Despite the exhausting heat wave which is still battering the south of Spain, I went out early in the morning to Costa Ballena between Rota and Chipiona in the most southern province, Cadiz. Long-eared Owls had been reported here recently, a great opportunity to add another species to my life list. I looked around for about half an hour, but no sign of them. Fortunately I was rewarded with the sight of a Squacco Heron that joined a flock of Little Egrets.
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| Yes! My first ever Squacco Heron, photographed in flight. |
It was a relatively easy target to photograph, standing as well as it was flying. The Little Egrets didn't seem to be very pleased with its presence though, but it never came to a fight.
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| Squacco Heron peacefully next to some ducks and a Little Egret |
I spent an hour watching the interaction between the Heron and the Egrets. It is very true that when you stay in one and the same place and let the birds come to you, that you end with with interesting photographs. I was quite satisfied with the pictures I took of the always elegant looking Egrets.
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| Little Egret landing in a tree top |
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| Time to catch a little fish! |
The presence of a lot of Martins, Swallows and Swifts allowed me to do some focusing training. This is one of the best places I know to come and practise. Still difficult, but as the birds fly relatively low and slowly to catch flying insects, you can get some decent shots here.
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| House Martin in flight |
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| Swift in flight |
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| … and also a Barn Swallow! |
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| Artistic composition featuring a Common Moorhen |
The focusing practice came in handy an hour later, when a Collared Dove sitting on the floor caught my attention. The bird was very actively looking for nesting material and constantly flew to and fro between this place in the dunes and a nearby palm tree in which it must have been building a nest. A very remarkable effort given these high temperatures!
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| Love at first sight when I saw this lovely dove! |
I had been watching a Hollywood blockbuster on TV not long ago. At least, I had tried. Had given up after thirty minutes. Pure boredom. But I could have watched this dove for hours. It was not bothered by my presence at all. Was it a male? A female? When would the first eggs be laid? Would she still be around during my next visit? So intriguing!
I happened to stand right between the dunes and the palm tree that the bird had chosen. The following shots will be a reminder of this encounter for ever!
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| Flying to the nest with a twig |
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| Coming in again to pick up more material |
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| And back to the nest, with the sea in the background |
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| Flying out of the nesting tree |
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| … and back again |
Passers-by were wondering why I showed so much interest in a simple dove. Well, Learn to observe and you will discover so many new things in nature.
Before arriving back at my starting point I took a few more photos of other birds as well. Among them three very loud Kestrels.
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| Two of the Kestrels flying together, presumably two females |
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| Another true spectacle! |
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| Judging by the bottom tail feathers I'd say this was the male |
Although I did not spot the bird that I had actually come for today, the Long-eared Owl, I had still had a great time observing and photographing another 33 different species.
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| Fewer gulls today, but this one's landing was worth a photo. |
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| Ruddy Turnstone coming in low |
More information about this birding location here.
