During the autumn of 2023, I was invited to spend a few days at the Wyndham Grand Algarve in southern Portugal to explore the bird life in the area. Of course, I accepted. Seated within 2,000 acres of the quite picturesque Ria Formosa Natural Park and within walking distance from Quinta do Lago Beach, indeed, it was an invitation that was hard to resist. The Algarve is a well known spot for golf lovers and, needless to say, the whole area around which I was based was peppered with golf courses. Now, golf courses may not initially represent a birder’s idea of great birding. It is true that they do not offer the best habitat for finding birds especially when they are frequented by loads of golfers. However, when you think of them as a grassland habitats you may begin to see them in a slightly different light. It is always worth checking the courses for birds. Walking past the many courses during my stay I noted multiple species frequenting the mown grass looking for food including everybody’s favourite – the Hoopoe. I saw several of these unique-looking birds variously lazing on the grass and probing the soil in search of invertebrates. On the courses bordering the Ria Formosa, Common Moorhens and Cattle Egrets were also commonly seen looking for prey items in the grass. I am not a stranger to this beautiful part of Portugal, as I remember leading an autumnal birding tour a few years ago during which I discovered a lone and very confiding European Golden Plover on a golf course. This elegant shorebird is a winter visitor to the Iberian grasslands before returning to arctic regions in the spring to breed. Normally shy and not allowing close approach this particular individual showed no fear of humans and I watched, stunned, as it came with six feet of me and my group.