The usual(?) 4 Yellow-legged gulls were on the water by 3pm (with birds coming and going it can be easy to overlook/discount others). 5 GBBs (2adult, 3 1w) was up on the usual single birds. The stiff westerly plus some shooting on the opposite side had pushed the gulls across to the near bank providing good views for a change. The wind dropped to a breeze around 3:30 and seemed to signal the first large arrival, with hundreds of gulls coming from the west, more arriving every 15-20 minutes from all points of the compass. A count at 4pm was 2500 LBB and 1500 BH gulls, with gulls still arriving when I left at 5pm. 3 Great crested grebe was the most this season (there's been up to double figures in recent years), a pair each of Tufties and Goldeneye. A Peregrine was sat on top of a tree watching the gulls before leaving without incident.
Yesterday. A good squelch around a saturated Dale airfield in the wellies produced a solitary snipe, the gorse continues to encroach on the inner triangle between the runways. A young Peregrine and a Kestrel were bickering over West Dale resulting in the Kestrel stooping vertically on the bigger falcon, and a Red kite drifted by, we're seeing these more and more regularly down here. c200 Skylark were feeding in the old stubble field by the main gate, a look through them in the scope only revealed a few extra Linnet among them. A walk down the road to check the fields between Marloes Mere to Martin's Haven next. 2 Merlin, one having a spat with a large female Sparrowhawk, and a Peregrine easing by. 200 Lapwing. A Little egret among the herd of Welsh Black opposite West Hook farm had me briefly hoping for something better.