Thanks for the wader clutch info.
With regard to the
Oyks - interesting that you have only ever recorded 3, my old notes from
Blakeney Point only records 1 nest out of ca30 with 3 and only 1 with 5. I wonder if this is the same female that for, whatever reason, lays a regular small clutch? Is it possible to be the same female or do several birds lay a reduced clutch @ UW?
I suppose birds could lay reduced clutches as a response to seasonal conditions and decide to incubate before a final egg is laid? But, as already stated by
Wheatearlp it can be difficult to ascertain quite when a full clutch has been completed and needless disturbance is obviously to be avoided whether the species in question is
Schedule 1 :eek!
r whatever.....
Phil - i knew that little nugget would provoke and enquiry (that's why it was mentioned
)
IIRC it was the year of the
Lesser Crested Tern and a whole host of scarcities as well as a bumper year for the breeding Terns (4 species plus a summering Arctic) which i think was
1983 August? Earlier in the Spring sometime late-April i picked up a male
KP that had been feeding outside one of the hides. I clocked it on and off for about 3 weeks before my boss came back from a wander and said he had seen the KP (a lifer for him) and said he was a bit dissapointed as it looked
'washed out' and not like the bird i had told him to keep a look out for? Perplexed by this i had a mooch over the next few days and spotted an obvious female whilst i was scoping the Sandwich Terns to show a school party some close up views from the hide.
Over the next few days (mid-May) the male was quite vocal and a decision was taken to pay a single visit which would involve disturbance to the Terns. A brief visit was paid and revealed a full clutch of 4 KP eggs. No further visit was made to the area until incubation should have taken place. The birds were still about but no young were seen despite long periods of observation.
The nest was re-located and the full clutch, which had been deserted for whatever reason was retrieved. The county recorder, at the time,
Giles Dunmore was contacted (he regularly
'beat the bushes' on the Point) and he came up and took delivery of the clutch which i believe is/was held @ the
Castle Museum in Norwich.
This was, i believe, the first 'proven' breeding for Norfolk. When i say breeding i.e. the first for the species having laid eggs. I have heard of a prior record of a single young, unfledged, bird being fed by an adult in the
Holkham/Wells area some years prior to that altho i do not have any details.
Halcyon Days never to be repeated........
Laurie:t: