Birds

[MissTrant]

What birds will I see on the Camino?

 

[Anamiri]

It depends when you go, if spring summer you'll see the storks in their nests with their babies. They are amazing.
And in the Meseta you'll hear the cuckoos

 

[amancio]

Depends on season and on camino... spring time in La Plata is amazing! Blue Jays, black kites, storks, nightingales, all type of emberizas, booted eagles, serins... you name it!
If you cross the Pyrinees now you will see plenty of vulture just a few feet away from you, for example. Herons in wetlands, coots... you have to be a bit more specific!

 

[hel&scott]

I'll never forget our close encounter with the giant Imperial Eagles on the Vdlp.

 

[VNwalking]

My favorite avian encounters were a Hoopoe on the Frances near the turn-off to Euante, and a kettle of vultures near Pancorbo on the Vasco - there were about 15 of them taking advantage of a mountain face, taking turns soaring and perching on a row of crags. It was quite a sight.

 

[amancio]

That reminds me; in Aragones, in Foz de Lumbier, a small diversion off the official route which is perfectly signposted, you find tens of vultures too! But if you are looking for birds, the Via de la Plata in Springtime your cup of tea!

 

[K Turner]

I'm in Burgos right now and watching magpies. Bold little critters!

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

And in the Meseta you'll hear the cuckoos

Peg had a problem with the cuckoos for awhile. Never having heard them, except for cuckoo clocks, she counted the calls to tell the time.

 

[William Marques]

Eagle Owls too.

 

[VNwalking]

@William Marques, Where!?!

 

[Eckart.S]

You may see these on the via de la Plata in March:

 

[Bradypus]

@William Marques, Where!?!

Surprised me too. But Google tells me that the densest population in Europe is - or was a few years ago - in southern Spain in the Alicante province. Never seen one in the wild myself but I would love to do so. Magnificent birds.
http://birding140.com/eurasian-eagle-owl-the-densest-population-in-europe-is-being-guarded-by-ase/

 

[Sho]

On the CF this summer:

• Mallard
• Cattle Egret
• Grey Heron
• White Stork
• Red Kite
• Bearded Vulture
• Egyptian Vulture
• Griffon Vulture
• Common Buzzard
• Booted Eagle
• Eurasian Coot
• Yellow-legged Gull
• Rock Dove (Feral Pigeon)
• Common Wood Pigeon
• Eurasian Collared Dove
• Great Spotted Cuckoo
• Common Cuckoo
• Common Swift
• Common Kingfisher
• Woodlark
• Eurasian Crag Martin
• Barn Swallow
• Common House Martin
• White Wagtail
• Winter Wren
• European Robin
• Black Redstart
• Common Redstart
• European Stonechat
• Common Blackbird (Merula)
• Zitting Cisticola
• Eurasian Blackcap
• Western Bonelli's Warbler
• Great Tit
• Short-toed Treecreeper
• Southern Grey Shrike
• Azure-winged Magpie (which was surprising)
• Common Magpie
• Carrion Crow
• Northern Raven
• Spotless Starling
• Common Starling
• House Sparrow
• Rock Sparrow
• European Serin
• European Goldfinch
• Common Linnet
• Red Crossbill
• Eurasian Bullfinch
• Cirl Bunting
• White Nuthatch
• Coal Tit (?)
• Some ducks I still need to ID in a more extensive guide
• Many other unidentified streaky brown birds

I used Lowen and Bocos's Birds of Spain as a Kindle book on my phone, and a Vortex Optics Solo Monocular 8x25.

 

[VNwalking]

Zitting Cisticola

These guys are not much to look at, but they have my favorite common name of all.

Many other unidentified streaky brown birds

Yeah, the camino has a ton of LBBs.

 

[Bradypus]

These guys are not much to look at, but they have my favorite common name of all.

That is pretty good but I don't think it beats the Hoopoe - funny enough name by itself but even odder when you learn that the Linnaean name is Upupa epops

 

[VNwalking]

Thanks @Bradypus! Funny, I was going to mention that but I'm om my phone and was too lazy. That inspired bit of nomenclture has been delighting the inner children of ornithologists for centuies..

 

[William Marques]

@William Marques, Where!?!

In the mountains not far from the Cruz de Ferro.

 

[Donna Sch]

What birds will I see on the Camino?

I did the Levante and the Invierno last Spring and we saw fewer birds than expected. But we did see lots of butterflies.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Peg had a problem with the cuckoos for awhile. Never having heard them, except for cuckoo clocks, she counted the calls to tell the time.

I'd never heard a cuckoo bird before either until I walked the Frances. I was fascinated by how much they sounded exactly like a cuckoo clock...it doesn't take much to fascinate me.

 

[Silus]

Tricastella to sarria

 

[Silus]

Mum and 5 chicks. Loved this, reminds me of home.

 

[Silus]

Did anyone see these? Another periogrino told me her farther told her these were Camino angels. He told her that when she saw these they were him come to watch over her. I saw them a few times when times were tough. They never seemed to be in a hurry to move on, no matter how close I got.

 

[Silus]

Dropped my picture of the “Camino angel”

 

[Sho]

I saw a few of those little sweeties, Silus.

 

[David Pettee]

You bet! Go to eBird and see what is around. I had 100 species last year from late April to early June on the CF.

 

[laineylainey]

I'm in Burgos right now and watching magpies. Bold little critters!

Wish the magpies in my garden could find their way to Burgos lol.

 

[Chizuru]

View attachment 64158Dropped my picture of the “Camino angel”

They are the European Robin and were very common in Galacia in October last year. We saw them many times a day and took a perfect Christmas card photo of one perched on an ivy-covered post in the Galacian mist. I didn't see any further back, only in Galacia.

 

[Doug Bowne]

Birders are posting from several locations in Spain I checked on Cornell Universities, citizens science, daily e-bird reports https://ebird.org/explore.

If in Basque Country the state of the art, Urdaibai Center, https://www.birdcenter.org/en
a nice walk North of Gernika, posts daily bird sightings, webcams, and offers numerous resources.