Limosa - Birdwatching and Wildlife Hoildays Worldwide

While most holidaymakers visiting the Canaries will venture no further than the nearest sun-drenched beach, for anyone with an interest in wildlife - especially birds but also cetaceans and plants - the islands are so remarkable it can be difficult to know where to start... or finish! Fortunately, this won’t be a problem on our tour for we will again benefit from the unrivalled expertise of our old friend Tony Clarke, the Islands’ foremost bird and wildlife guide, and author of the essential Field Guide to the Birds of the Atlantic Islands.

We spend six nights at a lovely rural hotel on Tenerife, one of the more westerly islands of this famous volcanic archipelago. The landscape here is lush, with moist laurel forests that secrete two of the islands’ most elusive endemic birds: Bolle’s Pigeon and Laurel Pigeon. Higher up, where the air is drier, the laurel is replaced by forests of Canary Islands Pine where we’ll seek two further endemics: Canary Islands Kinglet and Blue Chaffinch. Towering above the pines, the volcanic cone of Pico del Teide - Spain’s highest peak - soars to 3718 metres. Many of the plants up here are also unique to these islands, while birds to be seen in this spectacularly beautiful national park include Plain Swift, Berthelot’s Pipit and Atlantic Canary - a trio of species found only on the Canaries and Madeira.

From our base on Tenerife we’ll also enjoy a day trip by ferry to the neighbouring island of Gomera. The crossing can be good both for seabirds and cetaceans: Bulwer’s Petrel, and Cory’s and Macaronesian Shearwaters are possible in summer, along with Common Bottle-nosed Dolphins and Short-finned Pilot Whales.

Islands in the eastern half of the archipelago are more strongly influenced by North Africa and its hot, dry climate, and so present a very different flora and fauna. We’ll fly to Fuerteventura for an overnight stay, where the rocky slopes of once mighty volcanoes are sculpted by the wind into an endless variety of surreal shapes, and peculiar cactus-like Euphorbias and giant Lobelias can be found. This arid landscape is the haunt of the endangered Houbara Bustard and endemic Canary Islands Stonechat, the latter being found only on the island of Fuerteventura. Cream-coloured Courser, Spectacled Warbler and Trumpeter Finch are further attractions.

Our regular summer visit to the Canaries offers the best chances of seabirds and also butterflies, with Canary Blue, Canary Speckled Wood and Indian Red Admiral among species on the wing. The islands’ endemic birds are, of course, present throughout - as is the breathtaking scenery! And by taking advantage of the summer season flights, it’s usually possible for us to arrange travel from UK regional airports (such as Manchester), for those that wish.