Well, we'll start off the week's round-up with some really exciting news of a good rarity.
A cracking rare bird was seen by one of our regular visitors at Freiston Shore on Friday afternoon. They are often down in the middle of the day as they work shifts at the local hospital. What is it? Well, it is a big building with patients, but that isn't important right now...
No, what is important is the identity of the bird, a red-rumped swallow! What is one of those? Well, you will all be familiar with our usual swallow. Red-rumped swallows are irregular visitors to the UK, usually after they have got lost on their migration. They winter in Africa, and breed in southern Europe. But sometimes they overshoot and wind up here. You have to have sharp eyes to spot one though, as they are just as small and agile as our own swallows. Here is one down on the ground.
(Photo by J.M. Garg via wikipedia)
Bit of a stunner, I'm sure you'll agree.
Some nice birds at Frampton a pair of garganey, possibly even two. Check out a video from another of our regular visitors https://twitter.com/PrecipiceNewton/status/721046969129508864
So, onto the sightings maps. Starting with Thursday:
There actually appears to be two blue-headed yellow wagtails, which is the continental form. One is much paler than the other.
As you can see, Wednesday was a really very good day!
Tuesday was a tad on the quiet side, but it was rather rainy so we didn't have too many visitors. The green sandpiper was first for the year.
The redstart was another nice spring migrant. That path down to the river mouth is really underwatched, and probably gets more birds than people realise. Ring ouzel and redstart this past week, and what was missed? The redwings were a surprise, winter is still here it seems!
And there you have it! Worth mentioning that Mediterranean gull numbers seem to have risen to 5 birds, with at least one being very faithful to the island right outside Reedbed Hide. So if you have never seen one or have trouble picking them out from black-headed gulls, now is your chance!
Reedbed, freshwater scrapes, saltmarsh and wet meadow. Frampton Marsh has it all! Come and pay us a visit soon.