A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - March 29, 2016

I left home this morning heading for the Egleton Reserve at Rutland Water in bright but cool conditions in a fresh south-westerly wind.  I had a Buzzard and a Kestrel not too far from home on my journey to Rutland Water and on arrival a Kingfisher flew across the road at Manton Bridge and into my patch.  The Kingfisher took my total number of species on patch to 110 with a point’s score of 132.

After parking and getting kitted out I walked along the service road to Dunlin Hide on Lagoon Four, seeing a Jay in the last meadow before I reached the hide.  I scanned the water and islands and found the female Peregrine and a Sparrowhawk on two of the islands and there were at least six Ringed Plovers on two islands.  A single Little Egret was feeding quite close to the Sparrowhawk and five Shelduck were feeding on the lagoon.

I moved onto Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three to look for the Long-billed Dowitcher but couldn’t find it.  There was eleven Shelduck, a pair of Pintail and two Oystercatchers on the lagoon but the number of Pochard had dropped to just twelve.  It clouded over and I thought I would go to Lapwing Hide to view the south arm but by the time I got there the sun was shining brightly and it it’s not an ideal viewing point in the mornings when the sun is shining, although there was at least 150 Sand Martins feeding over the water, which is a significant increase since the weekend.

Gadwall

Shoveler alighting on the water

Pair of Shoveler

Stock Dove

I walked back to Shoveler Hide but after a brief and unsuccessful attempt for the dowitcher made my way back to the centre.  There were two Oystercatchers in the large meadow as I walked back but there was little song in the blustery and cool conditions, with just three Chiffchaffs being heard.

Song Thrush near the centre

I checked the feeders at the centre where there was the usual collection of species but perhaps more surprisingly what I think was a Harvest Mouse feeding under the close feeders.

Dunnock

Great Tit

Male Reed Bunting

Male Greenfinch

Goldfinch

Presumed Harvest Mouse

Presumed Harvest Mouse

I continued on to Snipe Hide on the Wet Meadow and found a pair of Shelduck and two pairs of Pintail on the flash.  There was a second pair of Shelduck on the flash in front of harrier hide and four Curlew were feeding in the meadow.  Scanning the area I picked up several Buzzards towards Burley House and a single Kestrel beyond Brown’s Island and I also saw a Chiffchaff as I left the hide.

I moved on to the 360° Hide but there were far fewer birds on Lagoon Five than Saturday and there was no sign of either the Red-crested Pochard or Green Sandpiper, although Steve did find the Green Sandpiper later in the day.  The raft of weed the sandpiper had been feeding on Saturday was now on the bank having been driven there by the weekend storm.  There were four Oystercatcher on the lagoon but very little else and so I moved on to view Lagoon Seven.

As there is no hide or public access to this lagoon it is rather difficult to observe and all I could see were six Shelduck and a single Pochard.

From Lagoon Seven I made way past Lagoon Eight, where there was a pair of Shelduck and an Oystercatcher, before heading towards Heron Hide but I was able to scope the Manton Bay Ospreys on the nest without going the whole way to the hide.  I then retraced my steps before going to Pintail Hide on Lagoon Six where there were another two Shelduck, two more Oystercatchers and two Redshanks.

Canada Goose on Lagoon Six bund

I continued onto Fieldfare Hide where I could see the flock of Sand Martin in better light but there now appeared to fewer birds and there were no other hirundines amongst the flock.  As I made my way back I called at Harrier Hide but saw nothing new before heading back to the car park for lunch.

Oystercatcher from Harrier Hide

Malcolm had called me earlier and told me that he had seen both the Red-necked and Slavonian Grebes along with a Great Northern Diver in the North Arm and was going to Lagoon Three to look for the dowitcher and so I gave him a call when I had finished my lunch.

He hadn’t seen the dowitcher and I waited for him to return as we agreed that we would go back to the North Arm to look for the birds he had seen earlier and then move on to Whitwell where Steve and Terry had seen both Swallow and House Martin earlier.

When we arrived at the fisherman's car park it felt like a beautiful spring day as we were sheltered from the wind and the sun felt quite warm.  Malcolm soon found the Red-necked Grebe and shortly afterwards he located the Slavonian Grebe but there was no sign of the diver.  As we drove along the Hambleton Road heading for the Stamford Road an Osprey flew low over the road towards Lagoon Four.

When we arrived at Whitwell there are lots of folk with children and there was no sign of any hirundines and presumably they had moved on in the improving conditions.

We checked out the north arm from the end of the unnamed road where we were hoping there might be some hirundines but we only saw a couple of Sand Martin although we did have several Buzzards, two Red Kites and a pair of Raven.

Once back at Egleton we went to the Bird watching Centre to check out Lagoon One but it was very quiet with just more Shelduck, Pochard and a Little Grebe.  We checked the feeders again but pretty much the same as earlier was present.

Chaffinch

Goldfinch

I said I was going back to the northern lagoons but Malcolm decided he would head back to Eyebrook Reservoir.  As I was approaching Shoveler Hide, Steve and Terry were walking back along the trail from Lapwing Hide and informed me that the Long-billed Dowitcher was visible from Buzzard Hide.

There were two other birders viewing the bird as I entered the hide and I soon located it on the nearest island where it was roosting with its bill tucked in and if I hadn’t seen it before I would have been wondering what it was, not very exciting.

As the sun would not now be a problem in viewing South Arm Three from Lapwing Hide I headed off in that direction but called Malcolm to give him an update.  He was now at Eyebrook Reservoir and said there were quite a few hirundines present, including both Swallow and House Martin.

I continued onto Lapwing Hide but didn’t see very much and made a brief call to Sandpiper Hide where I added Dunlin to the day list before going back to the car park and heading off for Eyebrook Reservoir.

When I arrived at Eyebrook Reservoir I could see several hirundines flying low over the water near the Leicestershire bank and so I drove around to the fence.  As I scanned the hirundines I was surprised to find that most were Swallows and I counted fourteen along with five Sand Martins and a single House Martin, which was my first of the year and a good end to the day.

As I set off from Eyebrook Reservoir it started to rain, which became quite heavy at times as I drove home and I saw nothing of note.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - March 25, 2016

Roger and I set off hoping the Firecrest was still present at Rutland Water but decided to via Eyebrook Reservoir to check out the Little Owl.  We saw a Red Kite at Blaston and fifteen Golden Plover in flight as we approached the Uppingham Road, Stockerston Lane crossroads on route.

One of the Little Owls did obliged and as we turned to head for Stoke Dry an Osprey was observed carrying a fish and being harassed by several gulls.  I knew that Steve would be at Rutland Water and so gave him a call but he hadn’t found the Firecrest and so we stopped to overlook the inlet.  There was a Little Egret in the stream and another flew over the reservoir but the only other bird of note we saw was a Kestrel perched in a tree along the Rutland bank.

As we were approaching Rutland Water there was an Osprey just before the turning to Manton, which we assumed would be the Manton Bay bird.  As Steve hadn’t called with news of the Firecrest we headed for the North Arm.

After parking at the end of the unnamed road we walked down to the spit.  The water was pretty choppy but we soon found both the Red-necked Grebe and Slavonian Grebe in the direction of the fisherman’s car park.  There were also two pairs of Oystercatcher, one near the fisherman’s car park and the other on the north shore and there was a single Redshank on the north bank of the fishponds and a Little Egret flew over.  On scanning Burley Wood we had two Red Kites and at least five Buzzards.

When we arrived in the viewing area in the centre we found Steve already viewing Lagoon One but he hadn’t seen too much and a couple of drake Pintail and a Little Egret were the highlights.  He had seen a Little Ringed Plover on Lagoon Four earlier and mentioned that a pair of Red-crested Pochard had been reported on Lagoon Five from the 360° Hide.

He set off for Lagoon Five and a few minutes later Roger and I followed him.  When we reached the 360° Hide I was surprised that Steve was not there only to receive a call from him informing me that he was in Snipe Hide and that there was a female Wheatear on the Wet Meadow.  He asked if we had seen the Red-crested Pochard, which we hadn’t as he we had only just arrived and I said I would call him back if they were still there.

As I scanned the lagoon I found a single drake Red-crested Pochard and called Steve who then informed me that a Green Sandpiper had been seen on some floating weed just in front of the hide.  A quick check and I was able to confirm that it was still there.  When I looked back for the Red-crested Pochard there were now three, two males and a female.  There were also two Shelduck and two Redshanks on the lagoon and an Avocet flew over.  Steve then arrived but shortly afterwards Roger and I went back to Snipe Hide to look for the Wheatear.

As we approached the hide I heard a Chiffchaff but only briefly and it didn’t sing again.  When we entered the hide there was a couple who hadn’t seen the Wheatear but gave us some indication as to where Steve had seen it.  We spent a good thirty minutes scanning the area for the Wheatear but there was no sign but we did see another two Shelduck, a Snipe and four Curlew and I picked up our first Swallow of the year as it came across Lagoon One along with a few Sand Martin.  Fifteen Fieldfares also flew by the hide heading south-west.

We moved on to Harrier Hide to get a different view of the Wet Meadow but with same result, although I did have better views of a Swallow.  I then received a text from Steve saying that he had just seen a Merlin flying south-west over Lagoon One.

With still no sign of the Wheatear we eventually gave up and returned to the car park for lunch.

After lunch we set off toward Lagoon Four and hopefully the Little Ringed Plover.  As Steve had seen the Little Ringed Plover on Island Seven we decided to go to Dunlin Hide to view the lagoon.  We found a couple of Ringed Plovers, two Redshank and a Little Egret but there was no sign of the Little Ringed Plover and so we moved onto Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three.

The Long-billed Dowitcher had been reported but another birder in the hide hadn’t seen it and it certainly didn’t appear whilst we were there and other than six Shelduck there was little else.

I then got another text from Steve regarding a Mediterranean Gull on Lagoon One but we decided to go to Plover Hide to get a different view of Lagoon Four.  We found another pair of Ringed Plover and a Dunlin but there was still no sign of the Little Ringed Plover.  I call at Sandpiper Hide also failed to find the Little Ringed Plover and we presumed it had moved on.

As we approached the centre we spoke to Brian, Roger and Rosie who were on their way to look for the Little Ringed Plover.  We told them of our experience and asked them to call us if they found it but we didn’t get a call and suspected they had the same result.

From the centre we soon found the Mediterranean Gull, which was a rather smart second-summer.  It appeared to showing an interest in the Black-headed Gulls that were establishing territories on the nearest island and we had some rather nice views of the bird.  There were more hirundines on the lagoon now in the deteriorating conditions but I could still only find a single Swallow amongst the Sand Martins.  There were also five Oystercatchers on the lagoon and two Avocets made a brief visit.

We decided to leave and go back to Eyebrook Reservoir in the hope that there would be more hirundines there but after circling the area we found nothing of note and called it a day.

On the journey home we had a Red Kite as we approached Cranoe and a Sparrowhawk flew over the road in Tur Langton.

It had been a bit of a mixed day as we had recorded seventy-eight species, which included a year-tick and a county year-tick but we had missed three year-ticks, Merlin, Little Ringed Plover and Wheatear.  I had also added three species to my patch list, Red-crested Pochard, Mediterranean Gull and Swallow, which takes my total on to 109 with a point’s value of 131.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - March 10, 2016

David and I were out locally and initially set off for Eyebrook Reservoir seeing a Buzzard close to Hallaton.

When we arrived at Eyebrook Reservoir we checked out the old oak for Little Owls but there was no sign and so we moved on to the bridge over the inlet stream.  The reservoir was now full following the recent rains and was also heavily stained with mud.  There was a Great Spotted Woodpecker on the feeders and a Little Egret along the stream but there was very little visible on the water and so we headed for the North Arm at Rutland Water.

We felt the best place to view the arm would be the fisherman’s car park along the Hambleton Peninsula and was surprised how cold it felt in the light northerly wind.  David picked up the Red-necked Grebe almost immediately but it dived and as we were searching for we both locked on to a Great Northern Diver, which was close to where he had seen the Red-necked Grebe.  The diver dived but we did see it another two times before we re-found the Red-necked Grebe, which had moved some distance.  Whilst searching for the Red-necked I found the Slavonian Grebe and three Black-necked Grebes towards the north shore.  Despite a fairly lengthy search we unable to locate yesterday’s reported Common Scoters.  Just as we were about to move to the Old Hall a Buzzard circled behind before drifting off towards the east.

After parking at the bottom of the lane we walked through to the Old Hall to view the South Arm but there were very few birds and so we went to the unnamed road to view the north arm again from the end of the spit.

The water level had risen further following the rains and must now be on top water.  The two Barnacle Geese were on the northern shore and a male and two female Goosanders were in the fishponds but there was little else and so we went to the Bird Watching Centre at Egleton.

The water level on Lagoon One had risen further and now the middle section of the long island was almost submerged but still provided a resting area for a few Lapwings.  As we scanned the lagoon a pair of Pintail dropped into the area to the right of the centre and there were three Oystercatchers on the lagoon and just a single Curlew was visible.

We moved off to view the northern lagoons, seeing a Redshank on the flooded large meadow.  Initially we went to Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three and as we entered the hide another couple of birders indicated it was still there and were referring to the Long-billed Dowitcher.  It had not been reported yesterday during the heavy rain and David had seen it fly off with some urgency on Tuesday and we had assumed that it had probably finally departed.  We soon picked it up feeding along the edge of what would appear to be its favourite location.  There was also a Redshank on the same island and three Shelduck and a drake pintail to the left of the hide.  A couple of Cetti’s Warbler were heard but neither were observed, although one was quite close.

Wigeon on Lagoon Three

A visit to Lapwing Hide failed to produce anything of note on either South Arm Three or Lagoon Two and so we returned to Sandpiper Hide on Lagoon Four, seeing circa fifty Golden Plover flying north as we approached Shoveler Hide.

There were seven Shelduck resting on Island Ten and we eventually found ten on the lagoon.  The female Peregrine was on Island Six and there were two Oystercatchers not too far away on Island Five along with a Ringed Plover.  A further two Ringed Plovers were on Island Two and we then we found a male a four red-headed Smew behind Island Five and also four Pintail on the lagoon.  I was pretty sure I heard a Kittiwake call but David didn’t hear it and we couldn’t find it amongst the Black-headed and Common Gulls.  When I thought I heard the call quite a lot of birds took to flight and I then noticed what I assumed was the Peregrine on Island Seven but David indicated that the female hadn’t moved and was still on the same island.  I checked out the bird on Island Seven and found it was an adult male and surprisingly we now had two Peregrines on view on the lagoon.

We eventually returned the centre and after checking the book went for some lunch after which we headed for the Lyndon Reserve.

Redwing in the Egleton car park

Redwing in the Egleton car park

Once at the Lyndon Reserve we checked out the feeders where there were plenty of birds, including Blue, Great and Coal Tits, Robin, Dunnock, at least five Tree Sparrows, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Reed Bunting.  We then walked as far as Wader Scrape Hide but saw very little either during the walk or from the hide.

When we got back to the centre we set of Eyebrook Reservoir and hopefully the adult Iceland Gull that had come in on the last three nights.  We had a Red Kite as we dropped down the hill to Stockerston and this time a check on the old oak did produce a Little Owl.  There were two more Red Kites quartering above the area near the first fence but they moved off as we stopped.  There were no gulls in the area where there had been hundreds on Tuesday when I had the eight Kittiwakes and so we continued along the Leicestershire bank as far as the gate to the fishing lodge.  With still no sign of any gulls we decided to walk to the dam and dropped down the slope to observe the outflow.  However the sluice gates were open to lower the levels of the water and the outflow was like a raging torrent and consequently there was no sign of any Grey Wagtails.

When we got back to the car we drove and parked near the fencing just north of the island but there was still no sign of any gulls.  We even went back to the inlet but still found that gull less and so we returned to the fencing hoping that the gulls would at some point come in.  Whilst we stood waiting we heard a Tawny Owl call on a couple of occasions and it would appear that it was being mobbed by Blackbirds later but we couldn’t find in the hedgerow.  The gulls did eventually come in but not till quite late when there were streams of gulls just passing by, although eventually there was a good concentration of the water.  Most were Black-headed and Common Gulls with small numbers of Lesser Black-backed and Herring Gulls but regretfully there was no sign of the Iceland.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - March 8, 2016

I left home today in overcast conditions and there was some light rain on and off as I drove to Eyebrook Reservoir.  Other than a Buzzard perched just beyond Blaston I saw nothing else of note during the journey.

The Little Owl was sitting low in the entrance hole to its nest site and was barely visible with just the top part of its head showing.  There was a Great Spotted Woodpecker on the feeders near the bridge and Snipe flew over but there was very little at the inlet.  I stopped briefly at the Stoke Dry car park feeders where there were two Tree Sparrows.

I headed off to the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water, seeing another perched Buzzard just beyond Wing.

When I reached Lyndon there were a few Redwing feeding in the to field and the feeders at the centre produced ten Tree Sparrows, two Coal Tits, a Marsh Tit and a couple of Reed Buntings.  I also looked for the Great Northern Diver from Teal hide without success, although it was apparently seen later.

From Lyndon I went to Normanton and found a Great Northern Diver just of the Hambleton Peninsula, which then dived and after picking it up again it dived again after which I couldn’t find again, despite searching for a good fifteen minutes.  I called at both the dam and Whitwell but other than a nice party of Redwing at Whitwell saw very little.

I initially went to Barnsdale to view the north arm where I found the three Black-necked Grebes and although the wind wasn’t particularly strong it was making my eyes water and so I went to the end of the unnamed road of the Hambleton Road to view the north arm off the end of the spit.  The Slavonian Grebe was observed between the Black-necked Grebes and the spit and I eventually located the Red-necked Grebe that was way down towards the draw tower.  There was a Redshank in the southern bay and I saw a Red Kite and a Buzzard over Burley.

I stopped on Church Road to view the swans but they had gone further away and into a dip and at best I saw a few heads, which were all Mute.  After some lunch I went to the Bird Watching Centre to view Lagoon One where there was a single Black-tailed Godwit, which was the first for the year at the site.  There was also a single Shelduck, four Oystercatchers and two Dunlin on the lagoon and a Buzzard was observed hovering close to Brown’s Island.

A walk to Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three produced two Oystercatchers in the large meadow, which were probably two of those seen on Lagoon One.  The Long-billed Dowitcher was showing quite well from Shoveler Hide but there was no sign of the reported Jack Snipe, although there were at least two Snipe close by.  Six Shelduck and a Redshank were also feeding on the lagoon.

A walk to Lapwing Hide produced nothing of note on either South Arm Three or Lagoon Two but I did see a drake Smew and three red-heads on Lagoon Four from Plover Hide and also on Lagoon Four were five Shelduck, seven Pintail and the only Little Egret of the day.  A visit to Bittern Hide on Lagoon Three produced a Gadwall, several Teal, a pair of Mallard and a Water Rail was heard.

Drake Teal

I made my way back to the Egleton car park and left to go to Eyebrook Reservoir hoping that yesterday’s Iceland Gull would return.  I arrived at Eyebrook Reservoir from Stoke Dry and Colin was standing off the road observing the gulls around the inlet.  As I opened the window to speak to him he said there is a Kittiwake out here.  I got out of the car and after an unsuccessful attempt to see it through his scope I got my own scope but as I was sorting the tripod out he said it’s flying.  He gave directions as to where it was and I picked it up in flight and watched comeback down on the water.  Colin was then indicating that it was still coming back down and when it landed we were able to confirm that there were two birds involved.  Peter Dams arrived and was shortly followed by Brian and Roger and whist Colin was helping them locate the birds I suddenly realised I had four in my scope and we eventually were able to confirm that there were actually eight birds.  As we watching seven of them flew off to the south and on inspecting the flock we were unable to locate the eighth and presumably it had followed the others and departed.

We moved to the southern end of the reservoir and entered the coral and there were two Smew, a drake and a red-head just north of the island.  Colin went to the fencing to view the gulls and whilst there were plenty of gulls on the water there was no sign of the Iceland Gull by the time we departed.  Colin texted me later to say that it had arrived at 05:48 but by then everyone else had gone.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - March 5, 2016

I was out with Roger today and we made a slightly later start due to a weather warning, which didn’t actually materialize.  It was colder than of late and there was some light rain as we headed for Eyebrook Reservoir.

A Kestrel near Kibworth was the highlight on route to the reservoir and there was no sign of the Little Owls on arrival and it was pretty quiet from the bridge.  We moved further along the Rutland bank and were just beginning to scan the inlet when another birder informed us that an adult summer Mediterranean Gull had just dropped in and was visible from Stoke Dry.  We parked in the small pull-in just before the car park and soon located the Mediterranean Gull amongst a small party of Black-headed and Common Gulls.  It was almost in the centre of the reservoir and therefore quite distant but we were able to get some nice views through the scope.  It was my first of the year and they always looking stunning in summer plumage and it was an excellent start to the day.  Whilst we were watching the gull two Oystercatchers flew over calling loudly before they headed off towards the dam.

There had been a possible Kumlien’s Gull present yesterday evening but there was no sign this morning and so we intended returning this evening in the hope that it would come in again.

With little else visible at Eyebrook Reservoir we moved on to the Lyndon Centre at Rutland Water.  When we arrived there were numerous thrushes visible on the field to the right of the entrance road.  On scanning they were mostly Redwing with just a few Fieldfare being present and we estimated that there were at least 120 Redwing and just eight Fieldfares.  On reaching the car park we visited the feeders were we had several Blue and Great Tits and single Coal and Marsh Tits and there was also a Robin, several Dunnock and three Tree Sparrows.

As it was quite cold in the fresh northerly wind we went down to Teal Hide to view the south arm.  I scanned the area towards Manton Bay and found a Great Northern Diver just sitting on the surface but other than a few Goldeneye there was little else and we decided to go the bottom of Barnsdale to view the north arm.

When we arrived we found, as we expected, that we were sheltered from the wind and Roger found the Red-necked Grebe almost immediately, which he quickly followed up with finding the Slavonian Grebe and the three Black-necked Grebes.  The two Barnacle Geese were just beyond the trees on the far side of Dickinson’s Bay and two Red Kites were soaring over Burley Wood.

We then headed off to the Egleton Reserve and found that the two Whooper Swans were still in the field alongside Church Road with several Mute Swans and Greylag Geese.  On reaching the reserve as it was a little early for lunch we went to the centre to view Lagoon One.  There was just one Shelduck on the lagoon and a female Pintail flew over before we located a pair on the lagoon.  Nine Curlew then flew in and dropped close to Mallard Hide and we then realised that there was more than nine and on counting them reached sixteen.  Roger then saw two more drop onto the Wet Meadow but when I scanned with the scope I could only see one but also found a couple of Oystercatcher and three more Shelduck flew over the flash.  A Sparrowhawk then flew over and flushed the Lapwing but we couldn’t see anything amongst them except for several Starlings.  However when they had alighted again I found a single Dunlin on the end of the exposed long island.

There were several Redwing and two Mistle Thrush in the first meadow before lunch but they flew off before Roger had seen them and hadn’t come back as we went for lunch.  However as we were having lunch several Redwing flew over and Mistle Thrush was seen briefly as it harassed a Blackbird.

After lunch we went to Plover Hide on Lagoon Four seeing a Redshank on the large meadow on route and on reaching the hide we saw a male and two red-headed Smew and a couple of Ringed Plovers before going to Shoveler Hide.

When we arrived in Shoveler Hide the Long-billed Dowitcher had apparently just flown but we soon found it, along with several Snipe, on the spit towards Bittern Hide.  It was good to see a reasonable number of Gadwall feeding on the lagoon, which perhaps was an indication that it was recovering following the ammonia pollution.  There was also a god number of Black-headed Gulls appearing to be taking insects from the surface of the water.  Eight Shelduck and a single Pintail were on the lagoon and nine Shoveler flew over, which were our first of the day.  The dowitcher eventually returned to its preferred feeding area on one of the islands, a Redshank fed in the shallow water and we heard a Cetti’s Warbler calling in the reedbed.

Female Shelduck

Male Shelduck

Drake Gadwall

Drake Pintail

Coot

We made a brief visit to Smew Hide on Lagoon Two but saw very little and visit to Sandpiper Hide on Lagoon four produced four Pintail, the drake and three red-headed Smew and three Ringed Plovers.

As we walked back to the centre there were three Song Thrushes feeding in one of the meadows, which is an unusual sight these days.  A further thirty minutes or so overlooking Lagoon One produced nothing of note as so we headed off to Eyebrook Reservoir.

Song Thrush

Song Thrush

We approached Eyebrook Reservoir from the northern end but the Little Owls were still not obliging and so we continued to the first fence on the Leicestershire bank.

Something had disturbed the birds around the inlet and there were c.100 Golden Plover in flight with the Lapwings.  There was a good concentration of gulls, with good numbers of Lesser Black-backed and a single Herring Gull.  We moved further down the Leicestershire side to view the area in front of the plantation.  There were good numbers of gulls already on the water but Phil who was already present hadn't seen anything unusual.  We spent a good forty-five minutes scanning the area and during that time many of the larger gulls departed and as Roger was going out and I wanted to watch Leicester play Watford on the box we left at around 17:00.

The Kumlien’s didn’t appear but a first-winter Iceland Gull was seen at around 17:30, which would have been a year-tick but shortly after its arrival I was watching the City beat Watford one nil taking them five points clear at the top of the Premiership.

An afternoon in Leicestershire - March 3, 2016

I went out with David this afternoon and our plan was to visit Swithland Reservoir to hopefully find the wintering female Scaup and then to go on to Cossington Meadows where we were hoping for Short-eared Owl.

We called at Cropston Reservoir on route to Swithland Reservoir where we had three male and a couple of female Mandarin but there was little else with few birds on the water.  David then suggested that we visit Swithland Wood before going to the reservoir.

We checked out the holly tree for Tawny Owls but there appeared to be less cover and certainly no owls were roosting.  We didn’t venture any further into the wood but did have two Jay, a Marsh Tit and Treecreeper and two Nuthatches were calling.

At Swithland Reservoir we viewed the southern section first where there were plenty of birds but nothing unusual and so we drove around to the dam in the northern section.  David soon located the Scaup and I took a few photos before we departed to Cossington.

Female Scaup

Female Scaup

We drove past Cossington Meadows to an area just the other side of the A46 where David had seen a White-fronted Goose whilst I was away in Costa Rica.  There was no sign of the White-fronted Goose but there was a Pink-footed Goose amongst the flock of Greylags and Canada Geese.

Pink-footed Goose

On arrival at Cossington we walked along the footpath to view the meadow where the Short-eared Owls normally perform.  As we approached the far end we saw a bird in flight and as we moved closer found it perched on a fence post.  It then provided some excellent views during our stay both in flight and perching on several different fence posts.  When perched, its right wing was drooping, exposing the flight feathers more than usual but it didn’t seem to be having any difficulty flying.  Another bird informed us that it had been attacked by a Buzzard earlier when possible it perhaps sustained a minor injury.  Whilst we were on site we also had a Little Egret and a Kestrel and a Green Woodpecker called on several occasions.  David also heard a possible Cetti’s Warbler in the ditch just behind us.  We moved closer to the ditch when we both heard the bird, which were able to identify as a Cetti’s, although not surprisingly it didn’t show.

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - March 1, 2016

David and I set off for Eyebrook Reservoir in rather wet conditions, seeing a Red Kite near Stonton Wyville on route.  When we arrived at the reservoir the conditions hadn’t improved and there was pretty much persistent rain, which was heavy at times.  As we approached the reservoir there was no sign of the Little Owls but a Kestrel flew up from the roadside.  From the bridge there was a single Little Egret and when overlooking the inlet we found a pair of Pintail and surprisingly a male Stonechat.

With little else we moved off, taking the cross county route, towards the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water.  We saw very little on route but did hear a Nuthatch in the grounds of the church at Lyndon.

On arrival at the Lyndon Reserve it was still raining but Paul Stammers was in the centre and we were able to gain access to view the feeders from the comfort of the centre.  There was a constant trickle of birds visiting the feeders that included Blue Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Dunnock, Tree Sparrow, Chaffinch, Greenfinch and Reed Bunting.  We eventually moved on to Teal Hide to view the south arms and found a Great Northern Diver towards Heron Bay.

We called at Normanton hoping for a Mandarin but there was no sign today and the best we had was a Little Grebe.

As it was still raining we went to the Bird Watching Centre on the Egleton Reserve, seeing a couple of Whooper Swans from Church Lane as we approached Egleton.   We found that Lagoon One was pretty quiet with just three Shelduck and a couple of Pintail of interest.

Other birders had returned from Lagoon Three indicating that the Long-billed Dowitcher was still present and showing well and despite it still raining we decided to go and take a look.  After collecting my camera from the car we set off and on reaching the Shoveler Hide we found the dowitcher was feeding on the island to the left of hide and was much closer than on previous visits.  However it was doing its best to hide in the sedges around the edges of the island but I did eventually manage to get several reasonable shots of the bird.  There were also six Shelduck, six Pintail and at least ten Snipe on the Lagoon and a Little Egret also flew in.

Long-billed Dowitcher

Long-billed Dowitcher

Long-billed Dowitcher

Long-billed Dowitcher

Long-billed Dowitcher

Long-billed Dowitcher

A visit to Dunlin Hide on Lagoon four produced another seven Shelduck, four Pintail, a drake and three red-headed Smew, three Oystercatchers, two Ringed Plovers, a Dunlin, four Curlew and two Redshank.

A quick visit to Bitten Hide on Lagoon Three didn’t produce very much but we did have a Water Rail calling quite close to the hide but it failed to appear.

We returned to the Egleton car park for lunch where we had our first Buzzard of the day and also a couple of Mistle Thrushes in the meadows.  Our plan after lunch was to visit the North Arm in the hope of finding the wintering grebes.

We drove to the fisherman’s car park on the Hambleton Peninsula and soon found the Slavonian Grebe and three Black-necked Grebes and shortly afterwards located the Red-necked Grebe.  A visit to the spit at the end of the unnamed road produced the two Barnacle Geese and three Redshank and we also had up to four Red Kites, at least six Buzzards and a Raven over Burley.

We returned to the Bird Watching Centre on the Egleton Reserve where there were now more birds and we had a Dunlin, three Snipe and nine Curlew.  On returning to Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three although we did see the dowitcher it had returned to the more distant island and was being far more elusive.  A visit to Sandpiper Hide on Lagoon Four produced a pair of Goosander to the left of the hide and there were now more gulls present but we were only able to find the five common gulls.  At one point the Lapwing erupted into the air and after a brief search I picked up the female Peregrine, which appeared from behind the hide and flew off towards the north arm.

We decided that we could call at Eyebrook Reservoir again on route home and after a brief view of the feeders, adding Great Spotted Woodpecker our day list we headed off.

There were far more birds around the inlet at Eyebrook Reservoir when we arrived that included ninety-six Golden Plover and nine Dunlin and we also added Red-legged Partridge and Yellowhammer to the day list.  I had recorded eight-five species during the day and David was on eighty-six having heard several Cetti’s Warbler at Rutland Water, which I failed to hear, which was a pretty good total for March.