Sutton Bingham - Tue 28 Jun

A very quick visit before work this morning produced the first returning Green Sandpiper of the Autumn, feeding at the southern end.

At the opposite end of the reservoir a Common Sandpiper was near the Sailing Club, as were a female Mandarin and four ducklings.

A couple of Black-headed Gulls have been knocking around over the past few days, presumably failed breeders.

The only other sighting of note over the past week was of a juvenile Coot present briefly last Saturday.

Sutton Bingham year list for 2022 now at 98 species.

Sutton Bingham - Tue 21 Jun

I had a little bit of time before work this morning so made a quick stop at the reservoir where a female Mandarin and four well grown ducklings were at the southern end. Any possibility of there being any waders on the mud patch were soon dispelled when I noticed a Red Fox sat there so I drove round to the Fishing Lodge where a Redshank was a new addition to the patch year list.

Alongside the Redshank were a pair of Moorhen with a couple of chicks and two Kingfishers were actively feeding, so I expect they are nesting nearby. I could only find a couple of Little Egrets today compared to the half a dozen that were present at the weekend.

Sutton Bingham year list for 2022 now at 97 species.

Sutton Bingham - Sun 19 Jun

Two visits today starting with an early morning trip where a Common Sandpiper was a new arrival, presumably the first returning bird of the Autumn. A female-type Mandarin was viewable from the northern causeway and a Kingfisher put in a brief appearance.
Returning late morning/early afternoon I walked down the arm and counted a total of six Little Egrets but nothing unusual. I did pick up yet another Red Kite with one passing over fields west of the Canoe Club.

Sutton Bingham - Sat 18 Jun

A walk along the arm at lunchtime today was worthy of a Blog Post simply because I found just the second patch record of the year for Mute Swan with a sub-adult bird present.

Nothing else to report for today though.

Sutton Bingham - Fri 17 Jun

Two quick visits today (following an equally brief stop yesterday evening which produced a Red Kite and a Swift) starting with a morning stop where another Red Kite was noted low over the northern causeway heading south and a Skylark was heard in full song.

Returning after work two Common Terns were a welcome addition to the patch year list, which had been flagging over the past few weeks. The Common Terns were always a little distant as they hawked over the reservoir.

Sutton Bingham year list for 2022 now at 96 species.

Sutton Bingham - Sun 12 Jun

No postings for a couple of weeks and that's simply because I've not seen anything to report (though I have missed three patch year ticks in that time!). I was able to spend three hours at the reservoir today, arriving late morning and staying in to the afternoon during which time I really worked hard but got very little reward. The pick of the birds was a Little Grebe which showed very well off the northern causeway.

Other than that there were five Little Egrets present and I reckon I counted five singing Reed Buntings, so that's an encouraging number for the site. A Reed Warbler was heard in song just briefly and three Skylarks were also singing away.