A female bearded tit was present this afternoon at Evercreech sewage works....an unlikely looking site for this species! It was favouring the bulrushes around the edge of the tiny settling pond adjacent to the footpath on the south side of the works.
Also 6+ chiffchaffs in the area.
The bearded tit surfaced again today in the same area as before. This is the first time in over 2 weeks that I've seen it, despite checking the site several times a week. The main interest today though was the presence of a Siberian chiffchaff on the first filter bed. This bird appears to be new in and showed very well this afternoon. Also today 15 chiffchaffs, 5 snipe and a water rail around the site.
Both the bearded tit and Siberian chiffchaff were showing well in the hedge next to the first filter bed this morning. There was also a merlin in the area, the first I've seen locally this winter.
Now 2 Siberian chiffchaffs at Evercreech STW. They were feeding closely together along the fence line by the first filter bed and in the hedge by the second stile. Both birds were calling frequently and showing well at close range. The wintering bearded tit is still present plus at least 1 water rail. The number of common chiffchaffs continues to increase with c20 around the site.