Friday 26 April 2013

Local Birding 15 - 19 April 2013

Upon returning from the warmer eastern Med, it was back back to the realities of birding around Heathrow. On the 15th a morning visit to Stanwell and Staines Moors produced a few summer visitors, with Staines Moor producing a singing Grasshopper Warbler that fell silent upon trying to track down the bramble clump it was singing from, along with a single Whinchat. In the afternoon, as there appeared to be a few Ring Ouzels passing through the Central counites of the SE, with D we headed to Linkey Down, Aston Rowant NNR to check out this regular spring Ouzel passage to be rewarded by the presence of two males and the usual numerous low passes by a number of Red Kites.

On the 16th I made another visit to Stanwell and Staines Moors revealed a female Redstart on Staines Moor and a male Redstrat together with a Cuckoo at Stanwell Moor. Afterwards a quick visit to Staines Reservoir produced 32 Arctic Terns on the north basin.

On the 18th a walk around Queen Mother Resservoir was uneventful and a visit to Stoke Common afterwards was equally uneventful, though a pair of madarin flying across the common were the first I have seen at the site.

The 19th borught a repeat of the Staines/Stanwell Moor and Staines reservoir circuit which part from the Black-necked Grebe still on Staines Reservoir, there were two Redtsarts at Stanwell Moor, a male and female.

A Fox that look aparently asleep on Staines Moor, had actually died curled up.