24 mute swan 28 tufted duck 6 pochard 24 Canada geese 3 male and 2 female goosander at the amenities tip were 31 magpies 50+starlings 250 black h gulls in the general area +est 150 herring gulls smaller numbers of lesser b b gulls and a few commons

Black Redstart ad.male and Chiffchaff passed through my garden this morning in Penarth Road/North Street at 11:10.

250+ oycs, good numbers of common,herring,bh gulls, 1 med gull

.. 2 lesser bb’s, 2 gc grebes, 2 bar tailed godwits, 1 knot, 1 redshank, flock of 20+ lotties.. And more b*****y dog walkers than you could count who all ask if there is anything rare you are watching while their mut is running amuck through the flock.. So frustrating

1-Great Grey Shrike perched on dead tree at the northern end of the north cleared area.

A flock of,at least 25 Crossbills in the pine trees just past the giant’s seat. Also a little later on,slightly nearer to the car park a flock of 19-Crossbills flew into the pine trees.These were probably birds from the bigger flock but maybe not as they seemed to fly in from a different direction.Perhaps someone else could check out the Crossbill numbers.

Great northern diver off the point actively foraging, 7 great crested grebe in the bay.

Scoter flock present, but distant and no count as a result.

16 Brent Geese were on the beach at the rivermouth by Aberthaw power station about two hours after low tide. At Barry Docks 2 Stonechat were on wasteground just beyond the eastern end of the Waterfront homes, and a Kestrel was on a streetlight nearby. On Sully Island a Shelduck (first I have seen here since last June) was with 30 Oystercatcher, and in Penarth Marina this afternoon a male Black Redstart was on the roof of a house in Plas Taliesin.

This is now on the Gower Ringing Group blog at:

http://gowerbirdringinggroup.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/oxwich-ringing-report-2015.html

A further more detailed report can be accessed by following the link in the summary (above).

An excellent year at Oxwich with almost 4,000 unique birds processed including large numbers of migrant warblers and finches.

A very showery Kenfig Pool this afternoon had 24 Gadwall, Great Black-backed and Common Gulls, a 1st winter drake Scaup, 90+ Tufted Duck, a pair of Goldeneye, 1 female Pochard, an overwintering Chiffchaff and several Great Crested Grebes.

A short seawatch this morning was enlivened by a Great Skua feasting on an unfortunate auk species between 0900 and 0930 after which it flew off down-channel. Also noted were 7 Red-throated Diver u/c, 3 Guillemot d/c, a Shag on the rocky shoreline and 4 Oystercatcher and 10 Turnstone up on the very wet lawns by the shelter. Later a quick check of Pwll-y-waun pool on the outskirts of Porthcawl yielded 3 Mute Swan, 2 pairs of Shoveler and a few Coot.

On Sully beach this afternoon (about 2 hours after high tide) 19 Curlew (switching to/from the playing fields when disturbed by walkers), 21 Oystercatcher, 3 Turnstone, 1 Dunlin, 3 Grey Plover and a Grey Wagtail.

This morning at Cosmeston, after the deluge, a Marsh Tit was with Blue and Great Tits and a Nuthatch roughly halfway through Cogan Wood. There were Pochard, Gadwall and 2 drake Teal on the West Lake, and a Green Woodpecker was feeding in the West Paddock.

5 Redpoll in alder, first I’ve seen here

1 adult little gull flew off toward Burry Holmes. A dead seal on the strand line, if left there, may hopefully draw in some wandering Glauc. etc if any make it down here.

A female blackcap in the garden this morning. The first of the winter.

Very quiet on the canal with 4 Moorhen a pair of Mallard and a single Kingfisher. On the walk up towards Glais a small mixed flock of tits,Blue, Great and Long Tailed. In the field next to the Mond works a mixed flock of Starling(22) and Redwing(55) along with circa 60 Pied Wagtail in a pre roost gathering. A couple of Mistle and Song Thrush in song-spring can’t be far off !

Pintail, Shelduck, Oystercatcher, Turnstone, Redshank, Curlew and Shoveler at Heliport Bay just before high tide on Saturday morning. Later in the Ogmore area, 30 Teal at the Watermill, Gadwall and Teal at Ploran Mawr, a drake Goosander, Curlew, Redshank and more Teal at Portobello, and downstream from Portobello at least 16 Goldeneye.

Near the entrance to Swansea docks 100+ linnets, on the flooded area by the bay campus 50+ herring gulls 4 black h gulls 2 great black b gulls and 2 pied wagtails
Tir John pond 2 little grebes 2 mute swan 4 mallard and 2 moorhen
Crumlyn bog 300 est gulls over the tip mostly herring and lesser b b gulls 80 jackdaws 10 carrion crows 1 Raven

Welcome to 2016!!! Many thanks to Alan Rosney, Graham Powell, Mike & Emma Cram, Steve Young, Laura Palmer, Neil Donaghy and Martyn Hnatiuk, who have already sent in their records for 2015 to me. If you are going to send in yours then it’s time to get your head down …. please 🙂 If you use BirdTrack there’s no need as I can download them from there, but make sure you’re up to date on there too. TIA John Wilson

PS if you use MapMate then make sure you’re up to date on that and sync with your hub ASAP.

At Cosmeston early morning a Marsh Tit, Nuthatch and Coal Tits in Cogan Wood, Shoveler, Pochard, Wigeon and Gadwall on the West Lake and Fieldfare, Redwing, Mistle and Song Thrush at the south end of the West Paddock. Late morning at Barry Waterfront the Mediterranean Gulls were still present along with a Common Sandpiper. On Sully Moors early afternoon there was a hunting Peregrine, a Little Egret, Water Rail, 11 Goldfinch on teasel and a Grey Wagtail on the Cadoxton River.

Not too many birds around this afternoon, due to both the wind and people, and nothing so exciting as my last post on here two years ago (!) but there were two Curlew below the old lifeboat house, plus quite a few Rock Pipits feeding in the stranded seaweed. Also 2 Oystercatcher and single Common and Great Black-backed Gulls. The seemingly regular Little Egret was there this morning.

Goosander almost always present between Llandaff North and Cardiff Bridge, but as they kept flying, the total could be anything from 3 (max. seen together) to 10. I’m guessing about 6-8.

c40 Redwing around Pontcanna Riding Stables.