A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - September 8, 2018

It was rather dismal when I left home this morning and headed for Eyebrook Reservoir and a Common Whitethroat just beyond Slawston was a surprise.  There were three Red Kites around the Horninghold cross roads and three more as I drove along Stockerston Lane towards the southern approach road to the reservoir.

I stopped at the gate to the fishing lodge but with nothing of note I went around to the island corral where I found a Common Sandpiper before continuing to the northern corral.  There were at least sixty Common House Martins as I drove between Holly Oaks farm and the fence, which is one of the biggest concentrations I have seen this year.

As I entered the corral I found a Common Greenshank in the bay and then six Ruff resting in the stream.  A then heard a Common Ringed Plover and then picked up a party of waders in flight that dropped on the mud.  There were eight Common Ringed Plover, two Dunlin and a couple of Common Snipe and I then found three more Common Snipe.  Scanning along the Rutland bank there were three Little Egrets and I found ten Northern Pintail and twelve Little Grebes on the water.

I drove around to the bridge and saw a Common Kestrel perched as I approached the bridge.  There were a few passerines around the bridge and I saw a Common Chiffchaff and a Lesser Whitethroat.  I made another stop of the Rutland side but other than five Yellowhammers I found nothing else before I moved onto the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water.

As I dropped down the hill to the car park at Lyndon there were good numbers of Common House Martin and after parking I went and checked the feeders.  There were two Common Chiffchaff near the shoreline and two more around the feeding area but there was no sign of any Eurasian Tree Sparrows.  Anya then arrived and opened the centre and I continued watching the feeders whilst chatting to her and whilst there were plenty of bird visiting the feeders but still no Eurasian Tree Sparrows.  I eventually decided to go to the North Arm to see if there was any sign of the Great Northern Diver.

I parked near the cottage along the unnamed road seeing a Marsh Tit as I was getting my gear out of the car.  As I walked along the road towards the gate a Common Buzzard flushed from one of the trees and on reaching the spit I began scanning the water.  There was a single Common Tern close to Dickinson’s Bay and a Little Egret on the shore but there was no sign of the diver.  There were two more Little Egrets along the northern shore and I counted thirty Little Grebes close to the bund.  A Red Kite flew over and as I scanned the southern bay and shore I found three Northern Pintail, a Common Pochard and another six Little Egrets.  I had one final look for the Great Northern Diver without any joy but did find a Common Buzzard soaring at the far end of Barnsdale Wood.

I walked back along the road and after a chat with Tim went into the field to view the fishponds.  As I reached the water trough I picked up three Common Sandpiper in flight and then scanned the water where I found another nineteen Little Grebes and a Little Egret.

Disappointed not to have found the Great Northern Diver, which was seen later in the day, I drove to the Egleton Reserve.  As I walked down the road towards the centre I had a brief view of a Marsh Tit and then saw it again on a couple of occasions at the feeding station.

I went up into the viewing area and found that the water appeared to have fallen even further on Lagoon One.  There was a Green Sandpiper just to the left of the centre and two juvenile Ruff to the right and a third male Ruff was feeding on the edge of one of the smaller islands.  As I scanned through the duck I only found a single Northern Pintail, although there was a good number of Northern Shoveler.  Two Snipe flew over and there were two Little Egrets on the lagoon and a Common Greenshank appeared on the water close to Harrier Hide.  A juvenile Western Marsh Harrier then appeared causing some disturbance and was then joined by a second briefly.  As I scanned Lagoon Two all I found were four Little Grebes and another Little Egret.

Having exhausted Lagoon One I set off for the northern lagoons and hadn’t seen anything of note when I reached the gate at the northern end of the trails.  Another birder informed me that there was a good number of waders on Lagoon Three and so I headed for Shoveler Hide.  As I opened the shutters in the hide I could see quite a few waders feeding to the left.  There were sixteen Common Snipe and amongst them five Ruff and a Green Sandpiper and I then found another six Common Snipe resting on the island.  One of the Ruff was an adult winter male and I wondered if three of them had come off Lagoon One having been disturbed by the Western Marsh Harriers.  I then noticed a juvenile Black-tailed Godwit further two the left, which was then joined by a second, and they both then gradually came closer and eventually joined the other waders.  There were eighteen Common Pochard quite close and I found three Northern Pintail amongst the more numerous Gadwall.  I then picked up a Common Kingfisher in flight, a Eurasian Hobby over the woodland and a Common Buzzard towards Burley.  Two Little Egrets flew over and there were four Common Terns, on of which was a juvenile sitting on one of the tern islands.

I moved to Buzzard Hide and established that there were fifty-one Common Pochard on the lagoon and there was a Great Egret on the distant island.  From Smew Hide there was very little on Lagoon Two, except for four more Little Egrets.

A stop at Crake Hide on route to Lapwing Hide produced two Little Grebe, two Water Rail and a Common Snipe.  On reaching Lapwing Hide there were plenty of birds including numerous Eurasian Coot and a good selection of other waterfowl but the best was five more Little Grebes.

Dunlin Hide on Lagoon Four was where I headed for next and on arrival found there was a good number of gulls on the island and found eight Yellow-legged Gulls, amongst the mainly Black-headed and Great Black-backed Gulls but there were also a few Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a single Common Gull.  There were Northern Pintail scattered around the lagoon and I counted twenty-three and there was a Red Kite just beyond the lagoon and to the left of the Volunteer Training Centre and a single Little Egret on the lagoon.  I scanned Burley and picked up two Northern Ravens just to the east of the house.

I made my way back to the centre and saw a Great Egret as I looked from one of the Rutland gates.  I went up to the viewing area again to check out Lagoon One and was joined by Brian and Roger.  There were now two Eurasian Curlew, a Common Sandpiper and three Green Sandpipers on the lagoon and a Eurasian Hobby flashed in front of the centre before disappearing over the roof.

I had left my lunch at home and so called it a day and left Brian and Roger heading towards the northern lagoons and I headed for home seeing a Common Buzzard on a telegraph pole as I left Newton Harcourt.