After yesterday’s high winds there was always a chance that a wind-blown seabird might turn up, particularly with so many being observed along the coast, locally. In the past, storms have brought in to the Reserve such good birds as Leach’s Petrel, Storm Petrel, Arctic Skua and Great Skua. Walking onto No.3 bed, shortly after dawn, a Hobby, which came out of trees on the south bank and flew towards the Ship Canal, was probably roosting on the bed. The regular cloud bursts over the morning served to bring down a few birds, though nothing too dramatic. Totals for the morning included: a juvenile Common Tern, 45 Swallows, 23 House Martins, 12 Sand Martins and a Little Egret. The latter was colour-ringed though, unfortunately, it wasn’t possible to make out the lettering. Waders included: 2 Ruff, 1 Little Ringed Plover and 1 Black-tailed Godwit, while the regular male Marsh Harrier also put in an appearance. Photo of the colour-ringed Little Egret Cheers David Bowman (with Keith Gallie)

It was changeable, to say the least, this morning. Cool and clear at dawn with heavy rain and thunderstorms by mid-morning, then back to sunshine by lunchtime. While the rest of us had a lazy morning in the Morgan Hide on No.3 bed, Dan stood vigil on the No.4 bed viewing platform till the rain came, before joining us in the shelter of the hide. Between us, we accrued a decent wader list, with totals of: 2 Ruff, 5 Green Sandpipers, 4 Common Sandpipers, 5 Black-tailed Godwits and 10 Snipe. On No.3 bed the viewing has been much improved by the recent work done by our wardens and volunteers, which made it easier pick out the feeding waders, so thanks to them! . The weather was conducive to some visible passage, too, with counts of 70 Swallows, 65 House Martins, 34 Sand Martins and 52 Meadow Pipits passing through, while the 4 Black-necked Grebes, 3 Marsh Harriers and 2 Pintail were nice additions to the day’s list. There were two other sightings worth noting. The first involved a little male Sparrowhawk mobbing a Marsh Harrier. While this is not uncommon behaviour, its the first time I’ve seen a Sparrowhawk actually strike the larger raptor, hitting it squarely between the shoulders. The other was of a Cormorant flying into the Oxbow around No.3 bed, carrying a large leafy branch. Cormorants have never nested at Woolston and will often start nest-building well ahead of any breeding attempt, so that’s one to keep an eye out for next year. Photo of the Ruff Cheers David Bowman (with Dan Owen, Helen Wynn, Brian Baird and David Spencer)

Photo of a Comma. Cheers David

Photo of a Painted Lady. Cheers David

Photo of a Male Marsh Harrier Cheers David

Photo of a Chiffchaff Cheers David

Autumn passage birds continue to trickle through this week, with No.3 bed producing a Little Gull on Sunday and a female Stonechat yesterday. This morning also saw a decent variety of passage birds, with two Common Sandpipers, two Black-tailed Godwits and three Black-necked Grebes on No.4 bed, while No.3 bed held a late Little Ringed Plover, five Black-tailed Godwits, a Green Sandpiper, a Hobby, a female Pintail and male Marsh Harrier. Both beds also held large numbers of Chiffchaffs, with warblers outnumbering tits in some of the feeding flocks. As the day warmed up a few dragonflies were on the wing, with counts of: one Southern Hawker, five Migrant Hawkers and eight Common Darters. Photo of a Southern Hawker Cheers David Bowman (with Dan Owen)

It was time for the Wetland Birds Survey (WeBS) this morning and we had a team of wardens covering all the accessible wetlands. It felt like autumn had really arrived, with dew-soaked vegetation and a chill in the air at dawn as we walked onto No.3 bed. As ever during WeBS counts there were plenty of ancillary sightings, with highlights of: 3 Black-necked Grebes, 3 Swifts, a Great Egret with a red colour-ring, Little Egret, Kingfisher, 5 Black-tailed Godwits, 2 Common Sandpipers, 3 Green Sandpipers, 2 Marsh Harriers, a Yellow Wagtail, 4 Siskins, 140 Swallows, 32 Sand Martins and 35 House Martins. As an aside, the work our wardens Eva and Jasmine have been doing, helped by our volunteers, has really restored the scrape in front of the Morgan Hide, making viewing much more rewarding. Plans are also afoot to create another breeding island in front of the hide, to the benefit of both birds and visitors. Photo of a Red Admiral Cheers David Bowman (with Dan Owen, Helen Wynn and Brian Baird)

It was another really pleasant morning today, cool early on before warming nicely and bringing out plenty of dragonflies and butterflies. No.4 bed produced a passing Hobby, a Ringed Plover, 2 Common Sandpipers, a Green Sandpiper and a couple of Snipe, along with decent numbers of wildfowl. Walking off the bed it was nice to see a fresh Painted Lady - its been a good year for these attractive, migrant butterflies. No.3 bed also held a few waders, with 3 Black-tailed Godwits, 2 Green Sandpipers and 3 Snipe, though the highlight was the dragonflies. We counted around 15 Migrant Hawkers around the central track, including five which posed well for photographs. Pausing on the Footbridge as we were leaving we counted a further 20 Migrant Hawkers skimming the water below the bridge, along with 2 Emperors and 8 Ruddy Darters. The total count of 35 Migrant Hawkers is the highest I can ever recall for the Reserve and we need to enjoy them now, as it wont be long till we’ve seen the last of them for another year. Photo of a Migrant Hawker Cheers David Bowman (with Dan Owen).

It had an autumnal feel on Saturday with clear skies at dawn, dew-soaked grass and a cooling breeze. Our wardens and volunteers have been working hard to open up the viewing from the Morgan Hide on No.3 bed and, with the low water levels, there is plenty of mud visible for passing waders. Early on, two Black-tailed Godwits dropped in while two Green Sandpipers and eight Snipe were feeding actively. As the day warmed we decided to move on to No.4 bed to see if many dragonflies and butterflies were on the wing and a Hobby flashed over the hide just as we were leaving. There is plenty of open mud on No.4 bed, too, and wader totals were: 1 Greenshank, 1 Redshank, 2 Green Sandpipers, 2 Snipe and 160 Lapwings, while, out on the water two late-staying Black-necked Grebes (an adult and a juvenile) were notable. We then had a wander round counting butterflies and dragonflies, with two late Black-tailed Skimmers and a single Ruddy Darter being notable among the former. It was also pleasing to see 6 Swifts, possibly our last of the year, drifting eastwards over the north bank of the bed, late morning. There were plenty of butterflies, too, with the 50+ noted including the surprise of three Small Coppers, a species which is now scarce on the Reserve and more usually found on No.1 bed. Photo of a Small Copper Cheers David Bowman (with Helen Wynn and Brian Baird)