Birds in migration and reproduction

Now is one of the most interesting bird watching moments, in these dates are birds mix, the birds that begin the reproduction season, with the birds still in migration and birds which still maintain winter behaviors .
By this it is easy to see migradoras flocks of birds, Waders, Kites, Merlin, Geese, Gulls, Cranes… flocks of birds wintering, Finches, Buntings… and birds that already are in the first moments of reproduction process, Stonechat, Thrushes, Tits, Chaffinch…
In a trip in the area of Ebro water reservoir, flocks of Ringed Plover, Curlew, Golden Plover, Lapwing, Wigeon, Teal, Geese...
and in the same site a lot of birds singing,  Stonechat, Common Chaffinch, Skylark .

 White Storks nest

 Common Curlew

 Black-headed Gull

 Stonechat

The checklist of the day:
Greylag Goose (European)    
Gadwall   
Eurasian Wigeon   
Mallard   
Northern Shoveler   
Eurasian Teal   
Great Crested Grebe   
Black-necked Grebe   
White Stork   
Great Cormorant   
Black Kite   
Griffon Vulture   
Eurasian Sparrowhawk   
Common Buzzard   
Common Kestrel   
Merlin   
Eurasian Coot   
Northern Lapwing   
European Golden-Plover    18
Common Ringed Plover    25
Eurasian Curlew    31
Black-headed Gull   
Yellow-legged Gull  
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Common Wood-Pigeon   
Eurasian Hoopoe    
Eurasian Jay   
Common Magpie   
Eurasian Jackdaw   
Carrion Crow   
Skylark   
Coal Tit   
Common Chiffchaff    
Black Redstart   
Stonechat   
Eurasian Blackbird   
Song Thrush   
Mistle Thrush   
European Starling   
Spotless Starling   
Meadow Pipit   
Common Chaffinch   
Eurasian Bullfinch   
House Sparrow   

Egret and Curlew

Little Owl 

Great White Egret 

Great Cormorant 

Black-necked Grebe 

Common Coot 

Eurasian Curlew

Trip by the county of Bricia and Southern area of water reservoir of river Ebro.

Little Owl, Buntings, Buzzards... in the moor of county of Bricia an highlands with 1000 meters above sea level.

In the water reservoir, Grey Heron, Great White Egret, flocks of Common Coot, Eurasian Curlew, Lapwing, Mallard.... all in the pasture, meadow areas and the areas of low level water. Yellow-legged Gull, Black-headed Gull, Cormorants and Grebes in the open water.

All with good weather and waiting the Spring.

A new little wetland

Mario Alonso Blanco, to discover for the ornithological community a new little wetland in the outskirts of Villarcayo town.
This it is very interesting so that in the province of Burgos there are not many wetland, which makes difficult the establishment of own species of these zones.
Even so, in dams and gravel pits, there have been very interesting records, although with very few settlement birds permanently.
The small lagoon, forms next to a farm, and it is dried in summer, reason why it will not be able either to have species all year, but during the winter it becomes a rest area for migratory birds.
Also it owns a quite great colony of White Stork.

These days:
Greylag Goose
Common Shelduck
Common Teal
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northern Lapwing
Great flocks of Common Starling
White Stork
Black-headed Gull

Migration towards to North

A small trip to the reservoir of the river Ebro, here I have seen great flocks of birds in migration towards to North, nearly 1000 Lapwings, 300 Greylag Goose, two great flocks of Lesser Black- backed Gull nearly 100 birds, a flock of 70 Common Curlew, Starling, Golden Plover, Yellow-legged Gull, Black-headed Gull…. All this in a small cove near the village “La Riva”.

Greylag Goose, Yellow-legged Gull, Black-headed Gull, Lesser Black- backed Gull and Lapwing

Common Curlew and Lapwing

And on the following day, Yves Borremans informs three Great Northern Loon in the same zone.


Few records of this specie in the province of Burgos, I have a record in 1991 , a bird in the water reservoir of Puentelarrá , Volumen 40(1), junio 1993.

Good or bad news?

Good news for the natural environment, but very bad news for the birds. Any town it is beginning to close the rubbish dumps.
This means an improvement, the rubbish will be controlled.
As always, the activities of the man bring about imbalances.
A very important number of species of birds takes to long time having the rubbish dumps like an important feeding area.

Went the rubbish dumps are closed, how they are going to replace this food?.
For some species, like the Griffon Vulture, it will mean another new problem.
After the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as Mad-Cow Disease (MCD), the vultures and other species do not find carrion in the field, the government haven`t open new vulture feeders, and now the rubbish dumps are closed.
But other many species use the rubbish dumps of massive form, Black and Red Kite, Gulls, Crows, Storks ......
All of them will have problems by the closing of the rubbish dumps.

Releated Link:

http://miradascantabricas.blogspot.com/2008/06/basurero-de-aguilar-de-campoo-sellado.html