BIRDING TRIP: Marismas de Cetina, Puerto Real, Spain

Summer is arriving, temperatures are rising in the South of Spain. Still lots of good opportunities to go birdwatching, but you have to set off early in the morning if you want to have an enjoyable trip. Last Saturday, I decided to visit Marismas de Cetina in Puerto Real in the province of Cádiz. I had read about the huge variety of birds there and I was not disappointed.

One of many Yellow Wagtails

To reach the marshes, you have to go through an area of forest first, where early in the morning a lot of Greenfinches and Nightingales are singing. I could have driven all the way to the gate of the marshes, but I preferred to go on foot and enjoy a morning concert of awakening birds.

The day before, I had called for information to Atlántida Medio Ambiente on the number 6737766136. As long as you go on foot, you do not need special permission to visit the marshes. You only do if you want to get in by car, which I think is absolutely unnecessary. The distance is only a few kilometres and if you walk you are not disturbing the birds as much as you would by car.

I witnessed a true spectacle. I had seen a huge flock of Pied Avocets, around two hundred birds. As I was walking on I heard a lot of noise coming from the small island where they had their breeding spot. A Black Kite had dared to get really close to it and was soon chased away by tens of Avocets. In a one-on-one situation, a Pied Avocet is no match for a Black Kite, but tens of furious birds are a truly impressive sight and they managed to make the raptor go somewhere else.

Black Kite being chased by a flock of angry Pied Avocets

After a while, I saw a gorgeous Little Tern, a bird that is aerodynamically so perfect that it reminds me of a jet fighter plane.

Little Tern

Speaking of fighter planes, there was a Spanish military helicopter doing really low-level manoeuvres. I wonder why they had to pick this spot. They were there for at least twenty minutes, flying the same pattern.

Military training helicopter flying very low to the ground

Much to my delight, there were also a handful of Kentish Plovers.

Two flying Kentish Plovers, one of them carrying a ring

Along the track I saw around twenty Collared Pratincoles, a species I had never seen before.

Collared Pratincole

Another first time encounter I had with the Purple Heron.

Purple Heron

Temperatures started to rise soon. However, on an early spring morning, one could easily spend several hours walking around or observing from one of the hides near the water.

One of the hides

A beautiful Pied Avocet flying by

Near the place where the helicopter descended there was a tower on which a Stork has installed its nest. I was able to photograph it from a distance and noticed a chick inside the nest.