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Guidelines for Reporting Rarities and Submission of Annual Records
Detailed records of nationally or locally rare species (guidance on these is
here) should be sent to the County Recorder Eddie Hunter (
goweros23@gmail.com) as soon as possible after the sighting. An appropriate description should be provided of the species, your previous experience of it (and similar species), the circumstances and weather conditions in which the sighting occurred and any other pertinent information (such as photos). He will then circulate to the local or national records committee as relevant.
Day to day observations, including of nest sites, flocks of birds and species of local interest, should be collated in the Annual Record Form and sent to Eddie as an email attachment following each calendar year. Receiving these by the end of January is ideal as an early start can then be made on compiling the annual report.
PLEASE NOTE
Please could we ask that detailed locational information that may lead to the disturbance of the nest sites of species listed under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act (1981) is omitted from any posts. This may otherwise lead to an offence being committed.
Schedule 1 species that regularly breed in the recording area are Dartford warbler, chough, honey buzzard, crossbill, goshawk, kingfisher, hobby, red kite, barn owl, peregrine, little ringed plover and Cetti’s warbler.
At Knab Rock no sign of the diver but cormorants were catching dabs so big they had difficulty swallowing them. At Bracelet at noon 21 Med Gulls and a low flying Peregrine which put up a couple of small waders on the light house island but failed to catch one before flying on round to Oystermouth.
No sign of the GND in Mumbles this morning.. only the 2 cormorants that were feeding there yesterday also .
It’s a very calm Sea so no need to be sheltering in the Lee of the pier
Great Northern Diver feeding off Knab Rock in Mumbles
13:15.. just flown off into Swansea Bay
Tutt Head. Seawatch 05:15-06:15
Common scoter (16 west), Med gull (2 cy), Manx shearwater (40 east), auk spp (4 east)
At Bracelet at 6.30pm today in sunshine and SW gale: a gannet, close inshore.
Tutt Head (05:15-06:30).
Common scoter (11 west), Manx shearwater (35 – mainly east), gannet (9), fulmar (1), auk spp (11 – including some confirmed guillemots and razorbills)
A feeding flock of 70+ House Martins low over Craig yr Aber this afternoon.
We saw a red kite above our house in Pennard today and two days ago. We’ve previously seen one in Three Crosses and towards Gowerton over the last few years, but this is the first time we’ve seen one in Pennard.
Hi Andy just posted we saw one (it?) yesterday on the cliffs at Hunts Bay – second time we’ve seen it! Ros&Chris
Tutt Head (Bracelet / Limeslade). Seawatch 05:15-06:15 with (an appropriately socially distanced) Miguel Lurgi.
Fulmar (15), Manx shearwater (21), guillemot (5 on sea), razorbill (2 on sea), cormorant (3), gannet (15+), 5 auk species.
Rock pipit and linnet present.
Pretty quiet. Most fulmars (13) moving west. Almost everything else east.
7 adults, and 1 juvenile Mediterranean Gulls in Bracelet Bay this evening.
Small party of crossbills in the pines at Langland Corner
Siskins and crossbills overhead first thing this morning (Langland).
Numbers not remarkable, but reflective of movements being recorded at visible migration watch points at present.
Seems to be a good year for scarlet tiger moth. Please do report sightings to South East Wales Biological Records Centre.
Hooded Crow. Kestrel, a pair of Buzzards and a Tree Pippet near Pwll Du Head. Nice to see Swallows and House Martins although not in their usual numbers. Monday 22nd
Langland this morning. High tide and strong wind. The Manx Shearwaters all flying at wave top height down channel.
At Bracelet Bay the stream of Shearwaters was almost constant and all flying West.
Pair of spotted flycatchers in Moorlakes Wood, Kittle / Fairwood Common. Seem likely to be breeding – which is not recorded annually on Gower.
Also dark green fritillary, marsh fritillary, and a number of yellow shell (moths) on or around the edges of the Common.
Just received some pictures of the Gower Hooded crow found by Mr Mike Bennett yesterday
Very interesting programme on bird migration yesterday IN OUR TIME. I recommend it to all our members. Download from BBC Sounds, Radio 4, In Our Time.
Hooded crow seen in a Southgate garden for the last couple of days..
For a good few weeks we have had bullfinches at our feeders, a pair. Early afternoon 18 June: male, soaking wet in rain, collecting sunflower hearts and feeding them to a juvenile waiting just above the feeders in our ornamental tree.
20+ Manx Shearwaters and 8 Gannets beyond the Mixon Buoy this evening.
Whilst insect hunting between Caswell & Brandy Cove today I hear 2 calls of Bee Eater passing directly over out of sight as usual. Not sure if it was 1 or more birds.
Limeslade this morning at 0730 six gulls, one with fine Black Head, fishing next to a seal. There must have been a shoal of fish there. Also six Swifts wheeling about over the bay.
Green woodpecker on cliffs at Pennard this afternoon. Whitethroat and stonechat in the gorse
Gannet flying across Caswell Bay towards Langland this morning. Close in to shore