West Moor - Tue 15 May

I made a fairly early start this morning with Tristan and we drove up to the other side of Creech St Michael near Taunton and a look over West Moor. I had some excellent directions posted by Brian Hill on the SOS website but as I was concerned about keeping Tristan out of the wind I actually managed to head north and not east so missed the target bird, a White Stork! However, the flooded fields contained several hundred gulls including an Iceland Gull. A small flock of waders consisted of some Dunlin and Ringed Plovers, though being distant I could not get exact numbers. So after about an hour on site we headed back to the car as Tristan started getting a bit grumpy. I drove back home "cross-country" for a bit of a change and as I stopped at a junction a Lesser Whitethroat was singing from a hedge alongside the road...so not a completely wasted trip.

After a busy day I decided to try again early evening and drove back up to West Moor to try again. This time I made sure I followed the directions to the letter and after a half mile walk I located the White Stork in a large field.

I then took the opportunity of checking the flooded fields again and this time the wader flock came much closer and I was able to count twenty-one Dunlin and five Ringed Plovers. At least three Wheatears were also seen and another surprise came in the form of a Barnacle Goose which flew in and bathed before flying off again.

So a very successful second visit to the Somerset Levels this evening and another year tick!