Highlight of this morning’s walk with the dog around Cosmeston was this male Sparrowhawk sitting in a tree in the snipe paddock [just beyond the dragonfly pond]. It was quite distant from me so these are big crops. I tried to stalk closer but it shot off and then settled in amongst the branches of another tree [see photo]. When it finally took off it flew right past me low over the high ground behind the dragonfly pond where I was standing. Very impressive. Other than that west lake held a pair of Shoveler and two Gadwall were also present. I didn’t check the Tufties for anything else. W paddock had 6 Mistle Thrush as I left.

On and off rain made for a wet walk today. All five thrush species were very active feeding on what berries they could find. On W lake a very distant duck was I’m pretty sure the Pochard x Tufted Duck hybrid that keeps reappearing. Cropped as much as poss record shot below. Best of all 2 Goldcrest were feeding in Ivy halfway along the mile road central path. One photo below of them both disappearing! One did eventually feed in one place for a short while, played peekaboo a couple of times then came into the open just long enough for me to grab some shots. I love the orange feet!

We had a Covid restricted walk to these three locations in the east of Cardiff, with just 7 participants. We had a good session, recording 60 species, the highlight undoubtedly being a Short-eared Owl, which we weren’t expecting, that flushed from very close from the foreshore where the Reen meets the sea wall. It flew along the shore westwards and we later relocated it on the west flank of the Lamby Way landfill. Other highlights included a Peregrine sitting up on an electricity pylon, a Kestrel on the landfill site, Lamby Lake had loafing gulls, Tufted Duck and Great Crested Grebes. Little Grebes were on the reen, and a Black Redstart was seen on foreshore rocks on the Great Wharf. 160 Pintail near the R. Rhymney mouth was a good count, with about 30 Shoveler with them. Waders comprised Curlew, Redshank, Dunlin, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, and Knot. Click here for a pdf of the full list.

16-Snipe this morning

The highlight was a Little Egret. This had been reported there for some time. It had the long ‘aigrettes’ breeding plumage feathers on its breast, which seems early. I couldn’t see it’s nape (it was in a tree).

6+ Mistle Thrushes were feeding on berries with a small no. of Redwings, a Song Thrush and many Blackbirds. Woodpigeons were also enjoying the crop. I was able to get close to a pair of Treecreepers, some Goldcrests and 2 Jays. There was a good selection of other typical park birds, including a GS Woodpecker.

The park used to be good for finches – always lots of chaffinches and greenfinches and, particularly in winter, several pairs of bullfinches. I looked hard for any finches, and, at the very end of my visit, I found 2 female Chaffinches (and that’s two more than on most recent visits). The park hasn’t changed. A sad decline.

Also AWOL there and from Fairwater Green or the nearby school buildings and fields were Black-headed Gulls. I’ve lived here for 25 years and there is always a winter flock of BHGs in the area, numbering around 20-25 on average. This year, I’ve only seen one or occasionally two here. On most days there are none. I hope this is just some very local phenomenon, but there was only one seen on a walk along the Taff last week.

WeBS count this morning at Green Point and Cardiff Heliport bay [week earlier than scheduled Webs due to unsuitable high tide time on 13th].

Green Pt [nice to meet John Aggleton there]: Redshank c.1000, Dunlin c.300, Shelduck 57, Shoveler 10, Teal 39 [mostly on river by Lamby Way], Pintail 6, GBB Gull 2 adults, Cormorant 4, Mallard 12.
Heliport bay: Pintail 60, Curlew 2, Shoveler 30, Oystercatcher 2, Shelduck 12.
The Redshank & Dunlin were initially on the east bank of the river mouth, not their usual spot along the shore and at the tip of Green Pt or just opposite. Something suddenly spooked them and although I wasn’t properly ready with the camera, I did manage a few flight shots.

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On Friday, a quick visit as I was due elsewhere at 12:30. The female Ring-necked Duck had returned from Cardoff Bay and was hiding under an overhanging tree on W lake. Winter thrushes were feeding on Hawthorn berries by the Mile Road and were fairly obliging for photographs, of which a few below.

Goosander 15 three of which were drakes, Kingfisher 1 Moorhen 6 Cormorant 2

100+ Redwing were around the W paddock hedge and adjacent ground this a.m., plus Fieldfare and Mistle Thrush. A Green Woodpecker was in a tree in W paddock hedge and there were at least 6 Greenfinch along there which was nice to see, plus the usual Goldfinches, and a single Stonechat. There was a Pochard wiht a few Tufties on E lake. The fem Ring-necked Duck seems to have gone back to Cardiff Bay, reported there on Twitter. Got round before thr rain came in!

Today I saw a surprising total of 5 Green Woodpeckers, 4 on the ground together in E paddock and another in W paddock. There were 6 Fieldfare resting in trees by the gate into W paddock, and on the high ground on the S side of W paddock central hedge there were around 50 Redwing feeding on the ground, and several Mistle Thrushes. A Heron was sitting on one of the posts in W lake bay and the fem Ring-necked Duck was in amongst the Tufties on W lake. Below, a Buzzard sitting up in an Alder near the car park yesterday, and also from yesterday, an obliging festive Robin by the path near the golf course, by E lake.

Several Fieldfare were feeding on berries in trees by the central W lake viewpoint along Mile Road this morning. A fem Goldeneye was in with the Tufted Duck flock there, and a lone Teal was hiding in under the edge of the trees by the W lake reed bed.

Have received news that 2 birders walked out in the marsh at Llanridian yesterday, to the harrier roost. This is totally unnecessary as the birds can be seen well from the road. Sincerely hope they weren’t GBC members.

Coastal path walk to the Pill 20+ Teal, 6Egrets,4 Curlew, 2Greenfinch, 6+Reed Buntings,6+Greenshanks, 1Kestrel, 1 Tufted Duck, 2Gadwall, 8+Stonechat.

Nice to have some sunshine yesterday. I was really surprised to see a bat hawking around the garden in bright sunshine at 1.30pm. Watched it for about 20 minutes. Used to seeing them around the house and garden at dusk but can’t remember watching one in the middle of the day before. Pretty impossible to capture on camera given speed of movement but blurry crop below under excuse of record shot. Seems bizarre against a blue sky.

Aside from the bat, red kite, 3 buzzard, raven, carrion crow jackdaw, magpie, jay, 20 redwing ground feeding in paddock with green woodpecker, blackbirds and goldfinch, bullfinch, robin, dunnock, wren, chaffinch, blue tit, great tit, coal tit, long tailed tit, nuthatch, treecreeper, 2 goldcrest, grey wagtail, house sparrow, herring gull

Pretty quiet. There were 30+ Redwing feeding in E paddock and 3 Jays in the adjacent wood behind the play park. I didn’t check the wildfowl for the fem Ring-necked Duck.

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I was talking to one of the site operators at Maerdy works this morning and we got onto the subject of birds, as you do, and he told me about this large bird of prey that landed here back in the summer( Here are the pics his colleague took). Neither of them thought it to be a Buzzard, it looked larger if anything. My first thought was immature Goshawk but the supercilium is a bit indistinct and the feathers on its wings look a little uniform in colour. Incidentally this is the exact location where I found a predated red legged Partridge last May. Any ideas?

20-Snipe this morning,all but three on south side of the island.

This afternoon, 28 Curlew feeding in field between Zigzag lane and A4106 just outside Newton, Porthcawl.

From this morning, a couple of the best photos I managed of the Ring-necked Duck – they’re very grainy due to big crops and the really dismal light. Also a couple of Mistle Thrushes and a Redwing near W paddock.

All 5 thrushes this morning in the W paddock area. 2 Sparrowhawks hunting along hedgerows, 1 in W paddock and 1 beyond dragonfly pond. Also the imm fem Ring-necked Duck with Tufties on W lake and 1 fem Teal. R-n Duck pix later.