Spain Special Protection Area for birds
Cíes Islands
124 bird species recorded; the most in September.
No machine-readable author provided. Caos~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0
This month here
62 species in January.55 species in February.52 species in March.45 species in April.66 species in May.75 species in June.71 species in July.82 species in August.91 species in September.72 species in October.56 species in November.54 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
NT
NT
CR
NT
CR
NT
CRNT
- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
124 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 124Speciesrecorded more than once
- 52Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 4ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 6,646Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 6Raptors
- 1Owls
- 13Waders
- 31Gulls & seabirds
- 2Ducks & geese
- 5Herons, ibises & grebes
- 53Songbirds
- 13Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 124 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors6 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common BuzzardButeo buteo
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Eurasian SparrowhawkAccipiter nisus
- European HobbyFalco subbuteo
- European Honey-buzzardPernis apivorus
Owls1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Eurasian Scops OwlOtus scops
Waders13 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresNT
- Eurasian WhimbrelNumenius phaeopus
- Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegusNT
- Kentish PloverCharadrius alexandrinus
- DunlinCalidris alpinaNT
- SanderlingCalidris alba
- Eurasian CurlewNumenius arquataNT
- RedshankTringa totanus
- Common Ringed PloverCharadrius hiaticula
- Bar-tailed godwitLimosa lapponicaNT
- Grey PloverPluvialis squatarolaVU
- Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
Gulls & seabirds31 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Yellow-legged GullLarus michahellis
- Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
- Mediterranean GullIchthyaetus melanocephalus
- Northern gannetMorus bassanus
- Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
- Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensis
- Scopoli's ShearwaterCalonectris diomedea
- Balearic shearwaterPuffinus mauretanicusCR
- European Herring GullLarus argentatus
- Laughing GullLeucophaeus atricilla
- Great Black-backed GullLarus marinus
- European Storm-PetrelHydrobates pelagicus
- Manx ShearwaterPuffinus puffinus
- Great skuaStercorarius skua
- Little GullHydrocoloeus minutus
- Pomarine SkuaStercorarius pomarinus
- Common TernSterna hirundo
- Arctic SkuaStercorarius parasiticus
- Sooty shearwaterPuffinus griseus
- Common GullLarus canus
- RazorbillAlca torda
- Great shearwaterPuffinus gravis
- Common MurreUria aalge
- Pontic gullLarus cachinnans
- Sabine's GullXema sabini
- Black-legged kittiwakeRissa tridactylaVU
- Common LoonGavia immer
- Wilson's Storm-PetrelOceanites oceanicus
- Little AukAlle alle
- FulmarFulmarus glacialis
- Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphia
Ducks & geese2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common ScoterMelanitta nigra
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
Herons, ibises & grebes5 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- ShagPhalacrocorax aristotelis
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
- Grey HeronArdea cinerea
- Little EgretEgretta garzetta
- Western Cattle EgretBubulcus ibis
Songbirds53 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- European RobinErithacus rubecula
- European StonechatSaxicola rubicola
- Eurasian WrenTroglodytes troglodytes
- Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merula
- European GreenfinchChloris chloris
- Eurasian ChaffinchFringilla coelebs
- Black RedstartPhoenicurus ochruros
- European SerinSerinus serinus
- Great titParus major
- BlackcapSylvia atricapilla
- Coal TitPeriparus ater
- Sardinian WarblerCurruca melanocephala
- White WagtailMotacilla alba
- European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis
- Carrion CrowCorvus corone
- DunnockPrunella modularis
- Common FirecrestRegulus ignicapilla
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Short-toed treecreeperCerthia brachydactyla
- Common LinnetLinaria cannabina
- Song ThrushTurdus philomelos
- Dartford WarblerSylvia undata
- Common ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita
- BullfinchPyrrhula pyrrhula
- Cirl BuntingEmberiza cirlus
- European Pied FlycatcherFicedula hypoleuca
- Eurasian Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- Eurasian MagpiePica pica
- Willow WarblerPhylloscopus trochilus
- Meadow PipitAnthus pratensis
- Zitting CisticolaCisticola juncidis
- European Crested TitLophophanes cristatus
- Northern RavenCorvus corax
- Spotless StarlingSturnus unicolor
- Eurasian JayGarrulus glandarius
- Rock BuntingEmberiza cia
- Spotted FlycatcherMuscicapa striata
- WhitethroatSylvia communis
- Common WaxbillEstrilda astrild
- Iberian ChiffchaffPhylloscopus ibericus
- Blue Rock ThrushMonticola solitarius
- Northern WheatearOenanthe oenanthe
- SkylarkAlauda arvensis
- Tree PipitAnthus trivialis
- Mistle ThrushTurdus viscivorus
- European Rock PipitAnthus petrosus
- Grey WagtailMotacilla cinerea
- FieldfareTurdus pilaris
- RedwingTurdus iliacus
- Melodious WarblerHippolais polyglotta
- Common NightingaleLuscinia megarhynchos
- Western Yellow WagtailMotacilla flava
Other birds13 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common Wood PigeonColumba palumbus
- Great Spotted WoodpeckerDendrocopos major
- European SwiftApus apus
- European NightjarCaprimulgus europaeus
- Picus sharpeiPicus sharpei
- Alpine SwiftTachymarptis melba
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Eurasian Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto
- Pallid SwiftApus pallidus
- Common KingfisherAlcedo atthis
- European Turtle DoveStreptopelia turturVU
- Eurasian HoopoeUpupa epops
- Common PheasantPhasianus colchicus
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species in September.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan12°/6°154 mm
- Feb13°/6°103 mm
- Mar15°/7°127 mm
- Apr17°/9°99 mm
- May19°/11°71 mm
- Jun23°/13°44 mm
- Jul26°/15°24 mm
- Aug26°/15°33 mm
- Sep24°/14°49 mm
- Oct20°/12°157 mm
- Nov15°/9°154 mm
- Dec13°/7°150 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Cíes Islands.
Protected archipelago located in Vigo, Province of Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain
Cíes Islands is a Special Protection Area under the EU Birds Directive in Spain.
124 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 6,646 open records.
The most recorded are the Yellow-legged Gull, the Shag and the Lesser Black-backed Gull.
30 species come for the summer, 17 for the winter and 5 only pass through.
4 are threatened worldwide, including Balearic shearwater, Black-legged kittiwake and Grey Plover.
The most species are recorded in September.
Get there and watch
- Official informationAccess, hours and rules from those who manage the place.Official site↗
- Camping das Illas Cíescampsite · 1.4 km · 15 within 10 km
- Areal de Barraplace to stay · 5.7 km · 25 within 10 km
- Cangas do Morrazonearest town · 10 km in a straight line
- Vigo Airport (VGO)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 22 km in a straight lineCar hire at VGO airport (Vigo)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 3bird hides within 6 km
- 7marked trails within 4 kmRoteiro Ecolóxico do Morrazo, Roteiro Illas Cíes 4: O Monteagudo, Roteiro Illas Cíes 3: O Alto do Príncipe and 4 more
- 2visitor centres within 6 kmCentro de visitantes
- 16viewpoints within 5 kmMiradoiro da Pedra da Campana, Miradoiro do Alto do Príncipe, A Ventá da Moura and 13 more
- 3restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- 15campsites within 10 kmCamping das Illas Cíes, Camping Nerga, Camping Car Area Playa Arneles and 12 more
- 25places to stay within 10 kmAreal de Barra, Areal de Viñó, Areal de Viño and 22 more
- observation towers within 6 km
- car parks within 3 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Cíes Islands.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas8 mountains within 25 kmVirxe da Roca · 13 kmMonte do Castro · 14 kmMonte da Guía · 16 kmMonte do Faro de Domaio · 19 kmSerra do Galiñeiro · 20 kmMonte Faro de Domaio628 m · 20 kmAlto de Penide · 22 kmAs Orelladas · 22 km
Coastya39 beaches within 10 kmPlaya de Roda · 1.9 kmPraia de Arneles · 7.6 kmPraia de Liméns · 7.8 kmPraia de Santa Marta · 7.9 kmPraia de Punta Balea · 8.9 kmPraia do Medio · 9.0 kmPraia da Congorza · 9.2 kmPraia da Cheminea · 9.5 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Cíes Islands
Spain
- 59Birdyas Score
- 124Species
- 52Migrants
- 4Threatened
Complexo Intermareal Umia-O Grove
Spain · 29 km
- 86Birdyas Score
- 203Species
- 100Migrants
- 12Threatened
Dunas de Corrubedo and Lagoas de Carregal e Vixán Natural Park
Spain · 37 km
- 85Birdyas Score
- 199Species
- 88Migrants
- 10Threatened
Estuary of Minho and Coura Rivers Special Protection Area
Portugal · 36 km
- 77Birdyas Score
- 219Species
- 117Migrants
- 6Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q1658753) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 6,646 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Peakyas, Coastya |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit