Piccalilli
Steve Pick
Looks like it's been a good day at Middleton today. unfortunately my 4 hours tonight only returned 1 Green Sandpiper, single Pintail and 3 GWE in the roost again.
Yes, I see two year ticks reported per Twitter, Redstart and Curlew Sandpiper takes list to 158.Looks like it's been a good day at Middleton today. unfortunately my 4 hours tonight only returned 1 Green Sandpiper, single Pintail and 3 GWE in the roost again.
The 2 Great White Egret were still around (1 JWs and 1 NP), 7 Egyptian Geese between JWs and NP (SA had 15 later), on JWs were 1 Dunlin and 1 Greenshank. Other highlights were 1 Snipe, 1 Swallow, 3 Stonechat, 1 Redwing, 1 Chiffchaff, 2 Willow Tit between FMP and canal and 1 Redpoll.
I don't recall any large numbers, the most I've seen were 2.The Egyptian Geese flew south towards KWP about 3pm in two flocks of 7 & 8. Two of them were Juveniles. I don't recall seeing that many on Middleton before, what are previous numbers like Geoff?
Some very poor photos of a raptor which was sat on top of a pile of recently-cut vegetation outside the hide around 11am this morning. It stayed put for some time, even when much of the other birdlife was flushed by the arrival of a work party.
A couple who were in the hide with me said they'd seen it on other visits and thought it was a Sparrowhawk, but it looked too small to me. I thought it was possibly a juvenile Kestrel, but looking at photos online suggests it's more likely to be a female Merlin? If it is, that's the second one I've seen in three days, after a male at Earlswood on Wednesday.
Perhaps not obvious that the tail was strongly barred. No obvious yellow eye either.
Help appreciated. Apologies for the quality of the photos - the camera on my phone is crap and I don't have an adaptor for my scope.
I've often seen a Kestrel sitting on one those piles. Often it's down one side keeping out of the wind. I saw the same behaviour last year which makes me wonder if it's the same bird.
Some very poor photos of a raptor which was sat on top of a pile of recently-cut vegetation outside the hide around 11am this morning. It stayed put for some time, even when much of the other birdlife was flushed by the arrival of a work party.
A couple who were in the hide with me said they'd seen it on other visits and thought it was a Sparrowhawk, but it looked too small to me. I thought it was possibly a juvenile Kestrel, but looking at photos online suggests it's more likely to be a female Merlin? If it is, that's the second one I've seen in three days, after a male at Earlswood on Wednesday.
Perhaps not obvious that the tail was strongly barred. No obvious yellow eye either.
Help appreciated. Apologies for the quality of the photos - the camera on my phone is crap and I don't have an adaptor for my scope.
I could live with that being a Merlin although it looks more like a male?