Highlights...
There were no rarities this month but noteworthy sightings included singles of Long-tailed Duck, Curlew Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Roseate Tern and Black Tern.
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Roseate Tern, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell
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| Black Tern, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
The Month's Bird News In Full...
More details of the above highlights
and the rest of this month's sightings...
Fulvous Whistling Duck... Two very confiding obvious escapes arrived on the
24th and at least one was still present to the 28th. One
was found dead on the 29th however and presumably the other individual
had already suffered the same fate. This exotic species was last seen at The Swannery back in the 1980's when a pair of captive origin nested and hatched young.
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| Fulvous Whistling Duck, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
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| Fulvous Whistling Ducks, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Charlie Wheeler |
Canada Goose... Present throughout with 900 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. Several pairs nested.
Barnacle Goose... One that arrived on the 9th was then present
for the rest of the month.
Greylag Goose... One that arrived on the 9th was then
present for the rest of the month.
Black Swan… Two were present for much of the month.
Mute Swan... Present throughout with 765 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. 120 pairs nested.
Whooper Swan... A second calendar year was released at The Swannery
on the 5th having been in care for several weeks. It had originally arrived
at nearby Bride Valley Fish Farm on the 8th April and it had resided
there until the 12th May when it became entangled in netting,
resulting in several injuries. It was then taken to The Swannery for treatment
and after being rehabilitated it stayed throughout the month, although it also
visited nearby Rodden Hive...
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| Above three images the Whooper Swan (a 2nd calendar year), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Common Shelduck... Present throughout with 28 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. Several broods seen.
Mandarin Duck… Singles were seen on the 12th,
28th and 30th...
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| Mandarin Duck ('Eclipse' drake), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
Northern Shoveler… Early in the month
there were two on the 5th and one on the 10th. From the
22nd however there were regular sightings with a peak of six on the
27th...
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| Northern Shovelers, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
Gadwall... Up to three individuals were present from the
11th to the 15th, whilst two were seen on the 29th
and 30th.
Eurasian Wigeon... A single drake, presumably the bird present
throughout May, returned briefly on the 29th.
Mallard... Present throughout with 200 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. Many broods seen.
Northern Pintail... The female with wing damage remained all
month...
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| Northern Pintail (female), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Eurasian Teal... The lingering drake remained until at least
the 24th when it was joined by at least three others. Numbers then
slowly increased with at least 26 present on the 29th.
Common Pochard... Present throughout with 23 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th.
Tufted Duck... Present throughout with 30 counted during the Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th.
Long-tailed Duck... An unseasonable drake (presumably a second calendar
year) was present on the 7th and 8th...
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| Long-tailed Duck (1st? summer drake), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
Red-legged Partridge... One on the 8th.
Common Pheasant... Present
throughout. Several broods seen.
Little Grebe... Regular
from the 12th with a peak of three on the 28th.
Great Crested Grebe... Present throughout with 18 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th...
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| Great Crested Grebe, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Charlie Wheeler |
Grey Heron... Seen regularly with at least three present on
several dates.
Little Egret... Present throughout with eight counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th.
Great Cormorant... Present throughout with around 20 roosting nightly.
Western Osprey... One on the 9th.
Eurasian Sparrowhawk... Singles on the 11th, 19th and 26th.
Western Marsh Harrier... Singles were seen regularly.
Red Kite... Singles on the 4th and 7th.
Common Buzzard... Present throughout. A few pairs nested in the vicinity.
Common Moorhen... Present throughout. Several pairs nested.
Eurasian Coot... Present throughout with 115 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. Several pairs nested.
Eurasian Oystercatcher… Present throughout with a peak of 15 on the 17th which included three nesting pairs...
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| (Juvenile & adult) Eurasian Oystercatchers (with a 2nd calendar year Black-headed Gull & a Eurasian Coot), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Charlie Wheeler |
Northern Lapwing... The first two returning individuals arrived on the
5th and numbers then slowly rose through the month with at least 10
present by the 29th.
Grey Plover... One on the 8th.
Common Ringed Plover... One on the 2nd and at least two on the 9th.
Little Ringed Plover... Singles on the 22nd and 25th;
two on the 30th...
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| A well camouflaged Little Ringed Plover, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Whimbrel... One on the 4th.
Eurasian Curlew... Singles on the 17th and 29th.
Bar-tailed Godwit... One on the 4th and five on the 10th.
Black-tailed Godwit... Seen regularly with a peak of seven on the 4th.
All were of the Icelandic form...
Black-tailed Godwit... Seen regularly with a peak of seven on the 4th.
All were of the Icelandic form...
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Black-tailed Godwit (Icelandic juvenile), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell
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Ruddy Turnstone... Two on the 7th, three on the 9th
and one on the 13th.
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Two Ruddy Turnstones, two Sanderlings & a Dunlin, Abbotsbury Swannery,
June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
Curlew Sandpiper... One on the 28th...
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Curlew Sandpiper (Adult summer), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell
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Sanderling... Two on the 9th.
Dunlin... Seen regularly with a
peak of nine on the 2nd...
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Dunlin, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves
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Common Snipe... The first returning individual was seen on the 30th.
Common Sandpiper… The first returning individual was seen on the 7th and there were then regular sightings for the rest of the month with a peak of four on the 30th.
Green Sandpiper… The first two returning individuals were seen on
the 17th and there were then regular sightings of one or two for the
rest of the month...
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| Green Sandpiper, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Common Redshank... None were seen until the 20th but there were then regular sightings for the rest of
the month with a peak of six on the 22nd.
Wood Sandpiper... One was present on the 22nd/23rd...
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| Wood Sandpiper, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Black-legged Kittiwake…
An unseasonal second calendar year was
seen on the 8th.
Black-headed Gull... Present throughout with 53 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. Several pairs nested.
Mediterranean Gull... Seen regularly with a peak of at least six on the 21st...
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| Mediterranean Gull (2nd calendar year), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Common Gull (Mew Gull)... One on the 5th, two on the 8th
and one on the 26th.
Great Black-backed Gull... Present throughout with five counted during the Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th.
European Herring Gull... Present throughout with four counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th.
Sandwich Tern... Seen
regularly with a peak of at least four on the 21st.
Little Tern... The two on the 27th and the five on the
28th were the first since May 2017...
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Little Terns, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell
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Roseate Tern... One was seen on the 25th...
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| Roseate Tern, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
Common Tern... Present throughout with 180 counted during the
Wetland Bird Survey on the 17th. At least 50 pairs nested.
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Nesting Common Terns & Black-headed Gulls reacting
to the close proximity of a Great Black-backed Gull, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Charlie Wheeler |
Black Tern... One was seen on the 1st...
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| Black Tern, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Rock Dove... Feral/Domestic birds
were seen regularly.
Stock Dove... Seen regularly with
at least five seen on the 22nd.
Common Wood Pigeon... Present throughout. Several pairs nested.
Eurasian Collared Dove... Present throughout.
Western Barn Owl... There were regular sightings of single adults but a recently fledged juvenile was also seen on the 28th, so presumably a pair nested...
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| Western Barn Owl (juvenile), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Tawny Owl... One was heard on the 27th but it is
highly likely that there were some present throughout and at least one pair presumably nested.
Common Swift... Seen regularly with a peak of over 1,000 on the 5th.
Common Kingfisher... The first returning individual was seen on the 27th.
Common Kingfisher... The first returning individual was seen on the 27th.
Great Spotted Woodpecker... Seen regularly, with at least one pair nesting...
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Great Spotted Woodpecker, Abbotsbury Swannery,
June 2018 © Charlie Wheeler |
European Green Woodpecker... Seen regularly and presumably nested in the vicinity.
Common Kestrel... One or two were seen regularly and presumably nested in the vicinity.
Peregrine Falcon... Singles were seen on the 12th and 29th.
Eurasian Magpie... Present throughout and presumably nested in the vicinity.
Western Jackdaw... Present throughout and several pairs nested in the vicinity.
Rook... Present throughout and several pairs nested in the vicinity.
Carrion Crow... Present throughout and a few pairs nested in the vicinity.
Coal Tit... The first returning bird was seen on the 1st
and there were then regular sightings throughout the month.
Eurasian Blue Tit... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Great Tit... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Eurasian Skylark... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Sand Martin... The first returning birds were seen on the 21st
and there were then regular sightings, with a peak of 200 on the 28th.
Barn Swallow... Present throughout and a few pairs nested.
Common House Martin... Seen regularly, with a peak of over 100 on the 17th.
Cetti's Warbler... Present throughout and several nested.
Long-tailed Tit... Present throughout and at least one pair nested.
Common Chiffchaff... Present throughout and a several pairs nested.
Sedge Warbler... Present throughout and at least one pair nested.
Eurasian Reed Warbler... Present throughout and many pairs nested.
Eurasian Blackcap... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Lesser Whitethroat... Up to three singing males were heard regularly to
the 19th but not subsequently.
Common Whitethroat... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Goldcrest... Present throughout and at least one pair nested.
Eurasian Wren... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Eurasian Treecreeper... Present throughout and at least one pair nested.
Common Starling... Seen regularly from the 8th, with over
100 roosting nightly by the end of the month.
Common Blackbird... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Song Thrush... Present throughout and a few pairs nested.
Spotted Flycatcher... Singles were seen on the 5th, 6th
and 13th...
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| Spotted Flycatcher, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
European Robin... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
House Sparrow... Present throughout with several pairs nesting in the vicinity.
Dunnock... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Pied Wagtail (White Wagtail)... Present
throughout and at least one pair nested...
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| Pied Wagtail (juvenile), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
Common Chaffinch... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Eurasian Bullfinch... Seen or at least heard regularly and at least one pair nested.
European Greenfinch... At least one pair successfully nested. A welcome
return to form!
Common Linnet... Present throughout and several pairs nested in the vicinity.
European Goldfinch... Present throughout and several pairs nested.
Common Reed Bunting... Present throughout and several pairs nested...
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| Common Reed Bunting (male), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Steve Groves |
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| Common Reed Bunting (juvenile), Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Charlie Wheeler |
... And that's
it for this month except to say thanks to my work colleagues for additional
sightings and additional images, particularly Joe Stockwell and Charlie Wheeler
but also Kev Butler, Phil Jenks and Jonny White. Also thanks to the WeBS
counters ... Alan Barrett and Nick Urch.
I'll leave you with a few of Joe Stockwell's June 2018 dragonfly images from The Swannery...
I'll leave you with a few of Joe Stockwell's June 2018 dragonfly images from The Swannery...
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| Black-tailed Skimmer, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018 © Joe Stockwell |
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Above two images Golden-ringed Dragonfly, Abbotsbury Swannery, June 2018
© Joe Stockwell |
July's
sightings to follow shortly.
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