'Spring, Summer, Autumn'

Swannery birding highlights of the week...

Monday 3rd to Sunday 9th June 2013.......

Summary...

I borrowed the title of this week's post from a Jake Fluckery (alias Paul Weller), Style Council song as I think it's rather apt... a few late spring migrants are still arriving, summer-moult movements are in full swing and post breeding dispersal is already well underway...all this and the May (Hawthorn) is still in full bloom!

Bird of the week was an Arctic Tern around the tern island on Monday and Tuesday...



Arctic Tern, off Bum Point, Monday.



Arctic Tern, off Bum Point, Tuesday, in better light!

It has a slight dark tip to the bill and the one tail streamer present is not as long as might be expected. However it called like an Arctic and the rest of its plumage and its jizz seemed fine so although a mixed pair have produced hybrid young at nearby Lodmoor RSPB I think this is pure paradisaea!



Wildfowl...

Much as last week really...the Feral Goose flock still occasionally held the Bar-headed Goose and the Barnacle Goose, whilst less expected ducks (for the time of year) included at least six Gadwall, four Teal, seven Shoveler and several Pochard.

 

Waders...

Both pairs of Oystercatchers now have young but migrant shorebirds (heading both north and south?) included a peak of twenty-five Ringed Plovers and two Bar-tailed Godwits on Monday; the first returning Lapwing arrived on Wednesday along with a Greenshank; a Redshank was seen on Thursday; twelve Dunlins on Friday and eight Sanderlings today.

Ringed Plover, Bum Point, Tuesday.

Apart from the twenty-five that flew through on Monday there were between one and three settled birds on several other days. Now I'd like to think that the migrating flock were northern tundrae but the lingering birds, like the one above, didn't particularly look small, slim and dark and so are probably just nominate hiaticula?



The returning Lapwing 'flock' had grown to three by today.

Gulls & Terns...

Along with the more expected first summer Black-headed Gulls there are now many adults arriving too (presumably failed breeders) and associated with this arrival were two adult Mediterranean Gulls. These stunning birds were seen intermittently in the week and were joined by a first summer at the weekend but another unseasonal Common Gull was the only 'white-headed Gull' of any note. Meanwhile the nesting Common Terns not only drew in the aforementioned Arctic Tern but almost as scarce here these days... a Little Tern, plus of course a few more expected  Sandwich Terns.




The first summer Mediterranean Gull. Unfortunately the adults were not so obliging!

This Common Tern appears to be a second summer, which...

                                                          ...like first summers, are supposed to rarely stray this far north! 

Raptors...

A Kestrel hawking for flying insects on Thursday instantly drew my attention as this behaviour is more associated with 'Lesser' than it is 'Common'. It proved to be an adult male however and with no grey in the wings was clearly the latter. Not all was lost however as it was then joined by my first Hobby of the year! Unfortunately though there was again no sign of either of the Marsh Harriers.

Passerines...

The only signs of passage were another Spotted Flycatcher and a few Swallows (and Swifts), House Martins and a lone Sand Martin flying through. The latter quite possibly being a dispersing post-breeder rather than a late arrival.

Other Wildlife...



Beautiful Demoiselle this week. The first male of the year.
This species and Azure Damselfly are still the only two odonata on the wing here so far.