Sunday 15 August 2010

Thank Heaven for Little Gulls

Ah Maurice Chevalier I thank you! Who is he? No idea! A french singer from yesteryear, but I'm not that old to remember him.

I've been making the most of a few light evenings over the last week, while we still have them. Highlights included two adult Yellow-legged Gulls at Croxden Quarry last Monday and two Little Egrets flew through Uttoxeter Quarry last Wednesday, presumably heading for the Little Egret mecca that is Blithfield Reservoir.

Following those Egrets, on walking back to the car I spotted a lady picking blackberries with one of these on her shoulder!


Very impressive, not every day you see a Macaw in the field. But can I tick it?

Sunday 15th August.

A full morning around Uttoxeter Quarry was had to begin with. With such highlights around as a Greenshank, 6 Green Sandpipers, 1 Common Sandpiper, 3 LRP, 5 Snipe, 13 Yellow Wagtail, 2 Grey Wagtail, 22 Teal, 2 Shoveler, 1 juvenile Shelduck, 1 Peregrine and 10 Egyptian Geese.

Onward to Blithers next, starting in Tad Bay. 1 Pintail, 1 Ruff, 1 Black-tailed Godwit and 8 Ringed Plover was a decent start. I then spotted a juvenile Little Gull which flew out towards the causeway. "That was good" I thought, so headed over to the hide at point to try for another view, which I did near to the causeway, but not easy looking into the sun.

I was later told that there were two juvenile Little Gulls from the causeway, so I went over to there and had much better views. This is what Maurice was going on about!



When you're at the Admaston end of the causeway, you can get a view of pretty much the whole reservoir. And you can make out the number of white dots, that are in fact Little Egrets. I could make out 6 in Blithe Bay, 1 between the causeway and St. Stephens Bay and 3 in the Concrete Bay.

One last check of Tad produced 2 LRP, 2 Snipe and a Peregrine. Also, intruigingly, 5 more Little Egrets. Certainly two were there when I looked earlier. So unless three of these I counted before from elsewhere, then there could well be 15 birds. It wouldn't surprise me if there were.

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