It was yesterday's birds at Moor Green and Little Marlow that had me optimistic and after just a couple of minutes I got onto a small bird in the half light perched on a thistle, it moved once, then didn't move again, but thinking it looked like a chat, I kept an eye on it for the next 1 hour 45 minutes.
As it got light and despite it not moving, I could just tell it was a Whinchat, but when an LRP distracted me as it flew into the SW corner, I took my scope off it and annoyingly when Marek arrived just 5 minutes later, it was gone.
This was the earliest Whinchat since 1984, when we had 1 on the 10th and 12th, with an even earlier one 9th July 1983.
The LRP kept it's distance, the 2 Common Sandpipers were mobile, but the 1 of the 3 Green Sandpipers came close today.
Now 9 Teal present and again a female Mandarin at the back of the SW corner, 2 Little Egret again, a possible 3rd went thru earlier.
Whinchat marks my 122nd species for 2016, level with 2002, 4 short of 2003 and 2008, so hopefully we/I can secure Redstart, Spotted Flycatcher, Wheatear and at least 1-3 more waders before the end of August, not forgetting I still need Tawny Owl.
No comments:
Post a Comment