August's total ended on the joint highest, along with last years, an excellent 70 species were seen. However not one of them was new to the 8 year combined August total, which remains at 77, the second lowest combined monthly species total, only November is worse with 75. This is despite all those passage migrant species that passed through. August has the 4th highest mean monthly total of species recorded of 64.4, so the figures suggest more can be found in August!
Any way back to today, and it was also back to work. A quick scan of the tall hedge at migrant alley, on the way through gave me a good species for september, a REED WARBLER. The recording of this species on my patch has been phenomenal this year, to think some Autumns I have not seen one at all! A more common bird, but not at this time of the year, was also seen - a SWIFT, the last was seen on Aug. 1st. I thought this species had long gone now, and the next sighting would be next spring, this is just the second Sept. Swift record in the 8 years of watching my patch.
No Wheatear, Whinchat or Yellow Wagtails were seen on my walk in, or indeed on my afternoon patch visit. The wind had increased, and was making things very difficult to hear, also a few blustery showers went through making things more frustrating. A few birds were put on the sept. list though - TREECREEPER, KESTREL, STOCKDOVE, SKYLARK, LINNET, GREEN and GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKERS, also HERRING and LESSER BLCK BACKED GULL, as well as a dozen more common species.
I didn't get any photo's this afternoon, except of these two Tit species at my garden feeders. I recorded a CHIFFCHAFF in the garden as well, the first one this year, the 29th species to enter the garden for 2009.
Below is the GREAT TIT
and the BLUE TIT, they have almost finished thier moulting now, and will get much more colouful as the autumn progresses.
9 comments:
Wow Warren, your list is amazing, I only saw 12 species today! That is nice for a day walk now in Iceland. Tomorrow I will try to see the female smew that is turning around Reykjavik, although nobody really know where she is now!
I am always amazed at how similar your birds are to some of those we have. Our black capped chickadee looks a lot like you birds featured today.
Thanks for visiting my birds blog.
Hi Warren.
Nice going for August. 70 is a very respectable count for any local patch.Good luck with September.
I would be pleased with any of your daily sightings! Good luck for the September tally and I liked the photos, I know it's not 'serious birder' talk but the Great Tits always look like they are wearing bowler hats :)
Like Abe said, the great tit looks like a black-capped chickadee found in the US. Both tits are cute little buggars. Good luck on beating your previous Sept. list!
If I didn't know better, I would think I was looking at a chickadee in the first photo. I wish I could keep track of things the way you do. I can barely remember to make it through the day!! Good luck meeting the new goal!
Nice one, Warren. That Swift might just be in your favour for Septembers tally.
Hi Warren,
You know what.... I GOT it, I got it.... Species number 85 for the year is the SMEW.... It was still seating on the pond this morning but too foggy and too far to get a nice shot. So I will go back after lunch, hoping to get a nice shot.... And you know what more, this is a new species for me!! I had never seen it before! wow what a great morning it was!
Warren: That Chiffchaff looks like our Chicadee. They must be realted.
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