Winchester Birding: 8/8/13

Thursday 8 August 2013

8/8/13

There were 5 Spotted Flys on St. Cats this morning, a sign of the coming migration. Redstarts, Winchats, Wheatear and other scarcer migrants cant be far behind!

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Patch

My patch consists of many different habitats.

Here is a list of some of the habitats and regular birds I see there.

Winnal moor - A semi large area of reeedbed, Cettis warbler are found there throughout the year. A small wintering population can also be seen. Siskins are sporadic winter visitors to the alders close by. Reed and sedge warblers are common birds here in the summer. Blackcap, whitethroat, chiffchaf and willow warblers are also found here.

Crab wood - A pristine well kept ancient woodland. Marsh tits are common here. Treecreepers and Great spotted woodpecker are common birds here also. Lesser spotted woodpeckers were once breeders but are no longer found here.

St.Catherines hill - Chalk downland. Yellowhammers breed in summer. Lesser whitehroat are occasional visors to what is known as the dongas on the hill.Willow warbler breeds here.It gets exciting in Autumn when many Autumn migs can be found in scrubs. Common Redstart, Winchat, Wheatear, Spotted flycatcher, ( also a spring mig), and some other scarcer birds.

Winchester Sewage farm - The place where I get the largest number of bird species and it produces the rarest. It is a closed reservoir which I view from the side. There is often mud around the edges. Teal, Shoveler and Snipe are common winter visitors. Lapwing are found throughout the year but large flocks ( c. 500) form in winter. Passage is good for waders getting Little ringed plover, Green and Common Sandpipers. Rarer passage waders include Black tailed Godwhit and Greenshank. A large gull flock can be found in winter containing Common, Hering, Lesser Black Backed, Black headed and sometimes Great black backed gull. This attracts a normally yearly Iceland gull. Goosander is a scarce visitor here in winter months. A Barn Owl can be seen hunting in the meadows above the SF in late winter evenings. Spring can get passage Sand Martin as well as Lesser Whitethroat. House Martins and Swallows are common throughout the summer. Whitethroats breed on the fence by the SF. Shelduck are rare breeders.

Farmland - Meadow pipits breed here, along with Skylarks. Red-legged Partridges are found here also. Woodcocks winter in dense but small woodland by Farmland.

East part of patch - Firecrest breed here, as well as not confirmed Spotted flycatcher.

Water Meadows - Little egrets winter here, Kingfishers breed here and Grey Wagtails also.

Winchester area I watch

Thursday 8 August 2013

8/8/13

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