A tour of the local areas started off today with a quick look around the Marina grounds. A group of five juvenile
Yellowhammer,
Chiffchaff and a calling
Tawny Owl before I headed off to Draycote Water. A very chilly Draycote was pretty dire to be honest and apart from the many
Meadow Pipits to be found and a single
Grey Wagtail, a couple of
Little Egret was the best I could manage before I gave up and moved on to Brandon Marsh.
Brandon was also extremely quiet and I spent a short time in the East Marsh and Teal Pool Hides before taking a look at Newlands from the new Ted Jury Hide. East Marsh produced of note:
Willow Tit, over 100
Wigeon, a couple of
Common Snipe and over 40
Gadwall with a single
Green Sandpiper on Teal Pool.
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| Grey Squirrel keeping well clear of the Stoat below! |
The Ted Jury Hide had produced a couple of
Stonechat on Tuesday, one of which I managed to locate during a guided walk for the Rugby Gardeners Guild and today yielded a couple of
Kestrel and a
Stoat, which wasn't very obliging when I attempted to get a photograph!
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| Highly cropped record of today's Jack Snipe at Brandon. |
I met up with Alan Boddington when I arrived back at the East Marsh Hide and it was also great to see Alvin Burton out and about too. Alan called a
Snipe across on Wigeon Bank and immediately the constant bobbing alerted us to the first
Jack Snipe of the autumn, which was still showing quite well when I departed a short time later.
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| First Golden Plover of the autumn for me. |
In the late afternoon back at the marina I was alerted to the calls of
Golden Plover in close proximity while chatting with one of the neighbors. A quick peek at the adjacent field gave up eleven birds feeding in among a group of
Starlings.
