SOUTH WALES LATE MIGRANTS & WINTER WILDFOWL 28TH OCTOBER - 2ND NOVEMBER 2008

OUR SOUTH WALES LATE MIGRANTS & WINTER WILDFOWL TOUR from 28th OCTOBER – 2nd NOVEMBER 2008 produced some glorious if pretty unseasonably cold weather. DAY ONE saw a low key introduction with the highlights being a couple of female Goosander at Eglwys Nunydd Reservoir and a pair of Great Spotted Woodpecker, a Common Nuthatch and good numbers of Coal Tit at Hafod farm. DAY TWO was sunny, cold and very rewarding. The undoubted highlight was a very showy Short-eared Owl at Sker, where there were also a Little Owl, two Red-breasted Merganser, an adult Mediterranean Gull and a close in Red-throated Diver. Also very high on the list was a superb Dipper at Candleston that gave prolonged, scope filing views and other species of note today were a late Barn Swallow, a couple of hundred European Golden Plover and a pair of displaying European Sparrowhawk. On DAY THREE a bitterly cold north east wind was blowing, but we still managed some excellent birding. Three Red-billed Chough, two Goosander, a Whooper Swan, Green Woodpecker, Mediterranean Gull and Common Kingfisher were at Ogmore Estuary and Nash Point had a Peregrine and a female Merlin. Tyn-y-Caeau Farm gave us excellent view of a flock of twenty five Redwing, as well as several Yellowhammer and Reed Bunting and a Tree Sparrow was at nearby Broughton. On DAY FOUR, we headed west to South Gower on a gloriously sunny day, but birds were quite hard to come by in a stiff north east wind. Pick of the bunch was a male Dartford Warbler and other trip ticks today included Linnet, Greenfinch, Blackcap and Common Guillemot, but otherwise, it was mostly Goldcrests, Long-tailed Tits and a Common Nuthatch and Great Spotted Woodpecker of note. DAY FIVE was spent at Kenfig Pool on another fantastic sunny day. New birds for the tour were twelve Northern Shoveler, sixteen Common Teal, eleven Eurasian Wigeon, a drake Gadwall, four Bullfinch, two Common Chiffchaff and twelve Eurasian Siskin, while other notable species included six Barn Swallow, five Grey Heron, two Common Kingfisher, three Redwing and two male Blackcap. DAY SIX and our final day. An early start saw us head west again to the wilderness of the North Gower coastline on another glorious morning and the high tide wader roost produced quite a spectacle as large numbers of European Oystercatcher, Dunlin, Red Knot, Black-tailed Godwit, Grey Plover and Dark-bellied Brent Goose were seen, while small numbers of Bar-tailed Godwit, Red-breasted Merganser and Northern Pintail were present. A Eurasian Spoonbill was seen from Dalton’s Point, a Common Greenshank and two Spotted Redshank were at Penclawdd and three Peregrine, two Red Kite and a female Merlin provided the principal raptor interest to round off a very enjoyable tour that produced a total of 107 species.