Monday 2 May 2016

Today's Stuff


54 Pale-bellied Brent Geese estuary-bound. I took the dog for a walk mid-afternoon and found the same flock off Mudbank. At least 2 were wearing colour rings. I got a brief flash of red and yellow/orange before the birds waddled knee-deep into the water.

Orcombe Point - 4 Great Crested Grebe, c20+ Sandwich Tern, 1 Red-throated Diver, 4 Whimbrel, 2 Garden Warbler, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Short-eared Owl, 1 Turnstone, c50+ Common Scoter, 56 Pale-bellied Brent Goose (2 birds on an offshore sandbar early on and the above flock later), 10+ Wheatear, 5 Blackcap, 3 Dunlin, 1 House Martin, 2+ Manx Shearwater and several Swallow 'in-off'. It was good to catch up with Brian this morning. We watched the Short-eared Owl hunting the fields closer to the Geoneedle this morning - presumably keen to keep out of the wind.
Mudbank this afternoon produced the flock of 54 Pale-bellied Brent Geese, c40+ Whimbrel and a fly-past Yellow Wagtail.
 
 
The same flock off Mudbank. The ring-bearing birds are of course belly-deep in water.


All of today's Wheatears were big and fairly colourful and therefore probably of a more north-westerly origin - Iceland or Greenland? I've seen more richly coloured birds than this but these were pretty smart.


 

4 comments:

  1. Hardly a paper worthy ID feature but I always find these later Wheatears so much more approachable than the early arrivers in March and early April! Certainly been a cracking Brent day, if you go out again now you will prob see another 70 or so.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hardly a paper worthy ID feature but I always find these later Wheatears so much more approachable than the early arrivers in March and early April! Certainly been a cracking Brent day, if you go out again now you will prob see another 70 or so.

    ReplyDelete
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  4. Hi Steve - yes they do seem more approachable. You were right about the brents. Mark had c90 off Maer rocks late evening. Good to hear from you. Matt

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