Packington Estate

30th June 2025

Overcast, light south-westerly.

Four Grey Herons were perched in a tree together in Siden Hill Wood, with four Little Egrets on Car Park Pool along with five Dabchicks.

Over the pools five Sand Martins and two House Martins were hawking insects, whilst there was a fledged young Oystercatcher and still two parents frequenting Car Park Pool, along with a Little Ringed Plover.

However, the best bird of the day was an adult Wood Sandpiper, found by Martin Durkin, in front of Railway Hide.  It preferred the shoreline below the hide, and along to Oak Hide and could prove elusive for much of the day but showed again well in the evening in front of Oak Hide.  There was also a migrant Little Ringed Plover on Railway Pool, whilst the now regular but frequently elusive Whooper Swan put in one of its brief appearances on Car Park Pool as well.

In the evening, along with the Wood Sandpiper and Little Ringed Plover, there was a Redshank and Common Sandpiper, three Little Ringed Plovers and Lapwing and four chicks.

Heron – Photograph by Stef Fraczek

 

29th June 2025

No records.

28th June 2025

Mostly bright and sunny, fresh south-westerly, hot.

There was a count of 224 juvenile Black-headed Gulls today, but numbers are definitely dropping away as birds leave the site and the before the autumn migration kicks in.  The Mute Swan cygnet on Reedbed Pool was not visible, but the other 10 were still very much present.

Five Little Egrets, at least three Lapwing chicks, 12 Teal and a female Wigeon were also noted, however there was no sign of any Little Ringed Plovers.

Three Cetti’s Warblers were recorded in song in the North Causeway Bay by Railway Hide and the north end of Car Park Pool, with Whitethroats in front of Railway remaining very active.  Thirty Lapwing were roosting together on Car Park Pool and four Sand Martins were feeding over the pools.

Gatekeepers are now very much on the wing with 15 seen today, along with two Brown Hawkers, 10 Red-eyed Damselflies, 10 Marbled Whites, at least three Purple Hairstreaks in the Oaks on the Old Road, two Common Darters and a Comma.

Gatekeeper – Photograph by Bob Breach

27th June 2025

Sunny spells, warm south-westerly.

Little Ringed Plover passage must be underway as there was a juvenile amongst three adults today, and still four Lapwing chicks which hopefully may do better with the reduction in Black-headed Gull numbers and less attention from Lesser Black-backs.  Also, the increasing shoreline seems to provide better cover for the chicks, particularly between Oak and Railway Hide.

Four Little Egrets and a Sparrowhawk were other birds making the log and there were still two Scarlet Tiger Moths in the North Causeway Bay and a Gatekeeper was noted for the first time.

26th June 2025

No records.

25th June 2025

Sunny spells, light westerly, remaining dry.

A returning Green Sandpiper was present on Railway Pool with a Common Sandpiper on Car Park Pool today.  Seven Little Egrets, three Little Ringed Plovers, a Redshank and two Common Terns were all present, but sadly the Terns do not appear to be nesting any longer.

Two Scarlet Tiger Moths were present in the North Causeway bay.

Scarlet Tiger Moths – Photograph by Paul Casey

24th June 2025

Sunny spells, brisk south-westerly.

Eleven cygnets on the pools today included one on the Reedbed but its origin is unclear.

There was a new Gadwall brood of three on Railway Pool, still four Lapwing chicks, four adult Little Ringed Plovers, a Redshank, 10 Little Grebes, three Oystercatchers, two male Shoveler, a female Wigeon, 14 Teal, three Common Terns and a Hobby which was chasing Sand Martins around the pools but with no evident success.

23rd June 2025

Sunny spells, brisk westerly.

The two broods of Lapwing were still visible from Oak Hide with two remaining chicks in each of the broods.  Other waders included five Little Ringed Plovers, two Common Sandpipers and two Redshanks, with a total of eight Oystercatchers still including one fledged juvenile.

A Gadwall brood of just a single individual was noted on Railway Pool and the first Purple Hairstreak was reported in the Oaks along the Old Road, as is usual, north of the Car Park gates

22nd June 2025

Remaining hot.

Plenty of species were recorded in the log today (but few with specific locations), including two Little Ringed Plovers.  A Fox was seen in the bushes by the Car Park feeder and there were at least two Marbled Whites present by Car Park Hide.  A Great White Egret was recorded in the afternoon, on Car Park Pool, and a Kingfisher along the central stream.

21st June 2025

Sunny start, clouding over, hot and humid with a fresh southerly.

Birds and animals initially making the log this morning were fairly limited.  Perhaps the best was a Kingfisher seen using various reed mace stems as perches in the Reedbed.  A Fox, Redshank, Oystercatcher and two Little Ringed Plovers were seen from Oak Hide and there were still two Terns on Car Park Pool.

Subsequently a Hobby went over, 200 Jackdaws gathered in the trees opposite Car Park Hide, 12 Rooks fed on the Flood Plain and two broods of Lapwing in front of Oak Hide were being supervised by relatively attentive parents.

Other counts comprised four Mute Swans and 10 cygnets, 10 Canadas of which six were juveniles, 54 Greylags (24 adults and 30 juveniles), a single Egyptian Goose, five Shoveler, 31 Gadwall, a female Wigeon, 51 Mallard, nine Teal, 40 Tufteds, eight Cormorants, two Great Crested Grebes, eight Little Grebes (including three nests on Car Park Pool), six Little Egrets, two Herons, nine Moorhen, 35 Coot, four Little Ringed Plovers, five adults and a fledged juvenile Oystercatcher, 40 Lapwings, a single Redshank, three Common Terns, 535 Black-headed Gulls (380 adults, 155 juveniles) and three Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

Plenty of butterflies included a number of Marbled Whites and a Comma.

Fox – Photograph by Mark Waring

20th June 2025

No records.

19th June 2025

Warm and sunny.

A group of eight Little Egrets and three Herons were perched in the dead tree at the north-west corner of Car Park Pool this morning but, otherwise, birds were similar to the previous few days.

18th June 2025

Sunny spells, increasingly hot.

Shoveler numbers had increased to seven and there were also six Teal.  There were also two new and rather late Mallard broods, comprising nine and five respectively, on Car Park Pool.  The Little Grebe chick on the Reedbed is now well grown.

Counts of note, on the insect front, included at least 40 Marbled Whites, 62 Meadow Brown, 24 Ringlets and nine Small Skippers.  The first Brown Hawker of the year made the log and there were at least 30 Four Spotted Chasers.

17th June 2025

Warm and sunny.

A Kingfisher with food was seen flying up the brook today, but the Lapwing pair have sadly already lost two of their chicks.

In the evening, there were two pairs of Shoveler present, one on each pool, at least eight Teal, two Little Ringed Plovers, a Redshank, at least two singing Warblers and a sitting Common Term on Car Park Pool, with a second pair looking broody on Railway Pool.

A Muntjac continually barked from the crop field Oaks this evening.

16th June 2025

Sunny spells, light southerly wind.

With birds similar to the previous few days, and aside from a Red Kite south over the HS2 workings, much of the interest in the spell of increasingly warm weather was focussed on butterflies and Odonata.  30 Marbled Whites and 55 Meadow Browns was of note, as was ten Ringlets. There were also three Small Skippers, two Large Skippers, three Commas, two Small Tortoiseshell, four Large and three Greenveined Whites and two Speckled Woods.

Odonata included eight Emperors, three Common Darters, 24 Spotted Chasers, 15 Blacktailed Skimmers, five Banded Demoiselle, a Large Red Damselfly, three Redeyed Damselflies, eight Bluetailed Damselflies, 100 plus Common Blue Damselflies and, in addition, there was also a Scarlet Tiger Moth.

15th June 2025

Sunny, southerly wind.

Three Egyptian Geese were on Car Park Pool this morning, along with two male Shoveler.  A Water Rail was heard from the Reedbed, with this species having been largely invisible for many weeks.

There are still two Redshank about and six Common Terns included a pair on Tern Island on Railway Pool.

Four Lapwing chicks were present in front of Oak Hide.

14th June 2025

Sunny spells, breezy from the south.

A full count of sightings, care of Graham Rowling and Dave Scanlan, were as follows:  seven Mutes and ten cygnets, six Canadas and ten goslings, 36 Greylags and 19 goslings, a single Egyptian Goose, 36 Gadwall, a female Wigeon, 32 Mallard and nine fledged young, seven Teal, 45 Tufted, six Cormorants, five Little Grebes, two Great Crested Grebes, a Heron, two Little Egrets, six Moorhen, 46 Coot, four Little Ringed Plovers, six Oystercatchers and a well grown chick on Car Park Pool, two Redshanks, 30 Lapwing with a new chick on Railway Pool, seven Common Terns, 400 Black-headed Gulls and 50 growing juveniles, four Lesser Black-backed Gulls, a Red Kite over, nine Rook on the flood plain and a Bittern seen in the Reedbed.

13th June 2025

Remaining warm and sunny.

Marbled Whites are beginning to appear in some numbers, with at least six today along with ten Meadow Browns, two Common Blues, Large Skipper, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock and Cinnabar Moth.

A pair of Common Terns are frequenting the edges of Railway Pool island in front of the hide, where they have nested in previous years.

Willow Warblers continue to sing from the car park area and the causeway, at least, although the birds do move around and probably three singing males have held territory this year.

12th June 2025

Warm, but overcast, light southerly wind.

A Swift came in to drink over Railway Pool this morning, where there was also a young Green Woodpecker and a Mistle Thrush.  Otherwise, birds were similar to the previous few days, with the exception of a Common Sandpiper which was presumably an early returning bird.

In the evening, at least ten Sand Martins were feeding over the pools and both Green Woodpecker and Jay were seen in the Back Gate Copse.

11th June 2025

Warm and sunny with a south-easterly wind.

Raptors enjoying the weather today included two Buzzards, a Sparrowhawk and a Red Kite.

The Ringed Plover was still present, having moved back to Railway Pool.

Other birds of note included an Egyptian Goose and six Common Terns, three on each pool.

10th June 2025

No records.

9th June 2025

Sunny spells, fresh south-westerly wind.

The adult northern race Ringed Plover from the 7th remained on site today, this time having moved to Car Park Pool; it is presumed to be the same bird.

In addition, there were four Little Ringed Plovers, three Redshanks, five adult Oystercatchers and a chick on Car Park Pool, ten Common Terns, two Great Crested Grebes, a Hobby and the long-staying female Wigeon.

The growing Little Grebe chick was being fed on the Reedbed this afternoon.

8th June 2025

No records.

7th June 2025

Overcast, fresh westerly, increasingly showery with heavy downpours, occasional sunny intervals.

The Reserve has not seen much of the late wader passage that has occurred on the big reservoirs so, albeit on a rather subdued note, there was nevertheless the first Ringed Plover of the year on Railway Pool today.  The subdued colouring, particularly to the bill, indicated it was a northern bird.

Also new in was a pair of Shoveler with the male still in good plumage whilst some of the resident Mallard are beginning to moult.

Little Ringed Plovers hatched out a chick on Railway Pool and there are still four adults present along with two Redshank.

Five Common Terns were seen with some interest being shown in the gravel islands at the north end of the chain on Car Park Pool.

Two adult Mediterranean Gulls were back on site, and the male Bittern showed well in the Reedbed.

Other records today included seven Mute Swans and 10 cygnets, 55 Canadas and 10 goslings, 25 Greylags and seven goslings, 41 Gadwall, two female Wigeon, 26 Mallard and four broods, 47 Tufteds, six Cormorants, three Great Crested Grebes, five adult Little Grebes and still one chick on the Reedbed, a Heron, two Little Egrets, five Moorhen, 27 Coot, eight Oystercatchers and a chick, 770 Black-headed Gulls and 40 chicks and three Lesser Black-backs.  In the blustery conditions a few hirundines were hawking over the pools for much of the day, with two House Martins and at least 10 Sand Martins there and a further three House Martins at Patrick Bridge.

With a bit of perseverance, young birds were found in various places, including at least three family parties of Wrens, three family parties of Blue Tits, a pair of Blackcaps with at least two juveniles in the Back Gate Copse, one fledged Chiffchaff there and a fledged Nuthatch, a fledged Whitethroat in front of Railway Hide, whilst on the Causeway at least a dozen tiny Froglets were crossing the path from the Reedbed towards the Causeway.

Around 14.00 a Buzzard came in to dive on to prey in front of River Hide, but neither the prey nor the outcome could be seen.

Froglet – Photograph by Bob Breach

6th June 2025

Sunny spells, sharp showers, fresh south-westerly.

The male Wigeon has not been seen since the 3rd with both females present yesterday, but then only one immediately visible today.

The usual six cygnets on Car Park Pool and four on Railway Pool were supplemented by five by Patrick Bridge, presumably the family party from the Reedbed.

Other birds today were five Little Ringed Plovers, eight Oystercatchers and one chick, two Redshank, just a single Great Crested Grebe, the two adult Mediterranean Gulls again, an Egyptian Goose and the first Marbled White butterfly of the year on the path down to the Causeway.

5th June 2025

No records.

4th June 2025

Sunny spells, fresh south-westerly.

A Yellow Wagtail flew north over Railway Pool this morning, a late record indeed.

Ten Rooks on the Flood Plain were the predicted family parties, probably from the Meriden colony.

In the evening 18 House Martins, six Swifts, two Sand Martins and four Swallows were feeding over the pools.  A pair of Mediterranean Gulls also visited the Black-headed Gull colony on Railway Pool.

Only four Common Terns were seen today.

3rd June 2025

Early rain, brightening to sunny spells, blustery south-westerly.

A blocking high to the north of Scotland is pulling in showery and windy weather from the Atlantic and Irish Sea and is not particularly helpful for bringing in new birds.

A Hobby over Car Park Pool, along with three Sand Martins and a House Martin in the afternoon occurred when the weather started to improve.

A pair of Bullfinch, Whitethroat, Song Thrush and Cetti’s Warbler were all around Railway Hide.

The Swan Goose was back on the pools, along with the pair of Wigeon, female Teal, two adult Little Ringed Plovers, four Oystercatchers and two Redshank.

A sudden departure and desertion of the Common Terns occurred overnight.  It is not clear what has happened because the other nesting birds on the Car Park Pool islands seem unaffected, and anecdotally a similar situation has occurred both at Brandon and a colony over in Northants.

Better news from the Orchid Field with 720 Southern Marsh and 30 Common Spotted Orchids in flower, although the heights of them are slightly subdued, possibly because of the drier spring.  There are other Orchids appearing by the South-West Pond and also in front of Car Park Hide.

2nd June 2025

Sunny spells, fresh north-westerly.

The male Bittern was seen on the Reedbed Pool early on, and a Swan Goose was with the Greylags on Railway Pool.

The pair of Little Grebes on the Reedbed have a chick, and other youngsters included 10 cygnets, 10 Canada goslings, 23 Greylag goslings and 31 Mallard ducklings.

Three Wigeon, four Great Crested Grebes, three Little Ringed Plovers, three Redshank and five Herons were the other birds in the logbook until late morning when at least 20 Starlings, mostly juveniles, were perched on the fence wires to Car Park Pool.

The scarlet flowers of Grass Vetchling are appearing amongst the other wildflowers now, particularly on the banks down from Car Park Hide and near Oak Hide.

Last, but not least, a Kingfisher flew over Railway Pool in the afternoon.

1st June 2025

Mostly cloudy, occasional sunny intervals with showers, south-westerly.

Definitely seven and probably eight Common Terns are now paired up and sitting.  A female Goosander flew over Car Park Pool but otherwise birds were similar to the previous two days, with the exception of a juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker in the back gate.  There have also been juveniles visiting the Car Park feeders.

A Rook on the Flood Plain is probably a pre-cursor to a build-up of post-breeding birds.