Category Archives: birds

J is for Jay

15 Wednesday Dec 2021

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I was tossing up between Jackdaw and Jay when I heard a Jay screeching during today’s walk in the woods and that clinched my choice for this letter. Jays haven’t featured much in this blog in 2021, though I did report on a feather with a tinge of blue found back in February, and have since found another of these exotic treasures, which is now glued to the relevant page of my nature journal. The vivid blue stripes always make me think of more tropical locations than these often gloomy isles.

211216 jay

D is for Dunlin

09 Thursday Dec 2021

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Seeing this Dunlin was a delightful surprise back in May (a fellow birder had spotted it and put the word out), as these shorebirds rarely stop over in Cardiff Bay. Sadly, the chances of seeing Dunlins at all have declined dramatically in recent years, as their population has plummeted, and, according to British Birds recently published report of ‘The status of our bird populations’, these birds have recently been added to the IUCN Red List, meaning they are now at extreme risk of extinction in Britain.

211209 dunlin

Hungry Robin

01 Wednesday Dec 2021

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I felt guilty during yesterday’s meander around Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, my first there for a couple of weeks, as I’d gone without my backpack and so wasn’t carrying my usual small supply of bird seed. After the cooler temperatures of recent nights and the absence now of many insect species, the birds are already looking to passing humans for supplementary supplies. This Robin wasn’t the only little bird looking disappointed.

211201 robin

Birding around the Bay

13 Saturday Nov 2021

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Some recent sightings from my circuits around Cardiff Bay …

211113 common sandpiper

Common sandpiper, an unexpected sighting, as I was under the impression that these birds migrated to Africa to over-winter

211113 coot

Coot: often overlooked, frequently fractious, undeniably handsome

211113 crow

Carrion crow, frequently seen poking about on the stone embankments around the Bay

211113 goosander

Goosander, likely an eclipse male, i.e. in the process of changing from summer to winter plumage

211113 grey heron

A Grey heron – presumably the same Grey heron – that I’ve seen a couple of times lately on the dolphins and pontoons near Mermaid Quay

211113 mute swan

A Mute swan reflecting

211113 pied wagtail

A Pied wagtail preening

211113 ring-necked and tufted ducks

The currently resident Ring-necked duck with one of its Tufted duck friends

211113 rock pipit

Rock pipit, one of a healthy population of these birds that inhabit the unhealthy, rubbish-filled peripheries of Cardiff Bay.

First autumn Redshank

02 Tuesday Nov 2021

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The weather has really turned autumnal over the past few days, with strong winds and heavy rain. As stormy weather means birds sometimes need to seek shelter and a place to rest, it can lead to interesting bird sightings, so I ventured out between squalls for a look. There was nothing particularly unusual but it was a treat to see my first Redshank of the autumn sitting on the embankment where the River Ely flows in to Cardiff Bay.

211102 redshank