SeasonalCory’s ShearwaterCalonectris diomedeaPhoto: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, CC BY
Places › Southern shore · City
Ceuta and Monte Hacho
Ceuta · 35.89° N, 5.30° W
The city and its hill, the first relief met by soaring birds crossing from Algarrobo and Punta Carnero on westerlies. Seabirds from the Hacho and Punta Almina.
- 214
- bird species
- 1956–2025
- first and last open record
within about 2.5 km · Natural Earth cartography, public domain
90 % of the records are from 2012 onwards.
October
What to watch this week
The species with the largest share of their open observations in these weeks of the year, here (week 43 and its two neighbours). A likelihood, not a promise: observations measure effort as well as presence.
- SeasonalCory’s ShearwaterCalonectris diomedea
71% of its observations here fall in these weeks
SeasonalGreat SkuaStercorarius skuaPhoto: Ulrich Latzenhofer, CC BY-SA
38% of its observations here fall in these weeks
MigrantLesser Crested TernSterna bengalensisPhoto: Ian Dugdale, CC BY
37% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentEurasian Crag MartinPtyonoprogne rupestrisPhoto: 游鎮遠, CC0
32% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentCommon StonechatSaxicola torquataPhoto: Derek Keats, CC BY
29% of its observations here fall in these weeks
ResidentEuropean RobinErithacus rubeculaPhoto: Arjan Haverkamp, CC BY
26% of its observations here fall in these weeks
SeasonalNorthern GannetMorus bassanusPhoto: Brooke J., CC BY
23% of its observations here fall in these weeks
SeasonalBalearic ShearwaterPuffinus mauretanicusPhoto: Thibaud Aronson, CC BY-SA
23% of its observations here fall in these weeks
Where to watch today
Forecast wind at Ceuta, 10:00–16:00
15km/h from the W
Gusts
35 km/h
Moderate poniente: crossing in the east
A westerly shifts the passage east. Soaring birds approach the sea between Algeciras, Punta Carnero and Gibraltar, and cross towards Ceuta and Jbel Musa.
Watchpoint: Algarrobo and Punta Carnero
Forecast for Friday 23 October, Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0). A reading, not a prediction of passage.
Seen these days
No open observations within 2.5 km in the last 14 days.
iNaturalist, research grade and CC0 or CC BY licence; the date is that of the observation, not the upload.
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.
- Lesser Crested Tern×31.7
- Fringilla spodiogenys×19.3
Long-legged Buzzard×16.6- Cyanistes teneriffae×15.2
Common Bubul×11.1- Audouin´s Gull×7.1
Rock Dove×4.4- Western Jackdaw×3.9
Most observed birds
Birds with 30 or more open records within the site radius. It measures observation effort as well as presence.
- Yellow-legged Gull1,389
- Rock Dove729
House Sparrow576- Audouin´s Gull432
Spotless Starling384
Pallid Swift381
Great Cormorant380- Sardinian Warbler378
Each species' line is its weekly distribution here; the vertical tick is the current week.
The place's calendar
J
F
M
18 %
AM
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Protection
Important Bird Area (IBA)
Outside every IBA, right next to Estrecho de Gibraltar: 0.2 km.
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
The point is not inside any Natura 2000 site.
How to watch
The city and its hill, the first relief met by soaring birds crossing from Algarrobo and Punta Carnero on westerlies. Seabirds from the Hacho and Punta Almina.
- The colonies of Isla Verde and the Isla de las Palomas are watched from a distance. Binoculars and telescope, no approach.
- No drones over islands, breakwaters or docks: they scare the birds and are forbidden in the port domain without authorisation.
Other places
- Cazalla
- Isla de las Palomas
- Los Lances
- Punta Carnero
- Algarrobo
- Palmones
- Isla Verde
- Getares
- Flysch
- Sierra de la Plata
- La Janda
- Punta Cires
- Jbel Musa
- Cabo Espartel
- Campamento
- Saladillo
- San García
- Puerto de Algeciras
- Puerto de Tarifa
CC0 and CC BY records from GBIF and OBIS in the own database, deduplicated, within about 2.5 km of the point. Natura 2000 sites from the European Environment Agency. Protection designations as currently in force; no legal value. 9 September 2026.