Whiskered Terns on Pego Marsh, Spain

Martin Eccles

I was looking for a place to paint in the sun. Courtesy of Jules Sykes (Oliva Rama Tours) we based ourselves in Oliva (a small coastal town in Communitat Valenciana) and planning to paint on Pego Marsh, about 5 Km to the south. On odd location as there are fabulous birds and a nearby motorway. The Whiskered Terns were obvious from the start. On our first evening they were hawking over the reeds and during the days they rested up on the marsh where they offered fabulous subjects for study. On our last day the local farmers were preparing the rice paddies for flooding and the terns were following the tractor taking small food items (that looked like crayfish) from the fields. If you want to see more of Pego Marsh have a look at the Spain April 2007 folder on my website (http://www.martin-eccles-artist.co.uk/). Roosting Whiskered Terns with Black-winged Stilts, Pego Marsh Whiskered Tern, Pego Marsh Whiskered Tern, Pego Marsh