Sightings

Main sighting: Disturbance at Goldcliff lagoons

There will be some disturbance in the late morning at Goldlcliff Lagoons on Tuesday 15th September, when the flood defenses are inspected. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Main sighting: Goosander

Goosander 3 redheads Grey Wagtail 2 Chiffchaff 1.

Main sighting: Great White Egrets and waders

Arrived before dawn. Great White Egrets x 3 on Monks Lagoon near the sluice. ( Record pics on Twitter).
Priors Lagoon. – The wader flock was concentrated near the Marsh Platform. Glossy Ibis x 1, Black Tailed Godwits x 250+, Greenshank 1, Knots x 100c. Redshank x 30, Lapwings x 40, Dunlin x 8. Snipe x 8 ( more also seen around the reed edges. Peregrine x 1 attacked wader flock. Short time after a Black Tailed Godwit was observed trying to stand and failed and later seems to have died.
Vismig observed – lots of Meadow Pipits passing through, Swallows and House Martines. Yellow Wagatils and Wheatars. Chiff Chaffs calling from hedgerows
Foreshore – Oystercatches x 20, Curlews x 20, Shelduck x 100.
Becs – Sparrowhawk and Meadow Pipits and Little Egret.
Ducks seem to be growing in number – Shovelers , Teal and Mallards.
Dragonflies – Common Darters, Southern Hawkers.
Butterflies, Small and Large Whites and Small Copper.

Main sighting: Kestrel

Female kestrel, 40+ ravens, 5 buzzards, goldcrest,, wren, 4 jays, 3 green woodpeckers

Main sighting: Black-tailed Godwits

Significant numbers of waders. Sightings were: Mute Swan, Canada Geese, 2 Teal, Mallard, 120 Shoveler, 2 Little Egret, Grey Heron, Sparrowhawk, Moorhen, 34 Ringed Plover, 99 Lapwing, 40 Knot, 1 Little Stint, 50 Dunlin, 11 Snipe, 200 Black-tailed Godwit, 6 Curlew, 50 Redshank, 2 Greenshank, Black-headed Gulls, Woodpigeon, 1 House Martin, Carrion Crow, 2 Raven, 1 Greenfinch.

Main sighting: KIngfisher

KIngfisher perching on branches then flying along the canal at Two Locks around 6.00 this evening.

Main sighting: Waders and Passage

Visited just after dawn.
Lots of movement going on in the skies above the lagoons.
Passage birds- Swallows, House Martins and Sand Martins particualrly over Becs and sea wall. Flocks of Siskins flying throgh Westwards.
Priors Lagoon – The Black Tailed Godwits 25o+ joined by nice flock of Knots 170c., Dunlin and Redshank. Greenshank also showed.
Monks Lagoon – Dunlin and Ringed Plover flock on the mud viewable from Hide 1. There were Curlew Sandpipers x 2 ( pics on my blog) and I saw 1 Little Stint but reliably told their was a second. Kestrel was todays protagonist causing some panicked wader flocks.

Lapwings showing well on Priors Lagoon mainly 30+ birds.

Numbers of ducks seem to be increasing. Shovelers and Teal. Paul Joy saw 4 Wigeon on Becs.

Wheatear and Yellow Wagtails reported on the Sea Wall and Meadow Pipits were seen flying through the reserve.

Main sighting: Curlew Sandpiper, Golden Plover, Weasel

Curlew sandpiper with numerous redshank; common sandpiper; 2 golden plover with c100 each of Ringed Plover and Dunlin; similar numbers of oystercatchers and curlew; plenty of swallows still; female pintails have arrived to join shelduck and mallards++. Little egrets, grey heron, black headed gulls, linnets, stonechat, goldfinches; and then great view of weasel scuttling back and fore across path 10m in front. red admiral also.

Main sighting: Knot

Green woodpecker, chiffchaff 2 (contact calls) and stock dove 1. Hide 1: single pintail flying past, 48 ringed plovers with 58 dunlin, 1 little stint and 1 sanderling mixed in. Redshank platform – 2 greenshank flying towards the power station, single avocet, 1 grey heron, 3 little egrets, grey wagtail overhead, 15 lapwing and 2 knot. Marsh platform – glossy ibis flying up quite high and heading towards Uskmouth, 3rd greenshank dropped in, 106 knot mixed in with 256 black-tailed godwits (ringed bird still present),6 dunlin, 5 house martins and a kingfisher flying along the hedge in the field. Hide 3 – 13 siskins in a group overhead, 6 curlew, 3 skylarks, 2 yellow wagtails and a pair of stonechats on the fence. Seawall – masses of shelduck with curlew and oystercathers and 4 sand martins over. 3 common buzzards (including the light-morph bird) over hide 1. Other: Migrant and Southern Hawkers around the bramble bushes by hide 1.

Main sighting: Swallows

A steady stream of Swallows over the garden: a regular occurence every Autumn, when hirundines stop to feed round the huge Sycamore beyond my garden.

Main sighting: Swift

2 Swifts still over the garden this morning with 12-15 House Martins

Main sighting: Goldfinch

A large flock of Goldfinches,mostly juveniles,probably over 100 birds.Also a Peregrine flew over spooking all the shorebirds.10h30