{"id":36,"date":"2018-02-05T09:29:05","date_gmt":"2018-02-05T09:29:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lacazalladeronda.com\/2017-7-18-bird-watching-at-luxury-villa-rental-ronda-spain\/"},"modified":"2024-09-27T11:10:56","modified_gmt":"2024-09-27T10:10:56","slug":"2017-7-18-bird-watching-at-luxury-villa-rental-ronda-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lacazalladeronda.com\/es\/2017-7-18-bird-watching-at-luxury-villa-rental-ronda-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"Bird watching at luxury villa rental La Cazalla: Ronda, Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Firstly, just to save the time of those that were Googling for something entirely different, we’re talking about the feathered kind of bird here.<\/p>\n

Still with us? Excellent. As it’s the time of year for our feathered friends to build their nests around the property again, and the proliferation of species at La Cazalla is bountiful, we feel the estate is the perfect base for birding. Its secluded valley location, with a stream running through it surrounded by forests and cliffs, provides an optimum habit for a variety of birds and animals. For months we’ve been wanting to post photographs to get twitchers interested, but the problem is that we are terrible photographers of birds. We do<\/em> have an artist on the team, so here’s our list of ten birds you can enjoying watching from your base at La Cazalla<\/a> with some sketches (and a couple of borrowed photos):<\/p>\n

1. Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus)<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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Vix’s rendition in charcoal & pastels<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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The cliffs of the Tajo del Abanico<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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Peregrine Falcon by Jos\u00e9 Antonio Haro & Antonio Mac\u00edas<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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In the cliffs opposite the private entrance to La Cazalla is a nesting site for a pair of Peregrine Falcons. They have been using a natural hole in the rock face for many years and for the last couple of weeks we’ve heard the female calling to demand food from her mate. Last spring the pair produced two chicks and the nest can easily be watched from one of the ‘look-outs’ at the high end of the estate. Our artist has helpfully produced a map for guests to navigate with. <\/p>\n

Peregrine Falcons have long, pointed wings and a long tail, and adults are blue-gray above with barred underparts and a dark head with thick sideburns. They are powerful and fast-flying, hunting medium-sized birds by dropping down on them from high above in a spectacular stoop. Outside of their nesting time, they can often be seen perched within a particular tree at the top of the cliffs, scouting for lower-flying prey. Guests are likely to hear their calls at some point during their stay, which sound like this:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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2. Griffon Vultures (Gyps fulvus)<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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Griffon Vultures (we actually took this!!!)<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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Vix’s vulture from the nature trail map<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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The Griffon Vulture is the most commonly-seen of all the raptors in the Serran\u00eda de Ronda and with a wingspan of up to 2.8 metres, they’re pretty hard to miss. We usually see them in pairs or small groups, but one Christmas Day our friend Alejandro turned up with a partially decomposed stag’s head (what a wonderful gift-giver he is!) and within twenty minutes we had around 30-40 birds circling above the house. Additionally, on the clifftop above the falcons’ nest, the vultures are sometimes fed, providing the breathtaking sight of numerous large raptors soaring above and gliding alongside the cliff face. It’s simply magical when this happens.<\/p>\n

Carrion scavengers by nature, the Griffon Vulture grows up to 1.22 metres and can be identified by their very white head and neck ruff, long broad wings and short tail feathers. The buff-coloured body and base of the wing feathers contrast starkly with the dark flight feathers. Sadly, vultures have been featuring worldwide in the press of late due to the decline in their numbers linked to veterinary use of the drug Diclofenac<\/a>. In a rather creepy, prehistoric way, they sound like this:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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3. Eurasian Wrens (Troglodytes troglodytes)<\/h3>\n

As an antidote for anyone who now has a case of the shivers, here’s a much cuter bird you can easily spot around the estate: the tiny Eurasian Wren.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Photo credit Universe Birds<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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Vix’s pencil sketch of a wren<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n