December 2009 summary

This report on birds seen in Hertfordshire during December 2009 is produced using records sent in to the website and to the BTO Birdtrack recording scheme. I have also looked at the Yahoo Hertsbirding group so that any interesting sightings reported there are not excluded even though they may not yet have been reported in a more formal way. Clearly additional records will arrive in due course so the summary is not a completely comprehensive view of December 2009. All of these records need to be considered as provisional particularly in the case of species for which a full description is required. 

Very much a month of two halves, the first 14 days were mild and wet. The second half was cold with a significant fall of snow before Christmas with the mean daily temperature near or below zero for seven days causing most lakes and gravel pits to be ice covered. The mean temperature for the month in Chiswell Green was 1.3 deg C below the average at Rothamsted.

The rarest bird seen in the county was the Great White Egret seen at Marsworth Reservoir on the 20th; there is a video of this bird on the bird club website home page. Another scarce species seen was a Caspian Gull present at Amwell NR on the 13th; this species is tricky to separate from other similar species and therefore may be under recorded.

 

Single Bitterns were seen at Amwell and Tring Reservoirs on a number of days and one was also seen at Hilfield Park Reservoir on the 27th. Little Egrets continued to be seen regularly along various rivers and at several roost sites with 16 at Amwell NR on the 14th and 26th at Stockers Lake, Rickmansworth on the 12th. A Bewick’s Swan was seen on Great Hardmead Lake at Amwell NR on the 14th and Egyptian Geese continued to be seen in the Colne Valley in the Rickmansworth area and also at East Hyde on the 20th and the 26th, the only Shelduck record was an individual at Rye Meads on the 13th. The Ruddy Shelduck, probably an escape from captivity, was seen at Tyttenhanger on the 8th. 

 

There was the usual modest number of records of Mandarins with 12 at Panshanger Park on the 20th. Pintails were seen on five separate occasions all at Tring Reservoirs and 12 Red-crested Pochards were seen on the 20th at Stockers Lake and again at Bury Lake on the 25th. A juvenile Scaup was seen at Wilstone Reservoir on the 6th and the 10th and numerous records of Goldeneye were received with 20 present at Stockers Lake on the 12th. Smew started to be seen in small numbers mainly from Amwell NR and Stockers Lake with reports of the species also from Bowyers Water, Cheshunt GPs and Wilstone Reservoir, three were at Amwell on the 28th. Goosanders were mainly seen at Stockers Lake, one was seen flying over Hilfield Park Reservoir and also at Amwell.

 

No less than ten Red Kites were seen over Kingshill plantation, Lilley on the 9th, this is almost certainly a record number seen simultaneously in the county. Peregrines were seen at Rye Meads, Redbournbury, where it was seen catching a Golden Plover, at Knebworth, this time with a Woodpigeon as the victim, and Tyttenhanger. A total of 51 Grey Partridge were seen in the Therfield area on the 18th and 40 were seen in three coveys at Letchworth on the 22nd. Water Rails often become more obvious in cold weather and this proved to be the case once again with many records including five at Oughtonhead on the 23rd. A very large flock of Golden Plover was seen in the Ver valley north of St Albans with between 2500 to 3000 birds there on the 3rd, 5th and 8th with smaller numbers seen elsewhere. A Dunlin was present at Wilstone Reservoir on the 2nd and a flock of around 30 probable Dunlin were at Tyttenhanger on the 23rd. A Ruff with a white head was at Wilstone Reservoir on the 8th and two were seen there on the 13th. A Jack Snipe was seen at Rye Meads on the 19th and one was at East Hyde on the 20th with two there on the 24th. Four Woodcock were seen at Millwards Park, Hatfield on the 13th and a Black-tailed Godwit was at Wilstone Reservoir from the 10th to the 12th; Redshanks were seen throughout the month there with three present on the 10th.

 

The Caspian Gull at Amwell on the 14th was augmented by Yellow-legged Gulls there on the 13th and one was also seen at a golf course at Newgate Street feeding with other gulls on the 17th. The population of Ring-necked Parakeets in the Watford/Rickmansworth once again produced sizeable flocks with 23 at Oxhey on the 7th. Barn Owls were seen at Whitwell, Hertingfordbury and Redbournbury; it is worth noting that Short-eared Owls have not yet returned to their traditional wintering site at Beech Farm. 

 

Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers were seen at Tyttenhanger GP, Northaw Great Wood, Garston, and Stanborough Lakes on various dates. Stonechats were seen at mainly at Kings Mead and Woodoaks Farm, Maple Cross and a number of dates with single birds seen at Aldbury Nowers, Chiswell Green and Sarratt Bottom.

 

Cetti’s Warblers were found at their usual locations of Amwell NR and Tring Reservoirs with three at the former site on the 13th. There were a reasonable number of Blackcap and Chiffchaff records with the Blackcaps clearly favouring gardens and the Chiffchaffs more often seen near water bodies. Eight Marsh Tits were seen in Northaw Great Wood on the 14th. 

 

Ravens were seen in the Berkhamsted area on the 5th, 22nd and 28th and unusually 16 Tree Sparrows were seen at Cromer Hyde, some distance away from the usual sites in the London Colney area.  Bramblings seem to be in short supply with single birds seen at three places being the only records. Siskins were seen in good numbers from a wide variety of sites during the month with 120 present on Colney Heath on the 12th. A flock of 250 Linnets was seen at Royston on the 12th and there were some good sized flocks of Lesser Redpolls with 36 seen at Brocket Park on the 9th. Two Common Redpolls were also seen in St Albans on the 28th on an allotment equipped with bird feeders. Crossbills were also seen on the month with a flock of 23 at Home Park, Hatfield on the 31st. There were at least 80 Corn Buntings in the roost at Marsworth Reservoir on the 8th.

 

To see most of the records I have used to compile this monthly summary please click on this link. I have excluded a number of records from this list at the request of the observers and also a considerable number of records of common species to reduce the size of the document.