I’m starting to put together the October newsletter and need some photos. Please get in touch if you can contribute.

 

Cetti’s Warbler heard near visitor centre. Green woodpecker, small flocks of linnets, goldfinch in West Paddock along with 1 male stonechat. A further 4 stonechat & couple of reed bunting in the meadow near Sully Brook gave good views as they were disturbed by the meadow cutting. Sand and House martins present over Western lake

2 fem Wheatear on the barrage rocks this morning and at least one present every day for the last week; 4 Rock Pipits; 2 Meadow Pipits.
Ad Med Gull on Hamadryad Park playing fields.

I took the attached picture of this ringed curlew at Aberthaw a week ago. Knowing that the BTO is currently ringing curlews I contacted them to let them know. I was surprised when an email arrived and it turned out that the bird had come from further afield…..

“thank you for forwarding this interesting sighting! That’s indeed a bird from our project J he was ringed this year as a breeding bird in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. He successfully reared 2 chick (what was quite amazing because we had nearly no breeding success due to very high predation).”

Juv Artic Tern still over sluice outfall 09:10.

no med gulls at all which was a surprise.. Only a few bh’s & a herring gull.. Highlight was a stooping peregrine onto the bh’s.. Missed by a feather thickness.. That’s a first for me.. Seen them take large waders but never a gull

Chichaff(6),Goldfinch(24),Bullfinch(6),Nuthatch(2),Goldcrest(4),Peregrine(2),Buzzard(1),Song Thrush(1),Blackbird(3),Wren(3),Great Tit(16),Blue Tit(22),Coal Tit(4), Stonechat(5),Meadow Pipit(4), Mallard(7), Jay(1), Chaffinch(9), Great Spotter Woodpecker(1), Blackcap(3), Red Kite(6),Robin(21)

C. 500 Canada Geese by Portobello and downstream yesterday afternoon.

Had a good search at Dunraven Bay, Witches Point, couldn’t find the Wryneck, again!

Thanks to all who came along on today’s GBC field trip to Collister Pill. In total we saw 43 species. Raptors were the highlight, with Peregrine, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk and Buzzard all putting in an appearance. Plenty of ducks just offshore, including Pintail, Wigeon and Shelduck. Waders proved elusive though Curlew and Black-tailed Godwit were seen. Over 20 Little Egret were on the saltmarsh, and a Wheatear was just behind the sea wall.

Full species list:
Peregrine, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Curlew, Black-tailed Godwit, Pintail, Wigeon, Shelduck, Mallard, Black-headed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Chiffchaff, Stonechat, Wheatear, Linnet, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Song Thrush, Blackbird, Robin, Starling, House Sparrow, Dunnock, Wren, Swallow, House Martin, Sand Martin, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Meadow Pipit, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Skylark, Pied Wagtail, Cormorant.

3 Stonechats

Single Whinchat.

Pretty quiet walk around the Pool and up to the Prince of Wales mid afternoon, the highlight was two female Pintail with a Teal feeding on the east pool shore (record shot below).

A Wryneck showed well for five minutes at the small car parking area of Pant Cwmteri at 1510 this afternoon, perched in the open and being closely investigated by a Robin.  Seen again at 1615 but only in flight. Mirroring the Dunraven/Witches sightings, could this be the same bird that NPR found further up the valley on the 28th August and eluded us on regular visits over the past three weeks? Who knows but always a pleasure to watch.

 

Brood of three almost fully fledged Swallows being fed by adults, Canton (Paper Mill Road).

This afternoon’s low tide exposed plenty of mud at Cadoxton River mouth/Bendrick Rock. Birds included 2 Grey Plover (first I’ve seen here since March), 1 adult Mediterranean Gull, 1 Little Egret, 6 Turnstone, 5 Oystercatcher, 10 Ringed Plover and 3 Rock Pipit.

On this morning’s high tide at Sully Island there were 111 Oystercatcher and 11 Curlew.

Early morning walk produced a nice variety as follows. House Martin (120),Green Woodpecker(2),Great Spotted Woodpecker(1), Red Kite(5),Buzzard(2),Chiffchaff(9),Blackcap(1),Raven(4),Grey Wagtail(1), Bullfinch(3),Blue Tit(16), Coal Tit(5),Great Tit(15), Long Tail Tit(6),Goldcrest(6),Song Thrush(2),Blackbird(6), Robin(17),Dunnock(12), Mistle Thrush(2), Goldfinch(7),Jay(1), Stonechat(1)

11.50am. A wryneck was in bushes on the south-facing seaward side of Trwyn y Witch (SS886726). Presumably the same bird seen recently at nearby Dunraven.

Julian Swan just telephoned me to report a Wryneck in Grangemoor Park along the middle path facing the retail park. Also 2 Whinchat and 2 Stonechat.

2 Lapland buntings . 1 out , just past the mound with the meadow pipits, the other, on the  way back alongside the track. approx. 80+ linnet , 40 + meadow pipit, 14 skylark, 6 wheatear. waders still too far out.

earlier this week, Otter with flounder for breakie south of Loughor bridge Wed am plus Juv Osprey heading south .

On the negative, dead Manx shearwater on the Penclawdd road, must have blown in and hit a vehicle…couldn’t let such a great pelagic bird end up 2D on the road, so , sent it to Davy Jones’s locker off Pont y Cob bridge.p.s ……after looking at most of the photos, a lot not good. 2 of the most confiding bird, first bird heard calling not long before seeing this one