Sightings

Main sighting: Merlin

Group of 8 mistle thrushes, spotted fly catcher , f merlin flying upstream 6′ above water, red kite, buzzard, little egret,mallard with 2, week old ducklings (4 yesterday), swifts, pied wagtail.

Main sighting: Little Ringed Plover

Two juvenile Little Ringed Plovers feeding by the new cycle path. Red Kite, Buzzard, two Swifts over. Reed Bunting singing. Flock of 60 Starlings but none with pink jackets…

Main sighting: Common Sandpiper

7-Common Sandpipers 10h30-11h40

Main sighting: Erratum and Common Gull

Erratum – my previous post shpuld be dated 8/07/20.
Review of pics – Common Gull also seen on Monks in with the Black Headed Gull roost.

Main sighting: Sandwich Tern

High tide evening roost, weather conditions: very windy. Most notable sighting was a trio of Sandwich Terns which briefly hovered over the BH Gull roost on Priors Lagoon. Waders included 150 + Curlew, 120 + BT Godwit, 50 Redshank, 38 Dunlin, 24 Knot (including 3 in summer plumage), 18 Lapwing, 16 Ringed Plover and 3 Turnstone. Also 6 Little Egret, Grey Heron and a Barnacle Goose.

Main sighting: Spoonbill and waders

High Tide Am Visit- Highlight – Spoonbill observed on Becs and Priors Lagoons by a number of birders.
Monks Lagoon – 130+ Black Tailed Godwits, 12 x Knots, 8 + Turnstones, 10+ Dunlins, 20 + Redshank, 4 x Avocets, 14 x Oystercatchers 60+ Black Headed Gulls, 1 x Herring Gull.
4 x Shelduck..

Priors Lagoon – relatively quiet although Spoonbill settled on the lagoon and was still there at 12pm.

Other – Raven., Linnets, Swallows.
A male Marsh Harrier was seen by birders earleir in the morning.

Main sighting: Common tern

In addition to Blair’s report – 1 common tern.

Main sighting: Additional - Turnstone

Also – watch out for a Turnstone in with the BTG and Knots on Monks Lagoon.

Main sighting: Waders and Med Gull

Dawn Visit and high tide. Monks Lagoon – Busiest Lagoon at the moment : 100+ Black Tailed Godwits, 7 + Knot ( one is in nice breeding plumage), 20c Dunlins, 20+ Redshanks, 10 x Oystercatchers, 15+ Lapwings, 4 x Little Egret, 1 x grey Heron, 2 x Cormorants, 60+ Black Headed Gulls. x Mediteranean Gull ( checked my pics and confirmed, 1 x Common Sandpiper, 7 x Linnets, 1 x Raven, 7 x Carrion Crows. 6+ Shelduck. 2 x Little Ringed Plover, 10 + Ringed Plover. 1 x AvocetThere are some juves around. Priors was quiet – Usual coots and ducks. Becs had Ringed Plovers, 12 x Avocets, 6+ Redshanks , 10+ Black tailed Godwits and 20+ Black Headed Gulls.
Also- Swifts, Swallows and House Martins observed.
Dead shrew found near Seawall Hide.
Very cold and windy for July!

Main sighting: Waders

Afternoon visit at low tide. Out on the foreshore mud was a nice flock of 90+ Black Tailed Godwits. Mixed in with them were 7c Knot. They flew in and landed in Priors ( sea wall end) for a short time before being disturbed by a Buzzard. ( normal brown form).
Later they returned to Priors and landed in Priors near the Marsh Platform.
Als0 seen – Little Egret and Marsh Harrier ( female).

Main sighting: Lockdown freedom birding

0430 hrs start – 0950. Chiffchaff 2 (1 alarm calling by entrance), common whitethroat 1 singing. Hide 3 – 18 redshanks, brief views of spotted redshank, 2 whimbrel, buzzard, 13 lapwing, 3 cormorants through, female tufted duck, 2 linnets, 2 grey herons, glossy ibis showed briefly from lagoon 3 across to priors (0510), starlings, 8 swifts and a barnacle goose that dropped in briefly before flying over the Pill and the sea wall. Seawall – 2 gt black-backed gulls, 11 avocets, 28 curlew and pied wagtails along the wall. Marsh platform – 9 swallows, siskin overhead calling, gt spotted woodpecker calling, pheasant heard, 114 black-tailed godwits (many in breeding plumage), 9 knot mixed in, 6 lt egrets, avocet (5-6 week juvenile), 11 dunlin and marsh harriers. Snipe platform – 7 teal in eclipse plumage, greylags, meadow pipits, 25 oystercatchers roosting with 9 turnstone close by and 253 roosting black headed gulls (including 4 juvs). Redshank platform – 6 ringed plovers, 2 little ringed plovers (no sign of the 3 reported chicks), 13 dunlin and ravens. Hide 1 – common sandpiper and 7 house martins aerial feeding. Other – meadow browns, several gatekeepers, 1 small heath and 1 rabbit.

Main sighting: Ruff

Plenty of waders taking shelter on the first lagoon mainly this evening, including a Ruff, 15 Knot including one in summer plumage, 70+ Black Tailed Godwit, 5 Dunlin, 4 Turnstone, 4 Curlew as well as the usual numbers of Redshank, Rnged Plover and Lapwig. Also 300+ Black Headed Gulls, and a Buzzard hovering in the wind only a few feet off the ground- it was pretty breezy. A Heron, perched on a rail, was showing a keen interest in some still quite small Mallard ducklings, whose mother unwisely took them past it, however the Heron was ‘mobbed’ and distracted by a white butterfly flying round its head and the Mallard family managed to get away.