PLODDINGBIRDER: Water Spout!

Monday 4 August 2014

Water Spout!

First thing this morning I met AJG by the Power station car park. On the way to the sea watch hide there were 3 Hummingbird Hawk Moths basking on the perimeter wall. From the hide we could see an angler at The Patch, so no Gulls on the beach but there were 3 juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls over the boil, among many Black-headed and Herring Gulls, but few Terns and nothing moving off shore apart from 2+Harbour Porpoises.

We looked in the Lighthouse Garden where a Common Redstart and Willow Warbler were recorded.

Whilst making our way towards The Desert a Water Spout developed off shore and touched down. We covered most of trapping area and the Long Pits, most of the birds were in southern half of the trapping area:

Willow Warbler: 70+

Common Whitethroat: 60+

Lesser Whitethroat: 1

Garden Warbler: 1

Reed Warbler: 9 (most probably resident)

Redstart: 1

Black Redstart: 2

Sparrowhawk: 2

Water Spout off The Point today

A quick stop at the southern end of the ARC found 3 Garganey among the eclipse duck there and 2 juvenile Marsh Harriers.

This afternoon I walked up to The Pines, surprisingly the bushes were devoid of birds. Overehead scores of Sand Martins were on the move and a Peregrine flew over flushing the birds on the islands. The Swallows in the Screen Hide have hatched there second brood and are busy feeding them.

From Hanson a Greenshank was new in, the Ruff was still there as were 2 Garganey, 4 Common Snipe and c150 Lapwing.

Late afternoon from Firth Hide 2 Wood Sandpipers, 2 Ruff, a Common Snipe and a juvenile Mediterranean Gull. From Makepiece 3 juvenile Mediterranean Gulls, juvenile Black Tern, Black-necked Grebe, a Black-tailed Godwit, a Dunlin, 2 Common Sandpipers and 2 Marsh Harriers. The Peninsular has been basking in hot glorious sunshine all day, while all around black threatening clouds have been dousing the surrounding area with heavy down pours.