Birding observation points – Maestrazgo Tourism

Observation points

Observatory of the Aragonese Network of Necrophagous Bird Feeding Sites (RACAN)

The Bordón dunghill is part of the Aragonese Network of Necrophagous Bird Feeders (RACAN). This network arose as a result of the mad cow crisis, which prohibited farmers from leaving dead carcasses in the fields, due to possible health risks. The necrophagous birds were affected by this situation, as their food was scarce. The creation of the middens helped to make up for this lack of food in nature by means of regular contributions of remains from slaughterhouses and livestock remains supplied by the public company Sarga. The maintenance of the middens fulfills several objectives for the conservation of carrion-eating birds:

They help to maintain and fix populations in the territory, favoring the survival, especially of threatened and catalogued populations.
In addition, they can be used as good sites for the observation of distance reading marks, such as wing bands or PVC rings, which allow the study of movements between different territories.
They play an essential role in the functioning of food chains and the maintenance of ecosystems. By feeding on dead animals, they help to recycle nutrients and energy, and at the same time contribute to reducing and controlling the risk of epizootic diseases in a wide variety of species (wild, game or livestock), which are susceptible to the spread of diseases due to exposure to the corpses of other animals, especially large mammals.

For this purpose, they have numerous anatomical and physiological adaptations. The featherless head and neck facilitate access to the viscera of carcasses. The robust, hooked beak helps to tear skin and tear flesh. Their stomachs secrete extreme gastric acids, capable of neutralizing dangerous bacteria such as anthrax, botulism and cholera, which would be fatal to other animals. As they usually walk among carrion, they also defecate acidic liquids on their legs to prevent pathogenic germs. They have hyper-developed eyesight and sense of smell to detect carcasses at great distances. They can go several weeks without feeding, which they counteract by gliding, taking advantage of thermal currents to fly long distances, saving energy while searching for food.

The king and most abundant is the griffon vulture, since they maintain in the area one of the largest breeding nuclei of the Iberian Peninsula. The bearded vulture, specialized in feeding on bones, can be observed since it has plans for reintroduction in the area and is settling in this territory. The Egyptian vulture or Egyptian vulture visits the dunghill in the summer period and even the black vulture can be seen from time to time, completing the quartet of Iberian vultures.

Other more opportunistic birds on the menu include black kites, red kites, crows, crows and jackdaws.

Aquatic paradise

The Santolea reservoir acts as an artificial wetland of great importance for biodiversity and has numerous favorable environments for waterfowl. Wide sheets of water with different depths, muddy flood/drainage plains and different types of vegetation; submerged, floating or marshy are used as nesting sites, refuge or resting and feeding areas during migratory journeys. In addition, it is surrounded by huge rocky outcrops, so it is also easy to observe rocky birds, such as the Egyptian vulture or Bonelli’s eagle. Both are threatened and catalogued as vulnerable and in danger of extinction respectively. In the surroundings of the reservoir there are numerous viewpoints and areas where you can make stops for bird watching.

Waterfowl

They are a large and very heterogeneous group, which includes many families of birds with different degrees of dependence on aquatic ecosystems to develop their life cycles. The most common in the Santolea reservoir are the following:

Anatidae have a series of characteristics and adaptations to be able to live most of their lives in the aquatic environment. Their plumage has special oils to repel water, their legs are short and webbed to favor swimming and their beaks are flattened to feed on vegetation more easily. Among them we can observe mainly swimming ducks that feed on surface vegetation, such as the mallard duck, which is common throughout the year, or species that visit us during the winter, such as the teal or the shoveler duck.
Grebes and grebes (podicipédidos) are birds that dive into the water to feed on fish or small crustaceans, but also to avoid possible threats. The great crested grebe and the little grebe stand out.
Among the rails, we find the common coot that can be seen swimming easily, while the common moorhen or the European rail pass more unnoticed among the marsh vegetation.
The great cormorant (Phalacrocoracidae) is a piscivorous bird, which fishes by diving. It is frequent during the winter and can sometimes be seen perched with its wings open to let its plumage dry, as it is not waterproofed.
Ardeids are wading birds that are associated with aquatic environments, but they are not swimmers; they stealthily wander through shallow areas in search of their preferred prey; fish, crustaceans, amphibians, reptiles or mollusks. The grey heron is the most common.
Finally, a very unique group of birds are the so-called waders, which encompasses numerous families of birds. They are also long-legged with characteristic beaks, in which each species has a different morphology with which they can explore and exploit different resources, thus avoiding interspecific competition. They are long-distance migratory species that we can detect in winter or in their migratory passages. Some examples that can be detected in the reservoir are the common redshank, the stilt, the great sandpiper, the little plover or the avocet.

To observe these birds you can take advantage of the viewpoints of the reservoir and the areas near the reservoir. There is a panel about them on Santolea Beach.

The Maestrazgo is synonymous with nature, mountains, rugged terrain and dreamlike landscapes. With the network of viewpoints we can enjoy the wonderful panoramic views and why not, enjoy bird watching.