Nigel's Nature

 There was another very high tide today for the January WeBS count following last night’s full moon. As in December, most waterbirds were either at the flooded saltmarsh on the far side of the main channel or in the nearside pasture field. No chance at all of anything much on the nearside shore with dogs running out of control and their owners shouting at them. Apart, that is, from several Pied Wagtails and Meadow Pipits who paid little heed to the anthropic disturbance, too busy chasing flies among heaps of seaweed on the upper beach. A quartet of Stonechats flitting about the dunes also seemed unfazed. I wonder if they are the same family party that bred here in the summer or maybe winter visitors from elsewhere. Shelduck were again the most numerous of the wildfowl, although down considerably from 204 last month to 136. Dabbling duck numbers were similar to last time: Mallard 13 and Wigeon 20, but no Teal spotted. Diving ducks were again represented by a couple of Goldeneye an...

 Today was my first WeBS count at this site for the BTO’s Wetland Bird Survey, having previously done counts down south in Bedfordshire. The tide was approaching full and it was one of the highest I have seen here, being a full moon last night and with a brisk onshore south-westerly breeze. This meant most of the waterbirds were either in near-side pasture fields or on the far side of the main channel where most of the saltmarsh was flooded. My attention was first grabbed by a sizeable flock of Shelduck, riding the waves and upending in the shallows to reach below-surface vegetation. I managed to count 204 just as they started to relocate further upriver, which is the most I have seen here in the last couple of years. Other wildfowl present were a couple of Goldeneye, male and female, a trio of Red-breasted Mergansers, 8 Mallard, 25 Wigeon and 8 Teal. The best of the waders were 9 Godwits in a roosting flock. Fortunately, some of them preened and stretched a wing to reveal a lack...

 It was my first visit to this site for quite a while and well worth braving the bitterly cold breeze. The best bird appeared before I even reached the beach, perched on a fence-post along the entrance track. A female-type Merlin. I just had time to make out the brown upperparts and faint moustache before it took off, revealing a boldly barred tail and relatively short narrow wings. It shot low across the field causing panic among the grazing curlew and wigeon, even though they are much larger than the little falcon’s usual songbird prey. Maybe the raptor profile triggers an instinctive response regardless of size. The tide was not long past full, which explains the number of water-birds utilizing the adjacent pasture when I arrived. As water levels sank, waders began dropping in to feed on freshly exposed mud. Redshank were the most numerous with plenty of Curlew and Oystercatcher too. There were also a few Bar-tailed Godwits and some Dunlin. To the east where the shore is stoni...