Otmoor 30th April

Apologies for the poor quality it was a long way away.

Temminck's Stint still present at 19:40 at least on large pool on Big Otmoor viewable from the
bridleway although distant (Badger, Wickster, Pete Roby).

Originally reported on RBA this afternoon.

Farmoor: pm 30th April

Bonaparte's Gull still this afternoon
10 Yellow Wagtail
11 Dunlin
2 Cuckoo
8 Swift
3 Arctic Tern
2 Black Tern over F2
3 Turnstone
Winchat
Common Sandpiper

Jim Hutchins & Will Langdon

Dix Pit & Linkey Down: Saturday 29th April

These are pictures from yesterday, Saturday. Apologies for the late posting - we were doing a Big Day!

Top 3 pictures, 1st winter Little Gull at Dix Pit. Also another, or the same bird, at Rushy Common.

Bottom picture, male Ring Ouzel at Linkey Down (honest!). The full write up of the day is here. 

Tom Bedford, Andy Last, Dave Lowe. 

Grimsbury Reservoir: 30th April

5 Arctic Terns, through early AM
5 Black Tern, short time late evening
2 Common Terns, through mid morning
Hobby
Common Sandpiper
Little Ringed Plover

Upper Cherwell Valley

2 Whinchats
Wheatear
Common Sandpiper (probably the same as above)

per JFT, GB, CW

Standlake Pit 60: 30th April

Standlake Pit 60
5 Common Tern: two courting pairs and a single. From c4 15 pm to 6 - 00pm.

Mick Cunningham

Marcham: Marcham Mill: 30th April

Marcham: Marcham Mill
Hobby: Flew North.
2 Grey Partridge

Jed Cleeter

Otmoor 30 April pm

Little Egret from 1st screen

Wheatear at Noke

Skylark at Noke

Cholsey: 30th April

Cholsey
Reed Warbler: SU598854. 16:30.

Suzanne Parrott

Otmoor: 30th April

Sanderling- 1 feeding in the centre of Big Otmoor early afternoon.
3 Ringed plover- Big Otmoor

Otmoor.A.M. 30th April.

Wheatear.

4 Hobby
1 Green Sandpiper
4 Wheatear
2 Whinchat
1 Shelduck
2 Little-ringed Plover
4 Dunlin
1 Hen Harrier

30th April Farmoor

Bar-tailed Godwit
3 Turnstone
2 Black Tern

all on RBA this morning

No sign of the Bonaparte's Gull by early afternoon (Badger)

Rushy Common 30th of April 10am

Little Gull (Second calendar year)
Black-Tailed Godwit
3 Little-Ringed Plover
No sign of Wood Sandpiper

(Per Owen Crawshaw)

Shelduck 2
Red-crested Pochard 2
Oystercatcher 4
Common Sandpiper

(Badger)

Stonesfield: Stonesfield Common: 29th April

Courtesy of Wreny Stonesfield: Stonesfield Common
Whinchat: male.

Paul Wren

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor I: 29th April

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor I
Common Sandpiper 10:15.

Farmoor Reservoir: Pinkhill
Cuckoo: male. 09:00.

Matthew Southwell

Wantage: 29th April

Wantage
Peregrine: male.

Jed Cleeter

Kingston Lisle: 29th April

Kingston Lisle
Hobby: Flew North.
2 Curlew: Flew South together.

Jed Cleeter

Rushy Common 29 April

Bonaparte's Gull 1st year (the Farmoor bird?) 18.15-18.20, then again from 7pm. Edit: photos confirm this was the Farmoor bird.
Wood Sandpiper 1, from viewing screen

Farmoor Reservoir: Pinkhill: 29th April

Farmoor Reservoir: Pinkhill
2 Cuckoo: 2 together, one calling.

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor I
2 Dunlin
3 Common Sandpiper
4 Yellow Wagtail: at least 4.

Anthony Cheke

Rushey Common lake, 29th April

Wood Sandpiper still present 3.50 ( well done team Roby !)
Cuckoo
Little Ringed Plover
Common Sandpiper

Clackers & Mrs Clackers

Rushy Common 29th April

Wood Sandpiper

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Farmoor April 29th

Osprey      F2

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Farmoor Reservoir 29th April

BONAPARTE'S GULL 1st summer F2 this morning (per RBA)

Grove: 28th April

Grove
2 Raven: Pair on territory as last year, one actively mobbing buzzard.

Anthony Cheke

Devil's Punchbowl: 29th April

Devil's Punchbowl
2 Stonechat: 1m 1f.
2 Corn Bunting

Colin Vickers

Oxon Big Day 29th April

Good luck to the three teams competing in the Oxon Big Day tomorrow, 'The Greylags'
'The Acronaughts' and 'The Biffin Boys'
if you see them say hello and let them know what you've seen as it all counts!
Apologies to all who have contacted me or have sent photos over the past few weeks, I've been away.

Cholsey Meadows 28 April

Ring Ouzel still present at c. 17:45 - 18:00 around the ponds at about SU600859

Ring Ouzel (c) Stephen Burch

Otmoor: 28th April

Otmoor
Hen Harrier: ringtail. See @MickgCunningham for duff phone scope. 18:30.

Mick Cunningham

Port Meadow: 27th April

Port Meadow
Yellow Wagtail

Martin Frend

Farmoor: 28th April

Goosander, F2 south

Bonaparte's Gull, still present F2 (photo from 25th April)

Little Egrets, F2 above reed bed raft

One of several Common Sandpipers, F2 south

: 28th April

Farmoor Reservoir causeway
6 Dunlin: Five in group on one side, further individual on other side. Feeding mostly out of the water, with occasional dashes into the shallows. Running along edge in a tight group. SP445064. 14:00.

Suzanne Parrott

Farmoor Reservoir: 28th April

28th April

Farmoor Reservoir
3 Common Sandpiper: Two seen together on causeway and F1. Third individual seen on F1. SP444064.
2 Yellow Wagtail: With pied wagtails on causeway. SP444064. 14:00.

Suzanne Parrott

Rushey Common lake, 28th April

Green Sandpiper
Common Sandpiper 2
Shelduck 2
Little Ringed Plover 2
Common Tern

Clackers & Mrs Clackers

Otmoor: 28th April

In addition to below

Whimbrel and Bittern at Malt Pit
Osprey over the reserve at 07:30 heading North
Ringtail Hen harrier hunting over Flood and Greenaways
4 drake Wigeon on Big Otmoor

Otmoor.A.M. 28th April.

1 Bittern (Greenaways)
2+ Hobby
4 Little Egret
1 Wheatear (Greenaways)
1 Peregrine
3 Marsh Harrier.

Farmoor Reservoir: 28th April

Farmoor Reservoir
Bonaparte's Gull: Flew past yacht club towards bus stop.

Mick Cunningham

Banbury: 27th April

Wood Warbler still in Spiceball Park c50m south of the northern wooden footbridge over the river, in small copse with a bark-covered path on the east side of river, about here

The bird sings from time to time but can go quiet for a while. It seems fairly faithful to a small area of the copse so if you can't hear it then it's worth just peering up into the canopy to look for it.

Still present 18:20 this evening

per John Friendship-Taylor, Wrenny & Gnome

Otmoor Thursday 27 April am

4 Hobby (Greenaways)
2 Curlew
2 Little Egret
4 Oystercatcher
1 Water Rail (2nd screen)
1 Little Grebe
3 Cuckoo
2 Marsh Harrier (with nesting material)
3 Snipe (drumming)
10 out of 10 warblers

Sedgie

Lesser Whitethroat

Cholsey: 27th April

Cholsey
Ring Ouzel: male. still present and showing well around the drained ponds in Cholsey Meadows estate. SU598859. 08:30.

Michael Pocock

: 27th April

Shenington Airfield
2 Wheatear: male, fem. SP367432. 08:00.

Steve Holliday

Farmoor 27th April

Bonaparte's Gull still present near the pontoon on F2

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Stanton St. John: Stanton Great Wood: 27th April

Stanton St. John: Stanton Great Wood
Cuckoo: One calling in Stanton Great Wood, my first of the year. 05:20.

David Brown

Banbury 26th April

Spiceball Country Park 1530-1630hrs

Wood Warbler 1m

Occasionally singing and calling in the copse with woodchip track running through it east of northern footbridge that crosses the river

 

 

Banbury: 26th April

Banbury
Wood Warbler: Still, in Spiceball park showing well and singing regularly near northern footbridge in copse on east side of river. 12:30.  per John Friendship-Taylor

Still present: very vocal and showing well at 6 p.m. per Gareth Blockley

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor II: 26th April

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor II
Bonaparte's Gull: On raft and flying around with A.A R.S. And 7 others some from Berkshire. 10:55.
4 Common Sandpiper 10:55.

Ralph Watts

Standlake Pit 60: AM 25th April

4 Little Ringed plover
3 Common Sandpiper
2 Oystercatcher

Redshank

Spiceball Park

Wood Warbler still at 2.45pm but not singing

Farmoor: Weds 26th, am.

1st/s Bonaparte's Gull S side F2
Little Tern 8am per Dai
8 Artic Tern,
"Channel" Wag, Causeway,
6 Common Sands.

Richard's Pipit: Lollingdon Hill 24th Apr

As requested a couple of pics of the Richard's Pipit on Lollingdon Hill.

see Richard's Pipit account

Banbury 26th April

A WOOD WARBLER has been found singing in Banbury in Spiceball Park near the northern footbridge over the river on the west side. Found at 06:45 and still singing at 07:25

per Colin Wilkinson and Gareth Blockley

Wood Warbler courtesy of Colin Wilkinson

Risinghurst, Headington 24th April.

Belated report of 6 Waxwing outside local house on 24th April a.m. Waxwing were seen here 2 or 3 years ago in the same garden by me.

Farmoor: pm 25th April

In addition to postings below

Winchat
Channel Wagtail

Channel Wagtail

Otmoor: am 25th April

In addition to posting below

Winchat (Noke)
3 Grasshopper warblers ( 2 near car park, 1 showing well on path to first screen)

Sedge Warbler

Common Whitethroat

Lesser Whitethroat

Bicester Wetlands

Swift 2 flew through in heavy shower

Farmoor. Afternoon. 25th.April.

Little Tern.  Southern edge of F. 2.  Flying (in company with Bonaparte's Gull).  3.30.pm.

Per. Dai.

Lollingdon Hill. 24th. April.

RICHARD'S PIPIT yesterday, 11.15 - 11.30.am. at Lollingdon Hill. Then flew off over hill.

per Paul Chandler

See his blog for details

Otmoor: 25th April

3 separate Cuckoos along the bridleway

Common sandpiper and Black-tailed godwit on Big Otmoor

3 Hobbies over Greenaways

3 Wheatear in the sheep fields at Noke

4 Yellow wagtails feeding along the reedbed bund

Rushey Common lake/ Farmoor, 25th April

Rushey Common lake

CommonSandpiper 2
Green Sandpiper
Ringed Plover 2
Little Ringed Plover
Little Gull
Wheatear
Shelduck
Good numbers of Sand Martins , Swallows, + few House Martins

Farmoor

Yellow Wagtails 6 on slope to offices f1
Bonapartes Gull  between bus shelter and boat platforms


Clackers

Cholsey

2 Ring Ouzel: 1 Lollingdon (PC) and 1 Cholsey Meadows (TW).

Harwell Lab: 25th Apr

2 Ring Ouzels this morning; no general access.

...and a proper photo! Courtesy and copyright of Stephen Collier

Standlake Pit 60: 24th April

Standlake Pit 60
5 Yellow Wagtail: in front 0f N Hide. Begining to wonder if there's not a roost of wags in the reeds here. 20:00.
Cuckoo: m. singing a lot. 20:00.

Mick Cunningham

Standlake: 24th April

Standlake
Cuckoo: m. singing late pm behind rack end. 20:05.

Mick Cunningham

Farmoor 24th April

1330-1500hrs  southern side of Farmoor 2 reservoir

 

Bonaparte's Gull 1
Black Tern 2
Common Tern 14+
Great Black backed Gull 2
Herring Gull 3

Sand Martin 100+
Swallow 10+
Common Swift 1
Common Sandpiper 1

Little Egret 1

 

 

 

Kingston Bagpuize: 24th April

Kingston Bagpuize
Hobby: Fast & low over garden and continued NNE. 19:00.

Jed Cleeter

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor II: 24th April

Farmoor Reservoir: Farmoor II
2 Black Tern 16:30.

Peter Law

Cholsey Marsh: Osprey

a flyover Osprey at 08:20 this morning, continued upriver towards Wallingford. per Tony Williams.

Farmoo 24th April

3 Ringed Plover: 3 brought in by rain landed on causeway. Flew n but possibly still around. 10:30.
Dunlin: Causeway. 13:26.
Curlew: Pair flew w c10 30. 13:26.
Yellow Wagtail: 2m minim causeway. 13:30.
Common Sandpiper: 4 minim causeway. 13:32.
Goosander: ad f. One with dodgy wing still present. 13:33.

Mick Cunningham

Also,
Bonaparte's Gull reported still on RBA at the bus stop on F2

Some superb video footage of our star Gull taken by Paul Wren (c)

Otmoor.A.M. 24th April.

1 Hobby
1 Common Sandpiper
3 Oystercatcher
2 Marsh Harrier (m).

Cuddesdon/Little Milton: 24th April

Female Redstart in hedgerow near the River Thame, approximately half way between Cuddesdon and Little Milton, 10am.

Standlake Common: am 24th April

Pit 60
Male Cuckoo calling from tree on south bank, female then flew in and they immediately mated
2 Little ringed plover
2 Oystercatcher
2 Dunlin
4 Redshank
Garden Warbler

Pit 38
Egyptian Goose

Thames fields
2 Curlew

JD & JDH

Linkey Down 23 April - Ring Ouzel

Male Ring Ouzel at bottom of slope near bushes.

Record shot using phone through bins!

Preston Crowmarsh: 23rd April

Preston Crowmarsh
Swift: Heading South!.

Thomas Stevenson

Fyfield Wick: 23rd April

Fyfield Wick
2 Grey Partridge

Jed Cleeter

Standlake: 23rd April

Standlake
Cuckoo: m. Singing frequently from Hunts Pond area. Possibly 2.
4 Garden Warbler: m. all in song, only 1 seen. Newly in?.
Kingfisher: Flew along R Windrush at bottom of garden (Rack End(. House tick for new house. Same bird seen several times on edge of village . Rather than fly low along roadbrdige, or under it, It vaults skyward over tops of trees and back down to river!.

Mick Cunningham

Aston Upthorpe: Juniper Valley: 23rd April

Aston Upthorpe: Juniper Valley
Curlew: heard calling at south end of valley. 11:30.

Andrew Taylor

Kingston Bagpuize: 23rd April

Kingston Bagpuize
Peregrine: fem. Circled high with Hobby then flew West. 16:40. Hobby: 2nd of the afternoon. Circled very high on a thermal above Peregrine then flew NE. 16:40.
Hobby: Straight over the garden and continued North...nice. 16:07.
Little Gull: Adult circled then flew North. 15:40.
2 Raven: Circling on thermal. 15:40. 

Jed Cleeter

Otmoor 23rd April a.m.

Noke wheatears (c) Bark

10 Wheatears (3 by farm at Noke 7 on sheepfields by Sally's Field)
1 Common Tern
1 Common Sandpiper
3 Marsh Harriers
5+ Groppers including one very obliging one along track to first screen.
2+ Garden Warblers
6+ Golden Plover
1  Blackwit
2 Cuckoos
Drumming Snipe
Booming Bittern

Farmoor - Pinkhill & Pinkhill Reserve: 23 April

 11.15am to 1.30pm
1 male cuckoo - heard calling for some time on other side of Thames, then glimpsed from Pinkhill reserve hide
1 grasshopper warbler - reeling then glimpsed in area between Pinkhill reserve & Pinkhill lock
1+ reed warbler(s) heard from Pinkhill hide
Lots of whitethroats, chiffchaffs & sedge warblers everywhere!
4 common terns heading for the reservoirs

Dix Pit: 23rd April

Dix Pit
7 Reed Warbler: 4 singing 3 seen same time. New in overnight?.
Sedge Warbler: Singing. Inc 3 not here yesterday.

Mick Cunningham

A329 near Moulsford: 23rd April

A329 near Moulsford
Corn Bunting: Male, with atypical song, perched in hawthorns on E edge of grassy-ley. SU5985. 08:40.

Mike Amphlett

Good day out, Big day on foot from home. 47 miles walked or ran! Abingdon, Drayton, Radley, Bagley, cumnor, farmoor, port meadow, otmoor. 101 species.
Highlights
Mostly per blog plus

Radley
Cuckoo

Cumnor
Unseasonal siskin

Farmoor,
3 whimbrel
1 grasshoppers warbler pinkhill

Thank you very much for all who helped today.

Thanks

Tom

Otmoor, Saturday 22 April am

Garden Warbler along the bridleway.

Male blackcap along the bridleway doing a bittern impression.

Radley GP: 22nd April

Radley GP
2 Little Egret: flew off at 17:15.
Common Sandpiper: at Thrupp Lake.
Whitethroat

Ian Elkins

A329 near Moulsford: 22nd April

A329 near Moulsford
2 Grey Partridge: 2 birds flew from cart track directly toward me on Silly bridge, stopped short then foraging on track. Possibly a 3rd bird on t'other side of fence. SU5885. 09:50.

Mike Amphlett

Standlake: 22nd April

Standlake
Garden Warbler: Singing north footpath pit 60. 12:00.
Lesser Whitethroat: Pit 60 singing from adjacent caravan site. 12:00.

Mick Cunningham

Otmoor 22nd April am.

2 Cuckoos
3 Groppers  (1 midway along bridle way to Noke others carpark field)
8 Wheatears (3 in field just beyond Lower Farm 5 in sheepfield west of Sally's Field)
13 Summer plumage Golden Plover Big Otmoor
1 Blackwit also Big Otmoor

Bark

Great Haseley: 22nd April

Typically uncooperative Ring Ouzel (fem) about 200yds Nth of Great Haseley rec.

Also in general area;

Yellow Wagtail
2 Singing Corn Bunts
2 Grey Partridge
Raven

Standlake Common:am 22nd April

Cuckoo (H/O on Thames Fields)

Farmoor Reservoir 22nd April

 

Bonaparte's Gull-Second calendar year



White Wagtail - female

Northern Wheatear-female

 

0800-1015hrs

Bonaparte's Gull 1 2nd calendar year
Yellow legged Gull 1 2nd calendar year
Greater Black backed Gull 1 2nd calendar year
Common Tern 6

Northern Wheatear 1f
White Wagtail 6+
Yellow Wagtail 2
Swallow 2

Common Sandpiper 6+

Rushey Common area, 22nd April

Tar Lakes area
Willow Warbler 2 singing
Sedge Warblers at least 5 singing and displaying

Conveyor Belt lake
Common Tern
Green Woodpecker
Cuckoo in trees back of lake

Rushey Common
Green Sandpipers 3
Common Sandpiper
Little Gull  on sandy island. seems to like this spot

Clackers & Mrs Clackers

Farmoor Reservoir: 22nd April

Farmoor Reservoir
2 Common Sandpiper: on causeway.
2 Dunlin: on causeway.
Wheatear: on east side of F1.
Cuckoo: heard from western end of causeway.

Ian Elkins

Grimsbury Reservoir: 22nd April

Redstart, male (per (Colin Wilkinson)
3 Common Sandpipers
2 Little Ringed Plover
4+ Whitethroat

Farmoor 22nd April

1s Bonaparte's Gull on F2 by the "bus stop" at 9 a.m.

Per RBA

Kingston Bagpuize: 21st April

Kingston Bagpuize
Hobby: Called 3 separate times at 21:55 and sounded like it was heading North....nocturnal migration. 21:55.

Jed Cleeter

A329 near Moulsford: 21st April

A329 near Moulsford
Corn Bunting: Heard only, single burst of song, S beyond Silly bridge. SU5885. 19:20.

Mike Amphlett

Standlake: 21st April

Standlake
Whitethroat: m. singing near Hunts Corner. SP368071.
Kingfisher: River near Rack End. SP368071.

Mick Cunningham

Rushy Common: 21st April

Rushy Common
Whitethroat: male. my first of year. singing - was actually some way past Rushy Common towards Dix Pit. SP395086. 09:45.
Whitethroat: m. first of year for me - singing from roadside. Actually was some way past Rushy Common on Cogges Ln towards Dix. SP395086. 09:45.

Mick Cunningham

Banbury: Hanwell Fields: 20th April

Banbury: Hanwell Fields
Grasshopper Warbler: 1+ Grasshopper Warbler reeling from scrub behind Hanwell Fields estate sports pavilion. 20:00.

Tony Clark

Bicester Wetlands 21st April

Green sandpiper
Little ringed plover
Common snipe (2)
Sand martin (20+)
House martin (50+)
Sedge warbler
Swallow (20+)

Otmoor.A.M. 21st April.

13 Ruff
1 Black-tailed Godwit
2 Oystercatcher
1 Raven (over)
1 Hobby (reported).

Sparsholt: Sparsholt Firs/Tower: 21st April

Sparsholt: Sparsholt Firs/Tower
Yellow Wagtail: By road towards Red Barn.
9 Corn Bunting

Colin Vickers

A329 near Moulsford: 19th April

A329 near Moulsford
2 Grey Partridge: On track from Silly bridge, around 250m out; foraging on edge of cereal crop, then dust-bathing in the cart tracks. (Skylarks all around, but no Wheatears this time). SU5885. 09:30.

Mike Amphlett

20th of April Stratfield Brake

Cetti's Warbler
Whitethroat
Reed Warbler
Sedge Warbler
Willow Warbler
Chiffcahff
Blackcap

Standlake: 20th April

Standlake
Sedge Warbler: Singing from reeds beside Thames.

Mick Cunningham

Standlake Pit 60: 20th April

Standlake Pit 60
2 Reed Warbler: singing.

Mick Cunningham

Farmoor 20th April

 Bonaparte's Gull