Tuesday 21 April 2009

April 21st 2009

Out just after 8am with sunny skies and little wind though the air temp still had last nights chill in it. Unfortunately no soon as I had arrived at Draycote Water you could tell it was going to be a struggle with very few birds moving or calling so half the morning turned in to a social do with Bob and Kevin. Only one immature Little Gull remained, Great-northern Diver, Whitethroat and Sedge Warbler were the best I could muster between toft shallows and visitors centre. Two hours watching for fly over’s from the country park produced 5 Buzzards together but nothing else so met up again with Bob to go over our objections regarding the re-location of the fishery in to toft.
As the cloud cover started to build up the wind increased so decided to hang on and rewarded with a Red Kite flying north over toft shallows 2;15pm spotted by John and Mark Spragget. The bird appeared a little washed out and had no wing tags and showed well then ten minutes later Terry Southgate rang to say he and Maureen had one still soaring over Bush Hill, Flecknoe. It was a different bird as Terry’s had feather missing on each wing while ours was fully intact. I stayed for over an hour on toft bank searching the horizon and hoping it would come my way but 2 Sparrowhawk, 8 Buzzard and a steady trickle of Swallows going through was all I could find. Also seen were 4 Gadwall, 2 Teal, Mistle Thrush, Sparrowhawk, and a Wheatear.
Back home and more Swallows going over plus a very high Grey Heron being mobbed by corvids.

Richard

No comments: