On May 1, 2009, we visited the Ebro Delta and Wetlands located south of Catalonia. This area covers 320 square kilometres and is the second largest wetland area in the western Mediterranean. It has many natural habitats not common to the rest of Catalonia. These areas include large lakes of salt water (La Tancada) or fresh water (L'Encanyissada), miles of beaches with sand dunes (El Fangar), riverbank woods, and salt wastelands (Erms de la Tancada, Punta de la Banya). The ecosystems created by man, rice fields and saltpans, also play an important part in the ecology of the area. This area was declared a natural park in 1993. For our group, it turned out to be a great place to bird. Early in the day we encountered wet, cold and windy conditions with temperatures in the low 60's. But, as the day progressed, the weather cleared, and temperatures rose to the low 80's. We were birding the saltpans when we saw this Squacco Heron. This heron winters in Africa and has a bluish bill with buffy colored feathers in summer. In flight the bird appears to be white.