Day 15 – 3rd April
An early visit to La Finca Golf course gave me two more for the Trip list in Night Heron and Gull Billed Tern. A confiding HOOPOE and many CATTLE EGRET gave me some good photo opportunities and a Nightingale was singing loudly. A drive / walk along the Rio Segura at Benejuzar was a Shrike fest with Southern Grey and WOODCHAT SHRIKE common place and Great Reed Warblers were ‘chacking’ loudly from the reedbeds.
I spent most of the afternoon at the pools around El Hondo visitor Ctr., SQUACCO HERON, Little Stint, Collared Pratincole, Black winged Stilts and Marbled Duck showed well and later I moved round to the Vistabella road hides. Here BLACK NECKED GREBE, POCHARD and WHITE HEADED DUCK all posed well for the camera. Greater Flamingo, Purple Heron, Marsh Harrier, Red Crested Pochard, Great Crested and Little Grebe were present too. Later back at La Finca Golf a very distant group of Bee-eater were heard then seen.
