Alpine Acentor 01

Alpine Accentor

Alpine Acentor 03

A real mountain bird and as such is not seen very often by most birders. This was a lucky find on the very summit of a 1,200m peak above Marbella on the Costa del Sol - except it was very sol-like at the time.  The weather in Spain in February was one of the coldest and wettest for over 50 years, with 2 years worth of rain falling in the months of January and February.  This of course brought snow and the mountain birds moving to lower altitudes .  The harshness of the climate has some benefits in that it makes these birds more confiding around mountaineers like myself, especially any with bits of food to throw their way.  Luckily I had taken my 300mm lens with me and still managed to get full frame shots even with such a relatively short lens.  My friend did think it amusing watching me scurry and crawl around the rocks overlooking huge precipices - he wasn't a birder or photographer of course!

Alpine Acentor 05 snow

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