With little likelihood of reaching my 'usual' butterfly yearly total of 47, ( I still have only 41, my most recent being a brown hairstreak at Otmoor) , I decided to pursue my birding target of 175. I've failed to reach it by one or two in the last two years but I was on 166 ( including my first chough when on holiday in Pembrokeshire) before I visited my sister last week. We made a trip to Frampton Marsh rspb which is very good for waders and often hosts some unusual species during peak migration times. We didn't arrive till mid- afternoon but with a fine evening ahead decided we'd stay until 6 - 6.30 p.m. and avoid the rush hour/bank holiday traffic which held us up a bit on the outward journey.
There were a lot of birds close to the visitor centre window and I quickly picked out a bar headed goose (escapee?) amongst the greylag flock. We could also see several spoonbills and little egrets. Out on the reserve there were the expected water birds, and from one of the paths I noticed a single swan. But its bill was yellow and I was able to add a whooper swan to my year list, a species I had missed in the new year.
Further on, we could found a few yellow wagtails feeding on the mud, again, a pleasing tick for the year. Another birder with a 'scope also pointed out a curlew sandpiper.
After the visitor centre had closed we walked round the side and watched a few little ringed plover.
Pleased my list was now increasing a bit, once back home, I decided to visit Slimbridge on my last free day of the school holidays. It was a warm day with variable amounts of sunshine - and although the Centre was busy with families, the hides were very quiet. In the Rushy someone quickly pointed out a greenshank which was calling from one of the islands. Other birds of note here included redshanks and spotted redshanks together with black tailed godwit (some still in breeding plumage) and a juvenile garganey. Birds of note seen from the other hides included a green sandpiper and a couple of snipe together with teal and mallards, also avocets and ruffs.
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