Two Bustards, two Sandgrouse and Spanish Imperial Eagle, what a day! 
You have to be up early to catch a Bustard, so that’s just what we did, heading out before dawn to an area of open steppe just 10 miles from Trujillo.  With our low slung car, we had to park in a nearby layby and walk up a farm track across the plains for a mile or so in the surprisingly chill wind.  But luckily the stone walls gave some semblance of cover, and we were able to see the Bustards without flushing them.  First, the Little Bustards, just a row of heads peering over the horizon, then two males came over the brow of the hill so we could scope them.  Then a flock of some 40 birds flew overhead and down into the valley, shortly followed by another wave of Little Bustards.  Continuing on the track, we suddenly saw two enormous birds flying right towards us – Great Bustards!  How on earth had we missed them on the ground?  A closer look and we picked out two more lurking amongst the tall thistles.  Then as the track came to an end, we had a good but distant view across a huge open field, with 33 Great Bustards in view.  The strong wind made digiscoping difficult but we did our best to get a record shot at least.  In the far distance, one male was displaying, suddenly becoming a dazzling white shape on the landscape as he turned himself inside out and strutted about with his head thrown back.  Hope the ladies were impressed, we were!  The good birds didn’t stop there, as we were also lucky enough to see a small number of Black-bellied Sandgrouse flying across the fields.
Back to the car to thaw out, we stopped in the middle of an open area which looked likely for Sandgrouse.  We listened hard and through the wind we picked out the ‘gawk, gawk’ call of a single Pin-tailed Sandgrouse.  The sound multiplied and we were thrilled to see a flock of around 40 birds fly up from the field to our right, directly over the car and down into the valley on our left, circling twice before disappearing.  Great views! 
Our next stop was at a bridge over the Rio Magasca, the perfect picturesque picnic spot had it not been so cold that we still needed hats and gloves!  As we walked along a short stretch of the river, we saw two Hawfinches, a singing Woodlark and saw the first European Cuckoo on our yearlist, amongst a mix of other warblers, raptors and waders.  But bird of the site has got to be Spanish Imperial Eagle, which spiraled all too briefly overhead before flying off over the horizon.
In the afternoon we drove to Montanchez where we’d been advised that the castle, perched on top of a steep rocky hillside, was a good site for Black Wheatear and Alpine Accentor.  By now the wind was blowing a real hoolie, so we didn’t have high hopes of seeing anything.  It was hard to hold the bins steady, never mind use the scope, but standing in the lee of the castellation we scanned the rocky slope below us.  Suddenly, a black bird hopped up onto a boulder and stayed put long enough to get the scope onto it – a gorgeous Black Wheatear!  What a great reward, and such a dapper bird.  Two Black Redstarts and a Blue Rock Thrush later, we called it a day, and headed for home.
Home at the moment is the Casa Rural El Recuerdo in the village of San Clemente just outside Trujillo (www.casaruralelrecuerdo.com).  A lovely old building, beautifully furnished, and retaining the old features such as vaulted ceilings and a roaring log fire, this is the perfect venue for a birding trip to the area.  Martin Kelsey is a knowledgeable bird guide to the area and he and his wife Claudia look after the inner birder with excellent meals made from home-grown produce.  In fact, it’s so comfortable here, it’ll be hard to move on when the time comes.
Species total:  1880
Posted 8.30pm, 27th March, Trujillo, Spain