A few notes on today’s female Baikal Teal at Catcott. Can no-one spot a ring on it please - thank you!

First seen at 12.20 with bins when a small white spot at the bill base was glaringly obvious even at 100m. Couldn’t possibly be a genuine plumage feature I thought, but it was.

Very smart dark scaps with neat, broad buff edges, somewhat reminiscent of drake plumage. Also large rounded upper flank feathers. Face pattern dead ringer for Colling Guide illustration. I think all these are very good features for adult female.

Showed well all afternoon on and off as far as I know.

What may well prove to be Britain’s first accepted female was in Notts/Yorks for a week in Jan23.  I wonder if it might even be this bird.

Also the RND pair 200m east of the Ham Wall railway bridge and the other drake was seen at Decoy.  9 or 10 Scaup seen on Long Drove too, and the female Goldeneye at Westhay.  The 3 Ibis were still at the south end of Lewis’s Drove but now wading in floods and it’s all looking a bit special round there with large numbers of egrets, Lapwing and BHGs in the sun today.

Yes. It looked very like the pictures in that link

Could be a reduction in pigment, approaching leucism: https://community.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/f/photography/282560/hybrid-leucistic-egyptian-goose

7 scaup relatively close mid afternoon at Sharpham Lane.  The 6 barnacles still present. At Westhay a flock of well over 100 cattle egrets southwest of the carpark and 2 Egyptian geese, one with a very pale head.

1-Jan-2024
At Long Drove lake (from Sharpham Lane) this morning: the small flock of Greater Scaup still present although distant at the far end. Also 6 Barnacle Geese nearby with a flock of Greylags on the large grass field alongside the Lane.

A drake RND was back on Decoy today, the original from this autumn I presume relocated from Noah’s.  5 Crane at Greylake with super numbers of wildfowl there.  I see that 6 Scaup were still on Long Drove and heard that a couple of ibis were still near Westhay.

The pale ibis and one of the dark birds with the big egret flock today just west of Sweets Café. Wonder where No3 is.

3 ibis in Westhay car park field this pm with loads of egrets. 2 ibis are quite dark, 1 one distinctly paler.

Glossies previously preferred field does seem to have dried out somewhat, as has the pool on road (a bit). Apparently they were on floods other side of reserve, but ring-necked duck is still on favoured pool with Tufties. Plenty of all 3 egrets, plus Grey herons opposite reserve entrance, plus 500 lapwing in field beyond (put up by a Marsh Harrier fly by)

The drake RND and the 2 Glossy Ibis were all not far east of Westhay NNR car park this morning (1/2 km and 1km respectively) and giving great views from the road.  Still loads of Chaffinch hanging round the stubble fields on the south edge of the reserve but I couldn’t find a Brambling.  A few Reed Buntings were mixed in.

Big Golden Plover and Lapwing flock visible from the hides at Greylake with c30 Dunlin.  Nice to be able to see them on the ground.  Pretty good duck numbers too.

The only surprise for me this am was an ad Med Gull with a huge flock of BHGs in flooded roadside fields just north of Glastonbury.  A few of various other gull sps mixed in.  It’s fantastic having so many gulls around.

Masses of Pintail on Noah’s today I’m told, maybe up to 500, and 6 Scaup on Long Drove.  There are also masses of wildfowl on a severely flooded West Waste (just NE of Meare) but checking them out would really take time!  Lots of Wigeon flying round on the south edge of HW too.  So many wildfowl in the area at the mo…

Reports yesterday of a drake RND on VP1 lagoon – interesting.

11-Dec-2023
No sign of any Scaup on the large pit at Long Drove, Sharpham just after mid-day, just a small flock of c.15 Pochard and some very distant Tufties feeding close-in to the reed edge. The 6 Barnacle Geese still present on the large grass fields, but distant and tucked well down in a dip in the ground with c 20 Greylags - easily overlooked from Sharpham Lane.

5 Scaup confirmed today by Sean D at LD, who also saw female RNDs on Noah’s and Walton’s

Great to see that 2 ibis have been seen yesterday and today at Westhay.  Wonder if there is a third, could be the Ham Wall bird seen a few times recently I guess, inc yesterday.

The drake Ring-necked Duck was on the 2nd pool (south of rd) east of the car park today and he’s starting to look smarter around the bill.  I couldn’t see the female anywhere.  A/the female Goldeneye was even further east (north of rd).  4 Egy Geese close by.

I think there were a few Scaup on Long Drove today, perhaps 4 or 5.  Too windy and the light too poor to be sure (unexpected sun!)

Lots of birds at Greylake today inc plenty of Golden Plover visible from the hide and a few Dunlin.  2 Crane.  All a bit distant and also in poor light though.

9-Dec-2023
The 6 Barnacle Geese still present at the same Sharpham locn this afternoon, and also 2 Egyptian Geese that were feeding close to the road.

9-Dec-2023
The six Barnacle Geese still present this morning at Sharpham, feeding distantly with Greylags on the large grassy fields next to Woodlands Agriculture. Note: due to severe road flooding only accessible by car from Walton along Whitely Road becomes Sharpham Lane. Sharpham Lane from the other direction impassable in my car at the sharp-bends next to the fishing lake. Drove in until it reached door-sill level then had to reverse out.