THE BIRDS OF SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE
THE BIRDS OF SOUTH
GLOUCESTERSHIRE
S. GLOSS NEWS FOR 2005
As with all reports of rare and scarce birds they are subject to ratification by the respective rarities committees
December:
A male Goosander was seen at New Passage on December 30th.
A Hawfinch was seen again at Brimsham Park on December 20th.
On the 18th December a Hawfinch one was seen at Brimsham Park in Yate at around 12:15.
A Snow Bunting was seen in flight at Severn Beach on December 17th.
A Goosander was seen at Badminton on December 13th.
A Cetti's Warbler was seen and heard at Severn Beach on the 10th December. (Present until December 23rd).
November:
A Waxwing was seen at Severn Beach on November 20th.
A pair of Hawfinch were seen on November 12th in a garden at North Common in Warmley.
A Leach's Petrel was seen on November 11th at Severn Beach at around 14:15 and lingered for a while. A Purple Sandpiper was also at Severn Beach today.
Leach's Petrel - Severn Beach, November 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
Two Leach's Petrel were noted on November 4th at Severn Beach, one at 09:18 but both in the morning plus a juvenile Pomarine Skua.
A winter male Dartford Warbler was still at Severn Beach approximately one kilometre south of the village.
October:
On th
e 31st October a winter male Dartford Warbler was found at Severn Beach approximately one kilometre south of the village.
A Cetti's Warbler was reported from Orchard Pools near Severn Beach on October 27th.
An adult pale morph Pomarine Skua was seen on October 25th off Severn Beach.
Pomarine Skua - Severn Beach, October 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
On the 24th October twenty Tree Sparrows were reported from the 'Marshfield' area.
A Cetti's Warbler was reported from Orchard Pools near Severn Beach on October 24th.
Two Garganey were still present at New Passage on October 23rd.
Two Garganey were seen at New Passage on October 22nd.
A Cetti's Warbler was reported from Orchard Pools near Severn Beach on October 21st.
A juvenile male Hen Harrier was seen to drift over the Bristol/ S. Gloucestershire boundary in the Chittening Warth area on October 20th.
Hen Harrier - Chittening Warth, October 2005: © P. Bowerman.
A single Snow Bunting was found at New Passage on October 18th.
Six Avocet were seen together until around 09:30 when they flew off west from New Passage on October 17th.
Avocet - New Passage, October 2005:
© Paul Bowerman.
A Cetti's Warbler was reported from Severn Beach between October 13th - 18th.
A Cetti's Warbler was reported from Orchard Pools near Severn Beach on October 10th.
On the 5th October at New Passage two Dartford Warblers, a male and female/ 1st winter male were found on Northwick Warth. They constitute the first record for this species in S. Gloucestershire. (Present until October 12th)
Dartford Warbler - Left and centre, Northwick Warth, October 2005, right, Severn Beach, November 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
September:
No rare or scarce sightings this month!
August:
A Pectoral Sandpiper was seen briefly on August 3rd in flight heading north at Oldbury Power Station.
July:
A juvenile Willow Tit was reported at Lower Woods, Hawksbury on July 5th.
A juvenile Willow Tit was reported at Lower Woods, Hawksbury on July 3rd.
June:
A Montagu's Harrier was found by Rob Laughton on June 20th at Rushmead Lane/ Tormarton Road near Marshfield.
It was aged as a 2nd
calendar male and was seen in flight north-west towards West Littleton at 20:00.
(Present until June 22nd).
Montagu's Harrier - Rushmead Lane, Marshfield, June 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
A male Cetti's Warbler heard at Oldbury Power Station on June 18th.
An adult Red Kite was seen early morning over the junction of A46/ A420 on June 5th at Cold Ashton.
May:
A Red Kite was seen in the Rangeworthy/ Iron Acton area on May 21st.
A male Garganey was seen at Severn Beach on May 16th.
A presumed adult Red Kite was seen on May 14th in Shire Valley north of Marshfield.
A Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was heard calling at Golden Valley LNR in Wick on May 9th.
A Pomarine Skua was seen at Severn Beach on the 7th May.
A Red Kite was watched over Filton Airfield on May 6th.
A male Garganey was seen in flight at Severn Beach on May 5th.
A singing male Wood Warbler was seen and photographed at New Passage on May 2nd.
Wood Warbler - New Passage, May 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
April:
A Wood Warbler was noted at Vineyard's Brake near Thornbury on April 26th.
A Wood Warbler was heard at Lower Woods near Hawksbury on April 18th.
A female Mandarin was found at Littley Wood near Hawksbury on April 16th.
A flock of thirty Waxwing wee seen at Longwell Green on April 14th.
A male Garganey was noted at Oldbury Power Station on April 5th. (Present until April 17th).
An Osprey was noted flying north-east at around 19:00 over the tidal reservoir at Oldbury Power Station on April 2nd.
This male Ring Ouzel was found and photographed by John Martin; it was located in a garden at New Passage on April 2nd.
Ring Ouzel - New Passage, April 2005: © John Martin.
A Scandinavian Chiffchaff was noted at Emerson's Green on the 2nd April.
Four Garganey including three males were seen off New Passage on April 1st.
March:
A Scandinavian Chiffchaff was noted at Emerson's Green on the 27th March.
An Osprey flew inland east from Severn Beach on March 27th.
Three Red-breasted Merganser, two males and a female were seen at Severn Beach on March 20th.
On March 20th an adult Red Kite was seen flying east over Severn Beach.
Red Kite - Severn Beach, March 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
Three Avocet were seen at Severn Beach on the 10th March.
Four Waxwing were seen at Filton on March 9th and six present on March 10th.
At least three Water Pipit were on the salt marsh at Severn Beach on March 5th with at least one remaining until March 16th.
This Scandinavian Rock Pipit was found and photographed by Paul Bowerman on March 5th at Severn Beach. It was presumed to be a winter adult and was on the Spartina approximately a kilometre south of the village and remained in the area until March 10th.
Scandinavian Rock Pipit - Severn Beach, March 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
February:
A Ring-necked Parakeet was reported in mid February at Longwell Green, no age or date were given.
A Water Pipit was seen at
Severn Beach on February 5th.
A pair of Mandarin were noted at Tortworth Court Lake on February 2nd.
In February counts of Waxwing started with twenty-two from Morton Way in Thornbury, twenty-one were seen in Mangotsfield on Northcote Road, about thirty-five on Tower Road in Warmley, thirty-eight were in the trees between Hawthorn Road and Downend Road and sixty near the BT building on Chestnut Road. A hundred and twenty-two were noted in Cadbury Heath near Parkwall Primary School on Earlstone Crescent and at Downend a massive a hundred and fifty around the cricket pitch. Near Thornbury at Eastwood Park numbers peaked at thirty-five and in the Patchway/ Filton/ Stoke Gifford an impressive a hundred and fifty.
Waxwing - Cadbury Heath, February 2005: © Rob Laughton.
January:
A Hen Harrier was seen at Lark Lane near Marshfield on January 31st.
A Water Pipit was noted at Severn Beach on January 22nd and was still present on January 25th.
This year's UK invasion of Waxwing eventually reached the west country on January 22nd. There were probably in excess of five hundred birds involved peaking on February 7th at around a hundred and fifty. They were noted across the region in January at; Bromley Heath with twenty-two, noted as numerous on the A38 between Falfield and Whitfield, there were fifteen on Morton Way in Thornbury early morning, twenty-six early afternoon and fifty-three late afternoon, forty-three were at Longwell Green on Lacock Drive, forty were in the car park of the King William pub in Warmley, a hundred and thirty-five were at Mangotsfield in trees opposite Mangotsfield School, at Longwell Green about a hundred were seen on Lacock Drive.
A Goshawk was seen on January 21st near Marshfield over the lane from West Littleton Lane at Rushmead Lane.
Two adult Whooper Swan were found on the 13th January at Northwick Warth. (Present until January 16th when they were seen to fly off north-east,
Whooper Swan - Northwick Warth, January 2005: © Paul Bowerman.
An over wintering Siberian Chiffchaff was seen at Emerson's Green on January 1st (present until March 28th). It constitutes the first record of this form in S. Gloucestershire.
Siberian Chiffchaff - Emerson's Green, January 2005:
© Andrew Jordon.