[Gavo]

Originally Posted by upstarts1979

Gavo had a cuckoo at the Moors this morning

I did'nt know whether to let Brian know, also little gull was there still when I left at 4

[Gertatron]

The Little Gull was at the Flashes this evening being very vocal and scrapping with the Black Heads. Also one Common Sandpiper and 2 Common Tern

[Phil Andrews]

Originally Posted by Gertatron

The Little Gull was at the Flashes this evening being very vocal and scrapping with the Black Heads. Also one Common Sandpiper and 2 Common Tern

I noticed this too in recent days - its more than willing to initiate a scrap with the BHGs and Common Terns.

[forgetfulelephant]

Originally Posted by Gertatron

The Little Gull was at the Flashes this evening being very vocal and scrapping with the Black Heads. Also one Common Sandpiper and 2 Common Tern

Very smart action shots Gert.

[upstarts1979]

Mike had a Med at the moors tonight.

[Phil Andrews]

Originally Posted by upstarts1979

Mike had a Med at the moors tonight.

The same second summer bird as the All-Dayer or a different individual?

[wheatearlp]

The Mediterranean Gull looked like the same bird from a couple of weeks ago. The Little Gull departed the Flashes at around 9 pm, perhaps returning to the Moors Pool.

Half an hour at the Moors Pool produced, in addition to the Med, two Oystercatchers, four Common Terns, 100+ Swift and a pair of Gadwall.

The Flashes had, in addition to species mentioned in previous posts, a Shelduck, two Lapwings and six Tufted Ducks.

[PeterE]

Originally Posted by Phil Andrews

I noticed this too in recent days - its more than willing to initiate a scrap with the BHGs and Common Terns.

The Little Gull at the Moors this afternoon was remarkably docile among the BHGs. Are we sure it is the same bird?

Peter

[Gertatron]

Originally Posted by PeterE

The Little Gull at the Moors this afternoon was remarkably docile among the BHGs. Are we sure it is the same bird?

Peter

Thanks Rob.

Hi Peter, it has quite a distinctive black spot on the tail which will form the black tail band in due course, so is the same bird .

[Phil Andrews]

Originally Posted by PeterE

The Little Gull at the Moors this afternoon was remarkably docile among the BHGs. Are we sure it is the same bird?

Peter

Perhaps it had got tired bullying the bigger boys!

[woodwolf]

Understandably not much coverage at UW today. I did pick up on Twitter a Dunlin reported on the Flashes late morning

[AlanH46]

Originally Posted by wheatearlp

The Mediterranean Gull looked like the same bird from a couple of weeks ago. The Little Gull departed the Flashes at around 9 pm, perhaps returning to the Moors Pool.

Med Gull at the Flashes until early afternoon. Comparing images both from 30 Apr and today (sorry for poor quality) it would appear that two different birds involved.

1 adult Dunlin on Flashes and Little Gull commuting between Moors and Fllashes.

[Gertatron]

Originally Posted by AlanH46

Med Gull at the Flashes until early afternoon. Comparing images both from 30 Apr and today (sorry for poor quality) it would appear that two different birds involved.

1 adult Dunlin on Flashes and Little Gull commuting between Moors and Fllashes.

Reckon so Alan. A first winter and a second winter methinks

[Phil Andrews]

Many thanks to John Cox for an excellent and thoughtful service for Arthur's funeral this afternoon. The reserve was well represented with myself, Gert, Mike, Andy P, Peter E, John, Gordon G, Mike Inskip, Gene T, John Sirret and John Ridley amongst others, together with attendees from the Wildlife Trust and West Midland Bird Club. Des even got a mention all the way from Croatia.

Afterwards Helen Woodman commented that the question of a fitting memorial to Arthur at Upton would be raised at the AGM later this month.

[Phil Andrews]

Originally Posted by AlanH46

Med Gull at the Flashes until early afternoon. Comparing images both from 30 Apr and today (sorry for poor quality) it would appear that two different birds involved.

1 adult Dunlin on Flashes and Little Gull commuting between Moors and Fllashes.

Mike - is today's Med the same as you had last night?

[John Sirrett]

I just went onto the Yahoo Warkwickshire Moths site and picked up what appeared to be an odd distress signal from Draycote Birder Richard Mays. I immediately spoke to fellow Warks Birder John Judge who told me Richard looked fine when he saw him at Draycote yesterday and that Richard does not have a family! I pass this on to remind everyone that no website is safe from Scams these days. My wife says she has recently been alerted to this particular scam by Neighbourhood Watch, some people have fallen for it and had their bank accounts cleared out!

Re: Need Urgent Help... RICHARD MAYS

Sorry folks PLEASE IGNORE I have been HACKED

regards

Richard

--- In warwickshiremoths@yahoogroups.com, RICHARD MAYS <richard.mays1@...>
wrote:
>
> This message is coming to you with great depression due to my state of
discomfort. I came down here to Manila, Philippines with my family for a short
vacation but unfortunately, we were mugged and robbed at the park of the hotel
where we stayed. All cash, credit cards and cell phones were stolen off us but
luckily for us we still have our lives and passports.We've been to the embassy
and the Police here but they're not helping issues at all and our flight leaves
in less than 12hrs from now but we are having problems settling the hotel bills
and the hotel manager won't let us leave until we settle the bills about $1,600.
Can you help us out? Get back to me immediately to let you know the easiest way
to get the fund to us.
>
> We are depressed at the moment.
>
> Thank you,
> RICHARD


>

[luckyosprey4]

Does anyone know the last time anyone saw a turtle dove here?

[Phil Andrews]

Originally Posted by luckyosprey4

Does anyone know the last time anyone saw a turtle dove here?

The species account from "The Birds of Upton Warren" opus, originally written in 2007, was as follows:

Turtle Dove, once a common bird of arable farmland, is now only found regularly at a handful of sites in Worcestershire, with Grimley / Holt being the closest to Upton Warren. Formerly the species was an uncommon, although regular summer visitor and passage migrant to the reserve between May and September from its sub-Saharan wintering grounds. The overall average return date is the 15th May, the latest for any spring migrant regularly recorded at Upton Warren. The earliest record the species has been seen is on the 30th April in 1986. The average return date for the first eight records (1944 to 1992) was the 14th May, compared with the 15th May for the most recent eight records (1993 to 2005). The similarity between the two average dates is surprising given the species’ contraction in Worcestershire and the reduction in overall numbers in Britain through a loss of habitat and hunting on the Continent, but also with many fewer birds being recorded overall on the reserve. From the limited data available (just seven records) the average departure date is the 6th September; in the early 1980s autumn gatherings occurred at the Flashes in a large dead tree by the sewage works. The latest recorded date is the 16th September in 1995. Singing birds were heard on the reserve most springs in the 1980s and early 1990s; Turtle Dove bred locally in 1984 and almost certainly on the reserve in 1987 with a recently fledged bird seen being fed at the Flashes. There was an upsurge in records between 1989 and 1994 with pairs observed in most of these years at both the Flashes and the Moors and breeding is suspected to have occurred either on the reserve or in its vicinity in many of the years. Young birds were seen at the Moors in 1989, on the 8th July 1992 (when two pairs may have bred), in early September 1994 on the Flashes accompanied by an adult and finally in late August 1995. This run was abruptly ended in 1996 when the species was only recorded on three dates and just two the following year. 1999 represented the first blank year on record, quickly followed by a repeat performance in 2000. Odd birds were seen for the next three years, including a cluster of four records between the 23rd April and 10th May 2002 (although only one was referred to in The Birds of Upton Warren 2003), before another blank year in 2004. The last records came from 2005 with single birds at the Moors Pool on the 22nd May and at the Flashes on the 19th July. All the recent records have related to birds in hedgerows or on telephone wires, usually on the east side of the Moors Pool but also at the Flashes. A peak count of twelve birds was seen on the 9th and 10th August 1977, with six birds noted on the 12th June 1968.

Update:

In the first records since 2005, one was on wires at Hobden Hall Farm viewed from the West Hide at the Moors Pool on the evening of the 30th May 2010 and again in the same location on the evenings of the 6th June and 10th August. With the species in terminal decline across much of the country and very few records in Worcestershire, it was a surprising find. However there were no records in 2011.

[Woodchat]

Re Turtle Dove. The RSPB has identified this as the fastest declining UK species which could be extinct, as a breeding bird, from the british isles within the 2020's. It has declined by 93% since 1970 and is no longer breeding in various areas such as Wales and the north west. This kind of decline and range-contraction is a continuing trend in British avifauna, especially amongst afrotropical migrant breeding species. Enjoy them while you can !

[upton]

https://twitter.com/#!/Uptonwarren

[Gertatron]

Originally Posted by upton

https://twitter.com/#!/Uptonwarren

Hi, I'm a user of the Twitter, but can't find this link. Who is this btw? Good to see Upton will be trending soon

[Gertatron]

6 Dunlin and Little Gull on the Flashes plus 1st year Med Gull earlier per Stuart Croft. One Dunlin on the Moors.

[Phil Andrews]

Originally Posted by Gertatron

6 Dunlin and Little Gull on the Flashes plus 1st year Med Gull earlier per Stuart Croft. One Dunlin on the Moors.

Plus Arctic Tern straight thru the Moors at 0955. Oyk has 3 chicks. Little Gull back over at the Moors now.

[Gertatron]

Originally Posted by Phil Andrews

Plus Arctic Tern straight thru the Moors at 0955. Oyk has 3 chicks. Little Gull back over at the Moors now.

Lapwing with at least 2 chicks on the Flashes.

[upstarts1979]

Originally Posted by upton

https://twitter.com/#!/Uptonwarren

Phil you had better reinstate your pseudonym..looks like a take over bid

I think Uptonstarts1979 will do me
and for Gert..... GertaUPtron