Meare Heath NR - Tue 18 Aug

A decision to take the day off and a pleasant afternoon to boot so this afternoon I popped up to the Avalon Marshes and a visit to Meare Heath. I made straight for the drained lagoon to try and connect with the Wood Sandpiper that had been present for a day or two, but despite plenty of searching I simply failed to locate it. I did see three Knot, four Green Sandpipers, a Dunlin and a Ringed Plover alongside good numbers of Black-tailed Godwits and Lapwing. A single Snipe was the only other wader seen. A juvenile Peregrine flew through and put some of the waders up, but I couldn't see anything unusual amongst the Lapwings. I also managed to pick out a Garganey amongst the assembled duck.
Whilst checking the lagoon a cyclist passed by and said he had seen an Osprey at Noah's Lake, so off I went and was lucky enough to get to the hide in time to see three fishing attempts, the final one a success and the Osprey flew to a dead tree to enjoy his mid-afternoon snack.

 

Another check of the lagoon on the way back to the car again failed to deliver the much wanted Wood Sandpiper, but a Great White Egret was seen in flight.
UK list for 2015 now at 184 species.