Summer doldrums

Well, it looks like spring is well and truly over now - even the Sanderlings appear to have dried up inland. So, on my return to Lincolnshire this weekend, I was hardly expecting to see alot. That certainly rung true; I only had the usual breeders on my patch (Baston & Langtoft Pits) this evening - 4 Redshanks, 5 Oystercatchers etc but no sign of any young. Perhaps worrying but still early days.

Definite highlight was what seems to have been an incredible year for the Black-headed Gull colony. Many, many juveniles have already fledged (some even starting to moult to a 1st-winter type plumage); a partial count revealed almost 200 this evening, vastly outnumbering adults. Here's a few of them:



But, despite the large numbers of birds present, that elusive summer mega just wasn't there tonight. Let's see how the next couple of months go - not long before the first Green Sandpipers.