Hants, Berks and Surrey Borders (1 Viewer)

[JohnnyH]

Tices this morning, 2 Greenshank,5 Green & 4 Common Sandpipers, 14 Lapwing, min 6 Chiffchaff, & singing Willow Warbler!

John.

 

[JohnnyH]

The Tices wader bonanza continues! cracking Wood Sandpiper on the workings this evening following yesterdays 3 Little Stints found by Kev Duncan. Also present tonight, 4 Green & 2 Common Sandpipers, 4 Greenshank, & 1st Winter Yellow Legged Gull.

John.

 

[bbsbirder]

The Tices wader bonanza continues!

John.

According to the Surrey Bird Club website 'recent sightings' a Ruff was seen today at Tices Meadow. Only the second ever record. Seen by Beddington birder 'Kojak' and still present at 19:45.



Kevin

 

[JohnnyH]

Quiet by recent standards tonight at Tices, 3 Green & 1 Common Sandpiper, & 3 yellow Legged Gulls.

John.

 

[JohnnyH]

Signs of Winter approaching at Tices this morning, 3 Shoveler & 5 Teal present. Also 3 Green & 1 Common Sandpiper, 14 Lapwing.

John.

 

[bren-escape]

Is Tices Meadow easy to find? I am up at Aldershot this week for a few days and fancy taking a look.

Thanks.

 

[bbsbirder]

Is Tices Meadow easy to find? I am up at Aldershot this week for a few days and fancy taking a look.

Thanks.

Hi
The entrance to Tice's Meadow is between Aldershot and Badshot Lea village along the B3208 Badshot Lea Road/Lower Farnham Road. Park on the road near the Badshot Lea garage (now closed down). walk through the metal gate opposite. To view the workings follow the path to the right and go up the bank. When walking to the end of the bank check the meadow for possible Whinchat and Wheatear. From the end of the bank you can view the flooded workings and the slit ponds (a telescope is recommended).

Good Luck
Kevin

 

[bren-escape]

Thanks Kevin:t:

 

[RJSeargent]

You buggers! I go away to Crete for two weeks and you end up releasing loads of new wader species!!

My adult Lammergeier sort of makes up for all I missed.

 

[Allan Hobbs]

You buggers! I go away to Crete for two weeks and you end up releasing loads of new wader species!!

My adult Lammageir sort of makes up for all I missed.

Rich,
you don't have to go away to miss them - some of us can miss them from here :C:-O

 

[RJSeargent]

Rich,
you don't have to go away to miss them - some of us can miss them from here :C:-O

Fair comment Allan. I'll be there tomorrow attempting to catch up.

Surrey Year List now 143 (would have been 147 if I'd been around!)

 

[RJSeargent]

Trip to Tice's this morning with Rich Horton. Very productive with 3 Ringed Plover, 1 Redshank, 6 Greenshank (1 south and 5 north west),at least 5 Green Sandpiper and two Common Sandpiper respectively, 24 Lapwing and 3 adult Yellow-legged Gull. Teal and Shoveler also present.

 

[RJSeargent]

Another visit to Tice's again this morning with a brief visit in the afternoon. 1 Greenshank was worthy of note along with the usual Green and Common Sands Again two more adult Yellow-legged Gulls along with increasing numbers of Lapwings (33) and a Hobby over. A rather scruffy Common Gull was amongst the legions of Lesser Black-backs. Talking of legions there was in excess on 343 Canada Geese before lunch and these had spread to the fields at Runfold by mid-afternoon. My first Wheatear of the return passage with a female flushed near the silt ponds.

Highlights of the day though were 3 Spotted Flycatchers at Frensham Little Pond and 3 Dartford Warblers (1 juv and 2 ad) at Churt Common. Both Rich H and I are now smiling like Cheshire Cats! We've been after Dartfords in Surrey all year and persistence and many hours trampling around various heathlands has now paid off.

Next Tice's visit 0630hrs tomorrow. All birders welcome at this ungodly hour!

Surrey Year list now 144.

 

[RJSeargent]

0630hrs - what was I thinking? Usual suspects at Tice's but Rich H and I had cracking views if juv Peregrine over the workings and visible migration evident with Goldcrests on the northern embankment. 2 Common Snipes on the meadow itself.

Same time tomorrow me thinks!

 

[RJSeargent]

0630hrs again - this time to see Rich H using a walking stick; get well soon mate! Nothing much to shout out about but the following provided the bulk of exitement:

1 Curlew - (heard but not seen)
1 Greenshank
1 Ringed Plover
2 Common Sandpiper
3 Green Sandpiper

Waterfowl are building up with Gadwall numbers at 8, Teal at 3 (down on yesterday), Shoveler up to 4 and Tufties down to 6. There are currently 6 Mute Swans on the workings.

 

[RJSeargent]

Another 06.30 start (3 days in a row). Again 1 Greenshank, 5 Green and 2 Common Sandpipers but little else. The trees irrupted to the sound of alarms calls as I left during the flypast of a male Sparrowhawk. Went to Farham for a coffee to find both Costa and Starbucks closed until 0900hrs so returned to the warmth of my bed.

 

[Allan Hobbs]

Had a quick trip to Tices this morning to try out my new Nikon ED50.
Very quiet, with 1 Green Sandpiper 5 Mute Swan, 3 Little Grebe, 1 Common Tern. Did have cracking views through the new scope of a juv Green Woodpecker posing on one of the posts. Very few gulls, all sitting down so as I'm not yet confident enough about differentiation of plumage details all the grey ones stayed as Herring rather than Yellow Legged. Better luck next time I suppose.

Terrific views of a pale phase Buzzard on the Hogs back which was joined by a dark phase. We have seen them together several times, and have nicknamed them the Ghost and the Darkness (after the man-eating Lions in Tsavo, Kenya)

Went on to Thundry Meadows and had good views of a Hobby. Also 1 Little Grebe and a Buzzard calling loudly.

Cuttmill Ponds had some White-vented variant Tufties, a GC Grebe and a Common Tern.

Allan

 

[RJSeargent]

Final day at Tice's before back to work following 4 months off! Arrived at 1100hrs (much more respectable time) to find the usual avi-fauna on the workings. Again there was a Greenshank present along with Green and Common Sandpipers but this time the hot weather had brought out Buzzards with two over the workings and two over the A31. A male Sparrowhawk circled over the meadow itself and a Northern Wheatear worked the edge of the nothern end of the workings.

A quick visit to Farnham (shopping I'm afraid) allowed a quick walk around the water meadows with little of note bar the odd Swift and a Sparrowhawk. Interestingly enough a couple of locals told me that they had seen, what they called Bosnians, in Tongham Gravel Pit trying to catch Mute Swans to eat!

 

[RJSeargent]

Quick trip to Tice's this morning. 2 Greenshanks, at least 5 Green and 2 Common Sandpipers and a Yellow Wagtail. Shoveler and Teal numbers have built up with 13 of the former.

Surrey Year List (Stuck on 145)

 

[JohnnyH]

First morning back at Tices after returning from Mallorca, 4 Common & 3 Green Sandpipers, Greenshank, & 27 Lapwing present on the workings. As Rich said wildfowl no's building, 11 Shoveler, 5 Teal & 1 Wigeon noted this morning.

John.