Saturday, 27 December 2008

THE FESTIVE PERIOD - VERY QUIET

Christmas Eve 2008

Hoping to connect with Roy's 3 Shelducks, I visited the Reservoirs on Christmas Eve but failed in my quest. A large black balloon passed overhead scattering the wildfowl but did allow me to accurately click-count all of the birds present

WILSTONE RESERVOIR

Great Crested Grebe (20)
Mute Swans (only 6 adults left, lowest count this year)
Greylag Geese (flock now increased to 145 birds)
Common Teal (322+)
Northern Shoveler (49)
Eurasian Wigeon (538)
Tufted Duck (tremendous count of 264 birds - highest number this winter)
Northern Pochard (very high count of 161 birds - highest this winter)
COMMON GOLDENEYE (2 females)
RUDDY DUCK (2 drakes)
Common Coot (378+)

Herring Gull (1 juvenile)
Lesser Black-backed Gull (1 adult)

TRINGFORD RESERVOIR

Just 2 Great Crested Grebes, 7 Mute Swans, 4 Grey Herons, 4 Gadwall, 7 Tufted Duck and 34 Coots.

STARTOP'S END RESERVOIR

No Great Crested Grebes, 1 fw Mute Swan, 76 Coot, 42 Tufted Duck, 3 Pochard and 1 drake Shoveler

MARSWORTH RESERVOIR

3 Great Crested Grebes, 174 Shoveler (making 224 in total), 4 Coot and Song Thrush in full song

COLLEGE LAKE
(impressive numbers of wildfowl present on both lakes)

Mute Swans (23 including 3 first-winters)
Gadwall (78)
Eurasian Wigeon (268)
Common Teal (115)
Tufted Duck (256)
Pochard (43)
MANDARIN DUCK (7 - 4 drakes)
Coot (13)

PITSTONE QUARRY

6 Little Grebe, 3 Coot, 6 Teal, 31 Tufted Duck and 5 Pochards
156 LAPWINGS
203 Black-headed Gulls, with 8 Commons and 5 adult Lesser Black-backed.

1 Song Thrush, 1 Redwing and the MARSH TIT still present

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