Firstly here are a couple of photographs that didn't make it on to the blog due to the loss of connection at home.
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| Gold Spot |
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| Acleris Kochiella (boscana) not Logiana as first thought. |
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| Jersey Tiger, new for the site last week! |
Sunday morning I was out by 7.15, a bit late for me and it was breezier than I expected. The car park was relatively quiet so I headed to the veg garden In a sunny sheltered corner there was a small gathering of birds, 3 SPOTTED FLYCATCHERS, a WILLOW WARBLER, several CHIFFCHAFFS and the usual BLUE TITS and GREAT TITS, while I was watching these two other birds caught my eye, firstly a RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE scurrying for cover and then a single SAND MARTIN which flew through with a group of SWALLOWS.
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| Reed Bunting |
Stephen was already around somewhere so I text him about the Sand Martin as I did he rang me with a possible Redstart sighting in the hedgerow. I wasn't too far away so headed towards the area where Stephen was. Halfway down the hill and two more birds caught my eye flying about 30ft up over the field heading west,
WHIMBREL! (104) fantastic, I don't see them annually so a really nice addition to the year list. In between trying to unlock my phone and shouting 'Whimbrel over the veg garden!' I didn't get any photos but more pleasing was that Stephen heard the word Whimbrel and he picked them up over the car park! We searched the hedgerows for the Redstart but unfortunately it eluded us. A KESTREL hovered over one of the meadows and a COLLARED DOVE flew towards the castle. There are so many areas to explore it's often difficult to know where to go in limited time, I stuck to the fields today. A couple of small groups of HOUSE MARTINS flew through probably totalling around 25 birds in all, also the first COMMON BUZZARDS of the month were seen, looking like an adult and an immature bird, making quite a racket.
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| Nuthatch |
So to this morning, after heavy overnight rain I thought there must be something around, the car park was again quiet though but the little corner in the veg garden I visited yesterday was still busy. This time there were more WILLOW WARBLERS and CHIFFCHAFFS at least 4 of each, 3 BLACKCAPS and 4 or 5 SPOT. FLYS. A HOBBY also flew north there while I watched the feeding flock of small birds. One Chiffchaff was in full song and a SONG THRUSH joined in singing for a short time. This morning the hedgerows were alive with stuff and I kept expecting something different to jump out but best bird was a more showy SEDGE WARBLER than previously encountered. Heading back to the car, Stephen called to say he had a WHEATEAR in the field above the car park, where the hay has just been mown, our first one of the autumn.
4 comments:
Thats a really good record of Whimbrel Alan, I have been on the lookout for them here, but as for you there, they are less than annual.
66 for the month so far, is good going, 2 more than me,......and you're creeping ahead on the year list again :-)
Hi Warren, Hopefully you'll pick up Whimbrel, I was lucky, just looking the right way at the right time as they didn't call, which is how I have often located them in the past.
As for the month list I'm surprised it's as high as it is, I didn't expect it and it feels like there should be more to come!
Hi Alan,
Great spot with the Whimbrel! You were looking the right way at the right time! ;)
J
Follow me at HEDGELAND TALES
Thanks John, It's nice when you get a bit of luck like that :-)
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