Thursday 15 March 2012

Dunlin



Maxey gravel pits are my local patch, I try to get there as often as I can. Over the past few months though this site has been under water as part of a trial to see if flooding will reduce the invasive willow and so the birds present have been Black-headed Gulls and a few Teal. The pump is now on and a small amount of wader habitat is starting to appear which has brought with it some waders! This Dunlin was one of 6 present the other day (still sporting his winter garb), along with 6 Redshank, 2 Oystercatcher and 3 Common Snipe. As time goes by more invertebrate rich mud will become exposed and hopefully this will entice a few more waders to drop in.

I live in hope.

12 comments:

  1. John, this bird looks too fat to fly! I think he must have found plenty of invertebrates to eat.
    Click here for Bazza’s Blog ‘To Discover Ice’

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    1. Hi Bazza,
      He does look a bit dumpy, but he can fly, I saw him do it just after taking these photos!
      J

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  2. It sounds like the methods are working John and that you can look forward to some more goodies dropping in eventually.

    I do like Dunlins, pretty little birds. I particularly like the first photo.

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    1. Hi Jan,
      Thank you. Yes, hopefully there will be some nice habitat for passing waders, but also breeding ones.
      J

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  3. Oh how I wish I had some mud at my local John.
    I get some great birds now, but a bit of mud would bring so much more.
    Great shots of the Dunlin; and I think Bazza is right, looks like someone ate all the pies lol

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    1. Hi Keith,
      It`s amazing how important `mud` is to these birds and how quickly they find it! A week ago this site was under water, now a bit of mud appears and the birds are drawn in!
      J

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  4. I like to see Dunlins and wonder what other wading birds you will see enjoying life on the mud. I agree with other comments that this little chap looks rather dumpy to get an elegant take off if at all.

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    1. Hi cuby poet,
      Waders can be an I.D. nightmare, but are always a joy to watch as they run around looking for their next meal.
      Honestly, this bird still managed to fly ;)
      J

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  5. Replies
    1. Hi Andrew,
      A bird I have seen on numerous occasions as well, but this is/was the first time this year that one had been seen at Maxey, not very exciting to some, but exciting to me!
      J

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  6. Dunlin are always enjoyable to see! Hope you get some great visitors soon.

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    1. Hi Tammy,
      They are indeed and I am keeping everything crossed that we get a `decent` bird or two at Maxey this year.
      J

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