Articles in ‘Barcelona’
Wild weather of recent years has opened up Collserola’s woods, and one of the most rapid colonisers of the new clearings has been the rock rose, especially Sage-leaf Cistus. This May everywhere you look, hundreds and hundreds of white flowers are shining in the sunlight.
The yellow base of each petal emphasizes the thick clump of stamen, creating a densely yellow heart.
Insects are drawn to the rich, easily accessible supplies of pollen. As well as bumblebees and white-spotted rose beetles I found this male Anthaxia hungarica, with enormous black eyes and green metallic sheen, dining in radiant surroundings.
Another member of the Rock rose family was in flower, Tuberaria guttata, with a strongly marked red-brown ring to guide pollinators to their target.
While holm oaks and pines predominate, in the north of Collserola there are many deciduous oaks. Here, under the shade of the new canopy, Granny’s Nightcaps (Aquilegia vulgaris) are blooming. The elaborately structured flowers hang down, and the nectar is stowed deep within, at the end of narrow, neatly coiled spurs. Bumble bees were out foraging, but instead of disappearing inside the flower in search of their booty, and emerging dusted in pollen, they were settling on top. Each spur had a small hole bitten out: the flowers were being cleaned out by backdoor thieves!
Barcelona, Collserola, Insects, Plants | Tags: anthaxia hungaris beetles, bumble bees stealing nectar, Mediterranean wild flowers, pollination in Aquilegia vulgaris, sage-leafed cistus colonising Mediterranean woods, Tuberaria guttata petals marked to attract pollinators, wild flowers in Collserola|
The three Honey buzzards soaring over Montjuic Castle run into a swarm of Alpine swifts, and start circling to gain height. When they are specks they continue southwards. They are the most notable of the raptors who take the Catalan coastal route.
Montjuic overflows with birds during autumn migration. Swallows are swooping low over freshly cut grass. The robin population has multiplied. One feisty individual is jostling other birds out of a stand of trees. The woods and parks become incredibly crowded with them: too many robins in the broth, so inevitably some have to keep moving further south or inland.
Another redbreast is in evidence, the Common redstart, far from common in Barcelona, and only glimpsed on spring and autumn passage. Unlike its not particularly close relative, the Black redstart, who arrives to spend the winter, its destination is tropical Africa.
Flycatchers – spotted and pied – make protracted stopovers in the city’s parks, breaking up the long haul south. The warm weather ensures plenty of insects so they can fatten up for the tough journey ahead: the sea followed by a desert that’s expanding year by year. Slim, sprightly birds, you notice them as they repeatedly launch themselves to scoop up prey and return to the same perch.
In the woods, firecrests are back, travelling with the tit flocks, always in the lowest branches, and last to move on. There was lots to eat in this holm oak infested with gall midge larvae.
Barcelona, Birds | Tags: autumn bird migration spain, birds in Barcelona park, Common redstarts on migration in Spain, Honey buzzards on migration, Mediterranean bird migration, Pied flycatchers on autumn migration in Spain, robin migration in Mediterranean|
Large flocks of Blue-tailed damselflies (Ischnura graellsii) emerge from the ponds in Montjuic’s Jardins de Verdaguer. They’re so tiny that in flight often all you can make out is a quivering blue blob. When they settle, the spot of blue turns out to be the tail end of an endless abdomen (segment 8, to be precise).
Throughout the month of June the Blue-tails are harvested by House sparrows. Bills bristling with wings, the sparrows somehow manage to keep on collecting without dropping any of the existing catch. You can imagine their nestlings getting fat on plentiful damselfly protein.
By the end of July, the pond vegetation is full of Tree frogs (Hyla meridionalis), perching motionless alongside the Blue-tails. I found one very slowly ingesting its meal, till it seemed to be champing on a blue-tipped cigar. One tremendous gulp and the rest was engulfed.
Food chains are long and complex. Damselflies hunt small flies . . .
. . . and each other. As the sunlight broke free of the early morning clouds, it stirred the damsels from their resting places. A newly emerged Blue-tail on its maiden flight was immediately snatched, hoisted up and devoured by a mature female.
amphibians, Barcelona, Insects, Montjuic, Odonata - dragonflies and damselflies | Tags: cannibalism in damselflies, common damselflies in Spain, frog eating damselfly, Ischnura graellsii in Spain, Jardins de Verdaguer Montjuic, pond life in Barcelona, unexpected sights on montjuic, what do damselflies eat, what eats damselflies|
The two agentes rurales had the difficult job of abseiling down Montjuic’s inaccessible cliff face and retrieving the three Falcon chicks from their nest, while one of the adult Peregrines repeatedly dived towards them, calling in alarm. The fiddly work was then in the hands of Eduard Durany, general overseer of Barcelona’s Peregrine population, with help from Josep García, an expert on herons among other things.
First out of the bag was a male, identified by its smaller size. At just over three weeks old, it was still covered in sparse white down.
Leer
Barcelona, Birds, Montjuic | Tags: Peregrine falcon chicks in Barcelona, Peregrine falcons in Barcelona, Ringing peregrine falcons, urban peregrine falcons|
Shortly after being born, this year’s brood of Peregrine falcon chicks were stolen from their nest in one of the Sagrada Familia towers. The robbery took place out of range of the web cam installed. Visitors have no access to this tower, but there are always plenty of workers milling around, since the Sagrada Familia is still under construction. Eduard Durany, responsible for monitoring Barcelona’s Peregrine falcons, emphasises the need for better security. Last year suspicious individuals were spotted trying to take food up to the falcons, who fetch a high price on the black market. After the theft, two chicks born in a wildlife recuperation centre were placed in the nest, but sadly the intended foster parents rejected them. See also the report on the ringing of
Montjuic’s young falcons.
Barcelona, Birds | Tags: Barcelona peregrine falcons in Sagrada Familia, robbery of peregrine falcon chicks in Barcelona, urban peregrine falcons|
It was the first really warm day in February and quantities of Hummingbird Hawkmoths (Macroglossum stellatarum) were restlessly hovering in front of the castle wall, as if searching for something. They engage in this mysterious activity every year when they reappear at the end of winter. I spotted one sitting quietly, something apparently rare, but who knows how many others there were, flattened on the wall, blending in with beige-grey wings and just a hint of iridescence.
When a Hummingbird Hawkmoth feeds, it slings in its lengthy proboscis from a distance. Not so the Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa violacea), who hugs the flower close. These gentle giants were also out in numbers, bumping into each other around the Common Borage. Their wings are brown like old film negatives, until the light catches them and they turn blue. The males signal their sex with orange antennae tips.
Judging by the constant rustle of Chiffchaffs in the small evergreen oaks by the castle, there were plenty of small bugs to feast on. They were being deftly picked off the leaves or snapped up mid-flight as the restless birds forayed out of the trees to retrieve them.
Natur-al-Andalus has an interesting post on Chiffchaffs, whose hovering skills allow them to exploit the nectar of extensions of introduced South African aloe that bloom in the mild Gibraltan winters.
Barcelona, Birds, Insects, Montjuic | Tags: barcelona insects, Carpenter bees in Spain, chiffchaff behaviour, chiffchaffs in Spain, Hummingbird Hawkmoth, hummingbird hawkmoth sunbathing, insects flying in February, Macroglossum stellatarum, Xylocopa violacea|
These three insectivores find winter feeding opportunities in Barcelona’s sheltered urban environment on the Mediterranean coast. They also share an ability to go about their business undisturbed by human proximity.
White wagtails are a common sight on the pavements and in the parks, careering after their prey. One theory for the constant tail wagging is that it gives an impression of alertness to potential predators. This Wagtail, zigzagging along the paths in Pedralbes Park, wears a winter plumage, with white throat and chin, and a faint yellow tinge to the face. In summer they look much more pied.
By the end of the winter the Black redstarts who’ve moved into town become quite approachable, though finding corners where they can stay aloof from the bustle and noise. In comparison with the Wagtails, they’re often to be seen static on a vantage point, sharply scanning the vicinity for food. A beautiful male was sitting on one of the fig trees of Montjuic, smoky grey plumage fluffed out on a crisp cold day.
This Chiffchaff was one of several who had gathered around the park pond, snatching insects while hovering over the water or scooping them off the surrounding wall. Small and inconspicuous, one regularly comes to the balcony to pick off the tiny bugs that always seem to infest my plants.
Barcelona, Birds | Tags: Birding in Barcelona, Black redstarts in Spain, chiffchaffs in Spain, common birds you can see in Barcelona, insectivors birds winter, urban birds, White wagtails in winter|
First thing in the morning, when it was still dark at street level, you could see the gulls overhead burnished with gold by the rising sun. When I reached the Cami del Mar they were pristine white, soaring in an intensely blue sky.
The sun had cast a blinding sheen on the sea, where cargo ships threatened to combust. The fierce light probed deep inside the crevices of the castle wall, revealing toasting Moorish geckos and Praying Mantis oothecas. A Painted Lady opened its brand new wings, glinting with copper dust, oblivious to the biting wind on the other side of the castle. Only a light breeze ruffled its silky fur.
More Black redstarts have been arriving: some were drinking from the leaking pipe, others perched on the Agave masts. These vanished, to be replaced by something stockier, with long yellow legs. I’ve never seen a Sparrowhawk on Montjuic before, the terrain of cliff-nesting Peregrine falcons and Kestrels. Accompanied by attentive magpies, the small raptor changed perch, and then took off, a soaring silhouette over the yellow cranes in the port.
Further along, an even more unusual sighting. A bird flew up to the castle in an unfamiliar series of shallow swoops. Tawny stipples on the breast, a yellow base to the bill and wings edged with white spots – it was an Alpine Accentor down at sea level. The last time I saw one was in the Pyrenees at about 2,000 metres.
Montjuic is a tempting stopover for birds on migration, a small green island on their coastal route, full of feeding opportunities. The records on www.ornitho.cat this autumn show redwing, siskins, Meadow pipits, Song thrushes, Cirl buntings, Common redstarts, Tree pipits, Subalpine warblers, a hawfinch, skylark and the tail feather of a nightjar.
Barcelona, Birds, butterflies, Montjuic | Tags: alpine accentor in spain, autumn bird migration spain, barcelona birdwatching, bird migration in Barcelona, Birding in Barcelona, Painted lady butterfly in November, prunella collaris Barcelona, sparrowhawk in Barcelona, unusual bird sighting|
Though its woods are mainly evergreen, Collserola is livid with colour in the autumn. Blue-violet Rosemary flowers hum densely with bees, and yellow Mediterranean gorse shines against the rich blue sky of San Martín. As if decorated for Christmas, the Strawberry trees are hung with glowing red and orange fruit and clusters of bell-shaped flowers, creamy white like candles.
I found a Praying Mantis in almost exactly the same spot as last year, lightly clinging to a Narrow-leaved Cistus. It had a contented post-meal air, probably having dined on the bees in the Rosemary bush next door. After cleaning them, it neatly folded its spiky “arms” and remained motionless.
Under the dense Holm oak canopy, in the dark, boar-raked mulch, knots of scarlet tentacles emerge: Latticed Stinkhorns (Clathrus ruber), or in Catalan Guita de Bruixa – “Witch’s Vomit”. A fungal wonder, it attracts flies with its rotten stench to act as spore-dispersers.
From a fallen tree comes the sound of Pekin Robins – or Red-Billed Leiothrix – who are hiding among the dried branches and leaves. This escapee cagebird, native to the jungles of Southern Asia, feels at home in Collserola, with its overgrown gullies and impenetrable tangles of creepers and brambles.
When disturbed they can’t seem to control their curiosity. One by one, Pekin Robins begin emerging from the dead tree to get a closer look at the intruder, all the time scolding vigorously. I got a noisy close-up of coral-red bills, yellow throats and bright black eyes. With a steadily expanding population, their colonisation of other areas in Catalonia is imminent.
Barcelona, Birds, Collserola, fungi, Insects | Tags: autumn in Barcelona, Clathrus ruber in Spain, Leiothrix lutea in Collserola, Leiothrix lutea in Spain, Mantis religiosa Spain, Mediterranean flora, Mediterranean fungi, praying mantis in Barcelona|
The prohibitively steep slope falls away to the ring road below, where traffic crawls day and night. This is the wildest, most inaccessible side of Montjuic, covered in grass, broom, the occasional stunted pine and mast-like agave cactus. There are contrasting views of the colourful containers stacked in the port and the shining sea beyond.
On a warm, drowsy late October day I was wandering about on the edge of the hill side and noticed a delicate Green Lacewing perched on a stem. I was pushing aside the grass for a better view when suddenly a twisted bit of straw quivered and move away on all sixes.
It was the legendary Cone-head mantis (Empusa pennata). The last time I’d seen something so uncanny and brittle-looking was the skeleton army in Jason and the Argonauts. Close up it seemed wizard-like, with the eyes of an alien.
Coloured like dead plant matter, its camouflage was perfected by long, sharp-angled legs that repeated the criss-cross pattern of surrounding stems. It was a risk to look away even for a second – the diminutive mantis might merge back into the grass, never to be seen again.
Only about 3 cm-long, the creature was a nymph, as evidenced by its curled rutted “tail”. If it survives, it’ll acquire a winged adult form next spring. Other features that distinguish the Cone-head Mantis from the more commonly seen Praying Mantis, whose eggs hatch in spring, is a preference for smaller prey. The females show no penchant for eating their mates.
Barcelona, Insects, Montjuic | Tags: cone-head mantis in spain, empusa pennata Barcelona, interesting insects in Barcelona, spectacular insects in Europe|
It’s the time of year for unusual sightings in unexpected places. Recent observations recorded on 
After considerable procrastination, 
The areas of Barcelona nearest to the Collserola hills are now quite used to visits from the natural park’s thriving boar population, particularly at the end of summer when the ground is rock-hard and food supplies scarce. But on Saturday night a family of boars was seen trotting through Gràcia, a central barrio of the city, accessible only after crossing an extremely busy ring road. The same family has been observed this August exploring Gaudí’s Güell Park. There’s a 
