 birds recorded near the village of Cabañas de Virtus.

Historically this water reservoir has been a place chosen by thousands of Red-crested Pochard as to moult site.

Without justified cause, for years, the number of Red-crested Pochard has been littler, years with only possible to find four or six birds.

We hope starting from this year, they return in great flocks.

Red-crested Pochard (Netta rufina) Part of the flock.

Thanks to Manuel Estébanez, you can find more photos of him here, here and here