Recent sightings from 08 to 14 April 2019
After a rainy start into the week things started to brighten up from Wednesday onwards and with that came some more arrivals. Most notably a Grasshopper warbler and a Common whitethroat were recorded for the first time this year on Saturday, and Friday brought the first Speckled wood butterfly. Sand martins continued to fly over the reedbeds and lagoons in big flocks with the odd Swallow and House martin in between and the booming Bittern was once again a highlight for many visitors. There have also been several sightings of Redstarts and Willow warblers this week and a Wheatear was seen on Thursday and Friday. Marsh harriers and the Glossy ibis were regulars and fortunately even the Bearded reedlings have showed themselves a bit more often. The first Whimbrels of the season were seen in Goldcliff on Wednesday and were also seen on then mudflats on Sunday. Goldcliff lagoons were once again a hotspot for wading birds. Avocets were around in big numbers and were joined by Ringed plovers, Little ringed plovers, Redshanks, Dunlins, Lapwings, Oystercatchers and Black-tailed godwits. A Spotted redshank was seen once again as was a Golden plover on Sunday. The weekend was quite an exciting one at Goldcliff not only for the Golden plover and the still present Glossy ibis, but also for a Merlin and most of all for a Spoonbill which was at the lagoons on both days. Surely more arrivals will make their way to the wetlands next week as the wait for the first Cuckoo of the year continues…
Avocet, Bearded reedling, Bittern, Blackbird, Blackcap, Black-tailed godwit, Blue tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Canada goose, Carrion crow, Cetti's warbler, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Collared dove, Common whitethroat, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Gadwall, Glossy ibis, Golden plover, Goldfinch, Grasshopper warbler, Great black-backed gull, Great spotted woodpecker, Great tit, Green woodpecker, Greenfinch, Grey heron, Greylag goose, Herring gull, House martin, House sparrow, Kestrel, Lapwing, Lesser black-backed gull, Linnet, Little grebe, Little ringed plover, Long-tailed tit, Magpie, Mallard, Marsh harrier, Merlin, Moorhen, Mute swan, Oystercatcher, Peregrine, Pheasant, Pied wagtail, Pochard, Raven, Redshank, Redstart, Reed bunting, Ringed plover, Robin, Sand martin, Shelduck, Shoveler, Skylark, Snipe, Sparrowhawk, Spoonbill, Spotted redshank, Stonechat, Swallow, Teal, Tufted duck, Wheatear, Whimbrel, Wigeon, Willow warbler, 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: Grasshopper warbler by Jeff Hall