Most of the farmers in the local area will prepare their field for a new crop by flooding it; allowing the water to soak into the ground which not only makes planting easier but also gives the seeds something to live on for the first few days after planting. When this happens it usually attracts lots of White Wagtails, Cattle Egrets and occasionally something slightly more obscure - such as the White Stork we found earlier in the year. Yesterday this trend was well and truly changed when we discovered 2 large fields near Dolores which were covered in birds.
During the 3 hours we spent here we recorded the following excellent array of species. Glossy Ibis (23), Common Crane (1, see below), Purple Heron (1 juv, see below), Little Bittern, Cattle Egret (50+), White Wagtail (1000+), Yellow Wagtail (5), Black-headed Gull (500+), Slender-billed Gull (2), Yellow-legged Gull (10+), Med Gull (1), Lapwing (60+), Kentish Plover (8), Little Stint (14), Dunlin (15+), Ruff (5), Grey Plover (4), Green Sandpiper (2), Greenshank (1), Black-tailed Godwit (3), Buzzard (3), Marsh Harrier (6+) and a single rintail Hen Harrier.
During the 3 hours we spent here we recorded the following excellent array of species. Glossy Ibis (23), Common Crane (1, see below), Purple Heron (1 juv, see below), Little Bittern, Cattle Egret (50+), White Wagtail (1000+), Yellow Wagtail (5), Black-headed Gull (500+), Slender-billed Gull (2), Yellow-legged Gull (10+), Med Gull (1), Lapwing (60+), Kentish Plover (8), Little Stint (14), Dunlin (15+), Ruff (5), Grey Plover (4), Green Sandpiper (2), Greenshank (1), Black-tailed Godwit (3), Buzzard (3), Marsh Harrier (6+) and a single rintail Hen Harrier.
Glossy Ibis
Purple Heron
The most suprising find on the flood was a total of 9 Wood Sandpiper which were scattered around the edge of the field, normally feeding independantly rarther than associating with each other.
Wood Sandpiper
Wood Sandpiper
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