Whilst enjoying a free morning birding Casa de Campo (one of my regular sites here) and noting everything possible, I heard the " kek..kek..kek" type calls of what I expected to be a kestrel. However on scanning the overhead trees I was surprised to see that the culprit was a perched bee-eater, - pleasing, as it was my first of the year. The bird called again as I was watching it, and remained still for the next 15 mins or so. I later heard the identical call from some 50 metres away but failed to locate what I assumed was a second responding bird.
Whilst I'm very familiar with the typical rather drawn out squelchy "quilp" flight call as birds pass overhead, this was a new one on me, and something I 'll swat up on; but has anyone else had experience of the variant call as I describe it please?
Madrid 05/04/16
Whilst enjoying a free morning birding Casa de Campo (one of my regular sites here) and noting everything possible, I heard the " kek..kek..kek" type calls of what I expected to be a kestrel. However on scanning the overhead trees I was surprised to see that the culprit was a perched bee-eater, - pleasing, as it was my first of the year. The bird called again as I was watching it, and remained still for the next 15 mins or so. I later heard the identical call from some 50 metres away but failed to locate what I assumed was a second responding bird.
Whilst I'm very familiar with the typical rather drawn out squelchy "quilp" flight call as birds pass overhead, this was a new one on me, and something I 'll swat up on; but has anyone else had experience of the variant call as I describe it please?
Regards,
Mike P.