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Marsh Lane News - May 08
31st May 2008 - Overcast but bright. Light northerly. Warm.
A Dunlin was a new arrival, though it could conceivably have been the bird from two days ago. The female Goosander was again present for much of the morning and the eggs of the Oystercatcher pair on Railway Pool started hatching, three chicks eventually being seen. A female Shelduck was only the third record for the month.
Perhaps the best record of the last few days was not a bird, but a mammal, in the shape of an Otter which was seen well from Oak Hide at about 11.30 a.m. It swam across the lake on the far side of the pool, hunted and then moved off through the reeds and onto the bank. This is the first definite sighting of this animal at the Reserve.
The warmer weather meant, at last, a good variety of Odonata and Butterflies were seen including the first Black-tailed Skimmers of the year.
30th May 2008 - overcast but reasonably bright. Light but cool north easterly.
This morning, the female Goosander put in one of her sporadic appearances. She was roosting on Car Park Pool. Other ducks of note included two, possibly three male Shovelers, 11 male and 2 female Gadwalls and a drake Ruddy. The single juvenile Great Crested Grebe remains on Car Park Pool and all 4 chicks remain on Railway, though the smallest one was getting attacked by one of the larger ones.
The first Tern chicks (2) have hatched and at least 12 pairs remain on eggs.
A flock of 40 Lapwings and 40 Lesser Black-backed Gulls fed on the floods. No migrant waders could be found.
29th May 2008 - mild, overcast
Yesterday's rain caused extensive flooding of the Bythe valley and Railway pool was inundated again. The water level this morning was about 1' below the caged Ringed Plover nest. The lower lying Tern and Lapwing nests have been lost but at least 10 Tern nests seem to have escaped the high water level.
The Mute Swans hatched 3 young from in front of Oak Hide in the nick of time and the water level in the other pools remains reasonable.
The Dunlin remains on site, whilst on the floods to the north of the Reserve species included 46 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 1 Herring Gull, 5 Black-headed Gulls, 1 Great Crested Crebe, pairs of Shelduck and Tufted Duck and at least 5 Herons.
In the evening the long staying male Shoveler was joined by a second and a Common Sandpiper was a new arrival.
28th May 2008 - rain easing by 8am, still drizzly. Misty, mild, light easterly. Then heavy rain all afternoon and into the evening.
Of yesterday's waders, only a single Dunlin remained this morning. No sign of the Teal or Shoveler either, though 2 female and a male Ruddy were present and Gadwall remain in good numbers. 13 were recorded two days ago.
27th May 2008 - mostly dry day until rain set in late in the evening and continued over night. The wind dropped and it became warmer.
Migration is obviously still proceeding as in the evening there were five Comon Sandpipers and 2 Dunlin across the Reserve. 41 Lesser Black-backed Gulls fed on the floods and Hobby, Teal (male) and a pair of Shoveler were also recorded.
26th May 2008 - very blowey from the north east but dry in the morning, increasingly showery in the afternoon and wet over night
Yesterday’s 3 Common Sandpipers, pair of Teal and Shoveler all remained. A steady trickle of Lesser Black-backed Gulls flew through and included a first year Yellow-legged Gull. 50 House Martins over the Car Park pool in mid morning was a noteworthy count. Swifts still appear to be on the move and there were at least 60 around in the morning, although there was a noticeable turnover during the day.
25th May 2008 - prolonged rain, still north easterly
3 Common Sandpipers was a noteworthy count late in the month. A pair of Teal and the drake Shoveler were seen again and at least 2 young Treecreepers were being fed by adults near the top gate.
24th May 2008 - sunny but strong cool north easterly
A single Common Sandpiper was the only migrant. 24 Stock Doves fed in the crop field where a Red-legged Partridge was also seen. A Hobby was seen on a number of occasions during the day.
23rd May 2008 - overcast and slight drizzle, slowly clearing, strong north easterly
A female Goosander that rested up on car park pool in the early evening, before flying off up stream, was the only unusual record for the day. This is presumably the female from the pair that was seen on the 20th, and also earlier in the month on the 4th. This represents an interesting over-summer record, perhaps a prelude to breeding.
22nd May 2008 - sunny, cool, north easterly
Migrants today included Common Sandpiper and Yellow Wagtail, whilst the male Shoveler remained and was joined by a pair of Teal. The Great Crested Grebes have four chicks on Railway pool but only one remains on Car Park pool.
21st May 2008 - weather sunny, cool, north easterly
Other than the continued appearance of the male Shoveler, activity was limited to just breeding birds.
20th May 2008 - Similar weather to yesterday.
Three Little Egrets were found at about 9.15 a.m., but appeared to move to the Dragonfly Pond at about 9.30 a.m., and there have been no further reports. This is quite early in the year for this species recently, as we generally benefit from a post-breeding dispersal in July and August. A "new" Garden Warbler was singing 100m south of the car park, along the Old Road, although conceivably it could be the bird from the top gate which was not audible this morning. A second bird continues to hold territory by the cottages, with another behind Railway Hide and a fourth by the underpass.
The “unseasonal” records continued into the evening, with pairs of both Pochard and Goosander on or over Railway pool. The male Shoveler from the last fews days reappeared again and 70 Swifts were counted in the evening. A Lapwing chick was an unexpected find in the crop field.
19th May 2008 - Starting off sunny, but becoming cloudy as the day went on. Still a cold north-easterly wind and there was a light ground frost at dawn.
Yesterday's Knot had moved on, and there was relatively little to report, aside from Hobby, Grey Wagtail and a continuing movement of Lesser Black-backed Gulls with at least 30 through in the morning. An estimated 18 pairs of Common Terns appear to be sitting, although some are obscured by vegetation on the largest island. In the cool evening weather, at least 200 Swifts were present, mostly over Siden Hill Wood and the field to the east.
18th May 2008 - A much better day, sunny, some cloud later but dry. Still a cool north-easterly.
Some noticeable passage and two, possibly three, quality birds, the first of which was a Knot on Railway Pool for most of the day, though it moved to Car Park Pool in the afternoon. The first since April 2003, it was a welcome addition to the list of a number of members. It was the 20th wader species for the Reserve this year.
Swifts were clearly on the move, numbers being difficult to quantify: likewise Lesser Black-backed Gulls. One flock included 51 birds, but 2's and 3's were going through all day, most of which were first and second years.
An Osprey flew through at 11.15 p.m.. Sufficiently low it attracted the attention of the Terns before it quartered the reed bed and the Car Park Pool and headed off east.
The third bird was a likely second year male Red-footed Falcon seen briefly over Siden Hill Wood. It was watched through a telescope, with the observer seeing dark upper-parts and under-parts. The bird hovered before dropping out of site. A description is awaited.
In the afternoon, one of the three remaining Great Crested Grebes was taken by a Heron which alighted in the water, plucked the bird from the surface, took it to an island, killed it and swallowed it. Hopefully the Terns will discourage Herons on the Railway Pool which might give the two newly hatched birds there a chance.
17th May 2008 - Overcast all day with periodic rain and continuing cold north-easterly wind. A generally pretty grotty day.
Relatively little of note on the migration front, though plenty of activity. The pair of Grebes on Railway Pool hatched out two young, whilst the pair on the car park have already lost one (probably a Heron). Gadwall reached 12, the best total of the month.
A Hobby flew through, clutching a Sand Martin and in the evening at least 100 Swifts and 100 mixed hirundines were visible over or adjacent to the Reserve.
36 Common Terns were counted and at least 13 are sitting, though some are invisible in the longer vegetation on Tern Island. A Cuckoo called from Siden Hill Wood.
16th May 2008 - Rain all morning, and overcast for much of the rest of the day, remaining cool.
Somewhat surprisingly the Ruff was present for its fourth day, and Common Sandpipers are up to three. Yesterday’s pair of Shoveler were present again, and there were at least 50 Swifts over the site.
15th May 2008 - High cloud, cool north-easterly.
Noticeably cooler conditions this morning meant that there were more Swifts and hirundines about, with at least 60 Swifts present mid morning, about 40 Sand Martins and single figures of House Martins and Swallows. The Ruff was present for its third day, whilst two Dunlins were new in overnight, and the two Common Sandpipers were still present. A Hobby flew through, west, about 8.30 a.m., and a pair of Shoveler dropped in at 11 a.m.
Other wildfowl included at least 50 Tufted Ducks, four Ruddy Ducks and a male Gadwall. The pair of Great Crested Grebes on Car Park Pool have still got four chicks, but there is no sign of Redshank chicks this morning.
14th May 2008 - Sunny, but with a cool north-easterly.
The Ruff was present all day, and aGreenshank was seen at 2 p.m., but there were no records subsequently. A single Common Sandpiper lingered and a Herring Gull was on Car Park Pool. A Redshank chick was spotted on Car Park Pool, which is exceedingly early.
The Greenshank represented the 19th species of wader, so far this year.
13th May 2008 - Sunny, but noticeably cooler in a brisk east north-easterly wind.
Two Common Sandpipers were new in this morning, and a Yellow Wagtail flew through. The cooler weather encouraged Swifts lower, with at least twenty present at 9.30, but much toing and froing of this species, together with a scattering of hirundines.
A Ruff moulting into summer plumage arrived in the mid-afternoon and was still present in the evening. Common Terns were up to another new record of 4.
The additional game cover is in the course of preparation today, so the field is worth a check over whilst freshly turned or sown.
12th May 2008 - Hot and sunny, but increasing easterly wind.
Other than a count of 40 Common Terns, nothing else of particular note was recorded.
11th May 2008 - Hot.
The hot weather is not conducive to visible passage as birds generally carry on through so a Wood Sandpiper on Railway Pool was an unexpected bonus. First found at 2.45 p.m., it was present until about 5.30 when two teenagers with dogs came down the river and went for a swim in Railway Pool. Needless to say everything was flushed and the Wood Sandpiper departed. Thanks to those that evicted them.
Common Terns reached a new record of 39, presumably including many displaced Kingsbury birds. Two Hobbies were seen again.
10th May 2008 - Hot, high cloud, humid.
Little of note. Lesser Whitethroats continue to be heard occasionally from both the Old Road and the Railway embankment and a Cuckoo was seen and heard from the Oaks in the field but departed over Railway Pool. My impression is that numbers are low this year and indeed this was the first record I have for May.
9th May 2008 - A weak front moved across overnight and into the day, bringing light showers.
An early visit yielded nothing more than displaying Ringed and Little Ringed Plovers over the Car Park Pool.
Whilst the pair of Great Crested Grebes continue to sit conspicuously on Railway Pool, a discrete pair on Car Park Pool were found to have hatched three young. This species has had little success on the Reserve over the last few years.
A pair of Shoveler arrived on Railway Pool in the evening, the only May record so far.
8th May 2008 - Hot, but an increasingly strong south-easterly wind.
Since the “British” Wheatears in late March / early April, there have been none of the Icelandic / Greenland types until today, with a single seen (no location).
A Water Rail was seen on the causeway and although the Dunlin had moved on, Common Sandpipers had risen to four and Common Terns to 32.
7th May 2008 - Hot (25°C) light south-easterly
A male Teal has been present since the start of the month, but this evening there were two males and a female, and also three pairs of Ruddy Ducks.
The warm weather encouraged the raptors, with counts from the car park of eight Buzzards, five Kestrels, two Sparrowhawks and a Hobby.
Yesterday’s Dunlin remained and there were two Common Sandpipers. A Yellow Wagtail fellow over and Grey Wagtails continue to be seen in a variety of locations.
Warbler counts were: 14 Reed, seven plus Sedge, 10 Whitethroats, three each of Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Blackcap, five Garden and two Lesser Whitethroats. A possible Cetti’s Warbler was heard in the scrub at the north end of the Old Road, but there was no sign later.
6th May 2008 - Warm and sunny, with a south-easterly wind.
One Dunlin and a Common Sandpiper remained from yesterday, whilst a Hobby hawked insects over Siden Hill Wood at lunchtime, joined by a second later in the afternoon. A very mobile Lesser Whitethroat sang again along the Old Road. There was both Swift and hirundine movement, but most of it was too high to record accurately.
5th May 2008 - Overnight rain persisted to the early part of the day and it was misty. The wind had turned to the east, before the day brightened and warmed up.
The good run continued with a Little Tern and two Arctic Terns on Railway Pool during the morning. The former was only the second record for the Reserve and lingered until 5 p.m., when it flew off. A count of 37 Common Terns was a record and presumably included some migrants over and above the 13 to 14 pairs which appear to be regular. The year’s second Hobby chased hirundines over Car Park Pool at 9 a.m.
4th May 2008 - Mostly high grey cloud on a light south-westerly turning to the south-east and regular showers developing into overnight rain.
In guessing the next rare bird to provide the excitement, the species that did occur was totally unexpected. Paul Johnson and Chris Heyworth had just rescued an injured Buzzard (which sadly had to be put down) when the latter pointed out an odd looking bird overhead which Paul (who was the only one with binoculars at the time) was amazed to discover was a Beeater. It flew over slowly, without calling, and disappeared to the north-east. It is the first in the West Midlands since one at Minworth in 1955.
A summer plumaged Black Tern later in the afternoon was some compensation for the rest of us, and was part of a movement across the country. Two Dunlin and two late Goosanders were also seen and many Swifts were on the move with at least 200 recorded, but no doubt many more over the course of the day.
3rd May 2008 - Mild with hazy sunshine.
Birds of note included Peregrine, a Little Owl along the Old Road, 30 Swifts, a male Yellow Wagtail, four Garden Warblers and six Whitethroat.
2nd May 2008
Minimum of 12 singing Sedge Warblers, eight singing Reed Warblers and pair of Lesser Whitethroats on railway embankment. Common Terns were up to 28. A fine Roebuck ran across the field below Siden Hill Wood.
1st May 2008 - Mostly sunny, light but cool south-westerly.
Yesterday’s Garden Warbler was still present and in addtion there were two others, one on the railway embankment and one by the top gate on the Old Road. Four Common Sandpipers were still present and aCurlew was seen and heard flying up from the flood meadows, just north of the Reserve, at 9.40 a.m.
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