Early May 2009

Sunday, 10th May 09:

Stortford Park Farm (WEST):

WHINCHAT 1 FEMALE. YEARLISTER... only my 3rd local bird!

Saturday, 9th May 09:

Starlings

Bishops Stortford to Reading:

Kestrel 3

Swallow 1

Jay 2

Stockdove 2

Swift 7

Cormorant 1

READING:

Swift 100+ over the town, entering roofs and mating on the wing!

Lesser Black-backed Gull 20+

Herring Gull 2

Swallow 2

Reading to Bishops Stortford:

Kestrel 1

Jay 1

Friday, 8th May 09:

A singing Yellowhammer on SPF

Stortford Park Farm (west):

VERY quiet

Yellowhammer 3 ( 2 males)

Linnet 3 (4)

Whitethroat 2 males

+ Skylark, Brown Hare Etc.

Thursday, 7th May 09:

Turtle Dove... One of my fav species

Bush End:

0620-0655 and 1620-1720

Turtle Dove - During the 1hr 35mins on site, bird sung 3 times in full view from the roof/chimney. This very vocal bird usually found singing from cover (10 meters ENE from house) YEARLISTER!

Tuesday, 5th May 09:

Broad-bodied Chaser at Hayter, digiscoped from only a few meters

Trims Green:

Corn Bunting

Yellow Wagtail 3

+ usual yellowhammer, Linnet Etc.

Hayter, Spellbrook (west):

Broad-bodied Chaser 2 female/Imm Males

Blackcap 3

Goldcrest 2

Chiffchaff 1

Common Whitethroat 1

Lesser Whitethroat 1

Trims Green (after work):

Stopped by Police (again) Aparently stopping cars going down country lanes is part of their job :-)

Swallow c.20

House Martin 1

Swift 1

Monday, 4th May 09:

SWIFT - digiscoped over Amwell NR. This really got me thinking how many common species i don't have on film. Local gimmes include Garden Warbler and Reed Warbler. A new mission perhaps. I think i've got over 140 species 'on film' but will check properly.

Stortford Park Farm:

west

Linnet 3

Yellowhammer 3

Common Whitethroat 2 males

east

Great Spotted Woodpecker 1

Green Woodpecker 1

Linnet 2

Blackcap 1

Chiffchaff 1

Amwell NR:

Immaure Cormorant and a Redshank walking on water with Lapwing watching

WOOD SANDPIPER - gone... according to posted times, we missed them by 7 minutes :-( gutted... cheers MH.

Cuckoo 1

Ringed Plover 2

Redshank 3(4)

Herring Gull 1 - Amwell in May?

Shelduck 2 - one arrived while we were present

House Martin - too many to count

Sand Martin - see House Martin

Swift - most at once just got into double figures tho prob loads more present

Reed Warbler - Oddly only a single singing in front of the viewpoint

Cetti's Warbler 2 males heard

Great Spotted Woodpecker 1

+ all the usual suspects

Sunday, 3rd May 09:

Easily shot of the day, Pied Wagtail are a hard species to photograph in strong light.

Hatfield Forest Lake:

Great Crested Grebe - Feeding young with Crayfish... see photo below!

Greylag 13 (3 juvs)

Tawny Owl - no sign at usual spots

Common Whitethroat 4

Garden Warbler 1

Swallow 10 North

Tufted Duck 6

Common Tern 4 (2 brielfy)

Swan - Common Tern raft with nest seemed to have floated off in the night. When I arrived the edge of the lake, Hatfield Forest staff were looking for it's new location and it was soon spotted beside the dam. Arriving VERY soon afterwards with a boat, the raft (and Swans) were all back in position before heading off a short while later. Well done to all concerned for such swift action.

Greylag goslings, GreatCrested Grebe feeding it's young a juicy Crayfish

Hatfield Forest Staff mid rescue, Mute Swan checking everything was in place and finally a Greylag closeup

Saturday, 2nd May 09:

Great Crested Gebe - A few seconds old

Fishers Green:

Hobby 8 (7 over 70 acre lake and another single over the A414 between Rye Meads RSPB and Amwell NR) Yearlister

Garden Warbler 2 - My first definite GW's this year tho had a probable at SPF west a few days back that i've been unable to find since. Yearlister

Nightingale 3 (maybe 4) - Okay so they've got a great song but blackcap's still my fav. Yearlister

SAVI'S WARBLER - A trully fab bird! Most recent records of this bird nearby are One at Stansted Abbot GP in 1979 and a bird from Seventy Acre Lake in 1981. Everyone was there to see it and it only took a very short while before it's deep 'reeling' song give away his position. I never got more than a fleeting glimpse (and that could have been anything!) but hearing song was more than enough for me, after a good earfull I moved off from the masses. There's been worse places to twitch than 70 acre lake... sometimes your waiting for 'the' bird to pop up and there's nothing else to see or hear within half a mile! While we were waiting for this bird to appear there was a blackcap behind us, Garden Warbler to our right, Nightingale to our left and all the Hobbies you could shake a stick at. Yearlister and LIFER

Cettis Warbler 6 (5)

Common Tern - loads

Great Crested Grebe - WE WATCHED ONE HATCH! while parents fed first 2 (still one to go). A sight to remember!

Blackcap 7 (6 males, 1 female)

also: Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Sedge Warbler, Reed Warbler and Whitethroat etc.

Friday, 1st May 09

Peacock at Stortford Park Farm (west)

Stortford Park Farm (west):

Linnet 4 (2 pairs?)

Common Whitethroat 2 males

Yellowhammer 5 (3 males)

Edinburgh Way, Harlow:

Kestrel on supermarket roof

Yellowhammer and Skylark at SPF west

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