Goodbye GMT, hello GWT...

Middleton Lakes continues to take top local honours in my search for 200 species in 2018.

It seems that this relatively new (to me, anyway) RSPB reserve in the far north of Warwickshire (and far south of Staffordshire or course) scores most regularly when I scan Twitter on a Saturday night looking for interesting prospects for a Sunday morning trip.

This week was no exception, with a report of a Green-winged Teal on the Jubilee scrape being a real eye-catcher. It has been at least a decade since I last saw a GWT and it would be a great one to get 'in the bag' for the year list.

With the clocks 'springing forward' overnight I arrived later than I might have liked, only to hear the dread phrase: "The Green-winged Teal was just there until about 10 minutes ago; then everything went up."

"Should still be here somewhere though," said someone else, encouragingly.

In the end it took a good half hour to relocate, but then I was able to enjoy great views of this Nearctic visitor in bright sunshine, along with a spread of waders including six recently returned Avocets, three Black-tailed Godwits, a few Redshanks, Oystercatcher, five Dunlin and a Little Ringed Plover (the latter another year tick).

With a roadside sighting of Red-legged Partridge on the journey, plus the sudden realisation I hadn't yet added Reed Bunting to my year list, the 2018 total - like the clocks - sprung forward. It has now reached 107.

I'm still not convinced 200 is a realistic target, but it's definitely keeping things interesting. And with all the summer regulars except Chiffchaff still to come, the total should see some further leaps forward over the coming weeks.

Not Waderless!

Reports came in during Friday of a wader-fall at Brandon - six Black-tailed Godwits and a Curlew were among the key arrivals that caught my attention.

Sadly, by the time I could complete my work and get to Brandon, both species had flown. 

With the reserve feeling increasingly quiet, and the weather increasingly ominous, I was left with more usual fare: several Ringed Plovers, 200+ Lapwing, three Green Sandpipers, a Common Sandpiper and a couple of Little Egrets. 

Then came the inevitable heavy downpour which sent me on my way a trifle disappointed at yet another wader dip (see also Waderless, last week).

However, with return migration now well underway it was only a matter a time until something new turned up, and so it proved with Monday's reports of a Wood Sandpiper at Draycote Reservoir.

So, ignoring the rain and the fact that every other birder in the country was in Suffolk, I headed straight to the overflow where it was still being reported through the afternoon. 

It was easily found, busily feeding along the broad stretch of shore from the overflow back along the exposed Hensborough Bank. 

The snapshot doesn't do it justice, in particularly its spangly back which seemed almost black-and-white in the gathering gloom of a rainy summer's evening. That long, strong eye-stripe is a key diagnostic, along with the square white rump revealed in a quick burst of flight.

With the lowish water levels exposing so much of Hensborough Bank it looked perfect for waders, so it wasn't a huge surprise when a Dunlin (already in its winter drabness) flew in to join the juv. Little Ringed Plovers, followed by a Common Sandpiper. 

Two Little Egrets and a number of young Yellow Wagtails kept me company on a contented, if wet, walk back to the car.

Bird of the day: Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola), a welcome local highlight which crops up on passage every few years. Only a very few breed in the Highlands, the rest in Northern Europe. They are now on their way to Africa, this one taking an extremely westerly route.