A principally dry week with slight to average
westerly and northwesterly winds.
Beginning
with wildfowl, seven Mallard ducklings
have been seen on Barton Pond on the sixth solely. Sadly with the variety of Herring Gulls, Crows and Ravens many
ducklings don’t survive. Teal have
been recorded on a lot of events at Pondsbury suggesting one other breeding
try this 12 months. An grownup Shelduck was
seen on the ocean off Mouse Island on the morning of the 4th. It was then seen
once more because it flew excessive across the Touchdown Bay and off to the south.
The one Swifts of the week have been three singles
on the seventh. A male Cuckoo was heard
singing on the 2nd and sixth after which seen flying round Pondsbury within the eighth. A Water Rail was heard calling at Pondsbury on the night of the seventh. A
variety of Collared Doves have been seen over the week with a
most rely of 4 on the third.
There was
good wader passage throughout the week with Whimbrels
logged on the 2nd, third, seventh and eighth. 4 Dunlin
have been seen on the 2nd in addition to a Greenshank
which was first seen on the Pond exterior Brambles. The Greenshank was repeatedly seen as much as the seventh in Barton Area and
was joined by a Bar-tailed Godwit on
the 4th. After the Greenshank left
the Bar-tailed Godwit was seen in
the moist space within the west of Excessive Road Area with a Whimbrel on the eighth. A Frequent
Sandpiper was heard flying over the
Tavern at round midnight on the 2nd.
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| Bar-tailed Godwit, Barton Area © Rosie Ellis |
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| Greenshank, Barton Area © Rosie Ellis |
Just a few birds
of prey have been famous with a Sparrowhawk
on the third and a Purple Kite toured the
island on the eighth. The very best hen of the week is a Hooded Crow that was seen by the
Seabird Assistant Laura
Pirateque and Assistant Ranger Rachel Bedwin in Lighthouse Area.
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| Purple Kite, East Coast © Stuart Cossey |
The hirundine
passage various all through the week with an estimated 4000 Swallows on the 2nd dropping off to 30 to 40 on the seventh and eighth.
Low numbers of Sand Martins and Home Martins have been seen
with max counts on the 4th of 16 and 21 respectively.
Willow Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff
numbers are slowly dropping as most birds are actually on breeding territory and no
longer migrating via the island. The third was the most effective day with 20 Willow Warblers, 10 Chiffchaff,
15 Sedge Warbler, two Reed Warbler, two Grasshopper Warbler, 30 Blackcap, a Backyard Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat and two Frequent
Whitethroat. Two Reed Warbler have been additionally current on the 2nd in addition to two Grasshopper Warbler. Backyard Warblers have been seen on the seventh and eighth
and Lesser Whitethroat have been additionally recorded on the 2nd and eighth. Additionally of curiosity
was a late feminine Firecrest that was
ringed in Millcombe on the seventh.
Noticed Flycatchers have been solely seen within the first a part of the week with one
on the 2nd and 5 on the third. A male Whinchat
was seen alongside the Higher East path on the eighth. Stonechats are busy feeding chicks all throughout the island with an
estimated 10 pairs. A Gray Wagtail was seen down within the Touchdown
Bay on the eighth. Alba Wagtails nonetheless appear to be on the transfer with a complete of
seven Pied Wagtails on the 4th and a White
Wagtail seen on the seventh and eighth in
Barton Area.
Most finches
look like paired up with at the least two pairs of Chaffinch in Millcombe. Goldfinch
counts are nonetheless fluctuating with a excessive rely of 25 on the 4th, although
often eight are in Millcombe. Two Siskin
have been seen on the 2nd and a single male was current on the 4th. Linnets are breeding in good numbers
throughout the island, nevertheless flocks are nonetheless being seen with max counts of
virtually 60 on the 4th, seventh and eighth. A feminine Hawfinch was ringed in Millcombe on the 2nd after which retrapped on
the third after it had placed on 2g weight. That is most likely a hen that has spent
the winter within the UK and will probably be heading again to Europe to breed.
The feminine Snow Bunting that was first seen on the
1st by Quarter Wall was current as much as the eighth however was cellular. It was steadily
by Quarter Wall but additionally seen by the Outdated Hospital and up in the direction of Midway Wall.
Contributors:
S Cossey, C Dee, R Ellis, Z Wait, L Pirateque, R Duncan, D Kiatley, J Dunning