SPAIN The High Aragon

7 – 14 June 2017

TOUR REPORT Leader: Richard Cash Once again we had a superb birding and general nature tour in High Aragón. The western valleys of the central Spanish Pyrenees have wild scenery, a huge range of birds, flowers, butterflies and moths and we made the very most of our week in this exceptional part of the world. Thanks to everyone for coming with so much good nature, enthusiasm and experience. Between us all there were 200+ years of birding and naturalising and it was a privilege to share the Pyrenees with such good company. Thanks also to our hosts Mel and Pete at Casa Sarasa who looked after us superbly and provided exceptional meals and hospitality in their wonderful casa rural.

Wednesday 7 June 2017 The flight arrived on time and we were soon driving out of Bilbao towards the Pyrenees seeing black and red kites, buzzards and Egyptian vulture along the motorway. We had a very nice stop for lunch at Arazuri where hundreds of common swifts plus swallows and martins were swooping down to their nests in the lovely old village buildings. We could hear serin and greenfinch as we ate our huge sandwiches. Towards Pamplona we saw a fox hunting in a field and began seeing griffon vultures as we neared our base at Casa Sarasa perched at the foot of the Pyrenees. After settling in we had a welcome drink and outlined the programme for the week, taking note of everyone´s targets for the week – wallcreeper and lammergeier were on everyone´s wish list! Two members of the group, Ken and Jean, had already spotted booted eagle flying over the house. We had dinner – the first of many excellent meals – and, after a long day we all went to bed looking forward to the next day. Thursday 8 June 2017 After breakfast we headed up the Hecho Valley (my home valley) in search of the gems the High Pyrenees has to offer. On the way out of the village we had great views of little owl on an old shed and also saw booted eagle. Nearing the village of Hecho we saw upwards of ten Egyptian vultures, as always near cattle, and the first of many griffon vultures. We continued up the valley hearing blackcap and garden warbler and seeing crag martins flying around their nest site in a road tunnel. The scenery here is stunning with the green hay meadows near the river, rocky pinnacles and the high peaks soaring high above – magnificent! We turned off the main valley road and drove through Scots pine, beech and silver fir forest up to the Gabardito refuge. A hot walk uphill soon got us to the cliffs where we hoped to see the wallcreepers that have nested here for the past ten years or so. We settled down to wait – sharp eyes and patience are essential! Meanwhile we saw red billed chough and observed alpine swift flying into their nests in tiny cracks in the cliff. After perhaps an hour the wallcreepers made an appearance – a bit brief but we saw the male (darker plumage at this time of year) and female flutter across the cliffs, settling briefly and then flying back to their nest in the cleft of the cliff. Shortly afterwards a lammergeier flew over and griffon vultures landed on the cliff nearby. Wonderful! On the way down to the minibus we saw a group of Duke of burgundy fritillaries – very good to see these as well as orange tip and speckled wood butterflies. The speckled woods here are brighter coloured than their British cousins and Ken took some convincing that they were the genuine article! Down at Gabardito we saw a family of citril finch gritting in the meadow – what gorgeous birds!

Photo by Sergio Padura

We didn´t hang around as we wanted to see the muladar on the other side of the valley where they were due to put out some dead animals for the vultures – a great chance to see griffon vultures close up and in numbers! We drove up to the muladar and had amazing views of griffon vulture, Egyptian vultures, red kites, ravens and a fly past by a lammergeier. Superb! After this it was getting very hot (30 degrees) and we were hungry so we drove down to a lovely, shady picnic spot in the village of Ansó and had a picnic of salad, local cheeses and hams provided by our hosts, Pete and Mel. During the picnic we saw little blue, knapweed and dark green fritillaries, brimstone and wood white butterflies. On the way out of Ansó we had excellent views of red backed shrike which seem to be making a comeback around here after a few scarce years. Driving down the wild Ansó valley we had a brief glimpse of a rock bunting and then we stopped to walk along the Binies Gorge where there was some welcome shade! It was fairly quiet due to the heat but we did see chestnut heath butterfly, short toed eagle, black redstart and dipper and griffon vultures perched on rock ledges. We also found Pyrenean endemic flowers – ramonda, Pyrenean saxifrage, petrocoptis and some very nice alliums (allium flavum) with pungent smelling leaves.

Nearing Berdún we stopped to look for orphean warbler which I´d seen here a few days previously. No luck with these but we had great views of woodchat shrike, turtle doves and crested lark. On the flowers along the road we found bluespot and ilex hairstreak, Bath white, swallowtail, green underside blue and a six spot burnet. Roger saw a Spanish festoon butterfly. After a long and really productive day it was great to get back to Casa Casa Sarasa and have a cold drink! Later on we went over our lists for the day and had dinner. Friday 9 June 2017 Today we set off towards the Tena Valley to see, among other wonders, one of the few Ladies Slipper Orchid sites in the Pyrenees and to spot some alpine birds and flowers up on the alpine meadows beneath the Pic du Midi d´Ossau.

We had a quick stop at some oak woodland (Quercus faginea) on the way and almost immediately heard and then saw Bonelli´s warblers. There were also plenty of pyramidal orchids in the grassy banks. We arrived at the Ladies Slipper site and saw several groups of these amazing flowers. The site is protected and the ranger Antonio was very informative and pointed out other orchids here – lesser butterfly, common spotted, fragrant, burnt and broad-leaved marsh orchids – fabulous! We also saw bogbean, yellow rattle and many other flowers here. Roger heard and spotted a tree pipit and there were yellowhammers flying in and out of the wild rose shrubs.

Just up the road we stopped for a coffee and spotted white wagtail and black redstart through the café window. We then continued up to the French border at Portalet. Here we soon spotted water pipit and a lammergeier flew over. On a short walk into the alpine meadows we saw northern wheatear, griffon and Egyptian vultures and red billed chough but the real highlights here were the alpine flowers including Pyrenean snakeshead fritillaries, mountain cornflower, Teesdale violets and Pyrenean toadflax. We also saw a Pyrenean frog – similar to the common frog but only found in these high mountain habitats of the Western Pyrenees.

We then drove down the valley and through a beautiful area of hayfields above Sallent seeing red backed Shrike, both young and adults. We had our picnic by a reservoir and saw many butterflies including red underwing skipper, Camberwell beauty, a newly emerged swallowtail, and Adonis blue. Ken spotted and identified a lattice heath and a least yellow underwing moth.

By now it was getting quite late and we´d had an early start so we made our way back to Berdún – at one point I think I was the only person awake in the minibus! Later we went over our lists before dinner and were early to bed after supper. Saturday 10 June 2017 Today we stayed near Berdun in order to avoid the busier areas over the weekend. We started with a walk in some of the dry ´badlands´ which Roger had scouted earlier. We soon saw a very obliging tawny pipit and discovered a stand of lizard orchids – really spectacular flowers! Corn bunting were rasping away along the barley field boundaries and Andy spotted a melodious warbler – a lifer for him. There were also stonechat and Roger saw a greyling butterfly which became almost invisible when it landed on the grey rocks. We then drove down towards the Rio Aragón stopping by some scrubby country when we saw what looked like prphean warbler flying into a bush. It certainly was! We had several views of the pair of these dark warblers as they flew between bushes and the edge of a barley field. Of course, once you start looking you always see more and we did! Sub alpine warbler, greenfinch, cirl bunting, starling, nightingale singing away, bee eaters, serin and a chestnut heath butterfly among others. What a wonderful spot. We had all of our scopes out and made good use of them!

We then crossed the bridge over the river, spotting cormorant, grey heron and white wagtail, and walked towards the welcome shade of the riverside poplars. We saw a big Egyptian locust in the bushes and plenty of butterfies including knapweed and Queen of Spain fritillaries, large tortoiseshell, marbled skipper, a comma, green underside blue and a short-tailed blue. We also saw a large psammodromus lizard and, to Andy´s delight, three melodious warblers!

Reaching the riverbank we spotted several bee eaters and heard golden oriole calling – its such an evocative sound! In the grass we found bug orchids and bee ophrys.

We headed north west for lunch above the spectacular Fago gorge and had another great picnic in a shady spot by a stream – idyllic and perfect for a siesta afterwards! Long tailed tits were flitting through the trees and among the butterflies were black veined whites, marbled white, osiris blue, Spanish gatekeeper and pearly and chestnut heath. On the stream Angela observed large red damselflys mating.

We walked back down the gorge - at this time of the afternoon it was getting very hot indeed and there were few birds around. Andy spotted a peregrine falcon and the griffons made some spectacular flypasts. A spectacular highlight was seeing clouds of Cleopatras, scarce swallowtail, and black veined whites on a big vipers bugloss plant. Driving back to Berdun we saw a marsh harrier patrolling over a barley field and then stopped for cold drinks on this sweltering afternoon. Another great day! Sunday 11 June 2017 As it was going to be another hot day – far hotter than usual for this time of year – we started early at 7 to make the most of the cooler morning when the birds are more active. First spot was a poplar grove and a small area of reeds. Greater spotted woodpecker was calling and flitting between trees and we were

hearing plenty of golden orioles – Angela´s particular target. We soon saw three bright yellow males chasing each other through the trees – wonderful! It´s amazing how such a bright bird can become invisible once it perches in the poplars! We saw and heard melodious warbler also. We drove down towards Martes seeing black kites, buzzard and a little owl on an old barn. A northern wheatear also showed near the owl – an unusual place to see one at this time of year. Down near the River Aragón we were hoping for better views of yesterdays orphean warblers and we had excellent views of them plus subalpine warbler, linnet, serin and greenfinch, and a nightingale gave us a non stop flow of song. Definitely worth getting up early! Some friends, Patro and Rafa, from SEO Birdlife were going to do a nature walk and bird ringing and everyone agreed that they would like to join in with some local birders so at 9.30 we joined them for the nature walk. Despite it already being really hot we saw bee-eater, short toed eagle, had excellent views of melodious warblers and saw several marsh harriers and a Montague´s harrier. Patro gave some very interesting information about some of the plants – their uses and stories associated with them. We then went into the poplars by the river and saw how the mist nets were set up to trap birds. We then had an interesting demonstration of bird ringing procedure and how this information is used and shared for conservation purposes – the more we understand about bird movements and habits the better we can take measures to protect them. It was fascinating to see just how tiny the trapped birds were – a Bonelli´s warbler, a Cetti´s which has such a huge voice for a bird weighing just 12 grams! We also saw nightingale and a female blackcap weighed, recorded and ringed as well as a blue tit.

We then enjoyed the shade by the river watching the bee-eaters fly low over the river catching insects and perching on trees nearby. We then drove to a shady spot for lunch seeing cirl buntings on the way and heard what sounded like scops owl – most probably midwife toads. On a short, shady walk we saw many Queen of Spain fritillaries, ilex hairstreak, and heard wood warbler, and short toed treecreeper. By now it was 36 degrees and nothing was stirring except the butterflies! A quick stop at Arres was equally quiet though we did see a Spanish purple hairstreak butterfly!

We then retreated back to Casa Sarasa for shade and cool for an hour or so. Later around 7.30 we drove to a site to look for red rumped swallow, a southern species which is spreading northwards with global warming. On the way we had a spectacular site of a short toed eagle taking off from a field by the road – a beautiful bird! We found the red rumped swallows, their black tails and vents distinguishing them from the barn swallows flying with them. It was wonderful to see them even though it´s another worrying symptom of global warming, as was this unseasonably hot day Monday 12 June 2017 Another early start to beat the heat! We headed north west up the Roncal Valley – one of the most beautiful in the Pyrenees. We stopped at a stunning spot on the Llano de Belagoa for a picnic breakfast – coffee, and sausages cooked on my camping stove seeing red backed shrike, rock bunting, grey and white wagtail, serin and yellowhammer nearby and hearing quail and cuckoo calling. In the meadow were Pyrenean rockrose and burnt orchids – wonderful!

Driving up the valley we saw crossbill and linnet and at a stop just near the border saw an alpine chough feeding its young in the entrance to a sinkhole. Nearby, just on the border we saw black redstart, linnet, northern wheatear, many citril finch and a lone dunnock on a dead pine. We also saw cardinal fritillary and large tortoiseshell. Roger surprised a ptarmigan (or was it the other way round?!). We then walked onto the alpine meadows looking for Alpine accentor. We waited a while and had wonderful views of ring ouzel - parent and young – and of a lammergeier soaring over the border along with many griffons. Roger wandered off and met another birding group who had found alpine accentor right by the road! We had some excellent views of a bird with its bill full of insects to take back to the nest. Wow! We went down to the ski village of Arette to have our picnic in the shade and chose a spot where citril finch were feeding, coal tit were flitting in the pines and a common redstart (not so common here) was singing from the chimney of a ski chalet. We also saw wood warbler and observed citril finch, serin and goldfinch drinking and washing in a puddle. Back in Spain again we had a walk in the shady beech forest of Mata de Haya and saw a robin (very discreet birds at this time of year!) and had great views of a short toed treecreeper spotted by Angie. We also saw a rare white helleborine growing in the shade under the beeches. Afterwards, tired after an early start, we headed back to base and went over the lists before another excellent dinner. Tuesday 13 June 2017 Pete very kindly put out a moth trap overnight and we spent a fascinating hour going over the haul after breakfast. Highlights included small elephant hawkmoth, cream spot tiger and a canary shouldered thorn which we´d never observed before here in Berdún.

As usual there were far too many many pine processionary moths (a major pest around here) but it was great to see about 15 species represented in the night´s catch. We then set off towards the Hecho valley across the steppe land East of Berdún. First off was a roller perched on the wire – wonderful to see and then we saw turtle dove, raven, skylark, crested lark and cirl bunting. Passing a gully with a stream we heard Rock Sparrow and stopped to investigate. We saw the rock sparrows – a lifer for Roger - as well as sub alpine warbler, bee-eater, red Backed shrike, garden warbler, a male marsh harrier and linnet – a great stop! Further on we saw short toed eagle and had excellent views of rock sparrow perched on goalposts! Passing Hecho en route to the high valley we saw Egyptian vulture and saw a short toed eagle stoop, land in a field and then fly up again being mobbed by crows. Further up a stop by the river brought a garden warbler, burnt orchids, a butterfly orchid, green underside blues, grizzled skippers, swallowtails and Iberian wall lizards.

Up in the high valley we scanned for marmot but, unusually for this spot, didn´t see or hear any today. We did see about 15 isard (Pyrenean chamois) high up on the border with France and kestrel were patrolling over the valley. Two lammergeier flew across the valley from us and we had excellent views of them. We also saw a golden eagle (at last!) soaring high up on the border ridge. In the alpine meadows were common spotted orchid, loose flowered and lesser butterfly orchids plus common butterwort, dragons mouth ( a Pyrenean endemic), Welsh poppy and meadow saxifrage. It was absolutely idyllic up there – sunny but still cool enough to enjoy and the flowers and butterflies were wonderful to see in this fabulous alpine landscape.

Butterfly highlights in the high valley included clouded apollo, silver studded blues, little blue, a pristine Camberwell beauty, a mountain ringlet and many grizzled skippers. We headed down to Oza for our picnic and saw mistle thrush and citril finch as well as the ubiquitous chaffinch. We returned to Berdún tired but happy with our last wonderful day in the high mountains of Aragón.

Wednesday 14 June 2017 Sadly it was time to go home and we had a very smooth and easy drive West to Bilbao. I was sad to see everyone leave after a fantastic week in High Aragón. Thanks for coming and please come again!