Lesser Black Backed Gulls.

A group of 137 L.B.B.Gulls were at Thornton on the 21st, with a single Herring gull.

It is quite unusual for us to get many large gulls ,so this raised the expectations that a rare gull might be amongst them. No luck , but I shall persevere.

First WEBS count.

I completed the September WEBS count today with Dave. There were 250 Mallard, 70 Tufted and 75 Coot. Afew Wigeon ,Teal and a single Gadwall completed a rather disappointing tally, with the disappearance of the 3 Red crested Pochard adding to the gloom. Dave did manage to raise spirits with a late Swift, the ten year average being September 20th. Other sightings today included 2 Ravens, Willow tit, and at least 30 Tree sparrow at the feeder at the top end. I have not seen as many as this for several years.

Adult Autumn Arctic.

Adult autumn Arctic Tern at Thornton since the 12th.

Good views from Stoney bank allowed the red bill to be clearly seen to aid the ageing process.
Very well demarcated but narrow black edgeing to the primaries.

Arctic tern with Markfield church in the background.

The three R.C.P. are still present and gull numbers are increasing ,with 2 Lesser B.B. with the 70 plus B.H. gulls. A Hobby was chasing hirundines on the 12th and 2 Ravens flew over to the north.

R.C.P. at last!

At last I have caught up with Red Crested Pochard at Thornton, so Russ and Dave can no longer grip me off! Three eclipse males were present on the 5th and looking settled on the 6th.

These photos are my first attempt at digiscoping, taking photos through a telescope. There is plenty of room for improvement. Other duck included 6 Teal and 2 Wigeon. There were also 300 Canada geese and 2 Hobbys chasing the hirundines.