By vehicle and on foot
asphalt, dirt tracks and paths
Bird habitats you will find in this area:
We begin at the Roman bridge of Mérida (o.p. 01) crossing the Guadiana River, one of the urban areas of greatest ornithological interest in Extremadura where you can see Little Bitterns, Western Swamphen, Penduline Tit and Alpine Swift, among others. From Mérida we begin the trip by vehicle heading towards Trujillanos, where the Cornalvo Natural Park interpretation centre is located. We continue to the Roman dam of the reservoir (o.p. 02) where we can take a circular route of about 6.5 km that completely surrounds it. During the visit, we will be able to observe, depending on the time of year, water birds such as Great Crested Grebe, Eurasian Spoonbill and Red-crested Pochard, and small birds such as Eurasian Nuthatch, Short-toed Treecreeper, Western Subalpine and Western Orphean Warblers.
Returning to the dam, we continue by vehicle to the Las Muelas reservoir (o.p. 03), a small wetland with a great diversity of water birds and waders, both breeding and non-breeders. From its hide it is easy to see Little Grebe, Grey Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Black-winged Stilt and other waders. It is also a good place to find Garganey in the spring.
In the natural park, Griffon and Cinereous Vultures, Short-toed and Booted Eagles can be easily seen, among other birds of prey.
After leaving the park, we join the A-5 until the exit for Esparragalejo and before crossing the Aljucén river we will make a stop. A path will take us to the riverbank, next to an old submerged bridge (o.p. 04), where it is relatively easy to see Squacco and Purple Herons in the breeding season. We continue to Esparragalejo to visit its Charca Grande (o.p. 05), a small wetland that attracts a multitude of waders on passage and with a great diversity of birds at different times of the year, such as Glossy Ibis and Eurasian Spoonbill.
Finally, we visit the Canchales reservoir, one of the most important wetlands in Extremadura for birding, which we get to on a paved track just before reaching La Garrovilla. This leads directly to the dam parking area. Crossing it on foot we go to a hide (o.p. 06) in front of which many birds roost such as Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed Gulls, Gull-billed Tern, Great Cormorant and Osprey (between August and April). You can also enjoy a great diversity of waterfowl such as Northern Pintail, Eurasian Wigeon, Eurasian Teal, Common Shelduck, Greylag and Greater White-fronted Geese, among others, with birds of prey such as Western Marsh Harrier and Black-winged Kite. One of the great attractions in winter are the large concentrations of Common Cranes, both during the day and coming to roost. We return to the car park along the same path or take a circular route through a very interesting scrubland area for small birds such as warblers, Woodchat Shrike and Hawfinch.
Historical complex of Mérida: Roman theatre and amphitheatre, circus, aqueducts, temples… together with the Cornalvo dam, they are declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
National Museum of Roman Art: international reference centre for Roman artefacts.
Cornalvo Natural Park Interpretation Centre: provides information necessary to enjoy this important natural area of Extremadura.
El Rugidero: with the rising waters, the Muelas stream “roars” between the large stones of its bed.
Birds that remain in the territory all year round.
Breeding birds that stay in the territory during spring and summer, migrating to their wintering grounds at the end of summer.
Birds that do not breed in Extremadura but spend the autumn and winter months here.
Birds that use the region as a stopover area, migrating from their breeding grounds north of Extremadura to their wintering areas further south.
