When the north wind blows

The weather has been pretty grim recently, cold and with a biting northerly wind.  This hasn't helped the finding of migrants and birding the patch has been rather mundane.  The best of the past week and a few more year ticks are as follows:

21st - quick pre-work visit: 6 Pochard, 5 males and a female, were obvious migrants, as the wintering birds had all departed; 1 Swift flew over north.

22nd - quick pre-work visit: 2 Sedge Warblers were singing in the north west corner near the cottages and 2 Swifts flew through.

23rd - a late afternoon visit found 2 Redshank new in on the spit, a total of 25 Common Terns and a single Raven flew SW over Pump Lane.

24th - a morning walk around the patch found my first Garden Warbler of the year on the railway bank and 2 Lesser Whitethroats were in the eastern hedge. Two Common Sands were on the spit and the east bank along with a single LRP. Hundreds of mixed hirundines were hawking low over the water in the chill and a Swift flew over.  A pair of Linnets flew out of the works area and were my first of the year on this part of the patch. At Pump Lane paddocks, 3 female Wheatear were fairly inactive in the cold.

The day was livened up by a twitch to N. Bucks to see a lovely pair of Black-winged Stilts at Manor Farm, the first record since 1988, so well before my time in the county.  I also saw the long staying couple of breeding plumaged Spotted Redshanks at College Lake on the way back. So there are some good birds about, just not on patch!

26th - another morning spent on patch.  Two Whitethroats in the southern hedge were my first of the year, whilst presumably the same Garden Warbler was still present.  A couple of Reed Warblers were in reeds on the NW side, one sharing its small patch with a Sedge Warbler.  Blackcaps are still particularly numerous and still quite a few singing Willow Warblers, whereas Chiffchaff song has quietened down somewhat.  A Yellow Wagtail flew over west calling late on and was another year tick. Otherwise it was fairly much the same, a Common Sand, 2 LRP, a pair of Shelduck, 20 Common Terns and plenty of hawking hirundines plus a single Swift.  It was strange to see a compact line of 23 Grey Herons standing out of the wind at the base of the spit, which comprised more juveniles than adults. It was nice to see 26 Linnets still at Pump Lane vineyards.

27th - a quick morning circuit found a small influx of Whitethroats on the southern bank - 5 birds were between the mid southern bank and just past the SE corner.  The Garden Warbler was still singing in the SE corner, whilst on the spit were a Common Sand, 4 LRPs and a pair of Oystercatchers.  Little Egrets look to be breeding in the heronry again this year, with two obvious pairs on the southern side of the island. At Pump Lane paddocks two female Wheatears were assumed to be different to Sunday's birds, as none were seen there yesterday.