June birdwatching round up

“I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June?”        L. M. Montgomery

Well for someone solely focused on migrant birds at Nosterfield, that would be a disaster, as it is fair to say this year’s June was not the most inspiring month.  It is also fair to say that outside the birdwatching bubble, in the world of plants and insects, it was altogether much better, but that is beyond the remit of this avian round-up.

One thing that we can pretty much take for granted in the summer months are the regular visits of Osprey to pick up a snack in the Flasks/Langwith/ Lingham triad of lakes and this month was no exception, with single males being seen on eight days during the month. 

Osprey gets lucky over Flasks Photo: Tim Jones

Also heartening was a count of 43 Skylark, mostly in the area of the Henges during the common bird census on 2nd. 

Also on that date, a male Garganey, a very scarce bird this year, put in an appearance on the North Lake.  Other wildfowl observations of note included up to three of both Wigeon and Teal present during the month.

June is very much the month when success and failure in the bird breeding world becomes evident, with fluffy, young Avocets present both on the Reserve and Langwith Lake, but definite disappointment with the Common Terns attempting to breed on the Reserve. 

Avocet success Photo: Mike Smithson

A Meadow Pipit was carrying food in exactly the same place as last month at the South Henge, indicative of young being nearby.  This is a species that has never been proven to have bred in the recording area before and therefore this observation was quite exciting although not conclusive.

A Swift powering through

On 4th, notable for the wrong reasons, was a Common Sandpiper.  This species used to be a regular breeder, with sometimes as many as three pairs in the recording area.  Unfortunately, this record was one of only three during the month, a marker of the decline of the species locally.

Visible migration is generally at a low ebb in the first half of June throughout Europe and therefore it was encouraging to have a most impressive movement of 477 Swifts and three Hobbys straight through south on 11th, plus a good performance by one of the local Hobbys around the Ladybridge/Langwith area.

The 12th was a red letter day when one sharp-eyed observer picked up the first Willow Tit for several years, around Kiln.  This is a Red-listed and critically endangered species in our area and as such, every record needs to be cherished as if it might be our last.

The 14th produced good counts of Gadwall (67) and Reed Bunting (17), reflective more of an effort to count rather than any unexpected influx!

An adult Kittiwake on Langwith Lake on 18th was soon spiralling up high and then lost to view as it drifted away SW.

Adult Kittiwake preparing to leave Langwith

Juvenile Redstart at Flasks Lake   Photo: ‘Fozzy’

The 21st brought the first of several sightings of up to two juvenile Redstarts in the Flasks/Lingham area, indicative of successful breeding nearby.

Returning wader passage was heralded by two Wood Sandpipers on the Reserve on 23rd and a Black-Tailed Godwit there the next day. The next day hosted the fourth sighting of Cuckoo for the year, with one along the Flasks Lake causeway.

The last part of the month ended with two unseasonal records, an adult Great Black-Backed Gull on 25th and a female Scaup on Lingham Lake on 29th.

Andrew Hanby, on behalf of the Nosterfield Naturalists 5th July 2022