Plenty of hobby action over and around the marsh - at least five in the area.
Tuesday 30 May 2017
Monday 29 May 2017
Marsh warbler - St Caths (Updated 2019)
One was reported this morning. Still singing at times when I arrived there around lunch time and I took the opportunity to record it. Note the mimicry. (Update Jan 2019: I.D corrected. It was a BLYTH'S REED WARBLER)
Where it was situated - but not seen
Updated merged recording on Xeno-canto:
Tuesday 23 May 2017
Woodchat shrike - Brading
It was found in the morning (MB) but a few of us initially dipped it. I went back this evening and it surfaced again, perched up for a time. Al joined me and got to see it too. Nice.
[New Bridge/looking west from the embankment f/p].
Distant digiscope
Monday 22 May 2017
Friday 19 May 2017
Tuesday 9 May 2017
Monday 8 May 2017
St Cath's
With a north to north east headwind this morning, anything that attempted to cross the channel was going to struggle some what. As I scoped out near the lighthouse i could see smallish passerines quite low over the sea heading in land - most too distant to ID but probably mostly phylloscs - some willow warblers landed near the lighthouse soon after anyway.
One bird pitched in not far from me, but initial views left me head scratching? It had dug in in the longish grass and gave me very little. So I moved to where it descended last as I needed to ID it and sure enough it poked its head up revealing a bold supercilium; a sedge warbler, in off. It was now a no brainer to go and bash the bushes. So I headed to rocken end where most of the inbound birds seemed to have headed for.
When I got to Watershoot bay I could hear willow warblers and a sedge warbler singing. Then a whitethroat. Handful a blackcaps. Another sedge warbler was singing and moving around the Rocken end pond, with more willow warblers there and two spotted flycatchers. I spent some time there as it felt like something more scarce could suddenly appear. But alas.
Up towards the valley leading to wood warbler alley, I had two more sedge warblers singing, and two redstarts. Finally atop the valley ridge as it neared lunchtime, two hobbies circled around and above me. Enjoyable, but I felt that a lot more was probably going on, even before I arrived.
With a north to north east headwind this morning, anything that attempted to cross the channel was going to struggle some what. As I scoped out near the lighthouse i could see smallish passerines quite low over the sea heading in land - most too distant to ID but probably mostly phylloscs - some willow warblers landed near the lighthouse soon after anyway.
One bird pitched in not far from me, but initial views left me head scratching? It had dug in in the longish grass and gave me very little. So I moved to where it descended last as I needed to ID it and sure enough it poked its head up revealing a bold supercilium; a sedge warbler, in off. It was now a no brainer to go and bash the bushes. So I headed to rocken end where most of the inbound birds seemed to have headed for.
When I got to Watershoot bay I could hear willow warblers and a sedge warbler singing. Then a whitethroat. Handful a blackcaps. Another sedge warbler was singing and moving around the Rocken end pond, with more willow warblers there and two spotted flycatchers. I spent some time there as it felt like something more scarce could suddenly appear. But alas.
Up towards the valley leading to wood warbler alley, I had two more sedge warblers singing, and two redstarts. Finally atop the valley ridge as it neared lunchtime, two hobbies circled around and above me. Enjoyable, but I felt that a lot more was probably going on, even before I arrived.
Vid caps of the in off sedge warbler
Another further in land
Adjusted and cropped
hobby
Monday 1 May 2017
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