Beddington Farmlands

Met up with Pete Alfrey today to sort through the gulls at Beddington Farmlands. We had a few interesting birds including a possible 2nd cycle Yellow-legged Gull and some very bleached 2nd cycle Herring Gulls, but no hoped-for Caspian. Migrants were thin on the ground, but a singing male Firecrest showed well (record shot below) and 8+ Sand Martin and 1+ Chiffchaff were seen and 2 Blackcaps heard. 3 Common Snipe, 36 Shoveler, 22 Tufted Duck, 15 Teal and a few Tree Sparrows completed the tally. Beddington has changed a lot since my last visit and Pete is working tirelessly with the Beddington Farm Bird Group to develop the site into a major urban nature reserve. To find out more see the Beddington Farmlands website or visit Pete's blog.