One whoop-whooper...and more...

0630 - 0940 clear, quite cool, cloud forming NW f2 occasionally 3

WeBS again.  November already....and waiting for the elusive bird that shall not be named...begins with W....no...not Whooper Swan....that's already here....and one of the juveniles was still present today...which I was hoping for so I could get it on the WeBS count....

As forecast the weather was nice...a bit cool, but nothing unexpected.  Thankfully the rain from yesterday had gone....

...after the rain the 'puddles' area near the quarry has flooded already...

.....a good area to see Mandarin Duck and Grey Wagtail over the winter period....

Three Oaks...two well under way with autumn...

...the third....reluctant....

Now that the access via the gate by the road is unusable....constant moaning by a local has seen to this....so now its via the footpath around 300m further along the road, which is a bit tedious as birding the driveway in could be rewarding and also allowed views across some fields....now via the footpath this means doubling back to do this....anyway, onward....

So...what was around today...on the water...

19 Mallard, 19 Wigeon, 5 Little Grebe, 4 Great Crested Grebe,  5 Cormorant, 20 Tufted Duck, 1 Pochard, 2 Teal, 233 Coot, 6 Moorhen, 3 Grey Heron, 1 Mandarin Duck, 59 Gadwall, 6 Shoveler, 2 Herring Gull, 91 Black-headed Gull, 1 Common Gull, 1 Snipe, 11 Canada Geese, 36 Mute Swan....

...the water highlights....

....1 Whooper Swan, 1 Kingfisher, 2 Goosander, 2 Water Rail...

Goosander...or Common Merganser...Mergus merganser, male and female

This is the second record for Goosander.......and the number of Mute Swans, 36, is the highest I have seen at the pits at any time....

Meantime, on land....

Goldcrest, Woodpigeon, Fieldfare, Buzzard, Robin, Blackbird, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Magpie, Kestrel, Wren, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, 2 Chiffchaff, Blue Tit, Jackdaw, Great Tit, Stock Dove, Bullfinch, Starling, Crow, Cettis Warbler, Green Woodpecker, Redwing....

Redwing, Turdus iliacus

...Jay, Skylark, Reed Bunting, 25+ Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Long-tailed Tit, Feral Pigeon.

This is the largest number of Meadow Pipits I have seen at the pits....last winter there was a group of about 10 or so hanging around the quarry area...

...and whats going on with Cettis Warbler....the second record for the site for me....it sang just once, very much like last time...just the once.  I'm amazed there isn't a breeding and over wintering population here as its quite ideal.....lots of scrub/Willow around the water with plenty of reed fringe...