30th November
There were 3 Great Egrets on South Lake, and the Whooper Swan was very distant at Hampreston. There were 2 Mediterranean Gulls about, plus 2 Egyptian Geese and 30 Black-tailed Godwits on Hampreston Fields (George Green.)
29th November
There were 2 Stonechats, a male and a female, at the distant end of Hampreston Fields today, just about visible from the site. At least 1 Great Egret and 5 Little Egrets were on the fields, with about 30 Canada Geese and lots of Rooks and Carrion Crows. There was a herd of very distant swans, but I couldn’t locate the Whooper Swan (Dominic Couzens.)
28th November
There were 3 Great Egrets about and the Whooper Swan was on Hampreston Fields.
27th November
In the pouring rain birding was a challenge. The Great Egret was still around, along with a decent range of ducks, but the undoubted highlight was a fly-by Jack Snipe at the western end of the Causeway, with several Common Snipe too, including 2 on the island in South Lake. Also at least 30 Fieldfares (Dominic Couzens.)
26th November
I had a relatively good ringing morning with 18 new birds – 11 Redwing, 2 Chiffchaffs, 2 Goldcrests and one each of Cetti’s Warbler, Blackbird and Great Tit. The Redwing total now up to 30 this year – my best ever total. Chiffchaffs are on 99, equal to last year’s total (Roger Peart.)
25th November
Birds seen today: Great Egret – 3; Pochard – 107 the highlight of the afternoon watching some fly in; Lapwing – 57; Egyptian Goose – 2; Little Grebe – 5; Great Crested Grebe – 13; Tufted Duck – 73+; Grey Wagtail – 1; Meadow Pipit – 15; Water Rail – 1; Teal – 9; Gadwall – 2; Wigeon – 2; and Shoveler – 5 (Martin Wood.)
23rd November
I managed to walk round the South Lake before lunch today: Whooper Swan – one with about 20 Mutes in the distance on Hampreston Fields; Great Egret – 3 on South Lake; Little Egret – at least 4; Herring Gull – 27 resting on the roofs of two waterworks buildings south of the lake, possibly others on the lake; Cormorant – at least 30, mostly on the large island but some on the lake; Little Grebe – at least 2 seen; Great Crested Grebe – 6+; Tufted Duck – lots; Pochard – about 10; Teal – a few visible on the large island; Wigeon – ditto; Shoveler – at least 4 on or by the large island; Lapwing – 47 on east side of North Island in South lake; Greylag Geese and Canada Geese 20+ of each around the large island; Black-headed Gull – lots! (Roger Peart.)
22nd November
No new birds ringing this evening – although there was a small Starling roost over the main gate area as I arrived at about 4.15pm, with between 30 and 40 birds. I did catch 2 re-traps – a Robin ringed in early August, and a Blackbird which was very interesting, by a long way the oldest bird of any species we have caught at Longham – no others have been more than 5 years (Roger Peart.) Details here:
LA58182 New 3J 10/08/11 RHP Longham Lakes (2), Dorset
R 5F Recaptured 16/05/12 RHP Longham Lakes (3), Dorset (280 days)
R 5F Recaptured 27/06/12 RHP Longham Lakes (3), Dorset (322 days)
R 6F Recaptured 07/05/13 RHP Longham Lakes (3), Dorset (1 yr 270days)
R 6 Recaptured 03/06/13 RHP Longham Lakes (3), Dorset (1 yr 297days)
R 4F Recaptured 22/11/18 RHP Longham Lakes (E5), Dorset (7 yrs 104days)
21st November
There were 3 Great Egret chasing each other around in the terrible weather today.
20th November
The immature Whooper Swan was around, 2 Great Egrets, one on each lake again and 57 Lapwing spread around the North Island in South Lake.
19th November
2 Great Egrets were around, plus the immature Whooper Swan on Hampreston Fields.
18th November
The two Great Egrets were still residing on the island on South lake this morning, in the company of Grey Herons and Little Egrets (Terry White.)
17th November
Early in the morning there were 2 male Red-breasted Mergansers on the South Lake and a Dunlin on the Island, both flushed by kayakers. Also: Whooper Swan 1 juvenile – still in fields but took off with a few Mute Swans and disappeared from view at 15.00; Great Egret 2 – included a few flights across south lake; Tufted Duck ca. 130 (inc. 2 on north lake – the only birds there); very few other ducks: Gadwall, Shoveler, Pochard, Wigeon (only a handful) + a few Mallard; Great Crested Grebe 18; Little Grebe 14 (Neil Gartshore.) Also 3 Black-tailed Godwits flew over (George Green) and 2 Ravens over (Martin Wood.)
16th November
Ringing revealed 10 new birds and 2 recent re-traps (a Blue Tit from last month and a Treecreeper ringed on 6th August). Although the total was disappointing, it was good that half the total was Redwings. So the catch this autumn is now 19 – just three short of my best ever annual total, at Longham also, in 2013, which was the first year I caught any here. There was also a fairly sizeable flock (I guess at least 40) around the areas of the two nets which have caught all this year’s birds. The other birds this morning were 2 Song Thrush and one each of Chiffchaff, Goldcrest and Cetti’s Warbler. There was a Jay near the cabins at about 9.15am – hadn’t seen one for some time (Roger Peart.) On the lakes themselves there were 2 Great Egrets, 1 Whooper Swan immature on Hampreston fields, 17 Black-tailed Godwit flew over to the north-west and an Otter swam from middle South lake then into North lake.
15th November
Ringing-wise, a rather better morning than of late with 6 new birds ringed and 4 re-traps: 5 Goldcrest, 4 Redwing, 3 Chiffchaff, 2 Blackcaps and 2 Blackbirds. The latter were with the first Redwing so perhaps might have been migrants too? One retrap Goldcrest was ringed on 30th October 2017 which makes it our second longest-lived. However, the biggest surprise was having to remove a Brown Long-eared Bat from the nets first thing! (Roger Peart.)
Whooper Swan (immature. left) with Mute Swans, Longham Lakes 15/11/2018 (Lorne Bissell.)
Meanwhile there were 2 Great Egrets South Lake, 1 Whooper Swan immature on Hampreston fields, 1 Mediterranean Gull, 14 Meadow Pipits by car park, 21 Lapwings on North Island early afternoon.
14th November
There were 3 Great Egret evenly spaced on west side of south lake, 1 Whooper Swan immature Hampreston Fields.
12th November
There were 2 Great Egrets today, one on each lake, plus 1 Whooper Swan on Hampreston fields only viewable from path between Longham Lakes and the Church (bird currently limping), 17 Black-tailed Godwit over and 15 Common Snipe.
11th November
Two Great White Egrets were present this afternoon. Also, a group of 10 -15 Cormorants were working/fishing just off the railings on the east side of south lake and catching some big fish, Perch mostly. Also around were about 150 Tufted Ducks, only 5 Shoveler, 1 Teal (Martin Wood.)
Egyptian Geese, Longham Lakes, 10/11/2018 (Robert Weaver)
10th November
There were 2 Egyptian Geese on Hampreston Fields (Robert Weaver.) In the awful weather the Great White Egret was around, plus 3 Snipe, 2 Lapwing, 14 Wigeon, 10 Shovelers, some Gadwall and 3 Teal (Martin Wood.)
9th November
The Great Egret and Whooper Swan are still around, the latter in the far reaches of Hampreston Fields.
Greylag Goose, Longham Lakes 05/10/2018 (Roger Peart.)
8th November
The Great Egret was around, but no sign of the Whooper Swan nor the Cattle Egret. The cows in the fields were right over at the far side. In the vicinity were at least 3 Meadow Pipits, 3+ Little Egrets, 4+ Grey Herons, 3+ Cetti’s Warblers, 30+ Cormorants in the water and a large group of ‘ducks’ in mid-lake, mostly Tufties & Coots. There were 25+ Black-headed Gulls on the railings near the east end of the causeway. Where have all the Mute Swans gone? I could see none on either lake but just two by the weir/works as I drove out (Roger Peart.)
7th November
There was a group of swans in far distant Hampreston Fields that probably included the Whooper, but they remained half-hidden behind a hedge. However, the fields were full of gulls, with at least 175 Herring Gulls in one flock and at least 100 Black-headed Gulls actively feeding in the wetter parts, with an adult Mediterranean Gull for company. There were a few more ducks around, with 8 Wigeon, a similar number of Gadwall and a large flock of at least 96 Tufted Ducks, all keeping close together in mid-lake. A Water Rail gave marvellous views on the main island, preening itself right out in the open, with a Snipe and some Teal nearby (Dominic Couzens.)
6th November
There was no sign of the Cattle Egret or Whooper swan today, nor much else really. However, there were a few Skylarks and a good flock of 70 Linnets on Hampreston Fields, also at least 20 Fieldfares around (Dominic Couzens.)
Cattle Egret, Longham Lakes, 05/11/2018 (Lorne Bissell)
5th November
There were some decent birds present at Longham today, mostly those with long legs. The Cattle Egret remains, along with the Great Egret, which means that all three British egrets are present at the same time again. The juvenile Whooper Swan was still on Hampreston Fields (Lorne Bissell.) Later on there wasn’t much around, just 20 Meadow Pipits in the cattle field and a single Fieldfare. Just 1 Common Darter dragonfly seen (Olly Frampton.)
4th November
Very quiet on a wet, miserable morning at Longham Lakes until the Great White Egret appeared on South Lake and Cattle Egret in fields (11.15am) Also Cetti’s Warbler seen (David Foster.)
3rd November
The Whooper Swan was still around this morning, along with a Mediterranean Gull (Lorne Bissell.) In the afternoon lakes seemed very quiet again with one Wigeon, 8 Mallard, 67 Tufted Duck, 6 Little Grebes, 18 Great Crested Grebes, and about 100 Herring Gulls, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull. Other bits and bobs were Jay, Grey Wagtail and Goldcrest (Martin Wood.)
2nd November
Ringing was very poor this morning, with just 4 new ringed birds – one each of Redwing, Goldcrest, Robin and Blackbird. There was also one re-trap, a Robin first ringed on 4th June 2015 as a juvenile. This is now our oldest Robin for Longham – 3 years, 151 days (the previous best was just under 3 years (Roger Peart.) The Whooper Swan was still around (a first for me), plus 7 Snipe on the main island, 3 Common Gulls and 2 Water Rails heard (Martin Wood.)
1st November
A Cattle Egret turned up today, just the 3rd site record and not entirely unexpected, given that there are flocks of them around locally at the moment (Olly Frampton, Dave and Pat Harris.) Also, a Jack Snipe was on the South Lake island showing surprisingly well, a Peregrine flew west and the Whooper Swan was showing in Hampreston Fields, visible from the public footpath but not from the Causeway (Olly Frampton.)
31st October
The Whooper Swan was on Hampreston Fields, the Great Egret on South Lake and there was a female Goldeneye on the water on South Lake (Lorne Bissell.)
Whooper Swan (juvenile), Longham Lakes 29/10/2018 (Lorne Bissell)
29th October
Hot on the heels of the first new species of the year at Longham, last week’s Wryneck, comes the second newbie in the form of a WHOOPER SWAN. Who knows where this juvenile bird came from? It was located by Olly Frampton on North Lake this morning and eventually flew off at about 12.30pm, not yet to return. The season’s first Goldeneye, these days quite a scarce bird at Longham, was also present (Lorne Bissell.)
27th October
Highlight of my morning’s visit was a Merlin (only 5th site record) flying west over the Causeway towards Hampreston Fields. Also a Great White Egret on the island in the South Lake (George Green.) The raptor theme continued later with a Red Kite over. Otherwise a welcome increase in the number of wildfowl, with some 70 Tufted Duck, 14 Pochard, 4 Wigeon and a few Gadwall, Teal and Shoveler. Also 11 Little Grebes, 20 Great Crested Grebes, 70 Herring Gulls and a Kingfisher (Martin Wood.)
26th October
I did another brief ringing visit to Longham this morning but only caught 6 new birds (2 Goldcrests, 1 Wren, 1 Robin, 1 Song Thrush and 1 Redwing) and one re-trap. This was a Wren first ringed in May 2017, that is 1 year 154 days ago, which is the oldest Wren so far at Longham by 102 days. While shutting down the last net there was a slow flypast, almost directly overhead, by a Great White Egret. Currently there are at least two Tawny Owls at the site, perhaps a male and a female? The latter was giving its ‘kerwick’ call to the west of the clump at 06.20 and often I hear a male hooting from Emily’s wood area (Roger Peart.)
Fieldfare, Longham Lakes 25/10/2018 (Roger Peart.)
25th October
A slightly better ringing return today, partly due to an early arrival of thrushes just before first light. This included 3 Song Thrushes, 1 Blackbird, 2 Redwings and a Fieldfare. The latter is the first ringing record for Longham. There were also 3 Chiffchaffs, 3 Goldcrests, 2 Blackcaps and singles of Robin, Blue Tit and Great Tit – total of 18 new birds with 3 recent local re-traps. The usual Tawny Owl was hooting west of the clump at 0650 and a Cetti’s Warbler sang near the cabins just before I left (Roger Peart.)
24th October
There was a Black-necked Grebe briefly on site today, the first of the year.
22nd October
A poor morning for ringing at Longham today with just 9 new birds and 3 re-traps, two of local birds ringed earlier this year. The new ones were 3 Redwings, 2 Chiffchaffs and one each of Blackcap, Goldcrest, Wren and Great Tit. One re-trap was of interest, however. It was a Song Thrush originally ringed in July 2014, making it 4 years, 3 months plus . It is the second oldest Song Thrush I have had at Longham – the older one was retrapped after 5 years and 1 month. So even on the poorest of days one can have a pleasant surprise when an old friend turns up (Roger Peart.) There was an Otter on North Lake this morning (Dominic Couzens.)
Wryneck (mobile phone photo), Longham Lakes 21/10/2018 (David Foster)
21st October
A WRYNECK has been seen this morning at Longham Lakes (10.35), the first record of this species for the site. It is actually the first new species found here this year. Well done, David Foster. Also 2 Great White Egrets on the large island, possibly a third at the far southern end. Took to the air and headed southeast as the Sunday walkers arrived. There was 1 Grey Wagtail and 3-4 Cetti’s Warblers heard. It would have been quiet apart from the noisy arrival of 100+ Greylag and Canada Geese (Alan Pearce.)
20th October
There was a Great Egret at Longham this morning, the first of the winter (per Nick and Jackie Hull/Two Owls Birding.) Nothing [else] unusual to report except for very noisy Greylags around the large island. I counted at least 60 but there were probably more that were out of my sight. The fairly usual Cetti’s Warbler was singing occasionally among reeds on the west bank of the North Lake (Roger Peart.)
19th October
Yet another slow morning ringing yesterday at Longham with just 13 new birds and 3 re-traps in the 3 hours that I had nets open. Best was 2 more Redwings. Others were Chiffchaff 3, Goldcrest 2 and one each of Long-tailed Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Wren, Goldfinch and Greenfinch. Of the 3 re-traps a Long-tailed Tit ringed on 23/05/2017 and a Dunnock ringed on 06/07/2017 were of some interest. The Chiffchaff total for the year is now up to 88, 11 short of last year which was the lowest since I started at Longham in 2011. Goldcrests are at 13, which is exactly a third of last year and well below the best year 2015 (65 ringed). (Roger Peart.) Visible migration was utterly dire this morning, with tiny numbers of Starlings, Redwings, Meadow Pipits and Linnets going over. There were also 3 Siskins over the ringing area (Dominic Couzens.)
18th October
Another slow morning ringing today with just 10 new birds caught, plus a re-trap Robin ringed in July. Small numbers were however enlivened by the first Redwing and Firecrest of the autumn. Also a Coal Tit, only the second ringed here (first one last year). Others were 2 Goldcrest, 1 Chiffchaff, 3 Great Tit and 1 Blue Tit (Roger Peart.)
16th October
Another rather slow ringing morning with persistent mist through until about 9.30am. There were 20 new birds: Goldfinch 6, Great Tit 4, Chaffinch 2, Goldcrest 2, and one each of Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Blue Tit, Robin, Song Thrush and Wren. The one re-
Treecreeper, Longham Lakes, 16/10/2018 (Trevor Wilkisnon)
trap was a Robin ringed on 13th September this year. So not much migration evidence (Roger Peart.) Meanwhile, there were 54 Canada Geese, 7 Greylag Geese, 10 Mute Swans (including 2 juveniles), 19 Cormorants, 3 Great Crested Grebes, 8 Little Grebes, 6 Mallards and only 2 Tufted Ducks around, along with various other species, notably a Treecreeper (Trevor Wilkinson.)
13th October
Longham is pretty dire at the moment. Here is my list from an hour and 45 minutes today: Mute Swan – 7, Greylag Goose – 45, Canada Goose – 70, Mallard – 5, Gadwall – 1, Wigeon – 2, Tufted Duck – 7, Little Grebe – 13, Great Crested Grebe – 10, Cormorant – 24, Lapwing – 2, Little Egret – 1, Kestrel – 1, Herring Gull – 40, Great Black-backed Gull – 2 and a Cetti’s Warbler (Martin Wood.)
8th October
Another fairly quiet session with just 16 new birds and 1 re-trap. I caught 5 Goldfinches, 4 Chiffchaffs, 2 Blackcaps, and one each of Goldcrest, Song Thrush, Chaffinch, Great Tit and Great Spotted Woodpecker. The one re-trap was interesting – a Goldcrest first ringed on 17th October 2016, so just under two years ago. I have only previously retrapped 6 Goldcrests at Longham and the two oldest of those were a few days over 1 year, so this bird takes the record for the longest surviving here. At about 8.50am a Skylark flew over towards the south-east; also there were 2 Tawny Owls calling early on – one from Emily’s Wood area at about 0530 (male ‘hoot’) and the other about 0645 west of the clump (female ‘kerwick’). (Roger Peart.)
6th October
Birds recorded this afternoon included the following: Mute Swan – 4, Canada Goose – 92, Greylag Goose – 79, Mallard – 1, Teal – 3, Tufted Duck – 3, Coot – 30 (on North Lake only), Little Grebe – 12, Great Crested Grebe – 5, Snipe – 2, Lapwing – 12, Black-headed Gulls – 12, as well as Swallow – 5 and House Martin – 4 (Martin Wood.)
Kingfishers, Longham Lakes 04/10/2018 (Roger Peart)
4th October
After early drizzle and mist, the only birds caught before 9am were a couple of local re-traps (Blackbird and Dunnock) and after that there was a slow trickle and numbers picked up a bit an hour or so later. Blackcaps seem to have ended now and Chiffchaffs are intermittent. I caught 9 of the latter today but the main interest was 2 Kingfishers together in the net by the cabins. Further interest came in the shape of my first Chaffinch and Goldfinch of the year. Totals: Chiffchaff 9, Great Tit 4, Kingfisher 2 and one each of Blue Tit, Robin, Chaffinch, Goldfinch. I also came across 3 Hornets this morning (Roger Peart.)
2nd October
It turned out to be not a bad morning, helped by a whole flock of Long-tailed Tits in one net with one or two other friends for company. Totals: Chiffchaff 16, Long-tailed Tit 12, Goldcrest 3, Blue Tit 3, Dunnock 2, Great Tit 1 and Cetti’s Warbler 1. So, 38 in all with 3 local re-traps – all quite recent, but the most interesting was a Treecreeper which I had ringed on 6 Aug. I have only caught 7 at Longham and before this one none of them had been seen again (Roger Peart.)
1st October
An hour’s stroll around the lakes late this morning produced nothing of note on the water, however around the lake at least 6 Chiffchaffs were along the western & northern hedgerows and 2 Stonechats were near the south end of south lake. Although it was quite chilly at times, Odonata were represented with just 6 Common Darter, 1 Migrant Hawker, and 1 Common Blue Damselfly. Lepidoptera fared slightly better with 6 species seen on the wing today (1 Clouded Yellow, 2 Common Blues, 1 Small Copper and singles of Red Admiral and Speckled Wood, and a few Small or Large White which weren’t seen closely enough to ID confidently). Not a bad butterfly day list for an hour on an October morning (Olly Frampton.)
28th September
An attempt at moth-trapping in Emily’s Wood this evening was more than a little slow, with just a handful of autumn species recorded: Red Underwing, Red-line Quaker, Square-spot Rustic, Common Marbled Carpet, Willow Beauty, Garden Dart and The Sallow. The very common Cranefly Tipula paludosa was also found. Bats did a little better, with the capture of a male Nathusius’s Pipistrelle; also flying about were Soprano Pipistelle, Noctule, Serotine and a Brown Long-eared Bat (Dominic Couzens, Jan Freeborn, Ashley Leftwich, Mark Spencer, Malcolm Storey.)
27th September
If it hadn’t been for a whole party of Long-tailed Tits, the numbers would have been quite poor. Total catch was 25 new – 10 Long-tailed Tits, 4 Chiffchaffs, 4 Blue Tits, 2 Robins, 2 Goldcrests, 1 each of Great Tit, Blackcap and Great Spotted Woodpecker. I also had 3 re-traps – the Goldcrest ringed on Monday, a Wren ringed on 6th August and a Chiffchaff ringed in May which was then an adult female with a brood patch (Roger Peart.) A Hobby over the North Lake was the highlight of my late pm visit (George Green.)
25th September
I had a couple of hours at Longham this evening with just 4 nets open. I 0nly caught one Chiffchaff! But there was a very small Starling murmuration of about 40 birds over the fields beyond the western trees at around 7pm. Also 30 Cormorants on the power lines around one of the pylons (Roger Peart.)
24th September
Quite a good morning, with 35 new birds (no re-traps). The Chiffchaffs are coming good at last, with 13 ringed. Also Blackcap 8 , Meadow Pipit 4 , Great Tit 4 and one each of Cetti’s Warbler, Goldcrest, Blue Tit, Robin, Blackbird and Song Thrush (Roger Peart.)
Lots of birds around, with highlights being 3 Coal Tits amongst a large mixed flock of tits, also singles of Redstart, Wheatear and Lesser Whitethroat, with huge numbers of Hirundines all over the shop (Matt Bell.) A single Wheatear on the Causeway was my first sighting for Longham Lakes this year. Otherwise a few more wildfowl around including 10 Wigeon and 10 Shoveler (George Green.)
22nd September
I spent a very wet afternoon walking round South Lake, the best birds being an immature Garganey, 2 Snipe , 6 Gadwall and a 1st-Winter Great Black backed Gull (Martin Wood.)
20th September
There were a good number of House Martins and Swallows battling the wind, while about 30 Greylag Geese flew up from the fields. There were 4 Lapwings, 4 Gadwall, a Common Sandpiper and a Grey Heron on the large island, with 16 Little Grebes and22 Great Crested Grebes riding the waves along with Herring Gulls in the middle of South Lake. (Martin Wood.)
An attempt at catching bats tonight was a washout, with nothing at all. Even the appearance of a Parent Bug (a shieldbug) and the previously extinct, now widespread beetle Agelastica alni could lift the gloom (Malcolm Storey, Jan Freeborn, Dominic Couzens.)
18th September
A slow stroll around the lakes late this morning produced the following few items of unexceptional note: 20 Chiffchaff, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Mediterranean Gull (a 1st winter) on South Lake, 22 Little Grebes (South Lake), 1 Gadwall (drake), 1 Reed Warbler, c.50 Greylag Geese (South Lake.) Odonata were represented across the site with at least 17 Migrant Hawker, 2 Common Darter and singles of Common Blue Damselfly (Olly Frampton.) On a brief walk down the causeway today in the lee of the trees I saw Common Sandpiper, disturbed from the concrete slipway, Green Woodpeckers, 6 Lapwings and a Heron on the island. There were a good number of Hirundines, mainly House Martin and a couple of Swallows, feeding low over the fishing lake. The usual fare of Coot, Great Crested Grebe, Tufted Duck, Mallard and Gulls were also seen. A Speckled Wood was fighting against the wind (Ron Poulter.)
17th September
I had a shortish ringing session at Longham this morning Not many birds about – just 13 new and 1 re-trap (a Blue Tit from last month). A few Blackcaps (6) started the morning off followed by 3 Chiffchaffs, and the numbers were made up by 2 Blue Tits, a Great Tit and a Song Thrush (Roger Peart.) A slow stroll around the lakes late this morning produced the following few items of note: 20 Chiffchaffs, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Mediterranean Gull (a 1st winter) on South Lake, 22 Little Grebes (South Lake), 1 Gadwall (drake), 1 Reed Warbler (in reeds at “Scarlet Darter pond”) and c.50 Greylag Geese (South Lake.) Odonata were represented across the site with at least 17 Migrant Hawker, 2 Common Darter and a single Common Blue Damselfly. North Lake was almost totally devoid of birds, it was most bizarre (Olly Frampton.)
14th September
It was very quiet at Longham today, with very few landbird migrants around. However, there was a female/immature Garganey on the “Scarlet Darter” pond (south of main South Lake) with three Gadwall, as well as a Hobby flying over. Other interest came in the form of an American Mink (Dominic Couzens.)
13th September
From first light until 9.20am things were very quiet for ringing again, with nothing like the numbers on Monday – just 17 new birds and a recent re-trap Blue Tit. New birds were 7 Blackcaps, 4 Chiffchaffs, 4 Great Tits and 2 Robins (Roger Peart.).
11th September
In a very blustery southwesterly breeze there were plenty of Swallows, House Martins and also 2-3 Sand Martins. A nice female Blackcap and a Redstart were in the coppice on the western side of the South Lake were the best birds for the visit (Robin Trundle.) Also 32 Great Crested Grebe, 2 Lapwing, 16 Little Grebe, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Kestrel, 20 Linnet and 1 Spotted Flycatcher (Trevor Thorpe.)
Brown Long-eared Bat, Longham Lakes, 10/09/2018 (Roger Peart.)
10th September
The most interesting capture as far as ringing is concerned was a Brown Long-eared Bat. Otherwise it was a good morning for newly captured birds, with 16 Blackcaps, 10 Chiffchaffs, 6 Great Tits, 5 Blue Tits, 4 Long-tailed Tits and 1 each of Blackbird, Greenfinch, Garden Warbler and Willow Warbler. There were also 2 re-traps: a Robin from early August and a Great Tit from September 2017 (Roger Peart.) Around the lakes there were a few Swallows, 1 House Martin, 1 Spotted Flycatcher, 2 Common Sandpipers, 2 Pochards and a Great Spotted Woodpecker (Martin Wood.)
9th September
There were at least 150 Rooks on Hampreston fields this afternoon, while a few Swallows and Sand Martins were flying around the visitor centre. A Cetti’s Warbler gave single burst of song at the west end of the causeway and Chiffchaffs were calling in the bushes all along the causeway. There was one group of 3 juvenile and 1 adult Great Crested Grebes (Roger Peart.)
7th September
Ringing session this evening, about 1900 – 2020. In view of recent results I was quite surprised to catch 9 Chiffchaffs and 2 Blackcaps, plus one Robin. I also had an adult Song Thrush that I had ringed on 28th August (Roger Peart.)
4th September
19 birds were ringed this morning: 12 Blackcaps, 3 Robins, one each of Dunnock, Song Thrush, Reed Warbler and Great Tit (Roger Peart.) Around the lakes 1 Black tailed Godwit, 1 Common Sandpiper and 20 Lapwings, all on the Large island, plus 1 Shoveler, 2 Gadwall and 10 Little Grebes (Martin Wood.) The best bird I could find today was a Lesser Whitethroat in the south west corner. Also had a ‘comic’ tern fly straight south. Probably a Common Tern but was it was too distant to be certain (Matt Bell.)
2nd September
Among various birds seen this morning were 1 Swift, 1 female Teal, 3 Gadwall, 2 Shoveler, 24 Little Grebes, 3 Common Sandpipers, 15 Lapwings, a Snipe, a Sparrowhawk, a Hobby, a Kestrel, 3 Migrant Hawkers, a Common Darter and butterflies including Small Copper, Common Blue and Meadow Brown (Martin Wood, Nick and Jackie Hull/Two Owls Birding.)
1st September
A few small migrants were present including 3 Yellow Wagtails feeding with cows on Hampreston Meadows and 2 Spotted Flycatchers. Best of the rest were 2 Common Sandpipers (George Green.)