Sightings
Bob Potter
South of Devauden
Sat 17th May 2025
Main sighting: Nightjar and Woodcock
Mallard; Nightjar; Wood Pigeon; Woodcocks (in flight roding); Great Spotted Woodpecker; Carrion Crow; Coal Tit; Blue Tit; Great Tit; House Martin; Willow Warbler; Chiffchaff; Blackcap; Goldcrest; Wren; Song Thrush; Mistle Thrush; Blackbird; Robin; Meadow Pipit; Chaffinch; Siskin.
8pm to 10pm:
Keith Roylance
Blaen Bran Community Woodland
Sat 17th May 2025
Main sighting: Red Kite
The GOS walk this morning was attended by five members, weather was intially cool but warmed up towards the latter half of the three hour walk. Thirty One species were seen/heard: Red Kite, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Woodpigeon, Cuckoo, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Skylark, Pied Wagtail, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, Long-tailed Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Jay, Jackdaw, Carion Crow, Raven, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, and Linnet
Neville Davies
Goldlciff Lagoons
Sat 17th May 2025
Main sighting: Golden Plover
En-route to hide: chaffinch, woodpigeons, pheasants, crows, herring gulls, blue tits, wrens, collard dove, heron, swallows, blackbirds, starlings, goldfinches, chiffchaff, cettis, female goldcrest, magpie, whitethroat and linnets. Hide 1: Canada geese, 4 lapwing and 1 oystercatcher. En-route to next hide 4 golden plover over high and calling and 2 swift quite high. Hide 2: shelduck, 2 curlew sandpipers (partial breeding plumage), 146 black tailed godwits, 6 redshanks, ravens, 6 avocet, 1 gadwall, lesser black-backed gulls, buzzard, 1 ringed plover and 2 shoveler. Snipe platform: great tits, 4 male and 2 female tufted ducks, 56 more black tailed godwits, mallards, coot, reed warbler, 18 more gadwall and moorhen. Seawall: 4 bar tailed godwits feeding with 11 knot, 1 whimbrel and 1 great black-backed gull. Hide 3: sedge warbler singing in front of the hide, 16 more avocet, male garganey and pink footed goose both showing well, 6 teal, greylag geese, 2 cormorants, reed buntings, skylarks, 2 more ringed plovers, male wigeon and 1 little egret. Marsh platform: 1 male little grebe. Back at hide 1: family group of stonechats and lesser whitethroat.
Graham Agg
Monmouth
Fri 16th May 2025
Main sighting: Swifts
Small party of about 6 Swifts “screaming”over Worcester street area of Monmouth mid-afternoon.
Jon Kelly
Little Skirrid
Tue 13th May 2025
Main sighting: Spotted Flycatcher
Spotted Flycatcher, Garden Warbler (3), Stonechat (2), Tree Pipit
David George Evans
River at Crosskeys entrance to Sirhowy C P
Tue 13th May 2025
Main sighting: Female Goosander & 6 ducklings
At 4.00 pm saw the above no sign of the male
Mark Whitaker
Blorenge Mountain
Sun 11th May 2025
Main sighting: Cuckoo
2 singing over a mile apart on NE slopes. Also 1 Red Grouse calling towards summit, about 10 Stonechats (none around mast compound as before), 1 Mistle Thrush plus, slightly strangely, Reed Bunting singing from sedges on moor top. No Wheatears seen at locations where they were last year. Usual numerous Skylarks and Mipits.
Jon Kelly
Llanthony Wood
Sat 10th May 2025
Main sighting: Wood Warbler
At least 3 Wood Warbler singing
Neville Davies
Goldcliff Lagoons
Sat 10th May 2025
Main sighting: Garganey / Spoonbill
En-route to reserve – pheasants, woodpigeons, starlings, cormorant, wrens, blackcaps, crows, herring gulls, jackdaws, swallows, magpies, whitethroat’s, goldfinch, song thrush, chiffchaffs, moorhen, mallards, lesser black-backed gulls and collard dove. Hide 1: Canada and greylag geese (numerous chicks), 3 little ringed plovers, raven and male stonechat. Hide 2: most productive again with 2 curlew, cettis, reed warblers, 206 black tailed godwits, 9 lapwing, 25 knot, 10 avocet, heron, 5 redshanks, 9 ringed plovers, 18 dunlin, 3 oystercatchers, coot, black headed gulls, female marsh harrier along the distant seawall, 1 little egret and cuckoo heard only (twice). Snipe platform: 1 swan, 15 gadwall, pair of tufteds and 1 lone male. Linnets en-route to sea wall: pied wagtail only from the wall. Hide 3: spoonbill showing well on two occasions doing a circular fly-over, 2 male garganey on the far bank with a 3rd male to the left and in the water, lesser whitethroats, 1 whimbrel, 34 more avocet (one pair with 4 chicks), 14 more gadwall, 4 teal, 6 shoveler, 2 more pairs of tufteds, male wigeon, 1 more little ringed plover and shelduck. Back at hide 2: great tit and 1 ruff. Other: speckled wood, 2 peacock and the 1st hairy dragonfly of the season.
Carl Downing
Gold cliff Lagoons
Sat 10th May 2025
Main sighting: Garganey
Male Garganey, Spoonbill, Bittern and at least 11 fledged Avocets.
Iain Crawford
Deri Ridge, Abergavenny
Sat 10th May 2025
Main sighting: Cuckoo
Male cuckoo, swift, 2 meadow pipits, 2 skylarks, numerous stonechats, 3 ravens, 2 willow warblers, 2 swallows.
On Bryn Arw, a buzzard, 2 red kites, a green woodpecker, a stock dove, 4 stonechats, numerous skylarks.
Keith Roylance
Blaen Bran Woodland
Fri 9th May 2025
Main sighting: Sparrowhawk
A recce for the forthcoming GOS walk on Saturday 17th May. Only 22 species noted which were: Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Nuthatch, Jay, Carrion Crow, Raven, Greenfinch, Goldfinch.
NOTE: For those attending the walk for the first time- at the bus turning circle at Upper Cwmbran there are two signs for Blaen Bran parking, please follow the left one (DO NOT TURN RIGHT UP THE STEEP HILL). The walk is over rough and uneven ground initially. We will be taking a slightly different route from previous years to improve walking conditions in the later stages.