Kingfishers, Firecrests and Bullfinch
Kingfishers were active this week and we had sightings of firecrest and bullfinches - all lovely winter birds.
At the Arun Riverlife lagoon this week, sightings included kingfishers on several days, along with shelducks, pochards, teal, gadwall, mallards, and Canada geese. A cormorant and a water rail were also seen from the Discovery hide.
The Scrape hide had regular counts of pochards, shovelers, teal, gadwall, mallards, and greylag geese. Snipe were seen often, and a goosander appeared on a couple of days.
We had 23 teal between Ramsar and Sand Martin hide on the morning count Tuesday, along with 20 shovelers and a dozen gorgeous gadwall. During the week we had a small flock of lapwings, lots of shelducks, Egyptian geese, and and 260 black-headed gulls on one day. Egrets were frequent, with great white, little, and cattle egrets recorded, plus a glossy ibis on Dec 13. A goosander was showing here as well and and snipe were seen.
In the Woodland Loop held robins, tits, chaffinches, goldfinches, treecreeper, firecrest, wren, and mandarin ducks. The Wetland Discovery area was busy with Canada geese, mallards, pochards, and small birds like robin, song thrush, goldcrests, and Cetti’s warbler. A stonechat was recorded in the reedbed.
Highlights: firecrest, kingfishers, glossy ibis, stonechat, gadwall, teal, lapwings
Wed 17 Dec
Black Poplar Memorial: 1 bullfinch male
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 1 kingfisher, 2 shelducks
Scrape hide: 1 pochard, 1 greylag goose, 8 shoveler, 1 snipe, 12 teal, 1 coot, 8 mallards, 6 gadwall
Woodland Loop: 2 mandarin ducks
Pelican Cove: 1 pochard
Ramsar and Sand martin hides: 3 great white egret, 1 kingfisher, 12 shelducks, 4 cackling X barnacle goose, 24 lapwing, 1 little egret, 2 Egyptian geese, 1 cattle egret, 1 snipe, 1 goosander
Tues 16 Dec
Scrape hide: goosander, 6 pochards
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 2 pochards
Ramsar and Sand Martins hide: 6 lapwing, 23 teal, 21 mallards, 1 grey herons, 1 cormorants, 11 shelducks, 20 shovelers, 2 great white egrets, 5 snipe, 2 Canada geese, 1 coot, 9 tufted ducks, 6 wood pigeons, 1 moorhen, 12 gadwall, 1 little egret, 2 Egyptian Geese
Mon 15 Dec
Lapwing hide: 1 pheasant, 1 blackbird
Wetland Discovery area: 1 pochard
Ramsar and Sand martin hide: 1 goosander, 16 shelducks, 260 black headed gulls
Scrape hide: 6 pochards
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 1 kingfisher, 1 water rail
Sun 14 Dec
Wetland Discovery: 6 Canada Goose, 21 mallard, 1 chaffinch, 1 robin, 1 Cetti’s warbler, 2 pochards, 1 wood pigeon, 1 dunnock, 1 blackbird, 1 song thrush, 2 goldfinches, 1 pheasant, 3 goldcrests
Ramsar and Sand Martin hides: 9 lapwings, 1 snipe, 1 goosander, 10 shelducks, 1 little egret, 4 cattle egrets, 2 Egyptian geese, 40 Canada geese, 154 greylag geese
Scrape hide: 5 snipe.
Sat 13 Dec
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 2 cormorants, 34 Canada geese,9 maallards, 3 coots, 2 teal, 1 tufted duck, 2 gadwalls, 2 shelducks, 1 lapwing, 1 dunnock, robin
Ramsar and Sand Martin hides: 1great white egret, 1 little egret, 4 cattle egrets, 1 glossy ibis, 8 lapwings, 1 goosander, 6 shelducks, 1 kingfisher
Fri 12 Dec
Woodland Loop: 10 mallards, 3 robins, 15 blue tits, 10 great tits, 5 chaffinches, 1 coal tit, 2 dunnock, 4 goldfinches, 1 treecreeper, 1 firecrest, 1 wren, 1 mandarin
Reedbed: 1 stonechat
