Avalon Marshes migrants
This am:
2VP, 1 Garganey, 2 Blackwit, 4 Green Sand, 2 Snipe
Shapwick, 1 Eg Goose, 1 Hobby
This evening:
2VP, 30 Blackwit, 1 Green Sand, 50 Lapwing.
3 Hobby on Shapwick still.
Thanks for the tip off, Mike. Could easily be the same bird although I’d like to have seen the tail spread in the photos and my recollection is that the body barring was even more extensive. I’d still bet on it being the same.
Someone just posted some nice pics of a honey buzzard on the Somerset levels, 4 days ago, on FB (UK bird identification page), it was also missing some tail feathers & heavily barred below.
Ham Wall today:
At 3pm an imm Night Heron was showing nicely on the 2VP lagoon (would not have been visible from the platform). Preened for a while next to the main mud spit then flew east to a large dead tree. Two other birders saw it with bins while it was in the tree. Flew further east (and perhaps north) a few mins after that… Tricky to age but I think 1st summer (2CY). Had a red eye, quite distinct dark crown, quite plain ash-brown upperparts with no spots, and dusky streaked underparts. Plenty of yellow on the bill and largely yellow legs.
At 4.30 a Honey Buzzard appeared pretty close over the platform and put on a bit of a show circling for a couple of mins before drifting off south. Was on view long enough for Matt Doyle to run 50m, retrieve his camera and run back – but not long enough for a shot! I think adult female – the tail had just about every other feather missing, it was large and not compact, and the body was whitish below with very heavy dark barring.
Otherwise, 1 ad Dunlin, 5+ Green Sand, 2 Blackwit, 50 Lapwing (no LRPs or Garganey).
1 Hobby Ham Wall, 3 Shapwick.
A tweeted photo from yesterday shows a probable imm Night Heron on the 2VP lagoon, viewed from the screens, with the bird stalking through the shallows. Nice.
This evening, 2VP: 1 Garganey, 2 LRP (someone else had seen 3), 5 Green Sand, 45 Blackwit, 70 Lapwing, 20 Teal.
Birdguides has a report today of an adult Purple Heron on Shapwick at 10.30. Thought I’d mention it seeing as it’s not been posted on SOS yet.
This am:
Ham Wall VP2, 1 Garganey, 2 LRP, 5 Green Sand, 45 Blackwit, 33 Lapwing, very few Teal.
Noah’s, 2 Eg Geese, 3 Raven.
Ham Wall VP2 midday : 6 Green SandPipers and a couple of small flocks of Blacktailed Godwit moved around by Marsh Harrier activity, eventually managed a count of 31 together on the deck.. Yesterday while on Shapwick Heath a flock of 46 Blk Wits. flew over heading to Ham Wall Apart from Lapwings no other waders seen.
Just 2 Siskin west over 1VP this evening of note on Ham Wall.
Only waders on 2VP lagoon were a few Lapwing. Dean did report the Wood Sand on Sunday 5th on twitter. No Garganey this evening either.
6-July-2020
Again, no sign of a Wood Sandpiper late morning (10:30/12:45) either from the viewing screens or from the canal bank footpath opposite VP2. Only waders seen were 3 Green Sandpipers and a Redshank (from the screens) also a juv Water Rail; and just a few Lapwing opposite VP2.
Penny and Ann had been looking for the Wood Sandpiper for at least an hour prior to this, with out any sign.
5-July-2020
No sign of the Wood Sandpiper late morning (11:00/13:00) either from the viewing screens or from the canal bank footpath opposite VP2. Only waders seen was single Green Sandpiper and Redshank (from the screens) and at least 40 Lapwing mostly opposite VP2.
Wood Sand again this am but from the viewing screens today. Plus a juv Redshank with striking yellow-orange legs (no Garganey or Blackwits for me). And a Snipe. The 2VP lagoon is probably at its peak for being hard to work right now…
2 Wigeon, Meare Heath, of course.
Not as rubbish as me though. The colouration looked very similar to the Fudge ducks that I have seen previously in the area but it had gone out of sight before I had chance to get my scope out. It did not open its wings but I saw a flash of white below the wing on first sighting but not the second time it showed. It might be worth looking again. None of the hybrids shown in Collins look anything like it.
Hi Daniel. Same bird as I saw Penny this morning. Unusual colours for a Tufted and it looked quite bulky? I hoped that her picture would clarify things.
I think Penny took the image down now, but from what I saw, it had a rectangular head with dark brown iris, diffuse nail on the bill, some speckles around the lores and no white around the pelvic region. Looked ok for an advanced (i.e. early brood) juvenile TD, but obviously a single photo on twitter is not the same as seeing it in the field - I’m also a bit rubbish with ducks.
Cheers Dan