PORTUGAL

The stunningly scenic Portuguese island of Madeira lies some 600km off the coast of Morocco. Several range-restricted seabirds and landbirds are found here, including the endemic Zino's Petrel, Trocaz Pigeon and Madeiran Firecrest. In common with most isolated islands, Madeira has rather few indigenous bird species, so the tour will be low on variety but very high on quality.

Day 1 Flight from London to Funchal and transfer to our four-star hotel near the beach at Machico, which will be our base for the entire tour. After dinner, we will head for Pico do Areeiro. In the dark, it will take about half an hour to trek in mountainous terrain to a spot close to the breeding area of Zino's Petrel. This very special bird was thought to be extinct until its rediscovery in 1969. It was formerly considered to be a subspecies of Fea's Petrel, but now has full species status, with an estimated 80 breeding pairs and a total population of only 400 individuals. We will sit quietly to listen for the calls of Zino's Petrels. If weather conditions are favourable, we should be able to observe the silhouettes of some of the birds.

Day 2 The morning will be spent at various localities in the east of the island. We should find Madeiran Firecrest and the local race of Common Chaffinch maderensis in the forests and, at an arid site which commands views of both the north and south coasts, we will look for Island Canary, Rock Petronia and the local race of Berthelot's Pipit. In the afternoon we will go on a boat trip off the eastern tip of Madeira to look for Cory's Shearwater, Bulwer's Petrel, Yellow-legged Gull and Common Tern, while Fea's Petrel is a possibility. We shall also look for whales, dolphins and turtles. The landscape here is spectacular showing the geological formation of this volcanic island.

Day 3 Most of today will be dedicated to forest habitat and will include fairly short walks, one beside a water channel (levada) through Laurel forest and others also in this native forest but at different altitudes. Trocaz Pigeon is the main target species and we will have another opportunity to see Madeiran Firecrest and Common Chaffinch maderensis. Lunch will be at a very scenic restaurant. In the evening we will visit the easternmost point of Funchal bay for seabirds, some of which we shall hear and see as they come ashore to their breeding sites. Cory's Shearwaters will dominate the proceedings but we may also observe Bulwer's Petrels and Madeiran Storm-petrels. Plain Swifts will be present and, hopefully, the local Barn Owl will put in an appearance.

Day 4 On a morning sea trip we will head close to Desertas Islands to look for Fea's petrels and for any Madeiran Storm-petrel, which might be around. We will look for feeding frenzies to observe Cory's Shearwaters where we might be lucky to find the Scopoli's subspecies or any vagrant bird. We will go back to Caniçal for lunch and in the afternoon we will go to Funchal to look for Roseate Terns around the harbour and for passerines such as Island Canaries, European Goldfinches and some butterflies (including Monarch) in the city's gardens. In the evening, at a site in northeast Madeira that holds Yellow-legged Gull, Common Tern and Island Canary, we will settle down for a seawatch. In addition to seeing and hearing Cory's Shearwaters, we shall be on the lookout for Little Shearwater, Bulwer's, Fea's and Zino's Petrels and Madeiran Storm-petrel.

Day 5 This will be a full-day tour along the west side of Madeira, stopping at various places, including in Laurel forest in a high valley for Trocaz Pigeon and Madeiran Firecrest and at the island's most westerly point for Berthelot's Pipit, Rock Petronia and Spectacled Warbler.

Day 6 We will head to the west side of the island again, but this time to the highest plateau to look for Red-legged Partridge, Common Quail, Common Buzzard, Spectacled Warbler and Eurasian Linnet. In the evening we will cruise along the coast from Caniçal aiming to see and hear Cory's Shearwater, Bulwer's Petrel and Madeiran Storm-petrel heading back to their nest-sites.

Day 7 If, as we would hope, all of the desired species have been seen by this stage of the tour, our plan for the day will be to go birding at several as-yet-unvisited localities in the northeast of Madeira. In the event that there is a noteworthy and accessible species which we have not seen so far, we will concentrate our efforts at sites where it is known to occur.

Day 8 The morning will be spent at leisure and, after lunch, we will transfer to the airport and fly back to London.

General Information The climate is generally warm and sunny, but it can be cloudy with drizzle in the mountains, so a sun hat is important together with some warm clothing for the mountains and boat journeys. There are no special health requirements but please check with your doctor. The pace of the tour is generally relaxed with only a limited degree of fitness required, with the exception of the night-time mountain walk to look for Zino's Petrel, which is quite strenuous.

Group Size Minimum number for tour to go ahead: 6; maximum group size: 7 with 1 leader, 14 with 2 leaders.