Recent sightings from 03 to 09 February 2020
There was a lot of activity at RSPB Newport Wetlands this week, although not all of it was directly wildlife related. Natural Resources Wales was carrying out some reed cutting which did cause some short-term disruption but will have positive effects in the long run as the reedbeds need to be managed to maintain a diverse habitat which will give the best conditions to many rare species. Despite the work carried out in the lagoons there have been some great sightings. The otter was seen on Monday and on Wednesday morning from the hide. A good number of gadwalls were on the lagoons alongside some tufted ducks, little grebes and pochards. In windier conditions the gadwalls were once again attracted to the scrape in front of the café where the little grebe was present throughout the week as well. From a distance the gadwall might not look like the most attractive bird, but when you get close up-views then especially the males reveal rather intricate and elegant patterns which make it well worth a second look! Song thrush and bullfinch remained regulars around the visitor centre and could be heard and seen on a daily basis. A surprise visitor was seen flying over the scrape from the café on Friday morning when a female hen harrier ensured an exciting start into the day. The green woodpecker could be heard “laughing” on Thursday whilst stonechats were a common sight in the reedbeds and along the coast path. There were still a decent number of fieldfares with some redwings around on the fields. On Wednesday, not only goldcrest and chiffchaff were recorded but the bittern was spotted flying over the reedbeds as well. The same day turnstone and ringed plover – which was also spotted on Friday – could be added to the list of waders present on the saltmarshes and mudflats. As in previous weeks, there were also once again good numbers of curlew, dunlin, lapwing and redshank with some black-tailed godwits and grey plovers mixed in. Marsh harriers were spotted as well and flocks of linnets and the odd singing skylark added even more life to the saltmarshes. An often overlooked and underrated family of birds are the gulls. Whilst black-headed gull, herring gull and lesser black-backed gull are seen on a regular basis at the wetlands, the big great black-backed gull and the common gull are rarer sighting on the reserve but were both seen on Wednesday. Goldcliff lagoons proved to be a reliable spot to see the glossy ibis and the black-necked grebe, but also the female goldeneyes, the pintail and the peregrine have been around for quite a while now. Knot, snipe and siskin were other noteworthy sightings from Goldcliff where big numbers of teal and especially of wigeon (several hundreds) have been counted. Avocets and grey plovers were highlights on the foreshore from Goldcliff. The week definitely wasn’t free from some quite extreme weather. Storm Ciara caused a wash-out ending to the week on Sunday but before that we also enjoyed some sunny and rather warm days and on Wednesday a red admiral added some colour, beauty and just a hint of summer to an early February day.
There are still some last-minutes spaces available on our Wetland and Estuary Waders Guided Walk on 15th February. We will have a closer look at the birds on the mudflats and saltmarshes and will most likely see species such as curlew, dunlin, redshank and lapwing. The Big Bird Box Build will take place during February half term on Monday 17th, Wednesday 19th and Friday 21st February. Come along and build your own nest box to let the RSPB’s motto “giving nature a home” become reality. Our Pond Species ID Guided Workshop on Sunday 8th March is aimed at adults and allows you an insight in an otherwise often hidden world. On 28th March we want to welcome the first of the migratory birds back during our Spring Birdwatching Walk. Details of all our events can be found on our website: https://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/reserves-a-z/newport-wetlands/
Avocet, Bittern, Blackbird, Black-headed gull, Black-necked grebe, Black-tailed godwit, Blue tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Canada goose, Carrion crow, Cetti's warbler, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Collared dove, Common gull, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Fieldfare, Gadwall, Glossy ibis, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Great black-backed gull, Great spotted woodpecker, Great tit, Green woodpecker, Greenfinch, Grey heron, Grey plover, Greylag goose, Hen harrier, Herring gull, House sparrow, Jay, Kestrel, Knot, Lapwing, Lesser black-backed gull, Linnet, Little grebe, Long-tailed tit, Magpie, Mallard, Marsh harrier, Moorhen, Mute swan, Oystercatcher, Peregrine, Pheasant, Pied wagtail, Pintail, Pochard, Raven, Redshank, Redwing, Reed bunting, Ringed plover, Robin, Shelduck, Shoveler, Siskin, Skylark, Snipe, Song thrush, Starling, Stonechat, Teal, Tufted duck, Turnstone, Water rail, Wigeon, Woodpigeon and Wren.
Please note that we take our recent sightings list from the visitor sightings board that anyone can contribute to. This is great as everyone can get involved, but obviously can lead to potential errors too as they aren’t always verified! We try to keep this list as accurate as possible but if you see something unusual feel free to comment here!
Photo credit: Gadwall by Stefan Zitzmann