Leysdown 14/01/22

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Another beautiful day after a frosty start.

Having seen a single Shorelark at Leysdown last November the ongoing reports of seven being present made another visit hard to resist. On arrival the central beach was very busy with walkers, hardly surprising  given the good weather, and the Shorelarks could not be found there. However, the habitat looked promising towards Warden Bay and on heading in that direction the flock was seen in flight before settling on the edge of the beach. Regrettably, only a few minutes to watch them was possible before the birds were flushed by walkers and disappeared.

On the tideline several flocks of Sanderling were present, about 65 birds in total.

Moving on, the track from Leysdown to Shellness had a huge flock of finches which mainly comprised Chaffinch and Linnet but also good numbers of Brambling, including some nice looking males. The Brambling proved less photogenic than Chaffinch unfortunately.

1000+ Brent Geese on the winter wheat flew to the shore as the tide receded.

Shorelark 
                                   
Three Shorelark



Sanderling

Sanderling

Chaffinch

Brambling

Brent Geese

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