New birds don't come along very often for me at the George hence the chase for monthly totals and year totals to add a little spice but today I walked up to the causeway counting Ducks and Grebes as is normal these days. I wasn't very hopeful of anything on the causeway as there were two vans parked on it and one of the three fishermen was walking along the causeway back to the vans so I guessed anything there would have flushed. It was cold and misty as I scoped the bank and straight away found myself looking straight at a brick red Black-tailed Godwit. I called Jim and a couple of local guys that might A) want to see it and B) let others know in the Wassap group but before I put the phone back in my pocket a police helicopter came over quite low and put up everything on the causeway. I watched the Blackwit fly high north and over the north end of the reservoir so nobody else would be seeing this rare visitor to the KGV.
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| Black tailed Godwit in the early morning mist |
It's my 141st bird for the site since I started walking it about 17 years ago.
It's also my 117th bird this year and my 81st bird this month.
The Blackwit is my 12th wader of the year up on the George but I'm still hopeful of another one or two before the years out.
Also of note today was a count of 12 Common Sandpipers, 183 Parakeets which is high as I usually see a dozen or so and again the five Mistle Thrush showed. Tufted Ducks are now somewhere between 750 and 800 birds from the 52 that started July. 56 Species seen in total today which is about right as most days If I work hard enough I get north of 50 species. Also saw my first juvenile Common Terns and enjoyed watching the adults teaching the kids how to fish with them almost dragging them out of the water at times. Nev had two juvenile Med Gulls after I left which I guess I missed as I got wrapped up checking leg rings on the juvenile Black-headed Gulls with at least four ringed birds so far all coming from a couple of miles up the road at Fishers Green.
Anyway....onwards and upwards.
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| Juvenile Black headed Gulls |
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| Some of the hundreds of Starling |
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| A Greaylag goose among the Canade Geese today |
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| Common Sandpiper |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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