The truth is that if there is something I involuntarily associate spring is a time of explosion of color. Both the animal and the vegetable world buyen bright tones like green, yellow, red ... The plants use it as an attraction for insects and thus able to carry out pollination and animals is often associated with courtship patterns. Start with the animal world, particularly by birds.
already have almost all the birds of their winter quarters in Africa as is the case of wheatear, yellow wagtails, etc ... The first appear claiming almost always with a bright white on rocky outcrops, cuttings, etc ... Fast-flying birds and rump clear.
wheatears ( Oenanthe Oenanthe) The Yellow Wagtail more related to flooded areas but also as the wheatear prairie look at its bright yellow breast. There are a number of subspecies of this washer and can bring surprises by looking at details like the tone of the head. In this case I leave a photograph of a copy of the most common in the peninsula.
Wagtail (Motacilla flava iberiae ) as other birds also reach areas Wryneck dens at this time. PICC is curious since a priori may not be identifiable woodpecker. Its brown tones make you confused with the bark of trees where they spend the most time. I have a nest of this species controlled curiously in a brick wall of a building, a place where their camouflage is of little use. It is easy to observe one of the copies on the ground walking around in search of insects like ants to be the peak by using its long tongue. A singing bird is scandalous but less than what you hear.
Wryneck (Jynx torquilla) Some birds we see flying around this time also pastures and meadows are the Montagu's harriers and pale. The second most linked to high mountains in this area and the first area of \u200b\u200bgrassland. The color is also something odd in this species. Apart from sexual dimorphism is quite abundant presence of individuals with melanism (an excess of melanin in feathers and therefore some dark shades). Then a series of photographs in which we first see a male of normal tone, then a female and a male finally melanin. All were photographed in the same region and the same day.
Female Montagu's harrier ( Cyrcus pygargus) 
Male Montagu's harrier ( Cyrcus pygargus) 
Montagu's harrier melanic
However despite being able to see lots of birds in our latitudes in spring days we can not forget the birds that spend the year in the peninsula with discrete tones but at this time exploding in color and make it look new birds. Examples are the Linnet colorful with a bright red breast or yellow-hammer that looks bright yellow combined with rust tones that make these birds of the Cantabrian mountain in color palettes.
yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella ) now turn to the herpetofauna. Animals are now more active than ever after winter dormancy. Start with a kind to which I have special affection, I mean the dark green lizard. A high altitude lizard and quite often linked to dampness. The blue shows the head of the male is a dark green color that I have not seen anywhere else. We can find pairs of animals resting at the entrance of their shelters under rocks while insolate quietly. Also next to creeks or among grasses. Attached photos of 2 individuals, with different shades.
Macho dark green lizard (Lacerta schreiberi ) 
The dark green Lizard Amphibians also show themselves more easily on rainy nights in spring when temperatures are slightly higher than in winter you are finished and can develop their reproductive cycles. Salamanders, marbled newts, common toads ... are some of the species that we can find in a night but I will focus now in 3 species I photographed this weekend.
The tree frog. One of the most eye-catching frogs in our fauna, both for its color as its quality of "arboreal." The large suction cups on the end of your fingers will help to be fixed to any surface despite the striking green of her skin so often overlooked among the lakeside or riverside vegetation. It is without doubt one of the most photogenic frog. It's funny how sometimes you hear her singing in a pond and closer to it you can not find any even though you know they are there. There are a few pictures of Hyla arborea
tree frog (Hyla arborea ) 
Ranita de San Antonio near a spring outbreak 
Ranita de San Antonio in their environment 
A plane nearest As you can see the color of these frogs is not so different from the vegetation of wetlands where they usually move. I now
the midwife toad, a species in this area appears more related to scree and rocks of high mountains and whose singing (very soft whistle) can be heard in the spring evenings. This species is characterized by individuals are putting on the hindquarters a time until the deposit in the water. Its vertical pupil makes your eyes look no amphibian and grayish spots dotted tones you are confused among rocks and lichens of the Cantabrian mountain. A series of photos of this small anuran.
Common Midwife Toad (Alytes Obstetricians ) 
Midwife Toad defensive position defense in many species of frogs swell is difficult to be swallowed by a predator. They also make use of the substances secreted in parotid and other species even make sounds intimidating.
Finally I've been able to photograph the painted frog on these rainy days. This species had only seen her once and night and so I wanted to photograph the day as well where you can see best of which comes the name of frog.
His keen nose is unmistakable and appearance intermediate between a toad and a frog facilitate quick identification. I particularly surprised by the agility of this species. A couple of photos.
Iberian painted frog (Discoglossus galganoi ) 
A plane nearest Finally finished with a spring-loaded color detail as you said the title but also freshness as these days are being particularly cool in some areas. I hope you enjoyed the entry and a hug.
