Woodsand At Port Meadow - again! 240

I went to Port Meadow in Oxford on the way home from work and scored 2 WOOD SANDPIPERS to move to 240 life ticks and 219 year ticks.
Also a SANDERLING - year tick 218.

Randomly I saw Martin Keown running through Burgess Field Nature reserve whilst I was photographing butterflies! We shared a hi sort of moment. Ooh I'm so rock and roll.

Woodsand error - back to 239!!

So after an LGRE check the so called Woodsand is actually a juvenile common redshank!!
A common mistake apparently....they have shorter beak and also smaller like a common sandpiper, so that really was a long way for nothing new. You live and learn.

Wood Sandpiper in Lymington makes 240

A trip after work down to the south coast down to Lymington - Pennington marshes reaped a reward -a WOOD SANDPIPER showing nicely on the Fishtail Lagoon. A right trek home of over 100 miles! Possibly my longest twitch outside of LGRE trip.
Beautiful evening with plenty of waders on view

Berko 4th May

Walking to the Boat - to write my blog - I saw 2 COMMIC TERN on the canal. They are called commic as its very difficult to tell the difference between a common and artic tern.... I think they were common. Derek told me he saw 2 artic tern on the canal at Hemel so maybe they were the sames ones.....

Stork over M25 Tuesday April 22nd

Bit late putting this entry on but I saw what I believe to be a WHITE STORK flying overhead on Tuesday 24th April.
I had to stop on the A41 to send an entry into Birdguides!
I have been asked to fill out a rare bird form as also put the entry on Herts Bird Club. It was JUST in the county.

Standlake Monday 30th April

After work I headed off the Standlake in search of the storks. 
On the way I headed to Burnt Oak Lane - on the edge of Reading somewhere - near the AWB or whatever its called. A Bar Tailed Godwit had been there, but not when I had arrived.
Present was a pair of GADWALL, EGYPTIAN GEESE, a pair of MUTE SWAN , GREYLAG and CANADA GEESE. 
On to Standlake. 
Quite a comedy twitch this one - the directions showed the storks were 3 gates in along the edge of the Thames. Due to the amount of rain it was very wet. I had my suit trousers tucked into my socks and my eccos on. However, the water was up to my ankles! "Oh a twitcher I am" I thought as I waded through the water , over fences and finally arrived to see 6 WHITE STORKS. Very nice - like something out of Africa or something! 
I waited to get a shot of all 6 and got one. Then I heard and saw a KINGFISHER - so went off to get a pic. Not bad considering the light was poor. Also saw COMMON TERN, about 20 GOLDFINCH, PHEASANT and 3 WHIMBREL flew over - heard by their call. Got quite a nice shot of one of them. 
Sad news - one of the storks hit a power line the next day when they flew off. Gutted. 

Bracknell work 30th April

As I headed from the engineering block back to the main building a SWIFT few over head. First one of the year!