Reed Bunting - Newport Wetlands - Spring 2014

Another days birding today. I've managed to get my bird track year list from 89 to 103 in the past week. I've still got some notables not ticked off. No Song Thrush and disappointingly no Nuthatch. I really must get to Forest Farm.

I met Matt Merritt, the editor of Bird Watching Magazine down there, as he was visiting Wales and wondered if I fancied a bit of bird watching with him.

I got there early, and a frustrating constant drizzle made photography impossible, which even more annoying when to two Cuckoos had a bit of a ding dong in front of me. I only managed a crappy record shot. One day I will get a better one!

After lunch it did brighten up a bit and the birding improved. The foreshore gave us some Whimbrels, Curlews, Dunlin, Grey Plovers and a Wheatear. Whitethroats and Chiffchaffs flitted around the hedgerows.

I ended a rather pleasurable day nattering about rugby and birds of course. I bird tracked 42 species for the day and made a new friend. Not a bad end of the week!