Sunday May 9 - its good to chat.

 I set out this morning with mixed feelings. It rained all day yesterday and Twitter had been alive with reports of waders passing through. I was snug and warm at home, we were entertaining my mum, and the only wildlife in my life were the four moths I had caught overnight (two worn Pugs, a Garden Carpet, and a Peppered Moth if you're interested).

So this morning the rain had gone and it was brightening up. What could have been here yesterday? I'll never know, but maybe something had stuck. Just as I was arriving I got a call from Dave; Sanderling and Ringed Plovers at Marsh Lane this morning, so guess where he was going. 

The problem with hoping for waders at Morton Bagot these days is that there's nowhere for them to land. Yesterday's rain will have raised the waterlevel, and what little mud there had been will have been swamped.

But there's always chats. This is a good place for them, and on entering the chat field I duly found one. A Stonechat. Given what I think happened last year, let's just say this was an intriguing sight.

Stonechat

I chose to keep my distance.

Down at the flash field it was as expected, no mud, no waders. Well, two Lapwings if you want to be pedantic, and a pair of Shelducks. As I was moving on I heard a Yellow Wagtail call twice as it flew over, but I searched the sky for it in vain.

Anyway, back to the chats. Perched on vegetation in the weedy field was a lovely female Whinchat. I circled around to get the sun behind me.

Female Whinchat

Not as gaudy as last week's males, but a subtle beauty and a sure sign that spring passage is not yet over. And as if to emphasise the point, a quick scan of the rest of the field added a female Wheatear to the chat list.

Wheatear

I checked my phone and discovered a missed call. Dave had rung for a chat. It turned out he was having an excellent day, and had just found a Little Gull at Marsh Lane. Ironically he and the team had sat in the hides all day yesterday for no reward at all.

Meanwhile, back at Morton Bagot, my chances of adding anything else were thin. Extra warblers had turned up; three Lesser Whitethroats, 10 Whitethroats, three Sedge Warblers, and two Reed Warblers. Nothing to get too excited about. Still no Cuckoo calling.

The change in wind direction has brought warmer weather, and insects were much in evidence. St Mark's Flies (those dopey black ones that seem determined to fly up your nose) were everywhere, and I got my first shot of a Large Red Damselfly this year (although I did see one briefly on May 1).

Large Red Damselfly

I should also mention that the ringers have had another success. A Lesser Redpoll they caught on 18 October 2020 has been controlled at Laidley's Walk, Fleetwood in Lancashire on 18 April 2021, a total distance of 200 kilometres north-west.