Paul's Birding Diary

Saturday 27th October 2007 A dull but milder day, with light winds increasing and short spells of very fine misty rain. Out with Andy early this morning, first stop was Splatt Bridge at Frampton where there was a Barn Owl carrying prey near the bridge, at least 2,000 Starlings leaving their roost in the reed-bed north of the bridge, plus a Kingfisher , a Sparrowhawk , a Curlew , a Chiffchaff , a Goldcrest , two Grey Herons , three Ravens , 30 Fieldfares and a smaller number of Redwings . Four Teal were at the south reed-bed. We then moved on to the Severn shore at Berkeley power station for the 10.1m high tide. The star sighting here was two Red-breasted Mergansers flying across the river and disappearing into the gloom. Other birds included two Rock Pipits , six Meadow Pipits , three Grey Plovers , 14 Redshanks , 64 Canada Geese , 40 Lapwings , three Curlews , three Cormorants , at least 40 Fieldfares , a few Redwings and four Ravens . Two or three Tree Sparrows were heard ca...

Tuesday 23rd October 2007 A day of clear blue skies and plenty of sunshine after the dull conditions of Monday. At Severn Beach this afternoon (escaping from Cribb's Causeway for a couple of hours) there were 18 Dunlin , 9 Ringed Plovers , a Grey Heron , two Stonechats and six Meadow Pipits (note: photos of waders digiscoped - my 400D has packed up and has to go to hospital - sob...).

Sunday 21st October 2007 Another glorious day. I spent the afternoon at Slimbridge WWT with Amelia (my eldest daughter), the highlight undoubtedly being a male Hen Harrier . It was picked up from the Holden Tower at 1.15pm quartering over the spartina island then flew upriver. 34 White-fronted Geese were on the Dumbles and four Bewick's Swans in the Rushy Pen, a Migrant Hawker was at South Finger and an apparent wild Mandarin (both wings complete) was in the collection, attracting the attention of a collection female (photo of White-fronted Geese above and Bewick's Swans below).

Saturday 20th September 2007 After a foggy start, a morning of autumn sunshine followed. I headed for the Forest of Dean with Andy where we spent the morning. At Brierley there was a Crossbill and four Siskins over, a Willow Tit calling and a pair of Bullfinches . At Woorgreens/Crabtree Hill we saw 20+ Siskins , several Coal Tits , a Tit flock including 14 Long-tailed Tits and were accompanied by the almost constant grunting sound of rutting Fallow Deer . At New Fancy there were two Jays and the sound of more rutting Fallow Deer , also some Shaggy Ink Cap fungus. At Cannop, there was a Dipper and a Kingfisher on the brook below the stone works, two Grey Wagtails and four Mandarins . (Photos of, from the top, Fallow Deer, Shaggy Ink Cap, Coal Tit and Grey Wagtail).

Saturday 13th October 2007 We awoke at 6.30 this morning to the sound of a Tawny Owl calling repeatedly nearby and very loud. I located it on a neighbour's TV aerial across the close before it flew into trees near Woodlands Park. Dawn eventually broke to reveal a somewhat dismal and murky day, but feeling very mild with temperatures up to 19 o C. At Slimbridge, it was very quiet at high tide, with just a Ruff , a Knot , three Grey Plovers , a Buzzard and a Peregrine . A pair of Blackcaps , a Chiffchaff , a Goldcrest and five Long-tailed Tits were around the Holden Tower. There were very few waders on South Lake again (though more than Wednesday !) with a Spotted Redshank , three Redshanks , a Snipe, a Black-tailed Godwit plus a Little Grebe being the notable birds. The highlight though was seeing the most delightful Kate Humble on site.

Wednesday 10th October 2007 On a fine, warm afternoon at Slimbridge, there were six White-fronted Geese , 100+ (local) Barnacle Geese (below) , a Spotted Redshank , five Meadow Pipits , a Little Egret , a Peregrine , a Buzzard and two Stonechats from the Holden Tower. Unusually, there wasn't a single wader on South Lake, but at least 100 Shoveler (above) and a good numbers of Teal and Pintail building up. The highlight though was two Water Voles (bottom) near the exit path.

Sunday 7th October 2007 A Migrant Hawker dragonfly (above) was along the alley between Miller's Dyke and The Causeway, Quedgeley this morning. Near Hardwicke Farm, a Jay (below) was feeding in the old orchard, 15+ House Sparrows (bottom) were along the hedge and a Kestrel was at the farm. Two Red Admirals were near the canal.

Saturday 6th October 2007 A murky morning after the recent nice weather. On the way to the car first thing a Great Spotted Woodpecker was on the Birch tree in the front garden, and a party of Long-tailed , Blue and Great Tits was foraging in the Rowan. At Slimbridge WWT there were a group of 30 Knot on South Lake this morning, also four Spotted Redshanks , 56 Black-tailed Godwits , two Ruff and two Snipe . Another Spotted Redshank was feeding on the Knott Pool and a Wheatear at Mid-point.

Friday 5th September 2007 This morning at dawn there were two Water Rails at the Dimore sluice (this is where the brook meets the canal). After another lovely sunny day, a quick check at Fretherne after work this evening (before being recalled for 'taxi' duties) produced five Ruff , 13 Knot and four Ringed Plover .

Thursday 4th October 2007 A cracking sunny day after the gloom of recent days, and I made for Fretherne after work this evening. The highlights were four Ruff (all juveniles - photos below), three Knot , seven Grey Plover , six Ringed Plover , a Little Egret , 30 Curlew and 30 Shelduck , followed by a beautiful sunset. Closer to home, a Badger ran across Severnvale Drive, Quedgeley, at 10.50pm.