Birds in Spain Blog

Castellano más abajo Red Kite ( Milvus milvus ) is a nearly threatened bird of prey which may be still fairly abundant in Spain but has been subject of conservation measures, e.g. in the UK. It's a bird species, together with Black Kite ( Milvus migrans ) that comes to carcasses and dumps to feed on different prey remains. And that links with the story below.   Human aimed? No! for Milvus only [Para personas? ¡No, solo para milanos!] Friend from the office, vet Francesc Mañas explained us how a family of friends living in the Spanish Pyrenees, carry out a kind of tradition in which the family cooks large amounts of pasta (macarroni) not for their children but for the local kites (see video above). The family has created a sort of feeding point within their property where they benefit the local population of kites giving them pasta to eat from time to time. And according to the enclosed photos (provided by them) with a great success. Indeed, they have been per...

Late July offers the opportunity of watching fresh plumaged juvenile Mediterranean gulls ( Larus melanocephalus ) and both exploring the variation amongts their upperwing feathers plus overall structure and characteristics. Besides, the presence of 1st summer birds (Euring 5, born the year before) can give some chance of comparing newly moulted to birds in active moult. We enclose some photos taken in the Ebro delta, Catalonia on 28th July 2012. juv 1 juv 2 juv 2 juv 2 juv 3 Euring 5 bird Moulting 1st summer to 2nd winter  [1r estiu a 2n hivern] [1r verano a 2º invierno] Same individual as above. Note growing feathers [mateix individu, noteu les plomes en creixement] [mismo individuo, notad las plumas en crecimiento] Already moulted Euring 5 to 2nd winter. Note bill colour, old outermost primary in right wing and dark edges in innermost secondaries [2n hivern. Noteu el color del bec, d'Euring 5, i les plomes velles a la primària més e...