Weekend Tetrad bashing and webs

Yesterday Annie and I walked several tetrads in SN12 on Pembs/Carms border, essentially a long right angle from Llandissilio - Glynaeron Forest - Carn Wen. Although numbers of wintering thrushes etc were well down on our previous visit in late December, there were plenty of woodland birds around including kites in a few tetrads (one seen well at Glynaeron was definitely untagged), buzzards displaying (probably 20+ at least), nuthatches, siskins etc noted in various places. All the tit species were seen in reasonably good numbers. It was also nice to find willow tits in at least 3 separate tetrads - males noted singing in at least two separate places in SN12D. Three lapwings in a winter sown barley field (all in full breeding plumage) made me wonder if this just might be a possible breeding location - being not a million miles from where there have been historical records.

This morning I walked the coast from Fresh East to Manorbier to look for chough etc. Found two on territory near Swanlake Bay; other interesting species included peregrine and kestrel (singles) and a roosting flock of 34 curlew at Swanlake Bay. Offshore a flock of 6 red-throated divers were noteworthy, flying west towards and beyond Trewent Point. No stonechats were seen along this stretch today.

A drive home for a quick lunch-break was followed by a mid-afternoon WeBs count on Carew/Cresswell stretch where numbers of waterfowl are still reasonably high - shelduck (82) numbers had declined significantly since January when there were just under 300 counted. Numbers of wigeon (550+) and teal (360+) were still holding up. Lapwing numbers had increased (c. 560) but dunlin (c. 450) had declined from about 1,200. Shoveler numbers had also declined from 32 to 10. Numbers of grey plover (12) were similar as were oystercatcher (32),
whereas curlew (98) and redshank (86) numbers had gone up.

An immature male goshawk was having a go at the mixed roosting wader and duck flocks near Upton shoreline but two carrion crows were having none of it and chased him off. Only one little egret was seen today. Annie walked the Garron Pill to Landshipping stretch where numbers of teal and lapwing were reasonably high.