Crane families all doing well and Sunday 9 June WeBS count

Crane update

Five breeding pairs nested on site this Spring with another non-breeding pair also resident and early season at least we had a few visits from young birds and pairs from off site. Four pairs hatched seven young, at the time of posting all seven are still surviving and apparently thriving. Good parenting and great habitat seems to be providing enough food for all and despite a few signs of sibling bullying, each pair with two chicks are looking well. Best place to look for Crane families are from the Kingfisher Hide looking into the Bottom New Piece hay crop (named Oakie and Sherbert plus two chicks) and from the Hogarth Hide at the South Lake (named Ruby and Wilde plus two chicks), the duck marsh is the favoured feeding area. The other two pairs (Wendy and Albert plus two chicks and ER and Phelps plus one chick) are seen from the Wild Safaris or escorted events.

Other sightings include the following.

White-spotted Bluethroat

The singing male continues to show each day and is ranging widely, it was singing from the grassy tussocks on the Dumbles on 9 June but has used much of the foreshore for it's territory. See this link for information. https://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/slimbridge/...

Top New Piece

Sand Martin among the c20 Swift, c15 House Martin and c 15 Swallow feeding over, 18 Teal, 3 drake Shoveler, 4 Lapwing, 3 Redshank, 3 Black-tailed Godwit, 17 Avocet, 3 Oystercatcher + Shelducks, Mallards and Moorhens.

South Lake

82 adult Avocet, 31 nests, one brood hatched so far but young not seen today as yet, a Carrion Crow was raiding nests at the south end, 4 Oystercatcher, 23 Black-tailed Godwit, pair of Teal, 5 drake Shoveler, drake Pochard, pair of Great Crested Grebe, at least 8 fledged Black-headed Gull.

Discovery Hide area

Singing Sedge Warbler, Song Thrush, Chiffchaff and Blackcap.

Rushy Hide/Peng Observatory

49 adult Avocet, 5 broods (1,2,3,3 and 3) and 13 still sitting on nests, 9 Black-headed Gulls nests plus a brood of two, a brood of Shelduck, c80 Gadwall.

Tack Piece

29 Barnacle and Canada x Barnacle hybrid, two Egyptian Geese and a juvenile Starling.

Estuary Tower

Brown Hare on the Dumbles.

Spinney Wood

Singing Goldcrest and Treecreeper, fledged tits including Blue, Great and Long-tailed.

Grounds/Matrix

Singing Reed and Sedge Warbler in the South American exhibit plus three Oystercatcher, Reed and Sedge Warbler singing in the Matrix, singing Goldcrest at Otter enclosure.

Dumbles foreshore and mudflats on the ebb tide

Four Ringed Plover and 15 Curlew today, yesterday 23 Ringed Plover, 4 Sanderling and 15 Dunlin with 14 Curlew and 14 Oystercatcher were in the high tide roost with 16 Great Black backed Gull and Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) for Sunday 9 June.

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