Spain Special Protection Area for birds
Sierra de María-Los Vélez Natural Park
95 bird species recorded; the most from May to June.
Mario Borrasca · CC BY-SA 4.0
This month here
30 species in January.38 species in February.22 species in March.16 species in April.65 species in May.66 species in June.38 species in July.14 species in August.52 species in September.51 species in October.10 species in November.34 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
VU
VU
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
VU
VU- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
95 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 95Speciesrecorded more than once
- 39Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 2ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 1,726Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 1,146 mAltitudeabove the sea
- 12Raptors
- 2Owls
- 2Ducks & geese
- 63Songbirds
- 16Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 95 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors12 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Griffon VultureGyps fulvus
- Booted eagleHieraaetus pennatus
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
- Short-toed eagleCircaetus gallicus
- Golden EagleAquila chrysaetos
- Common BuzzardButeo buteo
- European HobbyFalco subbuteo
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Bonelli's EagleAquila fasciata
- Eurasian SparrowhawkAccipiter nisus
- Bearded VultureGypaetus barbatusNT
- OspreyPandion haliaetus
Owls2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Eurasian Scops OwlOtus scops
- Tawny OwlStrix aluco
Ducks & geese2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Greylag GooseAnser anser
Songbirds63 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Eurasian ChaffinchFringilla coelebs
- Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merula
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- European SerinSerinus serinus
- Great titParus major
- Common crossbillLoxia curvirostra
- European RobinErithacus rubecula
- European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis
- Eurasian Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus
- Common LinnetLinaria cannabina
- Eurasian JayGarrulus glandarius
- Black RedstartPhoenicurus ochruros
- Coal TitPeriparus ater
- Mistle ThrushTurdus viscivorus
- Common House MartinDelichon urbicum
- European StonechatSaxicola rubicola
- European Crested TitLophophanes cristatus
- Rock SparrowPetronia petronia
- Northern RavenCorvus corax
- Spotless StarlingSturnus unicolor
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- White WagtailMotacilla alba
- Short-toed treecreeperCerthia brachydactyla
- Eurasian Golden OrioleOriolus oriolus
- Melodious WarblerHippolais polyglotta
- Sardinian WarblerCurruca melanocephala
- Woodchat ShrikeLanius senatorNT
- Common NightingaleLuscinia megarhynchos
- Cirl BuntingEmberiza cirlus
- WoodlarkLullula arborea
- Rock BuntingEmberiza cia
- European GreenfinchChloris chloris
- Western Bonelli's WarblerPhylloscopus bonelli
- Eurasian MagpiePica pica
- Corn BuntingEmberiza calandra
- Western Subalpine WarblerCurruca iberiae
- Blue Rock ThrushMonticola solitarius
- Spotted FlycatcherMuscicapa striata
- Common ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita
- Common FirecrestRegulus ignicapilla
- ChoughPyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax
- Black WheatearOenanthe leucura
- Ring OuzelTurdus torquatus
- Cetti's WarblerCettia cetti
- Eurasian Crag MartinPtyonoprogne rupestris
- Western Orphean WarblerSylvia hortensis
- BlackcapSylvia atricapilla
- Iberian Grey ShrikeLanius meridionalisVU
- Song ThrushTurdus philomelos
- Thekla's LarkGalerida theklae
- Carrion CrowCorvus corone
- Eurasian SiskinSpinus spinus
- Crested larkGalerida cristata
- Western Black-eared WheatearOenanthe hispanica
- Western JackdawColoeus monedula
- Eurasian WrenTroglodytes troglodytes
- Northern WheatearOenanthe oenanthe
- Eurasian NuthatchSitta europaea
- Grey WagtailMotacilla cinerea
- Dartford WarblerSylvia undata
- Willow WarblerPhylloscopus trochilus
- DunnockPrunella modularis
- Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
Other birds16 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common Wood PigeonColumba palumbus
- Eurasian Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto
- European SwiftApus apus
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Common CuckooCuculus canorus
- Great Spotted WoodpeckerDendrocopos major
- Red-legged PartridgeAlectoris rufaNT
- Eurasian HoopoeUpupa epops
- European Water RailRallus aquaticus
- European RollerCoracias garrulus
- Bee-eaterMerops apiaster
- European Turtle DoveStreptopelia turturVU
- Picus sharpeiPicus sharpei
- Red-necked NightjarCaprimulgus ruficollisNT
- Alpine SwiftTachymarptis melba
- Great spotted cuckooClamator glandarius
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species from May to June.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan13°/3°25 mm
- Feb14°/4°18 mm
- Mar17°/6°31 mm
- Apr20°/8°28 mm
- May24°/12°15 mm
- Jun30°/17°8 mm
- Jul33°/19°2 mm
- Aug32°/20°9 mm
- Sep28°/16°27 mm
- Oct23°/12°25 mm
- Nov17°/7°32 mm
- Dec14°/4°33 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Sierra de María-Los Vélez Natural Park.
Protected area in Andalusia, Spain
Sierra de María-Los Vélez Natural Park is a Special Protection Area under the EU Birds Directive in Spain, 1,146 m above the sea.
95 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 1,726 open records.
The most recorded are the Griffon Vulture, the Common Wood Pigeon and the Eurasian Chaffinch.
21 species come for the summer, 16 for the winter and 2 only pass through.
2 are threatened worldwide, including Iberian Grey Shrike and European Turtle Dove.
The most species are recorded from May to June.
Get there and watch
- Vélez Rubiocampsite · 8.0 km · 2 within 10 km
- Hotel Velad Sierra María-Los Vélezplace to stay · 2.4 km · 4 within 10 km
- Maríanearest town · 2.9 km in a straight line
- Region of Murcia International Airport (RMU)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 89 km in a straight lineCar hire at RMU airport (Corvera)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 1marked trails within 4 kmCueva de los Letreros
- 2visitor centres within 6 kmCentro de Visitantes "Almacén del Trigo", Oficina de turismo
- 1viewpoints within 5 km
- 2car parks within 3 km
- 4restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- 2campsites within 10 kmVélez Rubio, Campsite Sierra María
- 4places to stay within 10 kmHotel Velad Sierra María-Los Vélez, Casa Convento Sierra María, Casa de Los Arcos and 1 more
- bird hides within 6 km
- observation towers within 6 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Sierra de María-Los Vélez Natural Park.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas16 mountains within 25 kmCerro Pollo2,045 m · 7.0 kmCerro de Gabar · 7.1 kmPuntal del Morral · 7.4 kmSierra María1,918 m · 10 kmSierra del Oso · 14 kmSierra del Saliente · 18 kmMontes de la Jarosa1,239 m · 19 kmSierra de Orce · 21 km
Darkskyas1 dark-sky places within 30 kmObservatorio Astronómico de Cabezo de la JaraBortle 3 · 28 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Sierra de María-Los Vélez Natural Park
Spain
- 50Birdyas Score
- 95Species
- 39Migrants
- 2Threatened
Salinas y Arenales de San Pedro del Pinatar
Spain · 121 km
- 83Birdyas Score
- 213Species
- 116Migrants
- 9Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q4888195) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 1,726 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Peakyas, Darkskyas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit