GEDSER - 4th October

Generally bright and sunny with clouds scudding rapidly across the blue sky in the strong, cold force 7 NE wind; the nets were steady but unremarkable as we struggled to 91 new birds in the tricky conditions with 2 Firecrests the only birds worth a mention.   Overhead though, it was an awesome day with the skies constantly full of birds, dominated again by 800+ Cranes seen over the garden through the morning (a brilliant 4,265 were counted from the point, which is a new Gedser record count!); also very obvious were 500+ Barnacle Geese (6,990 were counted at the point!) and 200+ Brent Geese (820 were counted at the point!)

                Other birds were not so obvious but did include a Richard’s Pipit which went over calling (at one stage it was flying in the middle of a flock of Cranes!) along with small numbers of Swallows, Skylarks, Meadow Pipits Mistle Thrushes, Stock Doves, Reed Buntings, Chaffinches, Bramblings and Siskins etc.   Raptors were represented by several Rough-legged Buzzards (73 were seen through the day!) and Red Kites with a steady trickle of Common Buzzards, Sparrowhawks and Kestrels.

                I went out to the point after lunch where there were tens of thousands of Eiders pouring south in huge flocks – 43,000+ were counted through the day along with big numbers of other Geese and Ducks (5,315 Wigeon); a flock of 17 Little Gulls were off the tip before I got restless and went for a walk north up the coast and across the fields where birds included 15 Grey Plovers, 30 Dunlin and 6 Sanderling on the beaches, 6+ Rough-legged Buzzards, a Hen Harrier, a Red Kite and two first winter Little Gulls across the fields north of Gedser and a smart Great Grey Shrike hunting along the eastern edge of town all with the backdrop of constant flocks of noisy Barnacle and Brent Geese, Cranes and Eiders all pouring south – fantastic!

Cranes

Red Kite

Barnacle Geese

Dunlin

Grey Plover

Great Grey Shrike