The Changing of the Guard
The interval between posts on this blog has now got so long that this one is providing no less than a quarterly update. The truth is that the means of disseminating news has now switched to WhatsApp which is much more immediate and convenient. This, combined with the fatigue and ennui that inevitably comes with nearly 20 years of blog posts means that the prospect of doing a blog post here is now viewed more as a chore rather than the joy that it used to be. This is a real shame in one sense as 20 years of blog history is a great reference to look back on but I don't want to come to resent posting to this blog. Fortunately, a good solution is forthcoming with the younger and more enthusiastic Thomas Miller willing to take up the mantle. It's going to be in a different format which will largely be down to him but watch this space to see how things unfold. Part of the agreement of this hand-over was that I would write a final blog post covering the time up until the end of March. He will then move forward using his numerous eBird reports as a basis for much more frequent reporting. So here is that first quarter update.
By far the star bird of this quarter was the stunning find of a first winter Ring-billed Gull on Port Meadow on the 7th March. The finder was of course Thomas himself, who has single handedly been carrying the Port Meadow year list for a few years now. To put its rarity into context it's only the fourth ever for the county and only the second ever twitchable one. It's discovery is no more than Thomas deserved for the dedication that he shows in putting in so many hours on Port Meadow. It was found on a Saturday late afternoon, which gave enough time for those who were quick enough off the mark to twitch it that evening. The next morning it was around at first light briefly and then on and off throughout the morning before disappearing. Quite a few county birders connected and added it to their county list but quite a few didn't connect which somehow only adds to the mythical status of this spectacular find which remains as a gaping hole on many an Oxon county list.
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| 1w Ring-billed Gull |
January
We had a Nuthatch on New Year's Day in Godstow Holt (the woods behind the Lock Keeper's Cottage up by Godstow Lock). We haven't had this species for several years now so it was nice to get it back on the year list. We also had a Siberian Chiffchaff by Burgess Field Gate (the usual location) though this proved to be a one-off sighting which is a far cry from past years when they've been fairly regular birds overwintering there. Port Meadow got in on the invasion of eastern Geese this year with a smattering of White-fronted Geese at various times. Sadly we never managed to bag the bigger prize of a Tundra Bean Goose. The Ross's Goose was around again - it's a feral bird but a real cutie!
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| Probable Siberian Chiffcahff |
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| Russian White-fronted Goose with Greylag Geese |
Apart from that we had the usual winter fare with the occasional Dunlin and Black-tailed Godwit, a few Caspian Gulls and even a Mediterranean Gull.
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| Mediterranean Gull |
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| 3w Caspian Gull |
February
This started off well with some good gull action. An adult and 1w Little Gull were found on the swollen floods, with the latter hanging around on and off for quite a while. We also had several Mediterranean Gulls over the month. The star gull though was an adult Kittiwake. Picked out one evening on the extensive floods by Thomas, this star bird subsequently relocated to Farmoor where over the course of a few days it became ill. It was taken into care but sadly died.
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| Kittiwake in flight at dusk |
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| Kittiwake on water north of Burgess Gate |
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| 1w Little Gull - found on same day as Kittiwake! |
Shelduck and Oystercatchers started to appear on the floods and we had some good count of Pintail. It was a good month for Redpoll with birds being seen or heard fairly regularly. The Cetti's Warbler was still about in the Trap Grounds.
March
The Little Gull hung around into March and it was on the 7th that the Ring-billed Gull was found. There were a pair of Garganey which dropped in for one afternoon though sadly they didn't linger. Redshank made it onto the year list - this year we didn't have any overwintering birds like we used to. The first spring migrants started arriving with Little Ringed Plover and Sand Martins starting to appear. We also had the first Swallow and Willow Warbler of the year. A White Wagtail spent a couple of days in amongst the Pieds and a Wheatear was photographed on the Meadow. There were two Crossbills that flew over one morning and the Redpolls were still regular around the Aristotle Lane canal area.
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| The Little Gull was enjoyed by many |
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| The 1w Ring-billed Gull against the Wytham treeline - probably the bird of the decade on the Meadow |
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| It also showed briefly on the water at a reasonable distance |
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| Crossbills - a rare patch visitor, these are the first to be photographed on Port Meadow to my knowledge |
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| Great White Egret |
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| Little Ringed Plover |
So there you have it. It only remains for me to bid adieu to the loyal readers of this blog. I hope to be moving house sometime this year so I don't know how regularly I will be able to visit the Meadow. Still with Thomas at the helm I know that the patch and this blog are in more than capable hands.
