At the end of September Sjef and Anemiek came from the Netherlands to spend some holidays in the Basque Country and Navarra; they booked our guiding services for three days in which we went to Southern Navarra (day 1: steppe), Central Navarra (day 2: dry farmland, big rivers and wetlands) and Navarra Eastern Mountains (day 3: high mountain and beech forests).

Despite the long drought we are suffering in our region we were able to get a, not very long but, interesting bird list.

The birding highlights during these days were:

- Very good views of two different Golden Eagles in the steppe area.

- A nice flock of Pin-tailed Sandgrouse that showed really well the first day.

- Excellent close views of two of the last 25 Great Bustards remaining in Navarra.

- A Yellow-browed Warbler, a rare bird in Navarra, (first in the season for Spain!) in Caparroso (Central-South Navarra).

We also saw a probable Pectoral Sandpiper in Pitillas Lagoon (days later one was confirmed by another birdwatcher!).

Drought has pushed the autumn and this was very noticeable during this trip in the Pyrinean beech forests that already had wonderful colors… but one month to early! We had no rain during these days, which was good for birdwatching, but this has become a very serious problem for nature here.

Foxes, hares, rabbits, squirrels… were also on our way, and we enjoyed of very good views of many of them.

Bird species list (83 species)

Red-legged Partridge – Alectoris rufa

Grey Heron – Ardea cinerea

Eurasian Spoonbill – Platalea leucorodia

Griffon Vulture – Gyps fulvus

Western Marsh Harrier – Circus aeruginosus

Hen Harrier - Circus cyaneus

Eurasian Sparrowhawk – Accipiter nisus

Common Buzzard – Buteo buteo

Golden Eagle – Aquila chrysaetos

Red Kite – Milvus milvus

Northern Lapwing – Vanellus vanellus

Great Bustard – Otis tarda

Common Sandpiper – Actitis hypoleucos

Green Sandpiper – Tringa ochropus

Pin-tailed Sandgrouse – Pterocles alchata

Eurasian Collared Dove - Streptopelia decaocto

Common Woodpigeon - Columba palumbus

Rock Dove – Columba livia

Iberian Green Woodpecker – Picus viridis sharpei

Great Spotted Woodpecker – Dendrocopos major

Common Kestrel – Falco tinnunculus

Eurasian Hoopoe – Upupa epops

Southern Grey Shrike – Lanius meridionalis

Eurasian Magpie – Pica pica

Red-billed Chough – Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax

Alpine Chough – Pyrrhocorax graculus

Carrion Crow – Corvus corone

Common Raven – Corvus corax

Calandra Lark -  Melanocorypha calandra

Woodlark – Lullula arborea

Thekla Lark – Galerida theklae

Crested Lark – Galerida cristata

Sand Martin – Riparia riparia

Eurasian Crag Martin – Ptyonoprogne rupestris

Barn Swallow – Hirundo rustica

Common House Martin – Delichon urbicum

Coal Tit – Periparus ater

Crested Tit – Lophophanes cristatus

Marsh Tit – Poecile palustris

Eurasian Blue Tit – Cyanistes caeruleus

Great Tit – Parus major

Long-tailed Tit – Aegithalos caudatus

Eurasian Nuthatch – Sitta europaea

Eurasian Treecreeper – Certhia familiaris

Short-toed Treecreeper – Certhia brachydactyla

Eurasian Wren – Troglodytes troglodytes

European Robin – Erithacus rubecula

Willow Warbler – Phylloscopus trochilus

Yellow-browed Warbler – Phylloscopus inornatus

Common Chiffchaff – Phylloscopus collybita

Eurasian Blackcap – Sylvia atricapilla

Sardinian Warbler – Sylvia melanocephala

Spectacled Warbler – Sylvia conspicillata

Dartford Warbler – Sylvia undata

Cetti’s Warbler – Cettia cetti

Zitting Cisticola – Cisticola juncidis

Spotted Flycatcher – Muscicapa striata

European Pied Flycatcher – Ficedula hypoleuca

Common Redstart – Phoenicurus phoenicurus

Black Redstart – Phoenicurus ochruros

Whinchat – Saxicola rubetra

European Stonechat – Saxicola rubicola

Northern Wheatear – Oenanthe oenanthe

Mistle Thrush – Turdus viscivorus

Eurasian Blackbird – Turdus merula

Blue Rock Thrush – Monticola solitarius

Dunnock – Prunella modularis

European Starling – Sturnus vulgaris

Spotless Starling – Sturnus unicolor

Western Yellow Wagtail – Motacilla flava

Grey Wagtail – Motacilla cinerea

White Wagtail – Motacilla alba

Tawny Pipit – Anthus campestris

Meadow Pipit – Anthus pratensis

Water Pipit – Anthus spinoletta

Corn Bunting – Emberiza calandra

Common Chaffinch – Fringilla coelebs

European Greenfinch – Chloris chloris

Common Crossbill – Loxia curvirostra

European Goldfinch – Carduelis carduelis

Eurasian Linnet – Carduelis cannabina

European Serin – Serinus serinus

House Sparrow – Passer domesticus

Sjef y Anemiek vinieron desde Holanda a finales de septiembre y estuvimos guiándolos durante tres días visitando diversos ambientes de Navarra y Huesca: bosques, roquedas, estepa, humedales, alta montaña. La gran sequía que estamos padeciendo no facilita la observación de aves, pero aún así logramos ver varias aves muy interesantes: águila real, ganga ibérica, avutarda y un mosquitero bilistado, una rareza en Navarra.