Friday, 15 January 2021
13-1-2021 CREU DE LONGA, VALENCIA - GREAT EGRET (Ardea alba)
Great Egrets usually stay in habitats that have areas of either saltwater or freshwater nearby. They are seen near marshes, ditches, canals, ponds, tidal flats, rivers, streams, swamps, lakes, estuaries (or water passages where the ocean tide meets a river current), and flooded farm fields. Great Egrets are usually solitary birds when not nesting. But they also can gather together from surrounding areas to form a place where a large group can rest or sleep, called a communal roost. Frequently, several pairs build nests in the same tree and form a colony; but occasionally a pair may nest alone. Great Egrets often share colonial nesting sites, or rookeries, with other egret species, herons, and other wading birds as well.
They build their nests in trees, thickets, or shrubs 10-90 feet above water or ground. Nesting colonies are usually located in extremely tall trees. Great Egrets build large platform-style nests using sticks and line the nests with plant material. Both parents help to build the nest, incubate (to sit on and keep the eggs warm) the eggs, and feed their young. The young will be able to fly in 6-7 weeks after hatching.
Within the colony, Great Egrets are territorial and aggressive, defending their space with sharp bill jabs and harsh calls.
The great egret is generally a very successful species with a large and expanding range, occurring worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. It is ubiquitous across the Sun Belt of the United States and in the Neotropics. In the Nordic countries, it was historically a rare visitor.
13-1-2021 MUNTANYETA DEL SANTS, VALENCIA - WATER PIPIT (Anthus spinoletta)
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They are short-distance migrants, construct cup-shaped nests, and feed on various small invertebrates picked off the ground or vegetation.
Adult Water pipits in spring plumage have greyish-brown upperparts, weakly streaked with darker brown, and pale pink-buff underparts fading to whitish on the lower belly. There may be some faint streaking on the breast and flanks. Their head is grey with a broad white supercilium. The outer tail feathers are white, and the legs, bill and iris are dark brown or blackish. In non-breeding plumage, the head is grey-brown and the supercilium is less distinct. The upperparts are more streaked, and the underparts are white, marked lightly with brown on the breast and flanks.
The sexes are similar although the female has, on average, a greyer head. Young birds resembles the non-breeding adult, but are browner and more streaked above with prominent streaking on the underparts.
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Water pipits breed in the mountains of southern Europe and Asia from Spain to central China, along with the Mediterranean islands of Sardinia and Corsica. These birds migrate relatively short distances; some populations winter mainly in western and southern Europe and in northwestern Africa; in western Europe some birds show fidelity to the same wintering site, returning each year.
Birds in Spain move only lower down the mountains in which they breed. Others winter at lower altitudes near their breeding areas and also in the Arabian Peninsula and northeast Africa. Some birds winter in Pakistan, northwest India, and southern China. Water pipits breed in alpine pastures and high meadows with short grass and some bushes or rocks. They are typically found close to wetter areas and often on slopes. Wintering grounds typically include coastal wetlands, marshes, rice fields, and similar habitats.
Thursday, 14 January 2021
Wednesday, 13 January 2021
Tuesday, 12 January 2021
Monday, 11 January 2021
Wednesday, 6 January 2021
Tuesday, 5 January 2021
Monday, 4 January 2021
3-1-2021 POTRIES, VALENCIA - EURASIAN BLACKCAP (MALE) (Sylvia atricapilla)
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The Eurasian blackcap, Sylvia atricapilla, is a common and widespread typical warbler known for its distinctive cap and melodious song. The species exhibits sexual dimorphism with males sporting a black cap and females a chestnut one. The upperparts are generally olive-grey, while the underparts are pale grey. This bird is small and agile, measuring around 13 cm in length with a wingspan of 7–8 cm.
Males can be identified by their black caps and light grey underparts, while females have a reddish-brown cap and a slightly browner hue to their grey upperparts. Juveniles resemble females but have a rufous tinge to their upperparts and a more olive tone on the breast and flanks. The blackcap's tail is dark grey with an olive edge to each feather, and it has a grey bill and legs with a reddish-brown iris.
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The blackcap favors mature deciduous woodlands with a well-developed understory. It also occupies parks, large gardens, and overgrown hedges, provided there are tall trees for songposts and dense shrubs for nesting.
This warbler breeds across much of Europe, western Asia, and northwestern Africa. It is a partial migrant, with northern populations wintering in northwestern Europe, around the Mediterranean, and in tropical Africa. Some have adapted to wintering in British and Irish gardens.
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Blackcaps are territorial during the breeding season, with males establishing and defending their territories through song and display. They are mainly monogamous and may raise one to two broods per season. The species is known for its leap-frog migration pattern, where northern populations migrate further south than those from the Mediterranean.
The male blackcap's song is a rich musical warble, often ending in a high-pitched crescendo. In isolated areas, a simpler song may be heard. Calls include a hard "tac-tac" and various squeaks and trills. The song is sometimes confused with that of the garden warbler but is slightly higher-pitched and more broken.
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Blackcaps typically build a neat cup-shaped nest in brambles or scrub, laying a clutch of 4–6 buff eggs with grey and brown markings. Both parents incubate the eggs and care for the altricial chicks, which fledge in about 11–12 days.
The blackcap can be confused with other dark-headed Sylvia species, such as the Sardinian and Orphean warblers, but these have more extensive black on the head and are larger with white tail edges.
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During the breeding season, blackcaps feed mainly on insects, switching to fruit in late summer. In winter, they consume small fruits and may rely on food provided in gardens, such as bread, fat, and peanuts.
Despite pressures from hunting in the Mediterranean and natural predation, the blackcap has been expanding its range for decades and is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as Least Concern. Its population is estimated to be between 101 and 161 million individuals globally.
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