2015 Summary

So, that’s it for 2015 – quite an unremarkable year bird-wise. Highlights were the pair of Grey Herons Ardea cinerea that bred for the first time in many years at Blagdon, the regular sightings of Great White Egrets Ardea alba which seem to be becoming established as a local breeding species, catching our first juvenile female Nathusius’ Pipistrelle Pipistrellus nathusii in August, a memorable night in September spent beside the lake photographing the lunar eclipse, and the Temminck’s Stint Calidris teminckii found by Ken Hall in October which led us all such a merry dance.


Bird List

Dates species were added to the year list:

1st January – 57 spp. Carrion Crow, Black-headed Gull, Common Coot, Great Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Common Pochard, Grey Heron, Eurasian Bullfinch, Common Moorhen, Great Crested Grebe, Eurasian Jay, Chaffinch, Blue Tit, European Goldfinch, Coal Tit, Common Goldeneye, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Common Blackbird, Eurasian Teal, European Robin, Common Woodpigeon, Song Thrush, Great Tit, Winter Wren, Dunnock (Hedge Accentor), Common Starling, Common Buzzard, Eurasian Wigeon, Common Pheasant, Canada Goose, Gadwall, Great Cormorant, Common Snipe, Northern Shoveler, Mute Swan, Black-necked Grebe, Little Grebe, Barnacle Goose, Pied Wagtail, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Eurasian Treecreeper, Long-tailed (Bush) Tit, Rook, Eurasian Magpie, Chiffchaff, Western Jackdaw, Collared Dove, Eurasian Nuthatch, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Stock Dove, Common Sandpiper, Redwing with Goldcrest and Fieldfare reported to me.

3rd January – 58 spp. Lesser Redpoll

4th January – 59 spp. Green Woodpecker

5th January – 65 spp. Egyptian Goose, House Sparrow, Peregrine Falcon, Eurasian Siskin, Northern Lapwing and Nothern Pintail.

6th January – 68 spp. Grey Wagtail, Mediterranean Gull, Common Scoter.

7th January – 69 spp. Northern Raven

9th January – 71 spp. Yellow-legged Gull, Water Rail.

10th January – 72 spp. Common Kingfisher

14th January – 73 spp. Feral Pigeon

15th January – 74 spp.Tawny Owl

17th January -76 spp. Goosander, Common Shelduck.

18th January – 77 spp. Little Egret

19th January – 78 spp. Red-crested Pochard

20th January – 80spp. Mistle Thrush, Common Kestrel.

24th January – 81 spp. Skylark

2nd February – 83 spp. Meadow Pipit, Reed Bunting.

11th February – 84 spp. Barn Owl

18th February – 85 spp. Eurasian Stonechat

3rd March – 86 spp. (Dark-bellied) Brent Goose

4th March – 88 spp. Greylag Goose, Greater Scaup.

24th March – 90 spp. Sand Martin, Blackcap.

31st March – 91 spp. Barn Swallow

5th April – 92 spp. Little Gull

7th April – 94 spp. House Martin, Osprey.

10th April – 95 spp. Great White Egret

11th April – 96 spp Green Sandpiper

12th April – 97 spp. Willow Warbler

14th April – 98 spp. European Greenfinch

16th April – 100 spp. Wood Warbler, Reed Warbler.

17th April – 101 spp. Common Swift

18th April – 102 spp. Sedge Warbler

20th April – 105 spp. Common Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Garden Warbler.

22nd April – 106 spp. Common Tern

24th April – 107 spp. Common Linnet

26th April – 108 spp. Eurasian Hobby

4th May -109 spp. Dunlin

10th May – 110 spp. Northern Wheatear

11th May – 111 spp. Ringed Plover

18th May – 112 spp. Red Kite

21st May – 113 spp. Arctic Tern

22nd May – 114 spp. Spotted Flycatcher

14th June – 115 spp. Eurasian Oystercatcher

21st June – 116 spp. Common Cuckoo

4th July – 118 spp. Black-tailed Godwit, Common Greenshank.

6th July – 119 spp. Common Redshank

12th July – 120 spp. Lesser Scaup

18th July – 121 spp. Little Ringed Plover

25th July – 122 spp. Ruddy Duck

23rd August – 124 spp. Black Tern, Ruff.

24th August – 125 spp. Whinchat

25th August – 126 spp. Litle Stint

3rd September – 127 spp. Spotted Redshank

14th September – 129 spp. Curlew Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper.

17th September – 130 spp. Garganey

18th October – 131 spp. Temminck’s Stint

26th October – 132 spp. Merlin

1st November – 133 spp. Bewick’s Swan

6th November – 135 spp. Sanderling, Eurasian Bittern.

22nd November – 136 spp. Brambling

1st December – 137 spp. Water Pipit

16th December – 138 spp. Eurasian Woodcock.

The species reported at Blagdon that I’ve missed so far are (Common Crane & Long-tailed Duck subject to acceptance by the AOG rarities committee), Little Gull, Red Kite, Spotted Redshank & Merlin. So, potentially we have had a total of 140 bird species reported at the lake in 2015.

Date species first noted singing:

1st January – European Robin (winter song), Great Tit.

2nd January – Winter Wren

7th January – Song Thrush

14th January – Common Blackbird

16th January – European Goldfinch

19th January – Great Spotted Woodpecker (drumming)

2nd February – Dunnock

15th February – Coal Tit

20th February – Reed Bunting

24th March – Blackcap

10th April – Eurasian Treecreeper

11th April – Goldcrest

12th April – Willow Warbler

16th April – Wood Warbler, Reed Warbler.

18th April – Sedge Warbler

20th April – Common Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Garden Warbler.

10th May – Water Rail