Another all-dayer 8am till 5pm.
A cool easterly breeze, cloud only clearing briefly and generally hazy.
Sailing Pool: little grebe - 1st I have seen on there.
Moors: GCG 3, Little Grebe 3, cormorant 20,
Mute Swan 8, Greylag 16, Shoveler 20 spread thinly today, with none of the usual group pirouetting. Teal 40, Pochard very difficult to count as not all birds could be seen from any one hide but at least 20. Tufted 30, coot 200+, water rail very vociferous. Lapwing 600 - 650, Snipe c10, Curlew 15 - mostly in amy's marsh. Herring gull c15, LBBG c20, good numbers of passerines around most noticeably, goldcrest 2, redwing 25, fieldfare 10, goldfinch 10, linnet, siskin, rook 2, raven, also treecreeper. kingfisher, green and great sp woodpecker,
North Moors water rail at least 2 seen and heard, blackcap at least 2 possibly 3 in the spindle thicket opposite the chestnut tree.
Started and finished at the FlashesThe morning session was a bit uneventful mostly spent with Gert and SyV measuring up the new hide:-C
The evening however was much more productive. Although looking from ground level at he base of the new, 'yet to be finished hide' the atmosphere was quite enthralling. Most prominent was the gathering of the pre roosting starlings, which from a low level enables you to see the small groups coming in low above the ground. After a few processions from the dancing swarms, many birds dropped into the 3rd flash reed bed. Several hundred others perched in tall trees before swooping on mass into the reeds. From here their endless chattering continued almost till dark. A conservative estimate of 2000 birds constituted the highest roost I can ever remember. Also roosting were 400 BHG, 450 Lapwing, 20 Curlew and at least 3 Green Sands. A little owl called and 2 snipe flew over.
By 11.30am Dave J had recorded 65 species so approx 70 species were recorded today on the reserve.
A good day all-roundB
John