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| White Storks grazing in a rice field, Tagus Esturay nr Lisbon, 12/6/12 |
On my last day in Portugal, I decided to push the (metaphorical) boat out and explore the bird-rich Tagus estuary surrounding Lisbon. It’s an area I’ve flown over several times and always wanted to see for myself. So around 8.30 on a beautiful, bright morning in central Lisbon I met up with Bernardo from Birds & Nature Tours and headed off to find some amazing birds
Heading out of Lisbon over the incredible Vasco da Gama Bridge
was an adventure in itself (I think I am secretly a ‘bridge spotter’ too) -the
longest road bridge in Europe gave fantastic views of the river as it narrows
between Lisbon and Almada, before swelling into an expansive estuary on the
other side. Once clear of the bridge our first stop was a private stud farm,
situated down a rough track on the banks of a large, verdant floodplain criss-crossed
with reedy ditches. Getting out of the car, I could see birds wherever I
looked. A Stonechat ‘chatted’ from a patch of roadside thistles while Swallows
swooped over a small channel and a Reed Bunting shot by. Looking out onto the
bowling green fields we immediately spotted a group of 10+ Spoonbills maybe
only 50m away - a great way to start the day! A scan of the fields
revealed some distant Black-winged Stilts, numerous Cattle Egrets, White Storks
and a smart Great White Egret that appeared out of one the ditches. A new UK
breeder, this is a bird that I have somehow never actually managed to see here. Bernardo informed me that Squacco
Herons were regularly seen at this site recently but unfortunately we missed
them this time. They are later breeders apparently and had probably just
departed for their nest site. Anyway, no time to dwell as I turned to scan the
fields behind just in time to see a female Marsh Harrier appear out of a
reedbed and effortlessly glide our way. A Glossy Ibis flew
over the track in front, closely followed by a Purple Heron. Nearby, a Spotless
Starling fluttered on an overhead telephone wire as Pallid Swifts arced across
the blue sky above it.
Heading back the way we came in, we passed a dense reed bed
where Cetti’s Warblers noisily announced themselves and Goldfinches tittered
overhead. Despite it being calm, the reeds maximised what wind there was so we
craned our ears to try and locate more of the well hidden residents; there was
a Reed Warbler and then finally...a blast of Great Reed Warbler. It didn’t show
but it was great to hear one for the first time. This small
area of reeds also held a number of curious ‘exotics’, including the striking, red-masked
Common Waxbill and several species of Weaver bird. Of the latter, bright yellow
male Village Weavers were particularly conspicuous, with a number buzzing through the reeds, in fast, direct, almost Kingfisher-like flight. These birds
appeared to be thriving in the area, with their distinctive grassy ball nests,
skilfully hanging from reed stems here and there. Apparently the population
stems from released or escaped cage birds that have adapted to the habitats amidst
the rural fringes of southern Portugal. I haven’t managed to find a good ID
point of reference for these birds yet but I’d be interested to.
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| Flock of Spoonbills (Platalea leucorodia) |
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| One of the 'exotic' species I saw in the area. I think this is a Village Weaver? Answers welcome below. |
Heading back out onto the main road we pulled off a few minutes later into a farmstead where Bernardo arranged a stop to check out one of the many cork groves in the area. I have to say I loved this site and was fascinated by the cork-oak harvesting that Bernardo explained. A traditional, sustainable farming practice, it also has huge habitat potential as we found. Walking through the shady grove we logged Hoopoe, Little Owl, Crested Lark, Zitting Cisticola, Melodious Warbler, a lovely Red-rumped Swallow and one species I was particularly looking forward to – Azure-winged Magpie. I missed that on my last trip to Portugal when, to my frustration, I popped out of the room for a second only to come back and have Mum and Dad say ‘oh , you just missed this funny looking Magpie that flew by’. Glimpsed as it moved between the trees, it really was a fine-looking bird (as all magpies are in my opinion) A bit smaller and more reserved than our magpies, its long bluish tail and wings give it a truly elegant air.
With that score settled we moved on and attention shifted to
another bird - perhaps my ‘target bird’ for the day. Bernardo had thought he’d
seen a flash of something promising overhead and as we turned the corner, there it was perched
atop a bare oak little more than 50m away...a cracking Black-winged Kite!
Having only seen them in books and read about their small and localised European
range, which includes this particular area of greater Lisbon and a small thread
across south central Portugal and the Algarve, it was a bird I was really
looking forward to seeing. Unlike other Kite species, I was surprised how small
it was, more Kestrel-like in size and demeanour though distinctly ‘stockier’ – maybe
vaguely owl-like even. What a stunning bird - pearly white uppers with clear
black ‘shoulders’ (it’s also sometimes referred to as Black-shouldered Kite),
yellow talons and a beady, blood red eye. We had a brilliant view as it perched
on the tree and scanned the area, much like a Kestrel again. After a couple of
minutes it took off and disappeared ghost-like through the trees, but not
before a Bee-eater flew in and joined it on the same perch! It’s not often you
get to see that! Awesome.
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| Black-winged Kite (Elanus caeruleus) A cropped, digi-scope effort. Really ace bird. |
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| Crested Lark (Galerida cristata) Ok, rubbish pic but you can see that it's quite a big lark and just make out the distinct 'crest' on its crown. I was able to watch a pair of Crested Lark really close up and it was curious to see the behaviour of one bird (the female?) who kept her body really low to the ground and practically belly-crawled her way along a sandy rut and out of view. This bird on the other hand made no attempt to hide and showed really well. |
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| One of the cork oaks that has been harvested. The figure '8' refers to the year 2008 which is when this tree had its lower bark removed. Trees are cut on a rotation of around 7-9 years which allows time for the cambium layer to regrow. That cork could be in the bottle of wine you're drinking now! But seriously, this is a good reason why we should support cork oak farmers. These trees are important for biodiversity and form an important part of this Mediterranean scrub habitat. Drink wine, save birds?! |
We soon hit the road again, peeling off at a lay-by near
some lagoons to check the birds. There were Black-winged Stilts wherever I
looked, while on the shallow causeways Turnstone, superb summer plumaged Dunlin
and a few Little Terns shifted nervously. One pool across the road was full of
Coot and it was here that one of Bernardo’s colleagues had found six
Red-knobbed Coots wintering earlier in the year. Although they had since moved
on he explained that this was a local first. Over lunch on the shore of the
estuary in a nearby nature reserve, we enjoyed views of half a dozen or so
Kentish Plover and Ringed Plover skittering back and forth in the ebbing tide.
An obliging Sardinian Warbler also appeared, periodically alighting atop some
low salt marsh vegetation before ducking out of sight.
For the afternoon we left the shore and headed in land
slightly, down a sandy track that meandered through a wonderful range of
habitats. There were open arable fields, cork groves, dense thickets of scrub
and rough, grassy pastures. And the birds followed: several Black Kites
appeared above the trees with a few Common Buzzards for company. A pair of
Red-legged Partridge lounged wearily on a shady bank and as we drove on, I
could hear a few Quail calling from the grassy verges beside the track,a
repetitive cllip-cllip-cllip. At one
point we stopped just yards from one but they lived up to their reputation as
being impossible to see. Easier to see was a Booted Eagle that Bernardo spotted drifting away from us, high up. Though distant, I was able to
get some decent views of its nicely contrasting underwing pattern. Another
lifer, not bad.
For our final stop we began skirting back towards Lisbon but
first pulled off into staggering estate of rice fields bordering the north
eastern end of the estuary. The flat, submerged fields teemed with birds, Cattle
Egrets and storks the most abundant. I wondered how the farmers got on with the
birds here but got the impression it wasn’t quite such an easy relationship. We’d
only just pulled in the entrance when I spotted something shoot up out of a ditch
about 100m or so away and then quickly disappear from view. Slender winged and
fast, with a comparatively pale belly and flank, it had me stumped. I didn’t
manage to set my bins on it for more than a second but a large swift or tern
sprung to mind. From this description Bernardo suggested it was possibly a
Collared Pratincole – one of the birds we’d come to find!
Moving on, we scattered
through what was possibly hundreds of Yellow Wagtails before reaching an area
where a Montagu’s Harrier had been seen recently. Bang on cue a raptor appeared
low on the horizon but turned out on this occasion to be a Black Kite. Our
final stop was at the end of a long track, where the road gave way to the water
and the glorious expanse of the Tagus Estuary lay before us. Apparently it was
a favoured spot for local birders and I could see why. From this spot we had near
enough a 360 view of the area, Lisbon lurked hazily on the horizon but
otherwise the view was dominated by extensive mudflats, channels, low lying
fields and hills beyond. A Lesser Yellowlegs was found here during the winter
apparently but today we have gangly, pinkish Greater Flamingos to admire – well
over a thousand of them huddled on the far bank. Several Glossy Ibis poked about among them too,
the Mediterranean counterpart of our Curlew. It was a perfect spot to finish a pretty epic day.
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| Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) |
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| Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) Weird photo but I like it because it illustrates how Cattle Egrets (presumably) got their name - from following the tracks of livestock and foraging for insects turned up in their hoof prints. |
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| BIRDING IS AWESOME! |
It was great to spend the day birding around Lisbon and see so many fantastic birds. But I just as much enjoyed exploring the variety of habitats and getting a local’s view on conservation matters. Portugal is a magnificent country but gets a pretty bad rep for nature conservation as the potentially devastating Salgados wetlands affair currently shows. Hopefully if more people realise the incredible wildlife they've got on their doorstep, those with the power will make greater efforts to protect it and the network of ecosystems we all depend on.
Links:
SPEA (Birdlife International's Portuguese partner) - This is a great website with English translation for anyone interested in birds and nature conservation in Portugal
Sagres Bird Festival 2012 - this looks amazing!
Birds & Nature Tours - highly recommended, many thanks to my excellent guide, Bernardo.
Some good news
and finally please sign this petition to oppose the development of the vital Salgados wetland in the Algarve, southern Portugal.
Muito obrigado!
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