Inglorious Bustards

Doñana National Park – Paradise Parched

This article was first published in Birdwatch magazine in September 2023.

As northern Europe feasts on Huelva province´s “Drought Strawberries”, Spain´s iconic Doñana National Park is dying of thirst, writes Niki Williamson.

Magical Marshes

If you have to get up at dawn on a chilly January morning, then El Rocío, in Andalucía´s Huelva province, is a magical place to do it.

As usual we visit this year, and awake to the fabulous sounds of dozens of gently-honking Greater Flamingoes and the delicate “kyik-kyik” of Black-winged Stilts. Pink light from the rising sun glints off the pretty white village, and gives an ethereal glow to the lake by which it sits. A pleasing selection of waders feed busily in the still waters, amongst Eurasian Spoonbills, Western Swamphens, Glossy Ibis and White Storks. Here and nearby, we often enjoy views of White-headed Duck, Red-knobbed Coot and the Critically Endangered Marbled Duck.

In the reed fringes, we pick out Penduline Tits, Bluethroat and literally thousands of wintering Common Chiffchaffs, glittering like motes of gold dust as they flit fly-catching from stem to stem. Across the lake we see Red Deer and Wild Boar warily coming to the water’s edge to drink.

The effect is nothing short of enchanting. You might expect the town´s famous Lady of Rocina to emerge from the woodlands at any second.

This fertile haven is the gateway to Doñana National Park, Spain´s most iconic protected area. It is formed from a springhead where the Doñana aquifer meets the surface at neighbouring La Rocina. Fittingly known as the Madre de las Marismas or “Mother of the Marshes” – it is from here, and other springheads like it, that the park´s vast complex of freshwater pools are born.

And although the madre looks beyond splendid on this January day, we soon see that she is no longer nourishing the marshes. In fact, just a few thirsty weeks later, she will herself be completely dry.

All is Not Well

As we draw ourselves away from the spell-binding watercolours of El Rocío, we soon understand that some things are amiss. In areas that should teem with Internationally Important numbers of wintering Greylag Geese and Common Cranes, we see a handful of Cranes and a lot of parched land. The lagoon at the famous Jose Valverde Visitor Centre looks fantastic, but is being artificially maintained and is already the only pool around.

We are visiting after the devastating drought year of 2022, which saw the Santa Olalla lagoon, the largest of Doñana´s permanent waterbodies, dry up for only the third time in recorded history.

Speaking in September of that year, biologist Carmen Díaz, a researcher at the Doñana Biological Research Station (EBD), said “It is assumed that there is no water at all in the entire park. I have seen the deterioration over two months. The birds were gathering, and the lagoon was full of Flamingoes, until suddenly they all disappeared,”.

In its heyday, Santa Olalla was the size of 360 Olympic swimming pools. “Today there is a puddle of one metre by two metres,” she said.

Red Gold

But blaming the drought – and by inference the ravages of our global Climate Emergency – is only half the story, and for once an all-too-convenient cover. According to scientists, it is merely exacerbating the fallout from unsustainable irrigation of strawberry greenhouses bordering the park, through both legal and illegal boreholes.

Known locally as oro rojo – red gold – industrial berries mean big business in Huelva province. The area produces 98% of Spain´s strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries, the vast majority of which are destined for Germany, the UK and the Netherlands.

According to Interfresa, the Andalucian berry-growers association, the industry is worth between €5-800 million euros annually, representing 11% of Huelva´s GDP. It´s hardly surprising that politically, in an area with high unemployment and low average income, red fruits are a hot potato.

Berry-growing in the province, covered by huge plastic greenhouses and their associated processing facilities, now officially occupies 11,000 hectares (ha), an area the size of Liverpool. Between 60 and 90 billion litres of water are pumped onto it every year. According to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), three-quarters of this area poses a direct threat to Doñana through groundwater abstraction. On top of this, they recently calculated that a further 1,400-1,700 ha are illegally irrigated from hundreds of illicit wells bored into the aquifer.

Intensive strawberry production bordering Doñana © SEO/Birdlife

There are other culprits too; the coastal tourist resort of Matalascañas, where 150,000 visitors spend their vacations in swimming pools amidst irrigated lawns, is just half a mile from the closest lagoons. Water is also poured into a nearby golf course, keeping the greens green while Doñana turns steadily brown. But groundwater abstraction for Matalascañas tourism equates to just two billion litres per year, a literal drop in the ocean compared to the precious liquid that is pumped into strawberries and sent out of the country.

This massive theft of groundwater has been allowed to happen over a period of decades, and Doñana´s plenteous aquifers are being sucked dry. The vast underground reservoir of 2,409 square kilometers now has large empty areas. The lagoons are shrinking away even when rainfall meets annual averages.

Green Gem

The ecological value of Doñana National Park cannot be understated. It is widely regarded to be the most important protected area in Europe, for its unique combination and great diversity of habitats, and for the presence of Critically Endangered Iberian endemics like Iberian Lynx and Spanish Imperial Eagle.

Located at the southern tip of Spain, at the crossroads of bird migratory routes between Europe and Africa, its rivers, lagoons, lakes, streams, marshes, estuaries, deltas, and salt pans are of vital importance for nomadic wildfowl and waders to feed, rest and recuperate during their long journeys. In good years, it is a wintering site for hundreds of thousands of birds and a breeding site for tens of thousands. Amidst the sweeping degradation of Europe´s vital wetlands, soon there will be nowhere else for these birds to go.

Originally created in 1969, the park was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1994. It is also a Biosphere Reserve and Ramsar Site, “Special Protection Area” under the EU Birds Directive, and part of the Natura 2000 Network established by the EU Birds and Habitat Directives.

But even with so much international recognition and legal protection, the wholesale destruction of this irreplaceable green gem continues.

Plundered Treasure

Half of Doñana’s 3,000 natural lagoons have been obliterated. Now covered with vegetation, many have probably disappeared for good. Only 10% are now in decent condition. “The unique ecosystem that serves as a habitat for migratory birds is disappearing,” said Felipe Fuentelsaz, a local spokesman for the WWF, in April 2022.

In May of this year, Sociedad Española de Ornitología (SEO) declared that Doñana currently does not fulfill its ecological functions for the reproduction and wintering of migratory birds, due to the degradation of their aquatic habitats. Compiling 20 years of data from Doñana´s research station, the Spanish Birdife partner´s “Report on the State of Conservation of Aquatic Birds of Doñana” shows that most of the waterbird species are in an extremely worrying situation. It shows negative population trends across the board, both for threatened species and for the masses of common waterfowl that make Doñana their home.

The situation for many birds is dire. Only two pairs of Red-knobbed Coot bred during 2022, where as recently as the early noughties there were years with over a hundred pairs. Ferruginous Duck have disappeared as a breeding bird, and the Squacco Heron and Purple Heron have worsened their conservation status. The Critically Endangered Marbled Duck, once so ubiquitous in Doñana it was known as the Queen of the Marsh, was down to 13 breeding pairs in 2022.

The queen of the marsh – Marbled Duck © Inglorious Bustards

Tern populations are plummeting. Black Tern no longer breeds, and Whiskered Tern numbers have dropped from over 1000 pairs to less than 20 pairs in 2022. Gull-billed Terns, once numerous, have only reproduced two years out of the last nine.

Wintering numbers of birds that arrive at the Guadalquivir Marshes from all over central and northern Europe are also showing devastating declines. Last winter, barely 90,000 birds were counted, compared to an average of 470,000 – the lowest number in 40 years. The Greylag Goose, one of the most emblematic and abundant wintering species in Doñana, has gone from regularly exceeding 40,000 birds to the lowest records in history, with 9,591 birds last winter.

It´s not just the bird populations but the whole aquatic ecosystem that is crumbling. Doñana is home to 11 of the 13 species of amphibians in southwestern Spain but populations of toads, newts and frogs are dwindling, their habitat reduced to a handful of unreliable lagoons and small trenches hand-dug by park rangers in a desperate attempt to ensure water in the summer. Forty-two dragonfly species have been recorded since 1959 but over half of these have been lost.

Perhaps most worrying of all are the apparent effects on the park´s two most iconic and endangered animals – Spanish Imperial Eagle and Iberian Lynx. Both are normally highly-specialised rabbit-eaters, but in Doñana they have adapted to supplementing their diets with waterfowl prey when rabbit numbers are low.

For Spanish Imperial Eagle, the fact that duck is now off the menu is thought to have contributed to the worst breeding season since 2005. In 2022, the park´s eight breeding pairs managed to fledge only five chicks between them, which according to Carlos Davila – head of the SEO/BirdLife Technical Office at Doñana – is below what´s needed to ensure a viable population. Doñana´s 90 Iberian Lynx – representing almost 10% of the world´s population – are seriously threatened by critically low rabbit numbers and habitat fragmentation, and can no longer find their traditional replacement prey in waterfowl.

Carmen Diaz says: “The park is at a very critical moment, and the only chance to improve the dreadful situation is … the reduction of underground water abstraction. Any slight possibility that [the level of abstraction] will be maintained or increased is completely negative for the park, and it would only make the current situation worse.”

Drought Strawberries

Biologists and hydrologists first spoke out in 1988, condemning the Andalucian authorities for the “conspiracy of silence” around the over-exploitation of Doñana´s aquifers for commercial purposes. Since then, Spain has been taken to the European Court of Justice twice for not doing enough to protect the park.

In 2014, the then-Socialist Andalucian government finally took action by declassifying a swath of agricultural land and removing abstraction rights, with the result that wells subsequently created on this land are illegal.

In March 2023, in a breath-takingly retrograde step, Andalucía revived plans to approve an amnesty on these illegal wells, effectively reversing the 2014 law. The regional president, Juan Manuel Moreno of the right-wing Partido Popular, said the new law addressed the legitimate economic concerns of the producers involved. Showing almost Franco-esque disdain for environmental protection and sustainability, he said “Doñana cannot be a concrete fish tank, it has to be an element of economic revitalization,”.

This move, just weeks after the ecologically disastrous loss of the Santa Olalla lagoon, catapulted Doñana into the international news. In May of 2023, German consumer campaign group, Campact, launched a petition for supermarket giants like Aldi and Lidl to boycott Huelva´s “drought strawberries”. The petition gained 160,000 signatures in just 5 days. And in July, a group of NGOs including SEO/Birdlife and WWF handed the European Commission a petition with more than 260,000 signatures to protect the National Park.

Interfresa remain taciturn on the matter, making no attempt to address sustainability or water issues on their website. There was no response from the association to requests for comment for this article.

Salvation in the balance

With mounting international pressure, there is hope for Doñana.

Last November Spanish Environment Minister, Teresa Ribera announced the Framework of Actions for Doñana, with €360 million allotted to save the park. Measures include the closure of illegal wells by 2025, better planning and management of legal irrigation, and improvements to surface water storage infrastructure, to lessen the exploitation of underground reserves. There´s also €100 million allocated for purchase and rewilding of land that currently prevents the Guadiamar river joining with the marshes.

According to SEO/Birdlife, the holistic nature of the framework – which includes courageous commitments from a political and social perspective – is valuable. In particularly the well closures, restoration of marsh areas and the recovery of river dynamics are of great importance and urgency. However, they say, the park´s aquatic ecosystems are in a critical situation as long as the inertia in water supply policies is maintained despite the climatic reality. “Irrigated crops should only exist in the environs of the National Park if they do not generate any impact on the protected area, [and are] a paradigm of sustainability,”.

Ribera has said that if her party is re-elected, they will seek to overturn the proposed Andalucian illegal well amnesty at the Constitutional Court. As I write in July 2023, Spain waits for the political dance of realignments, allegiances and coalitions to play out after an inconclusive general election. This may well be the arena in which the future of Doñana National Park is saved or lost.

On our January trip, we explored the gorgeous diversity of habitats of Doñana. We were blown away by views of two Iberian Lynx, and escorted round the woodlands and heaths by Iberian Magpies, Eurasian Hoopoes, Iberian Grey Shrikes, Hen Harriers and Short-eared Owls. We ended in the company of royalty as we shared time with the oldest Spanish Imperial Eagle in the world.

Thirsty as she is, Doñana is still magical. Whichever way you hold it to the light, this precious, irreplaceable ecological gem is worth more than all the Red Gold in the world.

Sources:

Pers comm Carmen Diaz Paniagua, Doñana Biological Research Station

Pers comm Carlos Davila, head of the SEO/BirdLife Technical Office at Doñana

Asociacion Interprofesional de la Fresa Andaluza – “Interfresa” website

Hydrodynamic numerical modelling of the water level decline in four temporary ponds of the Doñana National Park (SW Spain) – Journal of Arid Environments, 2017

Informe Sobre el Estado de Conservacion de las Aves Acuaticas en Doñana – SEO/Birdlife, April 2023

Marco de Actuaciones para Doñana, November 2022. Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico

Despite all the challenges it faces, a visit to Doñana in winter when the rains have replenished the lagoons is still magical! You can help show the value of natural Doñana by joining our tour

Delights from the Eastern Side of Coto Doñana | Birding Tour

Sometimes – albeit rarely! – we do go birding outside The Straits, and one of our favourite areas to take our guests to is the eastern side of Coto Doñana. Only an hour and a half away from The Straits area, it offers some fabulous southern Iberian birding!

All the things! Delights from the eastern side of Doñana

1st Stop!

After an early start, we arrive at dawn to a private site among extensively-managed organic vineyards, where the mosaic of habitats and low-intensity management gives the perfect breeding site for our first magical target species. As we get out of the minibus it is the first bird we hear, and the increasing light soon reveals them! The magical Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin! Their glorious song fills the air and we are delighted with the views as they sing from the vines and forage among the rows.

The Spanish name Alzacola – meaning “lift-tail” – is arguably more descriptive than the plethora of available English names! The dazzling, distinctive pattern of this bird’s frequently-displayed tail is a large part of what gives it its charm. Studies show that those with larger tail-end markings have elevated breeding success and lower rates of nest predation. The size of the white terminal patches positively affects reproductive success – the larger the white bits, the more desirable the bird! Conversely, the size of the black sub-terminal patches has a negative relationship with nest predation – the larger the black bits, the more successful the bird is in drawing predators away from the nest.

Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin © Inglorious Bustards

As the breeding season wears on, the delicate white end of the tail wears off, becoming abraded and eventually disappearing. The black patches, strengthened by melanin, do not wear so easily and effectively form the new terminal part of the tail. Mind-blowingly, it’s thought they delineate the perfect aero-dynamic shape for a long-distance traveller, a shape which is reached just as the bird is ready to leave on its migratory journey, crossing the Sahara to winter in the Sahelian belt.

Red-listed in Spain, these birds are doing really well here thanks to a locally-managed project, retaining sensitive management and artisanal farming methods in the vineyards to produce nature-friendly sherry.

2nd Stop!

Our second stop is timed to perfection. As the day heats up, gorgeous Little Swifts increase their forays from their nesting and roosting site. This colony is the most stable and accessible in the Iberian peninsula and this recent colonist from Africa is seemingly doing well!

As we arrive we are surrounded by low-flying giggling Little Swifts with Common Swifts zooming past at even higher speed! It really is a site to behold and you don’t even need binoculars! People walking through the area are interested and often come and share in the magic of the Swift mayhem!

We normally have to calm down at this point so we have a coffee whilst still watching the Swifts as they disperse further from the nest and roosting site and the mayhem subsides. We have a second breakfast hobbit-style of tostada con tomate – which normally ends up partly in my binoculars!

3rd Stop!

Nearby we visit Las Salinas de Bonanza – where famously Bill Nighy virtually visited with us in the TV series Worlds Most Scenic River Journeys! This end-point of the splendid Rio Guadalquivir is a treasure trove of ornithological wonder and could be even better if converted to traditional sustainable salt production – in the future that may be possible.

For now we are already viewing a myriad of shorebirds – Red Knot, Little Stints, Curlew Sandpipers and more – as Pied Avocets and Black-winged Stilts attack any fly-overs including Little, Gull-billed and Caspian Terns! Gorgeous Slender-billed Gulls paddle the shallows as rows of Glossy Ibis fly over.

It is easy to just look at the waders between their legs, but the Greater Flamingoes are worthy of scope time too!

Scanning the water reveals Black-necked Grebes, Eurasian Spoonbills, masses of migratory shorebirds and then some nervous-looking Marbled Ducks! With good reason as there is an Osprey sitting right above them!

The Marbled Duck is a super-rare species and many visiting birders want to get this one on their lists! It was an abundant species in the 1800s and first half of the 1900s, but due to habitat destruction, intensive irrigation for agriculture and polluted wetlands, populations crashed. Thankfully intensive conservation measures have prevented the species from disappearing in Spain but more work needs to be done on the source reasons for decline.

We end up finding 14 of these gorgeous ducks so we are all super-happy ! As a partially migratory species, it is adapted to spatiotemporal fluctuations in the availability of flooded wetlands, and moves nomadically before and after breeding to make the most of available ephemeral habitats.

4th Stop!

Now we find ourselves travelling through back streets and narrow roads to a little known area which we affectionately nickname ¨Las Lagunas de los Suenos¨

Here we find another rare duck and one that many people will be familiar with, given the risk to already declining populations from introduced Ruddy Duck. The drakes look absolutely stunning, their white heads contrasting with their bright blue waxy bills (shoes should come in this colour!) and their gorgeous chestnut brown muscular bodies! They charge at each other and splash about the water competing for females by sorting out their positions of dominance.

Considered globally Endangered, the White-headed Ducks which we are enjoying here are extinct as a breeding species in Europe ,with the exception of Spain. For such a well known species there are quite a lot of gaps in our knowledge of this species including breeding success and paternity of males, mate selection by females, dispersal, adult survival and further data on population sizes.

Among the reeds and scrub, an Isabelline Warbler creeps out into full view (one of six we saw and heard). This species that winters in The Sahel is an incredibly-range restricted breeding species in Europe and another much sort-after species.

We also gaze upon Black-crowned Night Herons, Red-crested Pochards, Western Swamphen and a Black-headed Weaver – a species introduced and now naturalised in this area.

Suddenly a Little Bittern barks then flys out across the pool to disappear in the reeds.

Our final species target for the day reveals itself calling from the pool edge but out of view and then it swims out right in front of us – the very cool Red-knobbed Coot! We can see well its blue-white bill looking like it has been sucking on a leaky biro, those comical red adornments on top of the shield, different shield pattern and subtly different posture to Common Coot.

In Sub-Saharan Africa it is a relatively abundant and common species but here in Europe and North Africa it is close to extirpation with both range and populations decreasing alarmingly. Again, agricultural pollution, water abstraction and habitat degradation are to blame and sadly the decline of this species is representative of some of the biggest problems we see from unsuitable unsustainable agriculture bordering Doñana National and Natural Park.

Would you like a days #birding like this? Join us on our Swift Weekender tour and experience this and a whole lot more excellent birding!

Serrania de Ronda 2024

Serrania de Ronda – 1 – 7 February 2024

Leaving the bustling Costa del Sol far behind, we spent the week on a literal avian high, exploring the wide-ranging and varied habitats of the Natural and National Parks of the Serrania de Ronda.

It´s always hard to pick the best highlights from such an action-packed trip – there were certainly many!

Dramatic limestone crags, softened by a haze of almond blossom, yielded Black Wheatear, Blue Rock Thrush, Rock Petronia, Black Redstart, Red-billed Chough, Golden and Bonelli´s Eagle, and the hulking form of a Eurasian Black Vulture among dozens of swirling Griffon Vultures.

On spring-fed freshwater ponds, whose contents read like a most-wanted of Spanish wildfowl, we delighted in some glorious views of White-headed Duck, Black-necked Grebe, Red-crested Pochard, Critically Endangered Marbled Ducks and more!

A duck with outstretched wings standing in water, displaying intricate feather patterns under sunlight. — Marbled Duck © Inglorious Bustards

On areas of sensitively-managed farmland, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Little Bustards and a whopping 79 Great Bustards shone out against a delightful backdrop of farmland goodies including Iberian Grey Shrike, Calandra, Thekla´s and Crested Lark, Zitting Cisticola, gorgeous Black-winged Kites and flocks of hundreds of Common Cranes.

Many calories were burnt in excitement, but it was sure nobody would go hungry on this trip, with cordon bleu-trained chef Iván on the case providing stunning 3-course meals every evening in our charming characterful hotel, and the “picnic fairies” busy each day sourcing and preparing sustainable local produce and freshly-baked bread for our sustenance!

Great memories, great laughs and EPIC birding!

A bird perched on a branch with red berries, surrounded by green leaves. — Black Redstart © Inglorious Bustards

Day 1 Thursday 1 February

Simon picked the group up from Málaga airport and we were soon heading out of the city, away from the bustling Costa del Sol and up into the mountains of the Serranía de Ronda. Climbing over 1000m, ears were soon popping as spectacular views down towards The Straits of Gibraltar unfolded before us!

We met with Niki at the Sierra de las Nieves – Spain´s newest National Park, featuring outstanding limestone geology and a unique high-altitude Mediterranean flora community. Here we enjoyed our welcome picnic together, today as every day tucking into fresh local bread, olives and salads, as well as delicious local cheeses, specially selected for their conservation value. It was so good a Rock Bunting came to check it out from a nearby endemic Spanish Fir (Abies pinsapo) tree!

A small bird with a striped head and a mix of gray and brown feathers perched on green spiky foliage. — Rock Bunting © Inglorious Bustards

We headed out on a stroll to explore the area, immediately spotting an Iberian Grey Shrike perched high on a hawthorn bush. Amongst a group of a couple of dozen Griffon Vultures, we picked out a Golden Eagle soaring! Among shrubby stunted growth of Holm and Gall Oaks, we picked out several Woodlarks, Mistle Thrush and more Rock Buntings. Common Firecrest and Short-toed Treecreeper sang.

A small bird perched on a branch, singing. The bird has a yellow and gray plumage with distinct markings on its head and wings. — Common Firecrest © Inglorious Bustards

Next we headed on through the craggy moonscape towards our accommodation, making birding stops along the way of course! On the road through the Genal Valley, which would be our local patch, we were thrilled to pick up our first Black Wheatears! A Thekla´s Lark showed well, as did one of several Dartford Warblers – with some patience!

A Rock Sparrow perched briefly on a boulder and we could see Red-billed Choughs swooping around a distant crag. Another Golden Eagle put in a spectacular appearance sweeping past us!

Then it was on to our base at Hotel Bandolero in the quirky pueblo azul of Júzcar. We were a bit sad to find that the Smurf statues had all been confiscated due a copyright infringement! But quirky as ever, the village was still adorned with eclectic murals and street ornaments and the overlook to the wooded valley remained stunning as ever! Simon and Niki delivered the group into the excellent hospitable hands of hotel owners David and Iván. While David provided the entertaining banter, cordon bleu-trained chef would certainly make sure nobody went hungry this week!

Day 2 Friday 2 February

Today we set out to explore more of the area´s glorious limestone habitat, beginning just up the road at Los Riscos crags. We immediately came upon a small flock of Rock Petronias. Several Crag Martins flitted around the sheer rock face, while Blue Rock Thrushes perched on the pinnacles. We caught up with another Black Wheatear, showing well.

We took a stroll out among the crags, the pathway lined with pretty Narcissus baeticus (endemic to Andalucía´s Baetic mountain range) and Broad-leaved Iris. Among the many European Serins, Eurasian Chaffinches and European Greenfinches singing in the valley, we picked out a couple of Cirl Buntings.

As numerous Griffon Vultures began to leave roosts around us, we took our cue from them to move on to our next stop!

And a very pretty one it was too! As the ´picnic fairies´ began their daily magic, the group walked down to the crystal waters of the Cueva del Gato, where a torrent emerges from the end of an 8km cave system to form a mesmerizing aquamarine pool, before joining the Rio Guadiaro. Here we connected with Grey Wagtails and a White-throated Dipper, as well as Black Redstart, Cetti´s and Sardinian Warbler, and wintering Common Chiffchaff and Eurasian Blackcap.

A grey and yellow bird standing on a rock near the water, surrounded by autumn leaves floating on the surface. — Grey Wagtail © Inglorious Bustards

At the picnic spot Crag Martins zoomed around, Griffon Vultures soared overhead, and we were thrilled to be joined by a Bonelli´s Eagle!

We finished the day at the other end of the same cave system, at Cuevo del Hundidero, a massive sinkhole on the mountains above Montejaque, enjoying Blue Rock Thrush, Rock Bunting and more. A Eurasian Black Vulture was picked out among the resident Griffon Vultures of the colony. As the afternoon wore on, we were treated to a spectacular Red-billed Chough-nado of over 90 birds!

A vulture soaring gracefully in the sky over a forested area, showcasing its wingspan against a blurred natural background. — Griffon Vulture © Inglorious Bustards

Day 3 Saturday 3 February

Today, after collecting the usual freshly-baked loaf from the hotel oven, we headed north east through the Cordilleras Beticas and began by getting acquainted with some of the sensitively-managed arable farmland around the Campillos area. At the Laguna Dulce, we enjoyed 80 wintering Common Cranes flying by, as well as Iberian Grey Shrike, Calandra Larks, Eurasian Skylark and many Crested Larks. Mixed flocks of farmland birds included Common Linnets, European Goldfinch, European Serin, Eurasian Siskin, Corn Bunting and European Greenfinch.

Next, on to another nearby area, which was also full of great stuff, including Northern Lapwing, Iberian Grey Shrike, Eurasian Skylark, Crested Lark, Zitting Cisticola, and Black Redstart. We also had fantastic views of a gorgeous Black-winged Kite. But the stars of the show, wandering through a cereal field, heads poking out of the crop, were seven Little Bustards!! It´s always a joy to encounter this fast-declining bird, miraculously clinging on in arable farmland that used to be its preferred steppe habitat.

A group of birds standing in a grassy field, partially camouflaged among the dry vegetation. — Little Bustards © Inglorious Bustards

Next, on to the main event – the freshwater and saline pools of Laguna de Fuente de Piedra, one of the area´s prime wetland reserves. We started by making a patrol of the spring-fed freshwater ponds, whose contents read like a most-wanted of Spanish wildfowl! We enjoyed White-headed Duck, Black-necked Grebe, Red-crested Pochard and some glorious views of Marbled Ducks among Common Shelduck, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Eurasian Teal, Common Pochard, Little Grebe and more!

As we watched a Water Pipit patrolling the shoreline, we got a fly-by from 200 Common Cranes. Waders included Black-Winged Stilts, Little Ringed Plover, Northern Lapwing, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Snipe and Dunlin. We also enjoyed the spectacle of over 2000 wintering Lesser Black-backed Gulls swirling overhead!

After picnic lunch near the visitor centre, we headed to a nearby high point from where we could view down onto the main lagoon. This spring fed lake has no exit point for the water, so it evaporates leaving a saline lagoon behind. Today we could look down on a pink haze created by hundreds of promenading Greater Flamingoes!

A group of flamingos wading in shallow water, with one flamingo displaying vibrant red and black coloring among the mostly white birds. — Greater Flamingoes © Inglorious Bustards

Nearby, two stunning Black-winged Kites were mobbing a Common Buzzard, clearly defending a nest site. In a nearby field, over 800 Common Cranes were grazing and emitting their gentle bugling sound. We enjoyed sightings of Little Owl, Western Marsh Harrier and Iberian Grey Shrike in the area.

We headed home and rolled straight into dinner after an action-packed and thoroughly awesome day´s birding!We certainly replaced any lost calories, feasting on chef Iván´s twist on tomates a la abuela – “grannies tomatoes” – and a delicately-flavoured Thai-style curry from partner David! And the delicious melt-in-the-mouth strawberry-glazed mousse put us at a loss for words!

Day 4 Sunday 4 February

Known as the “Osuna Triangle”, this area of arable land is renowned for its populations of steppe birds, clinging on in this largely unfavourable landscape thanks to areas of sensitively farmed land. The plan is to explore the area, making stops and scanning the landscape in favourable areas, seeing what we can find. But straight out of the van on the first stop, we found ourselves looking at 48 Great Bustards! Utterly thrilled, we spent some time observing these enormous yet strangely elegant birds.

We enjoyed Red Kites and Calandra Larks, and before too long found ourselves looking at another 21 Great Bustards!

A brown and white bird walking through a green field with patches of dried grass in the background. — Great Bustard © Inglorious Bustards

Above us, 13 White Storks, Red Kites and a handful of early-returning migratory Black Kites, already heading back to European breeding grounds.

Our engaging picnic spot was by a freshwater pool where we could enjoy lunch and a show, with Greater Flamingoes, Common Cranes, Kentish Plover, Dunlin, Little Stint, Spanish Sparrow and 940 Lesser Black-backed Gulls on view.

We had one final stop before heading back – and to our delight we found our prize in the form of a flock of 17 Black-bellied Sandgrouse!!

Chef Iván surpassed himself tonight, serving up giant portobello mushrooms stuffed with rich ratatouille-style pisto and topped with crisp shredded potato fries and a hearty poached egg!

Day 5 Monday 5 February

A change of pace today with a morning visit to the historic city of Ronda. We walked through the scenic Alameda Gardens and along the promenade overlooking the precipitous drop to the west of the city. Across the plains way below, we could see back across to the impressive crags of Montejaque. We continued around the walkway, looking down into the Tajo Gorge which splits the city in two parts, bound together by three historic bridges, one 18th century, one Moorish, and one dating right back to Roman times. In the canyon below us, two Blue Rock Thrush and many Crag Martins.

A black bird, possibly a chough, flying with its wings spread wide against a blurred green background. — Red-billed Chough © Inglorious Bustards

The group had time to wander in this enjoyable place – and maybe buy some of the excellent local cheese! – before heading back out into the Sierra de las Nieves National Park for picnic in our local patch! We refamiliarized ourselves with its residents, including over sixty Griffon Vultures, three Golden Eagles, Iberian Grey Shrike, Dartford Warbler, Woodlark, Siskin, Rock Bunting and more!

We spent the rest of this relaxed day exploring locally in various nooks and crannies of the Genal Valley, including the rather spellbinding birthplace of the river itself, where the first hints of a spring seep out of the limestone. Here we enjoyed Grey Wagtails and a host of wintering warblers. In the surrounding woodlands, featuring Sweet Chestnut, and various oak species, we enjoyed a suite of woodland goodies including Great Spotted Woodpecker, Eurasian Jay, Crested and Long-tailed Tits, Eurasian Nuthatch, Short-toed Treecreeper and Hawfinch.

Day 6 Tuesday 6 February

The last full day of our trip was already upon us – time for the grande finale, visiting arguably the most spectacular landscape of the area in the Parque Natural de Sierra de Grazalema. As we emerged from the enjoyable drive through Cork Oak dehesa, the view opened out before us.

We spent the morning exploring a valley floor alongside a meandering stream, where soft almond blossom contrasted against the harsh crags behind. Red-billed Choughs called from nests on the cliffs. Hawfinches, Corn and Cirl Buntings Grey and White Wagtails and Meadow Pipit frequented the pastures. Violet Carpenter Bees drifted past in the mild spring sun. A Peregrine Falcon swooped stunningly low over us. Overhead, Griffon Vultures were on the move and among them a Eurasian Black Vulture!

Continuing down the valley, streamside scrub held Cetti´s Warblers and wintering Eurasian Blackcaps. At our scenic picnic spot at the hub of the valley, Short-toed Treecreeper, Song and Mistle Thrush added to the soundtrack and we enjoyed Eurasian Jays, Griffon Vultures and a Eurasian Sparrowhawk overhead. A Eurasian Nuthatch frequented its nest hole, complete with mud porch.

We ended our Grazalema experience literally on a high, heading up to the mountain pass of Puerto de las Palomas at 1357m above sea level – that´s 12m higher than the summit of Ben Nevis! We took a path up a rocky outcrop and enjoyed time looking down on dozens of soaring Griffon Vultures, Common Ravens and Crag Martins, while Blue Rock Thrush and Rock Bunting frequented the nearby boulders.

A small black bird perched on a rocky surface, surrounded by green foliage. — Black Wheatear © Inglorious Bustards

We headed home, but not without enjoying a couple more treats that our local patch had in store! We finished the birding day watching flitting Dartford Warblers and a high-drama Black Wheatear turf war!

Day 7 Wednesday 7 February

The team went our separate ways with some great memories of mountains, plains, woodlands, wetlands, delicious dinners and picnics, fascinating information, great banter, and of course epic birding!

A vulture soaring gracefully in the sky with its wings spread wide. — Griffon Vulture © Inglorious Bustards

Trip list available via e Bird here – making our #Birding count!

First White-backed Vulture tagged in Europe – implications for African Vulture conservation

A version of this blog was originally published online on the Birdguides website (02/01/2022).

Summary

On 3rd December 2021, Fundación Migres ringed and GPS-tagged a White-backed Vulture, a vagrant to Europe and the first one to be ringed and tagged in Europe.

The occurrence of this species here – alongside the increased incidence of Rüppell’s Vulture in The Straits – is extremely interesting. Both species are Critically Endangered in their usual sub-Saharan range. It is hypothesised that the increase in Eurasian Griffon Vulture numbers in Europe may be at least partly responsible as this leads to an increase in the number of young Griffons dispersing from and returning to Europe. The largely sedentary African Vulture species mix with young Griffons in The Sahel and get caught up in the return flow of these birds.

Rüppell’s and White-backed Vulture are on the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species considered to be Critically Endangered, which is the last category before global extinction.

Satellite tagging these vagrant birds will give us new insights into these Critically Endangered species and aid our conservation knowledge for African Vultures.

The project team decided to name the White-backed Vulture “Viking” in thanks and reference to project partners and funders Viking Optical.

The project

Originally, following presentations and findings at the IUCN Rüppell’s Vulture symposium and given the increasing occurrence of Rüppell’s Vultures in both Southern Europe and North Africa (in particular either North or South sides of The Straits of Gibraltar), the project team had aimed to ring and GPS tag this species at a feeding station.

Since the early nineties, Rüppell’s Vultures have been encountered in the Iberian Peninsula particularly in The Straits of Gibraltar.

The occurrence of normally largely sedentary African Vultures in The Straits is likely to be linked to an increase in Eurasian Griffon Vulture numbers (thanks in no small part to Spanish conservation efforts). The resulting increase of Eurasian Griffon Vultures migrating to the Sahel and mixing with the declining African Vulture populations has meant that when the two species encounter each other, some Rüppell’s or White-backed Vultures get caught up in the “conveyor belt” of the pre-nuptial Griffon Vulture migration and make their way into North Africa and sometimes on to Europe.

We know from existing telemetry data that some of the birds that have made it as far as Morocco have even returned to the Sahel.

One possible future issue for the critically endangered African Vulture population could be hybridisation. At the moment there are only records of copulation between Rüppell´s and Eurasian Griffon Vultures without any evidence of viable offspring. However, Rüppell’s Vulture has been recorded producing viable offspring with Cape Vulture in South Africa.

“Viking” takes flight what secrets will this White-backed Vulture tell us about the movements, interactions and conservation issues of African Vultures? © Inglorious Bustards

We speculate that there is an increased chance of hybridisation in the future as Eurasian Griffon Vulture numbers continue to increase and, if carrying capacity is reached in Iberia, begin to recolonise former breeding areas in Morocco. This effect could produce reverse gene flow issues into the Sahelian populations of critically endangered African Vultures.

Here in The Straits the Rüppell’s Vulture is still considered a rare occurrence, but is encountered with increasing frequency. It has been recorded frequently at feeding stations set up by Fundacíon Migres for Egyptian Vulture conservation projects. This provides a unique opportunity to tag and study the movements of these vagrants and the possibility of reverse gene flow back into African Vulture populations in the Sahel.

On 3rd December 2021 a White-backed Vulture was trapped and it was decided that the concept of understanding the wider conservation issues for declining and critically endangered African Vultures moving through The Straits still holds true for this species. Just as we have seen increases in the occurrence of Rüppell’s Vulture so too could this White-backed Vulture be the forerunner to increased occurrences in North Africa and Southern Europe.

GPS transmitter and high frequency radio tag fitted to “Viking” the White-backed Vulture © Inglorious Bustards

After studying photographs of a White-backed Vulture recently observed and photographed by Javier Elorriaga and Sergio Briones in Tarifa and Los Barrios, we can see that this now-marked bird is not the same individual. This means there are at least two White-backed Vultures on Spanish side of The Straits this year alone with a further two trapped and marked on the Moroccan side this year too.

Understanding these vagrancy patterns potentially linked to declining populations of largely sedentary African Vultures and increases in youth dispersal of Eurasian Griffon Vultures is key to a wider diagnosis of the plight of Africa’s declining Vulture populations.

A field readable colour ring will additionally allow for field ornithologists / observers to quickly identify “Viking”, especially as we now know of additional White-backed Vultures occurring in the vicinity of The Straits © Inglorious Bustards

Implications for conservation

We have considered the implications of this project across our project team and using the framework of spatial targeting for single-species conservation planning (“the Species Recovery Curve”) concluded that more data-gathering was needed to understand the patterns of vagrancy of sub-Saharan African Vulture populations and the subsequent implications for conservation.

Therefore we score the project at Diagnosis 2/3 on the Recovery Curve. This is because whilst we know many of the reasons for decline across the normal range, we still don’t know the full status nor the reasons for their now regular vagrancy into Europe.

Nor do we fully understand vagrant African Vultures interactions with breeding colonies of Eurasian Griffon Vultures once in Europe. There have been observations of Rüppell’s Vultures copulating with Eurasian Griffon Vultures but as yet there is no evidence of viable offspring being produced.

Griffon Vulture returning to Europe at The Straits of Gibraltar © Inglorious Bustards

McCarthy (2006) reports numerous instances of White-backed Vulture hybridisation with Rüppell’s Vulture in captivity and unpublished reports of hybridisation with Cape Vulture too. It would therefore seem likely that hybridisation between White-backed and Eurasian Griffon Vultures could be possible.

McCarthy also reports on multiple instances of Rüppell’s Vulture hybridising with Eurasian Griffon Vulture in captivity. An adult specimen in the Natural History Museum, Tring, taken from a nest in Algeria, is considered to be a naturally-occurring wild hybrid between Rüppell’s Vulture and Eurasian Griffon Vulture (Davies & Clark 2018).

Additionally if the occurrence of African Vultures in Southern Europe continues to increase, it is also feasible that they could eventually set up a new intra-specific breeding population.

Main threats to African Vultures

Both primary and secondary poisoning are thought to be key drivers of the rapid decline of African Vultures (including the use of diclofenac in cattle and direct poisoning by poachers using carbofuran). Evidence from wing-tagging and telemetry studies already suggests that annual mortality of present species, principally from incidental poisoning, is perhaps as high as 25%.

Trapping and killing for “traditional voodoo practices” and national and international illegal trade are also threats. African Vulture species are also affected by collisions with power infrastructure, particularly power cables. Longer dry seasons are leading to changes in habitat mosaic and possible lack of food. The loss or felling of nesting trees, and disturbance of nesting trees in particular for White-backed Vultures and at cliff nesting sites for Rüppell’s Vultures also pose problems.

Nesting tree loss and disturbance in places across the Western Sahel is of particular note as there are very few suitable cliff nesting sites for Rüppell’s Vultures (none at all in The Gambia for instance).

As the populations of African Vultures decline further due to these multivariate issues, the motivation towards vagrancy increases, as does the potential for hybridisation and reverse gene flow back to the sub-Saharan African Vulture population.

Hybridisation could therefore emerge as a symptom of overall decline and a new threat to African Vulture populations.

Progress and future work

With the support of IUCN-Med, GREPOM-BirdLife Morocco and the Moroccan Department of Waters and Forests, experts from Spain and Morocco have joined forces to tag vultures with GPS and satellite transmitters.

In northern Morocco, near The Straits of Gibraltar the team worked with Rüppell’s Vulture (Gyps rueppellii) from the Jbel Moussa Vulture Recovery Centre (CRV). 12 birds were tagged with GPS during 2020 (26 trapped and marked with wingtags, 12 of them marked with GPS), and another 12 birds with GPS during 2021 (devices provided by Junta de Andalucía, Fundación Migres, Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), GREFA (Grupo de Rehabilitación de la Fauna Autóctona y su Hábitat) and Wilder South. Additionally a further two Rüppell’s Vultures have been ringed in Malaga by the University of Malaga.

In early September a young Rüppell’s Vulture in central Portugal was taken into care for rehabilitation and subsequently released after being fitted with a GPS tracker. This Rüppell’s Vulture was named “Vouzela” and tagging was conducted in a collaboration by the Vulture Conservation Foundation (VCF).

Vouzela represents only the third time in Europe and the first time in Portugal that a Rüppell’s Vulture has been fitted with a GPS tag. The question of whether these vagrant African Vultures return to sub-Saharan Africa was subsequently proven this year as Vouzela crossed The Straits of Gibraltar and is now in Northern Senegal.

Did Vouzela originate from colonies in the Sahel or perhaps an unknown intra-specific breeding in Eurasian Griffon Vulture colonies in Iberia?

Increased tagging and monitoring is essential to better understand the movements of declining African Vultures, particularly vagrant individuals, and to ensure we fully diagnose all the potential and multi-variate conservation issues critically endangered African Vultures face as their European congeners’ population continues to increase.

Map showing Rüppell’s Vulture “Vouzela’s” GPS movements since release in Portugal (credit Vulture Conservation Foundation)

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the team involved in the projects and collaborations across organisations, we have been able to deploy expertise and resources rapidly, demonstrating the benefits of working collaboratively internationally and at a cross-organisational scale.

“Viking” with some of the project team before release © Fundación Migres

This project would not be possible without the financial help kindly received from project sponsors Viking Optical and Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC).

This work would not be possible without the tireless expertise and work of Fundacíon Migres, Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), GREPOM / Birdlife Morocco, IUCN-Med, Vulture Conservation Foundation (VCF), The Flyway Birding Association / Inglorious Bustards and the Junta de Andalucia.

Simon Tonkin (Inglorious Bustards / Flyway Birding), Carlos Torralvo, Alejandro Onrubia, Cristina Gonzalez (Fundacíon Migres) and Stuart Gillies (Viking Optical)

References

Davies. R., Clark. B. – African Raptors (2018).

Garrido, J.R., Martín J. and Clavero H. (2020). An overview of the first international symposium on the Rüppell’s Vulture in the Mediterranean region, 24th March 2021. Vulture News, 79: 38-44.

McCarthy. E.M. (2006) – Handbook of Avian Hybrids of the World.

Onrubia, A., Torralvo, C., González, C. and Ferrer, M. (2020). Informe de evaluación de la población del buitre moteado o de Ruppell (Gyps rueppelli) en Andalucía. Consejería de Agricultura, Ganadería, Pesca y Desarrollo Sostenible, Junta de Andalucía: Sevilla. (Unpublished report)

UICN (2021). Recomendaciones para la elaboración de un Plan de acción para la conservación del buitre de Rüppell (Gyps rueppelli) en el mediterráneo occidental. Málaga, España: UICN.

“Viking” the tagged White-backed Vulture will undoubtedly reveal interesting but critical information regarding the vagrancy of African Vultures and the resulting conservation implications for these critically endangered species © Inglorious Bustards

The Final Count(down) 2021

Another season has passed us by, and from 5th May 2021 to 5th December 2021 Fundación Migres has once again been monitoring the passage of migratory birds through here at The Straits of Gibraltar.

For our small part we helped with the counts whenever we could for this important programme, which has been running since 1997.

Together we counted 521,000 soaring migratory birds including 151,300 White and Black Storks and 369,700 raptors of 37 different species!

Additionally 443,300 passerine migrants were counted, including 197,000 Finches, 87,500 hirundines, 83,000 Pallid, Common and Alpine Swifts, 32,000 European Bee-eaters, 15,000 Spotless Starlings and 14,000 House and Spanish Sparrows.

European Bee-eater © Inglorious Bustards

Fundación Migres also monitored the seabird passage from (permit-only) Isla de Tarifa, where we counted 404,000 seabirds passing through The Straits. These included 350,500 Scopoli’s / Cory’s Shearwaters, 21,500 Balearic Shearwaters, 15,000 Northern Gannet, 11,300 Gulls and Terns, 3,100 Razorbills and Atlantic Puffins and 600 Skuas.

Add to that the specific Balearic Shearwater monitoring programme, which counted a further 27,445 of this species passing through The Straits between May and July.

Niki counting out the Black Kites © Inglorious Bustards

All of this count data represents long-term monitoring of population at this migratory bottleneck. With this data we are able to trace long-term (and short-term) trends of individual species at the East Atlantic Flyway scale, which can be used to alert conservationists, policy-makers and land managers to population declines and increases – demonstrating that monitoring is a vital part of conservation diagnosis management

Congratulations to the magnificent and dedicated team at Fundación Migres and their tireless work and for allowing us to be a small part of a great team. Additional thanks should go to Viking Optical who not only have supported the programme through loan optics but also taking part in the count themselves!

Alejandro Onrubia is on it! © Inglorious Bustards

However, just as one season ends another one starts – the first White Storks are already returning to Europe and the Black Kites won’t be too far behind! Soon we will be observing the promise of return being fulfilled!

Everyday is a good day in The Straits – then you see a Lanner 🙂 © Inglorious Bustards

White Stork wallpaper ! © Inglorious Bustards

After several days of strong cross-winds Kite Fest happened! – over 20,000 Back Kites crossing in a single day! © Inglorious Bustards

Rüppell’s Vulture encounters are becoming much more regular © Inglorious Bustards

It is important to kneel in reverence at the the passing of a large group of White Storks (plus you don’t fall over!) – Simon counting with Viking Optical / Stuart Gillies © Inglorious Bustards

Swirling masses of White Storks! © Inglorious Bustards

Often the raptor that doesn’t quite get the attention it deserves the super awesome Black Kite here a juvenile © Inglorious Bustards

Juvenile Black Kite © Inglorious Bustards

Incoming Griffon Vulture – returning to Europe leaving Africa behind it as it returns from its youth dispersal © Inglorious Bustards

Early mornings at the watchpoint sometimes saw us watching European Rollers before they moved on © Inglorious Bustards

White Storks taking on The Straits © Inglorious Bustards

Strength in Numbers – You Can’t Stop The Black Kite Super-flock!

For the sheer spectacle of the Black Kite migration, August in The Straits is hard to beat! Those of you who follow our social media will have seen the indescribably large numbers passing through Tarifa during those days. “Swirling masses”, “breath-taking spectacle”, “skies literally full” – the superlatives dry up long before the torrent of birds! There are not really words or images that can fully describe what it´s like to watch 50,000 raptors pass over in a week – 18,000 in a single day – as we did! And then massive numbers again the next day, and the next – it´s almost incomprehensible to the brain!

The strong ﬂocking behaviour that characterises the autumn migratory behaviour of Black Kites is what makes the period so special. At the end of their breeding season, Kites belonging to the same colony tend to aggregate in roosts, and they often leave breeding sites together.

*“Milanada”* – Black Kites massing at the meeting of two continents in Tarifa © Inglorious Bustards

As they travel, they meet other migrants along the way or at stopover sites like rubbish dumps or burning cultivated ﬁelds. The ﬂocks build and build in number, until the huge populations of the Iberian Peninsula, France, Germany and Switzerland all meet at Tarifa, to cross the narrowest point of The Straits. Add to the mix the challenge of crossing the sea during the area´s frequent crosswinds and that’s why we get these extraordinary festivals in the sky.

In this species, mortality rates are high between the ﬁrst and second year of life – many don´t make it back from their first migration. The arduous journey represents a powerful selective force. It may be what encourages juvenile Black Kites to migrate together with adults, and could explain the strong tendency of Black Kites to travel in ﬂocks during the southbound migration.

To Africa! – a juvenile Black Kite traverses the continents for the first time © Inglorious Bustards

We know that large bodies of water represent major obstacles for the migration of soaring birds because thermal updrafts are absent or weak over water. But there is still much to understand about the specific factors that affect an individual´s likelihood of surviving this treacherous step of the journey – and indeed, how many make it across the sea to Africa.

The birds leave Spain highly concentrated, but arrive in Morocco spread out over a broad front, so counting them out of Spain and checking them in to Morocco is an impossibility. However, advances in satellite tagging provide new opportunities to seek answers.

The Black Kite is the most common soaring species crossing The Strait of Gibraltar during the post-breeding migration, with up to 140,000 individuals counted on an annual basis. Their strategy of gathering in large flocks and travelling together makes this super-numerous raptor the ideal study choice, and The Straits the ideal study area.

During a recent study, 73 migrating Kites were trapped in the Tarifa area and fitted with GPS dataloggers. These high-resolution data-collecting devices allowed the team to obtain incredibly detailed information about each individual crossing. The GPS position of each bird, both horizontally and vertically, was recorded every minute over land, and every ten seconds once they embarked on their crossing of The Strait of Gibraltar, and information was gathered about acceleration and flapping behaviour of the birds.

The team could now determine the duration, length, altitude, speed and “tortuosity” of the sea crossing, and record failed crossing attempts. These parameters were modelled against wind speed and direction, time of day, the strength of the sun (giving insight into the thermal uplifts available), starting altitude and distance to Morocco, and the age and sex of the birds.

Taken together, this information surely brought them as close as you can imagine to being able to perceive and visualise the course of each individual crossing, and give a real picture of the “decisions” made by each bird about when and how to cross.

The good news – no Black Kites were harmed during the researching of this paper! All 73 survived, and although there were 40 failed crossing attempts during the study where the bird turned back to Spain, 62 successful crossings were eventually made.

Perhaps surprisingly, there were no age differences in the probability of quitting a sea crossing. There were however, marked differences in performance and risk-taking of younger birds. They tended to take much longer than experienced adults to make the crossing, having embarked into stronger crosswinds or from lower altitudes, and therefore needing to use exhausting powered flight to reach the other side. They were just as likely to succeed, but often did so by the skin of their bills, and at a high physical cost.

The similar success rates of adults and juveniles could be taken as a testament to the success of the strategy of gregarious behaviour and mixed flocks, so any youngsters crossing can at least get pointers from an experienced adult! On the other hand, we can’t know if poorly-performing juveniles went on to pay the price for their exertions later in their vast journey to Mauritania, Mali and beyond.

Despite being possibly the most common raptor in the world, the European population of Black Kites has declined owing to poisoning, shooting, pollution of water and over-use of pesticides. Modernisation of urban environments and agricultural intensification are also thought to be causing declines locally, as prey and carrion are less available in the landscape.

As well as being intrinsically fascinating, deepening our understanding of how Black Kites travel and learn from one another, where they go and what affects their chances can hold the key to their conservation – and to the preservation of the glorious sky-festival in The Straits!

Black Kites collecting to cross The Straits © Inglorious Bustards

For a piece of this amazing action, take a look at our tours page, especially our day and bespoke tours, and our Bird Migration & Cetaceans trip – and sign up to our free e-newsletter, where we´ll shortly be announcing a brand new migration trip for 2022!

A Fantastic Tail

A Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin keeping its tail in tip top condition © Inglorious Bustards

Whether you call it the Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin, the Rufous Bush-chat, the Rufous-tailed Bush Robin or maybe even the Rufous-tailed Scrub-Bush Robin-Chat, one thing that we can all agree on is that this little bird is a stunner.

The Spanish name Alzacola – meaning “lift-tail” – is arguably more descriptive than the plethora of available English names! The dazzling, distinctive pattern of this bird’s frequently displayed tail is a large part of what gives it its charm.

Peering through the organic vines you might see that distinctive tail flick! – Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin © Inglorious Bustards

This striking appendage is almost constantly on the move, slowly up and down or dropped and spread like a fan; often it is cocked vertically, or held almost flat along the back, the wings meanwhile being flicked forward or part-opened and drooped, tips nearly scraping the ground.

The tail is a multi-functional tool. It serves to beguile a mate and to warn off potential competitors. It’s also a lure, to distract predators and draw them away from the nest, perched just inches from the ground among the vines or hedgerows of its agrarian habitat.

Evolution has whittled this tool to perfection! Studies have shown that the size of the white terminal patches positively affects reproductive success – the larger the white bits, the more desirable the bird! Conversely, the size of the black sub-terminal patches has a negative relationship with nest predation – the larger the black bits, the more successful the bird is in drawing predators away from the nest.

But the evolutionary intricacy of this extremity is even more complex! The Alzacola is a nomadic bird, migrating thousands of miles to winter in as yet poorly-understood areas of sub-Saharan Africa. As the breeding season wears on, the delicate white end of the tail wears off, becoming abraded and eventually disappearing. The black patches, strengthened by melanin, do not wear so easily and effectively form the new terminal part of the tail. Mind-blowingly, it’s thought they delineate the perfect aero-dynamic shape for a long-distance traveller, a shape which is reached just as the bird is ready to leave on its migratory journey. How cool is that?!

In its breeding areas, the bird often collaborates uneasily with nearby Woodchat Shrikes, striking up a kind of neighbourhood watch scheme. They make handsome partners, sporting a matching colour scheme of rufous-y bits, with prominent flashing black-and-white wings and tail. The Shrike takes a look-out from the tops of trees and posts, keeping an eye out for Eurasian Sparrowhawks and other aerial predators. Meanwhile, the lower-level Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin is alert to ground predators like foxes, mustelids, snakes and feral cats. Each bird knows the other’s alarm call, enabling double the vigilance! This partnership surely takes the sting out of what must be a bit of a contest for grasshoppers, spiders and beetles!

Across its range – which extends from Portugal, southern Spain and the Balkan Peninsula, through the Middle East to Iraq, Kazakhstan and Pakistan, and also Africa, where it breeds from Morocco to Egypt and south of the Sahara as far east as Somalia – the bird is split into numerous sub-species. Many of these population numbers are stable, and considered of Least Concern in conservation terms.

Sadly though, in Spain the migratory race Cercotrichas galactotes galactotes is considered Endangered. In recent decades the area of traditionally and extensively managed vineyards in Andalucía – one of the bird´s main population strongholds – has decreased by nearly 70%. Just like in wider agriculture, vineyard and orchard production is being intensified – herbicides, pesticides, habitat removal and mechanical harvesting drastically reduce biodiversity. The ecosystem is broken from the bottom up, and the Alzacola is no longer able to find nesting sites or large-bodied insect prey amongst sparse vine monocultures.

In the area of Trebujena however, Alzacolas are getting a big helping hand from Nature-friendly viticulturalists!

Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin in the Nature Friendly vineyards of Trebujena © Inglorious Bustards

These farmers are caring for their lands and their cultural and natural heritage, producing excellent, organic, Nature-friendly vino oloroso in the Marco de Jerez region, with the Xeres-Sherry Designation of Origin. We’re extremely proud to be working with this project through our not-for-profit arm, the Flyway Birding Association, and you can read more about it here.

With its organic, hand-harvested artisanal vineyards rich in insects and habitat, this area is a 1000-hectare oasis for Nature amongst a desert of intensive agriculture. No surprise that it holds the highest concentration of Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin nests in the Iberian Peninsula. Each year approximately 129 pairs are recorded, which is likely if anything to be an underestimate. That’s one reason why one of the first tasks of the project is to formalise an annual census in order to be able to accurately monitor the population going forward.

If you’re a follower of our social media feed, you will have seen that we spent some incredible days in the area this week, with active territories all around us. At one point we were in the midst of a skirmish between four different individuals! We’re certainly looking forward to finally being able to share them with you again during our Swift Weekender Tour 2022 or perhaps a guided day tour of the area. If that doesn’t make you want to shake your tail-feather, we don’t know what will!

Our Sustainability Journey – The Story So Far!

In July 2020, Niki completed the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC)´s training course in Sustainable Tourism delivery. This excellent learning programme gives a full understanding of GSTC´s Sustainability Criteria and how to apply them appropriately to a tourism business or organisation of any size or scope.

Migrating Black Stork crossing The Straits – Sustainability in what we do ultimately helps migrant birds and their habitats © Inglorious Bustards

It teaches the importance of having a sustainability reporting and management system in place, to make sustainability achievements measurable, and to help move towards continuous improvement. To this end, we have produced a document detailing our present situation according to GSTC Criteria and also our sustainability journey from the beginning and into the future.

The ethos behind Inglorious Bustards´ Nature tourism has always been to use travel to bring positive outcomes for biodiversity in the places we visit and beyond. We came to the ecotourism industry from a background in sustainable agriculture, travel and conservation, full of ideas about how the market can be used to drive conservation initiatives, and determined to put these into practice across the East Atlantic Flyway.

This of course brings challenges! As conservationists, we are only too aware of the environmental impact of the activities associated with tourism. We want to share the joy of watching wildlife all along the East Atlantic Flyway, but in doing so we inevitably encourage consumption of the planet´s resources.

We launched our #FlywayPromise in 2019, making a pledge to our guests, colleagues and conservation partners that we would strive to meet the challenges of responsible ecotourism. We call this concept #FlywayBirding, putting conservation action and education at the very heart of what we do, to ensure our operations benefit rather than exploit wildlife. On our trips, “eco-tourism” is a promise, not an oxymoron.

Truly sustainable, responsible ecotourism is essential in supporting local economies and preventing the destruction of habitats that not only host much of the world´s biodiversity but provide essential ecosystem service functions such as carbon sequestration. It thereby provides overall net benefit to biodiversity conservation and the wider environment.

The criteria and themes of sustainable tourism are wide-reaching, covering cultural, socio-economic and natural heritage. As a small tour operator, it is not within our scope to change the tourism industry alone. But we can have a positive impact on our little corner of it – traveling to both experience and help nature – as well as holding up a light for others, illuminating the art of the possible.

The theme about which we are most passionate and where we are able to exert the most influence through our small conservation-based travel company is the interconnectedness of habitat and species conservation, food choice and carbon footprint. We believe a nature-watching tour can and should deliver exemplary responsible wildlife-watching and insight into local and global conservation issues. It should link local sustainably-produced food with local natural, cultural, and culinary heritage. We believe that all these things go indivisibly hand-in-hand. This is the central theme of our Sustainability Management Report and Plan, and the area in which we particularly aim to excel.

An in-glorious picnic ! Sustainably produced, no single use plastics and yummy! © Inglorious Bustards

The report follows the sustainability criteria set out for tour operators by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council. They are designed to cover everything up to large tour operators with many staff and their own properties, so not all are applicable. Using guidance and training from GSTC we have used this document to demonstrate what we are doing to fulfil applicable sustainability criteria across the board, and where our journey will take us next.

If you wish to read the full substantive report you can do so here

We hope you like it!

Sustainability-Management-Report-Plan-2020-1 Download

Kite-fest 2021!

We’re all pretty sick of travel restrictions by now, for sure. Well today, for Black Kites at least, they were finally lifted!

After ten days of strong easterlies, overcast conditions and heavy rain around The Straits of Gibraltar, the meteorological ´border´ finally opened for the most spectacular day so far of 2021´s spring migration!

Since early February we´ve been seeing brave attempts by plucky raptors to cross The Straits towards their northerly breeding grounds. Driven on by the desire to grab the best territory, numerous Black Kites, Short-toed Eagles and Griffon Vultures have been braving all sorts of weathers – some succeeding and some sadly not.

But the sensible ones chose today – and as the morning rain stopped, the clouds parted to reveal hundreds upon hundreds of Black Kites streaming towards us across the sea!

Black Kites swirling overhead © Inglorious Bustards

As ever it´s hard to describe such a mind-blowing gathering of soaring birds of prey! Within an hour of arriving at the coast we had counted 3,000, with Booted Eagles, Short-toed Eagles, Marsh Harriers, Black and White Storks and even a decidedly lost Lanner Falcon amongst them!

“The sky was full of Kites” is in this case a literal description. As each wave of hundreds of birds turns into a swirling mass of thousands and drifts inland on a welcoming thermal, still more arrive, until you just don’t know where to look!

Our conservation partners, Fundación Migres, reckon that upwards of 12,000 birds crossed The Straits today!

We were happy to run into some of our off-duty friends from Migres on the clifftop – today was their day off from counting the migrating raptors, so they joined us to simply to marvel at the Kite-fest!

Also marvelling at the incredible day was our friend Ugo Mellone of MEDRAPTORS research group. Those of you who are regular readers of this blog may remember our “Tale of Two Eagles”, covering the migratory journeys of two Italian Short-toed Eagles – father and son, Egidio and Michele. Ugo leads on the project that fitted their satellite tags and follows their travels. He excitedly told us that Egidio was on the way! Last night his tag transmitted that he had spent the night on the rocky Moroccan coastline just 14 km from where we were standing, and that he would surely be one of the birds crossing over our heads today!

Carlos (left) and Ugo (right) in amongst the Kite fest!

Onward journeys, travel with no restrictions, families and friends reunited – we could all use some of that! Hopefully, by the time these very birds are heading south in the autumn, we will be able to share days like these with you.

If this is just the kind of uplifting spectacle you need, then our Straits of Gibraltar – Bird Migration and Cetaceans tour is definitely for you! We are taking no-obligation provisional bookings for Autumn 2021 and Spring 2022!

The strange case of a Black Kite marked in Tarifa and recovered in Benin, West Africa.

Migratory birds don’t recognise borders, and finding out where they are passing through, and going to and from is vital not only to understand the threats and areas for conservation but also to bring to life the epic story of migration.

Flyway-scale conservation and funding must be driven by good science, wise spending and cross-border, holistic conservation. Ecotourism has a part to play here and that is why we developed our #FlywayPromise and the concept of #FlywayBirding – directly experiencing the magic of migration, further understanding the its perils, and directly contributing to benefit migratory birds along the East Atlantic Flyway.

At this moment we have been watching Black Kites coming through The Straits here and our minds turn to the epic journeys they have undertaken.

Our friend, Fundación Migres chief ornithologist and Inglorious Bustards guide Alejandro Onrubia tells us the unusual but not unique tale of a Black Kite ringed here in Tarifa and recovered in Benin, West Africa

“Two weeks ago (February 2, 2021) a trapper from Benin (West Africa) live-captured a Black Kite that Fundación Migres had ringed in The Strait of Gibraltar in August 2018. Often these birds can end up in local markets or being eaten. With the rings, necklaces and bracelets are sometimes made and in fact, these ringed birds are sometimes targeted for capture to remove the rings and make jewellery or ornaments. On some previous occasions, when birds marked with emitters or wing marks were captured in their wintering grounds, the trappers contacted Migres to request a ransom for the birds’ release!

In the case of this ringed Black Kite, it was lucky that it fell into the hands of a local person who loves birds (Mr. A.B.). He looked at the ring and its return address, searched the internet and contacted the Spanish ringing center. From there, they contacted me (the bander) and passed their contact on to me. And so I got in touch with this man from Benin to see where and when they had captured the Kite, for what … and of course to ask him to release it.

At first, he told me that he could not release it because the hunters and trappers would capture and / or kill it again, and told me that he could “send it to Spain by courier to return it” or “I could go directly to Benin to pick it up”. I told him that it was impossible because the animal would not withstand the trip, it was very expensive and many permits were required, and I could not travel to Benin either. The fact is that he is finally going to free him, although he wants to wait for the rainy season so that they do not kill him and he can return to Spain.

I asked Mr A.B. how and why they capture the birds there in Benin, and he indicated that there are many trappers who capture the birds alive with different trapping systems (not firearms), because live birds are priced better in the markets than dead birds. He has indicated to me that it is common for these birds to be eaten, but above all they are sold in the markets for magical rituals (voodoo), to make products to fight against evil spirits, to attract good luck, and many other things.”