Greylake RSPB
14-Jan-2025
Missed the Red-legs, but finally had great views (this year) of the Merlin this morning at Greylake, click on the X (Youtube) link below for photo & video clip. Counted 86 Cattle Egrets in the fields along main rd between Pedwell & Greinton.
Most unusual thing today was 3 red legged partridge on the main road by greylake inn (others reported the cattle egret flock was back at greinton, but I didn’t drive that way)
11-Jan-2025
Quiet at a frozen Greylake this morning: Very few duck, 4 Bearded Tits, 3 GW Egrets & 3 Marsh Harriers. A Pair of Barn Owls & 4 Cranes early evening yesterday.
07-Jan-2025
A ringtail Hen Harrier was the best for me on a quiet morning from the hide at Greylake RSPB (09:45/12:00) also a female Marsh Harrier with a pale greyish-white tail, and a very showy Water Rail from the raised viewing screen (tree house).
Later (per X-Twitter) around 14:30, the juv/fem Merlin showed up for the first time today
An hour and a half at Greylake today produced Male and ring-tailed Hen Harrier, one female Merlin ,one Barn Owl, two or three Marsh Harrier , plus hundreds of Lapwing , a few Snipe, Water Rail, Stonechat, Reed Bunting and the usual duck and heron species .
For my latest YouTube video click on the link below. It shows the Baikal Teal, Merlin & Bearded Tits at Greylake and the Glossy Ibis at Pedwell, plus others.
13-Dec-2024
Imm/female Merlin putting up all the duck on 3 occasions this morning, didn’t catch anything & settled on a low bank & a low reed. Also the drake Baikal Teal from the elevated/tree hide. Photo on this link below…
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GesT6DKXgAQVQvK?format=jpg&name=small
Merlin caught and ate a snipe in front of hides shortly after
Greylake up to 2pm today.
Water Rail feeding in the open. Peregrine, marsh harriers, report of brief view of merlin, red kite, kestrel, and baikal teal to left of hides about 30yards out.
I will post some pictures on Flickr tomorrow.
12-Dec-2024
From a post on X (Twitter): The returning drake Baikal Teal at Greylake this morning.
Family of 4 cranes apparently left in morning, then 13 flew east over hides midday, with the usual 3 plus the 4 returning from different directions late afternoon (same time as barn owl appeared). Don’t think that the merlin was seen all day, but wouldn’t be if it caught something elsewhere. A single cattle egret Went east mid afternoon (and a pair of ravens), probably to join the c.170 at greinton (NE of reserve)
Female merlin put in a couple of appearances - mid morning and mid afternoon; no sign of the tagged hen harrier, however another family of 4 cranes flew in over greylake village at sunset. Probably 1000 lapwing on surrounding fields, but not many on reserve; chiffchaff around hides (last week by car park and half way to hides) plus water rail
An early morning visit to Greylake reserve produced the following list:
Barn Owl. 2 hunting at the northern end of the reserve at the same time.
Marsh Harrier. 1 male and a female.
Common Crane 2 adults 1 juvenile foraging in the field western end of the reserve (good view with a scope).
Kestrel 1
Buzzard 1
Teal
Wigeon
Mallard
Greylag Goose 35
Lapwing
Black-headed Gull 14
Great White Egret 1
Cattle Egret 2
Grey Heron 1
Mute Swan 5
Carrion Crow 2
Starling
Blackbird
Cetti’s Warbler
Stonechat 1 female
Robin
House Sparrow
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Dunnock
Magpie 1
Chaffinch
03-Oct-2024
My first visit here this autumn: very quiet, no water as yet, although weed-cutting by tractors has begun in front of the Main Hide and a working party was hard at it cutting down the saplings to clear the area imediately south of the Tree/Raised Hide. 11.00 to 12:30, 3 distant GW Egrets flying together, distant Grey Heron, 4 Buzzards & 2 Kestrels over the cut areas, single Snipe flew in, hovering Kingfisher, 2 Chiffchaffs, calling Water Rail & Cetti’s Warbler; another visitor heard Bearded Tits near the floating platform.