Birdinginportugal.com blends guided birdwatching throughout southern Portugal with a centralised location in a sparsely populated region of unique beauty.

Your stay in this friendly country is hosted at Quinta do Barranco da Estrada, a small family-run hotel in a stunning lakeside location. The Quinta has an international reputation for good food, company and service, and its size, with a maximum of fourteen guests, ensures that all guests feel welcome from the moment they arrive. Moreover, the Quinta is ideally suited to those guests whose numbers include couples of whom only one is a dedicated birder, as there are plenty of facilities for a relaxing holiday away from all the hustle and bustle of a normal destination. Full details regarding the Quinta can be obtained from their web site, www.ParadiseInPortugal.com.

There is a wide variety of bird life in the Quinta’s vicinity, notably one of Europe’s most interesting ornithological enigmas, the Azure Winged Magpie (Cyanopica cyana). (This species only occurs in the southern Iberian Peninsula and South East Asia and nowhere in-between. It was commonly supposed that an early traveller had brought back a pair that had subsequently escaped, but in 1999 a skeleton was radio-carbon dated in Gibraltar at 44,000 years old, which switched the line of enquiry to climate change and there is on-going research into DNA.) Also present near the Quinta are a wide variety of Warblers, Stonechat, Woodchat Shrike, Bee-eaters, Kingfishers, three varieties of Woodpeckers and three of Eagles, (Short toed, Booted and Bonelli’s), as well as other raptors, notably Peregrine Falcons. The area also has one of the highest densities in Europe of Nightingales, and during the Spring one is rarely out of earshot of their beautiful song.

There are four areas within an hour and a half’s car journey from the Quinta which are ideal for Birdwatching.

• To the north west of the Quinta are the Sado Estuary and the S. André Lagoon, both areas a haven for marshland birds, notably Squacco Heron, Purple Heron and Spoonbill. Raptors include Marsh Harrier and Black winged Kite.
• To the south West is the migratory route along Portugal’s rocky coast, where, outside the autumn migrating season, the specialities are Blue Rock Thrush, Peregrine Falcon, Rock Bunting and Cattle Egret amongst others. During the Autumn the raptors migrating south along the coast towards Sagres for the onward journey to Africa are a sight that few forget.
• To the south east of the Quinta lies the Rio Formosa Estuary, which has extensive salt pans. Subsequently it has a wealth of wading birds, such as Avocet, Spoonbill, Flamingo, Black and Bar-tailed Godwit, Black winged Stilt, Snipe, Redshank and Greenshank, as well as divers and ducks such as Shoveler, Pochard, Red crested Pochard, Teal, Pintail, Widgeon and Gadwall. It is also famed for its population of Purple Galinules, and Little Bitterns are much in evidence.
• To the north east of the Quinta are the wide-open Plains of the Alentejo. The bird life here is truly stunning with specialities including Great and Little Bustard, Black Bellied Sandgrouse, Stone Curlew, Lesser Kestrel, Montagu’s Harrier, Red rumped Swallow, Callandra, Thekla, Crested, and Song Larks, Spanish and Tree sparrows, Black eared Wheatear, Roller, Collared Pratincole and Black and Red Kites amongst others.

Birdinginportugal.com is organised in a personal manner and its strength lies in its subsequent ability to cater for its guest’s requirements. Thus it can be as “full-on” or as relaxed as they wish. There can be daily outings by car or relaxed walks in the vicinity during your stay, and prices vary on the travelling required, and the time of year of your stay.

Various formats for 2008 are listed below as a rough guide.

• 1 week full board double room with two full day outings by car in March:- 1,582 Euros (approx £1,150 @ exchange rate of £0.728 : 1€)
• 1 week full board double room with four full day outings by car in March:- 2,018 Euros (approx £1,470)
• 1 week full board double room with two full day outings by car in April-June and October:- 1,757 Euros (approx £1,279)
• 1 week full board double room with four full day outings by car in April-June and October:- 2,193 Euros (approx £1,596)
• 1 week full board double room with two full day outings by car in July-September:- 2,037 Euros (approx £1,479)
• 1 week full board double room with four full day outings by car in July-September:- 2,473 Euros (approx £1,800)

Please note that not all the species mentioned above are resident throughout the year, and to avoid disappointment it is always best to check with birdinginportugal.com’s resident guide, Frank McClintock, to make sure that the birds you wish to see are likely to be present during your proposed visit.

Birdinginportugal.com is run to a non-intrusive, eco-friendly and informative format, and is a member of the RSPB, (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds), BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) and SPEA (Sociedade Portuguesa para o Estudo das Aves).

Full details of the Quinta can be obtained from their website, www.paradiseinportugal.com