The influx of wintering Waxwings to North Wales seems to be diminishing, although 40 were in Wrexham’s Watery Road on Saturday and three fed beside the café on Llanddulas beach at the weekend. A mile to the east, sharp-eyed Waxwing watchers on New Year’s Day spotted that one of a flock at Middle Gate, on the road to Abergele, wore coloured rings on its legs. They were attached by Grampian Ringing Group as part of a long-term project. An animated map of resightings, published by Sam Langlois on X, formerly Twitter, shows how Waxwings have moved south through Britain since early November, after arriving in northeast Scotland from Scandinavia. Surprisingly, however, the bird seen in North Wales was not among them. It had been ringed in Aberdeen in November 2022 and was seen later that winter in Aalborg, northern Denmark, presumably on the way back to its breeding area. The Grampian project has ringed more than 4500 Waxwings, but this is only the eighth bird to be seen again in a different winter following its ringing. Meirionnydd’s juvenile White-tailed Eagle continues its stay in the hills above Llanuwchllyn, presumed to come from Scotland or Ireland. Not far away, a Ring-necked Duck and four Scaup are on Llyn Tegid. A smart male Smew is at Talacre, and several Snow Buntings on saltmarsh at nearby RSPB Point of Ayr. On Anglesey, an estimated 200,000 Starlings roost at Llyn Bodgylched, a flock of Pink-footed Geese were on Llyn Llywenan last week, and a Scaup and Ruffs at RSPB Cors Ddyga. Slavonian Grebes are on the Inland Sea, with others off Benllech, Harlech and Llanddulas. The Llŷn’s long-staying Glossy Ibis remains at Abererch and a Black-throated Diver was among a dozen Great Northern Divers off Pontllyfni. Water Pipits have been by Porthmadog Cob and near Penrhyn Bay.
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Forecast colder conditions may push songbirds and waterbirds west if ground conditions become icy and wetlands freeze. Skylarks, Fieldfares and Pink-footed Geese are among those likely to head into Wales if we remain milder than eastern Britain. A flock of Pink-feet flew over the Clwyd estuary, and perhaps the same were at Llanerchymedd, on Sunday. More Waxwings could arrive too. Sightings of the punk berry-munchers include flocks in Penmaenmawr, Connah’s Quay, Nannerch, Saltney, Mold, Bagillt, Rhuddlan and Rhyl.
A Snow Goose of unknown origin grazes with Greylags in the Dee Valley, south of Holt. It’s a ‘blue morph’ bird, plumage resulting from a dominant gene, so not the same as a white morph on the Dee estuary in the last couple of winters. Snow Goose was recently added to the national list by the Welsh Ornithological Society, along with Moltoni’s Warbler and Tennessee Warbler, all of which were recorded in Wales for the first time in 2022. You can download a copy of the Welsh List from their website. A White-tailed Eagle seen in Meirionnydd last month remains in the area, reported by a farmer near Llanuwchllyn last week, and on nearby Llyn Tegid a Ring-necked Duck and Scaup are off Glanllyn. Black-necked Grebes were off Aber Ogwen and Carreg y Defaid, near Llanbedrog, at the weekend. Several Slavonian Grebes were off Harlech, with Great Northern Divers scattered around both coasts of Pen Llŷn. Near Pwllheli, a Glossy Ibis remains at Abererch, a Snow Bunting flew over the Great Orme, and an unseasonal Sandwich Tern was off Penmon on Saturday. A male Smew was in the Dee estuary. Magpie has been removed from all General Licences by Natural Resources Wales, meaning that anyone with cause to kill the corvid requires a specific licence from NRW. That has been the case in relation to bird conservation for a couple of years, but now also applies to agricultural damage. The decision followed a review that could find little evidence of widescale damage by Magpies to livestock, feed or crops which could not be resolved by non-lethal methods. Details of the decision were published on the NRW website. The first day of the year renews enthusiasm for many birdwatchers, with one group in North Wales clocking up 110 species. Anglesey Bird News confirmed that 128 species were seen on the island on Monday, and that 230 were reported there during the previous 12 months.
Waxwings continue to draw admirers across the region, with the largest flocks of up to 60 in Kinmel Bay, 40 in Rhuddlan, 36 in Bodelwyddan and 30 in Ruthin, and others at RSPB Conwy, Saltney, Old Colwyn and near Llanddulas. A Great Grey Shrike plays hard-to-get in Clocaenog Forest while a Glossy Ibis and Great White Egret are at Abererch, near Pwllheli. Jack Snipe were at RSPB Conwy, Traeth Dulas, Bangor harbour and below Aled Isaf Reservoir, and 13 Purple Sandpipers at Rhos-on-Sea. Two Long-tailed Ducks are off Benllech and another commutes between Llanfairfechan and Glan y Môr Elias. Three Great Northern Divers are off Borth-y-gest, two in Porthmadog Harbour and others at Ynys Llanddwyn, Cemlyn, Penmaenmawr and Anglesey’s Inland Sea. A Black Redstart was at Holyhead’s Fish Quay and five Slavonian Grebes in Cymryan Strait. Although North Wales’ celebrations were damp and breezy, 2024 kicked off with fireworks across the world, just days after their effects on birds had been quantified for the first time. Research led by the University of Amsterdam, and published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, used weather radar to show that in The Netherlands, the New Year’s Eve peak saw 10,000 to 100,000 times the normal number of birds taking to the air compared to other nights. The highest responses were within 5km of fireworks, but flight activity remained higher than normal up to 10km away. Radar imagery of the responses were shared on social media site X (formerly Twitter). Larger-bodied species, such as geese, ducks and gulls, in open landscapes responded more readily to the sounds and lights. Since fireworks are set off in almost every community, the study suggests that across the country, millions of wintering birds are disturbed. Although they have yet to measure the impact of this synchronised disturbance on birds’ life chances, the researchers have called for fireworks-free zones, especially around wetlands and coastal farmland. Waxwings continued to attract the attention of pre-Christmas shoppers, and so long as berries remain will doubtless provide a welcome diversion for those tackling the high street sales this week. Waxwings get their Welsh name, Cynffon Sidan, from the silky appearance of their tail, and appropriately the closest relatives to these northern hemisphere birds are Silky Flycatchers from Central America. Their English name is derived from bright red extensions to the secondary feathers, displayed by both Bohemian Waxwings (to use the full name of our visitors) and by Cedar Waxwings that breed in North America. The red tips not only look like blobs of candle wax, they feel slightly waxy too. The length and number of waxy tips on the wings increase as the birds age. Up to 50 Waxwings were around Aldi in Ruthin and 17 at B&M in Mold on Christmas Eve, with more than 30 on the outskirts of Rhuddlan and 14 in Old Colwyn on Saturday. A flock of 13 was in an Abergele garden last week, 10 in Tywyn on the Meirionnydd coast and others reported in Ty’n-y-groes in the Conwy Valley. If you’re keen to get outside this week, recent sightings include a Cattle Egret at Greenfield, Firecrests at Morfa Aber and The Spinnies, a Twite among Linnets at Point of Ayr, and Whooper Swans in the Cefni Valley and from Porthmadog Cob. Nine Long-tailed Ducks are off Black Rock Sands, with others off Benllech and on Llyn Maelog. Great White Egrets were off Porthmadog Cob and near Saltney, and up to four Great Northern Divers on Anglesey’s Inland Sea. There may be plenty of winter still to come, but Song Thrushes have started to sing as days lengthen, and I’ve noticed a few Fulmars checking out potential nest sites on cliffs and Rooks gathering at their communal colonies. The new designs of coin from the Royal Mint will enter circulation in the coming weeks, each inspired by the natural world. Birds appear on the 10p and 20p, in the form of Capercaillie and Puffin, both birds at risk in the UK. Red Squirrel on the 2p and Atlantic Salmon on the 50p are among the other species featured. But while we all get to put some wildlife in our pocket, the most recent State of Nature report showed that UK spending on wildlife conservation has fallen by 24% in real terms over the last five years. That the UK spent just 0.031% of GDP on biodiversity in 2021/22 is hard to square with the nature and climate emergency declared by the Senedd in June 2021. This week’s Welsh Government budget will be pored over by farmers and conservationists, keen to see how funding matches the needs of nature.
Waxwings continued to draw crowds this week, with 38 still in Llysfaen and seven in Rhuddlan, but a dozen in Holywell were seen only briefly. A Ring-necked Duck has returned to Llyn Tegid for another winter, arriving with three Scaup. Two Slavonian Grebes are off Llanddulas, with others off Benllech and in the Menai Strait off Church Island. Cattle Egrets remain in Anglesey’s Cefni Valley, with two at RSPB Cors Ddyga, while a group of White-fronted Geese here may be the flock from Greenland that winters on Anglesey. A Bewick’s Swan fitted with a satellite-tag in The Netherlands paid a night-time visit to North Wales recently. It flew across South Wales to Co.Wexford in Ireland on 30 November. but two days later followed the coast north to Dublin and crossed the Irish Sea after dark on 2 December. He paused in the Cymryan Strait, between Holy Island and Anglesey, for just an hour after midnight before flying across Liverpool Bay and up the Mersey valley. See the map, shared by Dutch PhD student Hans Linssen on X (formerly Twitter), here. It is more than a decade since a Bewick’s Swan was seen on Anglesey, and in some winters none is seen in Wales, as the Russian population now winters farther east as the climate has warmed. A farmer in Cwm Prysor, the hills east of Trawsfynydd, filmed a subadult White-tailed Eagle last week, which was seen again at the weekend from the main road to Bala. It has no identifiable marks and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation has confirmed that it was not a satellite-tagged bird released in southern England, where a pair last summer fledged the first English chick for 240 years.
The bird seen above Llyn Celyn is assumed to have originated from either Scotland or a reintroduced population in Ireland. The last breeding pair of White-tailed Eagles in Wales was probably a pair at Nefyn in 1880, and there have been only a handful of Welsh records in the last century. Young eagles roam widely, and it is quite likely that another farmer or a walker will be the next person to see this one. Identification is fairly straightforward given a good view, with its large size (a female’s wingspan is more than two metres, almost twice that of a Buzzard) and parallel-sided wings that earned it the nickname “flying barn door”. That reputedly was the wry observation of a crofter on Fair Isle, where a reintroduction attempt was made in the late 1960s. Elsewhere, a pale-cheeked American Wigeon was relocated on the Cefni estuary, downstream from its initial location several weeks ago, and a Long-tailed Duck remains at Glan-y-môr Elias near Llanfairfechan. Three Slavonian Grebes are in the Menai Strait off Aber Ogwen and another three in Anglesey’s Beddmanarch Bay. The Waxwing flock remained throughout the week in Llysfaen, numbering 40 on Monday, when a flock of 20 was found on Denbigh Road in Rhuthun. Two or three Firecrests are at Llyn Parc Mawr, a vocal Siberian Chiffchaff at RSPB Conwy and a Hoopoe was reported between Bangor and Caernarfon on Sunday. It looks set to be the biggest winter for Waxwings in Wales for seven years, as more flocks of the Starling-size songbirds were spotted across the region. Near Colwyn Bay, last week’s small flock at Llysfaen grew each day and topped out at 55 on Sunday. Originating from Scandinavia, their trilling call has also been heard around berry-laden trees in Colwyn Bay, Llanddulas, Gronant, Bethesda, between Ruabon and Chirk, and at Hope, near Wrexham. More flocks are in north Powys. With plenty of Hawthorn berries still in the hedgerows, there is every chance of greater numbers visiting North Wales. An impressive nine Long-tailed Ducks were with a Velvet Scoter off Black Rock Sands at the weekend, and another Long-tailed Duck was with Slavonian Grebes and a Black-necked Grebe off Harlech. The northern end of Cardigan Bay can be an excellent place to see wintering seaducks and grebes, but it is underwatched compared to the north-facing coasts of Wales. A Black-throated Diver was off Llandudno’s North Shore and four Velvet Scoters off Llanddulas. Spotted Redshanks, a Siberian Chiffchaff and a Jack Snipe were at RSPB Conwy on Sunday. Four Cattle Egrets fed near Llanfwrog, north of Valley, and another is on fields near Pwllheli golf course. A Little Gull dropped into RSPB Cors Ddyga briefly on Monday. A consultation on lead ammunition closes on 10 December; conservation and shooting organisations are encouraging people to get involved. The Health & Safety Executive is seeking views on ending the use of lead shot, bullets and airgun pellets, which are toxic to birds that ingest the tiny fragments. Hunting groups have called for an end to use of lead shot by 2025, but an assessment by Cambridge University earlier this year reported that a voluntary approach had “little impact” among Pheasant shooters. The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust and the RSPB have campaigned for an end to lead in all ammunition (not only shot) for many years, and are encouraging participation in this consultation. Both organisations have set out their views and provided details of how to respond – see WWT website and RSPB website. Unusual plumage caused by abnormal feather pigmentation can catch out the unwary, even of very familiar species. Anglesey reader Annwen Hughes has received regular garden visits from this Blue Tit with a white head and pale yellow body. The condition is known as leucism, where the cells responsible for the production of melanin are absent, so the bird lacks its darker patterns but the yellow carotenoids are unaffected. It is sometimes stated that leucistic birds are more vulnerable to predators, although evidence is hard to find except in nocturnal species that rely on cryptic plumage to hunt after dark. The British Trust for Ornithology runs a long-running survey of birds with abnormal plumage. If you see, and ideally photograph, one please participate at surveymonkey.com/r/plumagesurvey. Waxwings have finally made it into Wales from the northeast, with seven at Llysfaen on Monday, and two at Hawarden and a flock of 17 at Cilcain on Sunday. A Glossy Ibis is feeding between Abererch and Pwllheli and Snow Buntings near Llanbedrog and on the Great Orme. Four Slavonian Grebes were off Aber Ogwen, two in Beddmanarch Bay and one off Llanddulas, with Long-tailed Ducks there, at Benllech and Glan-y-Môr Elias. Strong winds last week pushed late Sooty Shearwaters inshore past Cemlyn and Point Lynas, and five Great Northern Divers and a Little Gull off Rhos Point. Two Cattle Egrets were reported on Rhyl’s Marine Lake and two Black Redstarts in Fairbourne. A couple of Hawfinches and a Firecrest were behind Bangor Cathedral last week, with another Firecrest in the St Mary’s Village part of the city. A Great Grey Shrike was near Pentrellyncymmer, below Llyn Brenig, for a couple of days. Whooper Swan flocks have increased in the colder weather, with 56 upriver from Porthmadog and 15 at RSPB Cors Ddyga, where a late Swallow was seen on Sunday along with a Merlin and Water Pipits; four Cattle Egrets and a Siberian Chiffchaff were on the reserve last week. Although I have neither the patience nor skill to ring birds, I’m always fascinated by the discoveries that ornithologists make by attaching alloy rings to the legs of birds. My minor contribution is reading colour rings and flags on legs of waterbirds, such as a Curlew I saw recently near Llanfairfechan that had been ringed at RSPB Snettisham, in Norfolk, earlier in the autumn.
The 2022 Ringing Report by the British Trust for Ornithology includes three birds in Wales that are now the oldest in the British and Irish ringing scheme. A House Sparrow in Gwent was recorded in the same village more than 13 years after being ringed there as a nestling in 2008, and Kittiwake returned to Skomer where it was ringed in 1991. On Anglesey, a male Chough was seen 24 years after being ringed as a chick on the island in 1998, and the ringer reports that he’s nested again in 2023. That beats a record set by a Ceredigion bird in 2019 and becomes the oldest passerine (a perching bird) in the BTO database. Indeed, it is the oldest known Chough in Europe, and maybe the oldest passerine in any European ringing scheme. Meanwhile, a Guillemot on Ynys Gwylan-fawr, off Aberdaron, had been ringed there as a chick 35 years previously, although it needs to be seen again after 2028 to become the oldest on the BTO’s database. The report also documents movements, some global but others of birds we consider more sedentary. A Collared Dove ringed in Norfolk in 2016 was found in a Bagillt garden; a Barn Owl ringed in Northumberland in 2014 was found near Rhuthun; and a Nightjar that hatched in Denmark in 2021 was in Clocaenog Forest a year later. Most intriguing was a ring found in a bag of compost bought in Aberystwyth that had been attached to a Curlew chick in central Scotland in 2010… You’ll be able to read more in the Ringing and Nest-recording Report by Lee Barber in the Welsh Bird Report 2022, to be published soon by the Welsh Ornithological Society. And if you find a bird with a ring, please report it to ring.ac and contribute to science. This week saw a flock of Greenland White-fronted Geese return to the Cefni Valley, where four Cattle Egrets remain at RSPB Cors Ddyga, and 37 Whooper Swans are on Glaslyn Marshes. A Snow Bunting was unusual inland in Penllyn Forest, above Llyn Tegid, which hosted a Common Scoter last week. A Grey Phalarope and Firecrest were reported at Morfa Madryn nature reserve, with Firecrests also at Bangor Cathedral and at Moelfre. Fifteen Jack Snipe were with 250 Snipe at Traeth Coch, and a Long-tailed Duck off Benllech. Updated on 22 November to include information from Tony Cross that the Chough in the story is the oldest passerine in the BTO ringing database, and may be the oldest ringed passerine in Europe. Results from a mammoth survey of almost 15,000 seabird colonies is published today, following seven years of fieldwork by more than 850 people. It’s an amazing feat to survey millions of birds on the remotest islands and islets across Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man and Channel Islands, which are collectively of international importance for many species. It would have made for grim reading even before bird ‘flu hit several species in the years since fieldwork finished, as it shows that 11 of 21 species have declined and populations of only four have increased by more than a few per cent.
Climate change, predation and depleted fish stocks have all played a part, with declines most acute in Scotland, the most important part of the archipelago for seabirds. The results for Wales also show serious declines for species such as Cormorant, Kittiwake, Shag and Fulmar. Wales now holds a greater share of the UK’s Guillemots, Razorbills and Puffins, and especially Little Terns and Arctic Terns, which have benefited from intensive conservation efforts in North Wales. However, some of Wales’ increased importance may result from crashes elsewhere in the UK, and the small number of colonies here highlights that their eggs are in a few vulnerable baskets. I look forward to diving into the book Seabirds Count and, given the significance of its contents, I’m sure this is a topic to which I will return… This week’s bird sightings include nine Cattle Egrets and a couple of Water Pipits at RSPB Cors Ddyga, Hawfinches around Llanrwst church and a Yellow-browed Warbler that made a short stop at Rhyl’s Brickfield Pond. Over-running summer migrants were a Hoopoe at Rhoshirwaun, Ring Ouzel with Fieldfares near Bryn y Maen and Arctic Tern off Moelfre. Long-tailed Ducks are on Llyn Maelog and off Benllech, and Slavonian Grebes on the Inland Sea and Menai Strait. Black Redstarts were spotted in Bangor and Porthmadog, and Snow Buntings at Holyhead, South Stack, Great Orme and Point Lynas. |
Bird notesA weekly update of bird sightings and news from North Wales, published in The Daily Post every Thursday. Archives
March 2024
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