Full Day at Ria Formosa

We will spend the morning at a complex of saltpans and lagoons behind Faro airport. The saltpans are usually a good place to see Flamingos and Shelducks. In the reedbeds around, you can hear Cetti’s Warbler. In the lagoons, many ducks are present in winter: Mallards, Gadwalls, Teals, Shovelers, Wigeons, Pochards, Tufted Ducks and Red-crested Pochards. After looking at these lagoons, we will walk along a golf course on the way to a bird hide. The green is a good place to see Hoopoes, Azure-winged Magpies and Waxbills. The hide overlooks a lagoon where Purple Swamphen, Black-headed Weavers and Little Bitterns breed. In the afternoon, we will drive near Tavira and spend a couple of hour’s birdwatching at the saltpans. This place is also part of the Ria Formosa Natural Park and is good for waders. Flamingos are often seen, feeding in the lagoons with Avocets and Black-winged Stilts. On the dykes between the lagoons, we usually see Kentish and Ringed Plovers, Dunlins, Sanderlings, Little Stints and Little Terns. Audouin’s Gulls are also regularly seen with Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed Gulls. The meeting point is always at the A ROCHA centre. Departure time to be arranged, as it changes throughout the year, because of sunrise time. You can book the date you prefer and we will confirm the exactly time before your activity. You will be driven to the location in one of our vehicles. What is included The guide, a checklist, the use of field guides, a drink at the end or middle of the day and all the driving are included in the price.