To be watching many thousands of waders and seabirds and dozens of species within half an hour of leaving Lisbon Airport, including such striking species such as the Greater Flamingo, Eurasian Spoonbill , Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta) and Black-winged Stilt, and to maintain the offering through three days and an extraordinary diversity of wetland habits is outstanding. The Tagus and Sado estuaries are wetland gems – and we were never more than 50 kms from Lisbon. Joao Jara of Birds and Nature Tours Portugal (and his excellent colleagues) looked after his largest ever group – 23 volunteers from the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust’s London Wetland Centre (LWC), with outstanding competence and charm. Not mad twitching, you couldn’t do that with a group of 23, even if you wanted to – but quality and relaxed birding. Each day brought masses of birds and some rarities. We had massive flocks of Flamingos, Glossy Ibis, White Storks and waders (totalling 26 species). Other choice sightings included Bonelli’s and Booted Eagles, Temmincks and Little Stints, Black-winged Kites, Grey Phalarope, Collared Pratincole, Squacco Heron and Purple Swamp-hen, plus some African colonists – such as Waxbills, Yellow-crowned Bishop and Black-headed Weaver. We birded saltwater estuaries, freshwater lagoons, irrigated rice fields, the lagoons of Salt Works, Reed Beds, Freshwater lakes, Cork Oak Farms, plains and a bull farm. The food throughout and the accommodation at our base at the Hotel do Sado at Setubal, overlooking the mouth of the Sado Estuary, was excellent. Joao does small groups, day trips, local estuary trips or a mix including the mountain areas of Portugal. Lisbon is less than two hours to hills, mountains and uplands that have Eurasian Cranes, Bustards, and a number of species of Eagles and Vultures. Thanks to an e-mail I read on Birding Aus in 2009 from Andrew Taylor, lauding a day and a half trip from Lisbon during a conference, Joao’s name was inserted into a recess in my memory. Subsequently, I suggested Lisbon (and Joao as a possible guide) as a birding destination to a group of fellow LWC volunteers who make short birding trips to the Continent twice a year. I met up with him at this year’s Birdfair at Rutland Water in the UK (the World’s biggest) where his company was exhibiting. He is a former chairman of the Portuguese Rarities Committee and his two colleagues on our Lisbon trip , both of whom also spoke fluent in English, included a birder who lectures on Tourism in Lisbon and the banker/ author of the major handbook on Portuguese birds. What great hands to be in. Whilst mentioning the 2013 Birdfair, I should point out that Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia and Tasmania flew the birding flag for Australia amongst the 350 plus exhibitors. Mark Jarvis, Mick Jerram and Chris Watson giving presentations of the birds of the Top End, of the NT Savannah and the Centre, on behalf of Northern Teritory Tourism who were a sponsor ot the Birdfair. They were part of the continuous lecture programme that runs in four marquees, at half hour intervals from 9.30am to 5pm, for three days. I had the pleasure of of putting faces to the names of some regular Birding-Aus contributors – and got to 16 lectures. Angus Innes. =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) to: birding-aus-request@vicnet.net.au http://birding-aus.org ===============================
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