May 17th to 21st 2018

17th: Red kite, cuckoo (River viewpoint) (CM)

Third Thursday Walk (17th):

Female banded demoiselle

Dust-bathing dunnock

Blackbird, black-cap, b-h gull, blue tit, bullfinch, buzzard, crow, chaffinch, chiffchaff, common tern, coot, cormorant, dunnock, gadwall, garden warlber, goldcrest, goldfinch, g-c grebe, g-s woodpecker, great tit, green woodpecker, greenfinch, heron, greylag, house martin, jackdaw, lesser white throat, l-t tit, magpie, mallard, moorhen, mute swan, ted kite, reed bunting, reed warbler, robin, rook, song thrush, starling, stock dove, swallow, swift, tufted duck, willow warbler, wood pigeon, wren, hobby, cuckoo, nightingale at moorings, sparrowhawk, kestrel. (51 spp)

Green-veined white.

Scarce chaser

Sarratt U3A (21st)

Meadow Trail: much the same bird list as on Thursday including excellent views of hobby and cuckoo on the Hayling Lake. Also two singing Cetti's warblers (meadow and the Hayling). This was a great day for dragonflies including Norfolk hawker, scarce chaser, four spotted chaser, hairy dragonfly, blue and blue tailed damsel and banded demoiselle. Butterflies included red admiral, green veined white, orange tip, holly blue and common blue. Another glimpse of a green hairstreak on willow by Rudd Pit. 

Four spotted chaser

May 14th to 16th 2018

Swallow at the Visitor Centre.

May 14th:  Pair of swallows hanging around the visitor centre, possibly nesting
                   (definitely roosting) over roller shutter. Hobby x 3 (Heronry Lakes),
                   roughly six tern pairs per raft plus two pairs of b-h gulls. Green hairstreak 
                   butterfly at farmyard (possibly a first) with brimstone and large white.
                   Orange tips still plentiful, plus comma and holly blue. Cuckoo at river
                   viewpoint and nightingale at moorings. (JAS)

May 16th: Swallows still present at visitor centre plus large numbers of swifts and
                  martins over the lakes. Single hobby, cuckoo, and nightingale at town dump.
                  First mallard ducklings on Heronry North.

Heron going fishing.

May 5th to 11th 2018

Nightingales: Your best chance of seeing a nightingale are:
1.      The Sailing Lake at the West end.
2.      The Boundary Hedge just beyond the Dragonfly Pond.
3.      The Moorings at the river.
4.      We have eight to ten birds on the wider site as a whole.


May 5th            Turtle Dove at the Hayling Lake. (NP)

May 7th            Cuckoo x 2. Nightingales x 2, garden warblers x 10, whitethroat x 3,
                         Cetti’s warbler x 1, Reed warbler x 5, sedge warbler. (MSHA)
                         Grey squirrel, GS woodpecker, blue tit, jay,
                         hobby x 2 (Johan. Zack and Katie)
                         Red Kite and Norfolk Hawker Dragonfly (Meadow Trail)
                         Swift (Sue Pople)

May 8th           Red crested pochard (Sailing Lake ) (Tim Goose)
                        Nightingale opposite Hayden Hide. (Colin B)

May 9th           Swallows attempting to nest above door in Visitor Centre
                        Otter from Bill’s Bench. Nightingales at moorings, hobby over Heronry South.

May 10th.       

Lots of goslings, but not many ducklings yet.

                        Nightingale at moorings, cuckoo, garden warbler (10), Whitethroat,
                        Reed bunting, reed warbler x 2, blackcap x12, turtle dove, swift, hobby,
                        willow warbler x 3, common tern x 6, bullfinch (John Wyatt)

May 11th        17 terns on rafts and more in the air. Only one pair of bh gulls.
                        Swallows still present at Visitor Centre, house martins and swifts over.
                        Two pairs of oystercatcher on Sailing Lake. Goldfinches on niger seed.
                        Reed warbler singing on the mound by fisherman's car park.

May 7th 2018

Canada goose brood.

Two nightingales heard: one near Peter's Field at post 8,
the other just to left of the pond with the gate on (Dragonfly Pond)
Other species :
10 Garden Warblers
18 Blackcaps
12 Chiffchaffs 
4 Songthrushes
2 Treecreepers 

Sedge warbler

2 Green Woodpeckers 
1 Gt Spotted Woodpecker 
1  bullfinch
1 Jay
17 Common Terns
5 Tufted Duck
2 Male and 1 female Cuckoos 
2 Linnets
3 Whitethroats 
5 Reed Warblers

Long-tailed tit.

1 Sedge Warbler 
1 Cettis Warbler 
1 Goldcrest in song

Michael and Diane Hunt from Buckingham
(Photos by Jim Stevenson)

May 1st to 6th 2018

1st   Hobby over car park, house martin x 3,bullfinch, blackcap, garden warbler,
        chiff-chaff, willow warbler, cuckoo. (GHL) 
        Swift x 2 at En Ed Centre, (DM)

3rd   Raven soaring over VC (Cliff Tack) (2 seen earlier.)
        Nightingale singing west end of sailing lake. Bullfinch x 2 (Dave H.)
        Nightingale singing at moorings. Lots of garden warblers + chiff chaff,
        willow warbler, black cap whitethroat on Ouse Valley Way at moorings.(A Day)
        Cuckoo (JD) Lesser whitethroat on river bank, stock dove x 4, whitethroat x 3
        treecreeper x 3, garden warbler x 5, willow warbler x 3, blackcap x 6.  (HSU)

4th  Yellowhammer near quarry yard on wires.  (VS)
       Cranes (x 3) flying over VC. (seen by many. JS) Lesser whitethroat
       singing on mound near VC. Nightingale heard from Ed Centre. (In old town dump)

6th  Breeding Bird Survey: Results not in yet but nightingale still singing in dump,
       lesser whitethroat still on mound. Green woodpeckers on Lafarge meadow.
       Many garden warblers and black caps, cuckoo heard from VC, 
       Cetti's warbler in the meadow, sedge and reed warblers around Cloudy Pit,
       linnet x 2 in old Lafarge plant. Two broods of Canada geese on Cloudy Pit.
       Butterflies include holly blue, brimstone and orange tip.