A mega-lek and my daily lifer

This morning I worked with the huge lek near La Albuera in W Badajoz. It was really impressive with over 83 males and 117 females in one area. Very active display today, due to the warm sunny wether. Breeding is speeding up and I saw first copulations today.

The landscape is very aesthetic but very intensively cultivated, and there is a risk for the future of this sub-population with increasing intensification.

More Little Bustards this morning, including some nice display flights. Still don't have a good photo on the deck, but my flight shots are improving...

These two males chased each other for about an hour, often flying very high up. Both whizzed and whistled with their unique wingtip structure (see P7), very interesting behaviour (for me).

This is how it sounds like:

A good number of monties were around - a loose colony is breeding there:

FF - we were both surprised by each other:

Then I drove to Portugal via Villanueva del Fresno. Found this road-killed Beech Marten (Martes foina) close to the border:

Arrived in Castro Verde in the afternoon and had time for a first look around. Driving in I saw a pair of Spanish Imperial Eagles but again they were too distant. More Great and Little Bustards, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Montagu's Harriers, Lesser Kestrels... I must admit that non-diverse steppe community is almost starting to bore...  Especially as there are virtually no migrants present on the steppes.

I walked a round in a nice patch of wet Montado (Dehesa) with good riparian habitat, and it actually held a few migrants. Highlights were a Western Bonelli's Warbler (lifer...), Nightingale, Redstart, a few Blackcaps and a Kingfisher.

Crag Martin

  

Great Spotted Cuckoo 

Eagle food (Red-legged Partridge)