Places › Northern shore · Cove

Getares cove

Algeciras · 36.09° N, 5.44° W

Beach and mouth of the Pícaro river, south of Algeciras, between Punta de San García and Punta Carnero. Gulls and waders on the shore; dolphins are frequent off the cove. Urban access.

180
bird species: 1984–2025
first and last open record

See the place in the explorer

within about 2 km · Natural Earth cartography, public domain

90 % of the records are from 2018 onwards.

September

What to watch this week

The species with the largest share of their open observations in these weeks of the year, here (week 37 and its two neighbours). A likelihood, not a promise: observations measure effort as well as presence.

Open records within about 2 km of the point by ISO week, all years added up. The current week is outlined.

Corvus cornix
No freely licensed photo
67% of its observations here fall in these weeks
Cecropis F.Boie, 1826
No freely licensed photo
28% of its observations here fall in these weeks
SeasonalSandwich TernSterna sandvicensis
Photo: Stanley Davis, CC BY
18% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentCrested LarkGalerida cristata
Photo: Koshy Koshy, CC BY
14% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentEurasian SparrowhawkAccipiter nisus
Photo: YCapelle, Public domain
14% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentCommon KingfisherAlcedo atthis
Photo: Frank Sengpiel, CC BY
13% of its observations here fall in these weeks
SeasonalLesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
Photo: Arild Vågen, CC BY-SA 3.0
13% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentEuropean ShagPhalacrocorax aristotelis
Photo: Tony, CC BY
13% of its observations here fall in these weeks

Where to watch today

Forecast wind at Getares, 10:00–16:00

4km/h from the S

Gusts

16 km/h

Calm: crossing along the whole front

With no dominant wind, soaring birds cross at any point between Tarifa and Gibraltar as soon as the thermals rise. It is the most spread-out day and the most comfortable for watching.

Watchpoint: Any; Cazalla and Algarrobo cover both ends

Forecast for Tuesday 8 September, Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0). A reading, not a prediction of passage.

The ones that define the place

Species more concentrated here than in the rest of the Strait: their share of observations at the place divided by their share across the whole area. An index of 3 means three times more frequent here than expected.

Most observed birds

Birds with 30 or more open records within the site radius. It measures observation effort as well as presence.

Each species' line is its weekly distribution here; the vertical tick is the current week.

The place's calendar

16 %

Monthly distribution of the open observations within about 2 km of the point.

Protection

Parque Natural del Estrecho
Reserva de la Biosfera Intercontinental del Mediterráneo

Important Bird Area (IBA)

Estrecho de Gibraltarmarine · 263,125 ha · ES404

Inventory kept by SEO/BirdLife within BirdLife International's IBA programme. It is not a legal protection status, but it carries weight in impact assessments and in court.

Natura 2000 network

EstrechoLIC / ZEC y ZEPA · ES0000337

How to watch

Beach and mouth of the Pícaro river, south of Algeciras, between Punta de San García and Punta Carnero. Gulls and waders on the shore; dolphins are frequent off the cove. Urban access.

The colonies on Isla Verde and Isla de las Palomas are watched from a distance. Binoculars and telescope, no approach.
No drones over islands, breakwaters or docks: they flush the birds and are forbidden in the port domain without authorisation.

Other places

CC0 and CC BY records from GBIF and OBIS in the own database, deduplicated, within about 2 km of the point. Natura 2000 sites from the European Environment Agency. Protection designations as currently in force; no legal value. 8 September 2026.