Lower Ure Conservation Trust
Nosterfield Bird Review September 2024
by Andrew (Andy) M Hanby
Hobby Matthew Cormack
The first day of September presented some overhead movement, with two Greenshank heading south-west and three Ruff and 96 Swallow moving north-east. A few warblers including three Cetti’s Warblers were documented and three Egyptian Geese were present at the start of a three day stay. Probably most notable and heartening was another sighting of Tree Sparrow….
Egyptian Goose Tim Jones
The next day both Little Stint and Bittern were seen. These, along with regular sightings of up to three Hobby were thematic for the month. Little Stints peaked at three on 5th, with the last of the month on 14th. Often two Bittern were seen and on 16th, three! Successful breeding seems likely to have occurred, but was not proven
Little Stint Tim Jones
The first sighting of Garganey occurred on 3rd (with subsequent observations on 12 dates until 30th), but more notable for us was a brief visit by six Little Gulls to Flasks Lake.
I confess my own acceleration from excited to blasé about some species does cause me some introspection and this can be said about Great White Egret, with two birds making a one day visit on 4th and again on 25th. I’m not sure when the first record occurred, but in 2021 this species was seen on seven dates, with a peak of just one individual. By the end of September 2024, birds had been seen on 67 days, with up to four present on several days. It is easy to see why it is rapidly falling off the list of birds requiring descriptions. At Rutland Water counts of over 100 have occurred on a single day in September, which gives some idea of the trajectory we are also on!
Unfortunately, warblers are generally not diligently looked for and counted in autumn, as rival excitements on the mud and water distract from rummaging around in the bushes. It was therefore encouraging to have a count of seven Chiffchaffs from one observer on 6th. This was from a regular count walk he does, a method worth recommending to others and given the size of the route, one could easily extrapolate to a whole recording area tally exceeding 40 birds.
The fanfare of autumn was sounded overhead by Pink-footed Geese moving south on 10th. The next day, in with the general build-up of Lesser Black-backed Gulls, was the first of probably three different Caspian Gulls on Flasks Lake. Two were present on 12th, as well as a peak of 800 Lesser Black-backs and a one day visit by a solitary Black Tern.
Caspian Gull Tim Jones
Generally, our local breeding Avocets are gone by mid-July, so three feeding on Flasks Lake on 14th represented migrant individuals.
Avocets Tim Jones
A single Spotted Flycatcher on 16th was the only one of the month. Things then calmed down for a while, with an easterly airflow bringing excitement to the Yorkshire coast and disappointment to landlocked birders averse to long drives. This weather did, however, lead to arrivals of Bramblings throughout the county and the Nosterfield recording area got its share with five in a garden in Well on 22nd.
By 23rd, the autumnal duck build-up was well underway, with nine Pintail and 113 Teal. Some wader action was also notable, with a Knot on Flasks Lake and a count of 23 Snipe.
Knot Tim Jones
A count of six Red Kite on 25th was highest of the year and potentially indicative of local breeding success. Also present were Wheatear, Stonechat, Yellow Wagtail and two Whooper Swans. A count of six Jay was reported, and it is worth noting that there are hints of a Jay irruption occurring, with higher than usual numbers at visible migration sites.
On 27th a Spotted Redshank was seen by one observer on the Reserve and on 30th, an Arctic Tern made an appearance.
Green Woodpecker Dave Ward