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One of the secrets of the importance of Doñana for European
birds lies on the great variety of ecosystems
it has to offer. We conduct our excursions to the best examples
of those ecosystems.
This
is a summary of the best birding sites in the region, including
details on some
of the most attractive species they hold.
(You
will see a short description of every area by clicking on it)
For more details on the
different spots go to Birding Spots
page.
DOÑANA NATIONAL PARK
is
one of the last strongholds for European birds.
Mediterranean forests, sand dunes and natural marshes are its main ecosystems.
This
area includes excellent birding spots such as: Moguer Road, the
marshes of La Madre, the Stone Pine woods along the Raya Real,
Matasgordas cork oak forest, Veta Zorrera, Zorrabarba low lands and
marshes, Caño
Resolimán, Caño Guadiamar, Lucio of Cerrado Garrido and its
impressive heronry, Lucio of El Lobo, Caracoles fields, the Lucio
del Cangrejo and the Hinojos Marshes.
Along with the Acebuche lagoons, La Rocina reed beds and pinewoods,
Acebron riverbank forest and Matalascañas beaches. Some of the
species you can find here are:
Little
Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Great White Egret, Purple
Heron, Black Stork, Glossy Ibis, Greater Flamingo, Marbled Duck,
Garganey, Black-shouldered Kite, Black Kite, Egyptian Vulture,
Griffon Vulture, Spanish Imperial Eagle, Short-toed Eagle, Spotted
Eagle, Booted Eagle, Osprey, Merlin, Crested Coot, Purple Gallinule,
Collared Pratincole, Dotterel, Gull-billed Tern, Pin-tailed
Sandgrouse, Pallid Swift, Alpine Swift, Great Spotted Cuckoo,
European Bee-eater, Thekla Lark, Short-toed Lark, Lesser Short-toed
Lark, Calandra Lark,
Melodious
Warbler, Dartford Warbler, Spectacled Warbler, Azure-winged Magpie,
Rock Sparrow.
DOÑANA NATURAL PARK
It’s
great variety of habitats make of this natural continuation of the
National Park the perfect complement for a good nature trip into the
Guadalquivir River Marshes.
A long list of good spots like: Coto del
Rey pine forest, Palacio del Rey White Stork colony, the Coto del
Grullo, Las Carnicerías stream, El Raposo open lands, the Raya de
los Vázquez, Hato Blanco rice fields, Veta Hornito fields and the
Caño Guadiamar in the northern section of the park. With species
like: Squacco Heron,
Great
White Egret, Black Stork, Red Kite, Black Kite, Booted Eagle,
Short-toed Eagle, Spanish Imperial Eagle, Montagu’s Harrier, Great
Spotted Cuckoo, Cuckoo, Red-necked Nightjar, Hoopoe, Green
Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wood Lark, Short-toed Lark,
Calandra Lark, Red-rumped Swallow, Great Reed Warbler, Subalpine
Warbler, Crested Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Short-toed Treecreper,
Woodchat Shrike, Spotless Starling, Azure-winged Magpie.
El Alamillo open lands, La Mediana
pinewoods, Ribetehilos lagoons and scrublands, Los Cabezudos fields
and woods, El Abalario lagoons, El Asperillo sand dunes and forests
and Castilla beaches in the western part. Here the following species
are common: Booted
Eagle, Black-shouldered Kite, European Bee-eater, Red-necked
Nightjar, Wood Lark, Thekla Lark, Black-eared Wheatear, Dartford
Warbler, Subalpine Warbler, Golden Oriole, Ortolan Bunting, Cirl
Bunting.
Veta de Alí
and Brazo de la Torre, in the
eastern part. Great White Egret, Osprey, Crane, Kentish Plover,
Golden Plover, Curlew Sandpiper, Temminck’s Stint, Spotted
Redshank, Geenshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Ruff.
San Carlos saltpans, El Tarelo lagoon, La
Algaida pinewood, Monte Algaida salt pans, Bonanza marshes, El
Puntal marshes, Adventus marshes, Sanlucar and Chipiona beaches, the
hills around Trebujena and the Guadalquivir River banks on the other
side of the river. Black
Stork, Great White Egret, Spoonbill, Greater Flamingo, Black-necked
Grebe, Marbled Duck, White Headed Duck, Osprey, Crested Coot,
Slender-billed Gull, Lesser Short-toed Lark.
Not far from there we find Espera lagoons
and Medina lagoon, which are among the best places in the whole
region for Crested
Coot and White-headed Duck.
GUADIAMAR
GREEN
CORRIDOR
The restoration works carried out
after the Aznalcollar mine spilling in 1998 have given rise to a
natural green corridor to work as a connecting passage for the fauna
between Doñana
and
the northern
sierras. In the lower part of the corridor we found some
excellent birding spots. Purple
Heron, Great White Egret, Glossy Ibis, Black-shouldered Kite,
Osprey, Purple Gallinule, Barn Owl, Temminck’s Stint, Collared
Pratincole, Kingfisher, Spanish Sparrow. Reed Bunting.
Quema Ford and open lands, La Tiesa
scrublands and forets, Don Simón Ford and low lands, Los Vaqueros
Ford, Vuelta la Arena reed beds and riverbanks all along the
corridor.
OTHER
PROTECTED SITES IN THE REGION
Brazo del Este and
Olivillos Island Natural Site
An old branch of the Guadalquivir River
zigzagging across a vast extension of rice fields on the eastern
side of the father of the marshes. A very interesting mixture of
natural and transformed ecosystems, home for some of the most
interesting species in the area. Little
Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Great White Egret, Purple
Heron, Black Stork, Glossy Ibis, Marbled Duck, Black Kite, Hen
Harrier, Purple Gallinule, Collared Pratincole, Kentish Plover,
Golden Plover, Wood Sandpiper, Black-tailed Godwit, Sand Martin,
Bluethroat, Sedge Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Cetti’s Warbler,
Melodious Warbler, Olivaceous Warbler, Penduline Tit, Spanish
Sparrow, Golden Bishop, Common Waxbill.
Las Madres and Palos
Lagoons
This is what we have left of a nearly continuous rosary
of small coastal lagoons along the sandy lands between Matalascañas
and Huelva. Crested Coot, White-headed Duck, Black Tern,
Red-crested Pochard, Little Bittern, Purple Gallinule.
Moguer lagoons and Estero Domingo Rubio.
Odiel Marshes Natural
Site
The second most important protected area in Doñana region consists of a
large saltmarsh complex with sandy spits and beaches, located just
next to the industrialized city of Huelva. It’s especially
important at passage and wintering waders and waterbirds. Spoonbill,
Greater Flamingo, Shelduck,
Red-breasted Merganser, Osprey, Hen Harrier, Peregrine, Crested
Coot, Avocet, Kentish Plover, Curlew Sandpiper, Little Stint,
Bar-tailed Godwit, Curlew, Whimbrel, Audouin’s Gull, Caspìan
Tern, Whiskered Tern, Little Tern, .
El Portil lagoon, not far from the marshes, is a little coastal lagoon which offers a
few interesting species along with the always impressive chameleon. White-headed Duck, Ferruginous Duck,
Audouin’s Gull, Crested Coot, Black Tern.
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