Brilliant views of a Bittern from the Wader Pool hide.The bird was in front of the hide for nearly two hours.12h15-14h10

highlight of brief walk this morning – 3 male Bullfinch by the W lake overlook and a couple of Redwing there, 4 Gadwall and 1 drake Pochard on W lake and about 100 Tufties in total. No sign of Lsr Scaup [gone back to Cardiff?]. Several Water Rail squealing in E lake reeds.

Had a message from Mike Le Ves Conte today. Anyone able to check it out?

“As of 12.00 hrs today.Tentatively identified GND on the north shore of the island in Aberdare
Park Lake.First spotted 10.30gmt yesterday (16 Dec) by myself and Peter Priddy (Park Ranger)”

Two Water Pipits this morning – one almost as far upstream as the river confluence; the other ranging around the lower estuary.

Also: adult Kittiwake at Portobello, 10 Little Grebes, 86 Teal, 12 Goldeneye, 5 Goosanders, 1 Little Egret and just 1 Purple Sandpiper.

 

I have been alerted to an unconfirmed report of a poss Great White Egret at Hendre Lake by “a local resident birder”. Not sure when this was but poss today or y’day.

The Lsr Scaup was back in CBWR yesterday with c.160 Tufted Duck but no sign of it today and only
c.40 Tufted Duck on the reserve with c.20 at Prospect Place and about another 20 in the Taff rivermouth. A Chiffchaff showed well in the riverside trees in Hamadryad Park and a Peregrine was perched on Penarth Head.

We rec’d a msg on our FB page just now. An obs thought they saw an Osprey on the wall of 1st house past the sewage wks. They supplied pix of which these are the best two. Looks like it’s prob a pale Buzzard to me. The pix are low res and won’t zoom in a lot.

3 little grebe and 1 grey plover were in the pill this afternoon,pretty unusual for this place.Spooked up from the saltmarsh were approx 350+ mainly wigeon from male birds flying around,and out into the gloom.they were roughly 500m+ on a line from  peclawdd chippy to loughor bridge-

fem. brambling in the back garden also.

4 Hawfinches this moring, possibly 5 at one point, in the same area as reported yesterday by GJJ/DJJ , feeding in the trees adjacent to the path.

The fulmar are back on the cliffs. There were 10 at Nash Point and 30 at Cwm Nash this morning

no sign of the mandarin… Apart from that all the usual suspects.. Mallard,teal.gadwall,little grebe,mute swans,calling cetti’s,moor hens

 

 

2 Bullfinch (1m,1f) in the alders on the north-west boundary.

A Barn Owl was hunting over rough ground just off Heol Hopcyn John at around 10pm.

6 Redwing in trees opposite our house this arvo.

Birding seems a bit quiet after Panama!

Kingfisher on E lake, just 1 drake Pochard with the Tufties, 2 Common Gull and 3 GCG were the highlights on a brief walk b4 the rain.

Lsr Scaup still present in CBWR with c.200+ Tufted Duck.
52 Common Gulls on the orange buoys at the barrage with 2 GBB Gulls. No sign of Bearded or Willow Tits this am.

Female mandarin apparently still present at Oxwich (per Nick Edwards of NRW).
Quick kick around Mumbles Hill this morning only resulted in 2 blackcap.
However, there appeared to be 2 divers well offshore from Knab Rock (too distant to speciate with bins and no time to get closer) – may be worth a look.
4 eider (3 fem 1 sub ad male) were present off the pier / Knab earlier this week, but were not present yesterday.

Out of county.Great excitement in the Zeiss hide today when a Grey Heron caught a large Water Vole no more than 20 metres away! After a short struggle the heron gave up and dropped the vole which made good its escape.