12 April 2011

It's been a very quiet spell at Westport for the last week or so, luckily for me I've missed most of it due to work commitments, although I was down yesterday I didn't bother with the blog due to a busy day and also the lack of much of note, it's a bit depressing finding nothing going on at Westport while in other parts of the City birds like, Black Redstart, Ring Ouzel, Wheatear, Sedge Warbler, Grasshopper Warbler and many others are being found, what I'd give just too have a couple of those these last few days.

Anyway today was a big change in the weather with a drop in temp to 6c from 12 yesterday, the wind has swung around to the north west and the cloud was threatening rain at times, visit from 06.15 til 08.15.

On the boating lake 2 Mute Swans were new in, Nick had found them yesterday on a brief afternoon visit, the male Shoveler was also on here and the pair of Great Crested Grebes continue to feed a couple of young, 2 Pied Wagtails were on the grass bank and a single Little Ringed Plover on the grass verge, yesterday Nick had a impressive count of 16 Great Crested Grebes on his afternoon visit, up from 11 in the morning visit, this morning just 4 were on the main lake with just 19 Tufted Duck, the resident pair of Mute Swans and the single immature male Goldeneye remains, a decent count of 11 Chiffchaffs around the park today with most being on the old sewage works and a few along the 'Avenue', a couple of Lesser Black-backed Gulls were on the main lake and later while on the old gas works another went over with 3 Black-headed Gulls which are now well down in numbers with the odd one or two being seen, 3 Swallows and a single Sand Martin were on the main lake early doors but by the end of the visit both these had jumped up in numbers with at least 20 Sand Martins going through and a dozen or so Swallows, Blackcaps numbered 9 around the park with again at least 4 along the 'Avenue' and bottom wood near boating lake, a couple of single Willow Tit's were in the nature reserve area and a Treecreeper was calling in here, just 3 Willow Warblers were heard singing this morning, a single Stock Dove was in the usual place on the old gas works and the female Pheasant was flushed by the dog on the old sewage works, yesterday 2 Greylag Geese were on the main lake and with no sign early on I thought they had gone but just as I was leaving they flew into the boating lake and as I left the bottom entrance a couple of Collared Doves flew over.