Teifi Birding and Wildlife

In preparing for recording Swallow roosts on the evening of the 2nd, an adult Rosy Starling dropped into the reeds at the back of Mallard Pond. All previous sightings of Rosy Starlings have been with the regular  Eurasian Starlings present throughout the year at Gwbert. Mallard Pond - Teifi Marshes We put in a considerable effort in the reedbeds of the reserve in August, mainly our ringing projects, but we are now entering our peak for finding Spotted Crake. Waders on the reserve are increasing. Greenshank and a Green Sandpiper are regularly heard but a count of 5 Greenshank from Creek Hide by Tommy Evans was the highest recorded this month. Greenshank from Creek Hide - Tommy Evans See Teifi Ringing Group blog " Stormies, Terns and Totals " for more details of migration monitoring including some Sandwich Tern and Storm Petrel movements.  About 150 Common Dolphins were between Cardigan Island and Mwnt on the 9th August. Thanks to Aaron Walters, Cardigan Bay Fish, for ...

Sandwich Terns including several colour ringed birds are starting to appear as they fly south. Stopping off to feed and roost on the Teifi, a particular favourite spot is the sand at the Webley saltmarsh. A  mix of small gulls and terns, Sandwich and Common Terns , Black-headed and Mediterranean Gulls this week. Yellow KFS.was a bird photographed on the 25th by Hannah Cook. This adult Sandwich Tern was ringed as as a chick in 2017 on Lady's Island, Wexford , Eire and was last seen in Shearwater Bay,  Namibia last October. (2021) The Tern's route almost certainly went around the coast. Sandwich Tern from Namibia to the Teifi At least 3 other colour ringed Sandwich Terns seen over the last few days are juveniles from Cemlyn, Anglesey.   Colour ringed Mediterranean Gulls are now passing through, an adult ringed in Poland and a juvenile ringed in France/Belgium this morning. Other notable avian records include.. A Great Crested Grebe on 22nd July on the river from ...

The highlight of the month so far was non-avian. A Thresher Shark was seen c1km west of Cemaes Head on the 11th. Seen and videoed from a regular boat trip by  A Bay to Remember. Bottlenose Dolphins are also being sighted very regularly from land and sea  Thresher Shark - Tony Barber Report of the Thresher Shark on the BBC website including a  video .  Also on the 11th and 12th 2 Black Swans were seen on the Teifi Marshes from the river viewpoint. The first returning  Green Sandpiper  on the 30th June, otherwise early July is proving quiet for bird sightings. Many adults have finished breeding and are moulting, a time when they become more discreet, and may even become flightless like Auks and Waterfowl. Excellent viewing of Storm Petrels at Mwnt on the nights of the 5th and 11th and 16th. These were observed with a combination of a Thermal Image camera and by ringing as part of our study into their movements around Cardigan Bay - now in it's 10th ...

At the Webley on the 26th June, 2 adult Sandwich Terns were likely the first failed breeders on their way south.  Sandwich Tern with Black-headed Gulls Three Mediterranean Gull s with them and c150 Black-headed Gulls including 3 juveniles.   High tide roost at Webley salt marsh 400 Manx Shearwaters passing close in 20 minutes on the 25th and 8 Chough were seen to fly across to their Cemaes Head roost. Passing seabirds can be viewed from the Gwbert  viewpoint car park Manx Shearwaters like most passing seabirds round Cardigan Island and often sweep well into the bay before heading back west out past Cemaes Head.  In the late evenings of the  27th and 28th nice to see 6/8 Swifts feeding over the marshes. It was surprising to see around 500 Starlings go to roost in the reeds... A Common Tern at the Webley roost on the 28th and 29th. Common Tern Early July over the last few years has produced the following, in 2020 up to 70 Mediterranean Gulls at the Webl...

Sighting of the week was an Osprey over the Teifi Marshes with a fish, late evening on the 15th June.  Osprey - Simon James Many thanks to Simon James for the sighting and photo. He said that it was harassed by a Herring Gull and managed to capture the action. The sight of a  female Goosander with 2 flightless juveniles on the river on the 7th is interesting. In recent years we have seen family parties of Goosander on the river but presumed they arrived from further up the river systems. Never before have we seen flightless young, they must be breeding locally. On the 19th, the first returning Common Gull - and surprisingly an adult. The first returning birds are usually second year birds that have not attempted to breed. Also an adult Mediterranean Gull and the 1st juvenile Black-headed Gull , again an early bird. Near a couple of the hides on the marshes juvenile Reed Warblers have been showing.  Juvenile Reed Warbler - Tommy Evans Like the one above sighted by Tom...

A usual and pleasant early summer sight on the Teifi Marshes, juvenile Kingfishers , all learning to feed. Many photographers have visited the reserve and taken stunning images with up to three juveniles together Juvenile Kingfishers - Stuart Hall Mute Swans, Canada Geese, Moorhen, and Mallard all have bred successfully and have young on the various ponds. The first Shelducklings have been seen the the estuary down river of St Dogmael's Quay. Cygnets at Mallard Pond - Tommy Evans A small pond at Gwbert is a regular site for breeding Little Grebe. An adult with 3 young was seen this week. One of the chicks was watched climbing under the parents wings... Little Grebe with chick - Dyfed James Dunlin , Ringed Plover and Sanderling are feeding and roosting in the estuary, and on Sat 4th we picked out a very smart reddish Curlew Sandpiper.   No photo of the Curlew Sandpiper but this short video gives an idea of evening wader watching on Patch as the tide comes in At least 8 Cu...

May started with predictable small wader passage - peak numbers of 65 Ringed Plover , 65 Dunlin and 5 Sanderling . We usually see much larger numbers of these species in late May when the more northerly races of Ringed Plover and Dunlin pass through with the majority of the Sanderling. These peak numbers were on the 3rd, but the highlight on that morning was a male Whinchat  perched on a mist net pole in the Teifi reed bed. Wheatear are still migrating through the area. A surprise though to see eight on Patch along the track beyond the caravans on the 7th May. Wheatear, Teifi Estuary On the 4th the third Garganey of the year..just a drake this time, and he quickly flew down river. Sedge Warbler passage is best gauged by watching early morning activity from Mallard Hide as the newly arrived warblers flit about frantically feeding in the growing pondside reeds. Our migration monitoring ringing near Mallard Pond showed numbers peaked on the 7th in the damp weather, with 80 Sedge...