Lapwing chicks & a cuckoo calls
Kingfisher continue to be active around nest hole #5 in the artificial bank on the Arun Riverlife lagoon. Look out for the sand martins coming in and out of nest holes at the banks of the Sand martin hide. A cackling goose and a cackling barnacle cross seem to have produced a gosling – look for them between Ramsar and Sand martin hides. There seems to be two sets of lapwing chicks from the Ramsar hide as well. Volunteer James King snapped the lapwing chicks pictured above.
The reedbed is active with warblers – see Thursday’s summary for a list. Volunteer Andrew who does our WeBS counts was in last Wednesday and heard a cuckoo and spotted a marsh harrier, check out his sightings on Wed 3 May for a good list of what’s around at the moment.
Mon 8 May
Ramsar / Sand Martin: 8 little egret, pochard 1, oystercatcher 2, 6 lapwings including 2 chicks and one older chick, Cackling goose and cacklingXbarnacle goose with 4 goslings
Scrape hide: 2 pochards, 1 lapwing, and 1 shelduck
Lapwing hide: 7 greylags, 2 mallards, 1 shoveler, 1 pochard and 3 ducklings, 4 Canada geese, tufted 1, 1 blackbird
Wet Disco: 1 pochard, Arun Riverlife: 1 male pochard
Coast creek area: 1 oystercatcher
Sun 7 May
Wetland Discovery area: 2 gadwall, 4 Canada geese with 4 goslings, 3 mallards, 1 coot, 2 tufted ducks, 1 reed warbler, 1 sedge warble, 1 chiff chaff, 1 willow warbler, 1 blackbird, 1 Canada X greylag goose
Coastal Creek area: 2 oystercatchers
Ramsar & Sand martin hide: 2 oystercatcher pair, 7 lapwing – two sets of chicks seen and one pair displaying, 60 herring gull, cackling goose and cacklingXbarnacle goose with goslings
Sat 6 May
Arun Riverlife: 2 kingfishers – male on perch and female flew out of hole #5 then re-entered, 7 Canada geese, 1 coot, 6 tufted ducks, and 8 mallards, 30 black-headed gulls 14 on nests, 1 lapwing, and 1 gadwall
Ramsar & Sand martin hides: 2 oystercatchers, 6 lapwing including 3 chicks in total1, 1 little egret, 2 cackling geese, 17 tufted ducks, 1 great crested grebe, c20 sand martins
Scrape hide: 14 tufted ducks, 1 pochard, and 10 sand martins.
Fri 5 May
Wood Loop: 3 long tailed tits, 4 chaffinches, 2 mandarin, 1 chiff chaff, 3 wren, 2 moorhen, and 4 goldfinches.
Thurs 4 May
Reedbed: 1 Canada goose, 3 sedge warblers, 2 reed warblers, 2 greylag geese, 7 mallards, 2 tufted ducks, 1 chaffinch, 1 Cetti’s warblers, 1 chiff chaff, 1 blue tits, 1 mute swan, 1 wren
Pelican cove: 2 oystercatchers
Arun Riverlife: 2 pochard and one duckling
Lapwing hide: 1 lapwing
Ramsar and Sand martin hide: 4 lapwing and threes chick spotted, c20 sand martins
Scrape hide: 3 pochard, 1 lapwing
Wed 3 May
Car Park: 1 nightingale
Front pond: 2 gadwall
Arun Riverlife lagoon: 1 pochard, 1 gadwall, And 8 tufted ducks (4 pairs) Pelican cove: 2 tufted ducks, 2 oystercatchers
Woodland loop: 1 male mandarin duck,
Reedbed: 1 marsh harrier, 1 raven
Long path: 2 linnet
Scrape hide: 16 tufted ducks, 1 lapwing, 12 Canada geese (6 pairs and 1 gosling), 3 pochards, 2 reed warblers, 3 sedge warblers, 1 Cetti’s warbler, 29 black-headed gulls, 2 shelducks (a pair), 1 grey heron, 1 coot, 1 moorhen, 1 chiff chaff, 1 male kingfisher, 2 mallards, 11 sand martins, 1 female reed bunting
Black Rabbit triangle – 1 cuckoo calling
Sand martin hide: 2 gadwall, 2 tufted ducks, 1 shoveler, c30 sand martins
Ramsar hide: 2 oystercatchers, 7 lapwing – 3 pairs, 4 chicks and 1 male, 1 garganey, 6 little egrets, 2 shoveler
Lapwing hide: 2 male lapwing, 2 shoveler, 1 kestrel, 1 gadwall
Wetland discovery area: 1 gadwall
