Birding 2019

My aim is to see at least 200 different species in Britain in 2019. Fingers crossed!

1 January, from Penarth, around Cardiff Bay & back to Penarth (off to a great start)

1. Lesser black-backed gull

1 Lesser black-backed gull Starling
2. Starling
My first two birds for the year in one photo.
3. Feral pigeon
4. House sparrow
5. Woodpigeon
6. Jackdaw
7. Magpie
8. Blackbird
9. Carrion crow
10. Great tit
11. Blue tit
12. Dunnock
13. Pied wagtail
14. Robin
15. Mistle thrush
16. Goldfinch

17 black-headed gull
17. Black-headed gull
Black-headed gulls at their ablutions.
18. Coot
19. Mallard

20 goosander
20. Goosander
This is a male Goosander but I saw both male and female around the Bay today.

21. Great crested grebe
Surprisingly, this pair of Great crested grebes were displaying, which is usually part of their springtime pre-mating behaviour.

22 little grebe
22. Little grebe
It was a good day for grebes at the Bay. This Little grebe was in the pond at the wetlands but there were several others, in the Rivers Ely and Taff and in the larger wetlands area.
23. Cormorant

24 moorhen
24. Moorhen
25. Herring gull
26. Grey wagtail

27 turnstone
27. Turnstone

28 redshank
28. Redshank
29. Raven
30. Rock pipit
31. Common gull
32. Grey heron

33 Black-necked grebe
33. Black-necked grebe
34. Tufted duck
35. Song thrush
36. Wren
37. Mute swan

38 linnet
38. Linnet
39. Long-tailed tit
40. Stonechat
41. Cetti’s warbler
42. Greenfinch
43. Reed bunting

44 chaffinch
44. Chaffinch
45. Kingfisher
46. Mediterranean gull
47. Meadow pipit

2 January, Penarth and Cosmeston Lakes Country Park

48 collared dove

48. Collared dove

49 goldcrest
49. Goldcrest
50. Canada goose

51 Coal tit
51. Coal tit
52. Nuthatch
53. Water rail
54. Pochard
55. Gadwall
56. Green woodpecker

57. Sparrowhawk
58. Jay
59. Treecreeper
60. Bullfinch
61. Redwing

3 January, Penarth-Lavernock coastal path, Lavernock, Cosmeston

62 buzzard

62. Buzzard
This is probably the reason I didn’t spot very many small birds on my walk along the coastal path today – all the small birds were lying low!
63. Oystercatcher

64 skylark
64. Skylark
I’m used to enjoying the glorious summertime songs of Skylarks in the sky above but this winter I’ve seen several small flocks of Skylarks feeding in local farmers’ fields. Lovely!
65. Pheasant
66. Fieldfare
67. Shoveler

4 January, Cardiff Bay

68. Great black-backed gull
69. Teal

5 January, Penarth

70. Tawny owl
Heard – loud, very close, initially quite spooky – but sadly not seen. However, a Twitter friend has also heard it in the same spot recently so we’ll both be keeping an eye out when we pass that way again.

6 January, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park

71. Great spotted woodpecker

72 marsh tit

72. Marsh tit
73. Hawfinch

74 snipe

74. Snipe

8 January, Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve

190108 bearded tits

75. Bearded tit

9 January, Parc Slip Nature Reserve

76 siberian chiffchaff

76. Siberian chiffchaff

10 January, Penarth Marina

77 blackcap

77. Blackcap

11 January, Sully beach & playing fields, and St Mary’s Well Bay field

78. Grey plover
Four Grey plover flew in to Sully beach, with a Dunlin friend – that’s the small bird second from left.

78 79 grey plover and dunlin

79. Dunlin

80 curlew

80. Curlew
Just a few of the 27 Curlew that were grazing on the playing fields at Sully this morning (and a few Woodpigeons in the foreground).

81. Kestrel

13 January, Whiteford Point & Llanrhidian Marsh

82. Little egret

88 greenshank

83. Greenshank
A dull grainy photo as we saw these two not long after sunrise, in the estuary at Penclawdd, en route to Whiteford Point.

84. Shelduck
85. Pintail
86. Wigeon
87. Lapwing
88. Jack snipe
Just a brief view of a couple of birds in flight, but a lifer for me

89 brent geese
89. Brent goose

90 eider
90. Eider
91. Slavonian grebe
92. Red-breasted merganser

93 great northern diver
93. Great northern diver
94. Black-tailed godwit

95 sanderling
95. Sanderling
Such a contrast between the tiny Sanderling next to the much larger Oystercatchers – little and large!
96. Golden plover
A great murmuration over the marsh, late in the day – a wonderful sight
97. Red kite
98. Great white egret

16 January, Kenfig pool, Porthcawl & Newton Point

99. Goldeneye
100. Cattle egret
101. Purple sandpiper

21 January, River Taff at Radyr

102 dipper

102. Dipper

30 January, Forest Farm

103 siskin

103. Siskin

11 February, Sully

104. Rook

14 February, Cardiff

105 peregrine

105. Peregrine
As in many British cities, Cardiff has resident Peregrines that have replaced their former cliff-side nesting places with convenient niches on the sides and tops of buildings. For several years, a pair has nested on the tower of City Hall, which is where I spotted this bird today.

17 February, Dryslwyn & Kidwelly

106 greylag goose

106. Greylag goose
107. Stock dove
108. Whooper swan

109 long-tailed duck

109. Long-tailed duck
110. Spotted redshank
111. Hen harrier

1 March, Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve

112 scaup

112. Scaup

6 March, Cannop Ponds, Forest of Dean

113 Mandarin

113. Mandarin
114. Lesser redpoll

9 March, Cuckmere Haven & Seaford, East Sussex

115 glossy ibis

115. Glossy ibis
A lucky sighting, as a bird just happened to be in the Cuckmere area when I visited this gorgeous place.

116 kittiwake

116. Kitiwake
These gorgeous gulls nest on cliffs at the eastern end of Seaford beach, so I couldn’t resist seeing them while visiting a friend in the local area.

11 March, Rye Harbour, East Sussex

117. Ringed plover

118 avocet
118. Avocet
Unfortunately, the birds, about a dozen in total (mostly centre left in my photo), were too distant for decent images.

20 March, Alfriston, East Sussex

119 red-legged partridge

119. Red-legged partridge

25 March, Cardiff Bay

120 Sand martin

120. Sand martin

1 April, Cosmeston

121 willow warbler

121. Willow warbler

3 April, Cosmeston

122. House martin

9 April, Cardiff Bay

123 swallow

123. Swallow

10 April, Cardiff Bay wetlands

124 common redstart

124. Common redstart
One of two male Common redstarts that were spotted in the wetlands this morning. Such handsome birds.

13 April, Marshfield & Pilning, Gloucestershire

125 yellowhammer

125. Yellowhammer
126. Wheatear
127. Corn bunting

128 little ringed plover

128. Little ringed plover
129. Yellow wagtail
130. Ruff

17 April, Cardiff Bay wetlands

131. Reed warbler

19 April, Grangemoor Park

132 whitethroat

132. Common whitethroat

23 April, Sully

133 whimbrel

133. Whimbrel

134 bar-tailed godwit

134. Bar-tailed godwit
Getting very close views of these six Whimbrels and two Bar-tailed godwits was a real treat – see more here.

26 April, Cosmeston

135. Lesser whitethroat

1 May, Penarth

136. Swift
They’re back!!! It’s one of the delights of summer to hear Swifts screaming around the town.

3 May, Thursley Common, Surrey

137. Cuckoo
138. Dartford warbler
139. Woodlark
140. Tree pipit
141. Nightingale
142. Garden warbler

4 May, in and around Sandwich, and the local coastal area, Kent

143. Gannet

144 egyptian goose

144. Egyptian goose (at Restharrow Scrape)
145. Ring-necked parakeet
146. Sandwich tern (at Cliff’s End)
147. Fulmar (at Joss Bay)

4 May, Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve, Kent

148 hobby

148. Hobby
This isn’t a great photo and I’ve had to lighten it a lot to bring out any details but it does illustrate the Hobby’s habit of eating food while flying.
149. Marsh harrier
150. Sedge warbler
You can read more about the Sedge warblers on my blog here.

151 bittern