Alentejo birding

A five days trip with Raquel and Tome to the mainland of Portugal was a good change to train the Eurasian birds as an Azorean birder like me being a big ignorant on this matter.

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Flores trip report

This time no time for birding. Heavy winter whit landslides did some damage on Flores walking trails. So other things to do. Lucky for me I found a Ring billed Gull wich confused me by his black rump. Oil our cowshit was the tip I got from the real birders.

 

No other birds show up on the working zone but my friend Frederique Fournier told me about a big white Egret near the airfield. Other local Miguel Noia had even seen it whit a "chick" so I gues he was talking about a Cattle. So another look on the field near the airstrip before jumping in the plane.There was the Cattle Egret feeding near some lazy cows.

 

 

While aproaching a little the bird flyed up and went to the other side of the village where I lost it landing on another field. Quickly checked in and than drived over to the other side. I found it again near some cows but I lost my intrest when I looked in a corner of the field. An Great American Egret was standing there swolowing a little rat.

 

 

I always believed that Flores Island should not let me leave whithout a nice bird.

Aand this Egret was a real beauty.

 

 

 

 

Latest April birds

 

Kentish Plovers on Cabo da Praia Terceira 

 

 

 Azores Yellow Legged Gul - Mosteiros

 

 

 

First Common Tern of the season - Mosteiros

 

 

We can see Gannets in some years on the Azores on big distance from the coast and only by telescope. Finding them near the shore and even picture them from land is a first time happening.

 

 

 

Peregrine Falcon is a rarity on the Azores. Finding one just under my house flying along the cliffs is even more rare.

Oystercatcher Longipes/Buturlini? First for the WP

Some month ago local birder Jorge Cardoso found this bird together with 2 Bar-tailed Godwits on the North coast of Sao Miguel Island. Oystercatchers are rare birds on the Azores and only 76 birds have been seen until now. Many locals have been watching and picturing the tame bird and after my last session whit some clients I published a picture of it on my FB page.Dutch photographer and editor of Dutch Birding Rene Pop was the first who noticed the large white collar. The snowball went rolling and big names like Arnoud van de Berg,Enno Ebels, Arnold Meijer and others started to have a look.

Apart of the large white collar the brownish coverts similar to a first year and the long nasal groove going until two third of the bill made us dreaming about a first for the WP.

 

Longipes still around in July

 

 

Birding trip whit the locals

The Azores does not have a long birding history and just verry recently the activity is increasing together whit the local population. I,m verry happy to see a new generation of young people getting intrested in birdwatching and was more than happy to get invited by one of this promising youngsters Carolina Ferraz organizing a workshop for Expolab in Lagoa.

 Some month ago I did the theoretic part and now it was time to go to the field.First meeting point was the bridge between Lagoa Azul and Lagoa Verde. The long staying Piel Billed Grebe, two Tuffed Ducks and a Greather Scaup was opening the score.

Ruben and Carolina, two promesing birders for the future.

We went on search for a Pintail male (did not find it)  and some local subespecies before driving up to my favorite spot Caldeira dos Alferes.

An nice cocktail of Ducks was entertaining us. Biggest suprise. Two female American Wigeons hiding out between a exepcional flock of 27 Eurasians. Together whit a female pintail and 22 Comon Teals Caldeira dos Alferes proofed again being one of the best Duck spots on the Azores.

Two American females hiding in a flock of Eurasian Wigeons

Down to Mosteiros. The big western waves from the last week had flushed away the most waders but a Turnstone was taking a nice bath in front of us on the only sunlight we had during the day.

We went on to do some seawatching, a unknowend thing for most of the people in the group and while I was looking in between of  hundreds of Cory Shearwaters fishing behind the Islands after a verry much wished Gannet for young birder Ruben Coelho he screamed out that he found a raptor sitting on one of the Islets. It was the adult Peregrine Falcon I have seen this winter on Mosteiros for several times. The light conditions where terrible and finding a falcon in this conditions showed again that Ruben  is not here to play around. If anybody stil had some doubts about his nature talent it all disapeared after he found his long wished Gannet all by himself. After all there is hope for the future. 

Time for the group picture. A little mistake whit the automatic shutter on Carolinas car wich was serving as a tripod, brought us a image of a verry weird Dutch vagrant. 

After all I had a great time. Hope to do it again soon.

Blue winged Teal, Goldcrest and poop flies

Today a GerbyBirding trip whit Doug and Jo, a kind happy couple from Britain. Another hard journey to try the Bullfinch but the last winds have blowed of the Holly blousom so birds was hyded deep in the forest. We just heard one singing but a friendly Goldcrest was doing his best to save our trip to the Eastern mountains whit a nice photo session.If not we should have left just whit a picture of some poop flies taken from a abanded present on the middle of the trail under the Tronqueira view point.

The highlands of Espraiados did also not bring any special so I start to worry. I did not wish to get lynched by Jo and Doug so my last hope was focust on Lagoa de Sao Braz. Lat times I only had a Garganey on this place so I had serious reasons to feel in trouble. After the long steep road up to the lake whit the never failing GerbyBirding Toyota we imidiatly spotted 4 small Ducks near the resident Domestic Duck. Two Northern Shovlers (Rarities on the Azores) and a fantastic Bluewinged teal drake was easy to reconize. The fourth

 a bit harder and in first place identified as a Blue winged female. Later on at home a better look to the pics changed my first conclusion to a first year Gargany, probably the same wich I had spotted last summer whit some verry nice Belgium clients.

Eurasian Oystercatcher

After going behind Bullfinches whit American birders Nancy and Muriel we only heared them singing in the bushes. The strong winds from last week and the big thunderstorm hanging in the sky turned the Eastern mountains in a desert whithout birds. Some shy Canaries and Chaffinches was all we had.Not even a good vieuw of a Goldcrest. So the only thing left was running down to the North coast of Ribeira Grande to spot the longstaying Cattle Egrets, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits and of course the Oystercatcher foind by my dear friend Jorge Cardoso some month ago.