Friday, 6 May 2016

3rd - 4th May

Carried out some Newt surveys in Staffordshire – farmland with singing Lesser Whitethroats, Whitethroats and Yellow Wagtails; a little look at Blithfield Reservoir from the causeway in the evening of the 3rd produced 14 Arctic Terns and 3 Dunlin.   Between surveys the next day the 3 Dunlin were still on the causeway along with a pair of displaying Little Ringed Plovers and 4 Oystercatchers and there were 2 Common Terns and 4 Common Sandpipers on Gailey Reservoirs before a few hours at Aqualate Mere produced the highlight of 9 Hobbies hawking high over the west end along with 2 Cetti’s Warblers, single pairs of Shelduck and Egyptian Geese and plenty of singing warblers in the warm, sunny conditions.


Hobbies - they were catching something, not sure what, some kind of small insects

Dunlin

Oystercatcher







Moorhens feeding their ridiculous looking chicks!

and this slightly unusual looking House Martin nest at Stafford motorway services, presumably they will continue building the nest right up to the roof and are just using the bottom beam as a support rather than keeping it like a Swallows nest



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