| Home | The Committee | Field Trips |
| Site Guide | Members Contributions | Links |
| Species Guide | Photo Gallery | Bird Race |
| Contact Us |
Feb 6th - I have been advised that a few House Martins overwinter here so the ones we saw this week may not have been the first spring migrants. I am, however, going to leave them in the Spring Migration report if only to get it started! Spring Migration Report
Feb 6th - I have added new information to my blog regarding the 'mystery heron' that we saw by the Segura River, which I now believe was a Squacco Heron. Mary's Blog.
Feb 5th - My blog has been updated for a recent outing to San Felipe and areas around El Hondo. Mary's Blog.
Feb 5th - The 2012 Spring Migration Report has been updated for the first Spring migrant, or at least the first one I am aware of. Click here Spring Migration Report to visit this page.
Jan 28th - There have been a few updates to the blog. Scroll down the page to these dates:- 8th Jan - Black Wheatear photo added; 19/1 - Buzzard and Linnet photos added; 24th - the 'mystery raptor' has now been identified. Mary's Blog.
Jan 27th - My report on a recent trip to the Guadalentin Steppe area has been updated and some bird photos have been added. Mary's Blog.
Jan 21st - A report on the January field Trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Field Trips.
Jan 21st - My blog has been updated for some January bird trips. Mary's Blog.
Jan 16th - I am gradually adding more links to websites with information about popular birding locations all over Spain. This work will continue as I add a few links at a time so keep checking the Links page if you are interested. Links
Jan 16th - I have added a new Spring Migration Report to the site, ready for when the first Spring migrants are reported. At present the report lists birds in the order they were reported last year and all the information is in brackets which means it relates to 2011. For now it should at least give you some idea when to expect certain birds to appear. Spring Migration Report 2012
Jan 16th - Back to birding in Spain again, see my blog for details. Mary's Blog
Jan 6th - John Edwards report on another trip to the Sierra de Segura has been added to Member's Travels.
Jan 6th - My blog has been updated with some UK and some Spanish birding. Mary's Blog
Dec 24th - Additional reports have been added to Spider's Blog. Spider's Blog.
Dec 23rd - A report on a fascinating trip to Peru has been sent in by Kathy Dowsett, click here Member's Travels to have a look.
Dec 23rd - My blog has been updated for some UK Xmas birding. Mary's Blog.
Dec 19th - A report on the December field Trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Field Trips.
Dec 19th - Additional reports have been added to Spider's Blog. Spider's Blog.
Dec 15th - A report on the December field Trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Field Trips. A short piece on the trip has also been included in my blog. Mary's Blog.
Dec 14th - A blog written by 'Spider', a visitor from the Isles of Scilly has been added to 'Members Contributions' click here Member's Contributions and follow the link to Spider's Blog.
Dec 8th - A report on a trip to La Mata has been added to my blog. click here Mary's Blogto have a look.
Dec 8th - A report on a separate trip to see the Iberian Lynx has been sent in by John Edwards and can be seen in 'Member's Travels. click here Member's Travels to have a look.
Dec 8th - An extract from Julian Sykes' recent Lynx trip and a link to the full report, has been added to 'Member's Travels. click here Member's Travels to have a look.
Dec 2nd - Mike Smith has sent in some photos he took of a Richards' Pipit at La Mata, and these have been added to his photo gallery. click here Birds by Mike Smith to view Mike's Gallery.
Dec 2nd - My blog has been updated with two recent trip reports. click here Mary's Blog to have a look.
Nov 29th - Barry Chambers has sent in a report on his birding experiences during a trip to New Zealand earlier in the year. Barry's report can be viewed by following this link Member's Travels
Nov 29th - A new entry has been added to my weekly blog, this relates to a trip to Maigmo Mountain last week. Click here Mary's Blog to have a look.
Nov 19th - A new weekly blog page has been added to the Members Contributions section. It starts with an initial report and photos from a trip round Santa Pola Salinas, San Felipe and the Vista Bella area. Click here Mary's Blog to have a look.
Nov 13th - A report and photos from the November field trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Click here Field Trips to have a look.
Nov 12th - Planned dates and locations for the January to June field trips are now listed on the 'Field Trips' page. Click here Field Trips to see them.
Oct 30th - John Edwards has kindly sent me his reports on two recent trips to the Rosa Blanca Guesthouse run by Mel and Wendy Squires. Cortijo Rosa Blanca Bed and Breakfast The guesthouse is situated just inside the Jaen province of Andalucia and is an easy drive from the Costa Blanca area. Click here
Oct 17th - A report on the October field trip has been added to the new Field Trips page for 2011/2012. Click here
Oct 2nd - Mike Smith sent me some information about a Terek Sandpiper and a Great Snipe he saw recently. Go to
Sept 16th - A report on the September field trip has been added to the new Field Trips page for 2011/2012. Click here
Sept 16th - Another five photos have been added to Mike Smith's photo gallery. Click here
Aug 12th - Mike Smith sent me some interesting information about an Eagle Owl seen near his home at Punta Prima. Go to to
Aug 1st - Mike Smith sent me some interesting information about a Red Necked Phalarope which had been sighted at San Pedro de la Salinas. A report on his visit to see the bird has been added to the 'Members Reports' page. Click here
June 12th - A report on the June field trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Click here
June 11th - A report on my recent trip to Wales has been added to Members Travels
June 11th - A report on a search for some Rufous Bush Robins has been added to Members Reports
June 11th - I have added a photo of a Bonellis Warbler to Birding in Andalucia by Bryan Thomas
June 3rd - I have added some of Bryan Thomas's photos from our trip to Andalucia to my report on the visit. You can view the photos via a link from the report at Members Travels or by clicking here Birding in Andalucia by Bryan Thomas
June 2nd - Bryan Thomas has sent me some more photos, including some from our trip to Andalucia which I will be adding to the website soon. He also included a series of Bee eater photos taken on our way home, which I think are so good I have created a photo gallery just for them. Click here Bee eaters by Bryan Thomas to have a look at them.
June 2nd - Peter Alden has sent me a late report of his first sighting of a Wryneck on 9th April, for inclusion in the Spring Migration Report. Click here Spring Migration Report to visit this page.
11th - A report on the May field trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Click here
11th - The Spring Migration Report has been updated to show the arrival in the area of some more of our summer birds. Click here Spring Migration Report to visit this page.
11th - Some new photos have been sent in by Mike Smith (Nightjars) and Rod Loveday (Bee eaters) and these have been added to their respective Gallery pages. Click here
4th - A report on a recent trip I made to Andalucia with John and our friend Bryan Thomas, has been added to the 'Members Travels' page. Click here
28th - Planned dates and locations for the first part of the 2011/2012 season have been added on a new page. Click here
28th - The new Spring Migration Report has been updated to include a few new arrivals. In addition I have added last year's arrival dates for some of the birds. Thanks to Michael Smith for providing the information. Click here Spring Migration Report to visit this page.
28th - Michael has also provided some additional photos for his photo gallery, showing Roller and Purple Heron. Click here to look at Michaels photos.
22nd - The new Spring Migration Report has been updated to include information provided by Michael Smith.
22nd - A link to the website 'Beds for Birders' has been added to the 'Links' page Click here to visit the website Beds for Birders
12th - A new page containing spring migration reports has been added to the website. Click here Spring Migration Report to visit this page.
11th - A report on the April field trip and photos have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
11th - On the 'Species Guide' page a link has beed added to another copy of the guide without the photos. This might be useful if anyone wishes to print all or part of the guide.
11th - Some additional photos from the April field trip have been added to the 'Photo Gallery - Field Trips' page.
29th March - CBBC Member, Mike Smith has kindly sent me a report, on what sounds like a brilliant day's birding he and a friend had back at the beginning of March. Mikes' report can be found on the 'Members Reports' page.
17th March - A report (with photos) from the March field trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
9th March - Bryan Thomas has given me a few more bird photos and some of them have been added to the 'Photo Gallery' in the 'Birds by Bryan Thomas' section, and some have been incorporated into the 'Species Guide'.
9th March - My report on our Great Bustards trip last week has been updated slightly and a few bird photos have been added.
9th March - This week a few of us took a trip round our local Santa Pola/El Hondo area to see what we could find. A report has been added to the 'Members Reports' page.
1st March - Yesterday a few of us took a trip to Petrola to see the Great Bustards. I have added a report to the 'Members Reports' page.
8th February - A biography for new committee member Brian Hunt, has been added to the 'Committee Page'.
19th February 2011 - A report and photos from the February outing have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
6th January 2011 - A short report about my birding experiences during our recent trip to England, has been added to the 'Members Travels' page.
16th January 2011 - A report and photos from the January outing have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
16th January 2011 - A new photo gallery page has been added containing photos sent in by CBBC member Michael Smith.
16th January 2011 - A photo of new committee member, Brian Hunt has been added to the 'Committee' page. The email address for CBBC President Malcolm Palmer has been added under his section of the 'Committee' page.
8th December 2010 - A report and photos from our December outing have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
3rd December 2010 - A report about a recent visit to the Sierra de Escallona, on a quest to find the Eagle Owl, has been added to the 'Members Reports' page.
1st December 2010 - Rod Loveday, a new CBBC member, has sent in a selection of his bird photographs all taken at La Mata. These provide an interesting insight into the variety of birds to be found at this site throughout the year. The photos can be viewed on a new page in the 'Photo Gallery' section entitled 'Birds of La Mata by Rod Loveday'.
27th November 2010 - Barry Chambers has been back to the Sierra de Escalona to look for Eagle Owls, following a tip off from a Spanish birder. You can read his report on the 'Members Reports' page.
22nd November 2010 - A report and photos from the November field trip have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
20th November 2010 - Dates for field trips for January to June 2011 have been added to the 'Field Trips' page. Please also note a change of date for the December trip (from the 9th to the 7th.)
14th November 2010 - A couple of extra photos from the Pego trip have been provided by Rod Loveday. These have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
21st October 2010 - A report on the October outing has been added to the Field Trips page.
24th October 2010 - A new version of the species guide has been added to the website. The guide has been redesigned to make it a little more user friendly and it can now be accessed from the 'Species Guide' tab on all pages. The guide allows you to check, for a particular bird, whether it is rare, scarce or common, what time of year it is here, and the type of habitat it prefers. There is also some additional information, such as, whether the bird breeds here and/or whether it is only found in very specific localised areas. If any members have any comments, spot any errors, or wish to query anything, please get in touch with me or any of the Committee members. Thank you.
25th September 2010 - Now that our summer break is over you can look forward to seeing new reports and information on the website very soon.
25th September 2010 - A new page has been set up for this year's field trip reports. Reports for previous year's trips can still be viewed via links from the current year's Field Trips page.
28th September 2010 - A report of the September field trip has been added to the Field Trips page.
28th September 2010 - A report on a recent visit to La Mata by Barry Chambers, has been added to the Members Reports page.
12th June - Photos of the canyon near El Campello have been added to the 'Sites Guide' page.
12th June - Photos from the El Campello field trip have been added to the 'photo Gallery - Field Trips' page.
12th June - Aerial photos of the canyon where Colin and Jane live at Crevillente have been added to the 'Sites Guide' page.
12th June - Planned field trips for the first part of 2010/11 have been added to the' Field Trips' page.
14th June - I have been sent five photos of club members watching the Trumpeter Finch on the June field trip. These have been added to the 'Photo Gallery - Field Trips' page.
15th June - It is nearly a year since Brian Conduit, committee member and good friend to many, passed away. I have, therefore, moved his obituary and details of his memorial fund from the 'Home' page to the 'Committee' page. I have also added my own personal tribute to Brian to mark the one year anniversary of his death next week.
16th June - A report and photos for the June field trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
21st May - A report on the May field trip to Sierra de Espuna has been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
26th April - A report on the April field trip to Petrola has been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
24th March - A report and photos from the March field trip have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
18th February - A report and photos from the February field trip have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
18th February - A little information and some photos relating to the Sierra de Escalona and the Embalse de Pedrera have been added to the 'Site Guides' pages.
27th February - A few photos of San Pedro del Pinatar have been added to the 'Site Guides Southern Costa Blanca' page.
27th February - A photo of some snowy mountains in Andalucia has been sent to me by Mel and Wendy Sykes. This has been added to the 'Member's Stories' page.
14th January - A report and photos from the January field trip have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
21st January - Today I have added an interesting report about a visit to Tarifa to witness the September migration. This has been provided by John and Michelle Edwards and is well worth a read and can be found under 'Members Travels'.
21st January - Some photos of a bird nesting in a traffic light somewhere in the north of England has been placed on the 'Members Stories' page. Can anyone identify this bird?
21st January - Two more photos of the Mar Menor Belted Kingfisher have been provided by Dave Eddy and Michelle Edwards. These been added to the 'Field Trips' page for the January 2010 trip.
10th December - A report on our December outing has been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
.11th December - Click here to read about the donation of Brian Conduit's Memorial Fund to a Spanish cancer charity. This can also be accessed in future from the bottom of the Introduction section of the Home page, below Brian's obituary.
11th December - I have added a couple of write ups to the page 'Member's Reports'. The first is a report from Barrie Avis about good numbers of White headed Ducks on his local patch, back in April 2009. The second report is from committee member, Barry Chambers and relates to something of a 'birding bonanza' back in September 2009.
12th December - The confirmed dates and locations for field trips in 2010 have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
12th December - As agreed at the AGM I have set up a page for Sales and Wants, although there are no items for sale at the moment! I plan to add details of Malcolm's books in due course and will add any other details sent to me by members. All exchanges of items for sale are to be organised by the individuals concerned. I am in the process of deleting all links to the 'Newsletters' page and replacing them with a link to the 'Sales and Wants' page.
13th December - I have made a few minor amendments and additions today namely; Iberian Green Woodpecker has been added to the November trip list; a Penduline Tit photo has been added to the December trip report; and the birds incorrectly labeled as 'Little Bustards' on Bryan's Photo Gallery have been re-labeled as Black Bellied Sand Grouse, with apologies for my error!
14th December - A report from Jules' trip to find Iberian Lynx has been added to the 'Members Travels' page.
16th December - I have added a report on Barry Chamber's chilly visit to El Hondo area today, to the 'Members Reports' page.
Photos of Razorbills in Santa Pola harbour and Cranes near Casa Vista Bella have been added to the 'Members Stories' page. An additional photo of the Golden Eagle seen on the November field trip to Sierra Escalona has been provided by Bryan Thomas, and added to the 'Field Trips' page.
A photo of a Black Redstart roosting in an unusual location has been added to the 'Members Stories' page.
A report and photos from the November field trip report have been added to the 'Field Trips' page. In addition, photos of La Pedrera and the Sierra De Escalona area have been added to the photo galleries for 'Field Trips' and 'Birding Sites' .
An interesting report about a Griffon Vulture which has arrived in Benissa can be found on the Members Stories page.
A list of bird species has been added to the piece about my recent trip to Andalucia on the Members Travels page.
A report on the October field trip has been added to the Field Trips page.
A short piece about my recent trip to Andalucia, has been added to the Members Travels page.
A Crossbill photo has been added to the Photo Gallery Birds section. SAT NAV co-ordinates have been added for Maigmo and Crevillente, more will be added over time. The date for the November field trip has been updated to read Thursday 12th November NOT Tuesday as previously stated. Apologies for my error!
A report and photos from the September field trip have now been added.
I have also added a link to the website of a Staffordshire Bookshop specialising in bird books. Details of this were kindly sent to me by a CBBC member.
Regular readers will note that not a lot has changed on the website in the last few weeks due to our summer break. In readiness for the start of the new season the Field Trips page has now been set up for 2009/10. However, all 2008/09 trip reports can still be accessed via a link from that page.
A report on the June field trip has been added to the 'Field Trips' page and three reports from Jules various trips away have been added to Member's Travels.
Details of provisional dates and locations for next year's trips have been added to the 'Field Trips' page.
A new page called 'Bird Race' has been added containing three reports about the CBBC Bird Race which took place in February.
A report on Julian Syke's recent trips to the Pyrenees and the Picos de Europe has been added to 'Members Travels'.
Malcolm has written an interesting report about a birding trip with some of our American friends, when they went in search of the elusive Marbled Duck and other rarities. Go to 'Members Reports' to read all about it.
You may notice I have been making a few cosmetic changes to the website, such as, using a consistent font which is a bit more easy on the eye. I have also added some colour to the text just to brighten the pages up a bit, although if you don't like blue and green text you will probably hate it!
I have created a new page for 'Links' as the text on the old one was a bit squashed up and I couldn't work out how to fix it.
Not much else happening at the moment, but please feel free to send me a report on any bird trips you have been on, or anything else which might be of interest.
A report on a very enjoyable recent trip to Los Teatinos in Jaen Province, has been added to the section 'Members Travels'.
The committee page has been updated to include details for new committee member Howie Elliott. Howie has also written a piece about his 'birding life' which is included under 'Members Contributions', 'Members Stories'. Please have a read as I am sure you will find it interesting.
A report on May's field trip to Tabarca Island has been added to the 'Field Trips' page - enjoy!
As promised, I have now set up an email address so that you can send me write ups and/or photos from your own birding trips, either locally or further afield. I look forward to hearing from you! Please send your contributions to cbbc2000@live.co.uk
A new section of photographs, by Bryan Thomas, has been added to the Photo Gallery.
The following changes have been made to the website. The section called 'Latest News' has been replaced with a section called 'Members Contributions'. Within the Members Contributions section are three pages as described below.
Members Reports - this contains the information which was formerly in Latest News, such as, reports from members on birding outings in and around the Costa Blanca area.
Members Travels - this is intended to contain reports from members on birding trips outside the Costa Blanca area, in other parts of Spain and in other countries.
Members Stories - this is for other reports from members, such as, garden birding experiences.
I am hoping that members will wish to contribute to this part of the website so please send me reports on your birding experiences, either in the Costa Blanca area, other parts of Spain, or abroad. I plan to set up a separate email address for you to send me your reports and this will appear here shortly.
Greetings everyone, I am now back at my computer and have updated the website to include trip reports for the March and April field trips. Further adjustments and additions will be made to the website soon, so keep watching this space!
If you are a regular visitor to the website, please note I will be away from my computer for the next few weeks so nothing is likely to change. When I return, however, I am planning to update and add more content to the website as previously promised.
Anyone who looked at this website in the past, and has visited it again recently, should notice that it has undergone something of a revival lately.
The website was originally designed and built by Jules, and he has done an excellent job. However, because Jules works full time and has a young family, he found it difficult to find the time to keep the site up to date. This is why I have now taken over responsibility for updating and developing the website.
So far I have posted reports from all the latest field trips, added more information to the sites guides, added a few photos in various places and set up pages for photo galleries and newsletters.
I have plans to develop the website further, including the addition of a section for members contributions, so please watch this space!
Mary