Both Wood Warbler and Pied Fly gone but adult RUFF new in at Rookery

FRIDAY 29 JULY

Mainly grey and overcast all day with a fresh northeasterly wind blowing. Consequently, a few passage waders arrived.......

ROOKERY PIT SOUTH, STEWARTBY (BEDS)
(with Stephen Northwood)

Highlight here was a male RUFF that touchdowned for just ten minutes early afternoon.

Other waders present included 275 post-breeding Lapwings, 4 Ringed Plovers, 3 adult DUNLIN, 5 GREEN SANDPIPERS, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Common Redshanks and 5 COMMON GREENSHANKS

Also noted were 11 Little Grebes, 5 Little Egrets, the pair of Mute Swans with four surviving cygnets, 2 adult HOBBIES, 113 Black-headed Gulls, 23 Common Terns, 3 Willow Warblers and several Common Whitethroats.

BEDFORD PARK, BEDFORD (BEDS)

Returned once more to Bedford Park, putting in two hours of searching from 1400-1600 hours. No sign of the juvenile PIED FLYCATCHER nor 5 SPOTTED FLYCATCHERS that I had seen the previous evening in the tiny coppice of trees immediately SE of the bowling green nor any sign of the Wood Warbler that had proved so elusive yesterday. At least 4 Common Chiffchaffs still in the coppice, the juvenile Willow Warbler and 12 Goldcrests. Also several Song Thrushes in the park, 25 Goldfinch and 12 Greenfinch, whilst a flock of loafing Black-headed Gulls yielded a single sub-adult Common Gull.