Local round-up from the weekend...

Chard res has finally started to empty of waders this weekend but records have been broken with at east 14 green sandpipers present during the latter half of the week. Singles of redshank, black-tailed godwit and a couple of roaming greenshanks have added to the variety (see previous posts). A mixture of waders further down the Axe Valley at Seaton have made for a good mix in the area and all have been appreciated by the local Chard birders. We could still do with a little stint or curlew sandpiper though :-)

Common sand, Chard res: Andy Grinter

Green sand, Chard res: Andy Grinter

Kingfisher, Chard res: Andy Grinter

Roa deer, Chard res: Andy Grinter

Wood sand, Black Hole Marsh: Andy Grinter

Ruff, Black Hole Marsh: Dave Helliar

Ruff, dunlin, ringed plover, BHM: Dave Halliar

It was hammering down with rain at Black Hole Marsh on Saturday although it's hard to tell from the photos (you can see a clue in Dave's ruff photo above). You can get a more vivid picture of just how dull and wet it was in the following video though! There's no sound to this one, it was open day at the reserve and instead of the usual pleasant wader sounds it was a collection of garbled voices in the background - not that complimentary to the video, so silence was the better option...

...Il pleut!

Black Hole Marsh, 17th August 2013: R. Harris