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17.12.2024 It was an organised Brent Goose and Wader count day today. Here is a flock of Grey Plovers with a Turnstone passing through
Grouville Bay (MD). Results of these counts will be published on the Resources page in the next few days.
It was a bleak morning for the counts, but at least it was dry. A temperature of 9c in a cutting southerly wind did not daunt the hardy counters though!
Seen passing through Grouville Bay prior to the count were 6 Great Northern Divers, 4 Red-throated Divers, 2 Shelduck, 35 Red-breasted Mergansers, a Sandwich Tern, 7 Mediterranean Gulls, 14 Common Gulls, 153 Sanderlings in a mixed flock of small waders, 27 Bar-tailed Godwits and 4 Gannets, with close on a thousand Black-headed Gulls also in the Bay. Around La Rocque were 3 Great Northern Divers, a Great Crested Grebe, a Slavonian Grebe, a Kittiwake, 5 Common Gulls, a Mediterranean Gull, a Redwing and a Black Redstart. On Grouville Common were 5 Redwings and at Le Hocq was a roost of 130 Curlews, also a Sandwich Tern and another Black Redstart. At La Sente were 18 Grey Herons and 10 Little Egrets.
At the Scrape on St Ouen's Pond were a Short-eared Owl and a male Hen Harrier, while seen from the Wetland Centre were 5 Teal, a pair of Shoveler, c40 Lapwings, 12 Snipe, a Grey Heron, a Little Grebe, 3 Brent Geese and a Peregrine and in the backfields behind the Pond were 5 Brent Geese and 25 Lapwings. In the Sandpits were 2 Pochard, 17 Tufted Duck, 8 Little Grebes, a Grey Heron, 30 Lapwings and 22 Great Black-backed Gulls. In St Ouen's Bay were 43 Ringed Plovers, a Sanderling and a Dunlin and at La Pulente were 6 Brent Geese, a Shelduck, 7 Grey Herons, a flock of Black-headed Gulls and 9 Mediterranean Gulls.
Also in St Ouen's Bay, offshore at Le Pulec, were hundreds of Razorbills, a Guillemot, 27 Mediterranean Gulls, a Kittiwake, 10 Gannets and at Le Port, 3 Mediterranean Gulls. Petit Port held 14 Brent Geese, a pair of Red-breasted Mergansers, 190 Oystercatchers and a Little Egret.
Near Bel Royal in St Aubin's Bay, as well as the Brent Geese, were 2 Black-necked Grebes, 4 Great Crested Grebes and c 50 Black-headed Gulls. At Beaumont Marsh were a Teal, 2 Shovelers, 2 Water Rails, 4 Snipe, 3 Blackcaps and 2 Chiffchaffs.
Below: Redshanks and a large flock of mixed waders in Grouville Bay this morning MD
