Extreme winter weather in GIbraltar and southern Spain
This winter has seen a series of unusually intense storms and flooding events across southern Spain and Morocco, driven by repeated Atlantic storm systems bringing prolonged heavy rainfall. A sequence of named storms, including storm Kristin, Leonardo and Marta, swept across the region, producing torrential rain, damaging winds and widespread flooding. In parts of Andalucía, rainfall totals exceeded typical seasonal averages within just a few days, triggering evacuations, transport disruption and damage to homes and farmland. This means that the wetlands we visit during our 7 DAY EXTREMADURA, DOÑANA AND STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR BIRDING & BIRD PHOTOHRAPHY TOURS this Spring ’26 will be absolutely beautiful with flora and teeming with breeding and migrants birds, an opportunity not to be missed! By extension, I am also expecting 7 DAY LATE SUMMER AND EARLY AUTUMN TOURS in the same region to also be excellent, as the wetlands will very likely remain damp through the summer.
The flurry of successive storms was mainly due to a stubborn areas of high pressure which has been remained stationary over Scandinavia since the beginning of 2026, the catalyst for the extreme cold weather experienced in those regions (fig.1). This high pressure has been blocking areas of low pressure typical of more northern latitudes, preventing the wet weather from pushing across North-western Europe from the Atlantic, causing the jet stream to settle much further south than normal. This is why it has been so wet in many areas of south-western Europe, as well as through the Mediterranean and North Africa.
Devastating damage
Southern Spain has been particularly affected, with heavy rain and storms causing flooding across agricultural areas and forcing thousands of people to leave their homes. Since autumn, Spain has recorded significantly above-average rainfall, with major losses to crops such as citrus fruits and olives. Authorities have responded with large-scale financial support for affected regions as infrastructure and rural economies recover from repeated storm damage. The combination of saturated soils, repeated storm systems and extreme downpours has turned what is normally the rainy season into a period of exceptional flooding across the region.
Morocco has experienced similarly extreme conditions after several years of drought. Torrential winter rains filled reservoirs and ended a long dry period, but also triggered severe flooding in northern regions. More than 100,000 residents were evacuated as rivers overflowed and dams released excess water, inundating farmland and urban areas. Some storms caused fatalities and widespread infrastructure damage, highlighting the destructive side of the unusually wet season.
Huge number of seabirds, and some rarities
Gale force and severe gale south westerly winds were predominating during the months of January and February 2026, causing a number of species to seeking refuge and enter the Mediterranean via the Strait of Gibraltar from the habitual wintering grounds in the SW Atlantic coast of Spain and NW Morocco. Iv added a video clip below which I recorded from my own house depicting a seabird frenzy in the strong southwesterly gales off Little Bay Gibraltar (Feb ’26), the clip shows Northern gannet (Morus bassanus), Yellow-legged gull (Larus michahellis), Audouin’s gull (Ichthyaetus audouinii), and Lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus).
GREAT CRESTED GREBE (Podiceps cristatus) in winter plumage seeking refuge and then flying north, just off Rosia Bay Feb ’26, only the second ever sighting in Gibraltar. Video ©Andrew Fortuna
As a result large numbers of Great skua (Stercorarius skua), Lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus), Audouin’s gull (Ichthyaetus audouinii), Mediterranean gull (Ichthyaetus melanocephalus), and Black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) were drafted in to the inshore coastal areas of Gibraltar, images below. For content, Great skuas sightings had become increasingly scarce during the past five years. For context, I had only observed two individuals throughout the whole of 2025 due to an avian influenza (bird flu) outbreak in their breeding grounds in northernmost UK during the 2021–2022 breeding season.
The avian influenza outbreak had a devastating impact on their breeding grounds in the northernmost parts of the UK, especially in the Scottish islands such as Shetland, Orkney and St Kilda, which hold a large proportion of the world population. Highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) was first detected in Great skua colonies in these regions, causing widespread mortality during the breeding season. The impact has been severe because Scotland hosts over 60% of the global breeding population, meaning losses there affect the species worldwide. So in the space of an hour’s sea watch in Gibraltar during January ’26, I sighted 42 individuals, quite a dramatic increase! The video below shows a Great skua (Stercorarius skua) on migration out of the Mediterranean Sea towards the Atlantic Ocean, just off the southern end of Gibraltar.
An interesting and unexpected sighting was a winter plumage Great crested grebe (Podiceps cristatus) spotted by myself, only the second ever confirmed sighting in Gibraltar, which came only minutes after having had a ‘Gibraltar lifer,’ the first ever record of Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata) which was an extraordinary few minutes of birding from the comfort (and safety) of my own house! It is likely that due to the extensive flooding in nearby Spain on wetlands around Gibraltar, the Grebe could have been forced to move towards the coast, as circa 18 birds were spotted along the Spanish side of the Bay of Gibraltar.
GREAT CRESTED GREBE (Podiceps cristatus) in winter plumage seeking refuge and then flying north, just off Rosia Bay Feb ’26, only the second ever sighting in Gibraltar. Video ©Andrew Fortuna
I hope you have enjoyed reading this blogpost on how adverse weather conditions creates some amazing opportunities for observing and photographing these beautiful sea and other wetland birds, and an example of the species you could expect to see and photograph whilst touring with Aviantours. If you are interested in watching and photographing seabirds in Gibraltar or southern Spain, from the coast or on pelagic trips, get in touch with me to arrange the best dates for different species, and be sure to check out my BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY TOURS page