August 2018

Sorry for the complete lack of posts, I am slowly catching up! This months highlights are below:

1^st (John): 3 Common Terns – two juveniles and a few Yellow Wagtails (and the Mandarin)

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

4th (Colin): 1600-1730. 1 adult and 2 juvenile Common Terns, 1 Common Sandpiper, and a couple of  groups of Swifts passing through

6^th (John and Mark): juvenile Willow Warbler, Common Sandpiper and the Mandarin

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

7^th (Mike): 3 pairs of Little Grebe with juveniles at the Borrow Pit (UCV)

8^th (John): 4 Willow Warblers

9^th (John): Yellow-legged Gull, Common Sandpiper, Mandarin and Willow Warbler

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

10^th (John): Yellow-legged Gull that was looking very sickly and was found dead the following Monday

14^th (Steve): Common Sandpiper

19th (Colin): 0830-1000. Grimsbury Res: 1 Common Sandpiper, c20 Mallard, c10 Pied Wagtail, 2 Grey Wagtail, 2 Heron, 6 Greenfinch, 2 Linnet, 1 Green Woodpecker

Upper Cherwell/Borrow Pit: 1 Willow Warbler singing, 10 Little Grebe, 6 Tufted Duck, 3 Mute Swan. Corpse of mute swan with BTO ring no W44423 – it was ringed as a juvenile in Goring on 25^th July 2017.

19th (Colin): 1800-1850. 1 ad Yellow-legged Gull, 1 sub-ad Common Gull, 16 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, c200 Black-headed Gulls. All departed when the sea-cadets got busy! Many pied wagtails - min of 18, probably more, mostly juveniles much more than 1 brood from local breeding pair so probably birds on passage. Great spot and green woodpeckers heard.

20^th (John): Spotted Flycatcher, 5 Tufted Ducks, Yellow Wagtail over and a Willow Warbler

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

22^nd (John): Juvenile Shelduck

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

23^rd (John, Colin, Dan and myself): Teal, 2 Wheatear, Redstart (possibly present on 23^rd too), a Green Sandpiper over and a few hirundines moving

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

24^th (John): Whinchat, Redstart still, 3 Yellow Wagtails over

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

25^th (Kirsty): Redstart still

26^th (John, Colin and Steve): 2 Wheatear, 7 Yellow Wagtails down and c.18 over earlier, a juv Black Tern in the afternoon. More photos on Mike's blog here

Black Tern pics courtesy and copyright of Colin Wilkinson

27^th (John and Mike): a Greenshank over east

28^th (John): a Redstart still (assumed to be the same bird), Common Sand, Raven and 7 Grey Wagtails

Courtesy and copyright of JFT

29^th (John): Spotted Flycatcher, Swift, Common Sandpiper and Yellow Wagtail

30^th (John): Spotted Flycatcher, Swift (our last one?), Lesser Whitethroat and 4 Yellow Wagtails over

31^st (John): Spotted Flycatcher, Coot and 3 Yellow Wagtails over