Madeira is an island in the Atlantic about 300 miles off the North African Coast. There are several smaller islands nearby which together make up the archipelago of Madeira. Madeira along with the Canary Islands and the Azores are collectively known as Macaronesia. The common link between these islands is an ancient forest known as the Laurel Forest.

Within the Madeira archipelago there are only 42 species of bird which breed regularly. Some of these birds can only be found on the smaller islands. Many of the more common birds are also common to the UK.In view of the above you may be wondering why anyone goes to Madeira to birdwatch. I have to admit at this point that I don't go specifically to birdwatch but of course while I am there, I might as well take advantage of it.

The main reason people join birdwatching holidays to Madeira is to see the six species which are endemic to the Madeira Archipelago, two of which are unique to Madeira. One other point worth mentioning is that, due to its location, almost any bird can turn up in Madeira, blown in from America, Africa or Europe.

All of the bird species found in Madeira that are common to other parts of Europe are classed as subspecies. Presumably as a result of their isolation, some of these birds show significant variation in their colour, behaviour or habitat. Take a look at the photo's of the Madeiran Chaffinch on this website and you will see that they are far more colourful than their British counterparts. A bird which shows surprising behaviour in Madeira is the Grey Wagtail. These birds are extremely common and can be seen walking around your feet outside the city cafes picking up scaps from the floor. I have never seen that in the UK. Blackcaps are probably the most common garden bird and Blackbirds have adapted to nesting in bunches of bananas, you probably won't see that in the UK either.A must see bird in Madeira is the Firecrest. These are extremely common in the Laurel Forest. Take a 20 minute walk from Riberio Frio to a famous viewpoint called Balcoes and you are bound to see Firecrests.

The Macaronesian Endemics are:-

Canary
Berthelots Pipit
Fea's Petrel
Plain Swift
Trocaz Pigeon (Also known as the Long Toed Pigeon)
Zino's Petrel

The last two above are unique to Madeira. Of the above list you will see Canaries, Berthelots Pipits and Plain Swifts without any great effort. They are very common. You will need to go to some of the more barren parts of the island to see the Berthelots Pipit although I have seen them next to the runway as the plane is landing.
The Trocaz pigeon lives in the Laurel Forest. I finally got to see them this year (2008). They are clearly decended from the Woodpigeon. As there are no Woodpigeons in Madeira they should be quite easy to spot. It is however a shy bird which has had a history of being hunted. It is therefore neither numerous nor very tame.
To see Fea's Petrel (and to state the obvious) you need to go out in a boat between May and December. They breed on the Desertas Islands which are a group of small unihabited islands about 2 hours sailing from Maderia. They are not common but you have a reasonable chance of seeing them. Zino's Petrel on the other hand is extremely rare. In addition to being rare, they are almost impossible to distinguish from Fea's Petrel. The main distinction is that Zino's Petrel breed on the mainland of Madeira. This however has been their downfall as their nests have been raided by rats and feral cats, both of which are introduced species. Much effort has gone in to controlling these animals in recent years and finally the population of Zino's Petrel is on the increase.

There are a number of other seabirds you may see around Madeira. Some of these are hard to find anywhere else. You may have heard of the Madeiran Storm Petrel. This bird breeds on the Desertas Islands but is not classed as endemic because outside the breeding season it is widely dispered.

Other birds to look out for in Madeira include:-

Spectacled Warbler
Waxbill
Rock Sparrow

Please take a look at the excellent website called Birding Madeira

If you go to Madeira try to find a book called Where to Watch Birds in the Madeira Archipelago. This gives some excellent information on sites to visit around Madeira and explains what birds you might expect to see.