Tern Again

What a day, with many additions to the list. An early start with the aim of getting to end of the Central Drove and back. Went through Ferry Meadows on the way hoping to find the rain was forcing down some Little Gulls.

The first new bird was a Common Sandpiper on the shore of Gunwade Lake followed by two more near the Pontoon Bridge. A Garden Warbler singing briefly near Ham Bridge was another tick but there were hardly any gulls, terns or hiundines over the water so I moved quickly on.

131 Common Sandpiper
132 Garden Warbler

The next tick was unexpected. As I got to the end of the Central Drove I distinctly heard two notes that sounded like a Spotted Crake fairly close. However it was in the reedy area, not where I would normally expect a singing bird to be. Subsequently checked with the reserve staf and one had already been detected in that spot last Thursday night so my first instincts were correct.

A few waders were on the Garners flood (but not the Spotted Redshank, Bar-tailed Godwit nor Greenshank of the previous evening) enabling me to finally add Ruff to the list. Amazingly a Curlew flew south over high without stopping (I rarely see these most years).

133 Spotted Crake
134 Ruff

But it didn't end there. Heading back the rain started; much heavier than forecast. I debated whether to return via Orton BP or give Ferry Meadows another go. Surely the weather would force something down. In the end I opted for the shortest route as the conditions were so bad and an excellent choice it turned out to be.

It was virtually impossible to see anything when I got to Overton Lake but I could tell there were many more terns about and one was distinctly smaller. The optics were totally misted up but it was pale so could only be Little or Whiskered. The latter would be an area first but its flight pointed to the former. And so it turned out to be. After a while the rain started to ease, I moved to the more sheltered side of the lake and I was able to see there were two Little Terns. I'd now located 2 Sandwich, 3 Arctic and 2 Little Terns at Ferry Meadows in the space of a few weeks!

At least one Swift over Gunwade as I left was another tick for the day, making six in all.

135 Little Tern
136 Swift

Then it was home to dry out and prepare Sunday lunch after five excellent, if soggy, hours in the field.