Steppe birds of southern Portugal

With a backdrop of extensive lowlands and extraordinary steppes, this trip will take us across some of the most charming areas in Portugal, Baixo Alentejo. In Castro Verde, Mértola, as well as in all the other towns and villages within this most enchanting district, time seems to have stood still, and human activities and development have found a way to coexist and preserve the stunning nature around.

It is clearly an excellent birdwatching destination to target several groups of birds, but given the vast size of the region and the unmistakable dominance of the steppe habitat, two main targets stand out in our weekend trip, the steppe birds and the big raptors, such as the Spanish Imperial, Bonelli´s and Golden Eagles, as they use these lowlands as their hunting grounds due to the sheer abundance of prey.

Widely considered the best-preserved steppe of Portugal, relevant species like the Little Bustard, Great Bustard, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Hen and Montagu´s Harriers and Lesser Kestrel will feature within our daily targets. Besides, these flats concentrate in winter the most amazing flocks of Northern Lapwing, European Golden Plover and Eurasian Skylarks, an absolute spectacle that we are sure to encounter in good numbers during this birding experience.

Around the inner parts of these immense lowlands, a whole series of streams, lagoons and reservoirs will provide the opportunity of interesting wader and aquatic bird sightings such as Common Greenshank, Common Snipe, Black-winged Stilt, herons and egrets as well as anatids. Bearing in mind the sheer natural diversity, complex avifauna, beautiful scenery and countless other factors such as the good quality wines and delicious local food, the Castro Verde- Mértola district is a magnificent birdwatching destination we will focus on discovering for the three days of our trip.