Eurasian Griffon Gyps fulvus, Beja, Portugal 2010-05-17
Last week, I had the opportunity to spend a few hours on the plains of the Alentejo in southern Portugal. Our main desire was to find bustards (which we did – more later!), but the unexpected highlight was the diversity of raptors we also encountered. Here’s a quick smattering of photos:
Eurasian Griffon Gyps fulvus, Beja, Portugal 2010-05-17
Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus, Beja, Portugal 2010-05-17
While we encountered many griffons, this was the only ‘Black Vulture’ we saw. In fact, I’m not sure how common a sight this species is here – the Iberian population is mostly centered further east, in Spain. In my opinion, the Old World vultures have the New World beat – these things are magnificent… …and HUGE.
Male Montagu’s Harriers Circus pygargus, Beja, Portugal, May 2010. An elegant and beautiful harrier!
Black Kite Milvus migrans, Beja, Portugal 2010-05-21. A common sight throughout much of Europe.
Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus, Beja, Portugal 2010-05-17. One of the smaller eagles, but very impressive nonetheless.
Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni, female, Mertola, Portugal 2010-05-17. We encountered numerous Eurasian Kestrels F. tinnunculus on the plains, but this was the only Lesser we saw – in the town of Mertola, where a colony has traditionally nested in the walls of the hilltop castle. This bird appeared to be coming in to a nest in the castle walls, but where was the rest of the colony? Females of the two kestrel species are difficult to separate, and I wasn’t sure about the identification of this one until I had a chance to examine the photos later. However, this and other images clearly show the diagnostic wing formula of naumanni, with P10 significantly longer than P7. Other features consistent with Lesser include the relatively unmarked, whitish bases to the primaries, contrasting with the well-marked underwing coverts, and the diffuse dusky wingtip. Click through for larger versions of all these images.
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