My aim is to see 200 different species of birds in Britain in 2018 but will I succeed?

1 January 2018, out my window, Penarth

1. Herring gull
2. Lesser black-backed gull
   My first birds of 2018, on the roof of the church hall across the road from my flat.

3. Crow
   The two crows on the left were on the weathervane on top of the steeple of the church opposite my flat. Later, near the Norwegian Church in Cardiff Bay, I spotted a leucistic crow that I’ve seen before near the Lockkeeper’s Café.
4. Feral pigeon

1 January 2018 continued, a walk around Cardiff Bay

5. Blackbird
   This blackbird was enjoying a feast of Cabbage tree (Coryline australis) berries in the front garden of a house at Penarth Marina.
6. House sparrow
7. Magpie
8. Woodpigeon
9. Starling
10. Robin
11. Black-headed gull
12. Pied wagtail
13. Mute swan
14. Mallard
15. Great crested grebe
16. Coot
17. Little grebe
18. Cormorant

19. Turnstone
    Always a favourite of mine, three little turnstones were foraging along the Ely embankment and a Black-headed gull was wanting a piece of the action.
20. Raven
21. Jackdaw
22. Chaffinch
23. Great tit
24. Blue tit
25. Moorhen

26. Tufted duck
    Six tufted ducks were in the pond at the Cardiff Bay Wetland Reserve and paddled over to see if I had any food for them … but no.
27. Wren
28. Kingfisher
29. Goldfinch
30. Long-tailed tit

31. Mistle thrush
    Posing very nicely on the grassy playing fields of Hamadryad Park.

3 January 2018, Penarth

32. Dunnock
    A sweet little dunnock sang me a pretty tune as I passed by its bush on my way to the train this morning.

4 January 2018, Penarth and Cosmeston

33. Collared dove
    Birding out the back window, in winds of 40-50mph.
34. Bullfinch

35. Canada goose
36. Pochard
37. Wigeon

5 January 2018, Cardiff parks and cemeteries

38. Greylag goose

39. Goldcrest (above left, cleaning up the gravestones)
40. Green woodpecker (above right, perching on a gravestone)
41. Jay

42. Tawny owl
    Lovely to see this beauty again, though two Jays were screeching at it, presumably to try to scare it away.

6 January 2018, Bute Park, River Taff and Cardiff City centre

43. Goosander

44. Grey heron
45. Song thrush
46. Redwing
47. Treecreeper

48. Peregrine falcon
    Peregrine falcons have been making their home – and breeding – on the Cardiff City Hall clock tower for several years. I’ve looked for them up there many times but today was the first time I actually saw one!

7 January 2018, Cosmeston

49. Coal tit
50. Nuthatch
51. Buzzard
52. Shoveler
53. Gadwall
54. Teal

8 January 2018, Cosmeston (again, as I was following up on the sighting of an Iceland gull yesterday but it wasn’t seen today)

55. Reed bunting
56. Yellow-legged gull (2nd winter)

11 January 2018, Ely embankment

57. Grey wagtail (in fact, 4 Grey wagtails!)

58. Redshank
    In fact, 4 Redshanks, including this ringed bird I have seen a couple of times before and blogged about back in March 2017: see ‘Tracking Mr Redshank’.
59. Rock pipit

14 January, coastal path from Penarth to Lavernock, and at Lavernock Nature Reserve
 

60. Shelduck
    These two shelducks went flying past east-west as I was walking the coastal path from Penarth to Lavernock today and then, when I got to Lavernock Reserve, there was a flotilla of about 20 floating just offshore from the point where the pillbox sits, by St Mary’s Well Bay.
61. Oystercatcher

62. Kestrel
    This Kestrel was trying to see off the much larger Buzzard that was invading its hunting territory.

17 January, Sully and Cosmeston

63. Curlew

64. Common gull

18 January, Bute Park, Cardiff

65. Firecrest

19 January, River Taff

66. Dipper

23 January, Cosmeston

67. Marsh tit

29 January, Penarth beach

68. Mediterranean gull

30 January, Barry old harbour

69. Little egret

2 February, Lavernock

70. Sparrowhawk
    Hunting over the fields – too fast for a photo, unfortunately.

4 February, Cosmeston

71. Lesser redpoll (really chuffed with this one – not easy to find)

5 February, Sully and St Mary’s Well Bay

72. Pheasant

73. Little ringed plover
74. Grey plover
    Pictured here with 3 Turnstones, the Little ringed plover is the small bird facing the camera, on the left, and the Grey plover, the bird on the right.
75. Fieldfare

6 February, Ogmore and Kenfig

76. Goldeneye
77. Great black-backed gull
78. Red kite
79. Stonechat
80. Rook

81. Slavonian grebe
    A life first for me (oh, and in case you’re wondering, it’s the small black-and-white bird on the left … small and distant, unfortunately.)
82. Golden plover
83. Lapwing
84. Short-eared owl
    Another lifer for me, and we saw two of these owls hunting over the dunes at Kenfig National Nature Reserve. Magic!
85. Greenfinch

14 February, Rye Harbour

86. Brent goose

87. Egyptian goose

17 February, Cuckmere Haven

88. Skylark
    It was a glorious day at Cuckmere, with a definite feel of spring in the air, which was reinforced by the frequent song flights of skylarks all around as we walked along the bank of the Cuckmere River to the seashore. These two were ‘chasing’ each other, a behaviour that may be males disputing territory or a form of courtship display.
89. Meadow pipit

18 February, Rye Harbour (top part of the reserve)

90. Cetti’s warbler

20 February, Penarth Marina

91. Black redstart
    So glad this immature female stayed around till I returned from my week in Sussex. A pretty little bird, dotting around the rooftops of the houses at the marina, and a lifer for me!

22 February, Bute Park

92. Great spotted woodpecker
    ’Tis the season when I try to follow the drumming of the woodpecker to get a photo and the bird inevitably flies off just as I get close.

25 February, Dryslwyn, Cilsan Bridge and Tregaron Marsh (a long day and very cold but with spectacular scenery in mid Wales, especially the Tywi Valley)

93. Whooper swan
94. Bar-headed goose
    A bit controversial adding this as it’s not on the official British bird list but, hey, it was living with wild birds in the wilds of mid Wales so I’m having it.

95. Great white egret
96. Pink-footed goose

97. Green sandpiper
98. Snipe
99. Hen harrier
    This was the bird we’d gone to Tregaron to see and, though we had to wait till late afternoon to finally spot one, having our 12 pairs of eyes constantly scanning across the marshes in bitterly cold winds did eventually pay off. It was stunning to watch.

7 March, Forest of Dean

100. Siskin

101. Mandarin duck
     Originally brought to Britain from their Asian homeland as ornamental birds for parks and zoos, escapees have established themselves in the wild, and the Mandarin duck is now an official British species – and perhaps the most exotic-looking bird on the British list. As usual with bird species, the male (shown here) is the most showy.

102. Great grey shrike
     Despite its ‘great’ name, it’s a small bird with a nasty streak, known for impaling its prey (of insects, lizards, and even small birds) on a handy twig or thorn. Though difficult to see, my photo shows a lizard we watched the bird catch and hang up.
103. Hawfinch

11 March, Cosmeston

104. Scaup

13 March, Forest Farm

105. Chiffchaff
     Heard, not seen, but there’s no mistaking that call, and it’s wonderful to know the birds are making landfall after their spring migration.

14 March, Ely embankment

106. Linnet
     Spotted four Linnets on the Ely embankment this af’noon, possibly the same family I saw from time to time in the autumn, but I can’t be sure. Nice to see them though.

19 March, Cosmeston

107. Sand martin

23 March, Sully

108. Wheatear
     I’ve walked miles this week, following up on reported sightings of this lovely spring migrant and finally today I saw, though only very briefly, this very handsome male bird.
     p.s. Wheatears are obviously like buses – you see none at all and then two come along at once. I saw another Wheatear the very next day and got a better photo so the image above is of number two.

1 April, Cosmeston (no April fool here!)

109. Willow warbler
     A good way to start the new month, after a very slow March. Willow warblers have just started to arrive back in the country after their winter in southern climes. They’re very similar to Chiffchaffs so the trick is to listen to their song.

5 April, Cosmeston

110. Blackcap
     Though increasing numbers of Blackcaps now over-winter in Britain (more on that phenomenon on the BTO website here), the majority are now returning from their migration to Spain.

7 April, Cardiff

111. Swallow
     My first swallows of the year today, 3 or 4 in a group of about 20 Sand martins swirling over the River Taff and neighbouring apartment blocks just up river from Cardiff Bay. I did try for photos but just got giddy trying to follow them.

10 April, Cardiff Bay

112. Little gull
     A fairly rare visitor to Cardiff but a local birder spotted them yesterday so I was one of many people who’ve been down to the Bay for a look today. There were two adult birds in winter plumage and one immature bird. Superb to watch them flying, though too distant for photos.

14 April, Cardiff Bay Wetland Reserve (the day of the warblers, heard not seen)

113. Reed warbler
114. Sedge warbler
115. Grasshopper warbler
     When they ‘reel’ (so-named because the sound is a bit like the winding of a fishing reel), they really do sound like loud grasshoppers.

18 April, woodland opposite Craig Cerrig Gleisiad & Garwnant

116. Pied flycatcher
117. Tree pipit

118. Willow tit

19 April, Cardiff Bay

119. Common sandpiper
120. Lesser whitethroat

28 April, Cardiff Bay and, later, Grangemoor Park

121. Arctic tern

122. Common whitethroat

29 April, Cardiff Bay

123. House martin
124. Swift

4 May, RSPB Frampton Marsh in Lincolnshire and RSPB Blacktoft Sands in Yorkshire

125. Red-legged partridge

126. Avocet
127. Ruff
128. Dark-bellied Brent goose
     This one’s really just a subspecies of Brent goose, but I’m adding it to my list anyway. Perhaps I need to increase my count to 201 to compensate.
129. Stock dove
130. Whimbrel
131. Greenshank
132. Wood sandpiper

133. Wood duck
134. Black-tailed godwit

135. Yellowhammer
136. Barnacle goose
137. Garganey

138. Yellow wagtail

139. Barn owl
140. Bearded tit
141. Montagu’s harrier

5 May, Tophill Low Nature Reserve and Nosterfield Nature Reserve, both in Yorkshire, and Seahouses, in Northumberland

142. Grey partridge
143. Garden warbler
144. Little ringed plover
145. Black swan

146. Eider

6 May, Waren Mill, in Northumberland, then Musselburgh and Dunbar Harbour in Scotland

147. Tree sparrow
148. Surf scoter
149. Long-tailed duck
150. Velvet scoter
151. White-winged scoter
152. Red-throated diver

153. Guillemot
154. Common scoter
155. Red-breasted merganser

156. Common tern

157. Shag

158. Razorbill
159. Black-throated diver

160. Kittiwake
161. Gannet
162. Fulmar
163. Sandwich tern

7 May, a big mix of locations: Druridge Pools, High Hauxley Nature Reserve, East Chevington Nature Reserve and Druridge Bay beach

164. Glossy ibis

165. Knot
     The Knot is on the right. The bird on the left is a Grey plover.
166. American wigeon
167. Black-necked grebe
168. Dunlin

169. Sanderling
170. Little tern
171. Little owl

8 May, Stag Rocks, Bamburgh and the Farne Islands

172. Purple sandpiper

173. Puffin

9 May, a nature reserve in the north of England, and Langdon Beck in Yorkshire

174. Ruddy duck
     Beautiful though it is, the Ruddy duck is classified as a non-native invasive species in Britain. You can read more about its sad story on the RSPB website.
175. Black grouse
176. Red grouse

13 May, Cwm Cadlan

177. Cuckoo

178. Redstart
     Several seen today but always sitting atop distant trees – hence the rubbish photo.

23 May, St David’s Vale

179. Wood warbler

180. Whinchat
     Though they were always quite distant, sitting high on trees or perched on the tops of bushes, it was a real treat to see my first Whinchats of the year in this stunning location.

6 June, Llanwonno

181. Nightjar
     The churring of the Nightjar is a mystical sound, and to hear and see at least 4 birds, both flying and perched on nearby conifers, on our night-time bird club walk in the Welsh Valleys was just brilliant.

1 July, Rhossili

182. Chough
183. Manx shearwater

14 July, Woods Mill

184. Turtle dove
     Heard ‘purring’ three times but not sighted.

17 July, RSPB Dungeness

185. Bar-tailed godwit

7 August, Cosmeston

186. Spotted flycatcher

22 August, Garwnant

187. Crossbill

16 September, Goldcliff

188. Curlew sandpiper
189. Pintail

190. Hobby
191. Little stint

24 September, Lisvane Reservoir

192. Grey phalarope

13 October, WWT Steart Marshes in Somerset
193. Marsh harrier

194. Merlin
     You’ll just have to trust me when I say there’s a Merlin sitting on a fencepost in this photo. It did get off the post and treat us to some spectacular aerial displays across the marshes as it pursued its prey. Its speed was amazing!
195. Spoonbill

196. Cattle egret
     I counted at least 10 Cattle egrets grazing amongst these cattle – there may have been more as they were frequently obscured by the cattle and the reeds.
197. Spotted redshank

22 October, Lavernock Point

198. Wryneck
     It took two visits and quite a lot of looking to actually see this bird – it’s so perfectly camouflaged – but today I was lucky. And this was a lifer, so even more special.

23 October, Cosmeston & Roath Park Lake

199. Bittern
     This was sheer good luck! I had intended going for a walk to Cosmeston today so, when I read on Twitter that a birding friend had seen a Bittern there this morning, I was off like a shot. I wasn’t actually that hopeful as Bitterns can be extremely elusive, but I was standing by the lake, listening for the call of a Water rail (another bird that has eluded me so far this year), when the Bittern flew in. Job done!

200. Red-necked grebe
     More good luck! I had just got home from Cosmeston when another birding friend phoned to say this bird had been seen at Roath Lake, he was heading over and did I want a ride. Well, you betcha! This is a rarity for Cardiff and another lifer for me.

Now, you might think I should be celebrating right about now – and I did do a bit of a happy dance in my head when I saw that grebe – but three of the birds on this list are a bit dodgy (one is a sub-species and should never have been counted; two others could possibly have been escapees from parks or private collections) so I’m not going to be 100% happy until I get to at least 203.

26 October, Maiden Castle & Lodmoor

201. Corn bunting

202. Lesser yellowlegs

27 October, Portland Bird Observatory

203. Brambling

Now, I can legitimately shout “YIPPEE!” I’m so chuffed that I’ve managed to see so many beautiful birds but, of course, it doesn’t stop just because I’ve reached that number. There are still several reasonably common birds I haven’t yet seen this year, so I hope to add a few more to this list before year end. And I’m also pondering on what next year’s challenge should be.

30 October, Cardiff Bay

204. Water rail

205. Lapland bunting
     Easily my best-ever birding find – more about this beautiful bird on the blog.

1 November, Cosmeston

206. Ring ouzel
     A lucky break with this migrant stopping over to munch on Cotoneaster berries before it heads south for the winter.

18 November, Llwyn-onn Reservoir

207. Water pipit

1 December, Barry Docks

208. Great northern diver