Given that most are waterfowl, their preferred habitat is the extensive marshes in the park. Birding the coto donana and the donana birdfair 2015 the. Donana national park is a mustsee place for birdwatching in spain, where more than 500,000 bird species visit every year. Andalusia, provinces of huelva, cadiz and seville, southern spain. Spain, coto donana and tarifa september 2009 published by bob buckler bobbuckler49 at participants. The coto donana situated in the province of huelva is one of europes most important wetland reserves and a major site for migrating birds. Largely thanks to its relatively mild climate, winter sees huge concentrations of birds here escaping from the rigours of the freezing conditions further north and east. Bolles pigeon columba bollii, laurel pigeon columba junoniae, canary islands chiffchaff phylloscopus canariensis, balearic warbler sylvia balearica, fuerteventura stonechat saxicola dacotiae, tenerife blue chaffinch fringilla teydea, gran canaria blue chaffinch fringilla polatzeki.
Donana is a land of contrasts made up of a mosaic of different landscapes, home to a wide variety of animal and plant species. Over 300 bird species inhabit this territory, of which nearly breed here. Donana national park is a natural reserve in andalusia, southern spain, in the provinces of. John is an english professional bird tour guide with many years of birding and guiding experience, both in england and here in southern spain. Birdwatching trip report from andalucia coto donana. My now almost annual trip to this excellent area of europe tenth visit, found me accompanied by two northumberland stalwarts. We will first tour the main streets of this popular village, walking past the chapel, whilst learning about the culture, heritage and folklore of the festivities that take place in honour of the blanca paloma and other aspects related to it.
Birdwatching donana bird watching in donana national park. Audouin birding tours birdwatching trip reports on this page you can find links to all our trip reports from birdwatching tours in spain and morocco. Field guides birding tours report for our 2017 spain trip titled. Donana national park is a mustsee place for birdwatching in spain, where more than 500,000 bird species visit every year donana dunes near the sea. The impressive abundance of birds that can be found in spain is due both to its geographical location it is a natural route between the european continent and africa and its varied landscapes and climates. Donana is one of the most important wetland areas in europe. Live the wild donana experience and be part of the best tours in europe near seville, huelva and cadiz. This destroyed an important area for hundreds of breeding birds in the natural park bordering the national park including nine pairs 510% of the spanish population of the globally threatened marbled teal.
Birdwatching in donana the donana national park consists of 50,720 hectares of protected land and is one of the largest and most ornithologically important wetlands in europe. You can choose from our 4wd tours through the restricted forests and marshes in the north of donana national park, our birding tours in the region around donana and our activities designed to enjoy the gastronomy of the area. The iberian peninsula is one of europes most ornithologically varied regions offering a host of regional specialities. Soon we find one drake and two female ferruginous ducks, red crested pochards and a stunning whiteheaded duck. Blacknecked grebe podiceps nigricollis surprising numbers of birds at the lakes around the jose antonio valverde centre. Every attempt has been made to be balanced, honest and to thoroughly check the data on this page. Computers, birding software and the internet sunday 12th july 2015, 21. Tnf helps to restore the parks original megafauna, including retuertas horses, one of the oldest european. Having never been in march before, we expected to see a nice mix of winter visitors, passage. Tuesday, april 10, 2018 wednesday, april 18, 2018 spain did not escape the very cold, wet weather that the rest of europe had suffered this spring, heavy snow still covered the mountains and a biting cold wind dominated our trip with two or three days of overcast skies and rain. We traveled into the pinewoods from the n442 and drove up track hf6244,this immediately produced many beeeater on wires,stopping at the first fire tower about 3kms,there is a fresh water laguna,a short. On the northwestern bank of the guadalquivir river is a vast area which seasonally floods to produce marshes or marismas, but there are also a number of other. Birding the coto donana and the donana birdfair 2015 the coto donana has long. Youll spot birds everywhere whether youre an ornithologist or a birding enthusiast.
We are honoured to lead birdwatching tours to donana, widely considered the most important bird hotspot in spain. Bob buckler wingspan bird tours and sarasota audubon society karen jensen, wilda meier, ron platt and pat sharp with guests glenys williams and glynnis withrington from wales comments day 1. Once we get to the lake we start looking out for ducks. Following you will find information about the different options of 4. However, please use this space to add any comments about birds seen around the jose. Birding the coto donana and the donana birdfair 2015 the gloster. There is one breeding endemic, it breeds exclusively in spain but ranges widely outside of. Avocet azurewinged magpie blackcrowned night heron black kite blackshouldered kite cattle egret collared pratincole collared pratincoles corn bunting crested tit glossy ibis great reed warbler greater flamingo house martin lesser kestrel male lesser kestrel female little tern magpie purple heron roller sanderling. Older birders will have probably read portrait of a. Links are ordered by geographical regions, or by special topics and they can be searched interactively. Wild donana national park tours bird watching near seville.
It offers some of the continents finest birding, on top of charming and historic towns, beautiful landscapes, and wonderful food. It is situated within the boundaries of three spanish provinces, seville, huelva and cadiz, in which there are vast wetlands, sanddunes and forests of stonepine and. Its been under development since 2009, and scythebill is the only place i store my own sightings of 5500 species. The coto donana, western europes greatest wetland wilderness. Naturalists with a long background in nature conservation, involved in different studies and projects, and committed with nature conservation. Free birding software during the covid19 pandemic, courtesy of peter thayer. With that said, it is not always possible to avoid all mistakes. Remember the the birders handbook is included in this software. A mine on one of the tributaries of the river guadalquivir, sw spain used sulphuric acid to extract metals from 2 million metric tonnes per year of floated pyrite cabrera et al. This was a setdeparture tour spain is perhaps europes bestknown birding destination, and for good reason. Birds, birding trips and birdwatching tours in andalusia. Scythebill is a desktop application for birders to keep track of their life lists and birding records.
Birding the coto donana and the donana birdfair 2015 the coto donana has long been on my bucket list of places to visit to see birds and wildlife. Buteo books was founded in 1971 by joyce and byron harrell in vermillion, south dakota. Most people have heard of it even if they are not birders such is its fame. Top birding sites of europe features more than 30 detailed accounts of the continents finest bird locations, from the famous camargue and coto donana, to some less well known but no less productive destinations. Get your latest updates to these taxonomic lists at the online store in the menu. Nature, traditions, culture, architecture, gastronomy and of course, sun.
The most complete list of links devoted to birds, birding and birding now 37654 urls. Based in ronda malaga wild andalucia is run by alvaro peral, an andalucia bird society approved guide. Reference to the use of coto donana as a hunting lodge is made in the first verses. There are separate pages in this website for the following areas within donana. They are the remains of what once was a nearly continuous line of coastal lagoons linking the marismas at the odieltinto confluence and. Andalusia, provinces of huelva, cadiz and seville southern spain. The classic tour to donana resevas how to visit donana.
Spain is perhaps europes bestknown birding destination, and for good reason. Avocet azurewinged magpie blackcrowned night heron black kite blackshouldered kite cattle egret collared pratincole collared pratincoles corn bunting crested tit glossy ibis great reed warbler greater flamingo house martin lesser kestrel male lesser kestrel female little tern magpie purple heron roller sanderling sardinian warbler short. Extremadura ranks as one of the regions to visit for birdwatching in europe, but most birdwatchers mistakenly only visit in spring. Naturalists with a long background in nature conservation, involved in different studies and. Buy a birdwatching guide to donana by john butler isbn. List number one, on a single sheet of paper, offered some 50 birds books for sale. The book on its own is worth over twenty dollars, but you will not have to buy it separately. Aug 24, 2011 this is one of the most famous birdwatching localities in europe, a national park of major international importance. The areas to the east of the guadalquivir are also treated separately. Enjoy the dramatic scenery, fascinating history and diverse cultures. Its size and strategic location make this nature area an important winter destination for migratory birds. Donana bird tours is hosted by brian davies and johanna daviespapen successors to john butler and rebecca butler. Throughout the park, packed with important and interesting biodiversity, inhabit 875 species of plants, 360 species of birds, of which 127 are reproduced usually in donana, 37 of land mammals, 20 of freshwater fish, 11 amphibians and 21 reptiles.
Written by local expert and guide, john butler, birdwatching on spains southern coast, is the ideal accompaniment for the holidaying birder on spains southern coast. Ecotono birding is a spanish guide company located in tarifa cadiz and seville. Our spain birding tour offers excellent birdwatching in wellestablished network of nature reserves and national parks that occur across spain. Coto donana is one of europes most important wetland reserves and supports important resident populations of threatened species like iberian lynx, adalberts eagle, marbled teal, and whiteheaded duck. Areas covered include birding hotspots such as extremadura, gibraltar and ronda. Over 300 different species of birds may be sighted there annually.
The donana nature area, comprising its nature park and. Little grebe tachybaptus ruficollis birds present in fair numbers at suitable locations. The book is a respected asset all on its own and just brings added value to thayer birding software. They are the remains of what once was a nearly continuous line of coastal lagoons linking the marismas at the odieltinto confluence and those at the guadalquivir estuary. Our walking tours will put you in direct contact with a whole rich world of sensations in our dunes and beaches, pine forests and riparian forest, rivers and lagoons. It seems that time stopped in andalucia and kept the light for it inside. Tnf helps to restore the parks original megafauna, including retuertas horses, one of the. We are experienced biologists passionated by nature and birds. Greatcrested grebe podiceps cristatus birds encountered most days on the larger bodies of water.
Buteo books specializes in ornithology books, from birdwatching your backyard to textbooks for the serious ornithologist. Prior to arriving in spain with his wife, rebecca, he lived in devon, where he spent 4 years in the british army, 7 years as a publican and 20 years in the prison service. Ecotono birding seville birding, wildlife, nature walks. Due to its strategic location between the continents of europe and africa and its proximity to the strait of gibraltar, donanas large expanse of salt marsh is a breeding ground as well as a transit point for thousands of european and african birds. Donana is unquestionably the natural space with the highest biodiversity in europe, in particular bird species, which are the most important and numerous.
When you need help finding books to find the birds, let our knowledgeable staff be of assistance. On the northwestern bank of the guadalquivir river is a vast area which seasonally floods to produce marshes or marismas, but there are also a number of other lakes and pools as well as vast areas of rice paddies which are often flooded. Thayer birding software produces the toprated birding programs for north american birds. It has been a 3 month process to produce this page. They are placed here in cronological order, so for the latest reports look at the top of the page. Theres plenty of great birdlist software and birding software available today, but. Birdwatching donana bird watching in donana national. Birds, birding trips and birdwatching tours in andalusia fat birder.
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