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Aragon

Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris ©Joël Bruezière

Birding Aragon

Aragon is an ornithological destination par excellence. This amazing region gives you the opportunity to observe most of Spain’s avifauna in the four most characteristic habitats of the Iberian Peninsula; Alpine peaks and meadows, Mediterranean forest mixed with spectacular limestone rock cliffs , semi-arid steppes and inland lakes, all of them in a relative short distance from each other.

Entering the untamed Pyrenees; the high valleys as Ordesa, Hecho or Benasque, allows visitors to spot the difficult alpine specialities such as Alpine Accentor, Snow Finch & Wallcreeper whilst enjoying the magnificent forest of beech and fir trees surrounded by spectacular rock cliffs.

The exciting pre-Pyrenees of Aragon: Sierra de Guara, Riglos, or San Juan de la Peña are wild and sparsely populated with humans. However, they densely populated with birds of prey and Mediterranean birds such as wheatears, thrushes, buntings, warblers, bee-eaters and many more. The famous Sierra de Guara is a real Lammergeier sanctuary holding the highest known density of this magnificent bird, as well as Egyptian Vulture and Griffon Vulture. Here, too alpine birds such as Wallcreeper or Alpine Accentor are easy to observe at close range from late autumn to early spring.

Inland the steppes of the Monegros and Belchite dotted here and there with saltlakes, are an arid but fascinating contrast. They are home to perhaps the most Spanish avifauna: raptors, bustards, sandgrouse and larks.

Top Sites

Monegros
Satellite View
This is a semi-desert area occupying an extensive plain of around 70,000 hectares, with some seasonal lagoons. It is covered with an interesting steppe vegetation. It is an excellent area to observe Great Bustard (32 individuals). There is also a big population of other species, like Stone Curlew, Pin-tailed Sandgrouse, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Dupont's Lark, Lesser Short-toed Lark.
Spanish Pyrenees
Satellite View
This mountainous barrier, that separates France from Spain, is made up of high mountains, extensive pine forests, streams, and green mountain meadows, and is especially recommended for its abundance of birds of prey. One can see Golden, Short-toed, Booted and Bonelli's Eagles; Montagu's Harrier; Red & Black kites, Peregrine and Hobby; and the magnificent Lammergeier, which here has one of its two last strongholds in the entire continent. Other interesting avian species are: Ptarmigan, Capercaille, Dotterel, Tengmalm's Owl, Black Woodpecker, Crag Martin, Water Pipit and Dipper. Apart from bird species, it is remarkable for the presence of Pyrenean Chamois and Red Deer. This area is probably one of the last refuges in Europe of the Boreal Linx and the Brown Bear.

Contributors

Josele J. Saiz
HUESCA - Spain | jjsv@boletas.org
http://www.boletas.org

Number of Species

Number of bird species: 384

(As at August 2018)

Useful Reading

A Birdwatching Guide to The Pyrenees

| By Jacquie Crozier | Arlequin Press | 1998 | Paperback | 87 pages, 8 colour plates, illustrations, maps | ISBN: 9781900159753 Buy this book from NHBS.com
Guía de Aves de Aragón [Guide to the Birds of Aragon]

| By Javier Blasco Zumeta | Editorial Prames | 2014 | Paperback | 319 pages, colour photos, colour illustrations | (Text is Spanish) ISBN: 9788483214237 Buy this book from NHBS.com
Where the Birds are in Northeast Spain

| By Steve West Illustrated by Ernest Leahy | Steve West | 2004 | Paperback | 269 pages, Colour photos, colour illustrations, maps | ISBN: 9788460915997 Buy this book from NHBS.com
Where to Watch Birds in Northern & Eastern Spain

| By Ernest FJ Garcia & Michael Rebane | Bloomsbury Publishing | 2017 | Paperback | 384 pages, 30 b/w illustrations, 125 b/w maps | ISBN: 9781472936752 Buy this book from NHBS.com

Reserves

Abbreviations Key

NR Reserva Natural de los Galachos de La Alfranca de Pastriz
Information Satellite View
…nesting colony of Black-crowned Night Heron etc…

Guides & Tour Operators

Birding in North East Spain
Tour Operator
BOLETAS (Egyptian Vulture in the local language) was formed in 1994, a stroke of luck enables us to live our long-awaited dream; install ourselves in the peaceful rural village of Loporzano, in the midst of one of the best birding areas in the Iberian Peninsula dedicating ourselves exclusively to our interest in birds…
Birding in Spain
Tour Operator
Plan your Birding trip to Catalonia, Aragon and Navarra...
Iberian Wildlife Tours
Tour Operator
John Muddeman, Teresa Farino and Mike Lockwood are British natural history tour guides who have been living in their respective regions of Spain for many years Together, they operate as Iberian Wildlife Tours, offering guided natural history holidays that will take you in search of birds, butterflies and wildflowers in the stunningly beautiful surroundings of Andalusia (AndalucÃa), the Picos de Europa, the Spanish Pyrenees, Extremadura, Catalonia (Catalunya) and western Portugal, to name but a few of our carefully selected Spanish and Portuguese destinations.

Trip Reports

2014 [05 May] - Chris Gibson - Spanish Pyrenees
PDF Report
...the sun came out. The results were almost instantaneous with griffons appearing from nowhere, red and black kites, and then single booted and short-toed eagles for good measure. A singing male cirl bunting posed well and parties of migrating alpine swifts started to hurtle through every few minutes...
2016 [06 June] - Chris Gibson
PDF Report
Red and black kites, and before long a few Egyptian and griffon vultures and a hobby, kept us looking up, while the carpets of blue beautiful flax, pink shrubby rest-harrow, and both purple and yellow Jerusalem sages were quite stunning.
2017 [06 June] - Bob Buckler
PDF Report
...the Zaragoza Plains were boiling, the Pyrenees foothills were sweltering and even up on the high plateau in the Picosit was very hot. Nevertheless, we saw all of the most wanted specialities: Lammergeier, Wallcreeper, Citril Finch, Rock Thrush, Ring Ouzel, Alpine Cough, Alpine Accentor, Snowfinch, Black Woodpecker...
2019 [02 February] - Matthew Mellor - Catalonia & Aragon
PDF Report
The main targets were Moustached Warbler, Dupont’s Lark, Lesser Short-toed Lark and Red-billed Leiothrix, and for photographs, Wallcreeper, Eagle Owl, Pin-tailed Sandgrouse and Lammergeier.
2022 [03 March] - Simon Cockayne
PDF Report
We travelled to Stanstead and took a flight to Zaragoza which is an easy airport to use. A short flight was followed by a simple car pick up – we chose an auto SUV with plenty of room and good ground clearance which was really useful (Hyundai Tucson). The drive to our first few days accommodation was only an hour and we enjoyed birds on the way like Golden Eagle and several Crag Martins around the valley cliffs.

Places to Stay

Boletus Birdwatching Centre - Pyrenees
Accommodation
Birdwatching Centre in the Spanish Pyrenees, we inform birders where to go and we organize tours in the northeast of Spain
Hospedería Villa Pintano
Accommodation
Hospedería Villa Pintano is a nice rural house located in a small medieval village into the mountains of Aragón (Prepirineos) with a population of 30 where you will find total peace and quiet in a natural setting, surrounded by rich natural contrasts, living proof of the pastoral way of life which is still preserved today and where you are sure to be received with plenty of hospitality. …

Aragon

Birding Aragon

Monegros

Spanish Pyrenees

Josele J. Saiz

Number of bird species: 384

A Birdwatching Guide to The Pyrenees

Guía de Aves de Aragón [Guide to the Birds of Aragon]

Where the Birds are in Northeast Spain

Where to Watch Birds in Northern & Eastern Spain

NR Reserva Natural de los Galachos de La Alfranca de Pastriz

Birding in North East Spain

Birding in Spain

Iberian Wildlife Tours

2014 [05 May] - Chris Gibson - Spanish Pyrenees

2016 [06 June] - Chris Gibson

2017 [06 June] - Bob Buckler

2019 [02 February] - Matthew Mellor - Catalonia & Aragon

2022 [03 March] - Simon Cockayne

Boletus Birdwatching Centre - Pyrenees

Hospedería Villa Pintano

Birding Aragon

Héctor Bintanel - Blog de ornitología y observaciones en la naturaleza

S Hortensis - Blog De Anillamiento En Tj Y Alcañiz