SATURDAY 17 JANUARY 2009
A relatively mild day, with bright periods and a fresh southerly wind. As the evening approached, the wind increased from the SW bringing heavy rain.
LITTLE MARLOW GP (mid-morning)
(brief visit, with Dave Horton)
The single RUFF, discovered by Alan Stephens on 16th, was still present, showing well on the spit and consorting with the Lapwings. Initially asleep, it then woke up and began feeding on the sand. It was a white individual, with a patchy head and mottled breast-sides. The underparts were predominantly unmarked white. It had some dark on the crown but with a contrasting white collar and white fringed upper wing-coverts. Most distinctive were its bright orange legs and bill.
Also noted were -:
Sinensis Cormorants: 2 pairs back on territory and repairing nests on the island
COMMON SHELDUCK: pair still present
*Ruddy Shelduck: female still present
LAPWING (733 on spit)
Ring-necked Parakeet (pair)
SISKINS: a flock of at least 50 birds feeding in the canopy of the trees adjacent to the car parking area, 30 yards from the Sewage Farm entrance.
**About 45 minutes after I left, Alan Stephens 'phoned to inform me of 6 EURASIAN CURLEWS that flew in to the spit early afternoon. They settled, preened for a while, but flew off about ten minutes later - presumably adults returning north to moorland breeding grounds. They represented the first of the year for the county - species 117.
The CALVERT BBOWT roost yielded 2 'regular' CASPIAN GULLS - the adult and first-winter (Warren Claydon)