Final Redstart survey of 2013

I just about managed to haul myself out of bed for a final Redstart survey in Sherwood Forest NNR this morning. I only had just over two hours on site, but located birds in 10 locations - 8 singing males, a further silent male, and a female at a nest site. I need to sit down with Carl and have a look at his survey results, but my current estimate is that there were c.15 territories within the surveyed area this year, which ain't too bad. Other birds included Spotted Flycatcher, several Tree Pipits, and 2 Cuckoos. Most bizarre (and gruesome) was a dead Great Spotted Woodpecker, hanging upside down from its feet (still gripping the tree it was in). It looked like it had perhaps been there a week or two, but how on earth did it die..?

A dead Great Spotted Woodpecker...

Nice acid grassland with flowering Heath Bedstraw

This evening, I thought that the downpours might've dropped some waders into Collingham, and this appeared to be the case; no Little Stints or Spotted Redshanks, but 3 Sanderling, as well as a Turnstone (reported this morning) and 3 Dunlin. It seems to have been a very good year for overland passage of Sanderling this year - I've now had a total of 6 at Collingham since mid-May. Also present were c.150 Swifts feeding over the site (maybe double that number), and a Barn Owl, my first of the year here; always nice to see. 

3 Sanderling

Turnstone and 2 Dunlin