The Return.

Stonechat. Copy Permitted.

The birder who took it, and the bird itself, will never know what it really meant to me when I found this photograph, not just a photograph, but one of a female Stonechat, and not just a Stonechat, but one at Cockersands. March is the time to find the species on return passage, but where has this bird been you have to wonder, my suppose would be southern Europe or perhaps further south in the coastal countries of northern Africa. With two harsh winters behind us these migratory populations of the Stonechat will take up the ascendancy over the resident population which is now at a low with considerable mortality over the past winters. So its down to the migratory population and their offspring to maintain and increase the numbers of Stonechats in the UK until the sedentary population regains the advantage probably over 3-4 years.    

Spotted Redshank. Copy Permitted.

An excellent collage of the Spotted Redshank. This bird is at Conder Green, and if other years are anything to go by it will only be absent from here for up to six weeks in the year. In 2011 I recorded the Spotted Redshank at Conder Green all year round save it moving off after my sighting on 3 May until - according to my records - it/one returned here on 30 June, void of a records search the same would no doubt have been the case in 2010. 


And....

Goosanders/Smew Colin Bushell 

Thanks to CB for the photograph of the 'redhead' Smew which thinks it is a Goosander....

Frog David Cookson

And to DC for the excellent photograph of the Frog.


Out of Africa....


I've edited the post to note a Swallow reported in Somerset today.