In the light on-and-off spitting rain, some activity in the ‘snipe paddock’ this morning: 1 poss 2 Spotted Flycatchers, several imm Common Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Linnet, 1 Reed Bunting, Blue Tit & Great Tit. Pair of Bullfinch by back entrance to Cogan Wood and a single in the W paddock hedge. 1 Green Woodpecker in the Lower Dovcote meadow.

The first of some trial GBC field trips to locations where social distancing is feasible [as announced on the <Events><Field Trips> page, this one had 7 participants plus myself and Alan Rosney as leaders. We were lucky with the weather. Kidwelly provided a good selection of waders with Common and Green Sandpiper, a juv Ruff, several Greenshank, Dunlin, Ringed Plover and 2-300 Redshank. A couple of us saw a high fly-over Marsh Harrier being mobbed by a crow. At the old ‘harbour’ at Burry Port there were many Sandwich Terns with a few Common Terns amongst the huge flock of gulls on the beach, which included a good number of Mediterranean Gulls, all the ones we noticed being adults. Along the tideline there were 20 or so Sanderling, plus Ringed Plover and Dunlin. A successful first trial then, with a total of 46 species seen. A few photos below.

Best find in the soaring temps this morning was this Jersey Tiger moth on Hemp Agrimony by the upper end of Mile Road near the kissing gste into W paddock. The Black-tailed Skimmer was one of many by the ‘golf course’ shore of E lake. Graham Smith had seen Lesser Emperor there earlier too.

Too hot for serious birding at Cosmeston this morning. Whilst in the shade of the car park trees with our coffee I noticed this Wren which was hopping around in front of the parked cars, right in the open. At one point it spread its wings and ‘sunned’ for a short while but I wasn’t quick enough to get a shot. I did carefully get up and grab a few other shots and on looking at the pix it’s a very bedraggled individual. On the cam I thought it was a fledgling but on cropping on the laptop, in these shots you can see the almost bald head and throat, and the very poor state of the main feather tracts. It hopped around, sometimes going underneath the cars then flew up onto a tree by us and eventually entered the nest box. It stayed there for a few minutes and then suddenly exited and flew down into the bushy landscaping by the parking bays.

A tad late posting, but walked from E. Aberthaw round the front of the power station to W Aberthaw on Sat 8th. There was a nice breeze coming up the channel. At E. Aberthaw lagoon a pair of Mute Swans with 4 fully grown cygnets, several Coot, a Moorhen. On the power station buildings, about 400 Starlings, and in the grounds a flock of 250 resting Gulls, mostly Herring. A rather dusky looking male Pied Wag was on the beach [coal dust??]. On the shoreline pools, 2 Litte Egret and 2 Grey Heron, plus 30 Oystercatcher. A flock of c.20 Linnet were flitting around and by the Leys, and female Wheatear and a feeding flock of Goldfinch.

Not much birding today but 5, poss 7 Tufted Duck on E lake was a sure sign of early autumn. Of most interest was a large number of Autumn Lady’s Tresses orchids [40+] in and adjacent to E paddock. A Lesser Emperor dragonfly was at the N end of W lake but I did not check for that but it was seen.

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In the area between Garth Mountain and Coed y Bedw this evening there was a party of 6 or more spotted flycatchers hawking from the tops of the trees.

Local coastal sites this morning over high tide:

Cadoxton Rivermouth – Wheatear, Whimbrel, Ringed Plover, 2 Turnstone, 7 Oystercatcher, Rock Pipit

Barry Old Harbour – Wheatear, 2 adult Mediterranean Gull, 2 Whimbrel

Sully Island – 24 Ringed Plover, 2 Dunlin, 58 Oystercatcher, 2 Great Black-backed Gull, 7 Turnstone, Grey Heron

In our garden this afternoon, heard a Chiffchaff calling and then saw it briefly bathing in the bird bath. A couple of Swifts were flying high over.

6th Aug: 4 Common Whitethroat in bushes in the snipe paddock, 30 Linnet, 10 Goldfinch, and 3 Greenfinch in W paddock area, and 2 adult Little Grebes with the 1 small chick on W lake
7th Aug: 1 juv Common Whitethroat in bush by the Mile Road kissing gate into W paddock.

Tuesday morning 4th August Green Woodpecker flying North over M4 1 mile south of McArthur Glen.

This morning, over garden, 3 Buzzards and 2 Ravens uneasily sharing a thermal. Then, 2 short bursts of a Green Woodpecker calling and a GS Woodpecker on a nearby dead tree.

This afternoon on a cycle ride saw another Green Woodpecker flying near Llanfihangel and then, a mile north of Llanmaes, a Polecat ran across the road in front of me

A fem Blackcap was feeding on Elder Berries at the far end of W paddock this a.m., and 2 Common Whitethroat were there also. 2 Green Woodpeckers present [1 E paddock, 1 W paddock], and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was on a treetop near the dragonfly pond. 30 noisy Swallows flew over the lower dovecote field, heading towards the coast.

An immature Common Redstart was in bushes 50m beyond the dragonfly pond this morning. Calling incessantly and pretty shy but it did show at a distance and flew a short way. My first this year! Pic below cropped as much as poss.

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There was a fem Wheatear in E paddock this morning which then flushed and flew over the trees towards W paddock. The Little Grebe pair have at last got a chick on view – a single adult with a small chick was on W lake.

At least 2 Coal Tit,3 Great Tit and 2 Blue Tit (all recently fledged) feeding along the Hawthorn hedge by the railway track and 2 calling Bullfinches flying over. Also a Willow Warbler gave a short (half-hearted) burst of song.

pied flycatcher along the field fence line/hedgerow S of Garth Mtn and above Coed y Bedw

 

Already getting very crowded around the car park and E lake area by mid morning. There were 6 Goldfinch twittering near the still inaccessible dipping pond [boardwalk access still closed off], 6 Linnet in W paddock and another Goldfinch there, a pair of Bullfinch flushed a little beyond the dragonfly pond, a few Swallows around the Medieval Village, 6 Swift over the car park.

Working in Abercynon this morning it was great to see dozens of Sand Martins using as nests the weep holes in the stone retaining wall of Abercynon railway station. Some were no more than 6ft high from the pavement. I’ve seen similar use of weep holes in Pontypridd and Porth, whilst in Pontygwaith their using holes in a wall right next to a busy road.

4 Yellowhammers (heard), several Goldfinches, Linnets, Magpies, Woodpigeons, Collared Doves, 2 Chaffinches, pair of Bullfinches, single Stock Dove, 4 Blackbirds, 3 Wrens, several House Sparrows and Dunnocks, 6 Song Thrushes – 4 individals and 2 together (2 of the individuals obviously feeding young).

24 mistle thrush feeding in field next to garden this evening either side of 8.00pm.  Hadn’t been out to watch the adjacent field for a while due to poor weather but lovely sunny evening tonight at last. Began watching at 7.45 when 2 separate groups of 5 mistle thrush were ground feeding in the field. More and more arrived, all coming from the next fields to the south until by 8.00pm, there were an amazing 24 birds. The behaviour seems common to all of them in sweeping the grassland from south to north, almost in a single flock whilst sub-groups of around 5 birds seem apparent. I will take a look at same time tomorrow.

Also in the same field, 2 spotted flycatchers (amongst trees along boundary fence), single song thrush, blackbird and robin. The field is around 5 acres of rough pasture with marshy areas of reed and grazed by sheep. Seems to have become a hot spot for mistle thrush in an evening.