#FlywayBirding and wildlife adventures from the epicentre of migration in Andalucia, Spain
We have noisy neighbours! However, far from being an annoyance they are very welcome – even if some of them do decide they want to sing all through the night!
Today is International Dawn Chorus Day, held annually on the first Sunday in May. We are all encouraged to rise early and listen to bird song. But if you slept through your alarm, don’t worry – we didn’t!
A young Italian called Michele caused a frisson of excitement here in The Straits last month, turning up safe and well after being missing in Africa since mid-November! Not long after his reappearance he was on his adventures again, awaiting fine weather on the northern shores of Morocco before jetting across the Straits and spendingContinue reading “A tale of two Eagles”
Read our award-winning blog about how a sudden drop in the wind on an autumn day in Andalucía inspires heart-stoppingly spectacular mass avian movement, but also provokes thought on travel, conservation and global change… Fourteen kilometres of sea and sky are all that separate two continents. At 9am, the Mediterranean sun is alreadyContinue reading “Fourteen Kilometres of Joy and Sorrow”
The eBird database just received a significant boost, in the form of information on almost two million migrating birds from our conservation partners, Fundación Migres! Many is the joyous day we’ve spent with our conservation partners Fundación Migres, helping with the autumn migration count, gazing up spellbound as literally thousands of raptors migrate over ourContinue reading “Boosting the Count”
We often think of the Straits of Gibraltar as a barrier to be overcome, a great leap of faith for the hundreds of thousands of birds that must move between the land masses of Africa and Europe. But through the eons, other vast, invisible migrations have gone almost unseen in the dark depths beneath theContinue reading “Mysterious migrations of the deep!”
Mangroves are truly magical. They are capable of storing up to five times more carbon per hectare than tropical rainforests. Their roots dissipate energy from storm surges, shielding local communities. They cleanse waters of their sediments and pollutants before they enter the sea. They are invaluable to local economies and support one of the world´sContinue reading “Mangrove Magic!”
Our Strait Birding & Cetaceans spring migration spectacular is coming soon, and there are still spaces available! Here´s a flavour of what happened last time… “The clouds were low and moody, and the winds pretty strong, but the intrepid Black Kites had decided, “Stuff it! This will do!”. One by one, and then by theContinue reading “They’re coming! – a spring migration spectacular!”
The juxtaposition of Sahelian scrub habitat and The Gambia River gives a unique biosphere in this area of Africa. Rather than being dominated by Sahel like that of its neighbouring Countries, it is a mixture of moist forest and Sahel and that is a great draw for migrants as well as stunning resident species.
At the gateway between Europe and Africa, there is biodiversity galore! Avian migration is the most visible and celebrated, and we spend a lot of our time looking up. But to never look down would be to miss out on so much, including some of the best moth-trapping opportunities in Europe. That´s why, with theContinue reading “Mothing at the gateway to Africa! A chat with moth-er extraordinaire @dgcountryside”
It´s hard to believe six weeks have passed since we were basking in the warmth and loveliness of The Gambia, with our fantastic group from Honeyguides Wildlife Holidays! It´s also hard to capture in words the resplendent riot of colour and life that was packed into our trip to this tiny West African gem! AsContinue reading “Gambia revisited!”