Canary Islands - May 2015 (1 Viewer)

[foresttwitcher]

I've seen comments on various threads about being able to get all the Canary Island's endemic species in 24 hours. I was after a bit more of a leisurely trip. I knew a minimum of 2 islands would be necessary for the above but wanted to increase my chances of striking lucky with the less easy ones, so decided to add a couple more islands.

Anyone dipping into my previous trip reports will know that I like to get a free flight - using NatWest YourPoints. The disadvantage is that the carriers, understandably, only offer these free seats on less popular flights. On searching for availability in the period between the Easter & half-term holidays (to coincide with migration but a less busy time) it seemed that the flights went via Madrid (not a problem), had a lay-over of 12-13 hours (again not insurmountable as I could have fitted in a bit of local Madrid birding) but overnight - Ah, I'm sure Madrid airport is nice but... In the end I found both outbound and inward flights with a couple of hours to spare at transfer but 12 days apart; so this kind of dictated how long I would be on the islands.

This gave me a couple of days on each island plus travel days between and at either end. So I booked the ferries as a foot passenger on this approximate timetable through 'directferries' which worked out fine.

Following replies to an information request on the forum I booked car hire through Cicar (Canary Islands Car Hire). They were really good with my request despite wanting four cars on four islands and all dropped off at different places to pick up. The first car was a bit ropy for a hire car but the rest were good & all went as planned.

For accommodation I booked the cheapest single room / bed only I could get in a suitable location that had reasonably positive reviews - done through Trivago. A couple were very good, the third was good and the last was better than expected given it was a hostel type.

I had 'Birds of the Atlantic Islands' (Helm) as an ID guide from a previous trip to Madeira & used 'Finding Birds in The Canaries' (Gosney) as a site guide.

I had purchased a road map covering all the islands but Cicar gave me a good enough map for the relevant island at the time of each car hire. I also took my own Satnav with the relevant maps loaded which proved invaluable for the smaller tracks and locations given in Gosney's guide with latitude / longitude details.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Sunday 10th May:

Landed at La Palma airport after two delayed flights: the first from Heathrow to Madrid because the pilot "spotted a small issue with one of the engines" during his pre-flight check - only a good thing, I suppose - & the second leg due to a suprise inspection by the Spanish equivalent of the Civil Aviation Authority - again, can't complain, really.

Car collected, I headed for the hotel in Los Cancajos; birds seen en route: (Atlantic) Yellow-legged Gull, Common Kestrel, Collared Dove & Feral Pigeon. In the small but green grounds of the hotel Blackbird, Blackcap & Canary Islands Chiffchaff (first lifer within half an hour!) were all singing, with numerous Plain Swift overhead.

Plenty of light left so I set off into the mountains. The pigeons here looked good for Rock Dove. Sixteen hours after getting up, mid-evening & still 25 degrees, I was sitting at 2,351m on Pico de la Cruz, on the rim of the caldera that forms the highest point of the island, with a small flock of Red-billed Chough playing in the updrafts overhead and a Berthelot's Pipit (berthelotii) poking in the grit near my feet. It doesn't get much better.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Monday 11th May:

I started today's mission to, as Dick Dastardly would say, "catch that pigeon" at the parking area to the south of the El Valle tunnel. Birds seen from the car included Yellow-legged Gull, Collared Dove, Feral Pigeon & Kestrel. Firstly heading along the old route of the road round the cliff towards the Mirador de las Hesperides, I scanned the barranco below and the crags above and picked up Plain Swift, Sparrowhawk & Common Buzzard (insularum) circling & Atlantic Canary in the shrubs.

Noticing a shape in a tree on the sky-line I set up the scope & had brief views of a (White-tailed) Laurel Pigeon and eventually much better and prolonged views with one flying in to a small shrub very close at one point. There seemed to be a few in this fairly small area and the distinctive flight style became obvious. I then walked up the track leading west into the laurel forest. There were plenty of Blackbird, Blackcap & C. I. Chiffchaff singing & a few more Laurel Pigeon heard, seen in flight fleetingly & once perched high up. I also occasionally heard the other target pigeon but never got near a sighting.

I then spent some time in the Los Tilos area seeing the above common forest species plus a skulking Robin, a couple of Tenerife Goldcrest (Kinglet) picked up on call & Chaffinch (palmae) around the pic-nic tables. No pigeons seen here.

Late afternoon I walked the track west from the parking area at Cubo de la Galga. The usual suspects, including Laurel Pigeon (seen & heard) plus African Blue Tit (palmensis) in the canopy & Chough over the crags. On returning down the valley I carried on under the road to look sea-ward down the barranco seeing a few Feral Pigeon on the rocks and then, just as I thought I was going to be out of luck, had two other different pigeons flying fast & low over the canopy - after a while confirmed as Bolle's Pigeon having seen a few more in flight plus a couple perched as reasonable scope views.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Tuesday 12th:

Very early ferry from Santa Cruz de la Palma to Los Christianos on Tenerife. I was hoping for a bit of pelagic action once it got light enough but the boat was a sea-cat type not really set up for deck watching. After a brief stop to drop off & pick up at San Sebastian de la Gomera (with only Yellow-legged Gull in the port) I saw a couple of Cory's Shearwater just after dawn but then a change in direction meant the swell coated the windows in spray & they became all but useless to see out of.

After picking up the car I headed to El Fraile to see if access to the reservoir was possible. The car I had been given was a bright yellow Opel Nova pimped-up with black low profile alloys that would have looked well out of place parked on the waste ground near the football pitch (& possibly a little risky to leave it with all my gear in) so I just had a slow drive around the tracks that were passable: Kestrel hovering above; Collared Dove & Feral Pigeon on the wires; Plain Swift swooping overhead; Berthelot's Pipit scuttling about in the scrub; a group of 5 Hoopoe probing in what looked like a waste pile & a couple of Southern Grey Shrike scanning for prey from posts.

I then headed for the lusher areas around the golf courses to the east. The parts of the water feature at Golf del Sur that can be seen from the road held numerous Muscovy Duck as part of the collection plus one Fulvous Whistling Duck & a Bar-headed Goose! Wild species were restricted to one each of Moorhen & Little Egret. A walk through the scrub along the northern boundary fence of the course produced: a Spotted Flycatcher sallying out from a palm tree; a nice male Spectacled Warbler in the shrubs; Spanish Sparrow & C. I. Chiffchaff in the trees on the course & a small group of Grey-headed Wagtail (thunbergi) on one of the greens. The pool on the access road to Amarilla Golf had a couple of Spoonbill perched up on some pipes.

The El Medano Pool was bird-less presumably because of the low water level and a lot of kite-surfing activity close offshore. The arid area surrounding had a few Berthelot's Pipits and some Yellow-legged Gulls over.

I then headed north west to the Erjos area. The edition of Gosney I had suggested vehicle access may be an issue - as an update there is now a very stout, locked barrier at the east end just beyond the radio mast. Parking is limited here so it is best to walk from just beyond where the track leaves the road. Once through the previously burnt area the laurel forest is good with many Blackbird, Canary, C. I. Chiffchaff & Tenerife Goldcrest in the canopy, a local Robin (superbus) on the forest floor & Sparrowhawk & Buzzard overhead. No Pigeons seen although I did hear a couple clattering out of the trees. The Erjos Pools were generally quiet.

Finally headed for the hotel in Puerto de la Cruz. Note this is a busy, large town with a mystery one way system, some pedestrianised streets and a serious on-street parking problem.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Wednesday 13th:

This morning I took the nice drive up into the Parque Nacional del Teide and across and down the other side to Las Lajas. Don't expect it to be like the book says and that you'll hear and see your targets before you get out of the car. All was quiet, apart from a small group of Canary, when I arrived so I topped up the small trough at the base of one of the taps and staked it out from a suitable distance. Some time later a Great Spotted Woodpecker (canariensis) came in to the pines near-by & I eventually had a very brief view of a female chaffinch. I decided to try the other tap mentioned further in to the site but as I got there the forest department fire unit turned up to douse the ashes from the cleaned out bar-b-q's - they had been closed presumably due to fire risk. So I set off down the track to look into the forest away from the car park area. Pretty soon I had more Woodpeckers, Blue Chaffinch (smart bird), Chaffinch (canariensis) & African Blue Tit (teneriffae). I later returned to the second tap area and, despite the park staff still being near-by, Blue & Common Chaffinch, Canary & Great Spotted Woodpecker all came down to drink giving very good views.

In the afternoon I returned across the Teide area - all pretty spectacular - and called in at Ladera de Tigaiga. The laurel forest here held: Canary, Chaffinch, C. I. Chiffchaff, African Blue Tit, Blackbird & Robin and I had a couple of brief flying Bolle's Pigeon; with Plain Swift, Kestrel, Buzzard & Sparrowhawk overhead.

The sea front of Puerto de la Cruz in the early evening just had Yellow-legged Gull, Collared Dove & Feral Pigeon.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Thursday 14th:

Not a birding day today. I had planned to satisfy my odd need to get to the highest point of any island I visit by walking up Pico de Teide. I knew a permit was required as a way of controlling numbers on the summit so I called in at the base station of the cable car yesterday to find out more. The permit is in fact needed only for the last 200m or so & can only be obtained on-line. So last evening I tied to get one but all the places had been allocated for the remaining window of time I had left on the island (I could in fact have got a place yesterday if I had been a bit more on the ball with the forward planning). It's a 5-6 hour walk up and I was damned if I was going to do that if I could not do the last bit to the top as well, so I contented myself with doing a one-way trip up on the cable car (which gets you to 3,550m), visiting the two viewpoints via the marked trails and then walking back down - still a good experience to see the fumaroles and walk through the lava flows and the views were great. Only birds seen were Berthelot's Pipit & Kestrel from the lower slopes.

As an aside, the cable car is very smooth - in fact when you look back down it is a surprise to see how far you have come - but does have a bit of a sway just after passing the first pylon. It stabilises well but there were a few low noises from some of the more nervous passengers. With perfect timing an alarm goes off, the insistent type you hear on disaster films, and there is some more nervous noise. The attendant then answers his mobile phone - what a ring tone to have in this situation!

On the way back to base in the late afternoon I stopped off at some of the pic-nic areas and viewpoints where the road down passes through the Parque Natural de Coronal Forestel and saw the expected species in the trees (Great Spotted Woodpecker, Blackbird, C. I. Chiffchaff, T. Goldcrest, Spanish Sparrow & Canary) & overhead (Sparrowhawk, Buzzard & Plain Swift). The usual Yellow-legged Gull, Collared Dove & Feral Pigeon back in town.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Friday 15th:

Last day on Tenerife. First, I headed west towards Punta de Teno, expecting to have to decide whether or not to ignore the warning signs about rockfalls and the road closure (see Jos Stratford's report) but there is now a potentially lockable barrier across the road just beyond Buenavista that was sometimes left open by passing trade vehicles but also closed by local drivers whilst I walked up the footpath that starts from the same place to see if a view of the cliffs could be obtained. This was not the case but did hear & see a Turtle Dove. In the end I left my car in the parking area and walked up the road - whether this was either wise or allowable I don't know but at least I did not run the risk of having the car locked inside the barrier. Just before the archway I had a couple of Barbary Falcon interacting high up over the cliff top for some time.

A quick look at Roque de Garachico from the seafront provided only numerous Yellow-legged Gull.

The various viewpoints & pull-ins along the Ruiz Gorge gave views of Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Kestrel, Collared Dove, Feral Pigeon, Plain Swift, C. I. Chiffchaff, Canary & Goldfinch. I also had a couple of pairs of overhead Bolle's Pigeon fly rapidly up the valley across the road from the El Bosque car park.

The Mirador El Lance did not produce any more pigeons but a walk down the metal pavement, rather unnervingly canted out over the drop, did give me a much better view of a Barbary Falcon from above as it circled below.

I then headed north and spent some time at the viewpoint at Pico del Ingles and walking around the laurel forest on the slopes below.The usual Robin, Blackbird, Blackcap, C. I. Chiffchaff, Canary, Chaffinch & African Blue Tit seen & heard plus a couple more Bolle's Pigeons noisily flying up out of the canopy and some brief, distant flight views from above.

Late evening ferry to catch from Santa Cruz de Tenerife so headed to town at dusk to get something to eat, drop off the car & check-in. A surprise Grey Heron seen flying low & slowly over the port just before sun-set.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Saturday 16th:

Overnight ferry with a couple of hours of early light for a bit of watching from the deck - a number of Cory's Shearwater & 1 Bulwer's Petrel. Arrived earlyish at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with a couple of hours to wait in the port area for a ferry change - just Spanish Sparrow & Yellow-legged Gull about. Then aboard another sea-cat type boat to Morro Jable, Fuerteventura so again little chance for productive sightings.

Called in to town around mid-day for provisions but first a look along the sea front & beach area came up with Berthelots' Pipit in the scrubby vegetation & Southern Grey Shrike perched on a beach-side building. A walk back to the town via the area with trees & shrubs in front of the entrance to the now abandoned Stella Canaris zoo to look for the exotic parakeets was much more productive: noisy Monk Parakeets, with a few Rose-ringed Parakeet also, in the tops of the palm trees; a couple of Spotted Flycatchers & a nice male Pied Flycatcher around the area of the gates themselves; then I saw a small pool where the irrigation pipe for the palms was leaking with a very bright Willow Warbler drinking - with further Willow Warblers, Canaries & African Blue Tit (degener) in the near-by shrubs waiting to come in plus what appeared to be a number of Reed Warbler skulking deeper into the evergreens. Spanish Sparrow, Collared Dove & Feral Pigeon were also in the area. Plus a Peacock in the ruined zoo grounds!

I left this nice little migrant trap to look for waders at the lagoon adjacent to the Hotel Melia Gorriones. There was a lot of kite-surfer activity very close by the beach and well into the lagoon area so it was a bit light on birds but I did pick up: 4 Black-winged Stilt, 3 Kentish Plover & 1 each of Dunlin, Greenshank & Common Sandpiper plus Plain Swift & a few Barn Swallow overhead.

The desert species then called so I walked the track running North from Costa Calma across the Istmo de la Pared as far as the 'crossroads'. There were plenty of Lesser Short-toed Lark, a couple of pairs of Fuerteventura Stonechat, a single kestrel over & I had distant, hazy views of a preening Cream-coloured Courser. Most surprising was the number of migrant Willow Warblers in the sparse, short desert scrub - they must have been relatively fresh in and desperate for food & shelter from the sun & wind.

Hot & dusty I headed for my accomodation in Caleta de Fuste.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Sunday 17th:

On the way back out to the El Jable area I called in at the Salinas del Carmen saltpans - not much about as the pans are dry.

I then headed for the known watering site at La Pared but as all was quiet when I drove past I first had a look at the beach and rock area below the car park. Yellow-legged Gull overhead plus where the stream reaches the beach & a little way up the barrranco upstream I had one each of Dunlin, Common Sandpiper & Little Ringed Plover.

I drove slowly back up the road to where the pools were visible and spotted a Black-bellied Sandgrouse on top of a large rock on the other bank. It was soon joined by four others and I watched the group for a while until they were flushed by a Raven and a further bird flew up from where it had been unseen in the barranco.

I then returned to the Istmo de la Pared area and walked the track from the La Pared road to the crossroads reached yesterday evening. Fewer birds this morning but still some Lesser Short-toed Lark & Berthelot's Pipit with a few distant Fuerteventura Stonechat & Barn Swallow swooping around low to the ground & a single Southern Grey Shrike. A small flock of Yellow Wagtail were a bit elusive but the males were Grey-headed Wagtail (thunbergi) type with the exception of one-blue headed one that appeared to be a Spanish Wagtail (iberiae).

A visit to the wetland area at Rosa de Catalina Garcia proved a waste of effort as the access track has been blocked in several places to prevent vehicle access (there is a risk of getting stuck) and a deep trench dug across further along to discourage foot access.

I had a drive around the tracks on the Antigua Plain area and along the roads around Triquivijate scanning for desert species but just saw Buzzard & Kestrel overhead, Collared Dove & Feral Pigeon on roadside wires & a Hoopoe in flight.

When I stopped off at Atalaya de la Rosa del Taro the pool looked quiet after a small flock of Ruddy Shelduck had flown off before I reached the site. But there was a mixed flock of Canary & Linnet (harterti) in the dead stems sticking up out of the water, a few Coot with young & a single Bee-eater was hawking right over the back of the pool.

I finished the day off at Las Penitas - a little gem of a site. There were a number of pools on the walk down the barranco that were a magnet for all sorts: Turtle Doves calling in the palms; Spanish Sparrow flitting about; Canary singing; a couple of Laughing Dove flushed from drinking; Spectacled Warbler, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler & African Blue Tit in the bushes; Spotted & Pied Flycatcher hawking for insects & Fuerteventura Stonechat on the rocks above. But the highlights for me were a lovely pair of Trumpeter Finch at a pool, a small covey of Barbary Partridge making their way back up the slope to the side of the valley and a low fly-over Egyptian Vulture going up the valley.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Monday 18th:

Started the morning off at the area north west of the Depuradora outside Caleta. There was a little water in the barranco that had tempted in a few species: a pair of Ruddy Shelduck, a few Black-bellied Sandgrouse both flying in & out, a brief Hoopoe, Barn Swallow & House Martin flying low through the valley, a Buzzard circling over plus a Purple Heron stalking around the edges of one pool.

The rest of the day I spent driving slowly along the road & gravel tracks that crisscross the Tindaya Plain from Tindaya & La Olivia to El Cotillo. The expected species were all seen, including: Collared Dove, Feral Pigeon & Spanish Sparrow near the habitation; Fuerteventura Stonechat, Spectacled Warbler, Southern Grey & Woodchat Shrike, Linnet & Spotted Flycatcher around the more vegetated areas; Kestrel, Plain Swift, Lesser Short-toed Lark, Berthelot's Pipit, Raven & one each of Northern Wheatear & Stone Curlew (insularum) in the desert areas. Then, just when I thought they may be mythical after all the gravelly miles and careful scanning, I must have seen something that made me stop and there was the head & neck of a Houbara Bustard. I managed to get a brief, distant scope view before it slowly moved off.

A bit more cruising the tracks did not produce any further Bustards and eventually it was time to head north to Corralejo to catch an evening ferry to Lanzarote. Another sea-cat type craft on the crossing to Playa Blanca so only a few Cory's Shearwater seen plus Yellow-legged Gull around both harbours. Picked up the last hire car & headed to base in Puerto del Carmen.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Tuesday 19th:

I started the morning off checking out the tracks behind the cement works near Playa Blanca not really knowing what to expect - especially after seeing the surroundings. A slow drive east to west did not produce much beyond Southern Grey Shrike, Lesser Short-toed Larks & Berthelot's Pipit plus a turkey (!) by the barrier opposite the closest corner of the works wall. Reaching the end I turned round to start retracing my route but almost immediately had a close by Houbara Bustard in flight (quite an impressive sight) that dropped down below a low ridge. A few minutes later I stopped quickly again as a pair crossed the track just in front of me & I had the chance to watch them for some time. Close to the 'turkey barrier' I noticed a small group of Turtle Dove & Spanish Sparrow by a leaking pipe.

A brief visit to Punta Pechiguera was quiet with just a few Plain Swift & Swallow around.

I then walked the El Rubicon track from the road to the abandoned hotel. Just the usual desert passerines plus a Spotted Flycatcher, Feral Pigeon & Collared Dove on the ruins.

I then headed up the coast to the Salinas de Janubio salt-pans. Yellow-legged Gull & Raven on the beach. The smaller pools were quite dry but the lagoon had Black-winged Stilt scattered along the south west shores plus, as sen from the lay-by on the cliff, a larger group that also included a single Avocet and a pair of Ruddy Shelduck. While looking from this position a dark falcon flew over from behind me & was then chased by the local Kestrel when it flipped over to grapple talons giving sight of the feature that proved it to be a Hobby.

I then did the tourist bit visiting the caves / blow-holes in the lava flows at Los Hervideros, the 'green' lagoon at El Golfo & the took the road to the top of the volcano Timanfaya. Other species picked up from the road were Hoopoe & Stone-Curlew.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Wednesday 20th:

A brief look at the trees around the car park at Costa Teguise Golf Club did not produce any migrants and the salt-pans at Los Cocoteros were dry and looked abandoned so no waders.

So I walked up the track to the small reservoir at Presa de Mala - the usual species on the way up and a rapid fly-over unidentified falcon. The reservoir had a few Gulls plus 2 pairs of Ruddy Shelduck with young - not identified as a breeding species on Lanzarote in my 2010 copy of 'Birds of the Atlantic Islands'. It was very windy so I was about to leave not expecting much to be around when I heard a raptor call; I moved around the edge a bit & got good views of 2 Eleonora's Falcons, both flying & perched on rocks.

I then went to Orzola and took the ferry to La Graciosa & back (with a short time on the island) in the hope of seeing the Tropicbirds that had been reported in the area over the last few years - no luck, just a few Cory's in very rough seas.

The bulk of the day was then spent slowly driving the gravel tracks around the Teguise Plain. This area proved to be much better for the desert species than the other similar areas I had visited - there were a few each of the species to be expected plus a total of: 2 Stone Curlew, 6 Cream-coloured Courser (3 pairs- quite close) & 8+ Houbara Bustard (3 pairs & the rest singles - again closer than elsewhere). The best area for the latter two species being just where the track goes east from the LZ-401 about half-way between Munique and Soo.

Thursday 21st:

One of those frustrating flight times today - not enough time to go anywhere to do any birding but left with too much time at the airport after dropping off the car and checking in.

Last bird for the Canary Islands was one of the Arrecife Cattle Egret flock seen struggling into the wind over the terminal building from the plane.


[Spain added: White Stork, Common Swift, House Sparrow, Starling (not seen well enough to be assigned to species) & (presumably) Iberian Grey Shrike seen from the planes or terminal.]


I had a list of 15 potential targets for this trip & got them all plus other good birds so a very successful holiday.


As mentioned at the start of this thread, many birders will plan to visit only Tenerife & Fuerteventura but I found both endemic pigeons much easier to see and with better views on La Plama and the same can be sad for the Bustard, Sandgrouse & Courser on Lanzarote. I guess it could just be down to luck - being in the right place at the right time.


EDIT: Part of a sentence removed due to error pointed out in post 13 below & explained in 14!

 

[wolfbirder]

A very interesting read Pete.

Didn't know Fuerteventura Stonechat existed on Lanzarote (maybe it doesn't if the Shrike got its way!).

But bearing in mind the distance between the 2 islands its perhaps no surprise they have spread.

 

[foresttwitcher]

A very interesting read Pete.

Didn't know Fuerteventura Stonechat existed on Lanzarote (maybe it doesn't if the Shrike got its way!).

But bearing in mind the distance between the 2 islands its perhaps no surprise they have spread.

Thanks Nick, you are right they don't (there have apparently been some reports from the south of Lanzarote) that was completely my error in reading the wrong page of my notes when doing that post - that was an observation from earlier in the trip. I will edit that post so as to avoid confusion. I knew I would get confused myself given the number of islands visited. 8-P

 

[wolfbirder]

Well you may have been right Pete, someone else mentioned to me a few years back that they had already spread. I've never found them.

You've done flippin well anyway, those Pigeons, and Goldcrest were hard to find (I failed on one of the pigeons and the Goldcrest). Shame Rubicon plain (near Playa Blanca) continues to diminish.

 

[foresttwitcher]

Yes, it was a good trip Nick & I saw what I wanted. A lot of the semi-desert areas nearer developments seem to be a bit sparse.

I have also realised that I missed out Sardinian Warbler from the birds seen at Las Penitas on Sunday 17th - but I can no longer edit that post. The only one of the trip, I was expecting to see more of these!

I may be tempted by your Poland report to try there or perhaps Estonia next trip.

 

[wolfbirder]

I would like to return to Tenerife, an island I enjoyed far more than I thought I would - and I still need 2-3 endemics.

I agree Estonia looks tempting, tho Forest birding can become somewhat repressive after a few days of constantly scanning high up in trees - it almost makes you feel claustrophobic and you yearn for wide open spaces.