Day 1

Hotel Málaga Picasso

Pablo welcomed us to the group in the garden of the Hotel Malaga Picasso and afterwards we went to taste a nice black rice and another white rice nearby. We started with what would be a good assortment of varied Spanish food that we could see how varied and rich is the gastronomy in Spain. To make things quicker Pablo chose the varied food for the group so that everything went faster.

Day 2

Guadalorce → Fuente de Piedra → Ronda

We start before dawn walking in the nearby mouth of the Gudalorce River. We visited three of its bird observatories where we saw the first Marbled Duck along with a good number of waders such as the Kentish Plover, the Great Plover or the Ruff among others.

After breakfast we went to the famous Laguna de Fuente de Piedra which hosts the largest breeding population of Greater Flamingo in Europe, with thousands of specimens congregated, showing a unique spectacle, perhaps the largest in the last twenty years thanks to the abundant spring rains.

After lunch we arrived at the fantastic picturesque city of Ronda, where we could visit its impressive balconies and feel the weight of history under our feet, besides seeing the first Red-billed Chough.

Day 3

Llanos de Libar → Gaucín → Casares

After a tasty breakfast at the hotel, we headed to one of the most appreciated places of the trip by visitors, the Llanos de Libar, a mountain environment shared by sheep and goat ranchers that maintains a high population of forest, countryside and birds of prey.

Thanks to this mosaic of habitats, we were able to observe the song and nuptial flight of the resident Black Wheatear and the breeding bird Black-eared Wheatear, the thrilling call of the Short-toed Eagle at the top of the mountain and its dominant flight over its extensive territory.

The mountain road that takes us to Gaucin, one of the famous white villages of Andalusia, is winding but tremendously beautiful, with a green landscape contrasting with the brightly painted villages of the traditional lime.

Day 4

Montijo Beach → Chipiona Fish Market

Due to the forecast that threatened strong wind we had to make some changes in the days. In the morning we were looking for the Atlantic Ocean tide to bring us closer to the waders, we reached the left bank of the mouth of the Guadalquivir, from Montijo Beach.

We were delighted with the acrobatic flights of the Little Terns, and the magnificent spring plumage of the Sanderling and the difference in size with the Sandwich Tern and the Ruddy Turnstones.

We continued along the seashore to discover the charismatic fish market and its inn, where we tasted local seafood. For some years the fish market has been used by the Little Swift and Pale Swift for nesting.

Day 5

Baelo Claudia → Strait Viewpoint → Tarifa Pelagic Trip

We reached the beach of Bolonia where the ruins of the Roman city of Baelo Claudia are located. We were able to see the largest nocturnal butterfly residing in Europe, the Peacock and a close observation of the Thecla’s Lark and a brilliant Black-eared Wheatear.

We headed to the magical Mirador del Estrecho, where just getting out of the car began the overwhelming continuous trickle of birds of prey and storks. First were the Short-toed Eagles, with literally hundreds of them arriving, of all ages, as well as Booted Eagles and Black Kites and Griffon Vultures.

Minutes later we went out to sea on the Turmares marine wildlife observation boat, where for three hours we enjoyed a calm afternoon of the nearby Pilot whales, dolphins and a variety of shearwaters and seagulls.

Day 6

Barbate Marshes → El Rocío

The Barbate Marshes are a mixture of former sea salt farms in the estuary. We had some excellent sightings of the elusive Stone Curlew, which apparently had two representatives on each small island where they breed. We were treated to the magnificent group pirouettes of the extremely cute Collared Pratincole.

We ate traditional food at Venta Pinto where we were again able to see the endangered Northern Bald Ibis under the charismatic white village of Vejer de la Frontera.

With plenty of energy we headed to the famous and charismatic historic village of El Roció in the heart of the Doñana National Park. We were able to briefly visit the large lagoon and have some free time to watch the religious event of the Rosary.

Day 7

Vado del Quema → Valverde → El Rocío

Before dawn we drove to the Vado del Quema, where as soon as we parked we could enjoy the magnificent soundscape of the sunrise in Doñana, with songs of Red-necked Nightjar, Tawny Owl and Nightingale among others.

For more than an hour we waited unsuccessfully for the endemic Iberian Lynx to appear among the flowers of the Andalusian pasture, but we were able to contemplate in silence the intense activity of the Iberian Magpie.

This spring has been record water and surprisingly we saw numerous Squacco Herons extremely close, showing that bright green of the corners of the beak, typical of breeding adults. We enjoyed hundreds or thousands of birds at a time, where Glossy Ibis, Purple Herons and Flamingos stood out.

Day 8

La Rocina → Monfragüe

After breakfast we went to the visitor center of La Rocina, where in the pine forests we enjoyed the elegant Long-tailed Tit, the striking Crested Tit and the Eurasian Short-toed Treecreeper, and in the observatory the intriguing song of the Savi´s Warbler.

Although it was a quiet morning, in the evening something unprecedented happened – all the power light of Spain was suddenly gone. We had to make an effort to get everyone to the hotel Hospederia del Parque in Monfragüe.

This curiously provided an interesting birders dinner with candles, and of course a very starry night, sometimes we could use to enjoy more often the tranquility of the night.

Day 9

Los Cerralbos → Santa Marta → Sierra de Fuentes

Being at seven in the morning in the right place of Los Cerralbos helped us locate in less than ten minutes a group of Great Bustards showing the wheel display and a Little Bustard in courtship, a unique spectacle in one of the best places in Europe to see it.

We continued the incredible observation of European Roller and a Little European Owl before reaching the Sierra de Fuentes. Over the Dobrijo kilns we observed some Pale Swifts and surprised by the rare presence of the early migrating Honey Buzzard.

For lunch we had a surprise at the Carrasco Goat Cheese Factory and we were able to bottle-feed the baby goats and of course taste the different cheeses and the charismatic Extremadura Breadcrumbs.

Day 10

Arrocampo → Portilla del Tietar → Salto del Gitano

After breakfast we arrived on a cloudy day at the Arrocampo reservoir in the village of Saucedilla, where we visited three of its main observatories. In the first one we were delighted with an incredible spectacle to see perfectly the Little Bittern.

We could see the Black-Winged Kite in the meadow, a spectacle that was the dream of many. We arrived at the Portilla del Tietar when no one was there and the sun was still shining, and there was the male Eagle Owl standing sentinel over the river, a spectacle to behold.

Unfortunately, when we arrived at Villareal de San Carlos, the heavy rain came and limited us during our short visit to the Salto del Gitano, where we humbly watched the vultures nesting on the cliffs.

Day 11

Santiago del Campo → La Plataforma → Navarredonda

Early we arrived to some fields of traditional farmers where we have the good fortune to see the Pin-tailed Sandgrouse. The big surprise was to see a young Spanish Eagle perched for a long time on a big rock on the horizon of that steppe area.

Soon after lunch we visited one of the star birds of the trip, the Bluethroat. This bird has its southern limit in its distribution in the environment of the Sierra de Gredos and shows substantial differences in the spotting patterns of the blue bib with absence of white in the Iberian population.

We continued to the Plataforma de Gredos and fortunately the sun still helped us while we watched the powerful Iberian Mountain Goats with their imposing horns. We could see the fantastic White-throated Dipper between the torrents of granitic stones.

Day 12

Sierra de Gredos → Madrid

In the morning, we calmly enjoyed the bird observatory before breakfast, where a Fox and a pretty Robin appeared. Later the rain gave us a little truce and we made a tour in the gardens of the hotel, with an excellent observation of a pair of Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a Blackcap.

Then we decided to visit the pine forest again. This time we were able to see an interesting pair of Pied Flycatchers and some nice Coal Tit that remind us so much of their North American cousin, the Chickadee.

Luis Alfonso entertained us again with a nice warm soup that was well received by the tourists and we headed to Madrid for the closing dinner of the trip.

Day 13

Madrid → Return Home

In the morning the group left for the Madrid airport to return to North America after an intense, rich and fun tour in central and southern Spain with a total of 190 bird species and fifty eBird lists, and a great memory.