16th September:
It was an interesting journey to Mallorca. We boarded swiftly and on time before they
announced to stay seated with seat belts on while they ‘jack us up to change
a wheel’. Better now that later I thought.
It was an ok flight and we set
about trying to collect the other six but through no fault of their own we had
misplaced Bonnie and Galen the American couple and eventually tied them down to
being at the fourth Europcar station, across the road and in the multi-storey
car park where another hour wait was required as they took a while to process
the other 15 customers in front of us!
It was stinky hot but eventually we were on the road and wending our way
east to the Hotel Aumallia set a way off the main roads down narrow lanes in
the rural Mallorcan countryside.
We had seen little on the drive with just many Wood Pigeons,
Collared Doves and Kestrels and a couple of Red Kites and Cattle Egrets. Our delays meant that we did not arrive till
6pm and I chose not to go straight out for a walk as everyone needed some down
time to freshen up but a little before dinner time I ventured out and found a
couple of the crew investigating.
Thekla’s Larks sung and were joined by Sardinian and Cetti’s
Warblers while Tree Pipits came up from the garden where Spotted Flycatchers
flicked (and looked perfectly 'normal' in case you were wondering) and Blackbirds
clucked and on the rough areas there was calling (not singing) Zitting
Cisticolas, Stonechats and four common finches.
Gangs of Corn Buntings streamed through plipping as they
went off to roost and an adult ‘badius’ Balearic Woodchat was a little surprising as I
thought I may be only trying to identify youngsters. There were more Wood Pigeons and a couple of
distant Spotless Starling while at my feet I was putting up Crimson Speckled
and Vestal moths.
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| Vestal |
A pleasant first dinner was accompanied by calling
Stone-Curlews, nectaring Hummingbird Hawk-moths and a medium sized Moorish
Gecko and post coffee a Scops Owl was calling as we got back to the rooms.
So all in all a pleasant start to set us up for a proper
look round before breakfast in the morning.
17th September:
Up with the Lark – well the Stone-Curlew in fact and we all
stood in the half light of pre-dawn and watched and listened to the countryside
wake up around us. Thekla’s Larks were
calling avidly – a more liquid ‘DVD!’ that the familiar Crested Larks of my
travels and all around Red-legged Partridges were making sure they all knew
where each other were out in the stony fields and we found three head bobbing
their way across the closest one.
Sardinian Warblers rattled, Cetti’s Warblers shouted and
Zitting Cisticolas, well, you know. Corn
Buntings were dispersing and several Tree Pipits had obviously been roosting in
the gardens and actually sat up in some dead branches for us.
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| Zitting Cisticola |
The adult ‘Balearic’ Woodchat of last night was replaced by
an equally distinctive 1st winter bird and Stonechats were perched
up on several prominent spots. A Hoopoe
flopped over glowing orange in the first sun rays.
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| ‘Balearic’ Woodchat showing the lack of white primary patch |
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| ‘Balearic’ Woodchat |
Yellow Wagtails of some form or another and Linnets, Green, Gold and Chaffinches moved over
and a female Sparrowhawk was sat up in some distant Olives before breakfast
called us back inside where Spotted Flycatchers were dashing out from the very
bizarre looking White Silk Floss Tree with its lily-like
flowers and spiky but swollen Baobab-like trunk.
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| White Silk Floss Tree (Ceiba insignis) |
As we reconvened to head out a Wryneck stared vociferously
calling loudly outside but moved off and further away before we could get around to
where it was near the van! Hopefully we
would find another.
Off out into the lanes on our way to Salobrar de Campo –
some salt workings with access paths.
There were a few bits along the way with a single Spotless Starling and
some closer Thekla’s Larks and a single Northern Wheatear while Sardinian
Warblers seemed to be everywhere.
It was already very hot by the time we headed out for our
walk and although it was quite hard work in the shimmering air, the group got
very good views of a fair wader selection with Avocets, stretchy legged
Black-winged Stilts, Ruff, Green Sandpipers, Green, Red and Spotted Redshanks,
Curlew, Black- tailed Godwit, Dunlin and both Little Ringed and Kentish
Plovers.
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| Black-winged Stilt |
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| Mastic |
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| Aestivating Snails |
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| An ex-Paper Wasp nest with no outer covering |
There were about 60 Greater Flamingos including several
fresh small youngsters and we were treated to some great flight views when a
German cyclist spectacularly came off his bike in the mud in front of us!
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| Greater Flamingos |
Scanning around gave us a spiral of Ravens and two Kestrels
mobbing a juvenile female Peregrine while Red Kites and Marsh Harriers hunted
lower down. There were little birds too
with the same three Warblers seen over breakfast along with Stonechats and
quite a few Greenfinches and a couple of Serins.
Lesser Emperors and a Migrant Hawker represented the bigger
Dragons while there were also Red-veined and Scarlet Darters over one of the
still wet lagoons.
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| immature Red Kite |
Father Brian also managed to lose his footing and gracefully
ended up on his back in the mud but his Judo training saved him a bump on the
head but it was a slow walk back to the van where the temperature in the shade
was reading 38c! I opted to return to
Aumallia so that he could freshen up and we could all cool down and have lunch
in the shade before heading out again at 2.30.
The Thekla’s Larks were on the waste ground by the car park
and the adult Balearic Woodchat reappeared but I could not find the Cirl
Buntings that were calling. Some
Heliotrope was attracting Southern Brown Argus butterflies and
at least three moth species with more Crimson Speckleds, Vestals and a Aporodes
florialis which looked a bit like Pyrausta despicata. Cleopatras were the commonest butterfly but
we also saw Swallowtail, Clouded Yellow, Geranium Bronze, Small White sp and
Red Admiral along with Hummingbird Hawkmoth once again.
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| Thekla’s Lark |
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| Thekla’s Lark |
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| Balearic Woodchat Shrike |
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| Heliotrope (Heliotropium europaeum) |
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| Aporodes florialis |
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| Southern Brown Argus |
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| Crimson Speckled |
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| Crimson Speckled |
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| Crimson Speckled |
The crew had literally just got in the van when I heard
Bee-eaters and it was a quick exit as a group of six bounced low over the
hotel! I know we may see more but
passing up the first ones would have been foolish!
We made our way down to the coast to Portocolom and the
turquoise bay at S’Algar we hoped to locate Balearic Warbler in the low coastal
scrub of Juniper and Mastic. Sardinian
Warblers were all around us and even showed very well but although they and
Stonechats were very active there was not a sound and glimpse of any Balearic Warblers which was disappointing but there were some excellent birds to be seen
with a stunning adult Audouin’s Gull on the rocky mini cliffs and at least two
male Blue Rock Thrushes testing out the limits of their winter territories
across the rugged limestone landscape.
There was another Northern Wheatear and two very smart looking Rock
Doves whizzed along the cliffs but I am unsure of their true status here while
a group of five Pallid Swifts moved over us.
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| Audouin’s Gull but frustratingly hazy |
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| Sardinian Warbler |
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| Blue Rock Thrush |
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| Blue Rock Thrush |
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| Blue Rock Thrush |
There were more of the same day flying moths with the
addition of Small Marbled and Wall Brown joined the Butterflies. Big fat Red-winged Grasshoppers flew off in
front of us too as we walked back to the van where as I went to pull away, Anne
picked up the first Booted Eagle of the trip with a fine pale adult circling
along side us before diving into the scrub!
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| Autumn Squill (Prospero autumnale) |
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| Small Marbled |
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| Red-winged Grasshopper |
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| Booted Eagle |
Time was getting on but I though we could squeeze in the
Castell de Santueri and although it was a bit of a wiggly climb it was
certainly worth the effort as the views down to the coast and Portocolom and
even to the exact headland we had just walked round were spectacular.
A pair of Booted Eagles were noisily on show the whole time
and one perched up and gave excellent scope views especially as it was nearly
6pm and the haze had dissipated. An adult female Peregrine spooked all the
hirundines that were made up of hawking House and Crag Martins the latter of
which always top out as my favourite bird of any day.
Supersonic Alpine Swifts hove into view and joined them and
just before we left a large party was wheeling around chittering wildly. Firecrest, Blackcap, Great Tit and both
Sardinian and Cetti’s Warblers were heard below us but we never saw a bird!
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| Booted Eagle |
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| Alpine Swifts |
With dinner somewhat beckoning we wiggled back through some
tiny side streets in Felanitx and only stopped near the hotel when a ‘Spotted’
Flycatcher caught my eye as being odd and I reversed up for a look. We had seen quite a few roadside normal ones
during the day and those in the hotel garden earlier but this one was
strikingly white and almost unmarked underneath with neat crown streaks on and almost white head,
obvious pale bill base and strangely warm primary margins and rump. I am not getting into a taxonomy debate about
the validity of Mediterranean Flycatcher but I am confident
that this was one. An education
nonetheless.
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| Mediterranean Flycatcher |
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| Mediterranean Flycatcher |
A quick freshen up and dinner (with Willow Warbler on the
way back to the room!) and a Scops Owl that interrupted dessert from the palms
although all we could see was a bit of occasional eyeshine as it never came out
to say hello!
The Moorish Geckos watched us from the walls as we headed
back to our rooms after a productive first full day on the island.
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| Moorish Gecko |
