And waiting

I was fully expecting Cuckoo to be calling when I got out of my car, but no sign.

On the way to LFGP, a pair of Mandarin flew by me North along the Loddon, so it was nice to know they were still about. I arrived about 06:30 and as with yesterday it looked very quiet, but then a lone Common Tern joined the noise of the Black-headed Gulls.

This first for the year fits the new pattern of early arrival dates for this species, for many years it was typically 19th to 21st as can be seen in the 'arrivals' spreadsheet on the FOLL website members page. 

There have always been odd years with very early birds, such as April 10th 1985, then 3rd 1988, then in 1994 a super early passage bird on the 27th March. The next early arrival was an 11th April 1999, was then followed by another exceptionally early bird 26th March in 2003 and then 10th April 2004.

Taking a 10 year snapshot, there are 3 years that are later, but the continuing trend is an earlier arrival of no later than the 12th instead of the end of the 2nd and into the 3rd week April as before;

2006 12th April

2007 15th April

2008 18th April

2009 11th April

2010 22nd April

2011 10th April

2012 10th April

2013 11th April

2014 8th April

2015 12th April

2016 12th April

10 Teal now, 6 Shoveler over North, and the Shelduck were still present first thing and a nest box will be delivered later this morning, so I am super hopeful they take a look and like what they see. As I left Ron's hide a Nuthatch was singing across the river.

1-2 Willow Warbler still about, the Oycs were on Sandford, 2 Siskin went over SE,

So my post script, which still doesn't quite qualify as the 'tadah' moment, Alan heard Cuckoo around 10:00, Sedge Warbler at Tern scrape too, Reed Warbler was reported from WSL, so I thought I'd better get out to check what was coming thru.

25-30 Swallows over the landfill North, 3-4 Willow Warbler in the car park field, the Little Owl in the Oak, 2-3 small flocks of finch sp, 10+ Buzzard up, 2 Kestrel. When I finally walked round to BSL I came across and elderly couple looking at a pair of rather confiding Mandarin which swam past the jetty, sat on the beach for a few moments, then off into the edge of the lake beyond the beach. By their confiding behaviour alone I can say this is not the Loddon pair

I was about to leave, when Bob called me back and told me he'd had the Common Tern and here it was on the yellow buoy.

Still waiting on a bumper spring influx

The bird walk yesterday was very quiet, sure we saw the Whitethroat, but overall fewer Blackcap, Chiffchaff's and Willow Warblers were to be found.

We had a single Swallow and Sand Martin over East together, 2 Teal, 1 Snipe and the only excitement was when I picked up a flock of 30-40 waders high up over LFGP, about a 1000 feet up in 'V' formation, heading South, but then veering West. I called them as Golden Plover, but that was an assumption and when trying to get the other on to them, took my bins off them and lost them, refound them and lost them again when I dashed out of the hide to try and get them as they went overhead. It was the moment before that, that I felt they might be larger, even Godwit size, but now I'll never know.

Today I was out at 06:00 and again very little was happening, the pair of Shelduck were present at LFGP and keen to see if they could get on the tern raft, 1 Lapwing, 4 Teal, 2 Little Egret over South.

At least the sunrise was nice

High hopes

I managed to get out not long after 07:00 and went straight to Sandford to check for LRP, but no luck, so doubled back towards LFGP, hearing my first Willow Warbler of the day towards Sandford Mill, the count on Lavell's and to Ron's hide was 6 in the end.

Many Blackcap and Chiffchaff were in song, Lea Farm G.P. was a disappointment though, 1 Snipe, 6 Teal, 2 Oycs flew in, 1 Swallow South, 1 Skylark, really was about it.

So onwards to Lavell's, but I skipped Bittern after someone said nothing was happening, perhaps I should have gone, after later hearing a Reed Warbler was heard there yesterday.

At the car park field and overlooking the landfill, I saw nothing, but may have missed a Wheatear, as I panned with my scope across the vents, I saw something perched, but as I was panning a little to fast, had to pan back and whatever it was, was now gone. Shortly after 3-4 Swallow went thru and then I looped back to BSL and saw nothing there either and then completed the loop back to Lavell's, also seeing nothing.

I was getting bored and was in two minds about quitting, but felt a Nightingale might be waiting for me at the usual spot, so despite my foot aching quite a lot, I went on to check there. No Nightingale, but the Whitethroat was still there, lots more Chiffchaff and another Willow Warbler and looping back via WSL reeds, I checked for Reed and Sedge there, but nothing doing.

On my final walk back at Sandford, I heard the familiar rattling notes of Sedge Warbler, for all of 10 seconds and put that news out and headed back to my car.

The Sedge wasn't an early arrival, but yesterday's Reed was 2 days earlier than ever recorded, so well early. In a way I am surprised more didn't turn up today.

Migrants sneaking in

Wednesday's early morning has been followed by nothing on my part, late nights have left me too tired to venture out, but I'm not convinced stuff isn't going thru. Outside the patch Ring Ouzel's and Kittiwake's and grebes have been seen in various places.

So it was no surprise when my friend Rik saw a very early Whitethroat today, luckily I had a chance to go and chase it and sure enough a female was jumping around the Ash trees behind the Blackthorn on the right as you approach the Nightingale BSL/WSL hedgerow, coming from Middle Marsh end.

I'm sure it is the earliest I have ever seen at DP, only the 7th of 1991 beats it.

I did check Sandford both outbound and back, learning afterwards Linda had seen LRP there earlier, it was comforting to see the pair Oystercatcher on the biggest island, as were the Mute Swans.

I shall be out early'ish tomorrow in search of Sedge, or Reed Warbler, Cuckoo, LRP and anything else that might fly over.

Early start and always a sucker for a nice sunrise

It would be great to have a double meaning in my title, but due to declining weather, I had no time to look for any 'Starts'.

But I was out rather early, enough to see a Barn Owl perched on the Alder in between the river junction, before it went off over the long grass on what will become Sandford Farm Country park.

It was barely light enough to see out across the landfill, but a pair of Shelduck had clearly roosted on the small raft in front of Ron's hide.

The clouds were gathering quickly. but the sky was obviously clear far to the East, as the sunrise was a bit nice over London and it changed from light pinkish to vivid purple and molten lava and gold.

Turning my attention to the birds, the Shelduck got off the raft and shortly after 4 Little Egret flew in, resting only for a few moments before heading toward DP.

Marek arrived and it was time for me to go, just catching a glimpse of 1 Sand Martin gunning it over North.

Bright again

A 45 minute look from the bottom of the car park field was bright and pleasant ahead of the predicted cooling down tomorrow onwards.

That said, little was actually happening, no hirundines, just 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Blackcap, several Chiffchaff, tons of Kite and Buzzard, both Kestrels, 2 Sparrowhawk, then a Yellow Wagtail, which was nearly impossible to get on to, but luckily called a lot as it went over North.

Just before I left, I panned my scope onto 3 large raptors, high up and some way beyond Lavell's, 2 Buzzard and a BOP sp, which was as large as the Buzzards. All were circling, Buzzard with wings up, the other without, on one turn it looked a little long'ish tailed, but I couldn't get anything on the underside as distance was too great, it kept circling and moving West, so always going away.

I kept thinking as I watched "it's going to do a Buzzard dive any moment and give itself away, but it kept circling, with wings flat, preventing me from getting anything on it's underside. It may have just been a Buzzard, but I had a creeping suspicion it was a Goshawk, but the views were way too far.

Add one, miss one

Friday I was out near lunchtime, and seeing next to nothing, 3 Oystercatcher coming from Sandford was nice, but rather surprising to see them heading off way South, I think I had 1 Sand Martin that day.

Saturday was my son's Birthday and with a party too, no way I could justify being out, luckily no lifer, or rare year tick arrived.

Sunday I was going to be out earlier, but found myself much more wasted than imagined and only managed 07:00. With rain just finishing passing thru, was hopeful of excitement, no such luck, it was boarderline pitiful in fact, with just 2 Blackcap along the Loddon before the green bridge. 2 Shelduck over LFGP, and 1 Green Sandpiper, but as all of these were seen before I entered the hide, I kept thinking Wheatear, LRP, Yellow Wag, hirundines....nothing, just 1 Snipe, 1 Sand Martin and even the Oystercatcher landed in front of the hide after I left.

At the car park field, 2-3 more Blackcap, the walk to Bittern hide, 2-3 Willow Warbler.

But of course as the sun dried things out and it warmed up the inevitable happened, Marek found teh Wheatear I couldn't earlier and I was stuck away til late afternoon. I did return but it had long gone, my compensation was the first House Martin and a late Great Black-backed Gull East over the landfill, plus 4 Swallow.