'The Weather Outside Is Frightful And The Birding Is Less Than Delightful'

Swannery Birding Highlights Of The Week...

Monday 16th to Sunday 22nd December 2013...

This week continued to be mostly wet, windy and mild. Therefore conditions were far from those that are depicted in the current 'seasonal' image behind my blog title (that shot was actually taken in December 2010). If the weather changed little from the previous few weeks, as a consequence neither did the birds...
 

Waterfowl...

The only addition to last week's species tally was Brent Goose with five touching down briefly in the embayment on Monday...
 

A little bit of a novelty this far up The Fleet...the five Dark-bellied Brent Geese

The twelve Barnacle Geese of unknown origin were still in private fields between The Swannery and Rodden Hive to Thursday at least but have still not reappeared at The Swannery proper. Duck numbers remained basically the same regarding numbers and variety with the main highlight being the continued presence of all six (and a half) Scaup, although the first year male only re-joined the three adult drakes and two first year females today, after being missing since early the previous week. The hybrid adult female also continued to confuse the issue.



Pochard & Tufted Duck during yesterday's feed.

Fourteen of the thirty or so Pintails on meadow pool this week.

 

 

Shorebirds...

As with wildfowl there was little change this week to the numbers and variety of both waders and gulls, in fact the only real change was in the negative, with no sign of the Black-tailed Godwit that had been around the previous two weeks.

 

Landbirds...

Once again little change this week. A few Redwings were the first for a few weeks as was a Mistle Thrush, the latter living up to its alternative traditional colloquial name of Stormcock singing strongly into the teeth of a gale! Despite the presence of several Chiffchaffs there was again no sign of any of the eastern type birds present earlier in the season, while the unprecedented Reed Bunting roost mentioned a few weeks back has now either been much reduced or relocated to another part of the reed-bed.

 









In company with several Common Pheasants, both the adult male Lady Amherst's Pheasant and the immature male Golden Pheasant continue to visit my garden (adjacent to The Swannery), the latter being a bit more co-operative with the camera this week.



So, not a very eventful week, lets hope that Santa brings a seasonal avian gift or two next week!

 

Merry Xmas!