Sightings

Main sighting: Male Blackcap and Goldcrest

1 male blackcap, seemed dozy and resting, 1 goldcrest, 1 wren, 2 blue tits, 2 great tits, 2 coal tits, family of long tailed tits, 1 robin, few sparrows.

Main sighting: Kestrel

Kestrel. Passed over village at 11am, stopping to hover frequently.

Main sighting: Pintail

Pintail with a couple of mallards just up from Llanfoist bridge . Also Little Grebe , 2 female Goosanders , a Little Egret and an Otter

Main sighting: Barn owl

Barn owl crossing new dual carriageway between end of steelworks and new Glan Llyn housing site tonight at 1850

Main sighting: Ring-necked Parakeet

Single flew west just before 1015 over the seawall itself.

Main sighting: Barnacle Geese

Four associating loosely with Canadas at the back of the pools, seen from the second platform.

Main sighting: White fronted goose (1 juv)

A single bird in with 90 Canada geese. Also: Blackbird, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Dunnock, Goosander (2 RH), Lapwing (2), Long-tailed Tit (12), Pied Wagtail, Robin, Woodpigeon

Main sighting: marsh harriers & hen harriers

Female marsh harrier flying east at 1515hrs, soon followed by male bird heading west to reedbeds, 8/9 cettis calling, mixed flock of 50/60 fieldfares & redwings along lane, stonechats, reed bunting, 200 plus wigeon offshore, a few curlew and single shelduck, finally at 1630 hrs two ringtails flying in to roost at eastern end of reserve.

Main sighting: marsh harriers & hen harriers

1515hrs female marsh harrier over seawall flying east, then male marsh harrier flying west to reedbeds, 50/60 mixed flock of fieldfares and redwing along saltmarsh lane, 8/9 cettis calling, curlew, 200 + wigeon offshore, stonechat, reed bunting, single shelduck and at 1630 hrs two ringtails flying to roost at eastern reedbed.

Main sighting: Blackcap

Male feeding in the garden on the fat balls early afternoon.

Main sighting: Glossy Ibis

2 glossy ibis feeding and showing well from the roadside (one looked almost juvenile or just a non-breeding adult lacking the glossy sheens)? Also seen 1 cormorant, green woodpecker calling, cettis warbler calling, female marsh harrier, linnets, redwings, fieldfares, male stonechat and 246 starlings feeding.

Main sighting: White-fronted Goose

0630 – 11.20hrs. Pre-light birds seen and heard included a skylark, cettis warbler calling, a stunning barn owl at 0640 drifting right past me on redshank platform from the direction of hide 1. Redshank platform – 2 buzzards, 243 Canada geese with a white-fronted goose mixed in, possibly a 1st year bird and maybe the one sighted at Llanishen Reservoir recently? 78 wigeon, 4 barnacle geese, numerous redwings and fieldfares, 4 ravens, 2 female marsh harriers (adult and juv), 2 grey herons, pheasant calling, 164 lapwing later joined by 10 dunlin and 2 black-tailed godwits (54 more came in and landed briefly before taking off straight away and heading out towards the sea wall), 15 curlew, 186 teal, 22 shoveler, 8 shelduck and 2 chiffchaffs in the hedgerow leading up to the next platform. Group of 5 wrens together also. Snipe platform – 22 snipe on the edge of the water to the right. Seawall – another 293 wigeon on the edge of the water, 23 avocet, 2 oystercatchers and another 68 dunlin. Hide 3 – male tufted duck. Back at snipe platform (0900 hrs) siskin overhead and a female peregrine passing through. A pair of stonechats were near to hide 1.