Sightings and news to week ending 21 September
Apologies, Estuary Tower lift is out of service, awaiting repair.
Image- Common Sandpipers.
Sunday 21 September
Estuary Tower over high tide
Four Spoonbills, 3 Bar-tailed Godwits among the Curlew, 100+ Shelduck and 22 GBB Gulls in the roost. Pink-footed Goose and Ross's Goose with the Canada/Barnacle Geese. 17 Cranes also dropped in.
Top New Piece
Another Spoonbill over high tide with Great Egret. Two Pintail with the Teal and Shoveler.
South Lake
18 Cattle Egrets in the afternoon. 14 Ruff in the morning (at least 34 on site).
Rushy Hide
Two Garganey, 14+ Snipe, 5 Spotted Redshank early morning with 18 Redshank and c20 Black-tailed Godwit, also Lapwing and Gadwall flocks.
Tack Piece/Martin Smith Hide
Two Glossy Ibis feeding on the island for much of the morning but were on Top New Piece first thing, until flushed by a male Mars Harrier.
Tack Piece/Robbie Garnett Hide
Two Green and Common Sandpipers (also visiting Pillbox Pool). 6 Wigeon plus Shoveler and Teal on the scrape.
Saturday 20 September
Rushy Hide/Peng Observatory
23 Cattle Egret
Grounds
Great Egret by pampas grass.
South Finger Reedbed
Cetti’s, Goldcrest
Tin Shed Ground
3 Roe Deer
Kingfisher Hide
2 Wigeon, 3 pairs Gadwall, Cetti’s heard, 1 Buzzard, Curlew
Robbie Garnet Hide
Common sandpiper and green sandpiper
Decoy
2m 1f Mandarin, 8 Tufted Duck, 1 pair Gadwall, 27 Mallard
Mid Point
29 Curlew, 19 Avocet, 5 Spoonbill, 5 Little Egret, 3 Grey Heron, 500+ Dunlin, Little Ringed Plover flock, Ross’s Goose in Barnacle flock, 4 Greater + 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 3 Cormorant, singles of Common Tern, Great Egret, Peregrine Falcon
Zeiss Hide
66 Blackwit, 3 Greenshank 339 Teal, 22 Ruff, 2 Pintail, 18 Gadwall, 7 Wigeon, 86+ Lapwing
South Lake
26 Cattle Egret,64 Tufted Duck, 2 Cetti's warbler, 1 Grey Heron,5 Cormorant, 8 Pochard, 25 Gadwall, 175 Black-tailed Godwit, 15 Redshank, 2 Spotted Redshank, 35 Lapwing , 28 Shoveler ,4 Ruff
Friday 19 September
Top New Piece
Grey Phalarope, 254 Teal, pair of Pintail and a Sparrowhawk.
Bottom New Piece
Glossy Ibis
Dumbles
Goshawk
Rushy
23 Cattle egrets
South Lake
261 Black-tailed Godwit, 20 Redshank, 25 Avocet, 5 Spotted Redshank, 23 Ruff, 11 Tufted, 9 Pochard
Kingfisher Hide
28 Gadwall, Buzzard, Kestrel and Cettis
Middle point
Afternoon at low tide. 3 Spoonbill, 20 Avocet, 20 Teal, 12 Golden Plover, Turnstone, 3 Bar-tailed Godwit, ~30 Ringed Plover, ~10 Dunlin, Wheatear, Peregrine.
Thursday 18 September
Pillbox Pool
Common Sandpiper
Wednesday 17 September
South Lake
Eight Cattle Egret but all moved out to the fields. 25 Ruff, 15 Avocet, two non-breeding adult Mediterranean Gulls, flocks of Black-tailed Godwits and Teal.
Rushy Hide
Two Garganey on lower pond, Ruff, 23 Lapwing and the usual duck species.
Tack Piece
Three Green Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, 15 Wigeon among the Teal/Shoveler.
Pill Box Pool
Common Sandpiper on the new island.
Long Ground Pool
Cattle Egret.
Middle Point
Four Arctic Tern (2 adults, 2 juveniles, flew off down), pale brown/sandy large juvenile falcon, possibly a Lanner, adult non-breeding Mediterranean Gull, 15 Sanderling, 4 Little Stint, 7 Curlew Sandpiper, 68 Dunlin and 12 Ringed Plover off the point, 5 Curlew Sandpipers among 100s small waders to N, 3 Spoonbills, Great Egret.
Tuesday 16 September
Middle Point
Among 100s of Ringed Plover /Dunlin- single juveniles of Ruff, Turnstone, Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot, at least one Little Stint + Curlew Sandpiper (very likely to be more with scrutiny), 2 Greenshank flew down channel, 2 Pintail, 25 Sanderling, 2 deceased Manx Shearwaters being devoured by Ravens/GBB Gulls.
Rushy Hide
Two Garganey, Spotted Redshank, 6 Redshank, Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit + flocks of Lapwing Teal and Gadwall.
Tack Piece
Teal and Wigeon along the scrape.
Decoy Hide
Two drake and one duck Mandarin
Top New Piece
Glossy Ibis, Spoonbill, 2 Pintail, 8 Wigeon, Greenshank, 3 Black-tailed Godwit, Redshank, Snipe, (no sign of Grey Phalarope, so far), 70 Teal, 30 Shoveler, and 40 Gadwall.
South Lake
25 Avocet, 2 Common Sandpiper, 23+ Ruff, 16 Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Pintail, Snipe, 400 Greylag, 6 Pochard among the Tufted Ducks.
Monday 15 September
Top New Piece
The storm has dropped in a Grey (or Red) Phalarope, busy feeding among the ducks on the main flood. Glossy Ibis feeding along shore of flood, often in vegetation, 3 juvenile Ruff, Garganey among the ducks sheltering around the island on the fleet, Sand Martins and Swallows feeding over, 100+ Teal, 17 Avocet called in but probably moved to South Lake.
Middle Point/Estuary Tower
Mobile wader flocks but at least 7 Little Stint, 10 Curlew Sandpiper, 15 Sanderling among the Dunlin and Ringed Plovers, at least 2 Spoonbills feeding on the Severn.
South Lake
Spotted Redshank, 162 Black-tailed Godwit, 20 Avocet, 26 Ruff, 452 Greylags, 15+ Sand Martins, large flock of Teal with Gadwall and Shoveler + Pochard among the Tufted Ducks.
Rushy Hide/Peng Observatory
Two Garganey, 66 Lapwing, 3 Spotted Redshank, Snipe, 9 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Ruff, 27 Redshank + flocks of Teal and Gadwall.
Tack Piece
Greenshank along the scrape edge among the Teal, 4 Cranes on the field.
Decoy Hide
Two Mandarin with the duck species.
