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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.
Had great views of an osprey circling low over Pennard Golf course and subsequently over the Valley this afternoon.. was around us for a good 5 minutes before being hounded away by the local jackdaw flock.. it gained height and drifted off towards Oxwich..
First for me in South Gower..
c30 Mediterranean Gulls in Bracelet Bay today.
On the moorland above the Upper Lliw Reservoir yesterday a female merlin actively hunting (caught a meadow pipit following a short chase), a female / first winter kestrel foraging for long periods, approximately 400 golden plover and good passage of thrushes, skylarks and meadow pipit.
Three yellow browed warblers at Oxwich last weekend. See ringing blog: https://www.gowerbirds.org.uk/oxwich-marsh-11-october-a-trio-of-sprites/
My two penn’orth – Derek’s very pleasing shot is of a meadow pipit with that pied wagtail.
here’s yesterday’s juv Goshawk and a nice Chiffie.
Love the goshawk.. great capture
Margam Park with Phil Routliff – Canada Goose 5,Mallard 28,Water Rail,Moorhen 6,Pied Wagtail 22, Grey Wagtail 2,Meadow Pipit 13, Snipe 3,Stock Doves 5,Mistle Thrushes 30+, Chiffchaff,Goldfinches 16+,Rooks 28+, Raven 3 and last but not least 6 Swallows heading south-east.
Whitford Point this morning. A pied wagtail and what is the other bird please?…pipit, skylark?
Meadow pipit
Thanks, Alun.
At 0805 today there were twelve magpies on my back lawn. I think flocking amongst magpies peaks in November.
Mumbles Head 13th October, 8 to 10 Chiffchaff, first signs of migration apart from Swallows for about 1 week. Juvenile Goshawk passing towards Oystermouth along clifftop. Will post picture here, or failing this on goweros/blogspot, tomorrow when I’ve got the computer on.
Rock pipit, 6 pintail, immature great-crested grebe, and a common gull at the pull-in at the end of Greenacres Rd, Penclawdd this afternoon.
A quick look at fenrod lake in the rain had 4female goosander 21 mute swan 20+ tufteds 30+ black h gulls and 5 cormorants
Yesterday a sparrowhawk flying south-west across our garden as I sat out (with binoculars) having a coffee. This morning at 10.00 through an east-facing window without my specs: flock of thrushes flying west, probably redwings. 10.15 as I finished filling the feeders, a woodpigeon flew low over my head, its wingbeat far faster and more violent than normal. A sparrowhawk (again without my specs) was flying south-east behind the pigeon and not apparently hunting.
Fieldfare on neighbour’s roof West Cross this morning
Couple of photos of the long tailed tits moving west over the Neath Rivermouth heading for Swansea bay
At Brunel Dock and Neath river mouth yesterday the 11th. 69 Curlew, 1 Dunlin, 2 Grey Plover, 4 Bart tailed Godwit was the best selection of waders on recent visits. Also a Gadwall on the 10th, 5 Wheatear on the 9th. A 1st winter Med Gull 4th oct with a adult Herring x LBB with still begging young bird too. 14 Wigeon and 6 Teal on the 2nd. Variable numbers of Skylarks in the dunes with the highest been 89 on 1st Oct had dropped to 50 on the 2nd . 7 Rock pipits also on the 1st with just… Read more »
At mewslade 8.10 am to 9.20 ,, 1 YB warbler in the valley . Only called 4-5 times over several minutes… wasn’t overly showy . Light passage with mainly chaffinch (30+) , skylark (25+), 15+ goldfinch , 10-15 meadow pipit, a couple of grey wagtail and reed bunting . 6 blackbird,4 song thrush , 6 dunnock and robin , only 2 gold crest . 4 greenfinch, 2 bullfinch . 23 collared dove at Middleton farm
At Whiteford Point with incoming tide, 25 male Eider and 12 female, good numbers of Brent Geese, flocks of Dunlin and Knot. 4 Little Egret, GC Grebe, Oystercatchers too many to count: several thousand, I’d say and a Great Spotted Woodpecker being chased, unsuccessfully, by a Peregrine.
4 little egrets fishing off Oystermouth Square. New patch record for me… Amazing to think this bird hasn’t been resident in the country that long.. now seemingly more common than grey herons..
Yellow browed warbler caught this morning by Oxwich Ringing group…
A few good birds at the end of Greenacres Rd, Penclawdd (the pull-in viewing the marsh and the River Loughor) yesterday and this morning. 5 spoonbill, 200 teal, 100 wigeon, 30 shelduck, 50 pintail, and a peregrine falcon.
A few good birds at the Promenade pull-in yesterday and this morning. 5 spoonbill, 200 teal, 100 wigeon, 30 shelduck, 50 pintail, and a peregrine falcon.
I don’t know if this is a stonechat, a common redstart or what? Salthouse Point, Crofty yesterday.
edit: sorry, photos haven’t uploaded and can’t see where to add them
2 small flocks of skylarks over Pennard GC this afternoon.. looked like in off the sea.. moving inland towards Bishopston…
In my garden in Briton ferry 32 house sparrows lots of juvs amongst them also 35 starlings on my roof and in garden nice to they have had a good breeding season