"Posh" Lapwing

[Colin Key]

On 17th December I received a text from Peter Dedicoat saying that he and June Taylor had found a Sociable Lapwing amongst Northern Lapwing between Castro Verde and Mertola in the Lower Alentejo. Unfortunately I could not go that day and every day since it has poured with rain. I heard that the bird was still there so, as this morning dawned with blue sky and bright sunshine, I packed all my gear into the Land Rover and set off on the 140 km drive.

I found the bird within minutes of arriving and cradling the long lens on my lap I manoeuvered the jeep so the sun was behind me, turned off the engine, and gently rolled down the slope towards the bird which was 80 metres away. It did not seem at all bothered, except that it was constantly facing away from me. I played the call on my MP3 and it became very interested and actually started to move towards me. I got to within 40 metres, taking shots as I went, and reckoned that at this rate, if I could get to within 15 metres or less I was going to get some cracking images in this light.

What I hadn't reckoned on was some hairy oaf of a farmer in a pick-up pulling up behind me and 'tooting' his horn. Of course everything buggered off and the target bird flew over the main road into a fenced area of crops and disappeared. The farmer was O.K. about me being on his land and his reason for driving over was to make sure I had actually seen "the bird" (which has become a bit of a tourist attraction) which he would have been very glad to point out to me!!! :ohdear:

The images are not as good as I had hoped for; they are very heavy crops at 35-40 metres of a nice first winter bird. I might go back and have another bash.



http://www.pbase.com/accentor/image/121467991/original.jpg


http://www.pbase.com/accentor/image/121467999/original.jpg


http://www.pbase.com/accentor/image/121468002/original.jpg


Colin

*N.B. I have not been in this area since last summer and was amazed at how the roads have changed. For those of you who like to leisurely trawl along the N123 from Castro Verde to Mertola, pulling over to watch Great and Little Bustards, sandgrouse, and the many raptors, etc., you can forget it in future. The entire road has been resurfaced to the standard of a race-track (for which the locals use it), deep storm gullies have been emplaced on each side of the road, and there are miles and miles of "arco" crash barrier on bends, embankments, etc. - there are now very few places to pull off the road and stop. A great pity :cry:.

[michael23]

hey colin, though you say they are not the best images, i think you have done it proud,, it certainly is a stunning bird, only ever seen one myself and my image is far worse than yours (:laugh:) i look forward to seeing your pics if you go and try for a 2nd time

[Colin Key]

Thanks Michael,

This is a perfect example of where my portable hide would be useful since the bird is faithful to a fairly small feeding area. Unfortunately, the locals know ever single blade of grass and pebble here and, since they do not get much "entertainment" in this part of the country, if they saw a portable camouflaged hide with long lens sticking out they would either wander over to see what was going on or, worse, run the tractor over it because they think it is an illegal hunter - no win :wideeyed:.

Colin

[Andrew Cunningham]

Nice images and this hurts as I wish the weather gave me a chance to go up and see it during my winter break.

Did you also see Castro Verde make the news with floods?

Glad to see you got some elusive sunhine at last! :laugh:

[Danacobius]

Colin, very nice pics, of a bird I've only seen once, at Rainham Marsh RSPB, Essex. And if that's a heavy crop you must be carting around some expensive glass. Dan

[Colin Key]

Did you also see Castro Verde make the news with floods?


Hello Andrew,

Thanks for the comments. I did not see the 'news' about flooding in Castro Verde, but I did see the evidence - there are pools and lakes where I have never seen them before. Also, the whole region looks as green and vibrant as I have ever seen it.

Unfortunately, the new road (E.123) is a total disaster for birders - it is now nothing more than a high-speed corridor between Castro Verde and Mertola with few opportunities to pull off the road and "watch". A big mistake, me-thinks.

All the best,

Colin

[Colin Key]

Colin, very nice pics, of a bird I've only seen once, at Rainham Marsh RSPB, Essex. And if that's a heavy crop you must be carting around some expensive glass. Dan

Thanks for the comments Dan. Yes, I do carry a load of expensive 'stuff' around, and it is a bit of a worry since none of it is insured (long story, but insurance in Portugal is not worth the paper it is printed on). The cameras, lenses, bins, scope and laptop are probably worth as much as the car.

These shots were taken with a Canon 1D Mk3, 500mm f/4 lens with x1.4TC. They were taken in Av mode at 1/1250s, f/8 at 700mm and ISO 400. The images are about 30% of the frame size.

Cheers,

Colin

[Andrew Cunningham]

Unfortunately, the new road (E.123) is a total disaster for birders - it is now nothing more than a high-speed corridor between Castro Verde and Mertola with few opportunities to pull off the road and "watch". A big mistake, me-thinks.

Evening Colin,

That was my fear when I saw the workmen and their machines there last winter and spring putting in storm ditches and the like.

I expect there will be an evolution in the routes and destinations birders take at Castro Verde now. The guidebooks will need rewriting. Thankfully the much loved Rolao road and environs remain untouched.

Cheers,
Andrew.

[Colin Key]

mafting has just replied to a thread you have subscribed to entitled - "Posh" Lapwing - in the Been Birding Today? forum of Surfbirds Bird Forums.

This thread is located at:
http://surfbirds.com/forum/showthread.php\?t=6399&goto=newpost

Here is the message that has just been posted:

---Quote (Originally by Colin Key)---
The farmer was O.K. about me being on his land and his reason for driving over was to make sure I had actually seen "the bird"
---End Quote---
Does that mean you entered private land without permission (i.e. trespassed) in order to photograph a bird? Tut tut!


mafting seems to have removed the above post - maybe he has come to realise that he is not always correct when it comes to facts :err:.

The law on trespass in Portugal is even more complex and unenforceable than it is in the U.K. Unless land is fenced (and here is the rub, it does not have to have a permanent fence but the landowner must be able to prove that a fence was in place for a minimum of 24 hours in any 10-year period!!) anyone has the right of access (unless they are there with intent to commit an offence against the law) and even has grazing rights; there is nothing to prevent shepherds, goatherds and cowmen bringing their animals to feed on your land, and they often do. The gypsies take full advantage of this law to feed their many horses.

How do I know this? A picture speaks a thousand words:


http://s118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/IMG_2969.jpg



A few years ago some cattle from the Quinta da Rocha estate escaped from their compound and got onto my land and headed straight for the vegetables on which they gorged themselves and destroyed several orange trees. From an enlargement of this photo I was able to read the data on the ear tags which identified the cattle. In terms of my gardener's time and lost crops we lost several thousand euros. We took the matter up with the owner who didn't want to know, despite the photographic evidence, and then sought legal advice regarding making a claim for losses. This is where I learnt that we were in a legal "mire" and I decided to back down and put up a fence.

Prior to the fence going up it did actually mean that, for example, a group of ringers could have come onto my land and erected mist nets to trap birds (since that is not an "offence", yet :biggrin:) and there would have been nothing I could legally do to stop them. I could of course have shot them, and probably would have, and at least got some sublime satisfaction for a short while before spending the rest of my years in a Portuguese jail. Although, given the way the Portuguese legal machine struggles slowly forward (and often backwards), I would probably spend the remainder of my natural life as an "aguido" before the case came to court :laugh:.

So no, I was not trespassing in order to get the shots of the Sociable Lapwing since bird photography is not illegal and this landowner had no fences in place and no signs indicating "Privado" :wink:.

Colin

[mafting]

Just checking ;)

The wording did look a little odd, like you'd entered land to photograph without permission, and was relieved that when you were approached by the landowner you only then found out he was ok with it. That's how it read to me, but I later thought better of raising it (can, worms, "pillocks" etc)