diary

Short-toed Eagle & Cape Trafalgar

andalucian guides

strait nature news

Archived Reports

2007

↓

2006

↓

2007/08 tour dates

a sporadic nature diary and other jottings from the guides on the strait of gibraltar

july and august 2007

preparing for the raptor migration

Stephen Daly writes about a natural phenomenon that never ceases to amaze spectators

Massed White Storks over Tarifa

The build up has begun and although the skies aren't full of migrating birds of prey, the restlessness of the White Storks and the constant sightings of more Black Kites tells us that something's afoot. Four thousand Black Kites were recorded passing

Every year from the beginning of August millions of birds return to winter in Africa and The Strait of Gibraltar is one of the prime routes for central and northern European migrants crossing from Europe to Africa. The birds then begin their fantastic journey northwards to be in their breeding grounds the following Spring, so it's a constant battle for survival.

During the Autumn migration, birds of prey or raptors can be seen in greater numbers and much more visibly than during the spring crossings. In western and northern Andalucia White Storks gather in huge numbers around the flat agricultural plains like La Janda near Barbate and the rolling farmland from Medina Sidonia to Seville. In fact all over Spain you can see huge "Kettles" of these birds spiraling ever higher as they find just the right thermal where they lazily stretch their huge wings to catch every bit of available warm air that'll take them into the distance and become just specks in the blue sky. Black Storks also cross at this time and can be seen in much smaller numbers. Black Kites are one of the first birds of prey to start their journey southwards in August. If the Levante or easterly winds are too strong you can watch thousands of Black Kites on the ground near the southernmost town on the European mainland, Tarifa, just waiting for more favourable wind conditions to cross The Strait. Such a sight is quite surreal with Black Kites often close to equally huge numbers of White Storks doing exactly the same thing - waiting!

Booted Eagles start crossing to Africa fairly early on in September through to the end of October as do Short-toed Eagles. Each winter see higher numbers of both species wintering in Andalucia without the need to source food in Africa. An indicator of global warming perhaps?

Honey Buzzards from the forests of Spain, Portugal ,France, the Low countries and Scandinavia also start arriving on the south coast in September. Egyptian Vultures also migrate and many smaller group can be watched making their way to the sea almost anywhere on the Atlantic coast from Cape St Vincent in Portugal right down to Gibraltar.

Booted Eagles and Honey Buzzards tend to go for the crossing down on The Strait towards Algeciras whereas Egyptian Vultures tend to cross at the shortest point between the two continents close to Tarifa. A great deal depend on what the weather conditions are like when the migrants arrive and to leave Europe and prolonged Levante or easterlies can prove dangerous to birds migrating across the western side of The Strait, with the strong wind increasing in the centre of this wild channel and failing to make landfall in Morocco and subsequently coming to grief in the Atlantic, unable to recover.