Marloes Mere

Managed an hour before the mist rolled in this evening. Little Grebe with 2 small chicks, female Kestrel hunting over the surrounding fields, 2 fly over Ringed plovers and a Snipe. Earlier this morning 3 noisy Peregrines over H'west.

Picton Point

Beautiful still evening for a walk from Picton Ferry around to Millin Pill. 11-12 Little egret (6 together Landshipping side, 4 in Millin Pill, and a couple of singles). 3 Common sandpiper and 2 Greenshank Millin Pill. 2 young Shelduck top of Millin. 50 Pied wagtail roosting on a moored boat off Picton Ferry. Lots of mullet topping as they were in the Gann last night Osprey along shortly hopefully.

The Teifi

The Bittern was seen again this morning in it's favourite overgrown feeding pond by the car park.(Colin Dalton)

Yesterday this Coot was found on Mallard pond. Coot being more scarce on the Teifi than Bitterns ! (Geraint James)

(photo Andrew Hughes)

The Gann

I was originally heading to Marloes Mere but the amount of traffic coming from that direction had me diverting to the Gann earlier than I intended. Tide was pretty low so I was at least able to check along the river and the saltmarsh. On the pools: Kingfisher, 2 Common sandpiper, 3 Greenshank, 3 Redshank and a juv Med gull. On the foreshore: 18 Black-tailed godwits, 14 bathing were joined by another 4 that flew in calling before all of them flew up to the saltmarsh. Single Whimbrel. 13 Dunlin and 9 Ringed plover. 3 Snipe stopped briefly and had a feed before taking flight. A quick look at the mere Common sandpiper calling and dozen Teal, met Derek who had a couple of Shoveler.

Pembrokeshire Avifauna - new look

The Pembrokeshire Avifauna has been completely revamped and moved to a new home over the past few months.

It is, as ever, an on-going project.  Hopefully, we've got rid of most of the annoying typos that plagued the old version.  If you do come across any typos, errors or omissions, please let me know.  And if you haven't looked at it lately, you should now find a selection of new posts - with more to come.

The maps for the 2003-07 atlas have been replaced with new ones provided by the West Wales Biodiversity Information Centre, and the 1984-88 maps will similarly be replaced sometime soon.

Records of rare and scarce species have been pulled out of the bird reports so you can see more easily how often each species is seen, and get an idea of where to look for them.

If anyone wants to write new material - for example, movements of ringed birds - where our birds are going to, or where colour-marked birds are coming from - such articles will be most welcome.

Suggestions for what to put on a 'Links' page (and why) will also be helpful.

The Gann

An early morning walk was interesting, 1 GC Grebe on the sea as were two Shoveler (ducks /juv) before taking off to Marloes, 2 Greenshank, 21 Teal flew in off the sea - straight over Mullock - & off towards St Brides.                                                                                                                                                                In with a small group of RPs & Dunlin wheeling around was a "smaller" Wader, they didn`t land anywhere that I could see, just flying around the bay before vanishing. Frustrating.            

 

The Teifi

 Sandwich Terns the highlight today....

(photo Dyfed James)

Several parties were flying west along the coast this morning, Wendy counted 48 in the estuary including 5 juveniles. Waders today included 2 Sanderling, 18 Dunlin and 10 Ringed Plover.  5 Knot yesterday.

Llys-y-fran

 

Water levels still low at Llys-y-fran, only waders were a couple of Common sandpipers. Min 16 GC grebe no sign of any breeding, 2 Little grebe. 4 young herons and a Little egret was a new bird for here. 100 LBB majority juveniles with about 30 adults, an adult GBB, 3 Herring gulls and a juv BH gull, gave me something to look through. Even counted the geese - 334 Canadas, 5 Greylag and a cross. 20 Mallard and pair Teal. Quite a few Swallows and House Martins skimming the water at the dam end before they head off and Blackbirds and Bullfinch tucking into the Rowan berries. Access is still only from Farthing Brook end.

West Williamston, Carew Cheriton, Milton

 Brief visit to West Williamston this morning. 2 Greenshank heard on opposite shore, also a call from an unseen wader - chew-it - must have been a spotted redshank. 

"Carding Mill Nature Trail" between Carew Cheriton and Milton, aka Firecrest Alley - the sparrowhawk family has been providing hours of entertainment in the neighborhood. A female made an ill-advised foray into the Milton rookery this afternoon. 

Spotted flycatchers have made a late appearance - one in the garden, which could have bred further upstream, and one by the ruined mill in Milton. 

Newport by the bridge this afternoon

 Around 30 Med Gulls, mostly juvs, a few 2cy & just 1 adult. The Juvs included GreenR3HT from a Western France scheme. The Black Headed Gulls included a Yellow ringed juv from Poland (too distant to read properly).

Other ringed gulls were regulars - Skokholm GBB W:055 & 2cy BHG Black 2CHN.

10 Sandwich Terns (4 juvs) looked in briefly.

Just 1 remaining juv Shelduck (from an initial brood of 4), & the long staying Whimbrel

The Gann on a misty morning

 At least a dozen Sanderling and over twenty Dunlin were among the waders present at a very misty Gann this morning, as well as a Common Sandpiper.

On the way back to the Car Park, as I was looking at the Sanderling, about 7 Sandwich Terns flew directly over my head and then quickly disappeared into the mist. 

Milton, Broadhaven

From Ian Bartlett- My last day in Pembs today unfortunately but will hopefully be back before the end of the year.

Milton Bridge Caravan Park - There was a pair of Peregrine screaming above Milton Bridge Caravan park at midday today and this evening a gathering of c.35 swallows and house martins (mostly Swallows).

Broadhaven South - This afternoon I did some birding while having a family picnic on the cliffs at Broadhaven South; saw Chough, Raven, Peregrine, GBB Gull, Fulmar, Cormorant, Linnet, 4 Gannets fishing out at sea & 2 Razorbill. 

Skok

Over 100 Willow Warbler today, along with our first Wood Warbler in 13 years and a good variety of regular autumn migrants.

More Garden Chough News

From Phil Spence - A neighbour just sent me this photo of a Chough just outside her patio windows.

Since I emailed you last week it has been a daily visitor to gardens on North Cliffe and uses my pond to drink and bathe (it also seems to be doing a useful job of hoovering up ants).

From Ian Bartlett- My last day in Pembs today unfortunately but will hopefully be back before the end of the year.

Milton Bridge Caravan Park - There was a pair of Peregrine screaming above Milton Bridge Caravan park at midday today and this evening a gathering of c.35 swallows and house martins (mostly Swallows).

Broadhaven South - This afternoon I did some birding while having a family picnic on the cliffs at Broadhaven South; saw Chough, Raven, Peregrine, GBB Gull, Fulmar, Cormorant, Linnet, 4 Gannets fishing out at sea & 2 Razorbill. 

Milton, Broadhaven

 

From Ian Bartlett- My last day in Pembs today unfortunately but will hopefully be back before the end of the year.

Milton Bridge Caravan Park - There was a pair of Peregrine screaming above Milton Bridge Caravan park at midday today and this evening a gathering of c.35 swallows and house martins (mostly Swallows).

Broadhaven South - This afternoon I did some birding while having a family picnic on the cliffs at Broadhaven South; saw Chough, Raven, Peregrine, GBB Gull, Fulmar, Cormorant, Linnet, 4 Gannets fishing out at sea & 2 Razorbill. 

Caspian Tern update

Sadly no further sign until dusk...which is surprising given the bird was last seen in County Kerry, Ireland, at 730 this morning!! Surely it needs a rest. Birds are amazing.

CASPIAN TERN @ Gann

CASPIAN TERN at the Gann c.1645, flying around the top end of the lagoon. Currently missing but being looked for. 2nd record for Pembrokeshire following one on Skomer Island on 28th May 1994. BOOM!

Med Gulls on the Teifi

A chance this evening to visit the gulls at The Webley,

No Terns - but maybe a record for the Teifi of 24 juvenile Mediterranean Gulls amongst the 31 Meds present.  Like Sam's observation at Newport - no colour-ringed juvs....

One adult Common Gull and c200 Black-headed Gulls including a good number of juveniles.

Possible albatross off Pembs - stand down

I have now received the photos and the bird in question was an adult gannet but don't let that stop you seawatching!

Teifi Bittern

The Bittern at the West Wales Wildlife Reserve (Cilgerran) is being seen regularly from the Car park.  (See earlier post by Richard Dobbins)  It does fly to another part of the reserve occasionally so could be a Pembrokeshire and a Ceredigion 'tick' at different times

Possible albatross off Pembs

This message was forwarded to our generic RSPB Cymru email address yesterday and sent on to me and relates to a sighting on 2/8. I have only just seen the email this morning. I have asked if the photo can be forwarded on but didn't want to wait to share the news so people can keep an eye out

Good morning,

I wondered if you can help me please.

Yesterday I saw an Albatross a mile or so off Freshwater West, Pembrokeshire, are these birds often seen in UK waters ? I was sailing on my own but was able to take a photo on my phone.

Leucistic Magpie

From Chris Dighton - Might be if interest and excuse the poor images - heavily cropped and poor light. Saw this leucistic magpie whilst driving and not safe to pull over but I popped back out yesterday evening and it was on the grass verge just along from the Fishguard fort car park where I was able to pull in. Managed to get a couple of photos at distance and then two cars rounded the bend and flushed it into one of the fields but out of sight and it didn’t return.