Recent Highlights from RSPB Medmerry

This post contains some highlights from a fortnightly farmland bird survey, which was carried out at RSPB Medmerry last week. It was a remarkably warm day while the sun was out – t-shirt weather in November!

Two jack snipe were in almost the exact same positions (within a few metres) as they were two weeks prior to this survey. I put in some extra effort to try and see one of the jack, or common, snipe before they flew off. As was always probable, I was not successful. One of the jack snipe flew off from around one metre to the left of my left foot. I’m not sure I will ever see one whilst walking through the fields before they fly off! Common snipe numbers were up with around 30 individuals seen.

The first fieldfare that I had seen this winter was perched on top of a scraggily tree, uttering its chugging sounds.

A cream-cap marsh harrier flew over and sent every lapwing in the middle of the reserve skywards. In the same vicinity were two buzzards and a female sparrowhawk. The hawk and the harrier circled in the sky heading upwards on the thermals created by the warm sun.

As usual there were good numbers of typical farmland birds around the reserve, in particular skylark. Medmerry really is a good place to see these as well as species such as yellowhammer and corn bunting. These two have sadly declined rapidly throughout the UK.

Corn buntings can be surprisingly confiding and will sit on top of a twig and not be too concerned by your presence. They are rather brown, and their song is not the most impressive one that you will hear, but they are endearing nonetheless.

Since this outing described above another bunting has turned up at Medmerry, a snow bunting. Fortunately this individual stuck around in time for the monthly WeBS and delighted the team of surveyors today.

Snow Bunting on rock armour at Medmerry. Photo courtesy of Guy Wilkerson. 

Hugh Baggaley