Heavy rain was predicted for this morning and it very nearly scuppered a planned Morton Bagot visit. Fortunately we decided that the torrential rain would stop and braved the flooded roads to get to the site. I arrived to find Dave sitting in his vehicle, and for 30 minutes we had no other option.
However, it did clear through, and the next hour was an excellent one. Numerous flocks of Redwings and Fieldfares were flying over, along with an Egret sp (probably Little) which caused some discussion. I counted 15 Blackbirds in the hedgerows around Netherstead, and we were sure these, and several Song Thrushes, included continental immigrants.
The morning's highlight came when I heard Dave say "what's this coming towards us?" The urgency in his voice proved well founded as I got onto a falcon heading our way, it banked as it got closer and although it was hard to pick out much colour against the lead grey sky, the relatively short tail and pointed wing tips combined with its small size all pointed to Merlin. The first I have seen here for over 10 years.
The question was, do I keep looking at it, or try for a photo which would probably be blurred and inconclusive. I opted for the former course of action. I thought I could see a dark tip to its tail which would make it a male, but the light was against us. As it disappeared across the field at a steady rate I tried for some kind of record shot.
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| Merlin (honest!) |
I'm not sure that the photo proves much either way, but we both had no doubt about the identification. This was #LocalBigYear tick number 137.
Shortly after the event it started to rain again, but only drizzle this time. We entered the old pool field and noticed that some of the scrapes were accumulating water. We probably need a lot more rain before they are fit for purpose.
The corner of the field contained a lot of passerine activity including three Stonechats, 25 Chaffinches, 50 Goldfinches and several Redwings and Reed Buntings. More thrushes flew over, and during the morning we also recorded small numbers of Siskins and Redpolls.
The flash field now contains plenty of water and has been populated by at least 44 Teal, 40 Mallard, 21 Lapwings, two Snipe, and a Green Sandpiper. Dave spotted a couple of Pipits as they flew towards the furthest flash, but they remained presumed Meadow Pipits and didn't show again.
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| Four species in this shot (the Grey Wagtail is the hard one to see) |
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| Green Sandpiper |
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| Redwing |
We had not a single summer migrant today, and there is no doubt that autumn has arrived.
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