March birding

After being out of the UK for most of February, winter birding was mostly over by the time March started. March is one of those odd months that can be different every year depending on the weather. This year it was almost a pre-spring with a few early spring migrants coming through but the dry conditions meant most of the early arrivals went straight through.

Beam Valley

It was a fairly quiet month here although I did manage to get my first Kingfisher and Pheasant this year. Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps were plentiful by the end of March but no Willow Warbler so far.

Blackthorn blossom

Dagenham Chase

I made a conscious effort to visit here fairly regularly with 13 visits logged this month. I was hoping for some waders but apart from the odd Green Sandpiper, nothing else was seen. I did manage to catch up with Tawny Owl on its day roost thanks to Vince. The first summer visitors were Sand Martin and Blackcap on 22nd, followed by Willow Warbler on 28th. By the end of the month most of the overwintering ducks and gulls had migrated.

Greylag Goose

Kestrel

Shoveler

Wigeon

King George V Reservoir

I only made one trip this month, on the 14th, but it was a very productive one. The highlights were a drake Garganey, my first summer visitor of the year and not one I typically see first, and a drake Smew to make an unlikely duo. I also saw my first Barnacle Goose of the year along with both species of over-wintering divers, two Black-necked Grebes, Peregrine, Raven and finally caught up with one of the Black Redstarts. The sunny weather brought out the raptors and several Red Kites and Buzzards soared over the reservoir.

Barnacle Goose

Red Kite

Smew

Rainham Marshes

I only managed four visits in March as it's been very quiet here but it's now picking up. The standout bird was the Green-winged Teal that has taken up residence here since March 22nd. This American version of our Teal has a chequered history, being counted as a race of Teal, then a separate species and currently the two main world listing organisations cannot agree!

Green-winged Teal (note the vertical white stripe compared to the horizontal one on the regular Teal on the left).

The day I first saw the GW Teal (23rd) ended up being a really good day as there was a Spoonbill on the reserve and a Common Scoter in Aveley Bay. There weren't many different summer visitors seen in March but I did get an early Little Ringed Plover on 21st.

Little Ringed Plover

Scotland

I managed a short break towards the end of the month. I went up on the train to Edinburgh with John & Janet, staying in an apartment just off the Royal Mile for three days. On the first afternoon we had a short walk in Holyrood Park - it was a lot bigger than I expected and very hilly.

On our first full day we took the train to Musselburgh then walked along the river Esk down to the sea and then along the coast and back over by the lagoons. It was good to catch up with a lot of seaduck that I rarely seen down in the south now with Eider, Long-tailed Duck and Velvet Scoter all being close inshore. On one of the lagoons I managed to refind an elusive Jack Snipe.

Goldeneye

Velvet Scoter

Oystercatcher

The following day we took a cab to Gullane Point. We spent a fair bit of time looking for the White-winged Scoter that was wintering here. I was expecting it to be with Velvet Scoters but there was only a large flock of Common Scoter in view. Eventually, John picked it up flying in and we had reasonable views of it but it was still too far for a photo. We walked along the coast to Aberlady Bay, although it was very difficult trying to find the proper path  as we ended up in dead end coves or on the golf course a couple of times.

Bullfinch

Reed Bunting on the golf course

Toad

We did manage to find a single Purple Sandpiper and a Whimbrel which was either over-wintering or a very early migrant. Once we arrived at Aberlady we got the bus back to Edinburgh. On our last day we did another walk in Holyrood Park, going in the opposite direction this time. On the way back we ran into a flock of Bullfinches in a housing estate - it's good to know that they're still plentiful up here as they've disappeared from most sites in London now.

Bullfinch