Pocklington Canal walk 3rd Aug

Ten of us gathered at Hagg Bridge and walked south along the Pocklington Canal in the direction of Storwood. The weather was kind to us and we had some pleasant evening sunshine, though the breeze was probably responsible for the limited numbers of dragonflies. The highlight was definitely a Hobby which fortunately performed well, albeit rather briefly, and allowed us to admire its speed and grace. Other birds of prey were pretty good with two each of Kestrel and Sparrowhawk, and a minimum of 5 Buzzards. Indeed the begging calls of a young Buzzard were the backdrop for much of the evening. Other breeding evidence came from two part grown and still rather fluffy Tufted Ducks on the canal.

The only wader of the evening was a Green Sandpiper and one lucky person saw a Kingfisher. Despite lots of scanning we weren’t able to add Swift to our list of 39 species. For those who are interested all the species are listed below.

Mallard

Teal

Tufted Duck

Pheasant

Red-legged Partridge

Grey Heron

Little Egret

Sparrowhawk

Buzzard

Kestrel

Hobby

Green Sandpiper

Herring Gull

Black-headed Gull

Moorhen

Feral Pigeon

Stock Dove

Woodpigeon

Kingfisher

Jackdaw

Rook

Carrion Crow

Blue Tit

Sand Martin

Swallow

House Martin

Chiffchaff

Sedge Warbler

Whitethroat

Robin

Wren

Blackbird

Dunnock

Chaffinch

Greenfinch

Linnet

Goldfinch

Yellowhammer

Reed Bunting

Regards

Paul Doherty