Mike's Natural Musings: Menorca, 2023. Day 5

Friday, 27 October 2023

Menorca, 2023. Day 5

Menorca's barrencs, or gorges, are wild and lonely places, deep clefts formed over tens of thousands of years by the gradual erosion of the limestone plateau. The gorges attract a huge variety of wildlife: birds butterflies and flowers. Raptors are a speciality, especially the Egyptian vultures, booted eagles and red kites. Algendar Gorge is the most dramatic, the top end being inland of Cala Galdana and finising in the village where it debauches into the sea, the river flowing through it all the year round. It is possible to walk a short way into the gorge entrance from the village but it soon becomes private property so we decided to drive inland the short distance to the top of the gorge.

Once parked Peter and I scambled down a narrow ravine, almost a tunnel, to meet the main path through the gorge where the ladies waited for us. Once in the main gorge it opened up somewhat and we could see that it had once been quite heavily cultivated with orchards of quince, pomeganate, sharon fruit and figs. As we wandered along the path we could hear bird song all around. There were large numbers of house sparrows and robins, the usual catti's warblers calling loudly, a green woodpecker calling and at one point high up on the surrounding cliff, too far away for photography, black redstarts. To help illustrate the blog I have included images of black redstarts taken a few years ago in Denia on the mainland. Butterflies were plentiful: southern speckled woods, much more orange than we are used to at home, cleopatras, swallow tail and painted lady. Odonata included migrant hawker dragonflies, scarlet darter, black-tailed skimmer, copper demoiselle and willow emerald damselfly.

The ravine at the start of the gorge

Peter in the ravine at the start of the gorge

The ravine at the start of the gorge

Rock sculpture in the gorge.

Black redstart male

Black redstart female

Morning Glory

Southern Speckled Wood

Path above the gorge

Looking out over the gorge.

Path above the gorge

Friar's Cowl, Arisarum vulgare

In the gorge

Copper demoiselle, Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis

Willow Emerald Damselfly, Lestes viridis

Italian Wall Lizard

Typical Menorcan Olive Wood Gate.

The path down the gorge.

Cleopatra, Gonepteryx cleopatra

Swallowtail, Papilio machaon

Painted Lady, Vanessa cardui

Swallowtail, Papilio machaon

Painted Lady, Vanessa cardui

Olive Wood Gate

From the gorge we headed to the north coast to the lighthouse at Cap Cavalleria where we hoped to find blue rock thrush. This is the northernmost point on the island and one of the island's wildest places, a lunar landscape of sharp, bare limestone rock with a few hedgehog-type plants. As we reached the peninsular we passed the tiny harbour of Sanitja. In Roman times this was the port of Sanisera, Menorca's third city. It was very windy as we quartered the ground looking for the thrushes. We found a couple of Thekla larks first and eventually spotted what we think were three rock thrushes flying away from us never to be seen again.

Sanitja Harbour.

The Lighthouse

TheThekla Lark, Galerida theklae

Swallowtail, Papilio machaon

Autumn Arum, Arum pictum

The Lighthouse

Looking across to Platgas de Fornells

As we drove back towards civilisation, Monte Toro, the highest point on Menorca, loomed much larger than it actually was. As we drove up its winding road we had a fantastic view of an Egyptian Vulture. At the summit, as well as all of the radio installations in which the wind moaned, is the convent which has become an imortant centre for pilgrimage. The simple courtyard is peaceful and attractive with an old well, an olive tree and a low whitewashed refrectory - sadly closed. The church is entered through a porch with several arches and dozens of potted plants with some amazing large pots. Inside the church it was plain and simple with some modern stained glass. The view from the car park is extensive, although hazy on the day we were there.

I was still to get to grips with hoopoe, somewhat of a bogey bird for me. In an attempt to break my duck Peter pulled into the carpark for Cala Mitjana as we arrived back at Galdana as he and Linda had seen them there before. Amazingly there was one foraging for food when we arrived and it proved incredibly cooperative. What an exotic species this is: buff pink colouring with black and white striped, rounded wings and a startling crest which, when raised, resembles a tribal headdress. It has a long curved bill which it uses to probe the ground for its food.

What an amzing end to another fantastic day. It was definitely time for some celebratory rehydration.