Wednesday April 4th - Portugal, Ria da Formasa (west side)

This morning I headed back towards Faro airport, to try and access an area of salt pans which run between the airport and San Lorenzo golf course, I found an access track and drove along this, passing a number of the salt pans. The first bird that flew across in front of me was a ringtail Hen Harrier and the first salted pan held a number of waders, Dunlin, Sanderling, a couple of dozen Little Stint, about 8 Kentish Plover and a Caspian Tern was hunting a little further out. A little further along and 3 Greater Flamingos were standing alone in the middle of a pool where a number of Common Swift were hawking over the pools. A further group of waders roosting were a mixture of Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Knot, as I moved along the light was poor as I was looking directly into the early morning sun. I parked the car at the end of this track which just bordered the golf course and ran alongside the course with a large hide overlooking a big reed fringed lake in the middle of the course. There were lots of Iberian Magpies and a few Purple Swamphens and 3 Hoopoes on the fairways, the call of the Green Woodpecker was heard frequently but remain unseen (the variety here Picus Sharpei, has been split as a separate species, Iberian Woodpecker) and the large lake held Great Crested and Little Grebes, Pochard and 2 Red-crested Pochard. Passerines had been limited to Serins and Sardinian Warblers and a single Great Tit. The track veered back to the estuarine pools, a Yellow Wagtail was heard flying over but unseen and Crested Larks occasionally popped out onto the path. the saline water here held very little, a few Grey Plover, 2 Black-winged Stilt and a single Kentish Plover. Retracing steps back towards the car, a distinctive piping call was coming from the top of a pine, a Wryneck eventually showed with another call and a third bird appeared. I managed to see two of the three, then a further two were seen nearer to the car. I'm not sure whether these birds would have wintered in the area or whether they were recently arrived birds I started scanning the salt pans again as I returned in the car and added Avocet and Greenshank, but then entered traffic as big articulated trucks were working shifting the salt piles which meant I couldn't stop on the track for fear of being crushed .... Another productive morning, headed back for breakfast and back at the apartment another Bee-eater flew over.

Dunlin and Little Stint on the salt pans

Who needs a reed bed when there is  a golf course available ?

Iberian Magpie

Into the sun - Saline pools towards the sea

With sun behind - Saline pools towards the beach

Kentish Plover

Black-winged Stilt

Black-winged Stilt

Wryneck - hiding in pine.

Another Wryneck, briefly perched

Sardinian Warbler - seemingly abundant but not so far very photogenic

Hoopoe

Hoopoe - much more interested in the beetles than me.