Spring dates:
7 days – 18th April – 24th April 2024.
Autumn dates:
7 days – 1st September – 7th September 2024
Please note: this set-departure tour is also available as a private or custom tour on request. Please submit an enquiry with your preferred dates and group size.
€1,250 for 7 days – price includes all accommodation, meals, guiding, transportation, taxes and entrances but excludes flights.
€250 deposit
€160 single supplement
Spring 2018 trip report available here
Autumn 2019 trip report available here
Autumn 2020 trip report available here
Autumn 2021 trip report available here
Spring 2022 trip report via eBird available here
Spring 2023 trip report available here
Tour overview
The Strait of Gibraltar is the point at which Africa and Europe are at their closest, and is the epicentre for one of the world’s most spectacular bird migrations. Every year, millions of birds make the 14 km sea crossing, making use of uplifts and thermals to make the journey. An estimated 250,000 raptors pass over this rugged terrain during these periods, as well as untold thousands of other journeying passerines and seabirds moving through The Straits.
This fluke-y combination of geography and geology means a helping hand for birds and quite simply spectacular birding for us! The incredible natural phenomenon of visible migration will be happening all around us as Black Kites, Booted and Short-toed Eagles, White Storks, European Honey Buzzards and more soar across the divide – simply unforgettable scenes.
A boat trip into The Straits itself will let you get close and personal with the many cetacean species that can be found in spring and autumn, such as Common, Bottlenose and Striped Dolphins and Long-finned Pilot Whale – even Fin, Sperm Whales and Orca are possible here. There are seabirds to look out for too, and we can hope to see Cory´s, Scopoli’s and Balearic Shearwaters, Northern Gannets, and in the right conditions, and time of year Wilson’s Storm Petrels.
There will also be time to explore more of the area’s superb habitats and connect with local specialities, which include Rüppell’s Vulture, Spanish Imperial and Bonelli’s Eagle and Blue Rock Thrush in the mountains, Northern Bald Ibis and Audouin’s Gull around the coastal wetlands and pastures, Red-necked Nightjar and Black-winged Kite on farmland and Golden Orioles, Western Bonelli’s Warblers, Crested Tits, Hawfinches and Firecrests in the woodlands of Los Alcornocales Natural Park, Europe’s largest Cork Oak forest. The diversity and wealth of avian and other wildlife in this beautifully unspoilt area of Spain really is astounding!
Couple this with tranquil accommodation in an eco-lodge or Cortijo in or at the edge of the Natural Park itself, the chance to enjoy the picturesque streets and Moorish fortifications of the Old Town of Tarifa, and of course the chance to sample some of Andalucía’s best local food and wine, and you really do have a trip that’s Strait-up fantastic!
About Andalucía
This southernmost province of Spain is perhaps best known for its fantastic tapas, passionate discussions, and welcoming people. However it is also the most biodiverse region not only in Spain but the whole of Europe.
Because of its strategic position at the gateway of two continents, the land here has changed hands countless times in history between the ruling forces of Europe and North Africa, so the culture here is a fascinating blend of Mediterranean and Moroccan. The flora and fauna here too provides tantalising glimpses of nature from across the waters, and from a migratory birds perspective it is quite simply the centre of the world!
Expected Birds
A massive migration event is in progress at these times of the year, as birds journey south to winter or north to breed. We hope to see several species of raptor including Griffon Vultures, Egyptian Vultures, Bonelli’s Eagles and Spanish Imperial Eagles alongside tens of thousands of migrating raptors European Honey Buzzards, Black Kites, Short-toed and Booted Eagles, interspersed with huge flocks of White and Black Storks and European Bee-eaters. Resident Spanish specialities include Firecrest, Short-toed Treecreeper, Crested Tit and Northern Bald Ibis. Visits to wetlands should yield a host of waders including Kentish Plover, Sanderling, Little Stint and Collared Pratincole, as well a star birds like Purple Swamphen, Eurasian Spoonbill and Greater Flamingo.
Our boat trip should give us views of Cory’s, Scopoli’s and Balearic Shearwaters as well as Long- finned Pilot Whales, Common and Striped Dolphins and possibly Sperm Whale, Fin Whale and Orca.
Itinerary
Day 1
We meet you at Gibraltar airport or other agreed arrival point and transfer to our eco-resort in tranquil woodland, the centre of birding in The Straits. Our base is ideal for watching the migration as it is located between two Natural Parks in the The Straits of Gibraltar. In the right conditions we should witness many hundreds of migratory birds making the crossing to their wintering grounds in Africa or breeding grounds in Europe, including Egyptian Vultures, Short-toed and Booted Eagles, European Honey Buzzards, Black Kites and both Black and White Storks.
Day 2
We will take a boat excursion, weather permitting, into The Straits to witness the seabird passage and cetaceans. We will be on the lookout for Cory’s, Scopoli’s and Balearic Shearwaters among other species, plus the three species of resident dolphin (Common, Bottlenose and Striped) and the resident pods of Long-finned Pilot Whale. Once back on dry land, we will have a go at some urban birding around the old town of Tarifa where we can encounter Common Bulbul and breeding Lesser Kestrels. We’ll enjoy a picnic lunch at a nearby coastal viewpoint overlooking Tarifa and The Straits. Simply by looking up you will be able to see migrating raptors and storks crossing over this historic town.
Day 3
We’ll spend the morning at Los Lances nature reserve, a small area of intertidal habitat on Tarifa beach. On the short walk across low intensity farmland, we may see Crested Lark, Tawny Pipit, Short-toed Lark, Iberian Yellow Wagtails and Corn Bunting. A boardwalk takes us out to a hide, from where we can look across the lagoons to see birds including Common Ringed and Kentish Plover, Sanderling and Little Stint. There is a decent chance of visiting Western Osprey here too, other birds can include Sandwich and Caspian Terns, and the once extremely rare Audouin’s Gull.
Migratory movement is completely dependent on wind strength and direction. Depending on whether birds are crossing or gathering inland waiting for their moment, this afternoon will be spent at one of several local raptor watchpoints, making the absolute most of whatever the conditions bring us and ensuring we are in the right place at the right time to see this spellbinding spectacle.
Day 4
Today, alongside more raptor-watching at sites with stunning views across The Straits to North Africa, we will make a visit to a nearby nature reserve created on the site of disused salt pans. This area offers a fantastic selection of waders which change every day, but we will especially hope for encounters with Kentish Plovers, Eurasian Stone-curlews, Curlew Sandpipers, Little Stint and Collared Pratincoles, which have a breeding colony at the site. We will also look out for eye-catchers like Eurasian Spoonbill, Greater Flamingo and Western Osprey.
Also close by is the town of Vejer de la Frontera, where a successful reintroduction programme of the Critically Endangered Northern Bald Ibis took place in 2004. The local population now numbers around 80, and we should be able to see these engaging and quirky birds at their nesting colony or grazing on surrounding farmland.
Day 5
Today we will visit the farmland and wetlands of La Janda. The huge area of farmland was once a vast wetland on a par with Doñana in terms of its ecological importance. It has long since been drained for agriculture, but amongst the rice fields and managed pools and ditches, some real wetland gems remain, hinting at its former natural glory. Amongst many hundreds of White Stork and Glossy Ibis, here we should see many waders, wildfowl and raptors, such as Purple Swamphen, Marsh Harrier, Black-winged Kite as well as a chance of Spanish Imperial Eagle and Bonelli’s Eagle whilst the farmland areas should yield Spanish Sparrow, Calandra Lark and perhaps Red-necked Nightjar.
Day 6
Our last full day in Spain taking time to explore our rich local surroundings in Los Alcornocales Natural Park. This is the biggest Cork Oak forest in Europe and is especially unique in the way that it gathers moisture coming in off the ocean to create a warm Mediterranean cloud forest. As well as some adorable local avian specialities in the form of Western Bonelli’s Warbler, Firecrest, Crested Tit, Hawfinch and Short-toed Treecreeper, almost anything can turn up here during migration, as passerines collect amongst the trees to gather strength for their journey.
There are also a host of interesting rare plants to see here, such as the quasi-endemic carnivorous plant Drosophyllum lusitanicum, which occurs only here and in some areas of Portugal and Morocco.
We will also have a look at the high rocky cliffs of Sierra de la Plata. Here, amongst the eerie screeching of the resident Griffon Vulture colony, mountain specialities such as Blue Rock Thrush, Crag Martin, and Rock Bunting are all likely to be encountered.
We should again find ourselves in the midst of the Autumn or Spring raptor migration, and will take our final chance to sit back and relax with a picnic and a glass of wine at a raptor watchpoint as the spectacular birds drift overhead.
Day 7
Today sadly our trip comes to an end, and it is time to make your own migratory journey home.
Email us for further details, to check availability, booking and for details on how to pay through our secure online shop (all major credit / debit cards accepted).
