30th April 2008

Late morning to mid afternoon (11am - 3.30pm) and gullwatch (7.05-8.15pm)
Highlights
Hobby and 2 Buzzards over Stewartby Lake, Common Sandpiper near Gullwatch in afternoon
gullwatch (7.05-8.15pm)
c.10 Common Terns on Stewartby Lake, 21+ Pied Wagtails on Sailing Club lawn
Common Sandpiper nearby

29th April 2008

Most of day (5.55am - 3.45pm)

Highlights

(morning)

5 Common Terns at gullwatch (5.55am)

2 Cuckoos, Skylark and " Turtle Doves - Wetland 2

(afternoon)

Hobby over Visitors Centre, Mistle Thrush and c50 Starlings nearby

Reed Warbler at Marston Corner of Stewartby Lake

2+ Buzzards over Rookery

c.60 Swallows, 2+ House Martins at sewage works

Mistle Thrush in front of Visitor's Centre

28th April 2008

Most of day (8am - 5.45pm)
Highlights
2 Common terns on Stewartby Lake
Pair of Bullfinches at Pillinge
Several Common Whitethroats at Marston Corner
2 Ruddy Duck and 3 Teal on Wetland 3
3+ Hobbies and 2+ Buzzards over Rookery

Common Whitethroat singing at Marston Corner of Stewartby Lake

Common Buzzard near Pillinge.Mute Swan by Visitor's Centre

27th April 2008

Late morning - 4.30pm, then gullwatch 7.10-8.40pm.

Highlights

(morning)

2 Swifts over gullwatch

Sparrowhawk over visitors centre

(afternoon)

c.20 Swifts over Pillinge and Cuckoo nearby

3 Hobbies and 1 Buzzard over Rookery

Water Rail heard - Wetland 9

c.6 Common Terns on Stewartby Lake

Gullwatch (7.10-8.40pm)

1 Bullfinch in flight, probably a male.

Green Woodpecker

Buzzard

c. 6 Common Terns, 3 Black-headed Gulls and c.6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Cuckoo - near Pillinge..

26th April 2008

Most of day (5.50am - 3.40pm, then gullwatch 7.10pm - 8.40pm)
Highlights
(morning)
Just missed Little Tern, Sandwich Tern and Bar-tailed Godwit seen by Andy Plumb at first light..
Turtle Dove, Garden Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat and Green Woodpecker - Marston Corner
Pochard and Buzzard over the Pillinge
(afternoon)
Weasel and Cuckoo - Wetland 9 corner of Pillinge

Male and female Wheatear - Long Meadow
Willow Warbler - near Visitor's Centre

Gullwatch - 7.10-8.40pm
c.8 Common Terns and 40-50 mixed Herring Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls
Weasel - Wetland 9 corner of Pillinge
Garden Warbler - Marston Corner of Stewartby Lake


Pair of Wheatears - Long MeadowJackdaw - Long MeadowWillow Warbler - near Visitor's Centre

25th April 2008

Gullwatch (10am-12.30pm)
2-3 Buzzards over Rookery and c.6 Common Terns
Visitors Centre (3.30pm) - Pillinge - Gullwatch (6.30-8pm)
Cuckoo over centre
No sign of yesterdays Wood Warbler
2 Common Gulls and c6 Common Terns on Stewartby Lake in evening, Green Woodpecker heard and Great Spotted Woodpecker seen.

24th April 2008

Most of day (6.40am - 4pm, then gullwatch 7-8pm)

Highlights

(morning)

Lesser Whitethroat (heard), 1 Redshank and 1 Common Sandpiper - Pillinge

Turtle Dove - sewage works

(afternoon)

Male Wheatear and male Whinchat - Long Meadow

WOOD WARBLER - picked up on call by Roy Nye as we walked between the two wetland hides. (Well done Roy!)

Lesser Whitethroat - Sewage works

Gullwatch (7-8pm)

Another SANDWICH TERN - Seen on buoy in centre of lake for a couple of minutes and then flew off high over chimneys..

Wood Warbler near Pillinge hide..
Wood Warbler near Pillinge hide.. again..
Sandwich Tern - two very poor distant records shots..

Male Whinchat - Long Meadow.

Turtle Dove near the sewage works

23rd April 2008

Most of day (Wetland 1 5.40 - 9.30am, Pillinge - Visitors Centre -Stewartby Lake 9.30am- 2pm, Pillinge again and then gullwatch 4.10pm -6pm)

Highlights

(morning)

No sign of any small or dark herons around Wetland 1.. :-(

Hobby, Cuckoo, RL Partridge, House Sparrow, Grasshopper Warbler heard and Pochard (in flight) all in Wetland 1 /2 area.

(afternoon)

3 Common Sandpipers on Pillinge and Stock Dove flew over.

1 Peregrine circling behind chimneys

Hobby over Pillinge

Stoat attacking a Rabbit (unsuccessfully) near sewage works

Sandwich Tern! - found about 4.15pm sitting on buoy in Marston corner of Stewartby Lake, fortunately it stayed around long enough for a good number of Beds Birders to catch up with it..

Sandwich Tern on Stewartby Lake..

22nd April 2008

Most of day (10am - 8.20pm)
Highlights
(morning)
Grasshopper Warbler heard near visitors centre
Pochard over Pillinge, also Green Woodpecker and 1 Redshank there

(afternoon)
female Blackcap at gullwatch
2-3 Buzzards over Rookery and Kestrel
Short-eared Owl and Barn Owl (Wetland 1)
2+ Chinese Water Deer and 3 brief views of an apparently dark and small looking heron.. (also Wetland 1).


Female Blackcap at gullwatch.



Peacock butterfly.

Coot by visitors centre.

Reed Bunting near boardwalk.

21st April 2008

Most of day (6.15am - 5.15pm)
Highlights
(morning)
1 Ad Little Gull (6.30-6.40am)
Short-eared Owl (in field near sewage works) on ground for over at hour at a range of about 300-400m), also Meadow Pipit in field.
1 Common Sandpiper on Pillinge and male Pheasant.


(afternoon)
2 Bullfinch (sewage works)
Imm Glaucous Gull on Stewartby Lake again
Sparrowhawk over visitors centre
2+ Buzzards over Rookery from gullwatch.

Very distant photos of Short-eared Owl near Sewage works.

Swallow and Sand Martin at Sewage Works

Unusually tame Rabbit at Pillinge.

20th April 2008

Gullwatch only (9am - 12 noon and 2.30pm - 6pm)

Highlights

(morning)

Summer Plum Dunlin flew past gullwatch at 11.50am, 1 female Goldeneye, and Imm Glaucous Gull flew past towards tip at 11.35am

(afternoon)

7 Little Gulls (6 Adults and 1 1st year) (2.30-2.35pm)

2 Shelduck flew over (3.45pm)

Several Common Terns and 1 Arctic Tern.

Partly of 7 Little Gull, Stewartby Lake (2.30-2.35pm)

19th April 2008

Full day on park. (6.45am-8.05pm)


Highlights:

(morning)
2 Shelduck flew over the sailing clubhouse
1 Common Tern on Stewartby Lake
Male Wheatear at back of lawn in-front of visitors centre
1 Snipe on Pillinge and I Male Shoveler flew over
Immature Glaucous Gull on Stewartby Lake (11.20am)

(afternoon)
1 Yellow Wagtail at sewage works at noon and again at 2pm with all 3 hirundines
Same Imm Glaucous Gull in roost and 5 Common Terns on Stewartby Lake

Male Wheatear on lawn near visitors centre.

Immature Glaucous Gull on Stewartby Lake (11.20am and later in roost)

Yellow Wagtail at Sewage works (12 noon and 2pm)

Swallow at sewage works (noon).

13th April 2008

A few hours (11.15am-3.30pm) spent walking from the visitors centre to the Marston corner, via the pillinge and Stewartby Lake. Nothing particularly unusual seen with a Buzzard and a few Brimstone butterflies near the pillinge and small parties of hirundines being the "highlights"..

5 Swallows and a Sand Martin by the sewage works between rain showers..

12th April 2008

A pretty much full day around the Country Park, starting with a walk from the gullwatch (6.10am) to the visitors centre. At least 8 Willow Warblers were singing between the Marston Corner and the centre with a similar number of Chiffchaffs. A pair of Redshank were on the lawn in front of the centre briefly and there were 5 or 6 Linnets in the car park. Met up with the guided walk at 7.40am and we went to the sewage works, Stewartby lake and around the pillinge arriving back about 11am. Good scope views of a few of the Willow Warblers were obtained, reasonable numbers of Swallows and House Martins were seen over the sewage works and Stewartby lake, a pair of Teal flew in to Wetland 9 but a probable Osprey, seen only by one of the participants on the walk, would have been the highlight if only it had hung around.. After some lunch at the centre I walked to Millbrook station via the pillinge arrived at the station about 2.30pm. I then spend from 5.50pm to 7pm at the gullwatch but there as very little in the way of bird activity.

Rainclouds over the clubhouse in the early evening.

11th April 2008

An evening visit (6.30-8.05pm) to the wetland 1 area, no sign of the hoped for Barn or Short-eared Owls, but 2 or 3 Chinese Water Deer seen distantly.