Boc Tue 03 June 2014 Sand Point IMG 5621 © Jim Parry Kestrel
Boc Tue 03 June 2014 Sand Point IMG 5615 Jim Parry Common Blue Butterfly
Boc Tue 03 June 2014 Sand Point IMG 5650 © Jim Parry Whitethroat
By sticking strictly to time (10 o’clock start), we couldn’t count Little Egret, two of which flew over the car park, reasoning that we’d pick them up later. That held good for the Kestrel that came over at about the same time – we had three sightings of them, but alas the Egrets eluded us. The climb to the Trig Point netted us Chiffchaff, but not a squeak from a Greenish Warbler that was here the day before. The falling tide had left four Oystercatcher and some Shelduck feeding on the mud, but few other species apart from the gulls heading out towards Flat or Steep Holm. All 16 of us made it to Sand Point and what a lovely breeze was blowing to cool our brows in the sun. The first sighting of Cuckoo was made there and we saw it (or another) three more times over the course of the walk. A few Swifts and Swallows were feeding by the point and the first flight of Linnets also came over. On towards a welcome sit, coffee and chat gave us a flight of Feral Pigeons, a lone Rock Pipit and, carried on the wind, the shrill song of a Wren. All was fairly quiet up to the lunch stop on the banks of the River Banwell where we fed, rested, and listened to the Greenfinch wheezing, Robin singing and a Garden Warbler singing a truncated version of his song. Back along Middle Hope with the estuary on our right, we heard several Whitethroats but only got a good view of one. Our last species of the 35 of the day was a Blackcap singing from the underbrush by the rear entrance to the car park. An ice-cream was most welcome at the finish. Nick Hawkridge