Hen Harrier

The female Hen Harrier is being sighted regularly now at Ynys-hir.  Rhys James reports seeing it hunting in front of the Domen Las hide yesterday.

Recent sightings

A great short session again from Glandyfi with superb close views of peregrine and female hen harrier, with single buzzard and kite also on the salt marsh.  Good close views of 3 goldeneye and a Goosander, and single green and common sandpiper.
I dropped in the previous afternoon for 20 minutes and had 12 great black-backed gulls ( my highest number to date) and the same hen harrier.
It's been a good day for raptors today - with both sparrowhawk and goshawk over the garden late afternoon.  A goosander flying over was an unusual garden record.

Dick Squires

10 years of the blog

Today marks the tenth anniversary of the Ceredigion Birds blog and I would like to offer many thanks to all our contributors and readers during this time.
Main thanks of course go to Bob Relph, who had the original idea and Richard Crossen, who actually did the technical stuff to get the blog up and running. Being a complete duffer when it comes to computers, I've had cause to thank Richard for his help on numerous occasions since I took over.
Apart from starting it, Bob of course ran the blog for years, guiding it along with a deft editorial hand.
Eventually, Bob asked me to take over with the words " I thought it was time to hand over to an older man"
I love to look through the archive: for instance if I plan to go out birding I look to see what was noted  in previous years at that time. It's also a real pleasure to read contributors' accounts of enjoyable days in the field.
Enough of this waffle.  To all our contributors, please keep your sightings coming and to everybody, please keep reading the blog.
Finally, I wish you all enjoyable and successful birding in 2019, with lifers all round.

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl hunting over Dyfi marsh Saturday 29th.  Observed for 30 minutes from Glandyfi layby.  Also Kestrel.

Keith Lewis

Llanon Quail

I found this bird on November 20th but it was an inconclusive sighting so I didn't put it on the blog for fear of social ridicule. There was a voice of doubt in my head saying that it was just a fat Skylark flying very quickly. However on the 23rd I received a BTO bird track newsletter that mentioned that the warm southerly airflow in early November had resulted in a large number of Swift sightings of different species. I thought maybe it could have been a Quail after all and so I contacted Arfon and told him to keep his eyes open next time he was wandering through the stubble fields.

Ian Morris

Glandyfi

Spent 30 minutes .from the main road lay-bye this morning.  On the river at low tide - highlights 9 black-tailed godwits, 4 goldeneye, 6 goosanders.

Dick Squires

Domen Las Hide, Ynys-hir

I visited and spent an hour until last light.

  

22 cormorants in the roost.  2 little grebes, 2 goosanders, and a common sand on the river. Female hen harrier crossed the river into Ceredigion at 1600.  A barn owl on Marian Mawr as I walked back.

Dick Squires                                                                 

Cattle Egret - The Teifi

The Cattle Egret was feeding with cattle in field opposite St Dogmael's Quay late afternoon.
Like other sites, good numbers of waders including a flock of Lapwing  counted a couple of days ago by Dyfed James with a  Photoshop programme - 1150 birds. Today the flock was on the central mudbank with Golden Plovers, Curlew and Redshank. Shelduck and Gull numbers building too - hopefully we can do some counting tomorrow !
(Sev obs)

A Christmas Quail

Not sure who was most surprised yesterday, me or the highly unseasonal Quail I flushed from the stubbles at Llanon! Has to be the same bird Ian Morris saw a few weeks ago in the same place

Re - Ynyslas: a summary of the year

I really enjoyed reading Edward's article.  He deserves a huge amount of credit for the amount of time and effort that he put into his coverage of Ynyslas this year, and having the skill to amass such a collection of birds.  We are lucky to have him in  Ceredigion.
I must get out more often in 2019.

Ynyslas

I had a look for Chris's Velvet Scoters this morning without success.  All I could find were around 180 Common Scoter and single Red-throated Diver and Great Crested Grebe.

Lots of disturbance plus people rowing up the Leri meant that all the wildfowl and waders were well up the estuary.  The only exception was the King Eider, showing well and looking like a good bet for our 2019 lists.

Has anyone else noticed that the tern posts have been moved much closer to the entrance to the beach?

January field trip

Details of the January field trip are now on the Field Trips page.

Velvet Scoters

Yesterday there were four Velvet Scoters (possibly more) close inshore to the north of the brickhouse at Ynyslas.
On Wednesday a flock of around 60 Lapwings were around Llyn Fanod.

Chris Bird

Ynys-hir yesterday

The morning began with a barn owl hunting at 0850 on the edge of Marian Mawr. I briefly called in at Saltings hide – 35 teal, a kingfisher,  and 2 black tailed godwits on the pools. Then across to Domen las where there was a little egret, 2 green sands, 20 teal and 6 little grebes on the saltwater lagoons by the Einion. From the hide highlights were a female goosander, 1 common sandpiper and a female hen harrier.

Dick Squires

Ynys-hir: Boxing day

Spent a superb hour at Ynys Feurig hide, with ideal conditions i.e good visibility, calm and a high tide.

The flood below the hide had an amazing spectacle of more than 2000 ducks and waders.

The highlights were 160 redshank,  4 curlew, 3 snipe, 240 dunlin, 1300 lapwing, 430 teal, 12 shoveler. Birds on the high tide included 26 pintail and 10 red breasted mergansers. Surprisingly no other wader species and the only raptors I saw were single red kite and buzzard. A water rail was calling on the edge of Covert coch bog.

A belated record from yesterday was a Cettis warbler in the reedbed on the edge of the Leri at Aberleri.

Dick Squires

Ynyslas: A summary of the year (apologies for the length of this, got a bit carried away)

As it's the end of 2018 and the blog has been a bit quiet of late, I thought I would briefly summarize my year of 'patch-birding' Ynyslas. 

January –March

I started off the year only visiting the site every now and then as I was half way through an internship at WWT Llanelli. I did manage a few visits to Ynyslas, however, and I managed to get some nice patch birds on my visits. My first visit in early January got me off to a good start with 66 species seen including Pink-footed Geese, a Hen Harrier and all of the common wintering ducks and waders. My next visit in late January produced a few more patch-ticks including the only Long-tailed Tit, Bullfinch and Barnacle Goose that I would see on patch for the whole year. Other birds added to the list included a European White-fronted Goose, a Cattle Egret, a Water Pipit, Twite, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Barn Owl and the King Eider. Unfortunately I missed out on a Ruff and a Glaucous Gull that were found the day after my visit.

My next visit was in late March and it was still absolutely freezing as I recall, and the only spring migrants to be found were a Wheatear, a Chiffchaff and a few passing White Wags. There was however, really good northward movement of Meadow Pipits passing over the point, it’ll definitely be something to look out for next spring. Other birds added to the patch-list on this visit included Goosander, Bar-tailed Godwit and a Siskin.

April-July

After my last visit in late March, birds seen by other birders at Ynyslas had included a Black-throated Diver, a Slavonian Grebe, Scaup, two Avocets and a bloody Kentish Plover, bit annoying that!

Eager to get back; I tactically booked a week off from my internship in late April- early May to try and cache in on spring migration. Despite this week being brilliant for migrants in 2017, it just didn’t really happen for me. Saying that, I did manage to get most of the regular spring migrants on my list; including Whimbrel, Sandwich, Common & Arctic Tern, Manx Shearwater, Common Sandpiper, Osprey, all 3 hirundines, Swift, Whinchat, a small selection of warbler sp., Crossbill, Arctic Skua, Bonxie and a 3cy Glaucous Gull which was a bit jammy.

My next visit was in early June and it was a unsuccessful attempt to twitch a duo of Rosy Starlings that had turned up in a nationwide influx. The only new bird to be added was Little Tern, which was a nice surprise. Another visit in late July added Black-tailed Godwit, Nightjar and Lesser Redpoll to the list.

August-December

Not visiting during August-early September was quite costly as I missed out on a Black Tern and a Yellow Wagtail as well as missing out on Green Sandpiper and Tree Pipit passage and the possibility of an american wader. Returning in mid-September I quickly added Grey Wagtail, Jay, Spotted Flycatcher, Nuthatch, Marsh Harrier, Curlew Sandpiper and Tree Pipit. On the 24^th September my  bird of the year was found on Ynys Tachwedd fields, a cracking 1^st-winter Woodchat Shrike which hung around in the area for a few days.

October was a brilliant month with 12 new patch birds including some nice birds including Grey Phalarope, Great Egret, Spotted Redshank, Tree Sparrow, Lapland Bunting, Scaup, GND and a Feral Pigeon! Most of these birds were seen during vismig/seawatching sessions. After October things really slowed down with only a handful of new birds added to the patch list, but they were all really nice birds with Long-tailed Duck, Velvet Scoter, Black-throated Diver and Gadwall added to finish off the year.

Missed birds

The most annoying missed bird has to be Leach’s Petrel as I had one just off patch in Borth! Other misses include Yellow Wagtail, Yellowhammer, Slavonian Grebe, Snow Bunting, Lesser Whitethroat, Garden Warbler, Little Stint, Ruff, Little Ringed Plover, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Garganey, Avocet, SEO, Pom Skua and Little Gull, so loads of room for improvement!

I ended up with 157 species for the year out of a possible 167 that were seen at Ynyslas, which isn’t too bad really.

Vismig

Vismigging proved itself to be incredibly productive this autumn, with a good variety of birds moving over the point at Ynyslas from mid-September into early November. I still think there are much better sites for vismig in west Wales. I’ve got a hunch that Aberdyfi, Llanrhystud to Aberaeron and Porthmadog all get far more movement than Ynyslas, and on some days I can see big movements of birds over Aberdyfi, that never end up coming over the point. In total this autumn 42,700 birds have passed through Ynyslas. The most notable counts are listed below. The complete totals can be found here: https://www.trektellen.nl/site/totals/2143/2018

Out of all these counts I think one of more notable ones is the Greenfinch total, I was regularly surprised by single Greenfinches passing over the point, perhaps they are under recorded in the county. Another one of my favourites is the House Sparrow count; 100 birds!! Mostly flying north but often in flocks of 5-10 flying high and direct over the estuary. The Blue/Great Tit movement on some mornings was absolutely fascinating with flocks of birds seen moving through the scrub and the making the big flight over the estuary, 2 Coal Tits were also seen following the same route. I also managed the largest recorded movement of Jackdaws through any site ever in the UK (according to trektellen) with a count of 2109. Loads of other interesting stuff in there as well. Vismig is my favourite type of birding and it would be great if more welsh birders would give it a go. There are some great articles online about Vismigging and they are very interesting and talk about things like site selection, the right conditions, what birds move and when etc etc.

Glanyrafon

This morning, 46 pied wagtails and 4 meadow pipits on the cricket pitch, water rail by the river.

Dick Squires

Ynys-hir

Spent a very wet half hour at the Ynys Feurig hide yesterday morning but conditions too poor with heavy rain and dense mist.  The heavy rain had extended the area of open water and it was stacked with waders and wildfowl which included 440 teal, 140 wigeon and 8 shoveler and 600 lapwing.

In the afternoon I spent a superb hour at Marian Mawr with a female hen harrier, a kestrel, a peregrine and a hunting barn owl very close to the hide from 2.50 onwards, 2 goldeneye on the river and 60 teal on the pools.  On the walk back I had Cetti's warbler and 4 gadwall on the pools and reedbed below the visitor centre.

Dick Squires

Problems posting on the blog

Ian, please feel free to send me your sightings in emails and I will put them on the blog.
This is only a temporary solution because I am away over Christmas and only have my iPad with me.
Just before leaving home I had exactly the same problem as you: no "New Post" to click on, but only on my laptop.
So, I will try to sort out the problem that we are both having when I get home.

Glandyfi

Called in briefly this morning. Highlights: 2 green sandpipers, 2 grey plover, 2 Goosander, a goldeneye, 2 red kites and a goshawk.

Dick Squires

Nadolig Llawen/ Merry Christmas

All the very best to our readers and contributors for the festive season.
I'm away from home at the moment and don't have my laptop with me, just the I-pad, and am having a problem with sending e-mails. So, if you send me an e-mail which requires a reply, please be patient.

Ynys-hir Friday

Highlights were 420 teal, 7 shoveler, 1 blac-tailed Godwit from the Ynys Feurig hide and distant views of 1600 lapwings, 300 curlews on the grazing marshes and a water rail, 4 siskins and 5 reed buntings on the way back.
The only raptor I saw in 2 hours was a single buzzard. For estuary and grazing marsh viewing, wouldn't it be nice to have the Breakwater hide functioning again.

Dick Squires

Black-headed Gulls

Debbie Camp reports a Black-headed Gull in full breeding plumage this morning, along with a few others which were definitely heading that way.

Glandyfi today

40 mins this morning from the main road lay by.
1 Grey plover, 1 common sandpiper, 2 black-tailed godwits, 4 Goosanders, 2 goldeneye, a red kite and a buzzard the only raptors.

Dick Squires

Water Pipit

There was a Water Pipit in the Turn Car Park at Ynyslas at about 10:30 this morning.

Ynys Feurig hide, Wednesday morning

Superb big flock of wildfowl still present with 280teal, 35 mallard, 125 wigeon, 10 shoveler and a single shelduck.  65 lapwing and 2 redshank were the only waders.  Memorable close views of a female hen harrier , at one time she was right below the hide before flying around to the Covert Coch peat bog.  2 red kites and a single buzzard over the grazing marsh.
5 redpolls and a single woodcock on the walk down.

Dick Squires

More Golden Plover

A flock of approx 300 golden plover on Aberaeron beach yesterday morning

Debbie Camp

Croeslan

About 500 Golden Plover yesterday, opposite the council offices along with 100 Lapwing, perhaps part of the larger group seen near Synod Inn on the 12th.

Sightings from Chris Bird

On Saturday there was a high count of 16 Moorhens on Nanteos Lake.
The Sunday afternoon visit to the local lakes produced two Goldeneye, nine Goosanders and a Tufted Duck on Llyn Eiddwen, with another four Goldeneye on Llyn Fanod.  Also 29 Lapwings in the area.
Around 20 Redwings and a Merlin were found over towards Joppa.
At the Monday afternoon high tide at Ynyslas were ca20 Dunlin, nine Snipe and a Grey Plover. Among the many Wigeon was a Great Crested Grebe and Pintail numbers up to 30 - 40.

Chris Bird

Domen Las hide, Ynys-hir

Last hour of daylight.  Sightings included 1 green sandpiper, 6 goldeneye, 4 goosander, 11 great black-backed gulls, 27 cormorants and a single little egret in the roost.  No owls or raptors other than single red kite.  A woodcock on the way back.

Dick Squires

Scaup on the Teifi

A fine drake Scaup on the Teifi, viewed from Curlew hide or nearby. The Scaup was feeding with a pair of Goldeneye this morning and still present on the high tide mid afternoon

Photo by Tommy Evans and seen by several observers today.

The white Oystercatcher

Debbie Camp reports seeing this very distinctive bird on a walk from Aberaeron to Aberarth on Friday.  First seen in January 2006 and in every year since, but never during the breeding season.
Also seen on the walk were 36 Curlews in the fields and a Brambling.

New Quay

Great crested grebe off Traeth y Dolau today.

Viv Evans

Glandyfi this morning

30 minutes at Glandyfi lay bye this morning.

Highlights were single common sandpiper, green sandpiper, & black tailed godwit, a male goldeneye, a pair of goosanders. No raptors other than single red kite.

Dick Squires

A good selection from the dyfi

Started off with a seawatch from the brickhouse this morning where a Great Northern Diver flew south along with 61 Black-headed Gulls, 22 Common Gulls and 11 Herring Gulls. Along the Leri there were 2 Water Pipits and a superb male Hen Harrier. On the estuary there was another Great Northern Diver, a drake Red-breasted Merganser and the usual selection of ducks. A Merlin and a Sparrowhawk were around Ynys Tachwedd as well as 300+ Lapwing, 40+ Curlews, 150 Chaffinches as well as Stock Doves, Skylarks, Reed Buntings and Linnets. A quick scan from the brickhouse on my way home was well worth doing as a smart Black-throated Diver flew past south soon after I arrived.

Glandyfi

I spent a 40 mins at Glandyfi yesterday afternoon from 3.50pm..

Good birding though in very poor light. Single grey plover and 3 black tailed godwits, 4 goosanders, 14 great black backed gulls. No owls or other raptors. 7 cormorants at the Domen las roost.

Dick Squires

New Quay

A cracking adult Little Gull joined the gull flock feeding off the fish factory this morning. Four Shelduck and a pair of Shoveler flew north and a female type Black Redstart was in the quarry area to the rear of the buildings.

views from the car

The Velvet Scoter was still off the Ynyslas turn carpark this afternoon. There was a Brent Goose at the tern posts with a cracking flock of Wigeon and Pintail. 200+ Dunlin and 2 Grey Plover were there also.

Grouse at Nantymoch

Took a walk over Pumlumon this afternoon and walking on the road running from Maesnant Farmhouse to Nant y Moch Dam, I flushed two Red Grouse from the grass. They obligingly landed on the road a few metres away allowing me a good view of them, but flew off within a few seconds towards the lake.  Great to see them back here again.

Brian Wiley

Ynys Feurig hide

50 minutes from Ynys Feurig hide at Ynys-hir this morning.

The pool was partly frozen but had 230 teal, 5 shoveler, 1 pintail, 28 dunlin, 1 snipe and 42 lapwing. 230 more  dunlin on saltings opposite. Penrhyn-gerwin fields had a single merlin and 2 red kites , with an adult male hen harrier over the saltings.

Dick Squires

Aberystwyth, Thursday

A walk from Glanyrafon to Aber

Fairly quiet overall but sightings included 33 pied wagtails and a meadow pipit on the cricket pitch, 55 common gulls amongst a few herring and black headed on the Blaendolau fields , 2 siskins, 4 goldfinches and 2 bullfinches- the first bullfinches I’ve seen for several months!

Dick Squires

Whooper Swan at Llanrhystud

One never knows what might turn up in the flooded field at Llanrhystud. This afternoon, in the bitterly cold wind, there was a solitary Whooper Swan standing in the middle of the field.

Redwings

After their arrival in October winter thrushes moved quickly on and have been very scarce round here since, so I was pleased to see a small party of nine Redwings fly east over the house this morning.

ynyslas

Ringtail Hen Harrier and 8 Twite on the saltmarsh this morning. 8 Shags were in the mouth of the estuary and a drake Goldeneye flew south offshore. There were probably around 700 Wigeon, 100 Teal, 15 Pintail and 3 Shoveler around the mouth of the Leri.

Lampeter

I think Arfon refound the GW Egret yesterday between co op and car spares shop. No sign this morning but 2 Little Egrets here and what may have been an additional 3 more half a mile downstream. Also; 2 Little Grebes, 2 Dippers and 4 Grey Wagtails.

After Ynys-hir, Glandyfi

After the field trip Bob and I went to his house for lunch (thank you Jacqui) then spent the last hour of daylight  just up the road at the Glandyfi  layby.
No sign of any owls, but we were treated to a superb male Hen Harrier, also an interesting collection of waders including Black-tailed Godwit, Green and Common Sandpiper,  and three Goldeneye.

Thanks again to Elaine, and welcome Tim

As  regular readers will know, the field trip yesterday was the last to be organised by Elaine Izett.  I'm sure the many people who have taken part in the monthly walks since Elaine took over from Bob Relph in 2011 will join me in thanking her for the time and effort she has put in. See my post of 16th October.
The new organiser is Tim Rayner, and rather than repeat myself I ask you to look at Tim's post of the 2nd December.  I will enter Tim's details on the Field Trips page of the blog and urge as many of you as possible to help him arrange a full and interesting programme of outings.

Yesterday's field trip: Ynys-hir

Seven of us turned out for a pleasant stroll to the Ynys Feurig hide where we enjoyed an hour or so overlooking the pools and estuary. 
The highlight for all of us I think was a ringtail Hen Harrier, probably a female, which entertained us before settling on the ground within view (see photo).
Bird list, in order of appearance:  Blackbird, Chaffinch, Great Tit, Carrion Crow, Mallard, Blue Tit, Pheasant, Coal Tit, Teal, Red Kite, Robin, Little Egret, Treecreeper, Goldcrest, Nuthatch, Canada Goose, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Meadow Pipit, Stonechat, Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush, Reed Bunting, Jay, Dunnock, Barnacle Goose, Great Black-backed Gull, Goosander, Great Crested Grebe, Black-headed Gull, Oystercatcher, Curlew, Red-breasted Goose, Shoveler, Lapwing, Snipe, Cormorant, Raven, Redshank, Shelduck, Wigeon, Common Gull, Hen Harrier, Red-breasted Merganser, Herring Gull, Mute Swan.
Red Liford was also keeping a list, so he probably has a few more to add to the above.

Golden Plover

In the fields south of Synod Inn yesterday (11th December), huge flock
of Golden Plover (2000?) with a smaller flock of Lapwing (perhaps 70). 
They are quite a sight when all in the air together.

Tom Ottley

More from Ynyslas

I must have been at Ynyslas a little earlier than Edward this morning.  On the rising tide near the tern posts were three Grey Plovers and 30 Dunlin  with a Great Crested Grebe and a Red-breasted Merganser among 200 or so Wigeon.  The five pale-bellied Brent Geese were way over towards the river mouth.
On Ynys Tachwedd Fields a few Stock Doves were in the long vegetation then a Buzzard working its way along the fence line flushed at least 25 of them.  There were ca150 Lapwings at the south end of the fields with low double figures of Curlew and Golden Plover.
I couldn't find the Velvet Scoter on the sea, but 11 Wigeon flew in from the south and settled.

Ynyslas

Chris's female/immature Velvet Scoter was still offshore just off the turn carpark this morning. There were 5 Black-tailed Godwits on Ynys Tachwedd fields as well as two Merlins. 5 pale-bellied Brent Geese were at the tern posts at high tide.

Sunday afternoon

On his usual tour round his local lakes Chris found 13 Goosander and four Goldeneye on Llyn Fanod.
Llyn Eiddwen held a pair of Wigeon, a Goldeneye and 18 Mallard.

Glandyfi

This afternoon I went in search of the Short-eared Owl reported by Dick at Glandyfi on Saturday.  As soon as I'd set up my scope I got onto a female Hen Harrier, a real cracker.  I had been watching her for 7 or 8 minutes when she put up a Barn Owl which had been concealed in long grass.  I watched that on and off for about 25 or 30 minutes when a Short-eared Owl drifted into view.
Earlier at Ynyslas I saw 9 Mute Swans, 2 adult and 7 immature, moving up-stream against the falling tide.  It got me wondering if the adults were looking after some sort of creche...

Cors Caron

Birds seen during a pleasant afternoon at Cors Caron included a Willow Tit and two Peregrines from the boardwalk, a Marsh Tit from the lay-by to the south of the main car park and two Whooper Swans from Pont Einon.

Ynyslas

Chris Bird was at Ynyslas turn this afternoon and found a Velvet Scoter, probably a different bird to the three that were there recently.
Later, at the estuary, he had a Great Northern Diver just up from the Leri mouth and in close proximity to the King Eider.

Ynys-hir this morning

Highlights from Ynys Feurig hide this morning:

On the pool and flood: 620 teal, 16 wigeon, 6 shoveler, 95 lapwing, 7 dunlin. 3 red breasted mergansers and a single goldeneye on the river. Single ring-tailed hen harrier, buzzard, and red kite, 3 ravens, 5 skylarks over  the grazing marshes. 35 siskins on the walk across the raised bog.

Dick Squires

Ffostrasol

200 Lapwings this morning.

Dusk at Glandyfi

Highlights yesterday were short eared  owl hunting over the saltmarsh from 4.02 pm (and still there when I left at 4.32pm), a ring tailed hen harrier, and  9 great black backed gulls. There were 13 cormorants and a little egret in the Domen las roost (Ynys-hir).

Dick Squires

Re Xmas wishes

Sorry folks (senility!)-I meant Harry , not Bob! Can't edit.

Ynyslas

There were approximately 200 Golden Plover - just visible through the gloom - by the water's edge out from the tern posts at Ynyslas this morning.

Xmas wishes.

Hi Guys-I'm being generic as there are so many of you over there, but thanks to all of you and just keep this great blog on fire-I have to mention a few! Ta's to Harry & John for their very kind words; to Arfon for the freeby etc and Bob for keeping the engine running!

Ffostrasol

Single Yellowhammer at a feeder that has attracted them in winter in previous years also. This makes me wonder if they may breed quite locally, perhaps in the gorse covered slopes on parts of the upper Cerdin valley.

Purple Sandpipers

Eight Purple Sandpipers roosting on the wall this morning, though I managed to get covered in spray during my attempts to count them.

December field trip reminder

A reminder that the December field trip will be on Wednesday 12th at
Ynys Hir. Full details are on the field trip section of the blog .Don't
forget your RSPB. membership card. Hope to see lots of you there.

Elaine Izett

Ynys-hir

Great views of raptors from Ynys Feurig mid morning today. In a memorable few minutes I had ring tailed hen harrier, merlin and peregrine. The harrier was present for 20 minutes and I last saw it flushing a snipe from Covert Coch, the raised bog.

Impressive teal flock on the main pool in front of the hide with 330 teal then joined by a further 140 which had just been disturbed by the shooting at the back of Penrhyn gerwin. Other duck included 12 shoveler.  

Dick Squires

Cardigan lapwing flock

Around 200 Lapwing over St Dogmaels this morning.
Red Throated Diver and the usual small gang of Scoter off Tresaith at 3 today

Cardigan Quay

I was parked at Quay Street car park yesterday (4^th). There was a bar tailed godwit probing in the mud as well as a curlew and redshank. A single teal was on the water.

Viv Evans

Sightings from Chris Bird

Yesterday, during an otherwise quiet run up to the Pendam lakes, Chris encountered two Bullfinch parties, of eight and four.  There were two Goldeneye on Llyn Syfydrin and one on Llyn Pendam.
Later he came across three male Greenfinches in the cemetery on Llanbadarn Road.
 It's a sign of the times that Greenfinch sightings are now worthy of note.

Black Redstart

There was a black redstart on the harbour wall in New Quay this morning., first seen by Andy Wise during a cetacean survey.

Aline Denton

Allt Olmarch

This wood lies a mile or two north of Llangybi. This morning there was a Willow Tit here as well as 14 Crossbills and a Woodcock.

Ynyslas this morning

There were still 7 Twite in and around the crop field at Ynyslas this morning as well as a good flock of 200+ Chaffinches and a couple of Bramblings. Good numbers of Lapwing were at Ynys Tachwedd also with c.450 there. The Queen Eider is still in the estuary. Yesterday there were 2 Black-tailed Godwits and an adult Med Gull there.

Ynyslas

Pick of the birds on the rising tide at Ynyslas this afternoon were 29 Pintail and good counts of 31 Great Black-backed Gulls and 11 Grey Plovers.

Chris Bird

IGER fields at Bow Street

I was passing IGER fields at Bow Street on Sunday morning en route Aberystwyth and noted three little egrets looking for food near the main road. It's a very wet patch of ground that often floods but it's the first time I've seen waders there. Some years ago there used to be large flocks of wintering lapwing on the same patch of ground, but it was ploughed then.

Dave Thomas

Pant pool

No sign of the Slavonian Grebe(s) this morning but still tripping over Egrets. There were 4 Little Egrets there this morning along with 4 Little Grebes.

Local things

The Great White Egret was in flood water and marsh about half a mile down from Lampeter town late pm yesterday, along with 2 Little Egrets. This morning, a Merlin was checking out Starlings in fields adjacent to Denmark Farm conservation centre.

Slavonian Grebe(s) on Pant Pool

At 1018 this morning there was at least one maybe two Slavonian grebes on Pant pond mixed with the dabchicks they were very active so never saw two on surface together. The light was pretty poor with the drizzle.

David Price

Brents at Ynyslas

3 Pale-bellied Brents and 5 Kittiwakes flew south offshore this morning. At Ynys Tachwedd, 2 Dark-bellied Brents were feeding with the usual Lapwings and Curlews. 49 Stock Doves were in the crop field. A nice flock of 400 Teal were flushed by a Peregrine on borth bog. A Merlin, Red Kite, Buzzard and a Kestrel were also around.

New field trips organiser

Ceredigion Bird Group Programme 2019

For the foreseeable future I am taking over from Elaine as programme organiser for the Ceredigion Bird Group.  I'm looking for people who would be interested in leading a walk.  It is not necessary to be an expert birder to do this; just to have a walk in mind which you are willing to go round with a group of people.  Include a list of dates when you are available.  If you'd prefer to co-lead a meeting then get back to me and we can sort something out.  If you know of anyone who might be interested in leading or attending a meeting please ask them to get in touch with me.

Tim Rayner

Email: timgjrayner@live.co.uk

Mob: 07954012870

Address: Rhydynant, Doldre, Tregaron, SY25 6JT.

Many thanks to Tim for agreeing to take over the role of field trip organiser.  I will put his details on the Field Trips page of the blog after Elaine's final outing on 12th Dec in case anyone wants to contact her about this trip.

Aberystwyth

Helen was already at Castle Point when I arrived this morning and she was the first to spot a passing Kingfisher.  Very quiet offshore; just two Red-throated Divers, a couple of Common Scoter and a Gannet. 
We were joined by John Val, but even three pairs of eyes failed to improve matters.

Eat up your greens

Thank you for putting together the report again, Arfon. I'm looking forward to receiving my copy on Christmas day. I spoke with my intermediary with Santa at breakfast this morning. Delighted that you found the Cattle Egret. However, distressed to read that you found the bird on your way into Lampeter to,"get some cat food and a pasty for lunch." You must look after yourself more. I went for the Cattle Egret earlier. No luck, but a Great White was present, viewable from opposite the co op, looking downstream. Eventually, it fluttered a short distance across the fields and despite being both great and white, disappeared from view entirely. Looking at an OS map I can see that a footpath leads down to the river past the sewage works. Perhaps this would be worth checking? A few minutes ago a Little Egret was present at Pont Gogoyan.