Good Weather for Ducks...
Pretty much solid rain for the first half of the day, certainly the massed ranks of eclipsed plumaged Mallard and Teal seemed happy enough. A small flock of Shoveler dropped in and a single Tufted Duck appeared out of the gloom. Female Red-crested Pochard from the Harrier Hide.
The feral Greylag flock is continuing to build with around 400 birds present. It's not unknown for the first Pink-footed Geese to arrive around now but with no sustained airflow coming from Iceland it maybe sometime yet.
As mentioned here before, rain fronts and migration can always produce something new on the reserve, in this case just a flock of 8 Redshank flying low West. At least 50 Common Snipe present, Ruffs, Black-tailed Godwits and a Green Sandpiper.
Less pleasant for the many Swallows and House Martins feeding low over Vinson's and Sunley's Marsh. Two Swift late afternoon from the Ron Barker Hide.
Three Peregrine (2 adults and a juvenile), 2+ Marsh Harrier, 3 Common Buzzard, Sparrowhawk and Kestrel. Juvenile Hobby late afternoon over Vinsons.
Chiffchaff singing on the Nature Trail, Blackcaps present. At least 30 Stock Dove out on the reserve fields.
