Flamingos in the lagoon at Las Salinas. The photo is taken from one of the bird hides with a mobile phone so you may need to use your imagination to make out the birds!
There are hundreds of birds here; it seems strange in the
middle of winter to hear bird song all around you. In the tourist information
office in San José I found a mini guide to the birds of the Cabo de Gata. It
is in Spanish which is excellent practice for my language skills! The
description of the birds are accompanied by lines of poetry, both written by
Juan José
Trujillo Reyes.
In strict translation they rarely work as poetry, but I have
tried translating some of the lines about the more common birds around here in
a way that I hope is reasonably successful.
We see Crested Larks everywhere, making their
curving flight across the land, and Alpine Swifts circle around the rocks
above, hunting insects.
Of the crested larks, Juan José Trujillo
Reyes says:
“Con su moño y grácil movimiento...
...alegria del campo árido”
(With his topknot and graceful flight...
...he brings joy to the arid land)
We have seen Little Terns diving like arrows
straight from the sky, dropping into the sea then rising again to swoop above
the waves, searching for fish with their bright observant eyes. Juan José Trujillo Reyes describes them:
“A la playa no le llaméis exilio...
...no es campo de refugiados, es refugio”
(To you, the shore is no exile ...
...it’s not a refugee camp, it’s a refuge)
In the village, white wagtails hop about the roads
and collared doves whirr about the house with their hypnotic cooing cry.
Juan José describes the wagtails:
“Su reflejo en el agua ...límite de su sueño”
(His reflection in the water ...his dreams go no
further)
Everywhere, it appears, in the countryside around
San José there are Stonechats, Black Redstarts and Wheatears, as well as Eagles
hunting in the valleys and hills of the National Park.
The Stonechat:
“Desteca en el horizonte ...
...su silueta de centinela”
(Against the horizon ...
...his silhouette stands sentinel)
Flamingos pick their way through the salt marshes
at Las Salinas, lifting their knees high, their beaks trained on the water
beneath. Juan José says of them:
“Líneas rosas que vuelan...
...leyenda del Fénix flameando los cielos”
(Flying crimson streamers...
...legend of the Phoenix flaming the skies)
Last week we had some miserable weather, a couple of very
grey chilly days and rain all one night and the best part of the next
day. But now the weather has turned glorious once again!
The advantage of
the rain is that all the wildflowers have suddenly burst into bloom, almost
overnight. I found these Bermuda buttercups actually growing among the pebbles
on the beach at Cala del Carnaje.
And these exquisite sand crocuses were growing on the edge
of the beach at Playa de los Genoveses where they stud the sand dunes like stars.
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