One Blackcap feeding on fat balls on our garden feeders this morning

Two blackcap and a chiffchaff yesterday among 32 captured on the marsh.  More here: http://gowerbirdringinggroup.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/13-december-2014-few-redwings-and.html

A shag and a very distant raft of common scoter in the bay (no count made).  48 gadwall and 2 shoveler now on the South Pond, which has had a lot of rush clearance done and is now easier to count.

Good views of a large flock of Golden Plover on the rocks this PM, counted at least 500 birds.

The bay was again quiet apart from 3 distant flying RT diver. Only several common scoter on the water. 6 grey geese sp. fly by the cliffs and out toward the worm, before being joined by 2 cormorant( approx same size) , and then came back in and headed east along the coast. Through the bins, caught a couple of the birds whose bills looked smallish and relatively dark. Not big orange hooter of grey lag. I haven’t got much detail of upper parts , only at distance going toward sun. They only called a couple of times, not the harsh honk of grey lag, so on probability, prob grey lag seen awkwardly, but may? Be pink foots.
A red kite was quartering low over the fields putting most birds up. Seemed to be same numbers as recent.
At Overton, only 3 woodlark seen, so , in all likelihood by GCSE maths, 6-3 gives 3 which were prob there last week, not 6…I was duped!
Over and out

100+ golden plover flying across valley this afternoon

brief visit to see if my back was up to birding! Ad Yellow-legged Gull was sitting on E lake plus 1 ad Common Gull, and c.150 Tufted Ducks. Didn’t do a circuit so that’s it! Back seems OK.

With Alun John.

Great northern diver flew into the bay, landed, then flew out again.  Lots of auk movement predominantly west, but generally distant.  Kitts, common scoter (7 & 3) and a single adult gannet also west.

Lisvane: 23 pochards and 2 common gulls were the more notable counts on the reservoir. Nearby, a wintering chiffchaff (heard occasionally for several weeks now) finally showed itself to be a typical collybita-type individual.

Roath Park Lake: 1 little egret, 1 sub-ad yellow-legged gull, 3 common gulls, 1 shoveller and 2 teal.

2 great northern divers close in to shore this morning off the Oxwich Bay Hotel.

2 eider further offshore

NRW have now cut the islands and some of the edge around the South Pond.  This means that it is now possible to get reasonably confident waterfowl counts again.  Today 41 gadwall (quite a good count for the site I think), 11 moorhen and  few mallard and shoveler were present.

Checked out the Little Egrets leaving the roost this morning.Only 21 Egrets compared to 31 last month.07h25-07h55.

Lol Middleton and myself managed to find what looks like a Caspian Gull on the East lake this morning. Photos at

http://andyburnsphotography.zenfolio.com/uid2/h4d196d#h4d196d

It was only when I was sorting the photos out this evening that we realised it wasn’t a first winter YLG but a first winter Caspian.

The guys on UK Gulls seem to support this identification from the photos. Anyone agree?

See you all down there in the morning!!!

Yesterday morning a single Lapwing flew over and landed amongst the gulls at the far end of the reserve from the boardwalk behind the island of reeds.

Apologies for non sighting entry.

6 years 2007 – 2012 complete, vgc, free to anyone interested. Swansea area. Please email me with your contact details – barwad@fsmail.net

Apologies for the non-sighting.

Is anyone able to tell me where the ‘usual spot’ is for these please?  I tried for them this morning on the rocks between the wooden gate, and approx. 60m East where there is a little bay, but no luck.  I know they will not always be present, or in sight, but it would be good to know I’m at least looking in the right place.

Many thanks,

Chris

Had three of the woodlark reported by Chris Brewer earlier at Overton.

In the adjacent field there is a large flock of chaffinch (40+), with a few reed bunting, a lot of dunnock (10+) etc.  No sign of rosefinch among them, but flock mobile.

3 red-throated diver west past Sedger’s Bank.  Couldn’t find any purps, but tide not ideal for finding/counting waders.

11 little egrets 1 little grebe 4 redshank 10 curlew and a kingfisher

Upper loughor first thing a.m 125 lapwing, 2 greenshamk
Overton, prob 6 woodlark, 3 flew off while just starting to scan the first field. I didn’t see any birds fly back into the field, and was watching a further 2 on the ground. There were good intermittent views, but not easy to get any decent photos. A kestrel then flew low over and flushed most species from that area, of which a further 3 woodlark flew off in the same direction as the first lot. Applying my GCSE maths, that should be 6(unless the orig. 3 snuck back in)
Elsewhere, common cliff, approx 65 mead pipit, 8 rock pipit, 3 snipe, red kite and peregrine
Pen clawed pill, 2 greenshamk
Llanrhidian at dusky, ringtail hen harrier and 2 GW egret

Waterfowl numbers building on the marsh (although this may be due to disturbance as a result of shooting on the Penrice Estate).  31 greylag geese and 24 gadwall this morning, plus small numbers of shoveler.

Ringing resulted in 48 birds captured including a snipe, and a blackbird with very odd moult.  More here: http://gowerbirdringinggroup.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/oxwich-marsh-6-december-2014-more.html

6 Black Redstarts still showing well this lunchtime (2m 4 f) along the length of Penarth Marina. In CBWR 2 Kingfishers and 2 Water Rail showing well, 3 Teal, 1 Stonechat. The Lsr Scaup still not seen.

highlights this morning – at least 8 Common Snipe in the snipe paddock, ad Yellow-legged Gull on E lake and Common Gull on W lake posts. Sparrowhawk over.