Gadwall, pochard and tufty duckling

A female gadwall was on the pond from the Willow Sphere with 7 ducklings, the first gadwall chicks we have seen onsite in a few years.

A pair of mute swans have hatched 6 cygnets. This swan family have been spotted on the water from Ramsar hide and along the long path. New moorhen chicks and older coot juveniles can be seen as well.

In Pelican Cove a pochard is raising one duckling, similar to what happened here last year and it looks like an oystercatchers are nesting on Pelican island. Also in the cove a female mallard is co-parenting four baby tufted duckings after losing her own brood. Read about it here.

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Mallard mum helping raise brood of tufted ducklings at Pelican Cove

Sat 10 June

Lapwing hide: heard a cuckoo

Ramsar and Sand martin hide: 30 sand martins, 2 female lapwing, 18 tufted ducks, 2 pochard, 1 shoveler, 6 gadwall

Scrape hide: 1 shoveler

Arun Riverlife: 15 black headed gulls, 2 pochards, 6 Canada geese, 1 kingfisher

Pelican Cove: 12 tufted ducks including 4 ducklings, 8 mallards including 6 ducklings

Fri 9 June

Woodland Loop: 10 mallards, 3 moorhens, 2 chaffinches, 4 goldfinches, 1 mandarin, 1 robin, 1 nuthatch

Lapwing hide: 1 lapwing chick

Dragonfly and damselfly survey

Black Rabbit triangle: 2 black-tailed skimmers, 1 beautiful demoiselle

Pond at entrance to reedbed: 1 banded demoiselle

Wet grassland: 1 banded demoiselle

Wet meadow: 1 beautiful demoiselle

Pelican Cove: 4 black-tailed skimmer dragonflies

Thurs 8 June

Reedbed: 2 sedge warblers, 1 wren, 5 gadwall, 2 Canada geese, 2 chiff chaff, 12 mallards, 1 robin, 1 reed warbler, 1 goldfinch

Ramsar & sand martin hides: a pair of pochard, 2 oystercatchers,

Pelican Cove: 1 oystercatcher, 1 tufted duck with female mallard and 4 duckling, 3 pochard including 1 duckling

Reedbed: 2 sedge warblers, 1 wren

Wed 7 June

Long path ditch: mute swan pair and 6 cygnets

Willow sphere: 4 gadwall

Scrape hide: 1 Cetti’s warbler, 6 mallard, 4 shoveler, 3 gadwall, 5 tufted ducks, 3 sedge warblers, 1 reed bunting, 1 wren, 4 sand martins, 1 chaffinch, 1 kingfisher, 1 coot, 1 chiff chaff, 1 moorhen, 1 black-headed gull, 1 wood pigeon

Sand martin hide: 1 oystercatcher, 8 tufted ducks, 1 shoveler, 4 pochards, c20 sand martins, 1 shelduck

Waterside walk: 1 tufted duck

Ramsar hide: 19 gadwall, 1 shelduck 2 lapwing, 1 cormorant, 13 tufted ducks, 2 shoveler, and 1 little egret

Wetland Discovery: 1 tufted duck

Lapwing hide: 5 lapwing

Arun Riverlife: 1 kingfisher, 2 tufted ducks

Pelican cove: 3 pochards, 3 tufted ducks and 4 ducklings, pair of oystercatchers on Pelican Island

Trumpeter Swan pond: 1 great spotted woodpecker, 1 male mandarin

Woodland Loop: 6 green finch, 1 male mandarin

Reedbed: 1 mallard, 1 black tailed skimmer dragonfly

Tuesday 6 June

Ramsar hide: 2 mute swans with 6 cygnets, 1 cormorant, 4 shelduck, 2 lapwing, 2 pochard, and c25 sand martins.

Scrape hide: 2 shoveler, 11 tufted ducks, 2 snipe

Long path: Broad bodied chaser dragonfly, 1 Cetti’s warbler, 1 chiff chaff, 6 sedge warbler, 4 reed wrablers

Willow sphere: 1 female gadwall with 7 ducklings

Pelican Cove: 4 pochard, 2 oystercatchers, female tufted duck with four ducklings and a female mallard.

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Gadwall ducklings on pond beside the Willow Sphere

Mon 5 June

Lapwing hide: 1 greylag goose, 2 tufted ducks, 4 mallards

Ramsar hide: 1 lapwing, 2 tufted ducks, 5 she ducks, 1 pochard

Sand martin hide: 2 pochard, 5 tufted ducks, 2 mute swans with cygnets

Scrape hide: 3 pochards, 2 she ducks, 4 tufted ducks

Willow sphere: 4 coots, 2 tufted ducks

Pelican Cove: female tufted ducks with 4 chicks, 2 oystercatchers. 3 pochard and one chick

Boat Safari: 1 beautiful demoiselle

Grass snack survey: 4 grass snakes under survey tins

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