International Birdwatching Tours – 2022
After our very successful international tours over the last couple of years, we are delighted to announce that we
will be offering a small number of international tours again in 2022. We have selected four very exciting
destinations, the dates for which are as follows:
- Spanish Pyrenees & Steppe - Dupont’s Lark & Wallcreeper – 25th February-2nd March 2022
- Extremadura - Land of the Conquistadors – 22nd-28th May 2022
- Romania - The Danube Delta & Dobrugea Plain – 31st May-7th June 2022
- The Gambia - Birding the Smiling Coast – 18th-25th November 2022
These tours are being offered in conjunction with our friends at Oriole Birding, an established and very well
regarded provider of birdwatching and wildlife holidays worldwide. By partnering with Oriole Birding, we are able
to offer you all the assurances of booking with an international tour operator, including ATOL protection, as
well as added benefits including credit/debit card booking.
Spanish Pyrenees & Steppe – Dupont's Lark & Wallcreeper
Dates: 25th February-2nd March 2022
Price: £1299.00 (single room supplement £50.00)
This tour is a short winter break to look for some of the specialised birds of the Spanish Pyrenees and steppes,
in particular two iconic species – Wallcreeper and Dupont's Lark.
In the winter, many of the montane species descend to lower altitudes, giving us a great opportunity for viewing
these enigmatic birds without the need for scaling the high peaks. We will spend the first four days exploring
the Pyrenees. As well as Wallcreeper, we will look for Snowfinch,
Alpine Accentor, Alpine Chough and if we are lucky, Citril Finch.
Lammergeier is likely here too, as well as Griffon Vulture and possibly also
Black Vulture, all the midst of some fantastic scenery.
Dupont's Lark is one of Europe’s rarest breeding birds, found only in Spain (outside of North Africa),
and this is the best area to look for them. At this time of year, they sing almost exclusively at dawn and dusk.
The steppes are also home to several other much sought after species, such as Black-bellied and
Pin-tailed Sandgrouse, Little Bustard and, with a bit of luck, also
Great Bustard. We will also visit an excellent wetland site where we have a good chance of seeing
White-spotted Bluethroat and Penduline Tit and, if time allows on our way back to
the airport, we will call in at the Llobregat Delta where we might find wintering Moustached Warbler,
as well as a selection of other waterbirds.
Extremadura – Land of the Conquistadors
Dates: 22nd-28th May 2022
Price: £1499.00 (single supplement £175)
Extremadura is one of the most exciting and rewarding areas for birdwatching in Spain, and spring is a great time
to visit. The region is particularly renowned for its steppe birds, including Great and
Little Bustards, and Pin-tailed and Black-bellied Sandgrouse.
There are some summer breeding birds which are late to return, so as well as looking for the traditional
Extremaduran target species on this trip, which is later than normal, we will hopefully have an opportunity to
catch up with White-rumped Swift and possibly also Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin.
It is also a great place for raptors, particularly Spanish Imperial Eagle, Black Vulture
and Black-winged Kite, all scarce species which have good populations here. Eye-level views of
Griffon Vultures are also pretty unforgettable, and Bonelli's,
Golden, Booted and Short-toed Eagles are also all possible here.
Lesser Kestrels should be back for the summer and can be seen prospecting nest sites around some
of the villages and Montagu's Harriers may be back hunting over the steppes.
The plains should be filled with the sounds of singing larks at this time of year, including Calandra,
Short-toed, Thekla and Crested Larks, and
Great Spotted Cuckoos chase noisily between the trees. We will visit the internationally renowned
Monfrague National Park, a great place to get close views of large numbers of raptors. A stop at the excellent
Arrocampo Almaraz marsh should produce a variety of wetland birds including reeling Savi's Warblers,
Purple Swamp-Hen and Penduline Tit.
Other interesting resident species which we will look for on this tour include Azure-winged Magpie,
Southern Grey Shrike, Rock Bunting, Calandra, Wood and
Thekla Larks, Griffon Vulture, Stone Curlew,
Crag Martin, Blue Rock Thrush and Rock Sparrow. In total, we
can expect to see around 140-150 species over the seven days of this trip, but it may be the displaying of the
bustards which lingers long in the memory.
For more information on this tour, please see the Oriole Birding website
here.
If you are interested in booking a place, please contact us directly.
Romania – The Danube Delta & Dobrugea Plain
Dates: 31st May-7th June 2022
Price: £2195.00 (single room supplement £150.00)
Romania is a fabulous country for birding and the Danube Delta is one of those sites which everyone should visit.
The best way to explore the Delta is from a floating hotel, and we will go out on excursions in a small boat each
day and moor the hotel in a new, stunning location each evening. It is a truly amazing experience to wake up each
morning in the middle of the Delta surrounded by its wildlife. Flocks of White Pelicans and
Dalmatian Pelican and Pygmy Cormorants fish in the shallow waters, the channels
are full of herons of all the European species and we should also see breeding Red-necked Grebes
and Ferruginous Ducks here. European Rollers and Red-footed Falcons
adorn the trees beside the channels, which also support a variety of woodpeckers.
We will also explore the Dobrogea, the region along the Black Sea coast. The salt lagoons here may hold
Pallas's Gulls and breeding Paddyfield Warblers in the reeds, while there
may be some late passage waders too. The nearby woodlands have breeding rookeries of
Red-footed Falcons, as well as Sombre Tit, Red-breasted Flycatcher
and a great variety of woodpeckers. Inland, we will look for Isabelline Wheatears on the
steppes and Pied Wheatears and Rock Thrushes in the rocky gorges.
Rollers and Lesser Grey Shrikes are a common sight on roadside wires here too.
Raptors are common here too, and we will look for species such as Long-legged Buzzard,
Lesser Spotted Eagle, Booted Eagle, Short-toed Eagle
and Levant Sparrowhawk, while Saker is also possible with a bit of good fortune.
This is one of the most bird-filled European destinations and you can expect to see around 150 species. For more
information on this tour, please see the Oriole Birding website
here.
If you are interested in booking a place, please contact us directly.
The Gambia – Birding the Smiling Coast
Dates: 18th-25th November 2022
Price: £1750.00 (single room supplement £150.00)
The Gambia offers a great introduction to West African birding, easily accessible with good road and infrastructure.
This tour is designed as a relaxing and bird-filled break, basing ourselves at the Senegambia Beach Hotel set in 20
acres of tropical woodland! We will take excursions from here to explore the surrounding area, to sites including
Kotu Creek, Abuko, Tujareng, Pirang, Brufut and Kartong.
Likely raptors include African Harrier-hawk, Shikra, Black-winged Kite,
Osprey, Red-necked Falcon and Hooded Vulture, among many others.
Kingfishers are well represented, from the tiny African Pygmy to the enormous Great Kingfisher.
Then there are turacos, hornbills and ground-hornbills, honeyguides, drongos, bulbuls and babblers, robin-chats,
paradise flycatchers, sunbirds, bush-shrikes and helmetshrikes, glossy starlings, oxpeckers, widow birds and bishops,
and waxbills and weavers. We will look for elusive species like White-spotted Flufftail and
Verreaux's Eagle Owl, and we will explore the river estuary, pools and shore for a variety of gulls,
terns and waders such as White-fronted Plover and Painted Snipe. In the last few
years, we have seen over 200 species on this tour.
The pace is relaxed and there will be plenty of opportunities for down time, particularly during the hot part of the
afternoon, where the schedule allows. For more information on this tour, please see the Oriole Birding website
here.
If you are interested in booking a place, please contact us directly.
For more information on this tour, please see the Oriole Birding website
here.
If you are interested in booking a place, please contact us directly.