Mallorca Holiday 25th April 2015 : Port de Pollenca, La Gola and the Boquer Valley
Mallorca Holiday 25th April 2015 : Port de Pollenca, La Gola and the Boquer Valley
After yesterday’s exertions we decided to have a quieter day today taking in some of the sites close to our hotel. Yesterday had been scorching hot so we wanted to be nearer to some refreshments if needed. We took in the La Gola mini-reserve, the fields next to the Port de Pollenca by-pass, the approach to the Boquer Valley and the “pine tree avenue” mentioned by Gosney. We had a bit of a late lunch and returned along the sea front to our hotel. In the process we managed to get another “life tick”, though.
La Gola
On our way into town we dropped in at La Gola where we saw a Little Egret and a Common Sandpiper. In the drain that runs into the lake there were a few families of Mallard with cuter than cute chicks. We also found a rather moulting Egyptian Goose. Swifts, Swallow and one House Martin flew overhead. As well as plenty of Greenfinch we also got another Serin.
Port de Pollencia environs
We continued on by-pass road into town where all the roundabouts are to have a look for the Stone Curlew that Gosney mentioned but, although we found a likely field, we didn’t find any Stone Curlew. One field held a large number of roosting Yellow-legged Gulls and what looked to be some kind of Lark but I couldn’t identify them. A bonus was a quickly disappearing Redstart.
Boquer Valley
We took the path up to the Casa de Boquer and it wasn’t long before we came across a Sardinian Warbler. Just after that we good very good views of a Pied Flycatcher as it dropped down from a branch to the grassy verge and back. There was plenty of activity in the gardens on the right but it was those on the left that gave us a “life tick” in a very attractive and distinct Cirl Bunting. From the open area at the Casa we got a Stonechat and then a beautiful Blue Rock Thrush again, this one radiant in the sunshine. We walked a little way up the path but decided to leave the journey across the valley for another day. On our way back down we got the Blue Rock Thrush again and lots of Greenfinch. A Kestrel was flying above
Pine Tree Avenue
We came back down the path from the valley and walked towards the sea through “pine tree avenue” where the majority of the birds were sparrows but we did just get another Redstart. Gosney reckons that this is one of the best places for migrant birds but we didn’t see a great deal. The grass was quite long (it was cut a few days later) so perhaps this didn’t suit the small birds.
Bird Sightings : La Gola
| Species | Count |
|---|---|
| Egyptian Goose | 1 |
| Mallard | 40 |
| Little Egret | 1 |
| Common Sandpiper | 1 |
| Yellow-legged Gull | 1 |
| Common Swift | 4 |
| Barn Swallow | 2 |
| Common House Martin | 1 |
| Eurasian Blackbird | 4 |
| European Greenfinch | 10 |
| European Serin | 1 |
| House Sparrow | 20 |
Bird Sightings : Port de Pollenca By-pass
| Species | Count |
|---|---|
| Yellow-legged Gull | 14 |
| Eurasian Collared Dove | 2 |
| Common Redstart | 1 |
| European Greenfinch | 6 |
Bird Sightings : Casa Boquer
| Species | Count |
|---|---|
| Stock Dove | 2 |
| Common Wood Pigeon | 3 |
| Common Kestrel | 1 |
| Sardinian Warbler | 1 |
| European Pied Flycatcher | 1 |
| Blue Rock Thrush | 1 |
| European Stonechat | 1 |
| Cirl Bunting | 1 |
| European Greenfinch | 10 |
Bird Sightings : Pine Tree Avenue
| Species | Count |
|---|---|
| Common Redstart | 1 |
| Eurasian Blackbird | 2 |
| European Greenfinch | 20 |
| House Sparrow | 40 |
Bird Sightings : Port de Pollenca Environs
| Species | Count |
|---|---|
| European Shag | 8 |
| Audouin’s Gull | 6 |
| Common Swift | 12 |