Red-knobbed Coot near Faro

A Red-knobbed Coot (Fulica cristata) in "Ludo", Parque Natural da Ria Formosa, near Faro today (14-02-2012). The bird had been discovered by Joost Falkenburg earlier this winter. Not the first time this species shows up in the area, but not easy to detect them among all the Common Coots (Fulica atra). These birds can be best found by the blue-grey hue of the bill (instead of the pinkish hue on Common Coot). Also the black feathering in front of the eye extends less towards the bill, than on the commoner species, where it forms a black "spike" towards the bill (rounded and less pointed there on Red-knobbed Coot). The red "bulbs" on this one here are comparatively small and easy to overlook - I suppose it is a "first winter". The lower/flat back and the often "fluffy" rump, might also be a hint to spot these rare birds among the hundreds of Coots. Only about 200-300 pairs nest in Europe, most of them in Andalusia, southern Spain. Last year, two pairs nested in the Alentejo-region in South Portugal, one of them on a small pool, in a mixed pair with a Common Coot, which produced one (hybrid) offspring. Some birds origin from the Doñana-National Park in Andalusia have been marked with a white plastic neck-colar, with a code. But not all Coots marked like this are "cristata", since also the Common ones get a neck-ring when trapped in the procedure...

Color-ringed Spoonbill

Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) feeding in a tidal channel of the Ria Formosa Natural Park near Faro, Algarve, Portugal on the 11th of February 2012.
The bird has been colour-ringed as a nestling in north Germany (Mellum, Niedersachsen) in June 2011 by Olaf Geiter, with whom I catched and ringed Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) near Cologne in 2003 for his dissertation about Neozoa. Its a small world...
I have been reporting ringed Spoonbills, Flamingos, Gulls, Waders and other aquatic birds here in the Algarve for over 10 years now. The birds life-historys reveal that many Individuals keep coming back, not only to the Algarve every winter, but even to the same lagoon or feeding at the same section of a tidal channel for years and years. In case of the Spoonbills, a species that has extended their breeding distribution northwards along the west coast of Europe, many birds wintering here come from the Netherlands or Germany. If you see or (better) photograph color-ringed Spoonbills, it is appreciated if you sent this observation with all the necessary details to the coordinator of the European ringing-projects of the species, Otto Overdijk, e-mail: o.overdijk AT natuurmonumenten.nl

A rare winter guest

This male Snow Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) was filmed at the beach of Vila Real do St. Antonio (Algarve) on the 08/02/2012. It was feeding together with a female in the zone, where the beach meets the pre-dunes, right next to the river-mouth of the Guadiana and pretty confident.
Originally three birds had been discovered at the site in December already. The species nests in the tundra-zone from north Scandinavia on northwards and eastwards and is normally rather a rare winter visitor to Portugal's west coast.



You may want to click on the YouTube-symbol in the right lower corner of the video, to watch it in a larger format and listen to calls at around 0:38


Interesting was also the observation of at least 13 Little Terns (Sterna albifrons) at this time of the year, foraging in the mixing waters of the Guadiana river-mouth. The species is actually strictly an Africa-migrant, but here, some stay during all winter. Possibly the only place in all Europe.
Both, Razorbill (Alca torda) and Great Skua (Stercorarius skua) could be seen entering the river, too.
We found Slender-billed Gulls (Larus genei) in Tavira (in the saltpans on the way to Hotel Vila Galé Albacora) as well as in the saltpans near Fuseta (3 Individuals at each site) the same day, as well as a Black-winged Kite (Elanus caeruleus) perched next to an orchard at the N 125 near Luz de Tavira at the end of the day.

A Crested Coot (Fulica cristata) was yesterday still present here in "Ludo" (Faro-area) just east of the so called "São Lourenço-bridge".

At the cape of São Vicente

At Europe's south-western tip, the shear sea-cliffs form, what is known at the Algarve's best known seawatching spot. Northern Gannet, Great Skua, Balearic- and Manx Shearwater, Razorbill, Shag, Mediterranean Gull and Sandwich Tern are among the most common seabirds seen on a winter day here.
(Foto: GS, Vila do Bispo, 09.12.2011)



One of at least six Alpine Accentors (Prunella collaris) present near the lighthouse. (Foto: Georg Schreier, Vila do Bispo, 09.12.2011). The species is a winter visitor.



Several pairs of Peregrine nest along the rocky coast.
(Foto: GS, Vila do Bispo, 09.12.2011)






Red-billed Chough (Phyrrhocorax phyrrhocorax) near the cape (Photo: David Rayner). This photo was on the cover of the "Algarve Goodlife Magazine" this last autumn. Some background information about the distribution of the species and the population trend in Europe is here.



Adult male Black Redstart of the Iberian subspecies "aterrimus" (Photo: Gaby Dienst, Vila do Bispo, 09.12.2011). A widespread resident in the area.



A male Hen Harrier (Circus cyaneus) hunting in the mix of fields and Garigue of the hinterland of the cape (Photo: Gaby Dienst, Vila do Bispo, 09.12.2011). Here, rarities such as Rose-coloured Starling, Pallid Harrier (both juveniles) and Richard's Pipit have been observed by me and others this last autumn.



Little Owls are always fascinating... (Photo: Gaby Dienst, Vila do Bispo, 12.09.2011)

Mondego

A brilliant documentation (in English) about the Mondego-river in the centre of Portugal and its marvelous and unique wildlife.

Mondego from Daniel Pinheiro on Vimeo.

Possible South Polar Skua?

This interesting Skua has been photographed during a pelagic trip I organized, on the 16-09-2011 off Fuseta/Algarve. My special thanks to Michael Southcott, who has joined this trip together with two friends, for sharing this and other pictures with me.


Large Skua Stercorarius sp about 5 miles off Fuseta (Algarve, Portugal) 16-09-2011. Photo: Michael Southcott (click photo to enlarge).

The uniformly whitish, "frosty" body, sharply contrasting to a very dark/blackish underwing, together with a relatively small, all brownish head, lacking the "cap" of an (adult) Great Skua Stercorarius skua, makes this a candidate for a South Polar Skua Stercorarius maccormicki (intermediate phase?) in my opinion.
The species is known to winter in the North Atlantic with regularity (pdf) and has been recorded in early September this year in Spanish waters (3 Ind. off Lanzarote and 1 Ind. at Estaca de Bares, Galicia, NW Spain) well documented on the blog of one of the observers here, as well as on Ricard Gutiérrez' website "Rare birds in Spain".

This is not the first "suspicious" Great Skua I am seeing here, but the first one that has been captured in a picture. I am not experienced with this species (I guess relatively few people are...) and lack certainty here, so I would be interested in any opinion on this matter. Field identification seems to be often difficult in this species and a different moulting cycle (reversed, being from southern hemisphere) and pattern (shorter moulting phase, replacing 3 primaries at once) in the species, often pointed out as a reliable criteria, is questioned to be that reliable here.

Is this bird still in the range of Great Skua Stercorarius skua ? Just a slightly aberrant "whitish" Individual ? But I never heard of a "pale morph" on Great Skua... Further, since no moulting is visible and together with the lack of the "cap" of an adult/subadult Great Skua, this has to be a bird before the first immature moult (takes place from December to February on Great Skua) = a fresh juvenile, in case it is "just" a Great Skua. But are not juvenile Great Skuas clearly rufus brown, with somewhat lighter "spots"? And finally, is it possible to identify this bird based on this photo at all ?