John and John’s sightings – end of Jan

January continuing where December left off with bigger numbers of every avian species, the sheer number on the reserve made counting very hard, Wildfowl numbers exceeding the 12,000 plus mark, 12,000 being very conservative.

Wigeon making the highest total 10,000 + followed by Teal 2,000 +, Mallard 500, Shelduck 400 and Shoveler not far behind, Pintail 60 +,Gadwall 50+ . 3,500 Black-tailed Godwits feeding on the meadows at  every visit during January,  normally all day, 3,000 plus Golden Plover sometimes in small groups and more spread out. Dark-bellied Brent Goose at times over 500, 40 Barnacle Goose with 8 Blue-phase Snow Goose probably from Holland which now holds large numbers of Barnacle Goose, also many Greylag and Canada.

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Lapwing started to build along the track with some large groups around the reserve, Coots numbers are also building.

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