Monday 28th April 2025 🌤️ 21c ~ Wind E @ 30- 60mph ~ Back in Aberdeenshire now after another week in Spain, which concluded somewhat differently than anticipated. The final excursion of the visit on Monday, the 28th, took me to Tarifa with Derek and Barbara Etherton to observe the spring migration. Only 8 miles separate the continents of Africa and Europe, and the Straits of Gibraltar provide a remarkable opportunity to witness hundreds of migrating raptors. Although I've experienced this incredible event in autumn many times, I had never seen it during springtime. When, of course, they arrive from Africa.
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| The view across to Morocco on a good day! |
As we passed Gibraltar and continued on through Algeciras, we did see a small number of
Griffon Vultures, but by the time we stopped for breakfast a short time later, it was quite obvious that the weather, particularly the wind, was to disrupt our plans. We'd anticipated windy conditions but never contemplated speeds of 30-60mph. It was almost impossible to stand up, so we made the decision to continue on to La Janda. Unfortunately, this too was impossible with the winds whipping up the dust off the tracks, making it impossible to even open the car windows. We decided to make the most of the day and drive a little further to Barbate, stopping at La Barca de Vejer for a look at the Northern Bald Ibis. This is the only site in Europe to see a wild breeding colony.
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| Northern Bald Ibis with young - La Barca de Vejer |
From here, we spent the remainder of the day around the many tidal areas of Barbate, and although conditions were pretty challenging, the day wasn't entirely a waste. To top it all, we discovered on the way home that practically the whole of Spain had been blacked out. Indeed, I arrived back at the villa around 6pm to find no electricity, no wifi and no phone signal. We were finally restored at the villa at 04:45 on Tuesday morning. The only saving grace was that my flight back to Aberdeen at 16:35 later in the day was not affected. In fact, it arrived 10 minutes early!
Some images of the day... A full sightings list can be found on eBird HERE
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| A couple of Red Knots shelter from the wind onslaught. |
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| A Kentish Plover in the wind tunnel. |
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| A little bit of a surprise to come across this Common Sandpiper. |
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| Grey Plover |
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| Grey Plover in breeding plumage |
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| Little Tern |
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| Little Tern - So at home in the extreme conditions. |
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| Collared Praticole - Over 40 seen today in this large breeding area! |
Disruptive Spain 30/04/25
