The Little Ringed Plover was back, displaying over the dry end of the Slurry this afternoon. Later it was seen feeding at the wet end. The pair of Yellow Wagtails were on the Causeway again and a Grasshopper Warbler was singing at the back of the Gravel Pits. PS.
Tag Archives: 2011
Nightingale – 15th May
This morning the brief, but distinct, notes of a Nightingale were heard coming from a bushy willow in the north end of the Deep Pit. It sang very sporadically and did not show at all. There were also all ten species of warbler singing and lots of Swifts swooping and screaming overhead. On the river there were two Oystercatchers and a Grey Wagtail while two Yellow Wagtails were seen on the Causeway. There are already some Marsh Orchids in flower. PS.
Little Ringed Plover – 13th May
A sudden downpour this afternoon produced three Little Ringed Plovers on the Slurry Lagoon. For a while they were feeding on the shoreline and then one started to fly over the lagoon calling in a display flight. Soon the other two joined it and all three were calling as they gained height and continued their journey. PS.
Garganey – 29th April
The male Garganey was still present on the Slurry Lagoon this morning. The female Goosander was also still present on the river by the Poulser Brook. There were seven Garden Warblers singing and two Cuckoos were seen. PS.
Garganey – 25th April
A cracking male Garganey appeared on the Slurry Lagoon this morning. After feeding steadily for an hour or so it decided to take a nap. During this time at least ten Buzzards went through to the north after gaining height over the site. The Sand Martins were seen to dash in a tight group across the Large Gravel Pit and a few seconds later a Peregrine was found, carrying prey (probably a Sand Martin), which it took up to a pylon to eat. PS.
In the afternoon a Hobby was hawking insects over the Deep Pit and some damselflies were seen including Common Blue, Blue-tailed and Banded Demoiselle. RW.
Swift – 24th April
Today, during the patchwatch, seventy seven species of birds were recorded, including a Swift, two House Martins, three Garden Warblers, eight Lesser Whitethroats and seven Grasshopper Warblers. PS.
Marsh Harrier – 22nd April
This morning a pair of Lesser Whitethroat were found on the corner of the Slurry Lagoon by the steps. On the river near the bend a female Goosander was resting on the bank and a Curlew, followed by a Whimbrel flew through. A female Marsh Harrier appeared over the Slurry Lagoon, alarming all of the ducks, before quartering the reed beds. After a while it landed in the reed bed but was seen leaving the site a few minutes later. A Yellow Wagtail was also seen and the Cuckoo returned to the Deep Pit fence posts. PS. RW.
In the early afternoon a Hobby drifted through to the east. RW.
Cuckoo – 20th April
At last a Cuckoo has arrived on site. He called from the willows around the gravel pits and then found the posts around the Deep Pit. There were also four Yellow Wagtails fifteen Common Terns and a House Martin. RW. JMD. PS.
Common Sandpiper – 19th April
This afternoon a small Calidrid wader, probably a Dunlin, flew around the Slurry Lagoon several times before flying off to the north-east. There was a Common Sandpiper on the river bank and towards evening, during a Hirundine raptor alert, a House Martin was seen high above the Swallows. PS. JMD.
Jay – 11th April
As we watched the terns trying to drive the Black-headed Gulls from the breeding platforms, more birds arrived in ones and twos. Soon there were nine flying around and they gained the upper hand. In the distance a Jay flew through, high above the valley. Five Grasshopper Warblers are now singing and more Reed and Sedge Warblers have arrived. PS.