Mallorca has attracted both ornithologists and amateur bird watchers for many years. Being a fairly small island but with diverse habitats, there's easy access to a wide range of resident Mediterranean species, as well as flocks of migratory birds that pass this way in spring and autumn. For a pure birding trip or as part of a family holiday, Mallorca is probably the best destination in Europe, with the bonus of beautiful beaches, cosmopolitan cities, a huge range of accommodation, and very much more.

The Tramuntana mountain range fringing Mallorca's west coast is home to many of the resident raptors, including the awesome Black Vulture, Booted Eagle, Red Kite and many smaller predators, while the famous wetlands of the Albufera Natural Park provide a totally different habitat supporting many local species as well as being an important stopover for the migratory types - the salt pans and flats in the south east are another.

Inland, the hedgerows of the central plain host songbirds like nightingales, larks, warblers, thrushes and buntings, which spill over into the woodland and scrub of the lower slopes of the mountains to join crossbills, wood pigeons, firecrests and migratory bee-eaters. The plunging cliffs of the west coast are where sea birds such as Audouin's gull, shag, shearwater, and petrel breed, with the best colonies probably being the cape of Formentor in the north and Dragonera Island in the south west. Another important area is the Cabrera archipelago, just off Mallorca's south east corner, and home to more than 130 bird species.