• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Search results

thxpress_search_the_forum Search Opus
  1. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Often a good place for Stone Curlew, but did they clear up the enormous, dreadful fly-tipping area at the bend in the road, yet?!
  2. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    I guess I'm probably a bit late for you, as it's now the end of the month, but I would agree with Mark for good places to see Roller. The road to the monastery from the bend in the CV853 is usually a cert! There is often a pair nearer to the CV853 - perhaps half way between the junction and the...
  3. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    I've been back in the UK a couple of weeks, now, but it was a good trip this year. 86 species in a week, with only three proper birding outings managed (El Pinet Salinas, El Hondo Vistabella road hides, and El Hondo San Felipe visitor centre hides). Highlights were: - turning up a Wryneck at VB...
  4. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    This time next week... :) Can't wait to get out on my bike again around El Hondo and the Salinas, as it's a year since the last visit to the area (having missed out on a summer visit in 2017 in favour of a family trip to Orlando!) Anything to keep an eye out for at the moment?
  5. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    I have been visiting the area for the last 10 years now, as my in-laws live in La Marina, just a few km from EL Hondo. And to date, I never did the official visit on a Saturday morning. The hides along the Vistabella road (CV-861) are very easily accessed. Assuming you're driving, you can park...
  6. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    I'm glad it's not just me :) Thanks, that's quite helpful. I guess I also show my lack of birding knowledge in not "seeing" Turtle Doves. As I have only seen them once before, I wouldn't honestly be able to say I could recognise one in flight or differentiate from a collared dove without a...
  7. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Haha! Well, yes, you're probably right. I usually assume the doves I see are collared doves, but very possibly some of them are not!! (And my experience stopping-and-starting on my bike to look at each pair of doves on telegraph wires has proven that to be the case so far, so in the end I kind...
  8. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Three photos from the trip
  9. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Well, my three weeks in Spain flew by, and I'm back home in the UK. I didn't get much chance to post that much on here while I was away, but a few memorable highlights were: Two species added to my life-list, and further addition to my Spanish list. The first lifer came with a fortuitous...
  10. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    So, I headed out to Laguna La Mata a couple of days ago, and although I didn't manage to see any Turtle Doves, I did very easily connect with the two Montagu's Harrier, with excellent, fairly close views of them hunting over the scrub from the first watch tower, as you said! Majestic birds...
  11. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    A couple of nice additions to the summer trip list over the last couple of days. The first was certainly my best ever views of a Roller, as I took one of my neighbours out on an early morning bike ride on Wednesday morning. We headed down one of the gravelled "white" farm tracks from the top...
  12. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    I don't think they are that uncommon around the region, but I (embarrassedly) admit I have only seen Turtle Doves once in the 10 years I've been visiting the area.... I think I tend to ignore doves, thinking they are all collared doves! So this is my next cycle ride sorted!!!! Do you mean the...
  13. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    So far, without too much time to spare, I've had a 30 minute stop at El Pinet Salinas, and then around an hour at the El Hondo hides along the Vistabella road. El Pinet was very quiet, with very little near the first hide - a handful of Flamingos, a family group of Avocets with two youngsters...
  14. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Jolly good. That's how I like it! For one thing, I'm on my hols, so hot is good. But it also gets me up early, and I'm often out on my bike before the sun comes up, which means I get to the reserves before anyone else and when all the birds are still out and about. This has the added advantage...
  15. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Excellent summary :) The hides along the CV-861 (aka Vistabella Road) are fabulous. It's easy to lose track of time along here (and if you're like me, on limited time passes from a family holiday, that can cause a few issues!!). At least for me, they are only 15 minutes away on my bike :) As...
  16. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    A month to go until the year's summer visit... :)
  17. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Thanks. I'll stick with the ones that split them, just in case!
  18. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Well, what an interesting few days! Firstly, a surprise at El Hondo, during a visit to the San Felipe hides, with a Spoonbill plodding about right in front of the south-facing hide. It hung around for around 20 minutes before heading off into the reeds over to the left of the hide. Also had...
  19. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    I saw what looked to me like a melanistic Grey Heron at El Hondo a few days ago. Could be the same bird?
  20. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    So, I'm back in Spain, and had a couple of jaunts out on my bike so far, but not all that much time to get in some birding. Nevertheless, there are quite a few early migrants (well, early for me, based on my 5 years of birding here), with good sightings already of a purple heron and a lovely...
  21. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    one more week to go, and I'm out again for my annual Easter break with the family! :) I've been reading about the azure-winged magpies in this thread, and was wondering if these are only winter visitors, or if they are resident. As my birding in Spain is mostly by bike (from Urb La Marina), the...
  22. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Just booked our flights for our annual Easter and summer visits :) Was extremely pleased to make it to 111 species in Spain last year, my best annual total by some 16 species! Not bad for a sum total of 4-and-a-half weeks in the country! What will 2016 hold, I wonder?! Incidentally, Tony15...
  23. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Lovely shots, Mark. I really must try to get out there in the Autumn/Winter one year....! Yes, now you mention it, I only saw one woodchat shrike, too, the last day I was there over Easter, and none at all this summer. Didn't see one at all at my "dead-cert" location on any visit (the scrub to...
  24. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Nice photos, Mark. There seemed to be very few bee-eater around for me this summer. Only had them over the house a few times, and hardly saw any at all around the caminos where I cycle and usually see them regularly (including the track where you took those photos). On the plus side, and...
  25. lazza

    Birding in Alicante Province

    Just a couple of shots from the summer: 400+ egrets and ibis take flight (taken with my phone!) and flamingos on Santa Pola Salinas (taken with my compact camera).... really must invest in a better camera out in Spain!
Back
Top