Laguna de La Mata, Costa Blanca, Spain

Mark Jarrett · Status: Offline

RE: Laguna de La Mata, Costa Blanca, Spain

Simon Johnson · Status: Offline

Spent the bank holiday in Spain Highlights included:

Alpine Swift, Pallid Swift, 20 Red-Rumped Swallows and a flock of 18 Bee-eaters over the house.

The salt pans had lots of waders, Temincks Stint, 2 Turnstone, Stone Curlew Collared Prat, Kentish Plovers, Dunlin, Black-winged Stilt, 100's of Avocet etc. Also had Osprey Glossy Ibis and a few other bits.

Had some friends staying there too and their villa looked out over fields at the bottom of La Marina one evening 170 Cattle Egret, 4 Purple Heron, Squacco Heron, 30 Little Egret flew over to roost and there was also Green Sand, Bee-eater, Little Owl, Woodchat Shrike and 2 night Heron aswell - cracking place

Mark Jarrett · Status: Offline

Simon Johnson wrote:

Is a vast area and not many places to watch but discovered the musem there which has its own lagoon and watch tower.

Hi Simon

Some good stuff there!

Where is the museum/lagoon/watch tower at Santa Pola? Never noticed before.

Red necked Nighjar breed on the hillside above the La Finca golf course which should be around 20-25 mins from La Marina. Just pm me if you want more specific directions.

Cheers

Mark

Paul Heaton · Status: Offline

Simon the 200 Club officially recognize your Mum as a member, and would like to have the next meeting at her place

mouthwatering birds.

Keep birding,

Simon Johnson · Status: Offline

Spent a week over at my mum's in La Marina

Had daily flocks of Spotless Starlings, Cattle Egrets, Red-rumpred swallows, Pallid Swifts etc flying over whilst sitting out on the roof terrace with the odd other goodie turning up inc Crested Lark, Hoope, Bee-Eaters, Sardinian Warbler, Collared Pratincole, Stone Curlew and Squacco Heron. Think heard a Red-necked Nightjar one evening as well.

Visited Santa Pola Salt pans to see the hundreds of flamingo's had Glossy Ibis, Night Heron, Slender-billed Gull, Little Tern, Black-winged Stilt, Avocet, GCG, Redshank and a summering Wigeon there. Is a vast area and not many places to watch but discovered the musem there which has its own lagoon and watch tower.

Also visited El Honda and was lucky enough to see White-headed duck near the visitor centre along with a Marbled Duck amongst the hunderds of Pochard and Red-crested Pochard, loads of breeding Avocets and Black-winged stilts, Little Bittern, Purple Heron. Whiskered Tern, Great Reed Warbler, Roller, Zitting Cisticola etc etc fantastic reserve!

Mark Jarrett · Status: Offline

Spent the last week over in Spain. Weather varied between warm, very warm and hot with three days cloudy and some rain. Laguna de La Mata seemed a little quiet but still some interesting stuff about :-

Montagu's Harrier (3)
Avocet
Stone Curlew (1)
Kentish Plover
Curlew Sandpiper (4)
Black winged Stilt
Slender billed Gull
Common Tern (20+)
Little Tern (50+)
Stock Dove
Turtle Dove
Bee-eater (c.6)
Red rumped Swallow (1)
Crested Lark
Dartford Warbler (1)
Spotless Starling

Clot De Galvany reserve 25 minutes north, amongst other stuff :-

Little Grebe
Shoveler
Pochard
White Headed Duck (3)
Marbled Duck (2)
Wood Sandpiper (1)
Purple Gallinule (2)
Common Sandpiper (1)
Cuckoo
Little Owl (2)

La Finca Golf Course area, amongst other stuff :-

Little Bittern (2)
Squacco Heron (1)
Cattle Egret
Montagu's Harrier (1)
Red legged Partridge
Little Tern
Cuckoo
Red necked Nightjar (Blue Ribband Birding Moment!) (1 seen, 3-4 others heard)
Bee-eater
Sand Martin
Red rumped Swallow
Great Reed Warbler
Southern Grey Shrike (1)

El Hondo - brief visit to part of reserve and northern boundary areas, amongst other stuff :-

Squacco Heron (1)
Red crested Pochard
Cattle Egret
White headed Duck (1)
Montagu's Harrier (1)
Whiskered Tern
Collared Pratincole (c.12)
Roller (1)

Mark Jarrett · Status: Offline

Easter Weekend - sunny & warm - 3 hour visit - had intended to do about 5 hours plus, but it was crawling with noisy, non birding Spaniards so I gave up.

The more interesting sightings included :-

Kestrel
Avocet
Stone Curlew (1)
Kentish Plover
Grey Plover
Little Stint
Turnstone
Yellow legged Gull
Slender billed Gull
Common Tern
Little Tern
Hoopoe
Iberian Green Woodpecker
Crested Lark
Swallow
Red Rumped Swallow (1)
House Martin
Crag Martin
Blackcap
Sardinian Warbler
Southern Grey Shrike
Woodchat Shrike
Spotless Starling
Serin
Cirl Bunting

Two quick 5 minute stops at nearby Santa Pola Saltpans, amongst other stuff :-

Great crested Grebe
Black winged Stilt
Flamingo

Two and a half hours at nearby El Hondo Reserve, because of landowner dispute this is 'poorer' section of reserve and a fraction of main area :-

Grey Heron
Purple Heron
White Stork (13)
Squacco Heron (1)
Glossy Ibis (5)
Red crested Pochard
Marsh Harrier
Montagu's Harrier (1)
Buzzard
Green Sandpiper
Whiskered Tern
Cuckoo
Sand Martin
Pallid Swift
Nightingale
Reed Warbler
Great Reed Warbler
Fan tailed Warbler
Corn Bunting
Collared Pratincole (1)
Purple Gallinule (2)

Seen whilst driving here & there :-

Little Egret
Short toed Eagle (1)
Turtle Dove
Blue rock Thrush
Raven

Not too bad for basically two mornings birding

Simon Johnson · Status: Offline

Following on from this my Parents are looking to rent out their house this year if any birders are interested. Its in La Marina and very central to all the birding spots below... theres also a trip report from myself in the birders abroad section.

Anyone interested send me a PM.

Si

Rob Smallwood · Status: Offline

Laguna de la Mata - "What a wonderful phrase!" - with apologies to Walt Disney.....

Seriously, sounds a good spot.

Mark Jarrett · Status: Offline

This is a very nice reserve just north of Torrevieja on the Costa Blanca about 40 mins south of Alicante Airport and 30 mins north of the airport at Murcia. A very large lagoon (too big to see stuff at the other side), surrounded by reedbeds, farmland, scrub and some woodland.

Was over in Spain last week and the following were main sightings from 2 x 2 hour visits.

Dartford Warbler
Sardinian Warbler
Chiffchaff
Iberian Green Woodpecker
Southern Grey Shrike
Slender billed Gull
Kentish Plover
Ringed Plover
Dunlin
Little Stint
Sanderling
Grey Plover
Serin
Spotless Starling
Crested Lark
Lesser Short toed Lark

Things were a little bit quiet and I'm doing this from memory. There is a winter Black necked Grebe flock which I have seen at around 1000 birds but they now appear to have dispersed. Water levels were lower than normal which had an effect on wader numbers. At times it has been absolutely teeming. I have seen up to 27 Stone Curlew and last winter had a Red necked Phalarope which was a very rare sighting for the reserve. Osprey usually linger in winter, Montague's Harrier breed along with Red rumped Swallow and Short toed Lark amongst others.

Nearby there are several excellent reserves - Santa Pola Saltpans, El Pinet, The Clot and one of the best reserves around, El Hondo - Marbled Duck, White headed Duck, Collared Pratincole, Moutached Warbler, Penduline Tit, Marsh Harrier, Roller, Bee eater and so on.

There is a Bonelli's Eagle nesting site in the mountains behind Crevillente which is just over half an hour away where Chough, Crested Tit, Blue Rock Thrush and Eagle Owl occur. There is also a decent Red necked Nightjar spot within 20 minutes.

A bit further afield up towards Albacete, a couple of hours away, there are two good areas for Bustards and Sandgrouse and other Steppe/Plains birds.

A belting area with almost limitless birding.