To add a sighting, simply leave a reply below. Enter the details of your sighting and upload an image or video clip if possible. You will need to be registered and logged-in to post updates or leave replies.
NB: Maximum size for video clips is 30Mb…
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.
Lots of passerines foraging along the coastal escarpment between Whiteshell Point (Caswell) and Tutt Head (Langland) early morning. Mainly stonechats, dunnocks, goldfinches, meadow and rock pipits, but nice to see a Dartford warbler.
Mixed flock of c50 Thrushes predominantly Mistle thrush feeding on Yew south end of St Davids churchyard Penllergaer. Very active.
A couple of times last week at Castell Du I had brief views of a buzzard with a white tail and a single well defined narrow tail band, there was also some faint light barring near the base of the tail. I’ve never seen a Common Buzzard with such a striking tail pattern. It was always seen from the rear as it slipped away. From the views I had there was nothing else about it to suggest anything other than a Common Buzzard. An interesting bird none the less.
A report from yesterday of 6-7 Cirl Buntings at Oxwich Burrows, seen well by Mark Shepherd & Richard Evans. The birds were watched for around 30 minutes feeding on the ground, occasionally flying into the isolated conifer at SS51378771. This is quite a remarkable record! A brief search this evening in strong winds failed to relocate the birds, but the weather is improving in the next day or two, so chances of relocating the birds should be much greater. It would be lovely if this record could be documented with some photographs.
Surprised to see a single lapwing on Ashley Rd playing fields this lunchtime with oystercatchers, a curlew and a good selection of gulls… interspersed with lots of wood pigeons
Per Rob Taylor: great northern and red-throated divers in Oxwich Bay today. Sheltering from westerly wind.
Around 12.15 today met a chough beside the coast path between Limeslade and Rotherslade. It was standing on the reshaped bank just uphill from the path and seemed to be pecking at ground and stubs of gorse.Didnt think much of it because it was blowing half a gale, and we thought if we had trouble keeping on our feet it might too. We’d never seen a chough before but were struck by curved beak and bright red legs. Only on getting home did it occur to us that the bird might have been in more serious trouble, perhaps something snagged… Read more »
Pecking at the ground is pretty normal chough feeding behaviour I would say…
Hi Greg. Further to Alun’s comment, there are good numbers of chough in Gower throughout the year. Certainly 15-20+ during the breeding season, with a bit of an influx in autumn taking us up to maybe double that number. They mainly forage on short coastal grassland on the cliffs, probing for invertebrates, but can also be seen on the golf course at Langland and on (mainly) coastal pasture fields (such as those east of Hunts Farm / inland of Pwll Du Head) on occasion. So your sighting is happily not an uncommon one, and it sounds like they were behaving… Read more »
Blackpill around high tide today: oystercatchers, dunlin (c10), little egrets (6), curlews (c6), gbb gulls, herring gulls, med gulls, bh gulls, 5 great crested grebes offshore
Mumbles Pier: 66 dunlin and 20 turnstone.
No kitts on the ledges.
This afternoon.
Broughton Bay. Two RT Divers. I then walked through to Burry Holms. No sign of any rafts of scoter in the bay but on the way back there was a Ring Ouzel on the cliffeside near Three Chimneys. It showed a noticeable crescent so probably was a 1st winter male.
Dalton’s Point. Oystercatcher 781, Redshank 72, Black-tailed Godwit 147, Pintail 43, Teal 101.
This morning on the rising tide.
Bwlchymynydd, north of the Loughor Bridge.
Few waders but 77 Knot were a surprise.
South of the Loughor Bridge.
Oystercatcher 372, Curlew 7, Bar-tailed Godwit 11, Wigeon 1, Black-tailed Godwit 4.
Castell Du.
Canada Goose 13, Curlew 2, Wigeon 166, Common Sandpiper 2, Little Grebe 2, Green Sandpiper 2, Grey Wagtail 1, Red Kite 1.
Bwlchymynydd, north of the Loughor Bridge this afternoon. Again a good selection of shorebirds and wildfowl, although less small waders today.
Mallard 119, Little Egret 32, Teal 94, Oystercatcher 3, Black-tailed Godwit 564, Pintail 34, Redshank 61, Knot 25, Dunlin 5, Shelduck 18, Lapwing 15, Ruff 1, Greenshank 1.
Small groups of Redwings flying into and over Clyne Woods, Swansea, this morning, before the rains came. Heard a few migrating overhead at night, but these are the first I’ve seen here this year.
This afternoon.
Port Eynon.
Med Gull 37, Ringed Plover 14, Turnstone 2, Gannet 22, Razorbill 3, Guillemot 5, Kittiwake 5, one, unusually, still in full juvenile plumage, Common Scoter 1. All passage down channel.
Dalton’s Point.
Spoonbill 1 imm still feeding in the pill.
There were still juvenile kittiwakes on Mumbles pier Ledges up until 2 weeks ago..
Alun, thanks for this. In my experience Kitts by this time of year the collar is normally fading and the carpal bar has grey admixed. This particular bird had a complete black collar with no fading and an all black carpal bar and looked like a pristine juv which, from my Kent perspective, was quite unusual but maybe not on the west coast near the breeding grounds.
This afternoon.
Llanrhidian Marsh. GW Egret 4, Lapwing 95.
Panclawdd. Redshank 36, Snipe 1.
Dalton’s Point. Spoonbill, 2 imm feeding in the pill, Pintail 61, Wigeon 18.
Reports today of an albino house sparrow with the main flock on East Gate , Southgate (Pennard)
Hi, we saw it back in August – please see attached pic. Julian Myers
Excellent . Thanks for that.. I’m amazed it’s lived this long .
4 Fieldfare in ash tree at Manselfield/ Murton Lane
13 Collared Doves and 9 Goldfinch perched in the Silver Birch outside my bungalow until they exploded into flight as a male Sparrowhawk made a unsuccesful attack and continued through the graveyard of St Davids church Penllergaer. A few Song and Mistle Thrush also around the church area.
Castell Du this morning. Little Egret 6, Green Sandpiper 1, Common Sandpiper 1, Greenshank 1, Lapwing 7, LBB Gull 38, HG 45, GBB Gull 1, Teal 2, Wigeon 157, Common Gull 10, Curlew 2, Stonechat 1 pair and the surprise bird of the day, drifting down river, Kittiwake 1 1st winter. This afternoon. Bracelet Bay. Med Gull 101 equally split between the rocks and feeding off Tutt Head, including cr’d red PHAN, Razorbill 1, Guillemot 1. Swansea Bay from the “Apple” car park. Mute Swan 1 imm off the pier, GC Grebe 4, Common Scoter 5 (3 drakes), Oystercatcher 491… Read more »
Friday 22nd juvenile Dartford Warbler between Rotherslade and Limeslade about 4.00pm. Good views perching on top of the gorse. Accompanied by a male stonechat.
This afternoon.
Bwlchymynydd, north of the Loughor Bridge. Shelduck 22, Little Egret 15, Black-tailed Godwit 385, Dunlin 134, Curlew Sandpiper 1 juv, Redshank 20, Knot 2, Oystercatcher 14, Curlew 6, Lapwing 51, Bar-tailed Godwit 1.
Probably the largest number and variety of waders I’ve seen here.
South of the Loughor Bridge. Knot 9, Black-tailed Godwit 20, Bar-tailed Godwit 7 Curlew 27.
Out of county at the WWT Ruff 1, Garganey 1.
Brambling at the Oxwich feeding station this morning.
20+ snipe in a relatively discrete area of the marsh, suggesting there are now large numbers in.
Red kite at Nicholaston
October 23, 2021 5:27 pm
Mixed flock of Redwing, Song Thrush and Mistle Thrush in St Davids church graveyard area. Difficult to count because of constantly coming and going. Also male Sparrow Hawk in the area which didnt help.
Reply
St David’s, Penllergaer…
Mixed flock of Redwing, Song Thrush and Mistle Thrush in St Davids church graveyard area. Difficult to count because of constantly coming and going. Also male Sparrow Hawk in the area which didnt help.