The recent Marloes Hoopoe sighting

Emily Shaw, from West Wales Biodiversity Information Centre, who recorded a Hoopoe late last week at Marloes Mere (posted recently by Wendy James), went back a day later with a camera to see if it was still around. Pleasingly it was still there and she managed to get quite a nice picture of it - glad you managed to find it again Emily.

Garganey, The Gann

Pair of Garganey at the Gann today. Flighty & getting pushed around by a Shelduck at one point but the male was especially stunning in the lovely sunlight. Greenshank still present.

The Brents were still at Broadhaven later on.

Henry Stuart (visiting).

Newport

Gulls at Newport this afternoon included a 2cy Iceland (the Teifi bird?), a 3cy Med & a Polish ringed 2cy Black Headed, as well as a Skokholm GBB & one of the regular ringed Herring Gulls.

Hoopoe, Marloes Mere

Report of Hoopoe, Marloes Mere  (Bird Guides)

Osprey - Teifi marsh

An Osprey was seen flying downstream over the Teifi Marsh this morning, being mobbed by gulls.
(Gary Reynolds)

Serin, Pencarnan

Male Serin today at Pencarnan, St Davids this morning. Paul G.

Dipper, Aberfforest

From Paula Lazar: Was so excited to see a Dipper today at Aberfforest waterfall. It stayed the whole time we were there, collecting grubs & bobbing around between the pool & the falls then as we were leaving a second one flew over to the higher water! 

Ramsey

A Ramsey mega today in the form of a Jay! 2 autumn records in the past 12 years but this is the first spring record (and possibly on record - need to check). Also of note today - a hooded crow, a red kite, 2 white wagtails and 100+ willow warblers

Broad Haven Brents

From David Meanwell: Broad Haven beach 5.30 today two Brent Geese enjoying the rock pools.

Urban birding

A Blackcap singing beside Tescos, H'west. Lesser Whitethroat and Blackcaps singing by LBS Builders, Milford. And a Peregrine chasing a pigeon (unsuccesfully) over the Leisure Centre, H'west.

The Gann

Quiet really, just a few points of interest more than anything else, what sounded like a Lesser Whitethroat singing at Crab Hall (from Pickleridge) though frustratingly masked by passing traffic - I stopped for a few minutes on the way back home to listen for it but was met with silence.Whimbrel calling, a pair of lingering Teal seemed comfortable causing me to speculate on whether they would/could breed (also one of Brian`s thoughts too) 5 Redshank, 1 Greenshank & a Wheatear.
What did get me thinking though was this "Light" LB Gull, stuck out like a sore thumb at the footbridge, brought back memories of one at Marloes Mere 9 - 10 years ago that turned out to be a possible long lived bird from Caldey Island or something along those lines.

Angle Peninsula

A walk clockwise round the Angle Peninsula this morning with my friend Mike, starting and finishing at the war memorial above Freshwater West.

4 singing lesser whitethroats in a morning was a personal best - one below the war memorial, one just north of West Angle beach (a regular spot), one half way round to Chapel Fort and the last in a hedge opposite Chapel Fort. 2 whitethroats were in one of the valleys on the S side. 2 wheatears and a white wagtail were feeding on furrows in a field being prepared for potatoes N of West Angle Bay. Surprisingly there were no wheatears in the East Blockhouse area. Several swallows came in off the sea. A pair of chough at East Blockhouse. Residents in profusion (linnet, goldfinch, dunnock, wren, stonechat, pipits, skylark etc.), and a very handsome fox with an exceptionally bushy tail. Woodland species on the N side included blackcap and lots of chiffchaffs.

Pengelli - Pied Flycatcher

Pied flycatcher male and a female, nr. the entrance to Pengelli. Really lovey. A pair of nuthatches nearby too, with lots of song. A cuckoo heard v briefly but v close-by, early morning Dinas, upper slopes of the Cwm-Yr-Eglwys valley.

Skomer

The Woodchat Shrike is present for its third day. Sorry that we didn't post on here earlier and our only excuse is that we are extremely busy. See our Recent Sightings tab for full details of migrants over the spring.

Stock Doves

A pair at Newport this morning were the first I have seen in N Pembs. Still not seen a Swallow or a Wheatear, though plenty of singing Chiff Chaffs, Blackcaps & Willow Warblers around Dinas.

Black redstart, Deer Park

Early morning walk around the Marloes peninsula. Black redstart annoying the resident Wheatears by Renny Slip, resisting their attempts to chase it away. 2 Grasshopper warblers and a Whitethroat on the Deer Park. Chiffchaffs very visible along the drains and ditches around the mere. 2 Black-tailed godwit,  2 Whimbrel, a Snipe and a Ringed plover (flying over) the surrounding fields.

Minwear & Plumstone

Lovely to see a Tree Pipit singing his head off at Minwear this morning, also a Wood Warbler rattling away, and Dippers on the river upstream of Blackpool Mill.

At Plumstone this afternoon 5 Wheatears (4 males), 2 of which looked bang on for Greenlands - big, bright, and relatively long winged.

Landshipping this morning

A stroll to Landshipping was generally very quiet apart from the local territorial swallows, chiffchaffs, willow warblers and blackcaps. We'd hoped for an osprey fishing on the river at high tide but one didn't appear.

We did hear (and eventually see) at least 3 (and probably more) adult Med Gulls in full breeding plumage passing E-N/E high over the Eastern Cleddau. We rarely see this species in our local area, so it was nice to see them even if they were passing over at an ever increasingly high altitude. Their very distinctive and possibly almost cat-like mewing "meah" call alerting us to their presence. Had we not heard them first we would not have seen them at all.

Freshwater East

From Christine Jones - Freshwater East 

Morning dog walk through the dunes - 3 lesser Whitethroats singing and on the beach 6 Whimbrels flew out of the fog heading in land.

Hoopoe - Marloes Mere

A Hoopoe was seen yesterday afternoon on the track to the hide at Marloes Mere.
Report from Emily (WBIC)

Newport - greylag geese

There was a nervous group of five greylags west of the iron bridge this morning.

Whitethroats -- The Teifi

Both Lesser Whitethroat and Common Whitethroat singing in Poppit sand dunes this morning.

St Davids Head, Strumble Head and Sealyham

A small fall of Willow Warblers, with fewer Chiffchaffs and the odd Wheatear  both sites today. 5 Shelduck were unusual at St Davids and 2 Yellowhammers were a surprise at Strumble. A Greenfinch was an equally rare migrant at St Davids yesterday with 3 Whimbrel and 3 White Wagtails. Lesser Redpoll was a garden tick at Sealyham today, where the Red Kites have gone all secretive but still sneaking in to nest trees. Green Sandpiper not seen since 16th.

Marloes Peninsula

Nice walk to check fields and hedges. 12 White wagtails and 4 Pied in Trehills Fields, 2 White wags and 6 Pieds at West Hook. Flock of 250 Linnet feeding in same field by entrance to West Hook. Definitely more Linnets around generally this evening. Goldcrest and a Willow warbler only birds in Martins Haven. Deer Park was quiet. Single Wheatear and a Whimbrel along coast back to mere. 4 singing Sedge warblers were the first of the year. A Dunlin flying over and a Snipe. Could just make out 2 summer plumage godwits deep, amongst the reeds looked like Bar-tailed.

Cuckoo and Grasshopper warblers, Rosebush

From Linda Norris: Cuckoo calling at Rosebush, Wednesday afternoon. With Groppers singing their hearts out today.

Cuckoos on Carnedd Meibion Owain - Wedns 18th April

Jane Hodges mentioned yesterday hearing two male cuckoos calling on Carnedd Meibion Owain. They were heard whilst she was undertaking an early morning breeding birds survey within Tycanol NNR. This area has generally been a good location for cuckoos over the years.

Colour-ringed Whimbrel - Teifi

No sign of yesterday's Little Ringed Plover on the saltmarsh by the Webley Hotel but there were 9 Whimbrel. One of them was colour ringed.

A check on cr-birding to find the project and a rapid reply from Tony Cross confirmed it was a Whimbrel ringed by Mid Wales Ringing Group at Llansantfraid 10th May 2012. 40km up the Ceredigion coast on its spring migration 6 years ago.

Castlemartin Corse

A recce with PCNP ranger Dan Wynn for our May 7 Dawn Chorus - things just getting going, with single grasshopper and sedge warblers, a swallow and 4 whimbrel overhead (the whimbrel going the wrong way). Willow warblers and chiffchaffs by the old decoy ponds, a kestrel near Fresh West, but otherwise still very quiet.

PS a pair of greylags near the hide.

Cwm-Yr-Eglwys - grasshopper warber

Cwm-Yr-Eglwys valley singers this morning included grasshopper warbler (1), willow warbler (4), chiffchaff (4-5), blackcap (1). And a tawny owl. The spectrogram shows the grasshopper warbler as a broken-up, horizontal band at around 6.5 kHz, and five verses from a willow warbler descending from around 6 kHz to 2.5 kHz.

Whimbrel -- The Teifi

An impressive flock of 45 Whimbrel and 1 Black-tailed Godwit dropped in on the rising tide to bathe tonight.

Woodchat Shrike - Skomer

One this evening in North Valley (per Skomer Island Facebook page).  The south-easterlies are clearly delivering goodies.....

St Davids Head

From Steve Jones: Ring ouzel, Short-eared owl and 40+ Wheatear,  St Davids Head this evening.

Little Bittern -- Tenby.....???

Strangely, there appeared to be a Little Bittern sitting on a windowsill in Tenby this morning. Unfortunately I don't have a camera phone but several people did take photos of it. It was just basking in the sun with its neck stretched out on the windowsill of the Paxton Old Sea Baths near the lifeboat stations. 
(Phil Shread)

Little Ringed Plover - Teifi

As the tide dropped this morning there was a Little Ringed Plover feeding on the saltmarsh by the Webley Hotel.

Also 3 Common Sandpipers and 3 Whimbrel.
A small flock of Ringed Plovers, Dunlin and a Sanderling dropped in later.
(Photo Dyfed J)
Little Ringed Plover still present  1500
(Rich D)

Grasshopper Warbler

... singing this morning from the marsh behind our house, just upstream from Mullock Bridge

The Gann and Marloes Mere (Tues)

High tide at the Gann: 14 Whimbrel, 8 Ringed plover and single Dunlin. 5 Brent by Crabhall. 2cy Med gull. 70 Oystercatchers inc ringed birds 33 and 45.
Marloes Mere: Summer plumage Bar-tailed godwit, with a Peregrine on the prowl. 3pr Gadwall, 7pr Teal (plus 8m), 5pr Shoveller (plus 4m). Pintail still out from Oriole Hide.

Whimbrel passage - The Teifi

Eighteen Whimbrel feeding in the estuary late morning, a flock of 24 with 40 Oystercatchers on the rising tide this evening.
(Wendy J & Rich D)