Mallorca day 7: island hopping

As the end of our first week approached, we decided to push the boat out - literally - with a day trip to the island of Dragonera off the far western tip of Mallorca. Dragonera hosts a breeding colony of Scopoli's Shearwater, a close relative of Cory's Shearwater which some authorities regard as a separate species, so I was delighted when we passed a small raft of what I presumed to be Scopoli's on the short (and very affordable) crossing from the town of Sant Elm. This seemed a just reward for getting up early enough to make the 60 minute journey to Sant Elm so that we could get the first boat of the morning over at 0930. Seeing these birds reminded me of my last Scilly pelagic, where Cory's Shearwater gave similarly close views.

Scopoli's Shearwater - white in the primaries extending into the 'hand' (which is all dark in Cory's Shearwater)

Excellent views as we crossed the short straight between Sant Elm and Dragonera

Our boat went close to a raft of Shearwaters and a few gave us a close fly-past

An elegant bird which I had not expected to see so well on this trip

The island - named for its shape and for the large number of endemic Lilford's Wall Lizards which reside there - is designated as a natural park, being important for breeding birds including Audouin's Gull, Balearic Shearwater (which was on its hols elsewhere while we were on ours), Balearic Warbler and Eleonora's Falcon, of which I was still keen to see more. On arrival a warden advised that it was not the best time of year to see the falcons, but they could be encountered anywhere on the island. We set off on the long, hot walk to the southern end where my guide book suggested there was a good viewpoint of their breeding cliffs, but before we had got a quarter of the way down the two mile track, I was enjoying views of Eleonora's Falcon at eye level hunting around the coast.

Pale morph Booted Eagle gave excellent views on Dragonera…

...shortly before a dark morph Booted Eagle did likewise

The dark morph bird circled a few times...

...then got into a tussle with the pale morph bird

Over the course of our visit I saw at least a dozen Eleonora's Falcon, all of them well, so a visit is highly recommended for anyone wanting to see this species at reasonably close range. The viewpoint recommended in Graham Hearl's guidebook, just before the lighthouse at the southern end of the island where the path abuts the cliff edge, was indeed a good place to see them - several falcons swooped and stopped around the sheer cliff faces or hung on the thermals above them, including a frustratingly distant dark morph bird.

Eleonora's Falcon seemed to be everywhere on Dragonera

When hunting they seem to hang in the air without flapping - not hovering like a Kestrel, just floating

From the high cliffs at the southern end of Dragonera it was possible to watch Eleonora's Falcon hunting from above

This bird hung in the air above the sheer cliff face then went into a stoop after an unseen item of prey

Birdlife on Dragonera was otherwise a case of quality not quantity - a couple of Booted Eagle and a Balearic Warbler being the highlights - though the local lizards were something else, swarming around the lighthouse compound like little green zombies waiting for crumbs from the picnic lunches of tourists!

A dark phase Eleonora's Falcon stayed frustratingly high overhead

It appeared to have a full crop

A few birds were perched on the cliffs but I needed to add a teleconverter to photograph them

A pale morph Eleonora's Falcon

We had booked to return on a 13:30 boat but phoned the operator to extend this to 15:30, providing time for a leisurely return to the quay in what had become baking heat - followed by a swim before our return to the mainland. A highly recommended day-trip - but give yourself plenty of time and take supplies as there are none on the island. I had considered a trip to Cabrera, an archipelago off the southern tip of Majorca which is also reportedly good for wildlife - but most of the species one might hope to see there can also be seen on Dragonera, and it is a longer and more expensive boat trip, so we decided to leave that for another time.

The lighthouse at the southern end of Dragonera

I believe this is Lilford's Wall Lizard, endemic to the Balearics

Hundreds of lizards thronged around the lighthouse compound

This lizard took a liking to my camera bag

The family complained constantly about the long walk in the extreme heat. I had to get this far in front to (i) take a photo with my long lens and (ii) get out of earshot from the whining :-)