Friday 30 January 2015

Castlemartin Corse...

...looking dramatic under 2 metres of floodwater, almost up to the tops of the reeds, the outflow  well and truly blocked by recent storms.

Mobile flocks the main feature today, only rough estimates possible. Parties of 50+ snipe constantly on the move, perhaps 400 altogether. Huge golden plover flock on the northern slopes - in the order of 2-3,000 when they all bunched up. Smaller no's of lapwing, but still a lot. Several thousand starlings upstream, more than I've seen for a few weeks here. The darker marsh harrier, female merlin and 4 buzzards all in evidence, a fifth buzzard above Kingsmill (upstream from Castlemartin). The ducks were mostly further upstream tho' prip-prip of teal could be heard everywhere. Reedbed occupants have presumably been pushed upstream or upslope (on the S side).