In winter, Cap de Creus receives gannets arriving from the Atlantic, skuas and shearwaters, and on its cliffs the shag starts breeding from late January. On January nights the eagle owl calls. Between October and April the sea changes tenants, and it's best watched with binoculars or a telescope, first thing in the morning or at dusk.
In winter Cap de Creus loses its bathers and gains another population. Seabirds that aren't here in summer pass through and stay at the easternmost tip of the peninsula: gannets arriving from the Atlantic, skuas, shearwaters. On its cliffs, while the rest of the year has not yet woken up, the shag begins to breed. And on January nights the eagle owl calls. This is what you can see, when, and with what.
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Why here
The Cap de Creus Natural Park was created by law in 1998 and covers 13,886 hectares, with the whole municipality of Cadaqués inside it. According to the Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana, its bird passage is remarkable for a geographical reason: it is the easternmost point of the Iberian Peninsula. Offshore there is also a stable population of bottlenose dolphins, and at certain times of the year the fin whale appears.
The gannet, winter arriving from the Atlantic
The gannet (mascarell, in Catalan) comes down from the Atlantic to spend the winter. According to the Història natural dels Països Catalans, the young birds arrive in late September or early October; the adults leave between February and early March, and the young between late March and April. Cap de Creus is the place with the best conditions and the largest concentrations: up to 60 or 70 birds fishing together.
It measures up to 92 centimetres and can be recognised in flight by its black wingtips, long bill and pointed tail. It fishes by plunge-diving from the air, mainly for mackerel, and is most active first thing in the morning and at dusk. It lives far from the coast, from about three miles offshore outwards, so from land you need powerful binoculars or a telescope, and what you see most are young birds, which migrate closer in.
The shag, which breeds in the depths of winter
The shag (corb marí emplomallat) is resident, somewhat smaller than the great cormorant, with a thinner bill and a small crest on its head. It starts breeding from late January, most often between February and mid-March, in caves, on ledges and in hollows that are hard to reach, sometimes almost a hundred metres above the sea; the nests give themselves away from afar by the white droppings. In the whole of Catalonia it breeds only on the rocky coast of the Empordà and the Selva.
In the January 2019 waterbird census, the park counted 43 shags, the highest figure in its history, and at least four pairs incubating at Cap Norfeu and in the southern sector, in places where the species had not bred in 2017 and 2018.
A January census, in numbers
That count, carried out between 4 and 20 January 2019 by the park's technical staff, gives an idea of who lives in this sea in winter: 1,447 yellow-legged gulls, 448 Mediterranean shearwaters, 70 Balearic shearwaters, 43 great cormorants, 24 Sandwich terns and 7 gannets. There were also rarities: three turnstones, at the only spot in the Girona comarques where the species winters, two red-breasted mergansers at Cala Fredosa and a short-eared owl at Sa Planassa.
That only 7 gannets were counted that year, against the groups of 60 or 70 there can be, is a warning: these figures are a snapshot of a few days, not a promise.
The eagle owl, at night
In mid-January 2019 the park's ninth census of the eagle owl, Europe's largest nocturnal bird of prey, was also carried out, with 75 volunteers. Five calling males were detected and the species was confirmed in four other territories: at least nine in total, perhaps twelve, in a land area of some 10,000 hectares. It is one of the highest densities for this protected species. Anyone spending January here has a reason to go out and listen at nightfall.
The great skua and the return of spring
The great skua (paràsit gros) is the most abundant of its family in the western Mediterranean in winter. It arrives in early October, is plentiful from December and lives mainly on the discards thrown out by fishing boats; sometimes it chases gulls to steal their food. The Història natural records a count of 50 at Cap de Creus. Its return passage begins in late February or in March, peaks in early April and after the second week of that month it is already very rare.
How to watch
With binoculars and, if possible, a telescope; first thing in the morning or at dusk, which is when the gannets fish; and with the wind forecast checked: on days of strong tramontane, which are not rare at Cap de Creus, it's best not to go out to sea. The shags breed in caves and on cliff ledges, and are watched from a distance. For a long stay a simple habit works: go back to the same spot several times, because between October and April the sea changes tenants.
Checked
Data checked in October 2026 against: Generalitat de Catalunya (press release of 4 February 2019 on the censuses of the Cap de Creus Natural Park), Història natural dels Països Catalans (mascarell, corb marí emplomallat, paràsit gros and La península del cap de Creus) and Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana (Parc Natural del Cap de Creus). The census figures are from 2019: we have not found more recent public counts.
Quick questions
When can you see gannets at Cap de Creus?
The young birds arrive in late September or early October; the adults leave between February and early March, and the young between late March and April. There can be up to 60 or 70 birds fishing together.
When does the shag breed at Cap de Creus?
From late January, most often between February and mid-March, in caves, on ledges and in cliff hollows, sometimes almost a hundred metres above the sea.
Are there eagle owls at Cap de Creus?
Yes. The January 2019 census found at least nine territories, perhaps twelve, in some 10,000 hectares, one of the highest densities for this protected species. It calls on January nights.