Sightings

Main sighting: Water Rail

Another quiet visit, water levels still too high on the lagoons to encourage waders. En-route to hides – Canada geese, 2000+ starlings coming from their roost site on the main reserve, heron, blackbirds, pair pheasants, crows, magpie and collard dove. Hide one – 2nd heron, 13 wigeon, 9 fly-by swans, 25 lapwing, 48 teal, female marsh harrier hunting, cormorant, mallards, reed bunting, herring gulls, woodpigeons and 300+ black-tailed godwits which the harrier spooked with the group flying over the seawall. Hide two – female sparrowhawk and 6 shoveler. Snipe platform – single little grebe, 120 more teal and water rail calling. Seawall – 2 curlew and 12 shelduck only. Hide three – male pintail, 15 more shoveler, meadow pipit, ravens, wren and redshank calling.

Main sighting: Announcement

Main sighting: Barnacle Goose

15:00 to 16:30 visit; rising tide near saltmarsh. Single Barnacle Goose on Saltmarsh. Gull Roost: Black Headed Gull 260+; Common Gull 350+; Herring Gull 51; Lesser Black Backed Gull 36. Shelduck 60+; Redshank 16; Oystercatcher 6; Curlew 4; Dunlin 1000+; Knot 7; Mallard18;Teal 7; Wigeon 46. Buzzard 2; Raven 2; Pheasant; Magpie; Great Tit; Robin; Starling 500+; Wood Pigeon.
(There were many more waders coming in but was too dark to identify).

Main sighting: Common Scoter

From 15:25: Tide rising, close to saltmarsh edge. On the Severn: 25 Common Scoter (spread across 3 close groups). 20 Black Headed Gulls; 5 Curlew; 60 Dunlin; 26 Grey Plover; 1 Lesser Black Backed Gull; 4 Oystercatcher; 30 Redshank; 32 Shelduck; 600 Starlings; 1 Teal; 2 Wrens; Robins; Blackbirds, Meadow Pipit; Carrion Crow.
(I was conducting a Recce visit for Winter Gull Roosts (WinGS), but no evidence of Gull Roost present at this time).

Main sighting: Black-Tailed Godwit

Black-Tailed Godwit 1000
Dunlin 3000
Knot 250
Grey Plover 20
Avocet 2
Redshank 200
Turnstone 10
Oystercatcher 18
Ringed Plover 10
Curlew 10
Teal 100
Wigeon 175
Pintail 100
Shoveler 50
Shelduck 100
Mallard 50
Little Egret 1

Main sighting: Avocet flock

Another fairly quiet morning. En-route to hides: crows, buzzard, bullfinch, magpies, moorhens, blackbirds and pheasant. Hide one – cormorant only. Hide two – female marsh harrier hunting, male stonechat, lesser black-backed gulls and 3 lapwing. En-route to platform – robin and herring gulls. Snipe platform – 14 mallard and 4 swans on the only small bit of unfrozen water. Seawall – most productive again with mistle thrush, starlings, light-morph buzzard, 42 avocet, 11 curlew, 6 shelduck, 2 gadwall, 18 oystercatchers, Canada geese, black headed gulls, 15 shoveler, 215 wigeon, 8 black-tailed godwits and 3 male pintail. Meadow pipit, 3 wrens and woodpigeons en-route to hide 3. Hide three – 1 greylag, green woodpecker heard yaffling, pied wagtail, song thrush and 15 more lapwing. En-route back out blue tits and female reed bunting. Back at the car park female chaffinch, kingfisher fly-past, collard dove and 2 redwings.

Main sighting: Redpoll

A single Redpoll feeding in the dry old growth beside the path taking seeds not long before sunset. Very confiding.

Other species included Little Grebe, Gadwall, Teal, Mallard, Snipe, Little Egret, Water Rail.

Main sighting: Glossy Ibis

Seen in flight low overhead at about 12.45. Headed over the road and over Sluice House, getting lower all the time.
Happy to submit some notes but see from the website that the recorder’s position is vacant. Who shall I communicate with over the record?

******Note from the secretary – Peter you can send your report to countyrecorder@gwentbirds.org.uk the society will continue to pick these up.

Main sighting: Barn Owl / Merlin

All lagoons frozen but a good mix of birds nonetheless. En-route to hides – robin, crows, chaffinch, buzzard, magpies and blackbirds. Hide one – fly-by from 7 mute swans, herring gulls and a pheasant calling. Hide two – 9 lapwing, 2nd (light-morph) buzzard, female reed bunting, 1 little egret and barn owl (08.32). Snipe platform – starlings and blue tit. Seawall – small patch of open water on lagoon and visible from the seawall had 15 teal, male pintail, 1 coot, 1 swan and 18 gadwall all huddled in together. On the only saltmarsh on view was Canada geese, wigeon, 2 curlew, 8 shelduck and a 100+ black-tailed godwits. Hide three (most productive today) – goldfinch, ravens, mallards, female marsh harrier, pied wagtail, barn owl hunting again (10.22) which landed on a distant post and was dived at by a passing male merlin, 14 greylags overhead, wren, 1 heron, male stonechat, 15 more lapwing and a female gt spotted woodpecker working her way along the fence posts. En-route to car park, female stonechat, song thrush, male bullfinch and a fly-over male peregrine.

Main sighting: Goldeneye

A very wary pair of Goldeneye on an otherwise quiet river.

Main sighting: White-tailed Eagle

Imm. White-tailed Eagle flying down Gwyddon valley at 09:15

Main sighting: Merlin F

F merlin, 7ltt, 3canada geese over.