3 chiffchaffs flitting through the hedge at the bottom of my garden this afternoon. Probably newly arrived although there have been a couple that have overwintered nearby.

7.30 ish, nice view of a pair of Sparrowhawks mating on top of an Alder near the lake. A quick couple of flaps and he was on her, arcing is wings over her, a quick quiver and he was off, flying to a nearby willow. He hung about for a while as if looking for a compliment but nothing was forthcoming as she sat nonchalantly atop the tree. Several times he flew off on a sortie, perhaps he wanted to bring her breakfast in bed! only to return with nothing. At 7.58 he returned to her and they mated again. He again hung about before she was harried by a pair of Carrion Crows and flew off.

Whilst taking part in the annual RSPB garden bird watch this morning I was very surprised and overjoyed to briefly see a Water Rail skulking, almost invisibly, amongst shrub stems and dead leaves . it was presumably eating the fallen sunflower hearts from the feeders above, dropped by the quarrelsome Greenfinches and House Sparrows. Also of some note was 2 Blackcaps, male and female. The feeders are amongst shrubs opposite my home and adjacent to Pwll y Waun pond.

I had an amazing experience this morning whilst driving up three steps hill Tythegston, near Porthcawl. A female Sparrowhawk flew parallel with my van at eye level on the opposite side of the road for at least 6 seconds before flying up and over me due to an oncoming car. I was doing about 40mph , so she was shifting.

11 Curlew feeding in the field opposite Pwll y waun pond just off the Porthcawl road. Hopefully numbers will rise as the autumn progresses. Also a couple of late Swallows.

6.55 pm, another 2 Little Egrets have just passed over heading the same way. All were flying at about 15- 25 Mtr ( twice house height).

6.35 – 1x Great white Egret ( directly over my garden ) closely followed by 3 Little Egrets ( 50mt to South) , then a 4th 5 mins later. All heading NW and all from the comfort of my garden chair.

A couple of Egrets flew over the garden at 6.45 this evening , the second time in a week ( does that count as a garden tick ? 😀). I couldn’t identify exact species as I was mowing the lawn! They were flying in a N.W. direction so presumably heading off to roost at Kenfig Pool.

Several raptor species seen this morning within 0.5 km2 of farmland North of Porthcawl, fem. Sparrowhawk, fem. Kestrel , 3 Buzzards, a Goshawk and the lovely sight of 5 Red Kites in the air together.

Upwards of 150 – 200 Swallows swooping to feed over fields during a general South East movement this morning.

Just now, Cetti’s warbler singing from the thick willow scrub S.E corner of the lake Not seen but song recorded.

Large flocks of Linnets, 600-800 ( possibly many more) feeding in stubble of recently harvested oil seed rape just off the Porthcawl Road, Tythegston. Amongst them were Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Chaffinch but in much lower numbers. The flocks were constantly taking off, splitting, rejoining and landing in the stubble or adjoining hedges.

Pwll y Waun lake and its environs is proving a very popular feeding spot for both Swallow and Swift, several of each daily feed on the insects abounding here. Not sure where their nesting but there are plenty of stables and other outbuildings close by for the Swallows and plenty of older houses for Swifts (The new clinic would be ideal for Swift boxes). Disappointingly , no sign of either House Martin or Sand Martin in the area.

I know this is a birdwatching site but any lepidopterists out there who could help me with this species. It was feeding on lavender in my garden in Newton, Porthcawl this afternoon. It’s either a high brown fritillary or a dark green fritillary ( not sure of sex). Unfortunately I didn’t get a pic of its underwing.

A group of 9 or 10 swifts over the lake yesterday evening in quite cool blustery conditions. On the water itself Coots and Moorhens already with young as have the pair of Canada geese, although it seems at least 3 goslings are missing from 2 days ago, leaving only 2. No sign of any mallard ducklings and the pair of mute swans don’t seem to be nesting yet.

The ploughed field has been manured today, again attracting birds. Both Whimbrel (5) and Wheatear (4+) continue to drop in for a feed, alongside the resident Herring Gulls, Corvids, Starlings and Thrushes.

There’s a freshly ploughed field at Wigfach which is attracting quite a few birds at the mo. Yesterday lunchtime amongst commoner species were at least 7 Wheatear , a couple of which looked like Greenland, 2 White Wagtail & 4 Whimbrel.

Another 8 Whimbrel flying north over Wigfach at 12 noon today (9 passed over last Saturday afternoon). I’ve probably missed others flying over and would have missed these if not for their calls which drew my attention.

Several House Martins have joined the Swallows (which arrived monday) over the lake at Pwll y waun. Large numbers of bats are also present in the evening, including, judging by their size, Greater Horseshoe.

A very handsome male Mandarin Duck amongst the usuals on Pwll y Waun lake this evening.