RSPB GREYLAKE – BARROW MUMP – ALLER MOOR – SWELL WOODS – TRANSFER TO YEOVIL JUNCTION STATION
WEATHER: another cold day with light showers and bright sunshine.
There was a slight competitive edge between the two groups that I had over this past week. Group 1 had seen 85 species during their mini-break, they asked me not the find more than that for the second Group. Meanwhile, Group 2 we’re sitting on 78 species this morning and they were determined to catch up with Group 1 and so that is what we attempted to do on this last morning.
After breakfast we loaded up the car with our luggage and set off to visit a few sites before we drove to Yeovil Junction Railway Station. Grey Lake RSPB reserve held a few new species for our list, we hoped that they would waiting for us there!
From the Tree Top hide we scanned the marshes where we could see hundreds of ducks feeding or sleeping or chasing one another around. Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, a few Pintail, Gadwall, Mallard, Canada and Greylag Geese, Grey Heron, Cormorants and a distant Buzzard.
Water Rail - this bird came very close to the hide at GreyLake
A Water Rail delighted the group when it appeared very, very close to the Hide, it gave fantastic views. It took us quite a while to find our first Snipe of the trip there were several feeding or sleeping in the nearby marsh and a little later we found a Kestrel which was also a new bird for the trip. Now the group had seen 80 species, five more to catch up.
Water Rail
At Barrow Mump we had less success, we searched the moorland for Common Cranes, drawing a blank, most of the area was now underwater. We did see some Roe Deer and a few common species in the car park but nothing to write home about.
We drove around to Staith where the River Parratt meanders its way across the moor, the water level was very high. From our vantage point standing on a bridge (the water was barely 2 inches below the bridge) we scanned more open fields. A Common Shelduck sat in a pool of water, we saw Grey Heron, Little and Great Egret, Cormorant, Buzzard and not much else. Even the hedgerows close by were devoid of birds other House Sparrows and Starlings.
a view from Aller Moor of the snow-covered Mendip Hills
a view of the Moor from the Bridge over the River Parratt at Staith
Our very last port of call was the woodland up on the ridge above West Sedgemoor RSPB reserve. We had some success there as we stood watching the bird feeders in the car park. We added two more species to our list in the shape of Marsh Tit and Nuthatch, we also saw Blue, Great, Coal and Long-tailed Tits, Chaffinch and Robin.
a greedy Marsh Tit with its bill full of seeds
As it approach 12 noon we had to move on, leaving the birdwatching behind us, we had seen 82 species that is three short of Group 1, ouch!!! Over the two trip a count of 90 species was achieved, not bad given some inclement weather on two of the days.
After picking up lunch supplies in Langport we drove back to Yeovil and I dropped off the Group at 1pm in good time for the train back to Waterloo.
it was nice to see Fez sitting on my fence waiting for me to come home and to feed him some seeds