January on the Ely embankment

30 Tuesday Jan 2018

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature, walks

Tags

birding, birdwatching, British birds, Carrion crow, Ely embankment, Goosander, Grey wagtail, little grebe, Pied wagtail, Redshank, River Ely, Rock pipit, Turnstone

31 December 2017 I’m being a bit sneaky here as I managed to fit in one last walk along the embankment before the start of 2018 but after I’d written my December summary. So, on the last day of last year there were 5 Turnstones, 2 Redshanks, 2 Pied wagtails and 2 Grey wagtails, 1 Rock pipit and a couple of Crows.

1 January 2018 The very next day, New Year’s Day, I passed this way as part of a complete circuit of Cardiff Bay. It was a glorious blue-sky day but there were just 3 Turnstones present.

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11 January This was another glorious day and another circuit of Cardiff Bay, though in the opposite direction. And it was a bumper day for the Ely embankment, with four Redshanks (including the ringed bird, shown above, which I’ve seen and written about previously), 6 Turnstones, 1 Pied and 4 Grey wagtails, and a Rock pipit.

16 January With 40-mph winds blasting down from snow-covered areas further north, the air temperature was hovering below zero when I walked along the embankment late morning. I wasn’t surprised, then, to find very few birds around – a single Turnstone that was wandering along half way up the embankment (not wanting to put its feet in the chilly water?), which was good for me as it was closer for photos, and just two Grey wagtails. There weren’t many birds on the river either, just a couple of coots, one Great crested grebe and several Black-headed gulls looking hopefully in my direction.

180130 Ely embankment birds

20 January I didn’t get out till late afternoon as it had rained most of the day, so the light was going as I strolled along the embankment path. But I was pleasantly surprised to see a few birds: my friends the Grey wagtails never disappoint (two of those); just one Turnstone poking away amongst the stones; and two Redshanks, including my little buddy the colour-ringed bird. Floating along the river were a Little grebe, a Great crested grebe and a pair of Goosanders – the latter were scared away by a boat cruising by and flew off towards the other side of Cardiff Bay, where I had seen a pair a week or so previously – perhaps the same birds.

25 January I detoured along the embankment on my return from a longer walk and was delighted to find six Turnstones (lovely to see so many), two Redshanks (but not my little ringed mate), two Grey and two Pied wagtails.

A tale of two goosanders

28 Monday Mar 2016

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

birding, birdwatching, British birds, Goosander, Mergus merganser

160328 goosander (2)

I watched a pair of goosanders (Mergus merganser) slowly making their way up one side of the River Taff today, frequently ducking their heads underwater in search of the fish, molluscs, crustaceans and amphibians that make up their diet. When they reached Blackweir, I expected them to drift back down the river but it seems they were determined to go further up steam.

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That’s when it became apparent that the female can’t fly. Half of her right wing is missing. I doubt this is a birth defect and suspect a narrow escape from the mink that I have seen in recent weeks on the riverbanks in this vicinity.

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The only way to cross the weir then was to walk as the flow of water, even though currently quite weak, was much too strong for swimming. The female had trouble getting out of the water up onto the rocks and then the concrete of the weir, but managed after a couple of tries. Her mate was very patient, and seemed very tender with her, touching her head with his beak, watching to see she was alright while also keeping a look out for danger. He would toddle a little way ahead, then turn and wait for her to catch up. Once he returned to her side as if to encourage her. It took perhaps 20 minutes but they made it and swam on up the river.

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Trouble is, she is now very vulnerable to attack, especially from creatures like the mink but also from unleashed dogs (of which there are many in Cardiff). And the chances of these goosanders successfully breeding are also probably quite slim. My heart went out to these two little creatures, touched by the male’s gentleness with his disabled mate but saddened by their somewhat bleak future prospects.

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