Sutton Bingham - Sun 31 Dec

Well having not visited the reservoir much recently due to other commitments, moving house and work taking up far too much time, I did pop up to Sutton Bingham today to see if I could add any last minute year ticks, I couldn't. The "best" birds on offer were a pair of Gadwall off the northern causeway, nothing else of note at all today. The Wigeon flock was at the southern end and numbered just thirty-two birds, I guess floods on the Somerset Levels mean there are less wildfowl elsewhere.

So 2023 finishes with a whimper, it's been a terribly poor Autumn and early Winter on the patch with just eight species added in the second half of the year, my worst ever return for that time period. That being said, I added a new bird to the patch list, with the Forster's Tern back in April and also had just my second Pied Flycatcher and Wood Warbler for the patch, throw in a couple of rare raptors with Honey Buzzard and Goshawk and it makes for a decent year in parts. I did have some gaping holes in the list this year having missed Kestrel, Whinchat and Yellow Wagtail amongst others (eleven species missed in total this year that other observers had seen).

So that's it for another year, and it will all start again tomorrow. Happy New Year to you all and I wish you a prosperous and joy-filled 2024.

Sutton Bingham year list for 2023 now at 116 species.

Sutton Bingham - Mon 11 Dec

A quick stop on the way home form work in what now seems to be typically dismal weather produced two Cattle Egrets roosting in trees below the car park and viewable form the northern causeway. Amazing that what was once a very rare visitor to the school (my first was only in 2020) is now becoming fairly regular, but I guess it's not that surprising given the massive increase in numbers in Somerset over recent years.

Sutton Bingham - Thu 7 Dec

I suppose I should apologise for the lack of Blog postings over the past month, but it's simply down to the fact that I've not had much opportunity to visit the reservoir and when I have there has been nothing of note to see. November was a terribly quiet month for me, with occasional sightings of a Common Sandpiper and the long-staying pair of Egyptian Geese being about it.
My first December visit, in pouring rain, did turn up a real patch scarcity today though, with a drake Goldeneye present at the northern end. Get this for a record photo:

I've seen very few Goldeneye at Sutton Bingham, this being just my fourth (and second drake), so it was a real joy to find it.
Sutton Bingham year for 2023 now at 116 species.

Sutton Bingham - Sun 5 Nov

A quick visit last Thursday produced a pair of Egyptian Geese and they were still present today, loafing off the northern causeway.

It's been a good year for Egyptian Geese at Sutton Bingham, with these bringing the total number seen on patch up thirteen birds.
Also present this afternoon, a Common Sandpiper in the north-east corner and a Stonechat was also seen. At the southern end there were thirty-two Wigeon.

Sutton Bingham - Sun 29 Oct

A late visit today and again it was terribly quiet with very few birds. Wigeon numbers had dropped to just ten from yesterday's thirty-eight and four Teal were at the southern end. A lone Stonechat was present and finally a glimmer of excitement as two Cattle Egrets flew in from the east, over the dam, and towards the car park with a Little Egret just as I was about to give it up for the day.

This ended up being my final visit of the month to the reservoir and considering October is one of the best months for migration I failed to add a single species to my year list which after a great first half of 2023 has really dried up. Here's hoping the final two months of the year turn up a few new birds.

Sutton Bingham - Sat 28 Oct

I popped in to the reservoir for about half an hour this morning and it was rubbish, nothing of note at all until I got round to the Fishing Lodge where I saw a Common Sandpiper, at last, something to look at. I then checked the dam where, to my surprise, there was a Redshank! Just my second in what has been a terrible year for waders on patch.

There were also thirty-eight Wigeon present.

Sutton Bingham - Sat 22 Oct

Back on patch today after a week away and I started off at the southern end where there were six Teal, four Wigeon and a Gadwall present. I then took a walk round to Cotton Bridge and spent a fair bit of time scouring a feeding flock of small birds but failed to find anything out of the ordinary, with half a dozen Chiffchaffs and a couple of Goldcrests being the only notable birds. A Stonechat was also seen as were my first Redwings of the Autumn. Overhead I had a Siskin and a Skylark. So although a few birds were seen today, again, there was nothing new for the year list.