Whilst on BLOWS DOWNS (DUNSTABLE) searching for RING OUZELS (Lol Carman had found 2 in the quarry there), I got a call to say that Mike Wallen had seen good numbers up at IVINGHOE BEACON. I made a speedy exit from Blows and made my way there, parking up by the tea wagon on the main Ivinghoe road. Almost as soon as I arrived, RING OUZELS were to be seen, with at least 6 mobile birds in the hawthorn scrub and field to the north of Gallows Hill, moving east as far as the transmitter fields as I tried to keep on them. I followed the central track back towards the main car park and saw another three (2 in scrub beneath the car park and 1 not far way near the 'Nightingale hedgerow'. Joan then phoned me to say that she and Anna had just found another flock on Steps Hill - all still present when I joined them some 15 minutes later. The flock numbered 9 birds (including 7 males) and were favouring the bottom fenceline and occasionally showed well. As I walked down the slope, what may have been 5 different birds was in Inkombe Hole, the morning thus producing perhaps 23 individuals. The only other migrant I had in all of this time was a single singing male WILLOW WARBLER in Top Scrub. I was away by 1115 hours...
I then headed down to TRING RESERVOIRS where STARTOP'S yielded my first COMMON TERN of the year, as well as a male YELLOW WAGTAIL. The Mute Swan flock had increased to 11 (mostly first-summers and most probably including the 6 displaced youngsters from Tringford), while both Common Redshanks were still present, Common Kingfisher, 28 Tufted Duck, single Pochard, the female Red-crested Pochard, a singing WILLOW WARBLER on the far side of the canal, both Common Chiffchaff and Blackcap and a singing male Reed Bunting.
On neighbouring MARSWORTH, the reedbed by the overflow held my first 2 WESTERN REED WARBLERS of the year, with CETTI'S WARBLER, Common Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Jay, 6 Tufted Duck and 2 Linnets noted.
Meanwhile WILSTONE proffered a single Lapwing, 2 Oystercatchers, 16 Shoveler, 4 Pochard, 18 Teal, 2 Common Redshank, 52 Black-headed Gulls, the 4 Egyptian Geese, 4 Common Buzzards, Grey Wagtail and Stock Dove. A pair of GARGANEY were seen very, very briefly in flight as they darted out of Hide Creek before (same as yesterday) both different to the drake I found yesterday off of the east shore.
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