I may previously have said that rain is great for birding. I should have added sometimes. This morning I awoke to rain, and wasted no time getting to Earlswood before breakfast. My first scan revealed a couple of Common Terns, my first since the spring. I have to admit to a frisson of excitement as I swept my view back and forth along the muddy and shingly edges of the lakes. There was nothing. Well, no waders, save for a single Common Sandpiper on one of the rafts.
Such is life. There was still a few differences from my last visit; far fewer Sand Martins (just two), and Swifts (a dozen), but still plenty of Swallows. I decided to walk around Windmill Pool for a change, hoping to find the juvenile Little Grebe which Matt and Tony had seen recently. I was successful. Possibly only my second sighting of the species locally this year.
Part two of the morning came after breakfast when I decided to give Morton Bagot its chance to shine. The rain had largely stopped, and it was a bit muggy. At least one Grasshopper Warbler was singing from the chat field, and a couple of Lesser Whitethroats popped briefly into view. But my main goal was to check out the nearest flash.
The flash field at Morton Bagot can both impress and depress. It looks great at the moment, a perfect balance of wet mud and water. But scan as I might, all I could find was Green Sandpiper after Green Sandpiper. I counted eight of them, and no other wader species. A typical visit it has to be said.
There was one new arrival though; a pair of Teal, another staple of the flash, has returned for the autumn.
Changing the subject, my moth trap goes out tonight, and my new supply of moth pots arrived yesterday. There are going to be loads.
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