Map
Telford sunrise: 4:54am
8.5°C > 8.0°C. Overcast ahead of slight rain from 6:00am and real rain from c.7:00am. Calm, becoming light SSW. Very good visibility ahead of the rain but moderate later
(68th visit of the year)
Two highlights this morning
- an adult Little Grebe first noticed c.7:45am tucked up along the S side where I had walked only a few minutes before. From where I then was, on the dam, it was rather too far to ID – just a ‘small, dark grebe’. Knowing that a summer plumage Black-necked Grebe was found just W of here at Belvide yesterday I had hopes. My attempts to get closer were rather thwarted when it flew a short distance to disappear at the base of reeds and was not seen again. But I had seen enough to know it was ‘only’ a Little Grebe, but unusual here at this date.
- an adult Common Tern: this arrived just as the rain became heavier and at the same time as 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, c.20 Swifts and dozens of Swallows and House Martins all ‘appeared’. It settled on a buoy: moved buoys when some fighting Coots got too close: and then without apparently looking to feed headed off S. It had been present c.30 minutes
Notes
- a pair of Tufted Duck from first light. c.7:00am another male was trying to muscle in, but had apparently gone by 7:30am when a second pair was present.
- a Grey Heron flew in at 4:50am but was not seen again. Been strangely absent recently and my first sighting since 12 May.
- both male and female Kestrels were hunting the S side grassy areas and adjacent M54 verges this morning and flying regular sorties to the N, presumably to feed nestlings somewhere.
- Great Spotted Woodpecker flew over carrying food.
- a group of Goldcrests with fledged young was seen on Monday (25th): the male was singing again in the same area this morning.
- both of the singing Common Whitethroats were in different locations. One was where the first arrival in Spring spent some while singing but then all was quiet: in addition to the singing bird another was scolding. The second bird was singing from the hedge on the E side of Castle Farm Way and was in a new location for the year.
- last Saturday (3rd) I saw a female Pied Wagtail rather agitated and carrying food on the dam. Nesting nearby, I presumed. But since then no birds seen in the area. This morning just one juvenile was on the dam face. A male on the SW grass was probably just co-incidence.
- juvenile Reed Bunting seen to confirm successful breeding here.
Counts of birds flying over the lake (in addition to those on / around lake)
- 2 Greylag Geese (1 group)
- 11 Canada Geese (3 groups)
- 4 Cormorants (1 group)
- 13 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 1 Stock Dove
- 133 Jackdaws
- 92 Rooks
Count of hirundines etc
- c.50 Swifts
- c.20 Swallows
- c.25 House Martins
Count of singing warblers
- 6 Chiffchaffs
- 16 Blackcaps
- 2 Common Whitethroats
- 7 Reed Warblers
The counts from the lake area
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 10 (7♂) Mallard
- 1 Grey Heron (see notes)- 1 Little Grebe
- 8 + 2 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 6 Moorhens
- 29 Coots
- 1 Oystercatcher
- 1 Common Tern
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
Juvenile Pied Wagtail on the dam. Gives a rather ‘washed out’ appearance.
Adult Common Tern.
... and flies away.
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day 2014
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