Regular Red Kites
Numerous Red Kite sightings over the last couple of days.
Warm dry weather, has led to hay and silage cutting operations in the surrounding fields, this brings out the Buzzards and especially in recent years the Red Kites. It seems that a few have drifted through over the last couple of days, one or two have hung around to see if a free meal is available. Our breeding birds keep a close eye on them.
Other notable sightings and counts from around the reserve as follows.
A breeding plumage Ruff on the Top New Piece islands was new-in today!
Rushy
We still await the hatching of our very popular Little-ringed Plover clutch of eggs, the extra male refuses to get the message, he continues to display and interfere with day to day life but is 'seen off'. The Oystercatcher pair have at least two well grown young in tow and the Avocet colony is very busy with ten broods of young and still two to hatch. Almost 40 Gadwall have two male Teal and a female Wigeon for company.
Tack Piece
The Ross's Goose was with 44 Barnacle Geese. Avocet with two young, a few Shelduck and Reed Warblers singing, pair of Cranes.
Estuary Tower
Avocets and Black-headed Gulls on the scrape, a Fox was helping itself to eggs and there were a few Skylarks singing. Two juvenile Little Grebe on the Pill Box Pool.
South Lake
Fifteen broods of Avocet, four Little-ringed Plovers, lots of chasing and territorial behaviour, two pairs of Oystercatcher with young, 8 Cormorant, two drake Teal, two female Wigeon, a few Tufted Duck on deep lake + Black-headed Gulls with chicks.
Top New Piece
34 Black-tailed Godwit, 5 Redshank, 2 Shoveler, 8 Teal, 40 Gadwall and 12 Shelduck. A femaleTufted Duck had a brood of seven ducklings with her yesterday.
Middle Point
11 Curlew, 18 Shelduck, 2 Oystercatcher, 3 Grey Heron and numbers of Black-tailed Skimmer dragonflies along the track.
Long Ground Pool/Grounds to South Finger
A mobile singing Cuckoo.
