Skylarks galore, plus vultures and (un) Common rock thrush!

Day trip 24th May 2021 – Skylarks, vultures and rock thrush!

Guide of the day: Karline Martorell accompanied by Philippa Benson
Participants: 4
Weather conditions: crazy weather: no wind and very cold in the morning, getting hotter in the late morning to finish in the afternoon very windy and cold, temps ranging from 12°C to 24°C+

Highlights of the day: Little bustard, Skylark (posing), Tawny pipit, Eleonora’s falcon, Montagu’s harrier, Bee-eater, Common rock thrush, Black vulture and Red fox.

What an amazing day! It started off well with a fabulous chorus of Skylark – some even posing nicely on bushes! And from there on the day just got better and better… Close views of Little bustard in flight, 10 minutes watching a healthy vixen and 2 cubs, then Montagu’s harrier, Eleonora’s falcon (dark morph), a lovely pair of Ocellated lizards, Tawny pipit perched very close. In the afternoon we managed to add Bee-eater, a group of Griffon vulture, good views of the not so Common rock thrush and the finale of the day was being buzzed by a Black vulture, which flew directly over, not much more than 10m above our heads.

Just click on the link below to read or download the detailed trip report and bird list.

 

Trip report and bird list 2021.24.05 Lézignan-Saint-André de Roquelongue

 

Birding day trip to the Minervois in spring

Day trip 21st May 2021 – Swifts and swallows galore!

Guide of the day: Karline Martorell accompanied by Philippa Benson
Participants: 6
Weather conditions: Cloudy with sunny intervals and a light wind, temps ranging from 10°C to 20°C

Highlights of the day: Alpine swift, Red-rumped swallow, Crag martin, Blue rock thrush, Woodchat shrike, Golden oriole eating cherries. Another highlight was having our coffee break actually at a café!!!

The aim of the day was to see nesting species of hirundines and swifts and see them we did! Common swift, Alpine swift, Crag martin, House martin, Red-rumped swallow, Barn swallow all in good numbers swirling around our heads. The Crag martins were particularly cooperative, swooping around below us over the dry river bed and settling on a buttress just below us as we looked down from the bridge.

The muggy weather was a challenge, as was the misinformation about the car park and the café opening late.. but we struggled on and had a good day despite the challenges.

Just click on the link below to read or download the detailed trip report and bird list.

 

Trip report and bird list 2021.21.05 Minervois spring

 

Birding day trip around Portiragnes

Day trip 12th May 2021 – A real bonanza of birds with good views of top species!

Guide of the day: Karline Martorell accompanied by Philippa Benson
Participants: 6
Weather conditions: Clear windless weather all day, temps ranging from 11°C to 19°C+

Highlights of the day: Little bustard, Collared pratincole, Great reed warbler and Reed warbler (both heard and seen), Purple swamphen (out in the open again!),  Black-winged stilt (good close views), Caspian tern, Purple heron, Lesser kestrel…

Starting with superb views of a displaying male Little bustard in full view, the day just got better and better!
With interesting birds in every direction and new ones appearing every couple of minutes – the excitement was exhilarating. We topped our list at a more than respectable 75 species and had a really good day – and I suspect everyone slept well!

Just click on the link below to read or download the detailed trip report and bird list.

 

Trip report and bird list 2021.12.05 Portiragnes

 

Day trip birding around Gruissan

Day trip 5th May 2021 – A real pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Guide of the day: Karline Martorell accompanied by Philippa Benson
Participants: 8
Weather conditions: Sunshine, clouds and rainbows – with a strong westerly wind. Temps from a chilly 8° to a very warm 20°+
Highlights of the day: White stork, Spoonbill, Purple swamphen (out in the open!), Woodchat shrike (male and female perched next to each other), Slender billed gull, Little tern and the feldegg subspecies of Yellow wagtail.

We are so spoilt to have such a wide diversity of habitats in such a small area! And the rainbow as we set out for the day was an excellent sign of things to come 🙂 Great species with some really excellent views in good light conditions and all in stunning landscapes with a large dose of sunshine – what more could one want!

Just click on the link below to read or download the detailed trip report and bird list.

 

Trip report and bird list 2021.05.05 Gruissan

 

Thekla’s lark

French name: Cochevis de Thékla

Scientific name: Galerida theklae

Interesting information

This species is very similar to the Crested lark. To distinguish them, the Thekla’s lark has a shorter beak with pectoral stripes that are more distinct than the Crested lark. In its strongholds, identification is simplified by knowing where one is found without the other!

Call and song

The song is very close to that of the Crested lark, but the Thekla’s song is more fluted and  with shorter sentences.

Thekla lark ©K.Martorell
Thekla lark ©K.Martorell
Thekla lark ©K.Martorell
Thekla lark -©K.Martorell

Distribution and habitat

If the Crested lark can be found in garrigue habitat as well as in agricultural plain, the Thekla’s lark will prefer more wild scrubland and dry steppes. It requires very open landscape with dry grassland where it will make its nest on the ground. The nest is well camouflaged in the Brachypodium retusum or bunch grass. This species is strictly Mediterranean with populations confined to the Aude and the Pyrénées-Orientales. The population strongholds are very localised in the limestone hills of the coastal Corbières, Villesèque-des-Corbières, Port-la-Nouvelle, Salses and Rivesaltes.

Distribution maps: region and county

Breeding birds Atlas – Languedoc Roussillon (2012-2021) – source: faune-lr.org

Breeding birds Atlas – Aude (2012) – source: LPO11

Conservation status and population trends

The French population is estimated at 270 to 430 pairs. But numbers are declining across the species’ distribution. For example, in the Corbieres hills, there was a 26% decrease in the number of pairs between 1996 and 2009. With this decline and low numbers, the Thekla’s lark is now considered to be in danger on both the national and regional red lists.

When to see this species in the Languedoc-Roussillon

The Thekla’s lark is visible all year round. Like most sedentary breeders, it is more demonstrative in spring. The graph below shows the average numbers of Thekla’s lark seen in the Languedoc by month.

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