Swanning Around

 I've been enjoying my birding so far this year having seen some decent birds on my travels. This morning I decided to do a spot of local stuff which is often something of an anti climax but that was definitely not the case this morning. In contrast to every other day this year so far it stayed dry and there was even some sunshine though a north easterly wind kept temperatures down.

Now I know how the Priors Hall Waxwings feel!

My walk down to Weldon was uneventful aside from the first of several Siskins noted today. In Weldon at the A43 pond there were a few ducks but not much else and a Redpoll was the highlight. Moving on to Willowbrook resulted in me finding an adult Yellow-legged Gull associating with Great Black Backs and Herrings just north of the Morrison's chilled warehouse. Nearer to the old Rockingham Speedway I decided to squelch my way across the open area in the hope of seeing my first county Snipes of the year. Before I started I stopped to watch a large herd of Fallow Deer grazing, they ran off when they got wind of my presence. My Snipe search produced seven birds, many of which squawked as they zig-zagged away. A pair of Stonechats showed distantly and other birds on site included Meadow Pipits, Skylarks and Yellowhammer. Whilst trying to get better views of the chats I flushed a Jack Snipe which flew silently for a short distance before landing again. Willowbrook always used to host this species but I haven't seen any here for a few years.

Whooper Swans

I was on my way to Priors Hall when a text from Phil Rogers informed that twenty-three Whoopers and two Bewick's Swans had arrived at Eyebrook Reservoir. The kind offer of a lift saw myself and Phil watching the swans soon after. We heard the Whoopers before we saw them as the party of mostly adult birds were very vocal. They seemed a little fidgety with many of them flapping their wings suggesting that they wouldn't hang around for that long. Both of the Bewick's were feeding a little distance away from their noisy cousins though they eventually joined up with the Whoopers. Both Phil and I had other commitments so we didn't hang around for long though we did have enough time to pick out a drake Smew and at least eight Dunlins.

Bewick's Swans

Phil was good enough to drop me off at Priors Hall where I missed the Waxwings by about two minutes - just as well I'd already seen them! I  then took a stroll along the South Gullet but my efforts only produced another Redpoll and a small group of Tufted Ducks on the quarry lake. I had a lunch date with my family booked at the George in Weldon so threw the towel in around mid afternoon and headed off towards some welcome food and a pint or two.

Bewick's and Whooper comparison.