Sightings

Main sighting: Common Sandpiper

Common Sandpiper at Machine Pond, briefly joined a Cormorant and pair of Canada Geese on the floating island – a very occasional passage visitor. One Swallow picking insects off the pond, Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers singing.

Main sighting: Dipper

Three dippers “flirting” on the river.

Main sighting: Little Ringed Plover

2-LRPs on the shingle bank,before seeing them there must have been 50+ Sand Martins at the river bank prospecting nest holes.3-Goosanders(2f 1m),m+f Mandarin ducks,1m-White Wagtail,1-Common Sandpiper,further along the river more Sand Martins were seen but not in the numbers previously seen.Also one more LRP sighting which could have been a third bird or one of the two seen earlier.Also my first Orange Tip butterfly of the year and a flock of 17-Cormorants flying up river.11h15-13h50.

Main sighting: Wheatear

Three first on the tumble for the year. Pair of Wheatears several Stonechat and a male red start.

Main sighting: Osprey

Osprey reported by anglers this morning – heading north up river.

Main sighting: Curlew call

Heard curlew calling

Main sighting: Pied Flycatcher

Pied Flycatcher and 2 Tree Pipits

Main sighting: Redstart

Redstart

Main sighting: Red Grouse

8 Grouse seen or heard from the “grouse walk” at dawn. Also 2 Stonechat and several Skylarks

Main sighting: Great White Egret

En-route to hides: robin, cettis calling, pheasants, pied wagtail, blue tits, 5 fly-by grey herons (one carrying a large twig), chaffinch, woodpigeons, crows, chiffchaffs, blackbird, blackcap and wren. Hide 1: skylarks, 3 ruff (one with a neat white head), 40 shelduck, Canada and greylag geese, 4 lapwing, mallards, lesser black-backed gulls, 15 redshanks and 18 teal. En-route to hide 2: magpies, herring gulls, goldfinches and a water vole. Hide 2: 715 black-tailed with 1 bar tailed godwit mixed in, 83 knot, 13 wigeon, shoveler, 2 spotted redshanks (getting darker), 16 swallows, 3 cormorants, 2 avocet, 2 oystercatchers, reed buntings, great white egret dropped in briefly then took off again, 1 snipe, linnets, meadow pipits, red kite being mobbed by shelduck, 1 dunlin, pair of mute swans, pair of gadwall and a fox on the bank outside of the fence area.. En-route to platform 15 passing sand martins. Snipe platform: coot and little grebes. Marsh platform: male stonechat. Hide 3: 2 ringed plovers, pink footed goose (water right of hide), 75 more shoveler, 4 more wigeon, 74 more avocet, 15 more gadwall and sparrowhawk. Back at the car park: green woodpecker calling and long tailed tits.

Main sighting: Short-Eared Owl

Visit began 30 mins before dawn. On Monks Lagoons huge flock of Black-Tailed Godwits ( 1000+). Reviewed my pics later and at least 6 Bar-Tailed Godwits. The Black-Tailed Godwits remained on Monks Lagoon all morning and put on some mega displays. The Godwit flock was joined by Knots ( 30 +) Ruff ( 3+), Spotted Redshank ( 2), Dunlins (10 +), Lapwings and Redshank.
A Short-Eared owl was quartering the reeds/grass between Monks and Becs early on and then flew all around the reserve.
Other highlights –
3 different Marsh Harriers seem – 2 x Female and 1 x Male. They are favouring Priors Lagoon.
Priors had 8x Mute Swans early on and the main highlight was the Pink Footed Goose – best observed from the seawall or the seawall hide. On the seawall, a Yellow Wagtail showed.
On Becs Lagoons was the main flock of Avocets 40 +, Oystercatchers (4) and a lot of Shelduck (50+). The highlight on Becs was a solitary male Garganey.

Main sighting: Yellow Wagtail

Chiffchaff, Goldfinch, Avocet, Black-Tailed Godwit, Redshank, Knot, Canada Goose, Greylag Goose, Pied Wagtail, 2 x Marsh Harriers, Shelduck, Gadwall, Cormorant, Lapwing, Wigeon, Teal, Mallard, Moorhen, Coot, Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Buzzard, Blue Tit, Cetti’s Warbler, Magpie, Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Starling, Reed Bunting, Shoveller, Mute Swan, Chaffinch, Crow – The star of the visit was a beauty of a Yellow Wagtail visible on the seawall. Thank you to the chap I met in hide 2 who alerted me to it.