Jersey Birds

07.01.2024  Little Grebe on the pools at Kempt Tower today.   MD

Another cloudy day with light showers, feeling cold at 8c in a brisk northeast wind

After a long period where La Coupe has been comatose, some decent passage there this morning which included 109 Red-throated Divers, 3 Black-throated Divers, a Great Northern Diver, 4 Shelduck, 408 Razorbills, 14 Common Gulls, a Kittiwake, a Mediterranean Gull, 45 Black-headed Gulls, 4 Curlews, 22 Turnstones and nearby, 7 Cattle Egrets.

By comparison, Grosnez was very quiet with just 3 Red-throated Divers, 2 Common Scoters, a Brent Goose, 17 Gannets, 18 Fulmars, 17 Kittiwakes, 12 Razorbills and a Sparrowhawk. At Corbiere this afternoon were a Red-throated Diver, 31 Razorbills, 2 Guillemots, 45 Great Black-backed Gulls and 2 Mediterranean Gulls. 2 Cattle Egrets were at La Saline along with 3 Mediterranean Gulls,  6 Pied Wagtails and c50 Chaffinches

At the Kempt Tower pools were 2 Little Grebes ( one singing), 2 Teal, 3 Shovelers, 5 Tufted Duck and 2 Marsh Harriers and in St Ouen's Bay near the Barge Aground were 14 Brent Geese, 5 Grey Plovers and 4 Turnstones with a Ringed Plover at L'Ouziere Slip. The Hen Harrier was at St Ouen's Pond again.

At La Sente were 14 Little Egrets, 32 Redshanks, a pair of Shelduck, 400 Brent Geese, 5 Greenshanks, 8 Grey Herons and a Cattle Egret and at the south end of Grouville Bay were 178 Black-headed Gulls, 3 Mediterranean Gulls, 5 Common Gulls, 16 Turnstones, 7 Redshanks, 4 Ringed Plovers, 12 Grey Plovers, 300 Sanderlings, 46 Dunlin, 192 Oystercatchers, 72 Curlews, a Peregrine, 4 Pied Wagtails, 2 Great Crested Grebes and 181 Brent Geese.

At Beaumont Marsh and St Aubin were 148 Brent Geese, 228 Black-headed Gulls, 3 Great Crested Grebes, 4 Mediterranean Gulls, a Curlew and a Sparrowhawk. 215 Brent Geese were in a field in St Peter. A Great Northern Diver was in St Helier Harbour.

Near the Union Inn were 30 Fieldfares in the orchard there and in Vallee des Vaux were 4 Bullfinches, 2 Firecrests, 3 Redwings, a Song Thrush in song and 6 Woodcock.

Thanks to Andrea Christopher for this short video of a murmuration of Starlings in St Peter today.