Black Redstart (Rougequeue) Phoenicurus ochruros
Bagà, Catalonia, Spain
One of the species we could count on seeing every day during our week in Bagà was Black Redstart. Each morning, when I went down to the stream which flows through the village, one would be perched on the wall.
This bird appears to be either a female or a juvenile.
No doubt the surrounding Pyrenees provide the natural habitat it favours, with lots of rocky areas for it to nest, but this species has adapted well to human settlement, especially towns and cities with old buildings, ruins, church towers, abandoned industrial areas and so on. Bagà provides a good deal of suitable habitat, much to the bird's liking I am sure.
I love the Redstarts. This little bird is beautiful !
ReplyDeleteYour picures are wonderful, as always !
Thank you for your help in finding out the name of my bird !
Have a great weekend :)
Ohhh Fine!!!.. Beautiful place.. Nice pictures.. Regards from Madrid
ReplyDeleteI LOVE these! I walked the Camino de Santiago and the first section through the Pyrenees and down through the Basque country featured lots of these little birds in each village. Thanks for sharing and bringing back some happy memories :)
ReplyDeleteIt does look an interesting area, and interesting to see the Redstart too. I've only seen a Daurian Redstart in the past so it's good to be reminded of the group.
ReplyDeleteLovely images, David, of a bird I used to see frequently during my travels in mainland Europe. They seem to love rail yards! They are quite rare in UK, so I was very surprised when the County Recorder informed me at Birdfair that we had a breeding pair (2 broods already this year!) only 12 miles from my home (in a rail-connected yard, as it happens!). It's probably a good thing that there's no public access to this place, as they'd probably be hounded out of existence.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes to you both from a sunny, but cool and windy, UK.
How nice of you all day saw David! I think it is a juvenile.
ReplyDeleteThe walls and the tower have also photographed very nice and bright!
I should like to see:-)
Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteIt looks to me like a juvenile from the look of the joint between lower and upper beak...
ReplyDeleteBut it is indeed difficult to be quite certain!
Great shots anyhow and quite a familiar birdie but one I haven't photographed much this year.
The top picture is a real corker David.I found them very confiding in Cyprus, especially the juveniles as I am sure yours is.
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