S. Gloucestershire from Tog Hill - November 2005

THE BIRDS OF SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE

 

FIRST RECORDS

 

As with all reports of rare and scarce birds they are subject to ratification by the respective rarities committees

 

The first recorded or documented reference to species and forms in S. Gloucestershire in chronological order

 

2008:

Nordic Jackdaw - Corvus monedula monedula: On January 25th a presumed winter adult was seen in horse paddocks along George Lane at Marshfield.

 

2007:

European Bee-eater - Merops apiaster: On May 13th a presumed adult was reported at around 18:00 in flight at Severn Beach.

 

2005:

Siberian Chiffchaff - Phylloscopus collybita tristis: An over wintering bird was reported at Emerson's Green on the 1st January.

Dartford Warbler - Sylvia undata: On October 5th at New Passage two birds, a male and female/ 1st winter male were found on Northwick Warth.

 

2004:

Mealy Redpoll - Carduelis flammea: One was reported at Thornbury Golf Course on February 10th.

Subalpine Warbler - Sylvia cantillans: A female was found on May 2nd at around 09:20 approximately one kilometre south of Severn Beach.

 

2002:

Egyptian Goose - Alpochen aegyptiacus: One, a presumed winter adult was reported on February 12th at Oldbury Power Station.

Caspian Gull - Larus cachinnans: An adult was seen on November 16th at Harnhill Land Fill near Elberton.

 

2001:

Green-winged Teal - Anas carolinensis: A male in winter plumage was identified on January 4th at Oldbury Power Station.

Continental Cormorant - Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis: On January 15th a single bird was watched at Oldbury Power Station.

Red-necked Phalarope - Phalaropus lobatus: On October 8th a juvenile/ 1st winter was picked up in flight off Severn Beach.

Yellow-browed Warbler - Phylloscopus inornatus: On October 12th a juvenile/ 1st winter was found at Old Passage.

 

2000:

Common Crane - Grus grus: Two were noted on January 3rd over Severn Beach.

Cory's Shearwater - Calonectris diomedea: One was found on November 26th off Severn Beach at 09:05.

Rose-coloured Starling - Sturnus roseus: On December 8th an adult male was found at Launceston Avenue in Hanham.

 

1999:       

Stone Curlew - Burhinus oedicnemus: On July 27th at New Passage an individual was seen in flight and heading north-east with Lapwings.

 

1998:   

Bean Goose - Anser fabilis fabilis: On March 1st a single bird flew south-west around mid-day at Oldbury Power Station.

Spoonbill - Platalea leucorodia: Two 1st summer birds were watched on April 18th at Severn Beach.

Bluethroat - Lucinia svecica: On May 14th an adult male was watched closely at the bottom of a Blackthorn thicket near Marshfield.

Black Guillemot - Uria grylle: On October 27th an adult in summer plumage was watched for ten minutes drifting up the R. Severn off Severn Beach.

 

1996:   

Kumlien's Gull - Larus glaucoides kumlieni: On June 30th a 1st winter moulting to 2nd summer was identified at Oldbury Power Station.

Ring-necked Parakeet - Psittacula krameri: A female was present at Fishpool Hill, Brentry on September 28th - 30th.

Black-necked Grebe - Podiceps nigricollis: On October 24th a single bird was seen drifting up the R. Severn off New Passage and towards Aust Warth.

 

1995:   

Pale-bellied Brent Goose - Branta bernicla hrota: On February 12th an adult in winter plumage was identified at Northwick Warth.

Scandinavian Chiffchaff - Phylloscopus collybita abietinus: On September 9th an individual was identified at Severn Beach.

 

1994:   

Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti: A presumed male was heard calling on April 24th at Littleton Brick Pits.

 

1993:   

Alpine Swift - Apus melba: On April 11th one was watched for just ten minutes over Aust Cliffs at Aust.

Cattle Egret - Bubulcus ibis: On April 24th a summer adult was found near Littleton-on-Severn brick pits.

Richard's Pipit - Anthus richardii: On November 27th a winter adult was found at Aust Warth and remained in the area until November 30th.

Eastern Yellow Wagtail - Motacilla flava simillima: On December 16th a winter adult was identified at Aust Sewage Farm.

 

1992:

Icterine Warbler - Hippolais icterina: A summer adult and presumably a male in full song was identified on May 15th at Fishpool Hill in Brentry.

 

1991:

Black-throated Diver - Gavia arctica: Two found on May 6th off New Passage were both adults in breeding plumage.

 

1990:

Roseate Tern - Sterna dougallii: On May 1st a full summer adult was watched for several minutes off New Passage.

White-winged Black Tern - Chlidonias leucopterus: On May 3rd an adult was identified in flight with Black Tern heading up the estuary at Aust Warth.

Semipalmated Sandpiper - Calidris pusilla: On August 12th an adult was identified on the silt Lagoon at Oldbury Power Station.

 

1989:

Slavonian Grebe - Podiceps auritus: An adult in winter plumage was identified on April 27th off New Passage.

Goshawk - Accipiter gentilis: On June 25th near Thornbury a female was identified in flight heading west to south-east.

Woodchat Shrike - Lanius senator: On July 23rd a worn adult female was identified in fields north of Rushmead Lane near Marshfield.

Pectoral Sandpiper - Calidris melanotos: On September 17th a presumed juvenile/ 1st winter was identified at Oldbury Power Station.

Buff-breasted Sandpiper - Tryngites subruficollis: On September 30th one was found at New Passage with a mixed flock of small waders.

Barnacle Goose - Branta leucopsis: One was seen on December 19th at Severn Beach, it was present into 1990 throughout January until February 25th.

 

1988:

Ring-necked Duck - Aythya collaris: Two, both males were found on April 2nd at New Passage.

Balearic Shearwater - Puffinus mauretanicus: On the morning of the September 12th one was seen on the R. Severn off New Passage at around 09:00.

 

1987:

Ring-billed Gull - Larus delawarensis: On February 28th a 1st winter was identified at New Passage.

 

1986:

Terek Sandpiper - Xenus cinereus: On September 20th a presumed adult was found at Severn Beach.

Mandarin - Aix galericulata: On November 16th four were on Tortworth Lake, the group included two males with one lingering until December 14th.

 

1985:

White-rumped Sandpiper - Calidris fuscicollis: On September 12th a juvenile/ 1st winter was identified at Severn Beach.

 

1984:

Temminck's Stint - Calidris temminckii: On April 29th a summer adult was identified at Oldbury Power Station.

Franklin's Gull - Larus pipixcan: On May 19th one was identified at Severn Beach. It was considered to be a second summer/ adult.

 

1983:

Marsh Harrier - Circus aeruginousus: A female was seen in flight heading north at Oldbury Power Station on May 1st.

Broad-billed Sandpiper - Limicola falcinellus: On August 20th an adult in worn summer plumage was identified at Oldbury Power Station.

Whooper Swan - Cygnus cygnus: One was noted on the 'silt lagoon' at Oldbury Power Station on October 29th.

Great Northern Diver - Gavia immer: One was identified on December 14th on the R. Severn off Aust Warth.

 

1982:

Garganey - Anas querquedala: A pair were seen in flight up river off Severn Beach on April 13th.

Red-breasted Merganser - Mergus serrator: Two 'redheads' were seen in flight heading up river off Severn Beach on December 3rd.

 

1981:

Bearded Tit - Panurus biarmicus: On April 5th one was trapped, ringed and released at Littleton Brick Pits.

Long-tailed Skua - Stercorarius longicaudus: One, probably an immature male was seen off New Passage on October 31st.

Lapland Bunting - Calcarius lapponicus: A 1st winter bird was reported from Severn Beach on December 18th.

 

1980:

Firecrest - Regulus ignicapillus: One reported sometime between January 5th and April 7th at Hanham.

Sabine's Gull - Larus sabini: A juvenile was reported flying south off New Passage on September 13th.

Hen Harrier - Circus cyaneus: A female/ immature was seen on November 2nd at Northwick Warth.

 

1979:

Mediterranean Gull - Larus melanocephalus: An adult was seen in a flooded field at Stoke Gifford on March 18th.

Ruddy Duck - Oxyura jamaicensis: Two were reported from Aust Warth on January 6th.

 

1978:

Twite - Carduelis flavirostris: Reports of up to forty birds were noted from Severnside between January 6th and March 27th.

Baltic Gull - Larus fuscus fuscus: Five individuals of the Scandinavian form 'fuscus' were reported from Littleton-on-Severn on March 31st.

 

1977:

Red-rumped Swallow - Hirundo daurica: One was identified near Severn Beach possibly New Passage on September 16th.

Long-billed Dowitcher - Limnodromus scolopaceus: On October 16th an individual was reported at Aust Warth.

 

1976:

Aquatic Warbler - Acrocephalus paludicola: On August 14th a passage migrant was trapped, ringed and released at Littleton-on-Severn.

Long-tailed Duck - Clangula hyemalis: One, probably an immature male was seen off New Passage on October 31st.

 

1974:

Sooty Shearwater - Puffinus griseus: One was identified on September 7th during a storm at Aust and New Passage.

Dotterel - Charadrius morinellus: One in winter plumage was reported from Severn Beach on September 14th.

Red-footed Falcon - Falco vespertinus: On September 16th south-west of Berkeley, an adult male was identified near Severn House Farm.

 

1971:

Red-crested Pochard - Netta rufina: A female was reported from Littleton Pits on April 4th.

White Stork - Ciconia ciconia: A presumed adult was reported on May 23rd from the Hallen/ Compton Greenfield area.

Night Heron - Nycticorax nycticorax: On November 19th at the ICI Chemical Works on Severnside an immature was found inside a building.

 

1960:

Red-throated Diver - Gavia stellata: One was seen on January 6th on the Severn Estuary near Shepperdine.

Shorelark - Eremophila alpestris: A male seen on January 31st at Severn Beach was present in the area until the 4th March.

Water Pipit - Anthus spinoletta: On April 1st a single bird in summer plumage was reported from New Passage.

Collared Dove - Streptopelia decaocto: Noted in the Chipping Sodbury area sometime this year.

 

1959:

Greenland Wheatear - Oenanthe oenanthe leucorhoa: In March, several were noted from the Severn Beach/ New Passage/ Northwick Warth areas.

 

1958:

Montagu's Harrier - Circus pygargus: A ‘ring-tailed’ harrier being mobbed by Rooks was noted on May 25th near Marshfield.

 

1957:

Red Kite - Milvus milvus: On March 3rd one was seen near Tockington flying south-west at approximately 100 metres (300 feet).

 

1954:

Blue-headed Wagtail - Motacilla flava flava: Four were reported on April 23rd at Severn Beach.

Golden Oriole - Oriolus oriolus: Two first summer males visited Littleton-on-Severn brickworks in the second week of June.

 

1951:

Shag - Phalacrocorax aristotelis: Sometime in August near Cromhall an immature was caught and released at the WWT at Slimbridge.

 

1949:

Grey Phalarope - Phalaropus fulicarius: On October 21st possibly two birds were identified at Stoke Gifford, on flooded pastures.

 

1948:

Snow Bunting - Plectrophenax nivalis: On January 2nd one was seen between Aust and Littleton-on-Severn.

 

1947:

Waxwing - Bombycilla garrulus: One was seen on February 23rd at Filton.

Kentish Plover - Charadrius alexandrinus: On May 4th extremely good views were obtained of a male at Severn Beach.

 

1946:

Little Stint - Calidris minula: Noted at Severn Beach sometime this year.

 

1944:

Wood Warbler - Phylloscopus sibilatrix: Two males were heard on the 7th May in full song in a small roadside copse at Petty France near Badminton.

Nightjar - Caprimulgus europaeus: On May 21st an individual was seen on the outskirts of High Wood adjoining the Filton by-pass.

 

1943:

Wood Sandpiper - Tringa glareola: On August 13th an adult was identified at Oakford Reservoir near St. Catherine.

 

1942:

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker - Dendrocopos minor: A single bird were seen at Little Stoke on February 1st.

Ruddy Shelduck - Tadorna ferruginea: On April 18th off Aust Warth from Aust Ferry Pier a male was watched by several observers on the mud flats.

Quail - Coturnix coturnix: On June 14th the characteristic call was heard from two birds in fields between Patchway Common and Savage's Wood.

Short-eared Owl - Asio flammeus: One was reported from the salt marsh below Severn Beach on October 6th.

 

1941:

Hawfinch - Coccothraustes coccothraustes: On May 18th one was reported in the grounds at Tortworth Court.

Woodlark - Lullula arborea: Six were identified on September 9th at Severn Beach.

Tree Sparrow - Passer montanus: Up to twenty or thirty noted at Dyrham on various dates in November and December.

 

1940:

Pink-footed Goose - Anser Brachyrhynchus: On February 1st at Severn Beach six or seven were identified in company with White-fronted Geese.

Iceland Gull - Larus glaucoides: On February 23rd at Stoke Gifford. An immature bird was identified at Stoke Gifford.

Red-backed Shrike - Lanius collurio: Sometime in spring and summer a pair nested and reared young on waste ground adjoining Yate railway station.

Willow Tit - Parus montanus: On September 24th at Stoke Gifford, a presumed adult was clearly identified along a water course at Stoke Gifford.

 

1938:

Scaup - Aythya marila: On April 25th one was observed at Severn Beach.

Leach's Petrel - Oceanodroma leucorhoa: One was observed on October 7th off Aust Warth Pier, seen over the Severn.

Corncrake - Crex crex: On October 30th a bird was observed at Patchway Common, evidently a passage bird it was disturbed from a late grass crop.

 

1937:

Ring Ouzel - Turdus torquatus: An adult male was reported on November 5th near Stoke Gifford.

 

1936:

Purple Sandpiper - Calidris maritima: Twelve were noted on the Severn Beach mud flats on March 29th.

 

1935:

Grasshopper Warbler - Locustella naevia: A pair was found nesting at Over near Almondsbury sometime in May.

Puffin - Fratercula arctica: One was present sometime in October at Filton Airfield on top of the Aerospace building.

 

1920:

Hooded Crow - Corvus cornix: One was seen near Stoke Gifford sometime around this date.

 

1913:

Northern Willow Warbler - Phylloscopus trochilus acredula: One, a presumed adult was 'obtained' sometime in May near Thornbury.

 

1909:

Marsh Warbler - Acrocephalus palustris: Two were identified sometime in June at Patchway.

Red-breasted Goose - Branta ruficollis: On November 18th an adult was ‘obtained’ at Oldbury-on-Severn.

 

1900:

Avocet - Recurvirostra avosetta: One was 'obtained' sometime around this time near Thornbury but no dates are available.

 

1897:

Long-eared Owl - Asio otus: Sometime in this year two were noted at Frampton Cotterell.

 

1892:

Bittern - Botarus stellaris: Sometime in January at or near Hambrook a presumed winter adult was ‘obtained’.

Velvet Scoter - Melanitta fusca: On the 5th March an adult male was 'obtained' off New Passage.

 

1891:

Great Grey Shrike - Lanius excubitor: Sometime in January at Dyrham Park.

Goosander - Mergus merganser: One was ‘obtained’ sometime in January at Bitton.

Spotted Crake - Porzana porzana: One was 'obtained' in September at Stoke Bridge in Stoke Gifford.

 

1888:

Pallas's Sandgrouse - Syrrhaptes paradoxus: Eight were recorded on June 3rd at Hambrook and possibly as many as ten.

 

1881:

Merlin - Falco columbarius: Noted in the Chipping Sodbury area sometime this year.

 

1879:

Honey Buzzard - Pernis apivorus: Two were 'obtained' near Tortworth sometime around this date.

Pomarine Skua - Stercorarius pomarinus: One was 'obtained' sometime in November at New Passage.

 

1878:

Hoopoe - Upupa epops: One was seen near Charfield sometime around this date.

 

1871:

White-tailed Eagle - Haliaetus albicilla: Sometime in December an immature male was ‘obtained’ at Dodington Park.

 

1870:

Scandinavian Rock Pipit - Anthus petrosus littoralis: Two birds were reported from early March at New Passage, both were ‘obtained’.

 

1860:

Osprey - Pandion haliaetus: One was killed whilst fishing at Tortworth Court Lake presumably in either the spring or autumn passage.

 

1855:

Smew - Mergellus albellus: A male was ‘obtained' on February 12th at Dyrham Park.

 

1848:

Black-winged Stilt - Himantopus himantopus: One was seen and ‘obtained’ sometime around this time near Thornbury.

 

1845:

Cirl Bunting - Emberiza cirlus: Noted as a resident at Alveston between 1845 and 1851 with breeding proven in 1851.

 

1841:

Little Auk - Alle alle: Some: Some in October on Severnside being recovered after a violent storm.

 

1840:

Glaucous Gull - Larus hyperboreus: A winter adult was 'obtained' on the Severn Estuary.

 

1829:

Wryneck - Jynx torquilla: No specific dates are available but in the Alveston area Wryneck was historically an annual visitor.

Common Crossbill - Loxia curvirostra: Recorded in the Alveston area sometime around this time.

 

1824:

Storm Petrel - Hydrobates pelagicus: One was identified on October 31st near Alveston following the violent gale of All Hallows Eve.

 

 

Home