Sightings

Main sighting: Curlew

Only 13 roosting on first lagoon at first light. They departed to Goldcliff Pill mouth at 0730. Group of 123 on Becs Lagoon were flushed by a Marsh Harrier and never returned. Just after high tide 300 at Goldcliff Pill mouth. At the same time, Chris Wells found 150 at Peterstone with nine colour rings read.
Also present: at first light a Barn Owl hunting in front of first lagoon. At 08h47 a group of seven Spoonbills, all juveniles with dark wingtips, flew in from west, and continued along the coast without stopping. A Peregrine on the hay bales. The Barnacle Goose, no doubt feral, seen with the Canada Geese at first light yesterday morning not found today.

Main sighting: Spoonbill

Seven juvenile Spoonbills just flew over Goldcliff

Main sighting: raven

In and around the lanes around Marshfield last couple of days: raven, green woodpecker, grey heron, sparrowhawk (both days), jay

Main sighting: Stonechats

Good mix of birds on the afternoon visit although nothing unusual – highlights included 31 swallows, cormorant, 3 male stonechats on the fence, 3 little egrets, 1 chiffchaff, female kestrel, 1 buzzard, only 1 redshank (very unusual here), linnets, 36 dunlin, 5 pintail, 56 wigeon, 7 stock doves, oystercatchers, teal, 231 shelduck and 1 heron. Other: 4 red admirals, large and small whites, common darters and 7 migrant hawkers.

Main sighting: Jay

Very high water at Goldcliff early this morning, with the lagoons full and little room for waders. A single greenshank on bank of Prior’s lagoon, with an Aytha type duck, with quite a lot of white at base of bill (probably female tufted) also on Prior’s. Of most interest was a very large flock of jays, comprising 38 individuals. Seems to be a feature of this autumn. Lots of meadow pipits, slightly fewer skylarks, some linnets and one or two siskin over. Kestrel on hay bale. Two redwing over Mitchel Troy this evening.

Main sighting: Goldfinches

A charm of 20 nomadic goldfinches, 100 mallard, 100 sandmartins, 3 heron.

Main sighting: Curlew hide on Becs

NRW have given permission for a small hide to be placed on Becs Lagoon during high tides for the monitoring of colour-ringed Curlews – see the Home page for details. Tides will be high on several days this week so please keep an eye open for colour-ringed birds and send any information to Mike Smart – the details needed are on the Home page.

Main sighting: Jays

More jays on the move with a whopping 42 counted passing through in small groups. Hide one – female kestrel on the hay bales and meadow pipits still in good numbers with 115 counted (there would be more), 4 skylarks passing low down with 5 sand martins and on the hay bales was a wheatear and a male stonechat. Hide two – cettis 2, teal, linnets, shoveler and 2 little egrets. Snipe platform – female tufted duck, 8 mute swans. Seawall – 2nd wheatear, curlew on the mudflats in low numbers, 5 ruff came in but didn’t land on the lagoons as water level too high – promptly flew back out, 2 buzzards and a stoat by the fence leading onto the seawall. Steady passing of swallows with only 43 counted i total. Stonechats on the move with a pair seen in front of hide 3 with another pair and a female by the manure piles. Four little grebes now present, gadwall and a flock of 45 lapwing came in. Other: male common darter and 2 migrant hawkers (Can the hide slats be left open please to allow for ventilation – covid still with us). 39 wigeon on Red Barn pool from the roadside.

Main sighting: Barn Owl

On a wet and windy evening hightide. Barn Owl hunting. Wheatear 2 Stonechat 3 Meadow Pipit 50 House Martin 1 Ruff 1 Black-tailed Godwit 20 Shelduck 150. A flock of circa 400 gulls were seen over the fields behind the first hide, mostly Back-headed.

Main sighting: Pectoral Sandpiper

Early morning visit just after high tide.
Monks -2 x Black Tailed Godwits, 1 x Ruff. Canada geese and Greylags in good numbers, 1 x Curlew. Wigeon, Teal and Mallard Ducks. Later 11 x Curlews landed on Monks.
Becs Lagoon – Pectoral Sandpiper observed for a short time in the channel where it has been seen previously. Not much else wader wise on lagoons as water levels very high after the rain.
20c Black Tailed Godwits flew over with 1 Knot seen in amongst them.
Lots of Meadow Pipits movement and many seen perching up near Avocet Hide. Big flock of Linnets. Kestrel throughout reserve.
Marsh Harrier ( female type may be juvenile) quartering near Becs.
Lots of Corvids this year- seems a marked increase.

Main sighting: House Martins

Three House Martins high up after the rain cleared this evening.

Main sighting: Flock of at least 26 Jays

About 12:00 hrs. today, I watched a huge (by my reckoning) flock of Jays fly over my house in Risca, roughly ENE to WSW (043° on the compass).
I counted 26 Jays and there may have been more.
Weather conditions at the time of sighting were beautifully bright and clear so plumage colours were clear and they flew at a height of only 30-40 feet from the ground so they were quite big and easy to identify. These were definitely jays.
In all this time, I have only ever seen jays in family groups of up to 7. I have never seen such a such a size of flock together.