Sightings

Main sighting: Osprey

Am: dam end . Successful fishing osprey

Main sighting: common sandpiper

9-Common Sandpipers,1-Spotted Flycatcher,1-Willow Warbler,1-Chiffchaff and m+f-Blackcaps. 10h30-12h00

Main sighting: House Martin failure

House Sparrows ousted House Martins from every single nest on my house this year.
HMs began building at six sites – 3 nests were ⅞ built, 1 was ½ built and 2 were started.
Three nests changed hands repeatedly as nesting material taken in by HSs was removed by HMs, only to be taken back in by HSs. At other nests HSs stood guard on the gutter above the nests, calling constantly and aggressively.
In every year from 2005 to 2019 at least 3 nests were successful in spite of constant intimidation (in 2016 HMs were evicted from five of nine nests).
Providing terrace HS nest boxes made no difference.
This year’s total failure makes it a sad year for a declining species.

Main sighting: Swift

Five Swifts, 40 House Sparrows, Little Grebe, numerous Chiffchaffs

Main sighting: Waders

A relatively quiet morning at the lagoons. Priors – Greenshank x 2 , Lapwings x50, Knot x 10 (a number in breeding plumage), Common Sandpiper x 1, Green Sandpiper, Black Tailed Godwits x 150+, Redshank x 30, Black-Headed Gull x 15, Teal x 8, Shoveler x 13.
Turnstones x4 and Dunlin x 3.
Monks – Dunlins and Ringed Plovers ( approx 100+) and Knots x 4.
Becs- Dunlins and Ringed Plovers ( approx 80+)

Other – Wheatears, Yellow and Pied Wagtails, Swifts, House and Sand Martins, Whinchat and Meadow Pipit.
Little Egrets and Grey Herons.
Out on the foreshore near the pill – 150+ Shelduck and Curlew ( 30+)
No sign of the Pectoral Sandpiper in the morning.

Main sighting: Curlew

More towards Peterstone village at high tide – >100 Curlews, similar Oystercatchers, >200 black headed gulls, also mallard, >50 swallows, 100 redshank, 2 greenshank, 5 ringed plover, 7 common sandpiper, 6 little egret, 1 grey heron

Main sighting: Short Eared Owl

8.45am the Owl was quartering over A farm field.

Main sighting: Curlew Sandpiper

Dawn – 11.30 Swallows 11, house martin 2 and chiffchaff contact call. Hide one – a whimbrel stayed hunkered down on the edge of the island (still there at 11.15), 2 grey herons, 4 little egrets, 1 common snipe and 1 cormorant (no sign of pec sand). Snipe Platform – single swift going over which was a nice surprise, 2 skylarks, glossy ibis, 281 black-tailed godwits. Marsh Platform – 51 lapwing, 1 greenshank in with common redshanks and 4 knot. Hide Three – this was where all the action was with a feeding flock of 146 dunlin, 198 ringed plovers with 7 turnstone, 2 sanderling (adult and a bird going into autumn/winter plumage) and 6 more knot (2 in breeding plumage). A juv curlew sandpiper came in and fed on the narrow bank of mud slightly right of the hide. A wheatear and 3 whinchats were on the fence line left of the hide and 2 sand martins passed over. A juv female peregrine passed through causing some commotion and a single ruff and a green sandpiper also seen. A kestrel flew overhead towards the Point. Other: comma, gatekeeper, meadow brown and large white butterflies, 3 migrant hawkers, 1 ruddy darter, several damselfly species to be ID with at least one blue-tailed.

Main sighting: Hundreds of Waders

Late evening visit to the reserve an hour before sunset.
Most amount of waders I have seen in a long time.
Monks had a big flock of small waders – Dunlins, Ringed Plovers, Turnstones and Knots x 300 +. As sunset approached maddive flock of Curlews came up from the Pill and sea wall and settled in Monks to roost 300+ ( Not all settled on Monks more landed on Becs)
Big flock of Black -Headed Gulls 100+, Great Black Backed Gull.
Peregrine came in on at least 2 occasions and caused havoc.
2 x Whimbrel also on Monks and Lapwings 30+.

Priors had the flock of Black Tailed-Godwits, Knots and Redshank ( only watched from a distance).

Ducked on the Pectroral.

Main sighting: Whimbrel

06-30 – 11.15: 30 swallows on the wires with starlings by the entrance. Hide one – 220 black-headed gulls (6 juvs), 2 chiffchaffs (contact calls) and a view of about 5 mins of the pec sand before it flew off towards the seawall. Redshank platform – excellent count of 271 ringed plovers (my highest count here), 25 shelduck, 5 turnstone, 3 grey herons, teal numbers jumping now at 110 but only 3 common snipe today, 158 dunlin with 1 little stint mixed in, 1 mute swan over,3 yellow wagtails, 2 skylarks, 2 knot, single siskin overhead calling, 7 sand martins, 15 lapwing and 3 ravens. Snipe platform – 231 black-tailed godwits (including the ringed bird), 3 ruff, 58 redshanks, 5 little egrets, 12 knot, 2 greenshank flying through, 1 common sandpiper, green woodpecker calling and 1 stock dove (no sign of the ibis or last weeks wood sandpiper). Marsh platform – single garganey. Hide three – 2 wheatears and a yellow wagtail amongst the sheep, another greenshank and a whimbrel. 42 curlew on the mud had a ringed bird present (sighting submitted).

Main sighting: Pectoral Sandpiper

Pectoral Sandpiper first seen near the first hide (photos on Gwent Birding Site thanks to John Lawton) Also: Little Stint 2 Ruff 2 Little ringed Plover 4 and lots of Ringed Plover and a large flock of BK-tailed Godwits and Kingfisher.
Other: Ruddy Darter 3 Emerald Damselfly 4 there were Hawkers not specifically Identified but thought to be Migrant.

Main sighting: Great White Egret

Great White Egret still present at upper Garn Lake, Garn yr Erw