Wildlife sightings for 8th October 2014
2 Pintail - pair, reservoir lagoon
59 Wigeon - main lake
4 Snipe - main lake
3 Stonechat - 2f 1m, showing well on the fox fence close to the Peacock Tower
Also several migrant Blackbirds on the south route
Additional sighting from yesterday:
1 Jack Snipe - marsh
Late September bird highlights: Hobby, Peregrine, Spotted Redshank, Dunlin, Green Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, Oystercatcher, Whitethroat, Stonechat, Spotted Flycatcher, Yellow Wagtail.
With autumn migration well underway this is a great time of year to find some exciting migrants. Summer birds like Chiffchaff, Whitethroat and Blackcap are starting to leave their breeding territories on site, while other summer visitors such as Wheatear, Whinchat, Yellow Wagtail, Swallow, Common Sandpiper and Redstart are passing through from other parts of the country heading southwards. At the same time there’s wildfowl like Shoveler, Wigeon and Snipe arriving or passing through to spend the winter here. Any species of migrant wader could turn up now, recent species this autumn including Ruff, Whimbrel and Greenshank. September and October generally turns up some more unusual or rarer birds so keep watching the scrub, scrapes and marsh for something a bit special this month.
Butterflies: Small Copper (17th Sept), Common Blue, Six-spot Burnet, Meadow Brown, Small White, Speckled Wood, Holly Blue, Large White, Red Admiral, Peacock, Comma.Notable site records for this summer: Mother Shipton, Barred Yellow (1st recorded at in 2008), Green Hairstreak, Red-tipped Clearwing (1st site record. Nationally scarce), Cinnabar Moth, Ringlet, Small Heath (UK BAP Priority species), White Admiral.
Dragonflies and damselflies: Common Blue Damselfly, Ruddy Darter, Migrant Hawker, Large Red Damselfly, Common Darter, Southern Hawker.
Bush-crickets and grasshoppers: Roesel’s Bush-cricket, Dark Bush-cricket, Common Green Grasshopper, Field Grasshopper.
Reptiles: Last survey of the year: 31 juvenile slow worm with 13 adult females and one adult male.
