Lutley Wedge 29/08/11 07.30am (10°c) Cool cloudy and overcast. Wind (W) F3

Pretty uninspiring this morning in the decidedly cool and breezy conditions, however there was still some limited 'vis mig' on offer.  A single Yellow Wagtail flew over along with a few late Swifts, and a short lived pulse of House Martins in three flocks went purposefully South from around 0800am.

1 Yellow Wagtail ➝E

2 alba Wagtail ➝SW

6 Meadow Pipit (3➝W) (2➝NE)

8 Swift (4➝SW) (3➝WSW) (1➝N)

46 House Martin ➝S

4 Swallow (1➝S) (1➝W)

6 Goldfinch ➝S

Swift and House Martins 29/8/11

Lutley Wedge 28/08/11 10.15am (15°c) Warm, sunny spells/scattered cloud. Breezy (W/NW) F3

(2) Wheatears (1 adult ♂, 1♀/1st winter) were in horse paddocks along Top Footpath. (SLC/CR). The ♂ Wheatear was interesting as it is the first adult ♂ i have recorded on autumn passage through Lutley Wedge, with all previous autumn records being of ♀/1st winter birds) 

Adult ♂ autumn Wheatear 28/8/11 

(Still showing vestiges of spring plumage, though with new pale-fringed primary/secondary flight feathers and tertials after post breeding moult)

♀/1st winter Wheatear 28/8/11

♂ Wheatear 28/8/11 

Lutley Wedge 27/08/11 07.40am Sunny spells + broken high cloud (clouding over with heavy showers later am) Wind (W) F1/2

(6) Common/Arctic Terns flew over heading West at 08.55am, though sadly they were just too far away and views were just too brief for them to go down as anything other than 'Commic' Terns. This is only the 2nd ever record of any Tern species at Lutley Wedge, with the only other record of a single Common Tern from May 2004! 

Also seen:-

3 Meadow Pipit (2➝E) (1 in)

1 alba Wagtail ➝S

6 Swifts

33 House Martin

18 Swallow (13➝W)

1 Willow Warbler

2 Chiffchaff

1 Lesser Whitethroat

4 Common Whitethroat

3 Blackcap

Meadow Pipit and Willow Warbler 27/8/11

Lutley Wedge 25/08/11 09.40am Sunny, patchy cloud. Wind (SW) F1

Yellow Wagtail passage continues with another 2 flying through this morning, and a single Hobby was seen.
2 Yellow Wagtail➝W/SW (S.L.Clement)
1 Hobby➝NE (SLC/CR)
5 Swift➝S/SW
18 Swallow (7➝W/SW)
29 House Martin (9➝S)
5 Common Whitethroat
4 Blackcap
1 Chiffchaff

Lutley Wedge 24/08/11 07.30am Sunny, clear skies and patchy high cloud. Wind (SW) F1/2

(3) Yellow Wagtails flew over and the first Meadow Pipit this autumn headed Southwest, no doubt the first of many! Cormorants continued to move with (4) going over.

3 Yellow Wagtail (2➝W/SW) (1 in then ➝W)

1 Meadow Pipit ➝SW

4 Swift

36 House Martin (20➝W)

27 Swallow (13➝S/SW) (8➝E/SE)

1 Lesser Whitethroat

6 Common Whitethroat

2 Blackcap

2 Chiffchaff

4 Cormorant

1 Red Admiral ➝S

Yellow Wagtail 24/8/11

House Martin 24/8/11

Lutley Wedge 23/08/11 11.40am Warm, sunny spells and scattered cloud. Breezy (E/NE) F2

Another day, and another Wheatear in the horse paddocks along the Top Footpath along with (3) Yellow Wagtails.

1 Wheatear

3 Yellow Wagtail 

3 Swift

1 Chiffchaff

60+ House Martin

70+ Linnet

1 Raven

Wheatear 23/8/11

Swift 23/8/11

(This is quite possibly the same tail-less Swift seen some 3 weeks ago (see 2/8/11) now looking even more bizarre as it grows in new replacement tail feathers!)

Lutley Wedge 22/08/11 07.15am (10°c) Sunny, patchy high cloud. Still

A Wheatear was perched on the power line near Grange Barns late morning, and was almost caught by a hunting Hobby! Luckily the Wheatear managed to escape the Hobby by diving for cover under my parked car! (2) Tree Pipits and (3) Yellow Wagtails flew over and a flock of (80) House Martin, (1) Sand Martin and (18+) Swallows were 'sunning' on the roof of Grange farm.  Also of note (8) Common Buzzards were soaring together, high over the Top Footpath.
1 Hobby ➝E
1 Wheatear 
2 Tree Pipit ➝SW
3 Yellow Wagtail (1➝SW) (2 in then ➝W/SW)
11 Swift (3➝W/SW)
25 Swallow (4➝W/SW)
1 Sand Martin
80 House Martin
7 Cormorant (5➝E/NE) (2➝W/NW)
1 Raven ➝N

 

Wheatear 22/8/11 (shortly before..and after it's brush with death!)

Yellow Wagtail Lutley Wedge 22/8/11 (sonogram/sound recording of flight call) 

Lutley Wedge 21/08/11 07.00am (15°c) Broken high cloud. Light (S) Breeze F1

A superb first for Lutley Wedge this morning.  At 0815am I picked out the flight calls of (2) Knot as they flew in from the E/SE, flying directly overhead and over the Top Footpath heading off to the NW/W.

Knot has always been rare passage wader inland away from Staffordshire which gets the lions share of most Midland records, and is classed as an 'uncommon passage migrant' according to the 'New Birds of the West Midlands' Harrison 2005. In West Midland county terms however it is even scarcer with the West Midlands only accounting for a paltry 2% of all records and even Worcestershire only accounting for some 8%!

(I have included an example of Knot flight call from Flasterbo Sweden in September, from the excellent xeno-canto site below). 

The first Wheatear this autumn was in horse paddocks along the Top Footpath late morning along with 1 Yellow Wagtail with another Yellow Wagtail flying through heading West, and a single Tree Pipit flew over.

Visible Migration/migrant totals:-

2 Knot➝ NW/W 

1 Wheatear

2 Yellow Wagtail (1➝W) (1 in then➝E/NE)

1 Tree Pipit ➝SW

4 Sand Martin (2➝W) (1➝W/NW) (1➝S/SE)

45 House Martin (7➝SSE) (3➝E)

17 Swallow (10➝W/NW)

7 Swift (1➝S/SW)

1 Lesser Whitethroat

8+ Common Whitethroat

1 Blackcap

Knot heading W/NW Lutley Wedge 21/8/11

Lesser Whitethroat 21/8/11

Lutley Wedge 20/08/11 07.15am (14°c) Overcast with occasional sunny spells, light rain showers later. Wind (S/SW) F3

Good numbers of Sand Martin and House Martin were moving through to the South early doors and a single Tree Pipit flew over, but that aside it proved to be pretty quiet migration wise this morning.
1 Tree Pipit ➝SW  ('dropped out' into the rape field by Grange Barns as a rain shower moved in)
15+ Sand Martin ➝S
93 House Martin (51➝S) (17➝W)
37 Swallow (11➝S/SW)
13 Swift (10➝SW)
2 Blackcap
2 Common Whitethroat
1 Chiffchaff

Tree Pipit 20/8/11

Lutley Wedge 19/08/11 07.10am (9°c) Sunny, patchy high cloud. Clouding over from (W/SW) later am. Still

(6) Crossbill went over heading South at 0815am and (3) Tree Pipit and (1) Yellow Wagtail flew through. A ♀/1st winter Redstart was in the hedgerow at Foxcote Pond, and a Hobby that flew over Grange Farm almost caught one of three 'lumbering' Bullfinch that had the misfortune to be flying over! 

6 Crossbill ➝ S

1 Hobby ➝E

1 Redstart

3 Tree Pipit ➝ S

1 Yellow Wagtail ➝W

2 Sand Martin ➝ NW

39 House Martin ➝W/NW

10 Swallow

16 Swift

3 Willow Warbler

3 Chiffchaff

8 Common Whitethroat

4 Blackcap

2 Raven ➝E

2 Cormorant ➝WSW

Crossbill Lutley Wedge 19/8/11

Hobby, Willow Warbler and Cormorants 19/8/11

Lutley Wedge 18/08/11 07.00am (10°c) Overcast with high cloud. Wind Light VAR (N/NE) F1

More visible migration this morning and more typical mid August fare with a trickle of Yellow Wagtails and Tree Pipits flying over in the still conditions. The only noticeable grounded migrant was a Willow Warbler that dropped in briefly at my vis mig watchpoint along Top Footpath, before quickly moving on. (2) Hobbies flew East over Grange Barns followed by another Hobby later on over Wassell Grove Pools, that flew NE towards Grange Farm.

3 Hobby (2➝E) (1➝E/NE)

2 Tree Pipit ➝S/SW

3 Yellow Wagtail➝SW

1 Willow Warbler 

2 Chiffchaff

4 Common Whitethroat

3 Blackcap

21 House Martin (20➝E) (1➝SW)

1 Swallow ➝S

1 Grey Heron➝N

Willow Warbler Lutley Wedge 18/8/11

Willow Warbler (call and sonogram) Lutley Wedge 18/8/11

Lutley Wedge 17/08/11 07.10am (10°c) Broken high cloud 6/8. Still (NW) F1

The first Tree Pipit of the autumn flew over and two flocks of 3 and 4 Cormorants flew through high to the SE and NW. 

7 Cormorant (3➝SE) (4➝NW)

1 Tree Pipit ➝S

1 Sand Martin

47 House Martin

6 Swallow

5 Swift

1 alba Wagtail ➝S

3 Chiffchaff

4 Common Whitethroat

1 Blackcap

'Cormorants on the move' 17/8/11

Lutley Wedge 16/08/11 07.30am (13°c) Cloudy and breezy. (S/SW) F3

Very quiet  today, with a fly over Reed Bunting heading East and a scattering of late-ish Swifts the only things of note.

13 Swift (1 ➝WSW) (7➝SSW)

68 House Martin (41➝W/SW)

6 Swallow

1 Reed Bunting ➝E

Lutley Wedge 15/08/11 07.30am (12°c) Sunny with patchy broken cloud. (SW/W) breeze F2

Some visible migration this morning with (3) Yellow Wagtails and (2) Sand Martin going over, whilst other highlights included a Hobby hunting over Wassell Grove Pools/ Grange Farm and a single Lesser Whitethroat. ('Lesserthroats' have been particularly scarce so far this autumn on the loacl patch).

1 Hobby ➝E/NE

3 Yellow Wagtail ➝E/SE

2 Sand Martin (1➝N) (1➝WSW)

2 House Martin

14 Swallow (3➝S/SW)

7 Swift (3➝WSW)

1 Song Thrush ➝SSE

1 Lesser Whitethroat

8 Common Whitethroat

5 Blackcap

5 Chiffchaff

50+ Goldfinch (Wassell Grove Pools) 

Common Whitethroat 15/8/11

Lutley Wedge 02/08/11 07.40am (17°c) Warm, cloudy/overcast. Light (SW/W) breeze F1

(4) Ravens flew over high to the Southeast, and a flock of (100+) Linnets were near Grange Farm/Top Footpath.

Migrant totals:-

4 Raven ➝SE

1 Grey Heron ➝E

31 Swift (4➝SSW)

65 House Martin

7 Swallow (5➝SW)

4 Common Whitethroat

1 Chiffchaff

Tail-less Swift 2/8/11

(Just how an adult Swift loses all it's tail feathers i'm not exactly sure!)