Slimbridge pays off

Unable to go on the Club trip, I was keen to get to Slimbridge before the New Year as I new it would hold a few birds not on my year list. Arriving just before 10:00am I had a quick look in the Rushy Pen and ticked off four Bewick's Swans. On to the hides near the Holden Tower and it was clear that there were many birds in for the winter. On to Holden Tower for the geese and who should be standing at the top of the stairs, Tim! Nice surprise. He'd managed to pick out the two Pink-footed Geese but the distance and light were proving difficult to keep tabs on them. A couple of active Peregrines and a mobile Dunlin flock didn't help to keep a focus of the geese. Plenty of White-fronted Geese were on show to help me creep towards 200. A very obliging Little Stint showed well amongst the Dunlin and I was nearly there. We decided that the Zeiss Hide would offer a better view of the Geese. A false alarm on for a pink-foot was soon followed by the real thing as Tim picked out two Pink-footed Geese waddling out of a shallow pool. One very obligingly stick its pink foot out for us. Bird 200 for the year! We made our way back, Tim to his driving lesson and me to the South Pool for some waders. Thsi proved fruitless though as the pool was very deep. Not to worry though ... mission accomplished!

Stuff I missed

Perhaps its a bit early to reflect on the year, but there's a few things I missed and won't see now. I'm not too worried though as I've had a good year, and saw most things I went for, albeit after several attempts in some cases. Here's what I could have seen, in no particular order:

• Whimbrel - along the Gwent and Glamorgan coast on passage, but never managed to get out at the right time
• Puffin - missed the Skomer trip
• Spotted Crake - the Radipole bird hid from us
• Dotterel - we went too early for the Garreg Lwyd birds. They turned up a week after we went
• Ring Ouzel - somehow managed to miss the influx and the stragglers last month
• Wilson's Phalarope - I was stranded on the other side of the Solent
• Bee-eater - perhaps the dip of the year. Missed the Hampton Bishop pair the last open day of the view point. They reappeared later in the day
• Squacco Heron - stuck in work when Tim and Dan went
• Ring-billed Gull - the Cardiff Bay bird was never around when I was there. Could get one later possibly
• Red-necked Grebe - returning from holiday when it showed up in Kenfig
• Black Tern - didn't manage to get out when they were on passage through the area
• White-winged Black Tern - no time available to see the Weston bird
• Whiskered Tern - didn't know it was at CWP, but probably wouldn't have made it anyway
• Wood Sandpiper - none at Slimbridge or Goldcliff when we went after the Bee-eater dip
• Red-backed Shrike - no time to get to the Gower bird
• Grey Partridge - hoped for one on the New Forest trip and haven't searched the Vale
• Chough - haven't been West or searched Southerndown yet
• Little Stint - missed the main wader passage
• Temminck's Stint - ditto
• Baird's Sandpiper - ditto
• Turtle Dove - no chance!
• Tree Pipit - a shocking ommission
• Richard's Pipit - dipped the three at Huntspill on the Upland Sandpiper trip
• Firecrest - missed the birds at Portland and tried Kenfig North pool area without success

I'll draw up a list of highlights at the end of the month.

196 - Laughing Gull

Well, I finally caught up with this bird that's been eluding me for the last few weeks. Fifth time lucky! I didn't need to be in work until 10:00am this morning and with me working on Saturday, it seemed like the only chance I'd get to go for it. I arrived at the harbour in Porthcawl at 7:30am. It was just beginning to get light but it was bloody freezing in the wind. A scan across to Sandy Bay revealed a large flock of gulls at the tide's edge. As I began to walk along the sea wall, Turnstones appeared from every direction as they fed on the fishermen's scraps along the wall and pavement. I've never been so close to them. They're actually a lot smaller than I'd realised. Anyway, on to the gulls for a scan. Most were Black-headed gulls with a solitary Great Black-backed Gull. One of the smaller gulls looked dark and was alone. The light was difficult but I decided to pay this one some more atention. Viewing from the wall down on to the beach I was optimistic that I was on the bird, but it flew off before I could get near enough to confirm it for sure. With time wearing on, and frostbite setting in I decided to deploy plan B. Bread! Thinking of Dan's text, I'd brought half a loaf with me just in case. I walked over to the harbour where some gulls seemed to be active. As I threw some pieces of bread in to the water, I began to attract a few more birds, and sure enough the bird I was after appeared within a minute. Blimey, it stood out a mile! Extremely dark wings. Black primaries and secondaries, brown coverts and a dusky grey mantle. A black or very dark terminal band on the tail really stood out too. Black bill and legs completed the picture. It was a little smaller than I'd expected. Perhaps the same size or slightly bigger than a Black-headed Gull. I placed some bread on the sea wall and managed some nice close views of it fluttering down to feed, though it failed to land all the time I was there. Never mind, the second lifer in a week. Number 196 for the year, Laughing Gull. A very confiding Rock Pipit completed the morning. I thought at first it was a littoralis type, but I think this was the light playing tricks on me. Anyway, its gamy leg revealed why it kept close.

Bunting Bonanza

Jeff, Lilly and I made the trip to Werfa on Sunday morning. After a short walk along the frozen track Lilly flushed a very confiding Snow Bunting. This one looked like a first-winter bird, probably female. It was very confiding and even walked towards us to within about 15 feet. After about 20 minutes watching and photographing the bird we moved on in search of the Lapland Bunting. There was no sign of it after about an hour searching in its previous local. We had great views over Blaengarw and down towards Bridgend at the coast though. As we made our way back up the hill towards the mast we saw four birders in the distance. They too were searching for the bunting to no avail. Then, as we approached, they signalled that they were on the bird, only about 15 feet in front of them. We were soon on it too, and got fantastic views. Jeff took loads of photos. These two birds now take me to 195 for the year.

Hybrid duck, Kenfig 17th November

Whilst waiting for a Bittern to show at Kenfig (which it did eventually), this interesting beast drifted around in front of the hide. The local experts think it's a Pochard x Ferruginous hybrid. It is superficially similar to a Redhead, but I am sure that it is NOT the bird that some of us saw in September, and believe to be the Redhead.