75 species were seen in the Alcossebre area in April 2018. No new species were added to the Alcossebre list. There were first of the year records for Greater Flamingos, Purple Heron, Glossy Ibis, Whimbrel and Jackdaw. There were first of the spring records for Black-crowned Night Herons, Black Kite, Montagu´s Harrier, Pied Avocet, Common Sandpiper, Whiskered Tern, Turtle Dove, Scops Owl, Common Swift, European Bee eater, European Roller, Woodchat Shrike, Golden Oriole, Sand Martin, Red-rumped Swallow, Wood Warbler, Common Nightingale, Common Redstart, Northern Wheatear, Whinchat and Blue-headed Wagtail. I had the company of Trudy Gough who had worked for the R.S.P.B at Minsmere, Suffolk ,on the 27th April - her reward? A fine Eurasian Roller! April is one of the main migration months and most days bring in new birds to see. I managed 29 days out of 30, so good coverage. The first two days started off quiet. 20 Great Cormorants flew east over the sea on the 1st April. Two Great Cormorants and two Barn Swallows flew east on the 2nd April. On the 3rd April a Black Kite (first this spring), and a female Marsh Harrier flew east. Two Mediterranean Gulls flew south. A Pied Avocet at Capycorp lagoon and a Northern Wheatear were the first this spring. Two Great Egrets, one Marsh Harrier, one Montagu´s Harrier (the first this spring) and one Pallid Swift flew east. On the 4th April. Seven Black-winged Stilts flying east along the coast on the 6th April, were the first this spring. After poor weather conditions held birds up on the 7th April, the 8th April produced Three Grey Herons, four Purple Herons, one Marsh Harrier, 10 Black-headed Gulls, nine Audouin´s Gulls, 27 Yellow-legged Gulls, seven Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 82 Common Swifts (first this spring), 100 Barn Swallows and 25 House Martins, all flew north east. Overnight arrivals included three Common Nightingales (first this spring), nine Blackcaps, two Willow Warblers and a late Song Thrush. Overnight arrivals on the 9th April included the first Woodchat Shrikes (two) of spring. A new Common Nightingale was heard. 22 Great Cormorants and one Grey Heron flew east over the sea on the 10th April. 30 Great Cormorants, one Grey Heron and one Marsh Harrier flew east, 23 Sandwich Terns flew south. 17 Whimbrels on Capycorp beach were the first this year. All on the 11th April. The 12th April gave us the first Northern Gannets of the month (2) and an overnight arrival of three Willow Warblers. 14 Greater Flamingos on the 13th April were the first this year. Overnight arrivals included eight Turtle Doves (first this spring), three Stone Curlews, one Northern Wheatear and the first May record of Hawfinch (two). Eight Glossy Ibis on the 14th April were the first this year. 12 Mediterranean Gulls, 15 Yellow-legged Gulls and one Whiskered Tern (first this spring) all flew east over the sea. Overnight arrivals on the 15th April included one each one Black-winged Stilt and Woodchat Shrike. During a lull in the rain on the 16th April a Common Redstart popped up in my garden - a first this spring. On the 17th April three Eurasian Bee eaters flew east - a first this spring. Overnight arrivals on the 18th April included one each Black-crowned Night Heron, Eurasian Bee eater and one male Common Redstart. Three Grey Herons, 19 Yellow-legged Gulls and eight Pallid Swifts flew east on the 19th April. The 20th April provided the first spring Red-rumped Swallow, a new Black-crowned Night Heron, one Woodchat Shrike and two Willow Warblers. Another two new Black-crowned Night Herons arrived on the 21st April, with a Common Sandpiper (first this spring), one Woodchat Shrike and one Subalpine Warbler. One Purple Heron, three Grey Herons and five Glossy Ibis flew east over the sea on the 22nd April. A Golden Oriole on the 23rdApril was the first this spring. Overnight arrivals on the 24th April provided two spring firsts, a Roller and Blue - headed Wagtail. 10 Audouin´s Gulls, eight Barn Swallows two Sand Martins flew east on the 25th April. Over night arrivals three Black-crowned Night Herons and one Turtle Dove. On the 26th April eight Great Egrets and one Whiskered Tern flew east over the sea. Overnight arrivals on the 27th April included another Roller and a spring first - a Wood Warbler. On the 28th April 32 Greater Flamingos, three Audoiun´s Gulls and 33 Yellow-legged Gulls flew east over the sea. Overnight arrivals included three Golden Orioles, one Woodchat Shrike, a late Common Chiffchaff, one Northern Wheatear and a spring first Whinchat. The Night Herons and Roller remain. Overnight arrivals on the 29th April included one Short-toed Eagle, 18 Eurasian Bee eaters and one Northern Wheatear. There was no movements or overnight arrivals on the 30th April, but there were hundreds of Common and Pallid Swifts feeding locally. Alcossebre Weather in April 2018.
The first two weeks in April had a mix of weather with five days with rain. The last two weeks improved with more sunshine and higher temperatures. The first week in April was mixed with three fine/sunny days and four days of overcast conditions. Rain spread in on the afternoon of the 7th. Winds were light to gentle for five days, and moderate easterly on the 6th and 7th. The temperature was below average both day and night. The second week in April was poor with mainly cloudy spells, and four days with rain. Most days had gentle to moderate east to south east winds, resulting in below average temperatures. The third week in April had only one poor day, the 16th with overcast/dull conditions and heavy rain. The other days were fine and sunny. Winds were light for the first four days, and moderate easterly for the last three days. Temperatures improved by day, but still below for night time. The fourth week in April was similar to the third week, with only one poor afternoon, the 27th, when a thunderstorm and heavy rain came in. Winds were mainly gentle, south easterly. Temperatures were above average for the first time this month. The last two days of April were mixed with sunny/cloudy spells. Average day temperature was 21C (70F). Average night temperature was 9C (48F). Highest day temperature was 28C (82F) on the 27th. Highest night temperature was 14C (57F) on the 23rd, 26th, 28th and 29th. Lowest day temperature was 15C (59F) on the 7th. Lowest night temperature was 5C (41F) 10th. Total rainfall was 3 inches (76mm), over seven days. The heaviest rain fell on the 16th April with 0.6 inches (15mm). Average rainfall for April is 3.5 inches (89mm).
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