Bonxie alert!
A Great Skua (or Bonxie) flew through the Top New Piece and passed very close to the Zeiss Hide this morning. It flushed all the birds on the flood and field and the Great Black-backed Gull roost as it headed back out. It was relocated off Frampton on Severn later at low tide and moved to the other side of the estuary where it stole a fish from a Great Black-backed Gull. It was seen from the Holden Tower again at 2pm loafing on the sandbars. Winter birds often hang around.
It was the WeBS (Wetland Bird Survey) count today
Rushy Hide
49 Bewick's Swans present at dawn. 126 Shelduck, 82 Teal, 348 Mallard, 97 Pintail, 115 Pochard, 293 Tufted Duck15 Moorhen and 4 Coot. 6 Snipe, 2 Redshank and 24 Lapwing.
Martin Smith Hide
Two Snipe.
Tack Piece/Top New Piece/Bottom New Piece
Two Grey Heron, 6 Mute Swan, 49 Bewick's Swan (moved from Rushy for the day), 64 E. White-fronted Geese were on the Bottom New Piece as were 245 Barnacle Geese, 26 Shelduck, 2818 Wigeon, 642 Teal, 36 Mallard, 66 Pintail, 27 Shoveler, 5 Pochard, 1220 Golden Plover, 2507 Lapwing, 310 Dunlin, 24 Ruff (Bottom New Piece), 62 Snipe (Top New Piece), 41 Black-tailed Godwit, 29 Curlew, 15 Redshank.
Dumbles from Holden Tower- 468 Canada Geese included the white-headed individual and a dark headed bird which almost displays no chin strap. Two Peregrine on the fence and 12+ Crane included the two unringed adults.
South Lake
461 Lapwing, 6 Snipe, 56 Black-tailed Godwit, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 7 Cormorant, 1 Gret Heron, 5 Shelduck, 1 drake Wigeon, 3 Gadwall, 135 Teal, 22 Mallard, 72 Shoveler, 4 Pochard, 4 Morrhen, 5 Coot.
