Wednesday 4 March
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Brent Geese Branta bernicla over Frampton Marsh |
With a
Kestrel resting in a tree as I approached Langtoft I was soon over to Boston, passing the rookery where the
Rooks were putting the finishing touches to their nests and a couple of
Pheasants were feeding in the adjacent field to the entry to
RSPB Frampton Marsh Reserve. A couple of
Collared Doves and accompanying
House Sparrows were around the last cottages. Clear blue skies and relatively mild as I spent over three hours touring the site and recording
49 species before making my way back to Stamford before the promised afternoon rain (yet to arrive!).
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Just a few of the thousand plus Brent Geese Branta bernicla |
Lots of recent rain has left the site very wet but some scrapes still relatively "dry" and many flooded fields. Not just the usual hundreds of
Lapwing spread all over the site but
Brent Geese numbers probably totalled over a thousand and more than the
Wigeon population. After a quick look at the main pool in front of the V
isitors Centre which held
Wigeon,
Mallard,
Teal, Pochard and
Coot along with
Greylag and
Brent Geese, I drove down to the far car park to walk up onto the elevated marsh bank to check out the surroundings with my scope. Hundreds of
Brent Geese,
Wigeon,
Teal and
Lapwing to be seen as well as the continuous swirling of the wintering
Golden Plover flock which still totalled almost 5,000. The occasional
Magpie and
Carrion Crow drifted across the site and walking southwards along the bank I found a pair of
Oystercatchers to my left and a few
Redshank on the reserve side of the bank.
|
Distant record shot of Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus |
Apart from the above, everywhere seemed to be full of
Brent Geese, there were a few
Black-headed Gulls and the occasional
Moorhen. A handful of
Ruff were recorded plus a pair of
Grey Plover and a lone
Merlin perched on a distant post on the saltmarsh. Also present a quartet of
Little Egret and a sole
Little Grebe feeding in a deep pool below the bank. Scattered
Mute Swans in most area but the wintering Whooper Swans were much further aw to the south so I gave them a miss. Making my way back to the car I also encountered a very small number of
Black-tailed Godwits, a
Spotted Redshank and a handful of
Curlew.
|
Wintering Ruff Philomachus pugnax |
Having parked in the main car park I then took a closer look a clockwise walk top, north-western corner of the site adding
Blue Tits and a couple of
Reed Bunting before reaching then
Reedbed Hide. From here, in addition to the many
Brent Geese, I also found a few
Greylag Geese and
Wigeon plus a pair of
Goldeneye.
|
Male Goldeneye Bucephala clangula |
Refreshments were consumed at the
360 Hide whilst I watched the nearby Wigeon and a pair of
Canada Geese. A
Redshank was bust feeding to me left (north) and a quartet of
Ringed Plover were a little further away. On the far side a bout a dozen
Dunlin were feeding. Distant
Shelduck were also seen and to the front, eastwards, I had a pair of
Oystercatchers, a
Stock Dove and a couple of
Curlew.
|
Common Redshank Tringa totanus |
The walk back to the Visitors Centre produced a score of
Common Starling in the hedgerow and more Coot on the nearby water. Both
Gadwall and
Tufted Duck were also recorded. Finally, on saying farewell to the wardens I noticed that the small number of
House Sparrows at the feeder had been joined by a single
Tree Sparrow and
Great Tits whilst the distant island held a trio of
Avocet and the pair of
Great Crested Grebes were busy putting on a courtship display. No surprise to come across a couple of
Pheasants as I exited the reserve.
|
Male Wigeon Anas penelope |
Birds seen:
Greylag Goose, Brent Goose, Canada Goose, Mute Swan, Shelduck, Gadwall, Wigeon, Mallard, Shoveler, Teal, Pochard, Tufted Duck, Goldeneye, Pheasant, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Little Egret, Kestrel, Merlin, Moorhen, Coot, Oystercatcher, Avocet, Ringed Plover, Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Lapwing, Dunlin, Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, Curlew, Spotted Redshank, Redshank, Black-headed Gull, Wood Pigeon, Stock Dove, Collared Dove, Dunnock, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Magpie, Rook, Carrion Crow, Starling, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, Goldfinch, Reed Bunting.
More photos:
|
Male Reed Bunting Emberiza schoeniclus |
|
Black-trailed Godwit Limosa limosa |
|
Wintering Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus |
|
Wigeon Anas penelope (female on left) |
|
Male Teal Anas crecca |
|
Canada Geese Branta canadensis |
Check out the accompanying website at http://www.birdingaxarquia.weebly.com for the latest sightings, photographs and additional information
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