Weather: still bright but cooler & windier. From 12:50pm.
From the car-park: Woodpigeon, Robin, Chaffinch, Magpie, Great Tit, Blackbird, Goldfinch.
On the visitors' centre's bird feeders: Collared Dove, Greenfinch.
Along the path to the Fen Hide: Pink-Footed Goose about 30 overhead, Pheasant in a tree.
On the marshes opposite to the main freshwater scrapes: Mute Swan, Coot, Brent Goose (20+),
Scanning the freshwater marsh scrapes revealed: Golden Plover, Shelduck, Starling (4) overflew, Moorhen, a single Reed Bunting calling from the reeds close to the path, Shoveler, Teal, Gadwall, Wigeon.
From the Parrinder Hide: no sooner had we entered the hide than people were calling out the location of a Jack Snipe which was foraging on the nearest island to the hide. It showed for a long time alllowing excellent views, even exhibiting its peculiar bobbing behaviour, & the much more numerous Snipe allowed for a easy comparison.
Also on the scrape: Lapwing, Mallard, Pintail, Black-Headed Gull, Linnet, Ruff. Both pintail & ruff were in very good numbers, there were at least 20 pintail with the males in fine plumage & easily the largest number I have seen together.
Eventually, leaving the still showing jack snipe behind & heading towards the beach: Little Grebe (1), Cormorant (1), Great Black-Backed Gull (1), Water Rail (1) casually swimming across a channel into the bank's vegetation, a lone female Goldeneye & several Black-Tailed Godwit squabbling on their usual area. I wonder whether water rails are more numerous because I've seen more in the past 6-12 months than in many years of birding before.
On the beach: Bar-Tailed Godwit, Oystercatcher, Sanderling, Dunlin.
On the sea: Red-Breasted Merganser, Herring Gull, Common Gull.
Heading back to the car, I scanned from the path near the Parrinder hide & spotted Carriow Crow, then I spotted large-looking passerine but with distinctive pipit profile that was foraging on the shore of various islands. I scoped it & confirmed what I suspected, a Water Pipit, identified from dark upperparts & very pale underparts; unfortunately I was some distance away but a decent albeit brief view. Furthermore as I watched the pipit, before t was quickly lost amongst the waders a Wren scolded me from the reeds & the distinctive 'pinging' of Bearded Tit was also heard though not seen.
Ending in the car-park: House Sparrow, Dunnock, 6 Curlew overflew.
49 species, 2 new.
No comments:
Post a Comment