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Breeding wader season underway plus Green-winged Teal
A still and sunny morning, great for wader displays.
Our breeding wader season has begun, this last week has seen pairs of Redshank settling onto territories in the Bottom New Piece and Top New Piece, mating and displays have been noted. With the high tides flooding the Dumbles last week the Lapwing have been roaming, two have settled to nest on the Bottom New Piece with 13 birds visible in the far marsh/flood. Another three on Top New piece and ten on the Dumbles plus a single on the Tack Piece makes at least 24 birds at the Southern end of the reserve.
A Green-winged Teal was displaying to Eurasian Teal in the Bottom New Piece, viewable distantly from Estuary Tower or Zeiss and Kingfisher Hides. With the amount of turnover of ducks of late it could conceivably be another bird. Last weeks drake was only seen on the one date and not seen anywhere else on the reserve despite searching, perhaps it has been elsewhere in the meantime.
Other highlights include the following.
Estuary Tower
A pair of Pintail on the Severn and 70+ Shelduck on the mudflats.
On the Dumbles- 60 Wigeon, 39 Curlew, 28 Teal, 11 Redshank, 21 Avocet, 2 Dunlin, 2 Oystercatcher, 10 Lapwing, 13 Shoveler on the the scrape and 74 Golden Plover bathing in the flooded pools.
Lower Dumbles- 11 Curlew, 40 Starling and 9 Lapwing.
Rushy Hide
A pair of Oystercatcher, three Avocet, Mandarin, 9 Pintail and a female Pochard.
Tack Piece
170 Wigeon, 23 Teal, 196 Russian White-fronted Geese, Snipe below the Estuary Tower.
South Lake
A great flock of 797 Black-tailed Godwit (!), 63 Shoveler, 42 Avocet, 4 Oystercatcher + Teal, Tufted Duck, Black-headed and Herring Gulls, Greylag Geese and Coots.
Top New Piece
Twenty Avocet, female Marsh Harrier sunning on a post, 191 Wigeon, 20 Teal, Little Egret and 3 Lapwing, female Sparrowhawk over from Decoy and back again.
Bottom New Piece
Thirty Teal, 13 Lapwing (two on nests).
