Highlights...
A drake Green-winged Teal was glimpsed briefly amongst an influx of (Eurasian) Teal on the 2nd but it was not seen again.
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I didn't manage to get a photo of this month's Green-winged Teal so above is a record shot of last winter's bird. In fact it could potentially be the same returning individual. Note the white vertical stripe on the fore-flank that is lacking on the accompanying (Eurasian) Teal |
There were no other rare vagrants, scarce migrants or 'Swannery first's' this month so it's on with the rest of the news...
Waterfowl...
The two first winter Long-tailed Ducks reappeared on the 10th and were then, in contrast to last month, seen almost daily. Scaup sightings continued to be erratic at the beginning of the month but by the 19th all five (the adult drake, adult duck and three first winter ducks) had reunited and then lingered to the month's end. The regular hybrid duck Scaup x Tufted Duck also reappeared and was often misidentified as a pure Scaup.
Although none were seen at The Swannery the regular flock of (wild?) Barnacle Geese reappeared at nearby Rodden Hive again this winter with twenty-four there in mid-December. Only two remained by mid-January though and these were seen between Rodden Hive Point and The Swannery on the 17th (though they still didn't make it to The Swannery recording area).
In addition to the three species mentioned above the peak counts of the commoner wildfowl were:
Although none were seen at The Swannery the regular flock of (wild?) Barnacle Geese reappeared at nearby Rodden Hive again this winter with twenty-four there in mid-December. Only two remained by mid-January though and these were seen between Rodden Hive Point and The Swannery on the 17th (though they still didn't make it to The Swannery recording area).
In addition to the three species mentioned above the peak counts of the commoner wildfowl were:
Mute Swan 640;
Black Swan 2;
Canada Goose 70;
Brent Goose 3;
Shelduck 40;
Wigeon 10;
Gadwall 4;
Teal 800;
Mallard 370;
Pintail 4;
Shoveler 100;
Pochard 450;
Tufted Duck 200;
Goldeneye 6;
Red-breasted Merganser 2o.
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| Drake Common Teal |
Other Water Birds...
A Gannet was a surprise find among the swans on the 26th...
Although common off the seaward side of The Chesil Bank Gannets are only just about annual at The Swannery with most of the records involving birds either oiled or entangled in fishing gear. This individual however showed no obvious signs of 'contamination' but was clearly unwell. Still present the following day it avoided any attempts to take it into care and was unfortunately found dead on the 28th...
Equally unusual in the shallow waters of the Swannery Embayment was a Shag present briefly on the 2nd; while what was presumably the same Black-necked Grebe seen just to the south-east of The Swannery last month, made it into the recording area proper this month, being seen on the 7th and 16th.
Peak counts of the commoner species were:
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| Spot the odd-one-out! The Gannet among the Mute Swans |
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| The Adult Gannet in The Swannery grounds |
Equally unusual in the shallow waters of the Swannery Embayment was a Shag present briefly on the 2nd; while what was presumably the same Black-necked Grebe seen just to the south-east of The Swannery last month, made it into the recording area proper this month, being seen on the 7th and 16th.
Peak counts of the commoner species were:
Cormorant 8;
Little Egret 7;
Grey Heron 1;
Little Grebe 20;
Great Crested Grebe 10;
Little Egret 7;
Grey Heron 1;
Little Grebe 20;
Great Crested Grebe 10;
Moorhen 20:
Coot 240.
Coot 240.
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| A snoozing Great Crested Grebe |
In addition, although not seen, Water Rails were regularly heard.
Waders...
A Ringed Plover on the 16th was the first since September but there were no other surprises and peak counts of the only other species seen were:Oystercatcher 3;
Lapwing 500;
Dunlin 1;
Snipe 30;
Redshank 3.
Gulls...
The highlight was a record count of seven-hundred Mediterranean Gulls in The Swannery Embayment on the 24th. Back in the 1980's and 90's a count of seven was considered a good number! Peak counts of the other species seen were:
Black-headed Gull 200;
Common Gull 600;
Lesser Black-backed Gull 5;
Herring Gull 60;
Great Black-backed Gull 7;
Black-headed Gull 200;
Common Gull 600;
Lesser Black-backed Gull 5;
Herring Gull 60;
Great Black-backed Gull 7;
Raptors...
After there were no sightings last month there was a return to recent form for Marsh Harrier with regular sightings of an immature bird and one sighting of the local resident adult male. In addition there was only one Peregrine sighting and no sightings of Tawny Owls but they were presumably present. The following three species though were noted regularly:
Sparrowhawk,
Buzzard,
Kestrel.
Sparrowhawk,
Buzzard,
Kestrel.
Other Non-Passerines...
There were no noteworthy sightings but the following species were noted in varying numbers:Pheasant,
Feral/Domestic Pigeon,
Stock Dove,
Wood Pigeon,
Kingfisher,
Green Woodpecker,
Great Spotted Woodpecker.
Passerines...
Over-wintering warblers included a male Blackcap on the 14th, along with regular single Common Chiffchaffs and several Cetti's Warblers. The only 'winter thrushes' were two Fieldfares on the 17th.Other species noted in varying but unremarkable numbers were:
Goldcrest,
Magpie,
Jackdaw,
Rook,
Carrion Crow,
Raven,
Blue Tit,
Great Tit,
Coal Tit,
Sky Lark,
Long-tailed Tit,
Treecreeper,
Wren,
Starling,
Blackbird,
Song Thrush,
Mistle Thrush,
Robin,
Stonechat,
House Sparrow,
Dunnock,
Grey Wagtail,
Pied Wagtail,
Meadow Pipit,
Chaffinch,
Greenfinch,
Goldfinch,
Linnet,
Bullfinch,
Reed Bunting.
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| A recent view from 'Helen Hide' looking east |
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