Forgot to update for Sunday so...

Despite a bona fide yank knocking about, high tide at Goldcliff on Sunday wasn't that inspiring. The Buff-breasted Sandpiper was still present (was being the operative word, it hasn't been seen since); it pootled around the island for most of the time before becoming rather flighty as the tide retreated and took most of his little wader friends with it.  Other passage waders included: 27 Avocet on the foreshore, 240 Knot, 219 Black-tailed Godwit, four Spotted Redshank and seven Greenshank. The only passerines on the go were one Tree Pipit, 5+ Yellow Wagtail, one Whinchat and one Wheatear.

While I'm here,... some terrible but ever so slightly informative photos of the tagged Marsh Harrier.

 The elusive code, now to find out from whence it came.

During this bird's stay it has undergone the majority of its first 'complete' moult (which isn't complete but anyhoo...). The outer primaries are now whitish below (see the far wing), broadly tipped blackish and greyish above; the primary coverts are also similarly coloured; the moulted secondaries are darker than the new primaries but still obviously grey toned with a paler grey base and contrast with the adjacent, unmoulted juvenile feathers; some secondary coverts have also been replaced but are much closer in appearance to the juvenile coverts and don't catch the eye in the field...

... the new central tail feathers are grey with dark subterminal markings and the outer, still growing, feathers are a rusty brown. All in all, it has transformed itself from relatively difficult to sex juvenile into a fine example of a second calendar-year male,... whoop-di-bleedin'-doo.

PS. There is every possibility this bird will suspend the moult at this stage and retain this look (excepting the effects of abrasion/bleaching) until next summer. Let's hope he hangs around and finds a missus.

That's filled a gap

Just as I was on my way out the door, news of Buff-breasted Sandpiper at Goldcliff came crackling though the ether. A nifty little diversion and heavy mental suppression of the cynical 'it'll be a Ruff' voice in my head and,... ter-tick! Had to wait almost exactly 12 years to get this back. The Gwent list leaps forth.

The smart little fellow briefly alighted on the hideward side of the lagoon, and stayed just long enough for a gawd awful photograph to be bagged. 

And an even less good flight shot.

Then it was back to Plan A, which mainly included counting brightly coloured flying things beyond Gwent's boundaries, beyond Wales' boundaries actually.

Flipping sun went in for all of ten minutes this afternoon, coinciding with the ten minutes I was pointing my camera at this fella.  Kind of takes the glint from his eye,... the very reddish glint.

Height of the tide

The tides at the moment are woeful,... and dropping.  Apart from decent numbers of Knot and Black-tailed Godwit there was little else to shout about at Goldcliff. Greenshank and Turnstone were around but in, seemingly, reduced numbers and I managed to miss the one Spotted Redshank as it did a disappearing trick on the back lagoon. Passerine migrants had slowed too, just a single Wheatear on the sea wall and a few Yellow Wagtails amongst the cows. Did manage to bag the code on the Marsh Harrier's tags though, so stay tuned for an update. This bird is most of the way through it's first full moult now, nice and easy to age and sex - 2nd year male.

Oh yeah, Barney and Rinky-dink are still around, which is nice for all the feral goose fanatics out there.

Autumn's arrival

Another high tide, another trip to Goldcliff. Better numbers and variety as compared to Friday with 1 Curlew Sandpiper, 1-2 Little Stint, 2 Sanderling, 1 Ruff, 3 Bar-tailed Godwit, 6 Turnstone, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Spotted Redshank, 8 Greenshank, 175 Knot, 169 Black-tailed Godwit, 225 Ringed Plover, 18+ Snipe, 405 Dunlin, Barney the Barnacle Goose, 14 Pintail and 1 Wigeon.

A different, rather than better, mix of migrant passerines included Yellow Wagtail 6, Whinchat 1, Reed Warbler 1 and Lesser Whitethroat 1. And the numbers of Stock Dove feeding amongst the plastic bales had increased slightly to at least 29.

Classic Stock Dove habitat.

Summer's end

A reasonable high tide roost at Goldcliff produced a Golden Plover which dropped onto the island on the first lagoon and hung around awhile before being booted by a semi-amphibious cow, 1-2 juv Little Stint, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Turnstone, 1 Spotted Redshank, 8 Greenshank, 103 Knot, 164 Black-tailed Godwit, 183 Ringed Plover (one of which was taken by a Sparrowhawk), 273 Dunlin, 19 Snipe and 65 Curlew. 

The best of the wildfowl were a redhead Goosander which flew in from the east and dropped in on the back lagoon, 3 Wigeon and the Chinese Goose.  Passerine migrants included 1 Grey Wagtail and 4 Tree Pipit over W, plus 1 Wheatear and 32 Yellow Wagtail dotting about on the deck.  

The only other notables were 1 Kingfisher and 22 Stock Dove.

Two things I forgot to mention

Thing 1: whilst at Goldcliff t'other day, I noticed one of the Ringed Plovers was colour-ringed/flagged, according to this wonderful resource, it would appear to come from the Giske wader ringing station, at the Makkevika bird reserve, Møre & Romsdal county, Norway. So, not so much a Ringed Plover as a Sandlo, and possibly a tundrae Sandlo at that.

Thing 2: also on Saturday, my mum and sister number one found a bleedin' Wryneck dibbling about on the patio/lawn of the holiday cottage they were staying in down in Dorset. I got to identify it over the phone, but still,... GRIPPED.

Goldcliff again

Arrived at Goldcliff to be met with the lovely sight of a large blue tractor whizzing around cutting the fields around the pools. Luckily, the waders on the first lagoon weren't too perturbed and, beyond flushing a few Snipe every now and again, Farmer Giles didn't fuck things up quite as much as I thought he might.

Amongst the waders were: 3 juvenile Knot, 1 Spotted Redshank, 6-7 Greenshank, 20 Black-tailed Godwit, 13 Snipe and 93 Ringed Plover (including one colour-ringed/flagged individual), however, the highlight was provided by a juvenile Little Stint which appeared overhead before dropping in and pottering up and down the near edge of the island. Also dotted about were about 10 Yellow Wagtail, 1 Pintail and 1 Swift,... oh, and the Chinese Goose.

However, the most exciting occurrences were the two torrential downpours which whipped though, the first just monsoonic rain, the second rain, hail and some impressive electrical activity,... it left a right old pong of ozone hanging in the air. The last time I had lightening baked O₃ wafting around the nostrils, I was hiding under a rock on a Turkish hillside thinking Grey-headed Bunting was to be my last tick. Happy days.

A flavour of the second opening of the heavens can be sampled here, unfortunately, the really close clap of thunder and crack of lightening happened just after I stopped recording.

Autumn's child

Actually went birding the other day. Almost enough of interest to make it worthwhile.

PS. Has anyone bagged the code on the Marsh Harrier's wing-tags yet?

Mainly boats

A weekend in Weymouth without a sniff of Portland, Lodmoor or Radipole.

The most decorated sailor in Olympics history. Ben Ainslie celebrating his fourth gold following a nervy tussle with Jonas Hogh-Christensen and Pieter-Jan Postma.  Jonathan Lobert won the final race and grabbed overall bronze as Postma's challenge imploded on the last upwind leg.  Hogh-Christensen had been Ainslie's primary concern but it was Postma who almost snatched gold until he collided with Dan Slater, was forced to take a penalty turn, and slid from potential gold to overall fourth.

The Star fleet and an unfeasibly large Union Jack. At this point Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson were keeping pace with Fredrik Loof and Max Salminen whilst their nearest rivals, Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada, were some way back. Unfortunately, the GB pair lost out at the death as Loof and Salminen took first, and a light, shifty wind did for the GB boat in the last few metres.

Silver medalists Percy and Simpson, taking the applause of the adoring hordes on the Nothe.  In non-sailing news, during the race two Mediterranean Gulls (one adult, one second-summer) headed west towards Ferrybridge.

The women's 470 fleet. Cardiff-born Hannah Mills and partner Saskia Clark are just out of shot.  They finished sixth in this, the sixth, race but lead the overall standings.

Gwent Birding, precious little birding, bugger all Gwenting.

PS. Click on the images for larger versions,... if you wanna. 

Just when you thought they were safe(ish) in the water

Due to some exciting things, like Peter Higgs' rather amazing boson, and some less exciting stuff like a bunch of shyster bankers (I said bankers) getting up to gawd knows what in the village of London, it may have escaped your attention that the 64th Annual Meeting of the International Whaling Commission is currently taking place in Panama City.

So far, the headlines include:

1. South Korea is going to start whaling using the same 'scientific research' loophole as exploited by Japan; 
2. Japan has requested a coastal whaling quota citing 'tradition'; 
3. the proposed South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary failed to achieve the three quarters majority of votes required and has sunk without trace; and 
4. during a time wasting exercise entitled 'Safety at Sea', the Russian Federation, Japan and Antigua compared the antics of the Sea Shepherd chaps to terrorism and the actions of a Mr. Bin Laden. 

Just the usual fuckwittery then.

Minke Whale, today the only large whale in the North Atlantic targeted by commercial whalers most of whom would refer to it as vågehval.