Category: Sighting

Dam End:- 1f Tufted Duck, 1 Mandarin, 1 Common Tern, 5 Lapwings, 3 Grey Wagtails, 1 Swift, 50 Swallows, 1 Kestrel, 1 Green Woodpecker.
West End:- 2 Teal, 10 Mandarin, 1 Common Tern, 1 Green Sandpiper, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Kingfishers, 3 Stock Doves.
Whillet’s Reed Bed:- 1 Water Rail, 1 Sedge Warbler, 4 Reed Warblers.
Whillet’s:- 1 Grasshopper Warbler, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Blackcap, 8 Whitethroats, 6 Chiffchaffs, 1 Marsh Tit, 15+ Long-tailed Tits, 1 Goldcrest, 90 Goldfinch, 1m Sparrowhawk, 5 Song Thrush.

Dam End:- 40 Sand Martins, 40 Swallows, 4 Swifts, 4 House Martins,135 Black-headed Gulls,1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 3 Herring Gull, 2 Mute Swans, 2 Common Sandpiper, 1 Greenshank, 13 Grey Heron, 2 Kingfisher, 41 Mallard, 4 Mandarin, 3 Moorhen, 2 Pied Wagtail, 3 Grey Wagtail, 1 Greenfinch, 2 Linnets,1 flyover Woodlark, 2 Raven, 1 Kestrel, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Starlings, 13 Greylags Geese, 59 Canada Geese, 28 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Common Tern, 2 Whitethroats, 3 Chiffchaffs, 2 Buzzards, 1 Little Egret, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Nuthatch. 4 Small Heath.
Lagoon:- Female Tufted Duck + 3 well-grown young, 2adult + 2 juv Moorhens, 6 Mallard.
West End:- 1 Redshank, 1 Green Sandpiper, 1 Common Sandpiper, 20 Lapwings, 2 Little Egrets, 58+ 4 juv Great Crested Grebes, 1 Herring Gull, 6 Mandarin.
Whillet’s:- 1 SIVER SPOTTED SKIPPER, 1+ Clouded Yellow, 3 Brown Argus, 27 Common Blues.

Dam End:- 1 Greenshank, 2 Common Sandpiper, 5 Lapwing, 2 Little Egret, 2 Mute Swan, 13 Greylag, 56 Canada Geese including 6 juv Canada/Greylag hybrids, 38 Mallard, 1 Kestrel, 1 Moorhen, 135 Black-headed Gull, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 3+1j Herring Gull,  1 Common Tern, 2 Kingfisher,  1 Sand Martin, 15 Swallow, 20+ House Martin, 3 Grey Wagtail, 2 Pied Wagtail, 2 Whitethroat, 12 Rook.
On Lagoon:- 2 + 2j Moorhen, 1+3j Tufted Duck, 6 Mallard.
West End:- 1 Redshank, 1 Green Sandpiper, 75+4y Great Crested Grebe, 1 Little Egret, 13 Grey Heron, 2 Mandarin, 15 Lapwing, 1 Stock Dove.
Whillets:-  Butterfly survey – A new species for the meadows was seen today – 1 Silver Spotted Skipper (see pic), 1 Clouded Yellow, 1 Red Admiral, 13 Meadow Brown, 1 Speckled Wood, 1 Large skipper, 7 Small Skipper, 27 Common Blue, 3 Brown Argus, 6 Small Copper, 4 Small Heath (see pic), 1 Ringlet, 25 Gatekeeper, 6 Green-veined White also 1 Silver Y moth and 2 Shaded Broad-bar moths.
Insects:- 2 Hornets, also a Vollucella zonaria hoverfly – the largest UK hoverfly and a Hornet mimic that lays its eggs in wasp and hornets nests on their larvae (see photo), 1 Coreus marginatus – Dock Squash-bug.
Damselflies – 2 Emerald, 5 pairs of Azure egg laying, 1 White-legged.
Dragonflies – 1 Southern Hawker, 2 Brown Hawker, 6 Common Darter.

Dam End:- 6 Black-tailed Godwits flew W to E and over Dam early morning, 1 Green Sandpiper, 2 Common Sandpiper, 150 Black-headed Gulls, 5 Herring Gulls, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 30 Swallows, 10 House Martins, 1 Kingfisher.

Dam End:- 17 Pied Wagtails, 1 Common Sandpiper, 16 Herring Gulls, 2 Common Terns.
West End:- 1 Little Egret, 19 Lapwings, 1 Common Tern.
Whillet’s:- 1 Kingfisher, 1 Kestrel, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Garden Warbler, 7 Whitethroats, 3 Brown Hawkers, 1 Southern Hawker, 1 Common Darter, 4 Brown Argus, 24 Common Blues, 1 Silver-washed Fritillary.

West End from hide:-  1 Black-tailed Godwit with 21 Lapwings on North bank opposite the viewing area. Also 2 Little Egrets and Great Crested Grebe pair with 4 young out on the water. 3 Common Terns still around the rafts.

Early morning – 4 Little Egrets, 3 Common Sandpiper, 2 Black-tailed Godwits flew south, 5 Jays, 3 Common Terns, 50 Sand Martins, 2 Swifts, 16 Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

West End:- Amongst a group of 6 normally-plumaged Swallows was a leucistic Swallow which had all-white wings and body to top side and only had the usual black plumage markings around its head and underside.  Also 10 Mandarin Duck one with a late breeding young chick out on the water.
15 Lapwing, 1 House Martin, 4 Common Terns, 30 Black-headed Gull, 44 Great Crested Grebe plus 2 young, 2 Little Egret. Tapping noises heard at one of the nest boxes confirmed a Stock Dove chick.
Whillet’s:- A work party Grass Snake survey recorded a good count of 11. A Butterfly transect survey included a fresh Small Tortoiseshell; our first of the early Autumn since seeing adults and caterpillars back in late spring. A butterfly count gave good numbers of both Gatekeepers and Common Blues. Plus a couple of meadow moths – Blood Vein and Shaded Broad-bar; also some Cinnabar moth caterpillars.
Reed Warbler singing and some late-flowering Orange Foxtail grass at the Reed bed.

West End:- Water Rail, Greenshank, Little Grebe, Marsh Tit, several Bullfinches,4 Little Egrets.

A very late Dingy Skipper in Meadow 2, amazing count of 25 Common Blues and 5 Brown Argus.