Sightings

Main sighting: Yellow-browed Warbler

En-route to hides – crows, green woodpecker, lt egret (call heard), robins, herring gulls, heron and Canada geese. Hide 1: Flock of 82 roosting curlew had a single whimbrel mixed in (picture on @ecology_cymru on x), 5 redshanks and 74 black-tailed godwits. At 0729 male peregrine flew across the lagoon at head height and sent all the waders out to the foreshore. Also seen pheasants, 70 teal, 4 shelduck, mallards, wren, 2nd lt egret, 2 avocet (also spooked by the peregrine), blackbirds, moorhen, 1 dunlin and 1 snipe spooked by the peregrine. Hide 2: chaffinch, 55 lapwing with 5 starlings mixed in flying around for some time obviously on edge, water rail calling and a stonechat. Snipe platform: 0749 yellow-browed warbler calling from the hedgerow behind (not seen but calling for some time). Birding couple I saw in hide 3 a little later confirmed they had heard a YBW call there about half hour after my recorded time. Also seen woodpigeons, 26 shoveler, 19 gadwall, 48 more teal, blue tits, raven, cettis, magpie, chiffchaff, lesser black-backed gulls, song thrush and 2 more little egrets. Seawall: 2 ringed plovers, 5 wigeon only, song thrush and black-headed gull. Hide 3: 2nd water rail calling. Spent some time back along hedgerow near snipe platform, no sign of YBW amongst 2 chiffchaffs, wrens, long tailed tits, great tit, cettis, stonechats, goldfinches and meadow pipits. Light-morph buzzard on telegraph pole near car park.

Main sighting: Hawfinch

1605 – popped up into the bushes by stream between the lake and the golf course (next to gate leading out to the coast path) before flying into the top of the large willows and then flew high west.

Main sighting: Warblers and redwings

En-route to hides: starlings (several very large groups heading across from the roost site at Uskmouth), pheasants, crows, chaffinch, woodpigeons, magpies, moorhen, robin, blue tits, light-morph buzzard, dunnock, jackdaws and blackbirds. Hide 1: Canada geese, 136 teal, 34 lapwing, mallards, 6 shoveler and distant male stonechat. En-route to hide 2, collard dove, herring and lesser black-backed gulls and 6 passing redwings. Hide 2: cormorant, 90 wigeon, wren, cettis warbler, 15 greylags and 6 rooks. Snipe platform – 12 swans, coot, 12 more shoveler, 8 gadwall, 30 more teal, linnets, water rail squalling, stonechat pair, great tit and single little grebe. Seawall: 6 pied wagtails (the males in pristine condition), siskin, skylarks, 27 oystercatchers, 19 curlew only, 86 shelduck, 112 more lapwings, 15 more wigeon and meadow pipits. 2nd water rail squealing en-route to hide. Hide 3: stock dove, 28 more teal, 1 heron, 1 little egret and 1 willow warbler. Back by the snipe platform was a stunning male blackcap, chiffchaff and 13 long tailed tits with a single redwing feeding on hawthorn berries. 2nd chiffchaff back at the car park. Other: several male common darters.

Main sighting: Pintail

15 Pintail showing well in the late afternoon sunshine, on the flooded Nedern Brook. 14 Canada Geese; 14 Coots; 6 Gadwall; 5 Herring Gulls; 1 Common Gull; 20 Mallards; 4 Teal; 5 Tufted Ducks; 35 Wigeon; Mute Swan (juv).

Main sighting: Redwings

6 Redwings early this morning, on my lawn, feeding. 12 others flying overhead calling.

Main sighting: Long-eared Owls

Two “eared owls”, most likely long-eared, flew alongside the A449 at treetop height about 1km south of the Usk turnoff/A472 at dusk c.6.15pm. They were flying close together, possibly in a chase, seen silhouetted against the sky.

Main sighting: Crossbills

About a dozen crossbills feeding in tops of conifers. North eastern end of Buckholt woods near car park off Mansons Lane

Main sighting: Goldcrest

Pair of goldcrest in garden hedge. PUC is also indicating 2 detections of firecrest but not confirmed visually. Other species this morning are redwing, fieldfare, green woodpecker, kingfisher, robin, house sparrow, long-tailed tit, dunnock, blackbird, wren, kingfisher, carrion crow, tawny owl, jackdaw, blue tit, siskin, great tit, rook, mistle thrush, moorhen pied and grey wagtail, raven, Eurasian treecreeper, song thrush, Canada goose, goldfinch, magpie and a single swallow.

Main sighting: Yellow-browed Warbler

Apologies for late report. 1 YBW calling (coal tit type call) as it made its way through the tall hazels in our garden. Not relocated.

Main sighting: Brambling

About 6 Bramblings including colourful males feeding on Rowan at the top of the Blorenge. I posted this 3 days ago, but for some reason the system ignored me!

Main sighting: Highlights

En-route to hides: robins, woodpigeons, pheasants, Canada geese, buzzard (light-morph regular), moorhen, 13 long tailed tits and blue tit. Hide 1: Single avocet and dunlin, 4 teal, 10 wigeon, dunnock, 82 lapwing flying across and 64 (un-ringed) curlew flushed from lagoon 3 by a jogger in a luminous top running the full length of the sea wall. One curlew has a badly damaged leg which is bent backwards. Cettis, magpies and 2 chiffchaffs en-route to hide 2. At hide 2, 29 more teal, stock dove, 8 shoveler, female stonechat, jackdaws and blackbird. Snipe platform: 171 more teal, 10 more shoveler, 21 gadwall, coot, black headed gulls, 26 swans, mallards, chaffinch, pied wagtail, cormorant and 2 swallows. En-route to seawall – skylarks. Seawall: 10 shoveler flying in off the sea, 1 great black-backed gull with herring gulls and meadow pipits. Hide 3: wren, 18 oystercatchers, 1 little egret, female kestrel and linnets. Back by snipe platform were 2 pairs stonechats (both males chasing each other), goldfinches, 2 jays overhead and a bullfinch calling. Other: 2 hawkers (possibly migrant) and small tortoiseshell butterfly.

Main sighting: Red Kite

1 being mobbed by several jackdaws near the solar farm.