Is there anything finer than coming in to the warm on a cold and wet day, after being out seeing some incredible birds? Luckily in the Dearne Valley today, you could do both!
Here’s the summary from Old Moor…
In among the yellowing leaves of Old Moor’s Bird Garden, a grey wagtail has now become a regular sight. Cyril Turner managed to catch him mid-strut. Thanks Cyril.
Grey wagtail on a better day than today
Of course, there were plenty of wigeon about and, as luck would have it, John Wyles provided me with a photo of a pair from his visit on Sunday. Thanks John.
Wigeon from Wath Ings
It was also great to see the peregrine reported again today. Look for her on the ‘Reedbed pylon’ or – even easier – on one of the Mere’s posts as shown below.
But by far the biggest story of the day was a second chance for folks to see yesterday’s bean goose!
Of the four grey geese seen in the UK, the bean goose is probably one of the trickier ones to find. This means that having this bird around for two days (so far) is all the more special.
Today, the bean goose was seen first on a field near the Old Moor Tavern (Everill Gate Lane, Broomhill), between the River Dearne and the Dearne Valley Parkway. Later, it – and its four pink-footed traveling companions – joined a flock of two hundred of so greylag geese near Wombwell Ings. Watchers therefore had a rare chance to see three of those four grey geese at the same time.
Sadly, conditions were far from perfect today so to finish tonight’s blog, here’s a picture of the bean goose from yesterday. The big question of course is, will it be there tomorrow?
Until next time.
The remarkable 'tundra' bean goose