Mining Bees

Our first record of Sandpit Mining Bee today at the mere when two were photographed in amongst a colony of around 15 Tawny Mining Bees. Also photographed in the same colony was a single Gwynne's Mining Bee. The sunny warmer weather has caused the emergence of these tiny little Bees. Tawny Mining Bee females and males are totally different in colour and size , and at first sight can be confusing until photographed. Gwynne's can be confused with a female Tawny but is larger with a totally black abdomen . The other species which we have on site is Clarke's which until identified closely resembles Gwynne's I think I will stick to Butterflies it's easier.

Sandpit Mining Bee (Andrena barbilabris).

Sandpit Mining Bee (Andrena barbilabris).

Tawny Mining Bee male (Andrena fulva).

Tawny Mining Bee female (Andrena fulva).

Gwynne's Mining Bee (Andrena bicolor).

Gwynne's Mining Bee (Andrena bicolor).

March 31st

Our first House Martin's of the year back this morning with six birds present along with 71x Sand Martin's and six Swallow. Also the Brambling flock still along with eight singing Chiffchaff and five Blackcap . Noted aswell was Grey Wagtail , Treecreeper , three Goldcrest , Grey Heron ,  Raven , Buzzard , Sparrowhawk , Mistle Thrush and twenty two Canada Geese over.
This afternoon four species of Mining Bee with Sandpit Mining Bee being a new species for the mere , also Clarke's , Gwynne's and Tawny along with Red-tailed Bumblebee and Hairy-footed Flower Bee.


Congleton Area.
Newsbank Pool
Shelduck x 3
Grey Heron x 1
Lapwing  x 1
Pied Wagtail x 11
Oystercatcher x 4
Sparrowhawk x 1

March 30th

Fifty plus Brambling still present around the mere, also five Goosander over early morning. Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs singing but no Willow Warbler as yet.
Afternoon...two Swallow and thirty three Sand Martin .


Congleton Area
The Cloud .
Raven x 1
Linnet x 2
Meadow Pipit x 6
Siskin x 1
Lesser Redpoll x1
Sand Martin x10
Grey Wagtail x 1
Bullfinch x 2.

Mow Cop
Lapwing x 8
Curlew x 1
Swallow x 1
Meadow Pipit x 2
Siskin x 3

March 29th

Around fourty plus Brambling along the eastern edge of the mere flycatching between the dragonfly pond and end of the wood. Also two Nuthatch , two Lapwing , male Reed Bunting and eight Buzzard up in the air at same time. Butterflies out in the sun this afternoon with our first Orange-tip of the year , along with three Comma two Brimstone several Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell. If anyone has not seen the Brambling yet now is your chance as any day now they will move on. Best viewed from footpath along side the mere between the steps and the new raised bench.

Local News
Red Kite @10-30 this morning along Congleton edge between Mow Cop and the Cloud.

Late News
Two Holy Blue Butterflies seen yesterday along East bank.

Brambling female photographed from along the path by the bench.

March 27th

Two drake Common Scoter on the mere at mid-day , these are now annual at Astbury with end of March being one of the best times for them. Also 16 Sand Martins and 12 Bramblings. Swallow late afternoon.

Brambling by Tracey Stubbs.

Common Scoter by Tracey Stubbs.

Common Scoter by Tracey Stubbs.

Common Scoter by Dave Kelsall.

March 26th

Very quiet early morning the Brambling flock still present but dispersed throughout the wood . Fourty six Tufted Duck seven G C Grebes , Buzzard , Grey Wagtail , seven Chiffchaff , three Blackcap and several Bullfinch . Late Afternoon Two Swallows our first of the year along with five Sand Martins.

March 25th

The large Brambling flock of around 50+ birds is still present around the dragonfly pond in the top wood . Also today three Sand Martin's , three female Goosanders , pair Reed Buntings , Grey Wagtail , Buzzard , four Blackcap and seven singing Chiffchaff.

March 24th

Fifty plus Brambling feeding on the eastern side of the mere at 7-00 o'clock this morning . The numbers are increasing daily just as they did this time last year , before they head off for their breeding grounds back in Scandinavia.  Also noted this morning were four singing Blackcap and five singing Chiffchaff . The tame Buzzard was perched in its usual area giving very close views. Four late Fieldfare flew north , single Greylag touched down briefly before being chased off by the resident psycho Mute Swan. This afternoon 10 x Sand Martin's , Grey Wagtail and Reed Bunting.

Local News Congleton
Newsbank Pool
4x Oystercatcher

Bath Vale
2x Dipper

March 23rd

Large Brambling flock still in the wood on the eastern side , also this morning our first singing Blackcap and still five Chiffchaff . Notes aswell Buzzard , G S Woodpecker , two Grey Wagtails , two Jay , Canada Goose and Pheasant.

Buzzard by David Collis.

March 22nd

Two Sand Martins our first of the year early morning . Also a flock of nine Curlew over which is our largest record for the site. The large Brambling flock was located again along the eastern side possibly 30 plus birds. Also noted five Chiffchaff a single drake Goosander , Great Spotted Woodpecker and Reed Bunting.

March 21st

Thirty plus Brambling's early morning in the woods next to the water sports centre , also two Oystercatcher over and four Chiffchaff. Thirty two Tufted Duck , Mistle Thrush , Siskin , two Reed Buntings also Bullfinch , Greenfinch , Chaffinch and Goldfinch. In the conservation pond 15 Smooth Newts and lots of Frog Spawn.

Smooth Newts photo by Tracey Stubbs .

Newsbank Pool Congleton
Curlew x 3
Oystercatcher x 2

Barn Road Congleton
Chiffchaff x 3 singing
Blackcap x 2 singing
Between Tesco and Airbags.

Conservation area / Feeders

For any one new just visiting the conservation area and feeders are located in the left hand corner from the car park at visitors centre. Face the water from the coffee shop and you will see a gate in the left corner 20 yds from coffee shop , this is the conservation area and as you stand at the gate the feeders are opposite you. The feeders are best viewed from either gate on both sides or by sitting on the bench opposite. I fill them up myself so unfortunately with work I can't get every day but I fill them as often as I can , hope you enjoy . With patients you can see Bullfinch , Brambling , Goldfinch , Greenfinch , Chaffinch , Reed Bunting , Siskin also Coal , Great , Blue and Long-tailed Tits.

March 18th

Two female Brambling , pair of Reed Bunting , pair of Bullfinch , five Goldfinch , three Greenfinch and three Jay all in conservation area this morning. Also noted three Grey Heron flew over and one singing Chiffchaff.

March 15th

Three male Brambling around the conservation area also two male Reed Bunting and the overwintering male Blackcap. One single Little Grebe on the mere , also noted Buzzard , Goldcrest , Grey Wagtail and single Redwing.

March 14th

Two adult Common Gulls on the mere , two Chiffchaff , three male Reed Buntings on the feeders along with the overwintering male Blackcap. Also noted a single Grey Wagtail ,three Greenfinch , pair Bullfinch and two Buzzards.

Blackcap (male) photo by Tracey Stubbs

March 13th

Male Blackcap still on feeders also male Reed Bunting.

March 11th

Two Common Gull's this evening in amongst the Black-headed Gulls this is the first record of them this year . Still a scarce bird at this site with just a handful of scattered records throughout the year. Also five Brambling still around the usual spot in the north east corner of the mere.

Treecreeper late afternoon by Tracey Stubbs.

2018 Birding Review.

Last year 2018 proved to be a very good year for bird species at Astbury Mere with a record total of 105 being recorded. This was mainly due to a dedicated few that put many many hours of work in , and as the saying goes hours spent equals birds found . Also thanks must go to visiting birders who kindly sent in there sightings swelling our total even more. Undoubtabley  the highlight of the year was the influx of Hawfinch into the UK from Scandinavia , which Astbury had its share of eight birds staying with us for over eight weeks . Giving many hours of entertainment to over one hundred visiting and local birders.

 

Monthly Review Jan 6th saw eighty Pink-footed Geese fly over heading in a north / west direction , this was the first of a few sighting of this species throughout the next two months. The rest of the month produced the usual winter wildfowl with Goosander , Goldeneye , Shoveler, Gadwall, Teal and Wigeon all putting in a appearance. Feb 15th was the start of the Hawfinch sightings with first a single bird being found with a pair of Brambling and eight Siskins. Just twenty minutes later we had three birds and along with Brambling numbers continued to increased as the days went on. Brambling have only ever been recorded in single figures before at this site , so to see flocks of between ten and twenty birds was a nice site . The feeding station we set up played it's part and on many days birds could be found feeding along side other finches. Feb 23rd brought our first Oystercatcher sighting of the year along wit a pair of Gadwall both scarce birds at the mere. A site MEGA on Mar 2nd when only our second ever record of a Redhead Smew was found the last one being twenty two years ago. Unfortunatly it only stayed with us for one day .

The next few days proved to be quite a little purple patch as on Mar 3rd our first ever record of Short-eared Owl when a bird was unexpectedly flushed from the conservation area at 6-00 in the morning. This one was definitely to quick for my camera as it headed in the opposite direction , but was relocated later the same day some four miles away quartering farm fields. Also same day two Dunlin were found these are also very scarce at the mere .

A bad snow storm during the morning of Mar17th brought five Greater Scaup down on the mere they had been displaced from nearby Tittesworth reservoir during the bad weather . They included two drakes and three females,they stayed with us for eight days giving excellent views to all who visited . Also during the snow storm a female Stonechat another first for the site was briefly seen by one birder but was flushed by a jogger and flew off . It was relocated later same day over the other side of the mere this time seen by two different birders.

Mar18th brought another first sighting at the mere when a flock of thirty two Golden Plover flew over quickly followed by another flock of eleven birds. Curlew usually fly over in early spring in just ones or two's so it was nice to see six over on Mar19th. The end of March into early April saw the usual migrants appear , Apr11th and yet another first when a single Arctic Tern graced the mere , the identification took some discussion with five of us but was clinched with on site photos.

On April 14th an amazing fifty two Brambling were counted and there could have been a few more , like I said earlier we only had record's in single figures so this was an exceptional year at the mere. Just a few days after this sighting not one could be found anywhere. With a little bit of patience reasonable views and photo's could be had around the feeding station.

On Apr 19th two Common Sandpiper's arrived of which on closer inspection one was ringed. Photographs showed the colours and information soon came back. It was a female ringed on 02/05/2017 on the river Spey at Cromdale a small village downstream of Grantown on Spey in Cairngorms NP. The bird had also been sighted in Dublin and along the west coast of Flintshire. Three birds were present for a couple of days on the mere. Two Shelduck recorded on Apr 22nd another scarce and not annual bird . May 1st and again another first for the site when a male Pied Flycatcher sang for 30 minutes before disappearing in the wood on the eastern edge of the mere. Also the same morning and again very scarce was a singing Lesser Whitethroat this one I did get on camera.

A Hobby was seen chasing Martin's on a number of occasions on May 3rd , these birds breed close by but are not a regular site at Astbury.

Three more Shelduck on May 5th and the first returning Reed Warbler noted on May 8th. During the next few months most birders tend to give the mere a wide berth as watersports , fishing and other activities take a strong hold. Birding early mornings only I tend to turn my attention to Butterflies and Dragonflies. Aug 1st two Common Sandpiper's arrived and on Aug 26th an exceptional record of two Greenshank feeding early morning for over a hour before being disturbed by dog walkers. The last and only other record was 2002.

Yet another site first on Aug 31st when a Little Egret was found on the sand bank just off the sailing club beach. The bird stayed for a few hours giving excellent views as it flew across the mere to the fisherman's beach and back again . This first record is really surprising as one or two birds are seen regular just less than a mile away .

A drake Common Scoter was found early morning on Sept 2nd but only stayed for 30 mins before flying off in poor light in a north / westerly direction. But just two days later Sept 4th two drakes appeared and stayed all day giving close views at times but in poor light. Iam never satisfied.

Sept 8th and our one and only Black Tern of the year again early morning it was soon being harrassed and chased off by local gulls. Sept 19th and three Snipe flew over obviously flushed from further afield. Oct 5th and a first winter Mediterranean Gull was in amongst a large flock of around three hundred Black headed Gulls but when all the birds took off the Med Gull did not return and was lost from site. Oct 27th and a single Common Sandpiper's showed reasonably well along the sailing club beach area.

Nov 16th and two Whooper Swans flew around the mere trying to land before flying off in a north / east direction , this personally gave Mark his one hundred species at the mere for the year and gave us a record 105 species for the site. Nov 18th and another Dunlin noted along with another record of Little Egret flew over Nov 25th. Thirteen Pink-footed Geese flew over Dec 9th , and a large Skien of around 150 birds over Dec 12th. Only our second ever record of Woodcock seen by the ranger flying over visitors centre at dusk on Dec 13th. With records throughout the year of Tawny Owl , Kingfisher , Goosander , Goldeneye , and Raven etc it proved to be a exceptional year for birds at the mere. I would personally like to thank all who sent records into me you all know who you are many thanks for making it a record year. Steve Seal.

March 9th Chiffchaff Back

The first returning Chiffchaff singing this morning in north / east corner of the mere ,Its the earliest record by three days . Also the overwintering bird seen again. Also a single Little Grebe and twelve Brambling , Coal Tit , Treecreeper , Goldcrest , two Buzzard and 24 x Tufted Duck. Pair of Reed Bunting on feeders late afternoon and a flock of twenty two Goldfinch over conservation area. Also three Buzzards up displaying and still a single Little Grebe on the mere.

March 7th

Female Goosander this morning and the Kingfisher is back on the mere.

Last Four Years Migrant Dates

List below shows the last four years migrant arrival dates for the Mere.

                                      2015            2016          2017           2018

Chiffchaff                     24/03           23/03         12/03          22/03

Sand Martin                 31/03           27/03         26/03          27/03

Swallow                       15/04           28/03         05/04          17/03

Willow Warbler            15/04           05/04         01/04          04/04

House Martin               05/05           01/04         16/04          06/04

Blackcap                      15/04            01/04         29/03         05/04

Garden Warbler           05/05            19/04         07/05          29/04

Swift                            12/05             02/05        30/04          27/04

Reed Warbler               10/05            07/05         24/04         08/05

March 6th

Very quiet today just three Buzzards up together , male Reed Bunting on feeders with Long-tailed Tits and Bullfinch . Eight Great Crested Grebes but no sign of any Little Grebes.

Reed Bunting (male).

March 5th

Overwintering male Blackcap on feeders this morning also two female Brambling pair of Bullfinch several Greenfinch and Goldfinch. Also noted Siskin , Buzzard , Raven , Reed Bunting ,(male) , 43 Tufted Duck and a couple of pairs of G C Grebe's displaying. Buff-tailed Bumblebee also seen . No Sand Martin's have arrived as yet , we are always about a week later than other waters nearby,there was four at Redesmere this morning.

Blackcap (male).

March 4th

First Oystercatcher of the year today with a single bird over early morning. Also four Brambling , single Siskin and Reed Bunting around feeders. Raven over calling along with Buzzard and Sparrowhawk.

Raven.

Buzzard.

March 2nd

Six Brambling this morning along with Siskin , Mistle Thrush , Treecreeper and Goldcrest.