Leigh Ornithological Society

Ferruginous Duck

 Wednesday 17th I meet up with my old friend and legend, Tony Bishop and vice chairmen of the L O S for a mornings bird watching, this had now become an annual event for us over the last few years.

And so at 8 30. we headed straight for the Clot De Galvany for the Ferruginous Duck, it only took a minute or so to find the pair of ducks, all the other usual suspects were still present.

 We then crossed Santa Pola Salinas adding Great White Egret, Slender-billed Gull, Little Bitten, Sandwich Tern.  We decided to carry on past the salt tower and get on to San Felipe. We notice that the Costa Blanca Bird Club were at the lay-by with a large group of 30 plus members. On route adding Tree Sparrow, Blue Rock Thrush, and the first of this autumn Black Redstart.

 I was not feeling positive about as San Felipe, as there have been no birds of any note on this water for ages,  l know I keep going on about the water quality there. And today to my surprise it has been completely drained of all water for cutting of the reed bed, so you would think? because of all this lovely mud, it would be full of waders but no not one wader, there was a large group of about 400 Glossy Ibis, probing the mud, 100 Little Egrets, and around 6 Great White Egrets but that was it, even the outer pools had hardly a bird on it? "What's going on" 

 Glossy Ibis

 Great White Egret

 At the end of the boardwalk was a puddle with hundreds of Carp gasping for water, most of which were dead and the containers were there ready to scoop up the dead fish. I now understand that there is a reason they do this, its to remove the carp from the water.  The carp cause damage to ecosystems of lake and quality of the water and they also use this opportunity to strim back the reeds.

The pool at the visitor centre had the usual Red-knobbed Coot and an abundance of  Plain Tiger Butterflies.

  We left scratching our heads to where have all the birds have gone? On the way back we witness an event not see by either of us before.  A murmuration of 300 Glossy Ibis flying as one,  just like the starlings do,  we had to stop the car to watch this event "crazy"

We called in briefly at El Pinet but the same story there, water levels are high and what waders that were there, were a long way off and too far away to ID correctly.  I phissed out a group of 10 Long-tailed Tits from the pines close by. 

After lunch, I went back to the Clot for some more photos of the Ferruginous Duck.

Also, there was a white spot Blue Throat and Reed Warbler.

Lovely to meet up again with Tony Bishop
enjoy the photos

 Enjoy your birding
Cheers Bryan