No show from the scarce visitors
No sighings of either the Pectoral Sandpiper or Caspian Tern through the day
Highlights from around the estuary, scrapes and pools for today follow, most species were very mobile be it due to the tide, the heat or raptors.
Top New Piece
The moulting Marsh Harrier was hunting the area this morning resulting in the birds moving off for a time.
Three Sanderling, 4 Snipe, 6 Lille-ringed Plover, 12 Dunlin, 40+ Lapwing, a Greenshank, 12 Redshank, two eclispse drake Garganey flew to the Long Ground with Teal and 4 Shoveler, presumably for shade. The two adult Crane fed in the grasslands.
Tack Piece
Fourteen Green Sandpiper and 8 Lapwing on the mud.
Rushy Hide
The waders from South Lake moved to here with varying numbers counted. See below for totals.
South Lake
Two Green Sandpiper, two Spotted Redshank, 11 male Ruff, 204 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Oystercatcher, 34 Lapwing,47 Redshank, 60+ Gadwall, drake Pochard, 8 Teal and the Chiloe Wigeon hybrid.
Middle Point
Two immature Spoonbill, 3 Grey Heron and 4 Little Egrets, 60 Curlew (five colour ringed birds), a single Redshank and Black-tailed Godwit on the mudflats with Shelduck and Black-headed Gulls.
Colour ringed Curlews
We have at least five colour ringed Curlews on the Severn at the moment, two head started birds, a Curlew Project bird with transmitter, a new in bird today and the following bird.
Details from Harry Ewing follow.
"The bird (BTO ring: FJ42324) was as ringed as a chick at RAF Honington, Suffolk on 28th June 2019. Since then, it’s been seen at North Luffenham Airfield, Rutland (June/July 2020 and 21st March 2021) where it is assumed to be breeding. It was also seen in Eysey Quarry, Wiltshire on 11th March 2021.
We didn’t know exactly where the bird wintered until your sighting, so it’s one that really helps join the dots."
More information and some pictures of this bird can be found here: https://twitter.com/Ewing_birds/status/1374434433223127043
