Monday, 30 September 2019
Sunday, 29 September 2019
27-9-2019 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - WAVE MOTH (idaea cervantaria)
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1.4 to 2.2 cm wingspan. Straw-coloured, with yellowish wings with scattered dark, brown or greyish scales. On each wing it has a wavy line with small pointed spots, pointing backwards. Sometimes these details are barely noticeable. Between these lines and the rear edge, it has dark spots that may have a light wavy stripe. It has a spot on each wing but those on the front wings may go unnoticed.
There are other similar species that are impossible to distinguish externally, so for a correct and safe identification, genital analysis must be used. Several of them have been found in the province of Malaga, although I. cervantaria is currently the most common and the only one that has been observed in urban environments.
The caterpillars feed on dry leaves of herbaceous plants and in captivity on petals of different Asteraceae and sea alder (Lobularia maritima), the latter common in our province, especially in sunny areas of the limestone mountains, and occasionally used in gardening for the showiness of its inflorescences.
25-9-2019 EL OSO, AVILA - FALSE MEADOW SAFFRON (Colchicum montanum)
False meadow saffron is an autumnal crocus adored for its thin, pointy purple petals with striking white centers and yellow filaments. The plant's leaves, seeds, and underground storage organ are poisonous. Despite this, false meadow saffron is a popular ornamental plant, often featuring in garden displays.
False meadow saffron is a perennial herb.
False meadow saffron is a plant native to the mountainous regions of Southwestern Europe. Over time, it has maintained its presence within its indigenous range, without notable introduction to regions beyond its original habitat. The essence of false meadow saffron's distribution remains tightly bound to this specific and confined locale, without significant cultivation or naturalization elsewhere. False Meadow saffron blooms in autumn.
23-9-2019 GALISTEO, CACERES - GUADARRAMA WALL LIZARD (Podarcis guadarramae ssp. guadarramae)
The Guadarrama Wall Lizard (Podarcis guadarramae) is a medium-sized lizard endemic to the granite rocks of the Sistema Central mountain range in Spain and Portugal. It is characterized by a flattened head and slender body, with a coloration that ranges from brown to green and can include dark spots. This species is known for living on rocks and scree, but also occupies sandy areas, and is an egg-laying omnivore that eats insects, fruit, and berries.
Physical characteristics Size: A medium-sized lizard with adult males averaging around \(53.8\) mm in snout-vent length (SVL) and females around \(51.6\) mm.
Coloration: Can range from brown to bright green with dark spots, often with a contrasting pale dorsolateral stripe in males. The belly is typically white, pink, or orange.
Head: Has a distinctively flattened head and an elongated snout. Habitat and distribution Location: Found in the mountain ranges of the Sistema Central, including the Sierra de Guadarrama, Sierra de Gredos, and Peña de Francia.Habitat: Primarily inhabits granite rock substrates, scree, and rocky areas, but also lives in sandy areas within pine forests. Behavior and diet Diet: An omnivore that feeds on invertebrates, fruits, and berries.Arboreal activity: While often found on rocks, recent observations show it also climbs trees and shrubs to significant heights, a behavior that is not fully understood.Territoriality: Males are highly territorial.
Reproduction Reproduction: Egg-laying (oviparous).Eggs: Females lay between 3 and 11 eggs, one or two times a year, depending on the summer's duration.
Hatchlings: Growth rates of hatchlings are influenced by the environment they are in, with those in higher altitude, colder, more humid conditions growing faster.
High-altitude populations: Higher altitude populations tend to have a larger clutch size (average 3.5 eggs) compared to lower altitude populations (average 2.5 eggs).
Saturday, 28 September 2019
24-9-2019 GALISTEO, CACERES - EUROPEAN STONECHAT (FEMALE) (Saxicola rubicola)
The European stonechat is a small passerine bird with a distinctive "stone-tapping" call. Males have a black head, brown back, white half-collar, and orange-red breast, while females are duller brown. They inhabit open areas with low vegetation like heathland, feed on invertebrates and seeds, and often perch on gorse bushes.
Appearance
Males: Black head, brown back, a white half-collar on the neck, and an orange-red breast.
Females and juveniles: Paler and more mottled brown than males.
Size: Roughly robin-sized, about 13 cm (5 inches) long, with a large head and short tail.
Behavior
Call: Makes a sharp, loud call that sounds like two small stones being tapped together, which is where its name comes from.
Posture: Often seen sitting upright on top of bushes, frequently flicking its wings.
Migration: Some northern populations migrate south for winter, while others are resident, especially in warmer climates.
24-9-2019 GALISTEO, CACERES - IBERIAN GREY SHRIKE (Lanius meridionalis)
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The Iberian grey shrike, Lanius meridionalis, is a captivating bird, a member of the shrike family. It bears a resemblance to its relative, the great grey shrike, Lanius excubitor, yet it presents subtle distinctions in plumage. This bird is slightly smaller and darker than its great grey counterpart.
When observing the Iberian grey shrike, look for a bird that is somewhat diminutive and darker compared to the great grey shrike. Its plumage is generally similar, but keen birdwatchers will note the differences that set it apart.
The Iberian grey shrike is a bird of preference for dry, open country. It thrives in the southern European landscapes where it resides year-round.
This species is a resident bird of southern Europe, where it can be found throughout the year, gracing the open habitats with its presence.
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The Iberian grey shrike is known for its unique feeding habits. It hunts large insects, small birds, and rodents from prominent perches. In a rather macabre display, it is known to impale its prey on thorns or barbed wire, creating a "larder" for later consumption.
The breeding habits of the Iberian grey shrike include the laying of eggs, as evidenced by the specimens collected and preserved in natural history museums.
The Iberian grey shrike is currently listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Conservation efforts are essential to ensure the survival of this species.
The diet of the Iberian grey shrike consists of large insects, small birds, and rodents. Its method of feeding involves hunting from vantage points and storing food in a grisly fashion, skewering its catch on sharp points for later consumption.
24-9-2019 PLASENCIA, ESPANA - HOUSE SPARROW (FEMALE) (Passer domesticus)
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The house sparrow (Passer domesticus) is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the world. It is a small bird that has a typical length of 16 cm (6.3 in) and a mass of 24–39.5 g (0.85–1.39 oz). Females and young birds are coloured pale brown and grey, and males have brighter black, white, and brown markings. One of about 25 species in the genus Passer, the house sparrow is native to most of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin, and a large part of Asia. Its intentional or accidental introductions to many regions, including parts of Australasia, Africa, and the Americas, make it the most widely distributed wild bird.
The house sparrow is strongly associated with human habitation, and can live in urban or rural settings. Though found in widely varied habitats and climates, it typically avoids extensive woodlands, grasslands, polar regions, and hot, dry deserts far away from human development. For sustenance, the house sparrow routinely feeds at home and public bird feeding stations, but naturally feeds on the seeds of grains, flowering plants and weeds. However, it is an opportunistic, omnivorous eater, and commonly catches insects, their larvae, caterpillars, invertebrates and many other natural foods.
24-9-2019 PLASENCIA, ESPANA - EUROPEAN GOLDFINCH (Carduelis carduelis)
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The European Goldfinch is a small, 12 cm bird with a striking red, white, and black face, a brown back, and black wings with a bright yellow band. They primarily eat seeds, using their pointed bill to access them from plants like thistles and burdocks, but also consume insects and buds. Known for their melodic song and social, flocking behavior, they inhabit open woodlands, parks, gardens, and fields across Europe, Asia, and North Africa.
Identification
Adult: Features a bright red face mask, a black and white head, a brown back, and black wings with a vibrant yellow stripe. Males often have a larger red mask.
Juvenile: Has a plain brown head but is identifiable by the bold yellow-and-black wing pattern.
Size: Roughly 12 cm (4.7 inches) long with a wingspan of 21–25 cm (8.3–9.8 inches).
Diet
Primarily feeds on seeds from plants like thistles, sunflowers, and burdocks.
Also eats buds, flowers, and fruits.
Consumes small insects, especially to feed their young during the breeding season.
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Habitat and behavior
Habitat: Prefers open habitats like woodland edges, orchards, parks, gardens, and grasslands with scattered trees. They avoid dense forests and completely treeless areas.
Flocking: Are highly social and often form large flocks, particularly in winter, to feed in weedy fields.
Flight: Flies in an undulating pattern and frequently calls while in flight.
Vocalization: Known for their pleasant, tinkling, and bubbling songs and calls.
Migration: Some populations are migratory, moving south for the winter.
Breeding and lifespan
Breeding: Breeds in April, and can have two or three clutches per year, with each clutch containing 4 to 6 eggs.
Incubation: The hen incubates the eggs for about 12–14 days.
Fledging: The young fledge when they are around 14 days old.
Lifespan: Can live for around 2 years on average in the wild, with the oldest recorded individual living for over 10 years.
24-9-2019 SALVATIERRA DE TORMES, CACERES - EUROPEAN STARLING (Sturnus vulgaris)
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The Common starling (Sturnus vulgaris) is a medium-sized passerine bird in the starling family, Sturnidae. It is a noisy bird, especially in communal roosts and other gregarious situations, with an unmusical but varied song. Its gift for mimicry has been noted in literature including the Mabinogion and the works of Pliny the Elder and William Shakespeare.
The Сommon starling is a medium-sized bird. It has glossy black plumage with a metallic sheen, which is speckled with white at some times of the year. The legs are pink and the bill is black in winter and yellow in summer. Juveniles are grey-brown and by their first winter resemble adults though often retaining some brown juvenile feathering, especially on the head. They can usually be sexed by the color of the irises, rich brown in males, mouse-brown, or grey in females.
Tuesday, 24 September 2019
24-9-2019 GALISTEO, CACERAS - EURASIAN WREN (Troglodytes troglodytes)
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The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) or northern wren is a very small insectivorous bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren. It has a very short tail which is often held erect, a short neck and a relatively long thin bill. It is russet brown above, paler buff-brown below and has a cream buff supercilium. The sexes are alike.
The species was once lumped with Troglodytes hiemalis of eastern North America and Troglodytes pacificus of western North America as the winter wren. The Eurasian wren occurs in Europe and across the Palearctic – including a belt of Asia from northern Iran and Afghanistan across to Japan. It is migratory in only the northern parts of its range. It is also highly polygynous, an unusual mating system for passerines.
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The Eurasian wren is a plump, sturdy bird with rounded wings and a short tail, which is usually held cocked up. The adult bird is 9 to 10 cm (3.5 to 3.9 in) in length and has a wingspan of 13–17 cm (5.1–6.7 in).[18] It weighs around 10 g (0.35 oz).[19] It is rufous brown above, greyer beneath, and indistinctly barred with darker brown and grey, even on the wings and tail. The bill is dark brown and the legs are pale brown, the feet having strong claws and a large hind toe. Young birds are less distinctly barred and have mottled underparts. The plumage is subject to considerable variation, and where populations have been isolated, the variation has become fixed in one minor form or another.
24-9-2019 GALISTEO, CACERAS - WOODLARK (Lullula arborea)
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The woodlark or wood lark (Lullula arborea) is the only extant species in the lark genus Lullula. It is found across most of Europe, the Middle East, western Asia and the mountains of north Africa. It is mainly resident (non-migratory) in the west of its range, but eastern populations of this passerine bird are more migratory, moving further south in winter.
There are two subspecies of woodlark, L. a. arborea and L. a. pallida. The former is native to northern regions of Europe, while the latter can be found in the south of the woodlark's range. Their diet is mostly composed of seeds but also includes insects during the breeding period. A comparatively small bird, the woodlark is between 13.5 and 15 centimetres long and roughly 20% shorter than the skylark. It is a brown bird with a pale underside and has a white-tipped tail.
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Found mainly in Europe, the mountains of northern Africa and western Asia, the woodlark is present across much of its range. In Europe, the bird seems most at home in the sandy heaths of Belgium, where its density was 7.5 pairs per square kilometre (km2) in 1988. In the same year, densities in East Germany ranged from 0.29 to 5.0 pairs per km2 and between 0.1 and 0.25 pairs per km2 in southern England, with more optimal habitats being more densely populated. However, populations fluctuated across Europe in the 1990s and 2000s and more up-to-date density figures are unavailable.
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The extent of the woodlark's range is England in the west, parts of northern Egypt to the south, Iran and Turkmenistan to the east and the Scandinavian Peninsula in the north. Declining populations have resulted in the woodlark's range contracting, for example in Britain it once bred in Wales and central England but is now found only in southern England. Within its range it is mainly resident in the west, with eastern populations migrating south in the winter.
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The woodlark's natural habitat is heathland and open spaces sparsely populated with trees. They prefer clearings in pine forests and heathland and like newly planted areas with pine saplings. Experimental work showed that annual ground‐disturbance can increase Woodlark abundance within lowland grass‐heaths. The bird can also be found more rarely in urban areas. For example, in 1950 a pair were recorded on a main road near Putney Heath, London.
Sunday, 22 September 2019
22-9-2019 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - MOUSE SPIDER (Scotophaeus blackwalli)
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Scotophaeus blackwalli, also known as the mouse spider, is a species of spider belonging to the family Gnaphosidae.
It is a ground spider and does not create webs. Instead it hunts for insects and other spiders at night and uses its enlarged spinnerets to produce a sticky silk to subdue its prey. It is also an opportunistic scavenger.
Females also use their silk to build protective nests for their eggs.
The adult males of these spiders reach 9mm in length, maturing in the early summer, while females reach 12mm, and can be found until autumn.
The carapace is dark brown while the abdomen is brown/grey with hairs resembling the body of a mouse, hence the common name of 'mouse spider'. The legs are brown with thick pubescence. The male has a small scutum on the dorsum of the abdomen.
Scotophaeus blackwalli is native to Europe, the Caucasus, Turkey and Iran. It has been introduced to North America, Peru, and Hawaii. It is commonly found around and inside houses in Britain, usually in the Autumn, and also under bark and in holes in walls in warmer parts of Europe. It hunts nocturnally.
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