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Sightings archive

March 2016 sightings

  • In bold type are sightings that are uncommon either by rarity, date or number seen.
  • Click on photos for a larger version.

Thursday 31st March
Lea Farm GP – 2 Reed Bunting, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 2 Greylag Geese (L Garner-Langham)
Lavell’s Lake – 3 Chiffchaff between the hides (L Garner-Langham)
Black Swan Lake – 2 Blackcap, 2 Herring Gull (L Garner-Langham)

Wednesday 30th March
Lavell’s LakeWillow Warbler 3 in car park field, 1 near John’s bench (Brian Bennett, FJC & T A Guyatt), many Chiffchaff, 1 Swallow over
Black Swan Lake – Willow Warbler singing 50 yards south of activity centre (Brian Bennett)

Tuesday 29th March
Lavell’s Lake – Raven over car park field, then low back East (FJC, Bob Bennett & G Emmett); 7+ Meadow Pipit over North, 2 Blackcap (T A Guyatt & Bob Bennett); 2 Chiffchaff singing (P Scudamore)
Black Swan Lake – Swallow over activity centre (FJC & Bob Bennett)

Monday 28th March
Lea Farm GP – 6 Teal, Meadow Pipit, 6 Skylark, 9 Herring Gull, 12 Wigeon, pair Mandarin Duck flew towards DP (FJC)
Lavell’s Lake
Kingfisher (M Youngman) photo here
Black Swan Lake
Swallow, 3 Sand Martin (FJC)
Sandford Lake
2 Oystercatcher (FJC)

Sunday 27th March
Lavell’s LakeBlackcap singing by Jerry’s bench (Brian Bennett)

Saturday 26th March
Lea Farm GP2 Sand Martin, 2 Skylark, 1 Redshank (FJC); 2 Oystercatcher, 2 Little Egret, Swallow (M Walford)
Lavell’s Lake – Snipe, 5 pairs Shoveler (A Rymer)
Black Swan Lake – Swallow, 10, then 16 Sand Martin (S Day, FJC, Brian Bennett & T Guyatt); further single Swallows over later (T Guyatt & M Walford)

Friday 25th March
Lea Farm GP – Merlin circling landfill then off fast NNE (FJC & M Walford); 2 Egyptian Geese, 6 Greylag Geese, 2 Nuthatch (R Marsh); 2 Lapwing, Green Woodpecker, 2 Grey Wagtail (G Emmett); 2 Pied Wagtail, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, Common Gull (L Garner-Langham)
Lavell’s Lake – Water Rail (R Price); Raven over car park field (FJC); 4 Little Egret on Bittern hide scrape (A Rymer)
Sandford LakeBlackcap near Sandford hide (K Burgess)

Thursday 24th March
Lea Farm GP – 2 Nuthatch, 6 Greylag Geese (R Marsh/G Finch); 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, pair Gt Crested Grebe performing mating ritual (L Garner-Langham); Grey Wagtail, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 2 Herring Gull, 4 Common Gull (G Emmett)

Lavell’s Lake – Snipe over, Water Rail, pair Kestrel, Swallow (5th earliest on record) , 2 Mistle Thrush, Redwing, Goldcrest, Chiffchaff (R Marsh/G Finch)
Sandford Lake – 2 Oystercatcher (R Marsh)

Wednesday 23rd March
Lea Farm GP – 100 Fieldfare & Redwing together far side of landfill, 70 Wigeon, 26 Teal (FJC); Water Rail, Stock Dove, Redshank (G Emmett)
Lavell’s Lake – 2 Little Egret along Loddon opposite green bridge 06:10 then flew off downstream, pair Mandarin same spot 07:00, then flew towards Sandford Copse, 7 Snipe, 12 Teal, 5 Shoveler, 2 possibly 3 Cetti’s Warbler heard – all from Bittern hide (FJC); 2 Oystercatcher on island, seen from Bittern hide (R Price)

Tuesday 22nd March
Lea Farm GP – 2 Grey Wagtail, Snipe, Lesser Black-backed Gull (R Marsh); 2 Oystercatcher flew in from North then continued towards Lavell’s, 42 Fieldfare, 8 Buzzard, Nuthatch, 70 Wigeon, c250 Wood Pigeon flying North in groups of 20-50 (FJC); first Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly of the year (A Rymer – photo by G Emmett here); 2 Water Rail – 1 chased other out of reeds (P Scudamore)
Lavell’s Lake – Snipe, m. Bullfinch, Little Grebe, 3 Greylag Geese over, Water Rail, 4 Redwing, Goldcrest 2m. & 1f. Shoveler, f. Pochard (R Marsh); Chiffchaff singing to East of car park, 12+ Meadow Pipit over North, in 1’s & 2’s very late morning (FJC)
Sandford Lake – 2 Oystercatcher, 2 Herring Gull, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, Greylag Goose, Common Gull (L Garner-Langham)

Monday 21st March
Lea Farm GPMediterranean Gull in summer plumage briefly on island (G Emmett)

med gull lfgp 21-3-16
Mediterranean Gull, G Emmett

Saturday 19th March
Lea Farm GP – Pair Mandarin inspecting new box behind Sand Martin wall, Little Egret (FJC)
Lavell’s Lake – 2 m. Bullfinch, 3 Snipe, Mistle Thrush (FJC)
Black Swan Lake – Chiffchaff in hedgerow between BSL & WSL (Brian Bennett)
Sandford Lake – 2 Oystercatcher, Pochard (FJC)

Mandarin-Pair-19-3-16-LFGP
Mandarin pair, FJC

Friday 18th March
Lea Farm GP – 5 Oystercatcher, 2 Redshank, pair Mandarin off the Loddon and seen circling lake several times, 35+ Fieldfare on landfill, 4th year Yellow-legged Gull dropped into SW corner for just 2 minutes then flew off (FJC & Brian Bennett)
Lavell’s Lake – Kingfisher past Bittern hide, Mistle Thrush in car park (L Garner-Langham)
Black Swan Lake – Oystercatcher on island (L Garner-Langham)

Redshank-18-3-16-LFGP
Redshank, FJ Cottington

Yellow-leg-Gull-18-3-16-LFG
Yellow-legged Gull, FJ Cottington

Wednesday 16th March
Golf Course – Female Stonechat on weeds and wooden bridge over ditch near activity centre briefly as flushed by dog walker (FJC)

stonechat-16-3-16-golf-cour
Stonechat, FJ Cottington

Tuesday 15th March
Lea Farm GP – Green Sandpiper briefly in front of hide (A Rymer); Water Rail, Little Egret, Snipe, Nuthatch, 2 Long-tailed Tit, 2 Greylag Geese (R Marsh)
Lavell’s Lake – Water Rail, 3 male Bullfinch (R Marsh); Snipe (R Righelato)
Black Swan Lake – 2 Oystercatcher, c2,700 Black-headed Gull (R Righelato); Dunlin in winter plumage, Common Gull (R Marsh et al)
Sandford Lake – 2 Greylag Geese, 4 Herring Gull (R Marsh)

dunlin-bsl
Dunlin @ BSL, R Marsh

green-sand
Green Sandpiper, R Marsh

Sunday 13th March
Lea Farm GP – Green Sandpiper in southwest corner (FJC); 2 Water Rail, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Little Egret, pair Reed Bunting, Nuthatch, 52 Wigeon (S Day); 2 Oystercatcher (G Emmett)
Black Swan Lake – 3 Oystercatcher over > Lavell’s (T Guyatt)

Saturday 12th March
Lea Farm GP – 2 Shelduck, Water Rail, Green Woodpecker (L Garner-Langham)
Lavell’s Lake – Chiffchaff from Teal hide (S Day)
Sandford Lake – 2 Greylag Geese (L Garner-Langham)

Friday 11th March
Lea Farm GP – Water Rail (J Welford); Curlew flew south over landfill at 11.50, calling (Brian Bennett); 2 Skylark (G Emmett)
Lavell’s Lake – 2 Snipe, Water Rail (R Marsh)
Sandford Lake – 2 Bullfinch (R Marsh); 43 Pochard (FJC)

Wednesday 9th March
Lea Farm GP – Water Rail, 4 Greylag Geese, 67 Wigeon, 3 Common Gull (G Emmett)
Lavell’s Lake – 10+ Redwing in car park field (FJC)
Landfill – Sparrowhawk, Great Black-backed Gull, Skylark, c27 Golden Plover seen far off to north & flying east (FJC)

Tuesday 8th March
Lea Farm GP – Water Rail, 4 Lesser Black-backed Gull, m. Goldeneye, Common Gull (G Emmett)

Monday 7th March
Lea Farm GP – Water Rail (L Garner-Langham)
Lavell’s Lake – 5 Snipe (L Garner-Langham)
Sandford Lake – 4 Goldcrest (L Garner-Langham)

Sunday 6th March
Lea Farm GPPeregrine flew in from east, flushed everything, then carried on west, 2 Water Rail, Little Egret, 2 Raven, Lesser Redpoll on other side of Loddon from hide (M Walford)

Saturday 5th March
Lea Farm GP – Lesser Black-backed Gull, Water Rail, Pied Wagtail, 30 Goldfinch in trees across river from hide, 2 Nuthatch (L Garner-Langham)
Lavell’s Lake – Sparrowhawk over, 9 Snipe, Water Rail at Bittern hide, pair Bullfinch & Mistle Thrush in car park field (R Marsh)
Sandford Lake – 2 Common Gull (L Garner-Langham)

Thursday 3rd March
Lea Farm GP – 2m. & 1f. Reed Bunting, Nuthatch (L Garner-Langham); Snipe, Green Woodpecker, 3 Lesser Black-backed Gull (D Hampton & R Marsh);
Lavell’s Lake – 13 Snipe, pair Bullfinch, Grey Heron eating a frog at Teal hide (D Hampton & R Marsh); Great Spotted Woodpecker, Little Grebe (L Garner-Langham)
Black Swan Lake – 2 Oystercatcher on island, 2 Goldcrest (L Garner-Langham)
White Swan Lake – Common Gull (L Garner-Langham)
Sandford Lake – Oystercatcher, Song Thrush (R Marsh)
Landfill – 3 Greylag Geese over, Little Grebe on balancing pool, Little Owl in nest hole (D Hampton & R Marsh)
Mortimer’s Meadow – 50+ Fieldfare, 6+ Redwing (R Marsh)

grey-heron-frog
Grey Heron eating frog, D Hampton

common-gull-wsl-3-3-16
Common Gull, L Garner-Langham

oystercatchers-bsl-3-3-16
Oystercatchers, L Garner-Langham

Tuesday 1st March
Lea Farm GP – Lesser Black-backed Gull (L Garner-Langham)
Lavell’s Lake – 5 Snipe, m. Bullfinch (L Garner-Langham)