Rod's Birding: A day in Lincolnshire & Rutland

Thursday 12 July 2012

A day in Lincolnshire & Rutland - July 11, 2012

David, Roger and I went to Frampton Marsh in Lincolnshire in the hope of seeing a White-rumped Sandpiper.

The centre was closed when we arrived so we walked towards the 360º hide and then beyond towards the final flashes between the sea wall and the main path. There was another birder present and he informed us that the White-rumped Sandpiper was with several Ringed Plover on a fairly close island. We soon located the bird although it was roosting but we did get pretty good views over the next thirty minutes of the bird as it preened. It was an adult and was still showing some bright chestnut edges on the scapulars and it showed the white rump on a number of occasions. There were a few Avocets, two Little Ringed Plovers and a single Ruff also on the lagoon.

We continued walking to the sea wall and then along and completed the circular walk. There were plenty of flashes of water and mud between the wall and the centre with many bids feeding on them. The first area just held numerous Avocets but we did find several Oystercatchers, a Knot, six Dunlin, four Greenshank, a Wood Sandpiper and a few Redshank. There was also four first-summer Little Gulls feeding amongst a party of Black-headed Gulls and I counted nineteen Little Egrets. There were three more Greenshanks feeding to the right of the path as we walked back towards the centre. Roger and I went to the 360º hide whilst David returned to the centre. We had not been in the hide to long when Roger located a Black-necked Grebe, which was still in summer plumage. There was also c.250 Black-tailed Godwits roosting to the east of the hide and we also found ten Ruff and a single Green Sandpiper flew over.

Six Meadow Brown butterflies, five Blue Tailed Damselflies and Six-spot Burnet moth were observed.

Avocet over the marsh

Avocets over the marsh

Avocet over the marsh

Black-tailed Godwits with Ruff on the marsh

Black-tailed Godwits over the marsh (there is a Ruff and several Redshank0

Black-tailed Godwits over the marsh

Moulting male Ruff on the marsh

When we arrived at Rutland Water the car park was fairly quiet and after signing in we walked to lagoon four. It appeared fairly quiet at first but we eventually found five Little Egrets; six Oystercatchers, two Little Ringed Plovers, four Ringed Plovers, three Dunlin, five Green Sandpipers, an summer plumage Spotted Redshank, two Greenshank, five Redshank and a Little Tern.

A Sparrowhawk also flew low over the lagoon and a second was observed towards Oakham, two Buzzards were also observed over Burley Wood and an Osprey flew over the lagoon.

We spent a short time in the centre before we left for home but there was very little on lagoon one. A single Shelduck was observed on the flash close to snipe hide and an Osprey was seen over south arm two.

I also counted twenty-seven Meadow Brown and nine Ringlet butterflies, three Emerald Damselflies, fourteen Common Blue Damselflies, a four Spotted Chaser, a Black-tailed Skimmer and a Celypha lacunana moth.