Swedish White Stork!

It's been a while since my last post, just because I've been busy. The winds turned westerly but migrants continued to trickle regardless. 

On the 8th, I came across the biggest flock of Yellow Wagtails I've ever encountered, at approximately 300 birds strong. They were more or less all nominate flava too, which was a new subspecies for me. On the 10th, I picked up a lovely flavissima, a scarce subspecies here in Catalunya. 

Nominate flava, Can Dimoni, Delta Llobregat 

Flavissima, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

 On the 12th of April, I stopped my bike to check out what I assumed was a White Stork decoy in a flooded field. It was so close and was so still! When I stopped it turned it's head to look at me. Wow! A very welcome year tick. I watched and enjoyed this bird for some time. As I watched it I noticed it turn its head and look to the sky. When I looked up I saw another stork high up coming from the south. Apparently it saw the other stork too, despite the height it was soaring at, as it began to circle and descend, eventually landing, next to it. It was great! Migration in action right there and then. 

One of the storks had a ring, as did a nearby Audouin's Gull. I read both of these, and this is where things were to become really interesting!

Auduoin's Gull ring detail, Can Dimoni, Delta Llobregat

White Stork ring detail, Can Dimoni, Delta Llobregat

I enjoyed them for several more minutes, before continuing to Can Dimoni itself, where I finally photographed a Painted Lady well. An hour well spent before work!

Afterwards I used cr-birding to locate the ringer of the stork and was surprised to see that it indicated it was from Sweden! I sent an e-mail and was really surprised to get a reply with all the details the following morning.What an efficient and friendly operation!

I learned that the bird "was hatched in late May 2018 in an aviary in Fulltofta in central Scania, Sweden. It was ringed on the 21st of June. It was then transferred to another aviary at Karups Nygård to be released along with 12 other young storks that had hatched late. The group was released on the 19th of August. Six days later, 25/08/18, it was seen in Güster, Schleswig-Holstein in Germany." This was the first report since then!

There is a fantastic website on the project here: http://storkprojektet.se/sida_historik_english.shtml In summary, it states that breeding white storks were common in Sweden in the 19th century, with approximately 5000 pairs. However, changes in farming practices led to a drastic decline to the point where the last breeding attempt failed in 1954. In 1989 the current reintroduction scheme was put in place, and it has been really successful, with approximately 100 young being produced in the aviaries each year. 

Volunteers cleaning nests at Fulltofta

 

To date there has been 358 ringing recoveries of Swedish ringed White Storks in Spain, with 28 of these coming from Catalunya. A link to the Swedish ringing recoveries website can be found here. What a fantastic conservation story! I'll be keeping a close eye on any storks I come across from now on!

Ringing recoveries of Swedish-ringed White Storks in Spain & Catalunya

Southerly Winds & Rain = Migrants!

Southerly winds coming from North Africa

The last blog post I wrote was on Tuesday night. I heard the very unfamiliar sound of rain whilst at work and was surprised. It hadn't rained here properly in months. Lots of areas that normally have little pools of water were totally dried out with cracked, baked mud. Leaving work at 10pm, it was foggy and it later turned into a substantial downpour again. I instantly thought of migrants and the prospects of this rain dropping them in the delta as I heard the rain pelting against the window. 

A quick weather search showed that not only was it raining. but, the winds were coming in directly from North Africa and were curling into Barcelona directly! It was perfect. I went to bed dreaming of what migrants I might see in the morning. As I moved here in late May, and didn't really discover the delta properly until June, I had never birded the delta in spring, having previously visited the region in autumn or summer. As a result of this I'm still catching up on the numerous spring migrants which are either more difficult or not available during the rest of the year. 

I got up bright and early Wednesday morning, did my chores around the house and set out via bicycle to Cal Tet (my local reserve and part of the delta complex). I received a WhatsApp message in Catalan which I stopped to translate. Yep, there were migrants around - Common Redstarts, 2 Redwings, Common Whitethroat, etc. Nearing the entrance to the reserve, there was an arable field with some weeds which attracted a low-flying hirundine flock. I stopped for a quick scan and soon realised there were several Yellow Wagtails feeding amongst the vegetation. Upon closer inspection I noticed some larks too. As it is a little late for skylark I suspected these were Greater Short-toed Larks. After a minute or two I had better views and could confirm this. A new species for me! 

Feeling rather pumped by the evidence of migrants on the ground I went directly to the reserve, parked my bike and started my loop, checking everything that moved. As I went through the first scrubby track a white flash alighted in front of me and landed atop a bush. It was a Woodchat Shrike, another new delta bird for me. A Sedge Warbler sang in the background - an exclusively migratory species in the region. As I continued, Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Robins, & Song Thrushes were flushing all around. It seemed like the weather had indeed dropped a lot of migrants and it felt like a fall was on.

Woodchat Shrike, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Next I checked a little track at the far end of Cal Nani where I'd seen lots of migrants last Autumn. First thing, I picked up a lovely male Pied Flycatcher, doing what flycatchers do in a great big willow. A Common Redstart flew up from the ground and shivered its tail from a branch. I decided to stay here and see what would pop up. A small warbler flew across, past my face appearing pinkish/purple below. When it landed I realised it was a another new delta bird for me - a lovely male Western Subalpine Warbler! At this moment I felt like anything could happen. I continued and began to flush Common Redstarts left, right and centre, and probably had 15 or more in total in a little area. 

Pied Flycatcher, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Common Redstart, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Western Subalpine Warbler, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

I checked the lagoon and had large flocks of calling Common Swifts as well as the 3 common hirundine species. A lovely Night Heron passed overhead and provided a welcome year tick, as did the deafeningly crunchy song of a Great Reed Warbler. The resident Ferruginuous x Common Pochard hybird also showed well in front of the hide.  

Black-crowned Night Heron, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Ferruginuous x Common Pochard hybrid, above - Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

 

 

Happy with my lot, I decided to loop back, and enjoyed views of many of the previously noted species again. Halfway back to my bike I noticed a hawker, flying and looping at almost impossible speeds around my head. I knew this would probably be a Vagrant Emperor, given the time of year. Every dragonfly I've seen in the last few weeks has been this species. I took some photos of this species at rest recently having tried and failed for weeks, and I was given the opportunity once again, as this new individual landed right in front of me. My previous photos were close up and sharp, however, the distracting background really bothered me. As this one was sat on a stem some distance from any background matter, it allowed for the background to blur our, keeping the animal and stem in focus. I was much happier with these pictures!

Male Vagrant Emperor, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

The following day (04/04/19), I decide to try my luck again. It had rained fairly solidly the evening and night before, but the winds had turned somewhat northerly, which left me feeling much less optimistic. But you never know, I thought - birds can turn up in all sorts of conditions and perhaps the rain dropped something or at least kept birds from the previous day in the area. Arriving early in the morning, it was immediately evident that there were much less migrants around. The field which held the hirundines, wagtails and larks was empty, there were much fewer redstarts and the pied fly, subalp and woodchat all appeared to have cleared out. 

I didn't have the same enthusiasm as the previous day but I enjoyed my freedom before work and tried to make the most of it. I plugged away and picked up a few redstarts, a single Wood Sandpiper, feeding with 8 Green Sandpipers, and passing hirundines kept me busy, searching for the still elusive Red-rumped Swallow. 

I made my way to the Sabogal hide, which overlooked Cal Tet lagoon with a nice island in front, which often held ducks, wagtails and other birds. I did a very brief scan and nothing obvious jumped out. I decided to scan the hirundines for a red-rumped - still no joy. Then, I heard some Yellow Wagtails calling so I decided to scan through them to see if I could find any interesting subspecies. There were at least 20 birds popping in and out of view in the grass and general vegetation of the island, but with patience each bird could be seen well enough to assess. 

I could see lots of  iberiae, with some cinereocapilla. I got a surprise when I picked up a wagtail with a black head. Of course I immediately thought of feldegg, a rarity here. On closer inspection I noticed it had a white throat and a tiny white supercillium which are wrong for feldegg. Everything looked OK for cinereocapilla only the head was black not blue/grey. I thought it could have been a hybrid but have since been told that it is still ok for cinereocapilla. Wow - wagtails were tougher than I thought. 

Presumed Iberiae Yellow Wagtail, but possibly just a well-marked cinereocinella (still learning!), Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Presumed cinereocapilla  Yellow Wagtail, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

"Black-headed", perhaps a dark-headed cinereocapilla, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

As I was asking a friend for advice on this "black-headed" wagtail, I was simultaneously scanning and trying to locate it once again after taking my eyes off the island to send a message. I couldn't see it so began to scan right. Then something happened to me - something that only ever happens when I find a good bird. It's a strange sensation and it's like my body reacts before my brain registers what I'm actually seeing. My hands and head started to shake and I could barely keep my binoculars still. A millisecond later I realised I had just seen a "grey" wagtail with a fully yellow head and breast with white wing-bars. Jesus Christ! It was an adult male Citrine Wagtail!!! 

Male Citrine Wagtail, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat!

This is a species I had never seen anywhere in the world. I had failed to connect with any of the rather infrequent Irish vagrants in the past, and failed to connect with the species in Poland, in 2017. In a panic, I picked up my camera to fire off some record shots in case I lost it. The wagtails are always very flighty here and can take off and leave at any moment, because of the frequent passes of overwintering Marsh Harriers. 

Western Marsh Harrier, quartering the reedbed at Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Looking through my camera I couldn't see it! For what seemed like an eternity I searched in a panic with my camera, thinking I had lost it and fecked up! I began to think, was it really a Citrine? Did I imagine it and actually see a yellow wagtail badly? 

Then, it popped out from behind some sedges. Jesus! It was definitely a male Citrine Wagtail. All of this happened in a matter of seconds, and I more or less instantly sent a message to Ferran Lopez, who was quick on the scene with Sergi Bosch. I was worried it would leave before they arrived, so I stayed glued to it with my binoculars until I heard the hide door open behind me. They quickly got onto the bird and we had really good views, including a close flight pass! I took some closer record shots and enjoyed the moment. It just reminded me - despite non-ideal conditions, and not many evident migrants: it only takes one bird to change the game!

What a beauty!

 

Citrine Wagtail - looking immense!

Whilst not the massive rarity it once was, it was still a lovely Siberian gem, and a totally unexpected find for me. I was ecstatic. This is the best bird I've found in the delta so far, and it constitutes the 19th (!) record of the species in the delta.It's been a great week, with 8 year ticks, and 3 delta ticks, bringing my year and total delta lists to 155 & 190 respectively. For the next week or so I'm going to be rather busy but I'm going to be watching the weather closely and will be out at the next opportunity looking for migrants again!

Photogenic Spotted Crakes & Vagrant Emperors

Following on from last weeks excitement, the weekend was just the same. The highlight for me was seeing and photographing a Spotted Crake at close range. There were several birds reported around the county including a Bailon's Crake not too far away. However, as I haven't been brave enough to embrace driving on the opposite side of the road yet I had to think local. As I had seen a Spotted Crake (badly) at Remolar Filipines a week back, and there was one reported on and off on Sunday, I decided to go there and stake it out, in the hopes of a close pass to finally get a photo of this elusive species.

Lovely crake habitat at Remolar Filipines, Delta Llobregat

I picked the most likely spot where this would happen within the marsh, a lovely semi-exposed area of mud with shallow water and some vegetation (see above). I waited with no real actual expectations; a female mallard appeared in front of me with some ducklings and provided a brief distraction from the boredom. They all posed really nicely and I enjoyed the moment. 

This was taken moments before the Spotted Crake appeared and made my week!

 

They eventually disappeared behind some sedges and I quickly reviewed the pictures on the back of the camera, only to be distracted by some movement in front of me. Thinking it was one of the ducks again, I looked up and there was a Spotted Crake... right in front of me! I immediately lifted the camera and started shooting. To be honest my hands were shaking a little and I wasn't exactly composed. It passed in front of me for about 30 seconds but it seemed so quick! I couldn't believe it. My daydream had come true - to photograph a crake at close range.

Spotted Crake, in habitat - Delta Llobregat

Apart from the crake, both the Marsh Sandpiper and the Arctic Skua continued through the weekend. A nice delta tick came in the form of 3 Caspian Terns, which gave themselves away as they called passing over my head. 

Caspian Tern, Delta tick #187

A Spotless Starling showed well among a small group of Common Starlings and gave me my first chance to see one well in the delta.

The next highlight for me was finally photographing a Vagrant Emperor at rest. I've grown to like dragonflies since moving to Catalunya, and Vagrant Emperor is a scarce vagrant from North Africa to the region, and it is commoner in the reserve in March than I had previously realised, having had high counts of more than 7 in a day. 

Because it is one of the only dragonflies on the wing, it is pretty easy to find them in March, but they are in fact quite similar to the local Lesser Emperor. Whilst these haven't emerged yet, I'm sure there comes a period where both species overlap, and as both species have and do occur as vagrants back home in Ireland, I have taken the opportunity to summarise the primary ID features of both. I only recently became acquainted with these myself and they are well published, but perhaps someone will find it of interest.

Image 1: Male Lesser Emperor, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

Image 2: Male Vagrant Emperor, Cal Tet, Delta Llobregat

The first picture above is of a male Lesser Emperor, and below that is a male Vagrant Emperor. At first glance they look very alike, but when you take a closer look they are readily separable. Both are annotated with four red arrows pointing at key features, and these will be assessed from the top arrow down. 

1.   The first arrow on both images points to the eyes, with the eyes of the Lesser Emperor (image 1) being green, and those of the Vagrant Emperor (image 2) being brown, with the lower halves yellow-green.

2.   Moving down, the blue saddle is marked on both images. In the top (Lesser Emperor), the blue can be seen to leak from S2 down into S3, whereas on the Vagrant Emperor below it is restricted to S2. Looking from the side (not visible in these photos) the blue wraps around the segments in Lesser Emperor but only covers half the segment in Vagrant Emperor.

3.   Working down to the third arrows, segments 8-10 are marked with paired spots in Vagrant Emperor (bottom, image 2), but not in Lesser Emperor (image 1).

4.   The final arrow, highlights the upper appendages of both species. Lesser Emperor (image 1) can be seen to have blunt appendages in comparison to the rather pointed ones seen in Vagrant Emperor (image 2).

Other highlights/interesting sightings from the weekend are shown below, and include Sawfly Orchids, a showy Swallowtail, a Western Dappled White (butterfly - my first for the delta, and a dead (unfortunately) Hedgehog.

As I write the winds are coming straight in off Africa and it is raining (for the first time in a long time). I'm going to visit the reserve first thing in the morning, and with the above combination there will surely be migrants!

 

Marsh Sandpiper & Arctic Skua

This is my first spring at Delta Llobregat, and with each week it seems to get better. Every time I think I can't be more impressed, I am! I had so many moments last week that left me smiling ear to ear, and I even had some moments where my hands were shaking too much to hold my binoculars/camera still. The last week has been so eventful, that I think it's best to split this post into two parts. 

This year I'm doing a Delta Llobregat year list for fun, and whilst I love to get out as much as possible and of course try to find my own scarce/rare birds, I'm also trying to see as many species as possible, so the week started off really well when a Slender-billed Gull was reported at Nelson Mandela bridge last Monday (25th March). This is quite a scarce species here in the delta, and it was a new delta bird for me. Unfortunately the part of the reserve where this could be viewed is closed on Mondays so I had to wait and hope it would remain until the following day. The next morning I cycled there first thing, and it was right there, sitting amongst a group of Black-headed Gulls out on the sand bank downstream of the bridge. It was an adult and a stunning addition to my Llobregat list. 

Adult Slender-billed Gull with Black-headed Gulls, Nelson Mandela Bridge.

The following day, a stunning Marsh Sandpiper was found at Remolar Filipines, and resulted in me cycling at quite a speed to see it. Not only was this a new delta bird for me, but a bird I had never seen anywhere in the world. When I got there it showed really well alongside several Wood Sandpipers (15 or so), as well as a similar number of Ruff, 60+ Glossy Ibis, 1 Little Stint, 1 Black-tailed Godwit, loads of Little Ringed Plover, several Kentish Plover, 15+ Garganey, and swarms of hirundines (Red-rumped Swallow is still eluding me). As if this wasn't enough, a dark phase Arctic Skua flew in front of me when I was admiring everything and put me into shear panic mode (more on this later). 

Marsh Sandpiper, La Maresma, Delta Llobrgat

Marsh Sand' with Wood Sandpipers

Ruff, La Maresma, Delta Llobregat

Green Sandpiper, La Maresma, Delta Llobregat

The Arctic Skua, was a total surprise - it absolutely made the day. I was in a sheer state of panic, fumbling with my camera, photographing the sky, the water, the reeds - anything but the skua, and when I did it was completely out of focus. I thought I had blown photographing what was a totally unexpected record for the reserve. Luckily it did a u-turn and flew right across my line of sight allowing for a few nice shots. It even landed on one of the little islands in front of me. I couldn't believe it. I went to text some of my friends who had just left, only to see a missed call and several messages. They had seen it too, from their car on the way out and were trying to alert me. This represented the first ever record of the species within the actual reserve and not at sea - amazing. It was really odd seeing this species, one which I usually associate with the cold, harsh seas of the north with likes of the exotic Black-winged Stilts, fresh in from their wintering grounds somewhere in Africa. 

Also of note this week was the arrival of Purple Heron. I personally saw 3 together on the 27th with singles on the 28th & 29th.

Glossy Ibises are really pushing through in big numbers with flocks of up to 100 birds being seen. I even saw two flocks of 60 or so birds a pieces, flying over the town recently. Of course with this many birds around, I finally managed some nice pictures of this species. They have always eluded my camera in the past. 

Glossy Ibis with Louisiana Crayfish, Cal Nani Delta Llobregat

A visit to Cal Tet on the 28th brought two year ticks in the form of a singing Willow Warbler, and a lovely summer-plumaged Whiskered Tern, which was hawking insects around the lagoon. 

Other Photo highlights: