December WeBS count, 18/12/2016
A foggy morning, so this is a very limited count.
Tufted Duck 29
Coot 1400
Great Crested Grebe 15
Pochard 34
Mallard 29
Cormorant 4
Black Headed Gull 19
Red-crested Pochard 2
Mandarin 1
Pied Wagtail 25
Meadow Pipit 2

I’ve never seen the water level so low at the reservoir - but is great for attracting a wide variety of birds.

Some of those we saw this morning (10am to 12noon) were:

Lesser Yellowlegs
Snipe
Great White Egrets
Herons
Cormorants
Swans
Canada Geese
Coots
Teals
Mallards
Shovelers
Wagtails
Meadow Pippets
Sanderling
Mandarin duck - she seems to have been around since May now and consistently in the same place.

But we didn’t see the White Tailed Eagle - despite reports of it flying over the reservoir whilst we were there!

water is pretty low at the moment, several Heron have been in attendance for the last week or so as the “scrape”  becomes more prominent, a single common sand, and one larger wader [no bins to id properly] also, and a single wheatear been around for around a week or so, in the lane for the last week several green woody’s making plenty of noise [ 5 at one point], and this morning the strange sight of a sparrowhawk being"escorted”  from the water’s edge by a troop of wagtails!! Canada geese are roosting with no’s over a hundred at the moment and Coot numbers well into 200 or so,....and the female mandarin still about,

3 juvenile Northern Wheatear this morn, at the Weare end of the res, also 1 nuthatch foraging in the bark of an oak in Middlemoor Lane

2 Dunlin this AM , and an audible only Oystercatcher

2 LRP’s this morn, among the debris on the flat area near playing fields

just over 60 canada geese roosting teusday evening…... and sounding like that many!!

Two Oystercatchers circling above the Res this morning, and a Kingfisher flying across.

Kingfisher on the bund wall around the res, diving in and catching a minnow, early doors, and in the lane a treecreeper also a green woody and several chiff chaffs calling strongly

We were down at the reservoir on Sunday and were surprised to see that the female Mandarin duck is still there (Axbridge entrance).

a break in “nothing seen” 4 common sandpiper ,early Monday morning,along with 10 swan

The female mandarin is still at the reservoir - has been with the mallards/hybrids near the Axbridge entrance every time we have been down to the reservoir.

Mandarin still present this AM, also 2 grey wagtails,,and alas the…. “mother of 7.. is now mother of just 1”!!

Following on from meeting both Neville & Chris this morning around the reservoir, we also saw the female mandarin duck.

We’ve put some photos & a video on the Cheddar Reservoir flickr group (link here)

first brood of 7 mallard duckling this eve,[for me at least]probably just hours old