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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

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  1. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Reserve looking in good shape, and hopefully shouldn't become as muddy in places over the winter now the new paths have been laid. Lovely walk this morning, but bloody cold. Whooper Swan x 2, north end of Jubilee but flew off before 10am after being repeatedly harassed by BHGs. Pintail x 2...
  2. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Thanks for the suggestion. The bird I saw was older and bigger-billed and diving. I've seen Water Rail chicks at Upton Warren earlier this spring and they seem less 'substantial' than the bird I saw yesterday.
  3. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Thank you. I've had a trawl through photos online and I can't find any Little Grebe chicks quite that black, with a bill quite that yellow. Wish I'd been able to get a photo.
  4. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Any thoughts on what this might have been please? At the edge of the reedbed by the car park feeders - black chick with a markedly prominent yellow bill - no red - sufficiently developed that it was diving as though looking for food and no immediate sign of a parent bird, but probably only...
  5. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Dry but humid and with regular rumbles of thunder in the distance at Middleton this morning. 74 species between 6am and 11am. Grey Plover on East Scrape. Multiples of LRP, RP, Redshank, Common Sandpiper flitting between East and West scrapes. Reports of Dunlin and Snipe dropping in, but I...
  6. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Chilly and breezy first thing this morning but a pleasant walk. 55 species recorded, nothing too unusual, added Reed Warbler and Cuckoo to my year list. Since I left, Twitter already has nine species noted as being present this morning which I missed completely - Lesser Whitethroat, Garden...
  7. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    56 species in around 3 hours this morning. Goosander (1F) on North Pit Pochard (1M 1F) on Dosthill Black-tailed Godwit (x3) on Jubilee Cett's Warbler in several different locations Chiffcharr singing all over the place Lots of BHG mating, and they were noticeably trying to intimidate other...
  8. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Very disappointing to see this: https://twitter.com/Piccalilli123/status/976451426460323840
  9. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Thanks Phil. Not obvious from my photos, but the wing feathers are a dark brown (rather than the greyer tones of the male?) and what I could see of the front of the bird was lacking the orange wash.
  10. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Thanks Paul. There was little wind this morning, so it was sat on the top of the pile. The more I look at photos online, the more sure I am that it was a female Merlin. I can't find any photos of female or juvenile Kestrels with plumage as dark as this bird, nor with a white band around the...
  11. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    In addition to the raptor above: Great White Egret x 2 (one on North Pit, one on JW) Before the work party arrived, there was a GWE, a Little Egret and a Grey Heron stood next to each other on one of the islands. Egyptian Goose x 2 on Dosthill Large numbers of Wigeon, Teal and Gadwall...
  12. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Some very poor photos of a raptor which was sat on top of a pile of recently-cut vegetation outside the hide around 11am this morning. It stayed put for some time, even when much of the other birdlife was flushed by the arrival of a work party. A couple who were in the hide with me said they'd...
  13. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Didn't see a soul between 6.45am and 9.30am this morning, but plenty of birds around. In particular several large mixed flocks of tits and warblers, dozens of Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler in amongst them. Water Rail - 1 ad 1 juv in the reed bed adjacent to the feeders, both out in the open for...
  14. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    7am to 10am this morning: Green Sandpiper on Hall Lake. Cuckoo flew across Jubilee Wetlands from Dosthill direction, then could be heard calling along the canal for some time afterwards. Kestrel over Fisher's Mill being noisily harassed by Black-Headed Gulls. Peregrine flew from North Pit high...
  15. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Popped in for a couple of hours this morning after half an hour listening to the Corncrake at Alvecote. Word of mouth at that location of an organised flush on Monday evening so those present could see the Corncrake - sad to hear this if it's true. Plenty of birds around but nothing...
  16. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Another good morning, always a pleasure to get a few hours to spend wandering around Middleton Lakes. As widely reported, there was a Black Tern at the north end of Dosthill, which soon moved to Fishers Mill. I believe this was later joined by several more over Jubilee. I heard a Cuckoo in the...
  17. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    Hi Steve Thank you for your advice, that'll be useful in the morning. I'll head straight for JW and have a good scan around. A female Stonechat was around early morning on Sunday 30th April, in the area around the East screen, along with a male Whinchat.
  18. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    If Bird Race participants are able to give some guidance on where some of these species were seen, I'd very much appreciate it, as I'm hoping to do another early visit tomorrow. Particularly interested in those species where there's a chance they may still be around by tomorrow - specifically...
  19. R

    RSPB Middleton Lakes

    No Stonechat? I don't think I've ever been to Middleton and not seen at least one Stonechat.
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