Sightings

Main sighting: Yellow Wagtails

Evening visit – Peregrine with kill on Monks, Kestrel, 300+ Black Tailed Godwits, Pied Wagtails x4 , Yellow Wagtails x 2. Black Swan on Priors Various usual. 100+ Black Headed Gulls roosting on Monks at dusk. 80+ Dunlins on the mud.

Main sighting: Bar Tailed Godwit

On the morning windy tide: 1 male Bar Tailed Godwit in full summer plumage, 8 Curlew, 1 Whimbrel, 35 Oystercatcher, 120 Redshank, 1 Greenshank, 3 Common Sandpipers, 8 Dunlin, 207 Mallard, 2 Heron, 1 Cormorant.

Main sighting: Redstart

Redstart 1 Willow Warbler 1 Whitethroat 1 carrying food Wheatear 1 Whimbrel 1 Common Sandpiper 5 Greenshank 1 Mediterranean Gull 1 Little Egret 8 Pied Wagtail 20 Linnet Mallard 103 Redshank 150

Main sighting: Wood Sandpiper

Wood Sandpiper On Monk’s Lagoon @16:05, Ruff, Spoonbill,Little Egret, Raven.

Main sighting: Green Sandpiper

Single green sand over 1st hide also 3 kestrel ( male Fem and juv) female sprawk .quiet due to dredging and hide works but otherwise the usual

Main sighting: Disturbance

The annual maintenance work for the lagoons will begin on Monday with the bulk of the work completed in the first week. We will try to keep disturbance to a minimum

Main sighting: Ruff

Highlights of today’s hightide count: Ruff 2 Ringed Plover 34 LRP 2 Curlew 170 Snipe 3 Oystercatcher 103 Whimbrel 4 Black-tailed Godwit 315 Bar-tailed Godwit 1 Green Sandpiper 3 Wood Sandpiper 1 Greenshank 2 Knot 1 Dunlin 249 Black-headed Gull 490 Mediterranean Gull 2 Sparrowhawk 1 Kestrel 2 Yellow Wagtail 2 Black Swan 1 Tufted Duck 1 female with 1 young

Main sighting: Green Sandpiper and Merlin

Early AM first bird we saw today on Monks was a Green Sandpiper ( initially suspected Wood) but have now been able to review my pics. Neville has summarised a great deal of what was seen. Loads of waders today. Two Peregrines caused havoc. Highlight was a first year male Merlin which was ringed (Dan Web had a look at it as well). Curlews increasing in numbers and some ringed seen.

Main sighting: Gulls

9am-10amish. Movement of 185+ juv Lesser Black-backed Gulls up channel along the Gwent coastline, 135 Mallard, 110 Redshank, 1 Greenshank, 1 Blackwit, 7 Dunlin, 3 Common Sandpipers, 3 Curlew, 6 Grey Lag Geese, 2 Heron, 2 Lgrt, 1 Cormorant, Kestrel, 2 Lesser Whitethroat, 1 Common Whitethroat. An abundance of Painted Ladies.

Main sighting: Merlin

63 species in morning visit including highlights of 4 chiffchaffs (hedge leading to seawall), green woodpecker, family group of mute swans and 2 separate adults, 3 herons, 360 black headed gulls (6 juvs), 198 curlew at high tide on 3rd lagoon (3 colour ringed birds and 3 whimbrel mixed in), 176 dunlin (6 juv birds also), 2 lt ringed plovers, 2 green sandpipers, 1 common sandpiper, gt b b gull, 6 teal, 4 ruff (2 together and 2 seperate birds elsewhere and all of different plumage’s), 146 sand martins through with 46 swallows (and resting briefly on mud 2nd lagoon), 4 knot (1 colour ringed adult), 1 spoonbill, 1 turnstone in breeding plumage, 36 coot, 2 buzzards, 136 redshanks, 1 cettis calling, sedge warbler feeding, 1 yellow wagtail over with 3 later on, female wigeon, 3 common snipe, 72 oystercatchers (lagoon 1), 1 greenshank, 1 wood sandpiper, 6 lt egrets, 3 reed warblers, gadwall, 2 peregrine possibly 1st year males?, 305 black-tailed godwits, 406 shelduck (raft on sea), male sparrowhawk hunting, female tufted, pair of stock doves and a 1st year male merlin from hide 3 which caught an eat a linnet. Unusually it had two metal leg rings as opposed to the usual one – wondering if possibly an escaped falconers bird? Other: good numbers of gatekeepers and meadow browns, 2 emperor dragonflies, 1 red admiral, 4 painted ladies and 1 small skipper.

Main sighting: Wood Sandpiper

Single wood sandpiper in front of Snipe platform now .Also Blackwit 3 knot lapwing redshank 2 greenshank Common Sandpiper Green sandpiper little egret Mute and Black Swan Greylag Canada Grey Heron Mippit Yellow and pied wag moorhen coot teal single curlew

Main sighting: Wood Sandpiper

Two wood sandpiper at near edge of Monks Lagoon. Keeping close to the front edge, sometimes hidden by vegetation but generally great views. Calling frequently. Also 4 green sandpiper here (intermittently chased by lapwing), 1 kingfisher and hundreds of black-tailed godwit on Prior’s. Several painted lady. Between Raglan and Dingestow, an adult and juvenile yellow wagtail on wires.