Pelagic Trips 1 - 3 operated by Madeira Wind Birds
I have just come back from an outstanding holiday in Madeira, having seen some of the most amazing sea birds. As birding trips go it has to rank up there with the best.
The raison d'être for going to Madeira was to address some unfinished business from last year's Scilly Pelagic trips when Paul and I missed out on a fea's petrel. No such problems here in Madeira.
- On our very first trip we hadn't even left the bay when we saw two fea's petrels flying close to our boat. Over the rest of the week we were to make more than 50 sightings from at least 17 birds present with most of them seen on this first outing.
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| Fea's Petrel Courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
The first pelagic trip also turned out to be very special in several other ways.
- Bird of the trip had to be the Zino's storm petrel with at least 8 birds present on the first trip on Tuesday, giving over 25 sightings. Endemic to this region, it is one of the rarest and, unfortunately, one of the most endangered species in Europe. To see this number of birds was truly astonishing.
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| Zino's storm petrel courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- The white-faced storm petrel, seen on the second pelagic trip was another astonishing sighting, a bird rarely seen in Europe.
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| White-faced storm petrel Courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
Now take a look at the support cast.
- Madeira storm petrel, seen mainly on Wednesday's second pelagic trip.
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| Madeira storm petrel Courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Wilson's storm petrel, normally very rare, accompanied us on the first and third trips for hours at a time.
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| Wilson's storm petrel Courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Cory's shearwaters were everywhere and could even be seen from the hotel. Out at sea they formed the guard of honour for their more illustrious counterparts.
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| Cory's shearwater courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- We even managed to find a Scopoli's shearwater (almost identical to the Cory's Shearwater) although nobody picked up on it till later when they looked through the photographs they had taken.
- Almost as ubiquitous were the lovely Bulwer's petrels, common in these parts but rarely seen elsewhere.
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| Bulwer's Petrel courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
We managed to go on all 3 of the pelagic trips on offer. These are definitely not for the faint hearted; the boat used is basically a rubber vessel powered by a couple of Yamaha engines. It travels at high speeds but bounces off the waves causing a huge splash as the front end reconnects with the water.
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The map below shows our journeys, different of course each day to ensure a different set of birds.
By far the worst conditions were on Wednesday, with the highest swell, making the return leg against the prevailing northerly winds particularly challenging. Unfortunately this coincided with Paul and I choosing to be in the front of the boat for the day. We were absolutely drenched from the spray and just a tad fearful for our safety as the boat rode the high waves. It was certainly the longest 2 hours of my life. As always, there was a gain and our reward was to have the best seats in the house for the appearance of the white-faced storm petrels.
Whilst Paul and I were at sea, Bridget was walking the footpaths of mainland Madeira and making notes on the sites where the endemic birds were. As a result of her diligence we were able to use each morning session to seek them out. Our results are described below.
- Pride of place went to the Madeira firecrest, so much like our own bird but subtly different with a shorter white supercilium and slightly longer bill.
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| Madeira firecrest courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
The Madeira chaffinch is so friendly that it approaches you rather than you go looking for it.
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| Madeira chaffinch courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Last but by no means least was the Madeira or Trocaz pigeon.
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| Madeira Pigeon courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Plain swift which is similar to our swift but with a faster wing beat and a more erratic flight pattern.
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| Plain swift courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Common Waxbill
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| Waxbill courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Rock sparrow
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| Rock sparrow courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Spectacled warbler, with it's white eye ring but otherwise similar to our common whitethroat.
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| Spectacled warbler courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Berthelot pipit
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| Berthelot pipit courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
- Madeira yellow-legged gull, which is similar to our version but with slightly darker wings.
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| Maderian tellow-legged gull courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
Atlantic canary
The Canary is native to the Macaronesia area (Madeira, Azores and the Canary Islands) and is widespread here in Madeira.
The Canary is native to the Macaronesia area (Madeira, Azores and the Canary Islands) and is widespread here in Madeira.
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| Atlantic canary courtesy of Madeira WindBirds |
Our last night on the island was to produce yet another magical birding experience.
- The Zino's petrel breeds high in the mountains of Madeira with one of the parents remaining on the nest while the other spends days at sea foraging for food, returning under the cover of darkness.
- In our case this turned out to be between 10.30 p.m. and 12.30 a.m. so 8 of us drove to the summit and then made the 30 minute trek to the viewing zone. Again, this activity is not for the faint-hearted. 1800 metres in the dark, albeit with the help of torches, is no joke. It is, however, most exhilarating with some outstanding views of the mountains and the night sky.
- Whilst on the top of the mountain we came across a group of 3 or 4 researchers putting up mist nets to try and catch Zino's. Among the group was Francisco Zino, after whom, the bird was named. What a delight to shake hands with such a pioneer.
- Right on cue, the Zino's started arriving. We sat on the floor of the footpath and listened to the wailing sounds. A lucky few managed to catch glimpses of the birds as they flew overhead. After just over an hour we left.
Other birds seen but not mentioned previously:
Common tern
Goldfinch
Feral pigeon
Kestrel
Grey Wagtail
Blackbird
Blackcap
Moorhen
Muscovy Duck
Coot
Little Egret
Roseate Tern
Dunlin
Robin
Bonxie
Manx shearwater
Turnstone
Collared dove
Hoopoe (x 2)
There was plenty of other wildlife around too.
- We saw 4 different species of dolphins, including Common bottlenose, short-beaked common, striped and Atlantic spotted.
- We had a couple of sightings of whales. A sperm whale showed well on the surface.
- Turtles were around as well. Hugo, one of our tour leaders, managed to rescue one that had been caught in some fishing lines.
- I saw a monarch butterfly by the harbour and a clouded yellow up in the hills.
Looking back on the trip it was an amazing experience, similar to the Scilly Pelagics that we have been on in the last couple of years but an invaluable complement to them.
- Incredibly, Madeira is easier to get to; we flew out early morning and were able to go birding on the island just after lunch on the same day.
- Financially, Madeira is cheaper too with lower travel costs, lower hotel costs and good food (and drink) at very reasonable prices.
Pterodroma.....Pterodroma......Pterodroma.....Pterodroma........
Nice one Paul!
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