A very brief morning only visit. I first headed to the Inchmery side to see if there were any large gulls around high tide, there were just a few Herring Gulls.
Herring Gulls in late winter often look pristine and white-headed like Yellow-legged Gulls but the paler mantle shade of Herring Gull is usually straightforward to judge. If in doubt the orbital eye ring of Yellow-legged Gull is red and the red spot on the lower mandible bleeds into the upper mandible. The primary pattern in flight is also diagnostic.
I did get slightly closer views than normal of at least five Bar-tailed Godwit. and there were now 17 Spoonbill out on the saltmarsh.
I then headed to Park Lane to look for an unusual pair of Greylags with Bean Geese-like bill patterns seen by Philip F on Tuesday. Unfortunately no sign today, just the standard Greylags.
The two Cattle Egrets were still present around Park Farm.
Back at Needs Ore on the sea a single male Eider drifted on the tide. The only other birds on the water were six Great Crested Grebes.
On Wigeon Fields 43 Black-tailed Godwit fed with the Curlew and the five Pochard on Venner were newly arrived. A female Wigeon with a partially leucistic head pattern was on Venner, this is the second time I’ve noticed her here and I also saw the same or a similar bird on Warren Saltmarsh last week.
Highlight of the day was the wintering Spotted Redshank showing nicely (apart from the barbed wire) in the small bay on the right hand side of De L’Orne Lagoon.
Patch Birding 