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BIRDING TRIP: Looking for Cranes at La Janda, Cadiz

Today I drove to La Janda, wondering if I could spot any Cranes. Hundreds of them had been reported in previous days and I remembered seeing them right upon commencing my 'usual route' in this vast area two years ago. No sign of them at the beginning of this visit though. Instead, all along my 14 kilometres ride I was accompanied by dozens of friendly Stonechats, usually seen in pairs.


Some fellow birders I met at the beginning of the track told me I was surely going to see Black-winged Kites, a wonderful species I hadn't come across for a while. They advised me to look for them on the power lines. Initially the only birds of prey I saw were several Kestrels, which I am always happy with too.



Kestrel on a branch
The first Kestrel of the afternoon


Male Stonechat
One of the many stunning Stonechats, a male in this case.

Grey Heron
A Grey Heron on the other side of the canal watching my every move

Male Stonechat
And another male Stonechat

Female Stonechat
... and never far away is the female

The large rice field where I saw hundreds of Cranes together two years ago was now empty. Maybe I'd have more luck further up the road, a few kilometres ahead. For now, I had to enjoy the Stonechats, the White Wagtails and whatever was moving in the bushes along the track, often Zitting Cisticolas. On the canal itself there was little to no life, apart from a Grey Heron and a Cormorant.



Zitting Cisticola
Zitting Cisticola

Common Buzzard
Common Buzzard


After driving carefully over the track parallel to the canal for an hour or so, I noticed a Buzzard sitting on the irrigation system. As I was getting closer to the ever flooded wetlands, I saw a Falcon-sized bird sitting on one of the powerlines. Another Kestrel? Looking into the bright sunlight made identification difficult, but I soon found out that it was a Black-winged Kite! I didn't remember they were that small. But still as beautiful as ever!



Black-winged Kite
Black-winged Kite

I hope the bird knew what it was doing, sitting so close to that dangerous spiral. Unfortunately I have seen several birds being trapped during previous visits.


I was enjoying the sight of this beautiful Kite when I saw a giant creature appear soaring in circles in the sky, bigger than any other raptor I had ever seen before. Although it was flying quite high and lighting conditions were far from ideal, I managed to take a few photos which enabled me to identify this bird as a Spanish Imperial Eagle! It was really too far away to fully appreciate its powerful beauty, but the mere thought of observing a species classified as Vulnerable filled me with joy. And pride, I must say.



Spanish Imperial Eagle
Spanish Imperial Eagle


Grey Heron
Another Grey Heron

The light was preventing me from taking excellent photos on one side of the track, as the sun was shining from that direction. It made identifying some of the wader birds I spotted also rather difficult, but I managed to see Lapwings, Common Greenshanks, Spotted Redshanks and Spoonbills, to name only a few.


An elegantly and low-flying bird of prey in the far distance was just visible enough in the final image on my Canon 90D to be identified as a Hen Harrier. Another lifer!



Hen Harrier flying over the fields
Hen Harrier


Flock of Golden Plovers
Flock of Golden Plovers

Grey Plovers landing
Grey Plovers landing

Little Egret
Little Egret

Lapwing wading through the mud
Artistic shot of a Lapwing wading through the mud

Common Greenshank
Common Greenshank

Spotted Redshank
Spotted Redshank

Just as I stumbled upon another friendly pair of birders, armed with telescopes, a big group of White Storks arrived. No trace of the Cranes yet, but so far I had seen an interesting variety of species.



Flock of White Storks
Late afternoon arrival of a flock of White Storks

Spoonbill landing on the water
Lapwing appreciating the landing skills of a Spoonbill


Spoonbill


During previous visits I had never run into so many fellow birders. Just after leaving the main road that runs parallel with one of the canals, I met another three men who had come to observe birds in this area. All of us were expressing our regrets about not having seen any Cranes so far, when we heard that typical trumpeting call! There they were, right above our heads! Not a huge flock, only seven individuals, but what a satisfying feeling. Their population has been hit very hard this year by Avian Influenza, but these seven birds were alive and well!



Four Cranes flying in the sky
Four of the Cranes announcing their arrival with their trumpeting call

While driving slowly over the track, I noticed some other side roads that I might check out during another visit to La Janda. We are having the shortest days of the year and the sun was almost setting, time to head home. The Golden Hour light is ideal for taking great photos, but I didn't want to get stuck in the dark on these abandoned roads. A few more shots of a Marsh Harrier, a Meadow Pipit and a Pheasant later, I called it a night.



Pheasant walking through the fields
Pheasant on an evening stroll

Meadow Pipit
Lovely Meadow Pipit


Marsh Harrier
Marsh Harrier


Landscape during sunset
Time to head home during Golden Hour



Crested Lark
Crested Lark


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