Sunday 9 October 2022

Grafham Water and Lemsford Springs

A trip to Cambridge this morning, with the main target being the American Wigeon. A scan of Valley Creek failed to find the wigeon but we did locate a  Pectoral Sandpiper. There were also Little Stints, Curlew Sandpipers, Grey Plovers, Dunlin, and Ringed Plovers all feeding along the shoreline.

The majority of the ducks were loafing in Dudney Creek, so we scanned the creek from Dudney Hide. We began scanning through the flocks, which was made more difficult by a fishing boat putting them all up several times. After working my way through the flock again, the American Wigeon was found in the company of three of its commoner cousins. 






Monday 10th

This morning we spent a couple of hours at Lemsford Springs. A 4-hectare nature reserve in Hertfordshire. The warden lives next to the reserve and access can be gained to the reserve via a key from the warden. If not a member of the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust he asks for a small donation towards the upkeep. The main attractions are the watercress lagoons which remain free from ice all year. There are two hides overlooking the lagoons giving excellent views.

We failed to find the Jack Snipe from the previous day, but enjoyed close views of  Green Sandpiper, Common Snipe, Water Rail, Grey Wagtail, and Kingfisher.




The lagoons contain millions of shrimp, a food source greatly enjoyed by Green Sandpipers, Water Rails, and several other species. 




The shallow lagoons are filled with fresh water from unground springs. 





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