Thursday, 30 July 2015

Wood Sandpiper at Slimbridge

Wood Sandpiper
 Ducklings
Love this painting
 Gluten free carrot cake

Our annual trip to Taunton cricket festival with our youngest gives us all an excuse to have a relaxing week and I can normal get in a couple of sessions of birding in-between matches. 

On the journey down I thought it would be rude not to call into Slimbridge for a few hours and take advantage of the hides given the shocking rain and dull skies. The weather did have one bonus in that there was no one else there except a couple of the regulars.

First stop was the Robbie Garnett hide where the reported hard to find Wood Sandpiper was showing nicely to the right of the channel with seven Green Sandpiper. The bird looked to be a juvenile by it's markings. They can be difficult birds to see but this is the second one I've seen this year following one at John Bennett NR, Pershore. Out on the tack piece there were four Common Cranes.

I then headed up to the Holden Tower where the normal Peregrine was looking for his morning breakfast which I then caught up with again in the Ziess Hide when trying to attack a flock of 50 Dunlin.

Other sightings included 16 Avocets, 120 Black-tailed Godwits, 2 Ruff, 40 Redshank, 75 Lapwing, 10 Shoveler, three early Wigeon arrivals, 30 Gadwell and two Common Tern.

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