gryllosblog   Gryllo's (aka Ian Lewis') blog. All things to do with travel, wildlife especially birds, history, architecture and anything else that interests me.

In the afternoon of the 1st we attempted to ring some Pied Wagtails at Lytchett Bay.  Now that the clocks have gone back we have start setting up at 3pm and this means its difficult to get people to help midweek. As a result it was just Kevin and I setting up, although Bob was able to help with the ringing after dark, and I found transporting all the gear through the thick mud of the net ride to be physically demanding.

We succeeded in catching 57 Pied Wags and 6 Reed Buntings which were ringed later in Bob’s garage.

Ageing and sexing Pied Wagtails can be tricky. The lack of contrast in the greater coverts and the very dark primaries indicate this is an adult and the uniform grey mantle shows it is a female.

After the birds were extracted the nets were furled. Shaun and I returned at dawn on the 2nd but the weather was much windier than expected and the tide was very high, flooding the already wet and muddy net ride. We soon decided the attempt had to be abandoned.

Under these circumstances we had no alternative than to take down.

I went home to clean up, but Lytchett stalwart Shaun continued birding, and I not long after I got back I received a text to say that he found a first year Kittiwake, a very rare bird at Lytchett. I quickly returned, this time to the Border Road area just in time to see an Egyptian Goose fly overhead, Shaun had just seen a party of three go over and I had caught a brief view of one of them.

Egyptian Goose: photo from the internet.

Later the Kittiwake was relocated on the far side of the Bay.

Photography was difficult as it always faced into the wind.

But thanks to Shaun, I got two Lytchett Bay ticks in the same morning.

I returned to the Border Road side of the Bay on the morning of the 3rd. Nothing unusual was found but their were over 100 Oystercatchers feeding on Turlin Moor playing field, a Marsh Harrier was seen distantly, 3 Little and 2 Great Crested Grebes were in the Bay and there was a large concentration of Mute Swans in the NW corner.

Mute Swans at the Bay

Oystercatchers at Turlin Moor.

Constantly disturbed by dog walkers, the Oystercatchers couldn't settle for long until the tide dropped.