Holmethorpe Sand Pits, Surrey …… 4th-6th September 2010

The run of decent birds at our local patch continues with Saturday the 4th September producing the BARN OWL, that had been reported on the 2nd, giving me a distant view after sunset.
Two Common Sandpipers were also present on the same day.
The following evening saw me joining Gordon Hay and Neil Randon for another post-sunset view of the BARN OWL, which put in a very brief appearance at 8.20 p.m. A juvenile Little Ringed Plover, 4 Common Sandpipers, 2 Common Snipe, 2 Kingfishers, 3 Whinchats, a male Wigeon and a Common Buzzard were also seen on the 5th and visiting birder, Kevin Duncan, made a new site record count of 42 Egyptian Geese.
Monday the 6th September started slowly with just 2 Common Sandpipers and a couple of Common Snipe seen early on but things looked up as the morning progressed. At 9.40 a.m. I noticed a group of Black-headed and Herring Gulls mobbing something and was surprised, to say the least, to see a GREAT WHITE EGRET circling, quite low, about 500 yards from me. If accepted, this will be the third record of this species at Holmethorpe. Other decent birds on the 6th included a Greenshank, the juvenile Little Ringed Plover again and a Whinchat in the afternoon.

Graham

2 comments:

  1. Factor7 September 2010 at 03:23

    Well done, Graham. What a great coup. I saw Rare Bird Alert and also London Bird Club flash it up on their sites - deservedly got your name up on lights on the latter!

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  2. Graham James7 September 2010 at 07:22

    Thanks Neil, we're having a bit of a purple patch at the pits, let's hope it continues.

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