Saturday 1 April 2017

April dawned with bright, calm and warm weather, and was generally very pleasant to be out in, which was nice for a change. There was enough moving to make the days totals respectable, but it felt surprisingly quiet to bird in. Perhaps the most striking boost in numbers was 16 Willow Warblers, their song ringing out from several areas. 27 Chiffchaffs, 37 Goldcrests and four Blackcaps were seen in the more vegetated parts of the island too, with the first Firecrest of the year putting in a brief appearance in Nant Withy.

There was plenty else on the move too, with 101 Meadow Pipits, 87 Linnets, three Siskins and two Jackdaws logged. One striking feature of the early morning was a passage of Carrion Crows, a single flock of 22 flew up from the mountain, six were seen heading out to sea from the South End and another two came in off  at the North End. A minimum of 33 being present (or at least in the airspace) today was a higher count than we've recorded so far this year. After weeks of the same four raptor species being present, we also recorded the first Kestrel of the season, heading north over the mountain. Odds and ends included singles of Swallow and Skylark heading north, a Black Redstart in Nant, a singing male Reed Bunting at Pwll Cain and a Ringed Plover on Henllwyn, also our first of the year and one of a few new waders to arrive in the last few days.

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