Marloes peninsular 4 May: G-W Teal, Marsh Harrier, Iceland Gull and more

The rather strong south-westerly all today (it's currently gusting Force 7 in Martin's Haven) did not,, thankfully put all the birds down: an extended walk along the Coast Path from Martin's Haven to Marloes and then back via the Mere along the south coast brought 14 singing Whitethroats well spread out in the thick (and sheltered) gorse on the north coast, a reeling Grasshopper Warbler by East Hook Farm and a Sedge Warbler above Musselwick Rocks. Only one Stonechat, though. The other highlight was an astonishgly close pass by a group of 4 Swifts - our first of the year.

Many thanks to Dave, Paul and Derek for putting me onto the wealth of really good birds at Marloes Mere: the Iceland Gull in the field below Trehill Farm, the Marsh Harrier first seen yesterday and, a "lifer" for me, the male Green-winged Teal.
This last had been flushed, along with a large number of other duck, and gave great views only c.15 yards from the old (North) hide. Close to, I was really struck by how different it looked to a normal Teal: the head, in particular, totally lacked the beautiful buff/yellow stripes that separate the green and brown of the Teal, and this gave the head a much less rounded appearance. The lack of the horizontal white line stripe along the wing was at least as obvious as the give-away white vertical line on the side of the breast. All in all, a far more interesting and distinctive bird than I was prepared for from studying the guides etc. The bird seems very well paired up with a female Teal, following her closely and bobbing his head constantly.

4 Whimbrel also dropped in, calling, and then started feeding in the grass field by the NT car park only a few yards from the road.

On Renny Slip yesterday: a White Wagtail. Pretty odd place for it, feeding in the stream/waterfall area, but the plumage was very clear.