AUTUMN SUNSHINE

Sunshine for most of the day on Wednesday 30th saw this late peacock butterfly soak up some of the warmth on the side of an old pillbox at the country park. Also seen was a small tortoiseshell flying over the car park and also a common darter on the wing.

This cormorant had its wings stretched out whilst on the beach at the Point. Four sanderling were seen here and a short while later 25 were on the mud in front of the cliff.
Small birds at the Point included rock pipit, 8 reed buntings and 30 linnets.

The morning high tide saw a mixed flock of waders roosting on the saltmarsh pools near the Golfhouse. In this picture above are grey plover, dunlin, bar-tailed godwit, knot and turnstone.

A handful of black-tailed godwits have been feeding in the small pond-field in front of the hide, making the most of the boggy ground. In the nearby main field 500 black-wits were roosting during high tide along with 300 redshank and 20 snipe.
The pale-bellied brent goose was back in the fields along with 500 dark-bellied brent. Ten little egrets roosted in the trees.

A chiffchaff called from trees near the pond, a female blackcap was feeding on berries in a hedge and five lesser redpolls landed in some alders by the pond to feed.

At the beginning of the day 400+ immigrant wood pigeons in several flocks were flying high westwards over the Island.

On Tuesday 29th a lone swallow flew around the park pond and fields at the end of the afternoon. A sparrowhawk passed low in front of the hide and perched in a nearby tree at dusk. Seventy mallard, six gadwall, three tufted duck and 15 shoveler were on the pond, while four redwing flew overhead.