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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Upton Warren (16 Viewers)

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The Avocet attacking mallard brood. Strangely the female mallard just keeps her head under the water feeding taking no notice or showing any aggression. I can understand why the mallard are ushered away, they are simply hoovering up invertebrates, that the avocets would be feeding on. It also appears that the ducklings stir up the mud and expose more invertebrates than the avocet chicks would normally find.

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1st summer Med gull
 

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Just a reminder of the U3A group visit to Upton on Thursday morning ( 10.00 until 12.00). There will be approx twelve in the party and we will be covering just the Moors section of the reserve
 
2 Black Terns reported south-west over Bromsgrove train station as per Gert - calling at Upton Warren?
 
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Further to Sunday's post, the last decade has seen the following breeding activity by Lapwing:

2005 - 5 females nested (4 at the Moors; 1 at the Flashes) - 3 families hatched at the Moors (no note of fledging rate; nest abandoned at the Flashes)
2006 - 7 females nested (6 at the Moors; 1 at the Flashes) - at least 16 chicks hatched from 5 broods (5 at the Moors; 1 at the Flashes) - no note of fledging success
2007 - 3 females nested (1 at the Moors; 2 at the Flashes) - 10 chicks hatched in 3 broods but only 1 fledged
2008 - 4 females nested (1 at the Moors; 3 at the Flashes) - 10 chicks hatched in 4 broods but only 2 fledged
2009 - 2 females nested (1 at the Moors; 1 at the Flashes) - 4 chicks hatched in 2 broods but only the single chick from the Moors Pool went on to fledge
2010 - 2 females nested (both at the Moors; potentially the same bird) - 1 nest abandoned; 1 short-lived brood of 2 chicks
2011 - 7 females nested (6 at the Flashes including potentially some re-attempts; 1 at the Moors) - most nests abandoned; 1 young fledged from a brood of 3 at the Flashes
2012 - 3 females nested (all at the Flashes) - 2 nest abandoned; the other producing a short-lived brood of 2 chicks
2013 - 2 females nested (both at the Moors) - 2 broods with 6 young of which 3 went on to fledge
2014 - no known breeding attempts

Therefore the last ten years has resulted in only eight known fledged young (notwithstanding the lack of clarity on the success rate for 2005 and 2006) from potentially as many as 35 attempts.

Assuming there is a hidden pair on the Broadmeadow, this year's total of seven nesting females represents the best year since 2006 and 2011 when seven females also sat and 2003 and 2004 when eight birds sat (fledging seven and four young respectively); let's hope the current situation also translates into some successful fledging.
 
Today's highlights:

MOORS:
Med Gull (2s)----------------------Black t Godwit (joined the Flashes Godwit in the afternoon)
Hobby (2)-------------------------Common Tern (8) occupying all boxes except one.
Shelduck (1)----------------------Oystercatcher (3) + chick
G C Grebe (2) + chick------------Cormorant (1)
Swift ( c150)----------------------Shoveler (m)
Tufted Duck (c40)-----------------Kestrel
Whitethroat (2)--------------------Herring Gull feeding on B H Gull chicks
Lapwing (2)------------------------Skylark (1)
Cetti's Warbler (2)

FLASHES:
Med Gull (1s)----------------------Avocet (28) + broods of 4:3:3:3:2:2:2:2
Oystercatcher (2)-----------------Lapwing (8) + 4 chicks in front of sewage works and another 4 birds sitting.
LRP (5) inc sitting bird-------------Shelduck (5) + 8 chicks
Gadwall (5m)----------------------Shoveler (m)
Tufted Duck (22)------------------Cetti's Warbler (1)
Black-t-Godwit (2)

NORTH MOORS:
Shoveler (2m)---------------------Whitethroat

ED RES/SAILING POOL:
Cetti's Warbler

Des.
 
Hope this latest family of Lapwing to hatch fare better.

Are you able to provide a breakdown of the locations of the Avocet broods Des?
 
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Avocet chicks.

Using Phil's plan below as a guide, the numbers seen yesterday can be broken down as follows:

A : 4, B : 3, C : 2, D : 2, E : 3, F : 3, G : 2, H : 0, I : 0, J : 2

J is a brood of two in front of the sewage works, joining another brood of two in that area.

Brood A - 4 young hatched from the left hand side of the peninsular. Still have 4 young, currently located on the foreshore to the left of the hide
Brood B - 4 young hatched from the left hand of the first Flash island. Reduced to 3 young, now relocated to the "saucer" (ringed bird "64" appears to be the father)
Brood C - 3 young hatched from the first Flash island. Now reduced to 2 young, currently located on the foreshore to the far left of the hide.
Brood D - 2 young hatched from one of the small islands in the saucer. Still have 2 young, currently ranging between the right hand side of the peninsular to the left hand end of the delta
Brood E - 3 young hatched from the right hand of the pair of second Flash islands. Still have 3 young, ranging between the right hand side of the delta and the secondary fox fence
Brood F - 4 young hatched from the right hand of the pair of second Flash islands. Now reduced to 3 young, currently on the "beach" in front of the third Flash
Brood G - 3 young more recently hatched from one of the islands in the "saucer". I could only see 2 young, currently located on the far shore near the sewage works (John - did your sketch mention 3 young?)
Brood H - 1 young more recently hatched from island just right of the peninsular. Still has 1 young, currently located at the end of the peninsular
Brood I - the latest to hatch from one of the islands in the saucer. Has 2 young, currently located at the rear of the grassy knoll (actually the bare knoll this year).


Des.
 
Des re avos..yess there were 3 in front of sewage works last week...I didnt see the singleton on Tuesday in front of hide. But a smaller one was to left of oaktree on east shore of 2nd flash. Cheers
 
Des re avos..yess there were 3 in front of sewage works last week...I didnt see the singleton on Tuesday in front of hide. But a smaller one was to left of oaktree on east shore of 2nd flash. Cheers

There appeared to be two distinct pairs of chicks in front of the sewage works.


Des.
 
Birdguides and birding today has Garganey as at Flashes, pressume they have shared erroneous info?

No - the error is all mine in trying to get it on here quickly. Message on RBA which my post came from was that it is on the FLASHES.

As you are online Ste the County Recorder has queried a record of 2 Wood Warblers at UW in May 2013 by a S Hall. Was this you and is the entry correct (or a mistake for Willow Warbler?)
 
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As you online Ste the County Recorder has queried a record of 2 Wood Warblers at UW in May 2013 by a S Hall. Was this you and is the entry correct (or a mistake for Willow Warbler?)

...just had a rifle through my notebooks: wasnt myself unless an inputting error on birdtrack. My only visit that May was the spring all dayer. There's a few of us S Halls around, pressumably another of my SH brethren.
 
New for the year (#129) - Garganey

I am assuming that both records of Crane this year relate to the Slimbridge / Somerset Levels reintroduction scheme
 
Today's Garganey - still present this evening; Mike has posted a photo on Twitter - is the first for nearly 4 years, the last being a juvenile male on the 17th September 2011 that was found at the Flashes before relocating to the Moors Pool. The last spring plumage male was part of a pair present at the Moors Pool on the 16th May 2009.
 

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