April Review

Spring passage Ring Ouzel, courtesy of Badger

Since national emergency measures to counter Covid-19 remained in place throughout April, opportunities to record this peak passage month were limited. But our intrepid local patch walkers and photographers, helped by others who might normally have been active further afield, nonetheless maintained a more than respectable level  of coverage in this log, given the exceptional constraints.

Indeed such was the volume of localised seasonal sightings herein that this review will not go into too much detail concerning regular annual birds. It would be quite a task to adequately summarise it all with place names and dates but thank you to all who contributed. Instead we will attempt to highlight some of the more unusual or "topical" aspects of birding in Oxfordshire this month.

Wood Sandpiper in Port Meadow, courtesy of Joe Wynn
Click on any image to enlarge

Little Ringed Plover, courtesy of Dave Murphy

Of our major sites, Port Meadow was perhaps the most productive under lock-down, as many of its regular watchers live within walking distance. At this time of year the prime interest there is passage waders. What was recorded on the lingering floods broadly reflected sightings in this group from other wetland sites across our county. Little Ringed Plover were prominent amongst the commoner species in a range of locations; as were Black-tailed Godwit, Greenshank, Whimbrel and various others. Scarcer visitors to Port Meadow itself were a Wood Sandpiper on 25th and a Grey Plover on 29th.

Black-tailed Godwit at Bicester Wetland Reserve, courtesy of Alan Peters

Whimbrel at Appleford, courtesy of Badger

Grey Plover in Port Meadow, courtesy of Gnome

Curlew, courtesy of Nick Truby

The bridleway at Otmoor also remained accessible to those able to reach it on foot or by cycling. The stand out waders viewed from there, out on the closed RSPB reserve were possibly two Spotted Redshank on 16th and another on 23rd. Other sightings of note were a Grey Plover (23rd), a Wood Sandpiper (25 & 26th) and a pair of Garganey towards month's end.

Spotted Redshank, courtesy of Peter Barker

Garganey pair, courtesy of Jeremy Dexter

Farmoor Reservoir remained more challenging since passage movements could only be observed from the perimeter fence. Some of the usual Tern migration for which the site is noted was nonetheless recorded there, with Black Terns moving through from 18th and a good count of 10 Arctic Terns on 28th. Others were logged at gravel pit complexes to the west and only the second Black Tern record for Port Meadow this century occurred on 28th. Interest in another spring speciality Little Gull transferred to Radley GPs (17th & 22nd) and Blenheim Lake (23rd). But back at the key migration site of Farmoor, wader passage for instance went largely undocumented.

Tree Pipit, courtesy of Jeremy Dexter

Away from those three centres some less frequently seen passerine migrants were noted by the keenest eyed and eared amongst us in different places from a more typical spring season. With so many birders' attention being focused on their local areas, Tree Pipit for instance were reported (mostly as flyovers or on call) from East Challow, Standlake, Port Meadow, Cutteslowe , Moreton near Thame, Garsington and Nuneham Courtenay between 4th and 16th. In Banbury on 7th one landed in trees outside a local birder's home for just 30 seconds before going on its way. A Water Pipit was logged at Balscote Quarry in north Oxon on 17th.

Ring Ouzel in Burgess Field, courtesy of Gnome

Away from traditional strongholds, Ring Ouzel records came from Radley (6th), Cripley Meadow in Oxford (7th), and Burgess Field Nature Park by Port Meadow to which a particularly confiding individual took a liking between 14th and 21st. Sightings in more usual locations were on the Chilterns escarpment (10th) and Lollingdon Hill (20th & 21st). That's not a bad tally.

Video courtesy of Badger

Amongst other passerines in transit, a Pied Flycatcher filmed at Appleford on 13th was perhaps one of the more prized items for migration watchers. Another was encountered by the Thames in Oxford a day earlier. Within the city boundary singing Nightingale were also heard in Iffley Meadows on 11th and Shotover Common on 21st. Northern Wheatear, Common Redstart and Whinchat all featured from various places. And that traditional harbinger of spring the Cuckoo was reported widely from 10th onward.

Recording of the Shotover Nightingale, courtesy of Isaac West 

Cuckoo, courtesy of Mark Chivers

From mid-month all 10 regular Warblers were being seen and heard around our county. Am I not alone in thinking there seem to be larger than typical numbers of newly arrived migrants such as Warblers enlivening the countryside at present? So could it be that in the present climate there are fewer hunters out slaughtering migrant birds en masse over southern Europe this season and so more are reaching us?

Common Whitethroat, courtesy of Nick Truby

Sedge Warbler, courtesy of Alan Dawson

Willow Warbler, courtesy of Jim Hutchins

Grasshopper Warbler was another example of a more sought bird that was found in a greater variety of localities than some years. Records this month came from nine sites: Sandford-on-Thames (10th), Radley (12th), Headington (12th), Little Milton (14th), Banbury (16th), Pinkhill Meadow (23rd & 24th), South Stoke (24th), Iffley Meadows (24 & 26th), and Chimney Meadows (26th). Again, a decent tally.

Grasshopper Warbler, courtesy of Ewan Urquhart

With many Oxon birders spending more time in their gardens at present, eyes were inevitably trained skyward, as were those of patch walkers out in the field. Others tried their hand at noc-migging though with limited results. As garden ticks go, this Wryneck which turned up in a Witney garden on 17th, would no doubt have been a welcome find for any home-bound birder.

Courtesy of Sheila Townsend

Some of the more notable lock-down flyovers around the county were

• Northbound Osprey over Banbury (1st), Fyfield (2nd), Stanton St John (2nd), south Oxford then Port Meadow on 11th, the upper Cherwell valley (13th) and Farmoor Reservoir (23rd)
• A Common Crane at Graven Hill (5th)
• Common Scoter at night during a marked national movement early in the month (noc-migging records)
• A White Stork at Grimsbury Reservoir in Banbury (11th)
• Bar-tailed Godwit at Appleford (13th), then both Southfield and Moreton golf courses in one morning on 25th
• Spotted Redshank at Chimney Meadows (26th)

So overall the quality of bird records this month might be said to have partly compensated for the reduced opportunity to observe it all. How much scope to pursue our interest there might be in the immediate future remains unclear. One thing that is much more certain is the birds as always will be out there.

Peter Law, Badger and Gnome