What have you seen

Love Ronda, what a drive!, especially if a bus is coming the other way. Looked out and marvelled at the gorge and scenery many times but never seen Chough's.

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A.D we always used Hotels and hired a car . Probably been to Ronda 5 times and could never get fed up with it. We were going to see Bullfighting once just for the experience but couldn't bring ourselves to see what we believed to be wrong. May and September would be our visiting times, but did not see Chough's but often saw Black Kites. Mijas was another place we loved and visited often, but now so commercialised to earlier days. We stayed at The Hotel Hacienda Puerto del Sol fabulous hotel. Boy did it hurt our bank balance I can tell you, but fabulous memories. Looking back now worth every penny.

ADP, if ever in the Camargue area again try the Course Camaguaise where the bulls are never killed and the Razeteurs have to be brave to pinch a token hanging from a piece of wire between the horns of the bulls. The bulls are revered and have league positions in the local newspapers.

We went to one in Maussane one year and the bulls truly were venerated and applauded. The Razeteurs enter as a group and try to distract the bull whilst one of their colleagues, no swords in hand, tries his hand at taking the token. The Razeteurs are usually the ones fearing for their lives.

Like you we wouldn't entertain going to a Corrida bullfight.

Yes, when travelling in the Alps I’ve seen both subspecies fairly close in proximity but always separated by altitude. 

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Wherenext, thanks for the info and have got to admit the Camargue is an area that has always appealed to us because of the wildlife and in particular the White Horses.

 A,D we did poke our noses through the gates of the arena in Ronda, but that only served to fill my wife with even more revulsion. Yes as you say we will never understand it!, 

When out on yesterdays Christmas coastal walk at first glance, beyond the surf, I thought I was looking at an immature cormorant (whitish front), too far away for a half decent photo but I reckon it was actually one of the divers. Trouble is at this time of year it’s difficult to tell them apart. Did see some scoters and a few auks mind.

Out for a stroll in a bit of sunshine today with a brisk westerly blowing when we noticed a large bird in the sky sailing towards us over farmers fields. We thought by the size of it that it might be a Buzzard but it gradually floated closer and passed directly overhead where we could see its proper size and markings underneath. It was a magnificent Goshawk, effortlessly sailing, not flying, into the wind. 

We think it had been disturbed from its normal wooded area by shooting on the estate. Our good fortune.

AD, I know that you have great interest in seeing Cranes so this news will be upsetting for you in particular, but also for other wild bird lovers all over:

Due to avian flu "More than 5,000 migratory cranes have already died at the Hula Nature Reserve, which Environment Minister Tamar Zandberg called "the worst blow to wildlife" in Israel's history"

Here's the link to the whole article.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-59808888