Spot the Spotties and Glare at the Garganey

As @porthkillier and @birdingprof  had agreed: there must be one redstart by now. 

Hoping to bag a common redstart (a patch and general lifer for me – not been birding that long  - and quite a hard bird to get on the patch) I went patching this morning.

I think @randombirder and @jarpartridge were the last patch birders to get one on the patch.

So I headed out to the southern part of the patch (as there was another patcher already on the northern side – the reservoirs), the WaterWorks Nature Reserve and the paddocks (still giving the marsh a wide berth – dogs, flashers, ravers, general knob-ends etc).

The WaterWorks was very good value.

4 spotted flycatchers, 1 willow warbler, 1 blackcap, 2 garden warbler, 1 lesser whitethroat, 1 swallow, c12 house martin, 1 reed warbler, 2 chiff-chaff, 3 teal, 11 gadwall, 2 little grebe, 3 green woodpecker (2 juveniles learning how to find food), 1 kestrel, 6 long-tailed tit and 1 collared dove in and amongst the usual fare.

At one point, one of the spotted flycatchers zoomed past me like an x-wing fighter navigating through the innards of the death star (the path leading into the hides – a bit extra granted, but doesn’t sound as good).

now you see me

now you don't

the death star (think star wars)

strategically positioned plant in front of hide window

The paddocks.

Oddly, I spent a bit of time with a teal that really couldn’t care less that I was there.

The paddocks looked very busy as I approached. 12 mistle thrush, 4 egyptian goose, 7 canada goose, 2 lesser-black backed gulls and much of the usual paddock faces.

One bird which did stand out on the paddocks was an adult yellow-legged gull. (rough camera conditions). It soon got as fed up of the rain as I was and ‘effed off sharpish – just as I soon did. 

Steamy windows

@leevalleybirder

I arrived at the Waterworks just before the last shower, a short wait before the clouds broke and the some late warm summer sun eventually forced it's way through on what had been a dismal day.

A little later....

The Waterworks struck Garganey gold today with this skittish individual that appeared across my eyeline as I was watching the Teal. Camera in hand, I snapped a couple of shots before it disappeared into the reeds at the back of Bed 13. One of those moments when I began to question what I had just seen but thankfully the couple of shots confirmed that I hadn't gone completely mad. A bit lucky really.  A single Gadwall and a female Shoveler were also present here.

Heading over to the Marshes, there were three Northern Wheatear on the paddocks, two moulting adult males and a female. There was a bit of disturbance there but were still present on my wander back.

There were two Whinchat in the Cow Field, quite distant and hard to pick up in the breeze. Four Swallow were also in flight, a family group that may have been the local breeders.

@randombirder