April 18th 2011

A game of two halves today with the pond being pretty lifeless between 9 & 12am with only a couple of Wheatear, 8 Yellow Wagtail, Common Sandpiper, 3 Little Ringed Plover inlet and a male Shoveler as the sun tried to breakthrough the cloud with a light east north east wind.
Just before mid-day it finally started clearing the mist that had been building and turning to the east which allowed an Osprey to be found high over the country park heading north at 12:05pm followed by a mixed flock of gulls & terns coming in at 12:20pm from the south east which turned out once they started to feed off the sailing club as 16 Little Gull, 2 Artic Tern, Common Tern and Black Tern. By mid-afternoon theses had increased to 24 Little Gull and 4 Black Tern as the wind turned south east.
Other sightings included 2 Whitethroat, 8 Buzzard, Green Woodpecker and female Teal.
The influx of Little Gulls must have continued in the afternoon with Napton Reservoir having a very smart adult with a light pinkish flush on chest and a Cuckoo. Also present were 3 Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Green Woodpecker and Raven.
Calcutt had Yellow Wagtail and Meadow Pipit while Kites Hardwick mustard up a Grey Wagtail on the River Leam and Red-legged Partridge.

Red Twin-spot Carpet by Bob Hazell

Sunrise over the pond yesterday by the Bumbling Bears

Richard