Great Bustard and Atlas survey at Quedgeley

Saturday 16th February 2008



On a sunny but cold day, the Great Bustard was showing well for Andy, Mark and myself this morning, in a Brassica field near Foss Cross. The left wing-tag is clearly visible in the second two photos above. Three Grey Partridges and seven Bullfinches were nearby.
Other highlights of a tour of the Cotswolds, starting at Quedgeley included:
Quedgeley
Three Bramblings and 14 Chaffinches in my garden.
Cassey Compton
An amazing 19 Buzzards, including 15 on the ground in a field.
Sherborne
Four Yellowhammers with 40 Chaffinches at Northfield Barn.
Hawling
A pair of Stonechats (female pictured below), 180 Golden Plovers and 100 Lapwings at the triangle.

This afternoon I carried out my second winter BTO Atlas survey at Quedgeley South SO81B tetrad with Linda. The results were:
Mallard 4
Buzzard 2
Moorhen 1
Herring Gull 22
Lesser Black-backed Gull 25
Woodpigeon 22
Collared Dove 5
Pied Wagtail 1
Skylark 2
Wren 1
Dunnock 11
Robin 22
Blackbird 47
Fieldfare 55
Song Thrush 1
Redwing 73
Blue Tit 18
Great Tit 14
Jackdaw 5
Magpie 5
Carrion Crow 27
Starling 46
House Sparrow 32
Chaffinch 8
Greenfinch 2
Goldfinch 1
Bullfinch 1

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