Linacre Update - 2 new summer migrants

It was pretty grey and overcast this morning, but I hadn't been to Linacre since Friday (!), so I popped down for a walk, and to see if there were any new birds about. As it turned out, it was a good decision, with 2 new species added to the "year list", and the return of an old favourite.

The two new species seen today were; House Martin and Willow Warbler. The House Martins (3)were flying over the top reservoir with 5 Swallows, and the Willow Warbler was singing on the north side, by the middle reservoir. Chiffchaffs were also present in good numbers, with 13 singing around the site.

The "old favourite" mentioned above, is a hybrid goose, that has been seen at Linacre every Spring since at least 2006 (when I started recording the birds). It usually appears at the end of March/start of April, often with a Canada Goose, as today, stays for a couple of weeks and then disappears for the rest of the year.

Hybrid Goose

The juvenile/2nd calendar year Shag was still present today, on the bottom reservoir, as were: Cormorant (3; 1 in breeding plumage), Mallard (26), Tufted Duck (23), Canada Goose (4; 1 pair on the middle reservoir and 1 with the hybrid goose), Great-crested Grebe (5; 2 pairs and 1 on the bottom reservoir), Grey Heron (1 on the bottom reservoir), Grey Wagtail (4; 2 on the top reservoir and 2 on the middle reservoir), Coot (6), Moorhen (6) and Mandarin Duck (6; 2 pairs and 2 males). 

Year List update:
128 - Willow Warbler
129 - House Martin
130 - Green Woodpecker (seen on 28th Feb at Linacre).