BIRDING VILLENA Yanina Maggiotto Share Your Sightings: Your Sightings Can Be Useful in Improving the Jose J
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Lesser kestrel Lesser presence of our bird species. Never forget this! forget Never species. bird our of presence Remember: Remember: No photo or sighting is worth it if it disturbs or endangers the the endangers or disturbs it if it worth is sighting or photo No information that can help to protect birds. protect to help can that information Oxytours technical support. technical Oxytours conservationists, or digital apps and platforms, providing us with invaluable invaluable with us providing platforms, and apps digital or conservationists, your sightings in as much detail as possible with local birdwatching groups, groups, birdwatching local with possible as detail much as in sightings your Rafa Torralba Rafa knowledge and protection of our bird species and their habitats. Share Share habitats. their and species bird our of protection and knowledge Jose J. Rico J. Jose BIRDWATCHING Share your sightings: sightings: your Share Your sightings can be useful in improving the the improving in useful be can sightings Your Yanina Maggiotto Yanina Pau Lucio Pau BIRDING VILLENA BIRDING explain what to do in each case. each in do to what explain Antonio Sáez Antonio immediately on 112. They will activate the necessary protocol and will will and protocol necessary the activate will They 112. on immediately Photographs: or one showing clear signs of distress, contact the emergency services services emergency the contact distress, of signs clear showing one or Commit an important number to memory: 112. 112. memory: to number important an Commit If you find an injured bird bird injured an find you If @turismovillena and be aware of the property’s fences and gates. and fences property’s the of aware be and @turismovillena sites are privately owned, meaning you must stay on the paths at all times times all at paths the on stay must you meaning owned, privately are sites Respect the land owners’ rights: owners’ land the Respect most of the time, such birdwatching birdwatching such time, the of most @turismovillena Turismo Villena Turismo must be requested in advance. Respect the current regulations at all times. all at regulations current the Respect advance. in requested be must visits, and whether there are any areas of restricted access for which entry entry which for access restricted of areas any are there whether and visits, TURISMO VILLENA TURISMO in Spanish), which areas are open to public public to open are areas which Spanish), in Protegido Natural Espacio ( Area are visiting: are before a visit, find out if the area is part of a Protected Natural Natural Protected a of part is area the if out find visit, a before FOLLOW Learn about the environmental regulations in place in the areas you you areas the in place in regulations environmental the about Learn www.turismovillena.com season. [email protected] they live in. Do not alter their behaviour in any way, particularly in breeding breeding in particularly way, any in behaviour their alter not Do in. live they 966 150 236 - 965 803 893 803 965 - 236 150 966 the birds’ welfare above all, and be respectful of the species and the habitat habitat the and species the of respectful be and all, above welfare birds’ the Plaza de Santiago, 5 Santiago, de Plaza Respect the birds and their habitat: habitat: their and birds the Respect remember that you must prioritise prioritise must you that remember TURISMO VILLENA TURISMO ENG BIRDWATCHING TOURISM BIRDWATCHING Evidence of the municipality of Villena’s environmental importance is the high SALT MARSH VILLENA percentage of protected land it is home to, part of the European Union’s Natura 2000 network, via 4 protection mechanisms: ZEPA (Special Protection Areas The areas of salt marsh, seemingly barren and with little environmental for birds or SPAs in English), LIC (Site of Community Importance or SCI), importance, nevertheless play host to very interesting environmental Flora Micro-reserves and Wildlife Reserves, with the main habitats being: assets thanks to both the bird species that live there and to the unique plant life that grows in these areas. The old Villena lagoon, once prized for its large STEPPE population of waterfowl but now dry, allows us to observe various species such as the Little ringed plover, Black-winged stilts, Zitting cisticola, Great Villena’s steppe lands and fields of cereal cultivation are unquestionably the best Grey shrikes, Short-toed larks, Black-eared wheatears or bee-eaters. areas in Alicante province to watch birds, in particular the Lesser kestrel, which uses the roofs of old buildings to rear its young, and flies over the surrounding fields where it’s easy to spot specimens of this small hawk alongside other Villena is on course to become one of the main tourist destinations of species such as the Pin-tailed sandgrouse, the Little bustard, Stone curlew, inland Alicante province thanks to its many tourist attractions, amongst Montagu’s harrier, the Northern wheatear, Calandra lark, Corn buntings and others the Atalaya Castle or the unparalleled Treasure of Villena, the more occasionally, Black-bellied Sandgrouse and the awesome Great bustard. most important hoard find of prehistoric Europe, at over 3000 years old. Together with gems such as the Churches of Santiago and Santa Maria, museums, cave houses and archaeological sites, Villena is rising as MOUNTAIN a cultural destination of undoubted importance. Furthermore, the notable presence of vineyards and wineries, along with a cuisine that brings Mountains are well represented in Villena, with peaks such as Peñarrubia, together the best dishes from the coast and hinterland, production of Cabrera, the Morrón or the Sierra de Salinas range, a place of major significance top-quality children’s footwear, the Moros y Cristianos festival (‘Moors due to its excellent state of conservation, and where one finds the municipality’s and Christians’) with the highest attendance in the world, and a return highest point, La Capilla, at 1.238 m. These areas of stunning pine and oak to the past with its Medieval Fiestas, means that the number of people forest – often found together with terrace cultivation – are home to a huge variety visiting the town has witnessed a significant increase in recent years. of species, notably the majestic Golden eagle or the Eagle owl, as well as Jays, small Wrens, Black Wheatears, Sub-alpine warblers, Golden orioles, However, the municipality has a jewel tucked away which often goes Short-toed tree creepers or another of our nocturnal raptors, the Tawny owl. unnoticed by its visitors, a highly unique asset: its natural environment. The landscapes of Villena change depending on the time of day or season of the year, never the same, going from the barren vines of February to the lush fields of cereal in May, dynamic and alive yet, above all, of significance due to the huge variety of bird species to be found all year round. These birds are the target of a form of sustainable tourism: Birdwatching. Great bustard Eagle owl BIRDING VILLENA ALCOI MAP KEY MOST REPRESENTATIVE SPECIES VILLENA La Encina MAP Station Montagu’s harrier (Circus pygargus) Summer ELX Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) Sedentary ALICANTE Casa Corredor Winery Lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni) Summer Winery Castle Little bustard (Tetrax tetrax) Sedentary Los Alhorines SPA Black-winged stilt (Himantopus himantopus) Summer Tourist Info Stone curlew (Burhinus oedicnemus) Sedentary La Capilla peak Little ringed plover (Charadrius dubius) Summer El Lagrimal cave Great bustard (Otis tarda) Occasional Pin-tailed sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata) Sedentary SPA (ZEPA) Black-bellied sandgrouse (Pterocles orientalis) Sedentary CV-656 SCI (LIC) Eagle owl (Bubo bubo) Sedentary Tawny owl (Strix alauco) Sedentary Flora micro-reserve Red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis) Summer Urban or built-up areas Bee-eater (Merops apiaster) Summer Green woodpecker (Picus viridis) Sedentary Calandra lark (Melanocorypha calandra) Sedentary Greater short-toed lark (Calandrella brachydactyla) Sedentary Winter wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) Sedentary El Morrón Northern wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) Summer Black-eared wheatear (Oenanthe hispanica) Summer Black wheatear (Oenanthe leucura) Sedentary Zitting cisticola (Cisticola juncidis) Sedentary Spectacled warbler (Sylvia conspicillata) Summer Short-toed treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla) Sedentary Golden oriole (Oriolus oriolus) Summer A-31 Southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis) Sedentary Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) Sedentary Rock sparrow (Petronia petronia) Sedentary Corn bunting (Emberiza calandra) Sedentary Steppe Mountain Salt marsh Cabecicos Villena VILLENA Golden eagle Las Virtudes SCI Saleros y Cabecicos Winery Tourist INFO SPA Almela Moratillas CV-81 RENFE Station Castle Las Virtudes Miramontes SPA SCI Peñarrubia El Castellar AVE Station Francisco Gómez Winery Spectacled warbler Black wheatear Little bustard CV-813 Vinalopó river Sierra de Salinas Winery SPA SCI Sierra de Salinas El Lagrimal cave Stone curlew Pin-tailed sandgrouse Greater short-toed lark La Capilla 1.238 m.