Jersey Birds

25.12.2025 The obligatory Christmas Robin ! MD Snow was reported to have been seen in Jersey overnight, but there were no signs of it by daylight! A very cold day ( +1c - +4c) in cloudy conditions with a fierce easterly wind. Sheltered viewing conditions were recommended in the cold of today and seen from the Wetland centre at St Ouen's Pond were an Avocet which settled on the water, 65 Lapwings , 2 Little Grebes , 15 Shoveler , 47 Teal , 350 Brent Geese , 2 Snipe , a Common Gull , a Water Pipit and a Stonechat . On Sands Slip were 47 Ringed Plovers , 77 Sanderlings , 21 Dunlin and a Turnstone . At Petit Port were 33 Curlews and 5 Mediterranean Gulls. On Mont Matthieu were 11 Lapwings and a pale-phase Buzzard . A brief seawatch from Grosnez saw 25 Razorbills, 17 Gannets, 7 Fulmars, a Lapwing, a Kittiwake, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 2 Harbour Porpoises feeding below the cliff. At Beaumont Marsh were 260 Brent Geese , a Grey Heron and a Curlew . At La Sente were 12 Grey Herons , 8 Little Egrets , 10 Redwings and a single wary Greylag Goose which may well have been a wild bird. At Le Catillon were 58 Lapwings and 20 Common Gulls and in Grouville Marsh were 48 Cattle Egrets . In the centre of the Island, 20 Redwings were at the orchard near Trinity Manor, a single Fieldfare was feeding in a garden in St John, while in Vallee des Vaux were a Grey Heron , a Kestrel , 20 Redwings , a Song Thrush , 2 Short-toed Treecreepers , 2 Blackcaps , 6 Siskins , 8 Long-tailed Tits and a Marsh Harrier . In the cemetery at St Saviour's Church were 2 Siskins and another 6 Redwings . A Merry Christmas to all with thanks for the many contributors to this News Report through 2025

24.12.2025 Peregrine Falcon over the North coast. Image: MD A dry but cold day (8c) with cloudy conditions in a strong east-northeast wind. The strong winds encouraged some decent movement of auks this morning and passing Corbiere in three hours were 2,904 Razorbills and 22 Guillemots . Also seen were 4 Common Scoters , 2 Brent Geese , 58 Gannets , 322 Kittiwakes , 31 Mediterranean Gulls , 8 Black-headed Gulls , 7 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 18 Great Black-backed Gulls . There were hints of some new arrivals to the Island, presumably in response to the conditions and on St Ouen's Pond were 60 Teal , 11 Shoveler and in the backfields, 59 Lapwings . 2 Stonechats and 2 Grey Herons were seen from the Wetland Centre and the Snow Bunting was in situ near Kempt Tower again. At La Sente were 12 Grey Herons , 11 Cattle Egrets, 2 Little Egrets, a Common Gull , a Black-headed Gull and 6 Ravens, and 65 Stock Doves , with 60 Lapwings flying over. Nearby, at Le Catillon were 58 Lapwings and 13 Common Gulls . In St Catherine's Woods was a Grey Wagtail . In Beaumont Marsh were 150 Brent Geese and a Curlew and at Petit Port were 24 Curlews , 9 Brent Geese , 7 Little Egrets and 6 Great Black-backed Gulls . Above Chemin de L'Ouziere in St Ouen was a probable male Hen Harrier and at Grands Vaux this afternoon were a Kingfisher , a Chiffchaff , 200 Redwings into a roost, and 3 Woodcock flying over at Dusk. Yesterday evening at Mont Mado in St John were 4 Snipe and on Mont au Pretre, a Lapwing and a Redwing . At St Ouen's Pond yesterday evening was a roost of 11 Marsh Harriers , 6 of which were locally ringed birds.

23.12.2025 Pied Wagtail near Kempt Tower. Image: MD An overcast day with some light rain, feeling cold in a light east to northeast wind Passing La Coupe in the first two hours of daylight, were 2 Great Northern Divers , 4 Red-throated Divers , 24 Brent Geese , a flock of 15 Shoveler heading away from the Island, a Gannet , 20 Kittiwakes , a Mediterranean Gull , 3 Black-headed Gulls and 13 Great Black-backed Gulls , with a Curlew roosting on the rock there ( probably the usual Polish colour-flagged individual ) also 2 Harbour Porpoises were feeding and attracting interest from the passing birds. Seen from the Wetland Centre were a Bittern , a Grey Heron , 2 Little Grebes , 14 Teal , 17 Lapwings , a Water Rail , a Water Pipit and 2 Stonechats , while in the car park North of Kempt Tower were the Snow Bunting , a Pied Wagtail and 6 Meadow Pipits , and at Le Pulec were 22 Rock Pipits and 10 Little Egrets. In Beaumont Marsh were a Siberian Chiffchaff , 25 Chiffchaffs , 6 Firecrests , 6 Goldcrests , 5 Blackcaps , 12 Redwings , a Siskin , a Song Thrush and a Water Rail . 3 Great Crested Grebes were in St Brelade's Bay. In the St Helier Marina were a Common Sandpiper and a Kingfisher . A Sparrowhawk headed along La Grande Route de St Martin, flying in front of traffic. Fortunately, the leading car contained a birder who regulated the traffic speed until the bird was clear, although not necessarily to the liking of the following cars!

22.12.2025 A winter-plumaged Turnstone at Corbiere. image: MD A fair day with varying amounts of cloud in a fresh to strong southeast wind, feeling cold at 10c A slow but steady trickle of seabirds passing Corbiere this morning, resulted in counts of 8 Brent Geese , 516 Razorbills , 3 Guillemots , 23 Gannets , 34 Shags , 6 Cormorants , 242 Kittiwakes , 14 Mediterranean Gulls , 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (already on their way back?), 51 Great Black-backed Gulls , and a Common Gull, but still no diver movement. Another 37 Mediterranean Gulls were roosting in Petit Port on the falling tide. A selection of species seen from the Wetland Centre this morning included a Bittern , a Shelduck , 2 Wigeon , 3 Shoveler , 29 Teal , 2 Little Grebes , 16 Lapwings , a Water Pipit and 2 Stonechats . In St Ouen's Bay sandpits were 10 Pochard, only one a female, 33 Tufted Duck , a Shelduck , 3 Shoveler , 6 Little Grebes , 2 Grey Herons , a male Marsh Harrier and a Chiffchaff . In Vallee des Vaux this afternoon were 26 Redwings , a Goldcrest , 2 Blackcaps and 4 Woodcock which flew over at Dusk.

21.12.2025 Purple Sandpiper near Corbiere. Image: MD Morning rain cleared to a cloudy day in a fresh southeast wind. (10c) Co-ordinated counts of Brent Geese took place this morning, with results to follow soon on the Resources page. Seen, early morning, around the southeast coast included 3 Great Northern Divers , 9 Red-breasted Mergansers , a Slavonian Grebe and a Peregrine at La Rocque and a Black-necked Grebe, a Sandwich Tern , and a Common Gull in Grouville Bay. Among waders counted there were 34 Ringed Plovers , 219 Grey Plovers 4 Greenshanks and a Bar-tailed Godwit . 10 Cattle Egrets and 5 Little Egrets were at Fauvic M and a further 7 Cattle Egrets were at La Sente. At St Ouen's Pond, as seen from the Wetland centre were a Bittern , 17 Lapwings , 23 Teal , 18 Shoveler , 4 Stonechats and a Water Pipit . 39 Ringed Plovers were near Sands and the Snow Bunting remained near Kempt Tower. In Petit Port Bay were 4 Mediterranean Gulls , 17 Curlews and 12 Brent Geese and a Peregrine was near to Grosnez. Back to yesterday when both Song Thrushes and Redwings were seen and heard at La Pouquelaye.

20.12.2025 Our currently resident Snow Bunting was seen again today, still in the same area near Kempt Tower in St Ouen's Bay Thanks go to Mike Smith for this recent image of the bird. A fine but cold morning gave way to cloudy conditions this afternoon in a fresh southeast wind. Some seabird activity was seen off of Corbiere this morning, which included counts of 653 Razorbills , 10 Guillemots , 17 Gannets , 5 Brent Geese , 6 Cormorants , 181 Kittiwakes , 8 Mediterranean Gulls , 4 Black-headed Gulls and 36 Great Black-backed Gulls . 18 Purple Sandpipers and 15 Turnstones were roosting nearby. In Grouville Bay were 350 Brent Geese, 220 Dunlin , 120 Sanderlings , 7 Curlews , 33 Grey Plovers , 47 Ringed Plovers , 2 Mediterranean Gull s, 11 Black - headed Gulls , a Grey Heron and 9 Little Egrets . On the south side of Grouville Marsh were 30 Redwings , 12 Song Thrushes , 15 Chiffchaffs , 2 Goldcrests , 4 Blackcaps , 18 Snipe , 4 Teal , 34 Curlews , a Greenshank , 5 Water Rails , 46 Coot , 2 Grey Herons , a Marsh Harrier , 80 Jackdaws and a Woodcock at Dusk. At Elizabeth Castle were 3 Little Egrets, 3 Curlews , a Cormorant and... a Wren . Seen from the Wetland Centre at St Ouen's Pond were 42 Teal , 7 Shovelers , a male Shelduck , a Little Grebe and a Water Rail , with 110 Brent Geese in the backfields there. Along the seawall near to Kempt Tower were the Snow Bunting , 2 Skylarks , 4 Stonechats and 6 Meadow Pipits , with a Grey Heron flying over. On St Ouen's Beach this afternoon were 41 Great Black-backed Gulls , 7 Mediterranean Gulls and a single Sanderling . A Great Spotted Woodpecker was drumming on Hydrangea Avenue in St Ouen. Very early on this morning ( 03:30), 2 Barn Owls were seen and heard, jousting over a garden on Rue du Pont in Trinity.

19.12.2025 A few Curlew passing Corbiere on their way to roost MD Seen at St Ouen's Pond this morning were 19 Lapwing , 11 Shoveler , 3 Little Grebe and a Kingfisher while near to Kempt Tower were the Snow Bunting and 2 Stonechat . Elsewhere 4 Mediterranean Gull were at St Catherine's and at Beaumont Marsh were 450 Brent Geese. On Mont a L'Abbe were 4 Cattle Egrets , and in Grouville Marsh were a Woodcock , 30 Reed Buntings , 15 Chiffchaffs , 2 Goldcrests , a Firecrest , 14 Long - tailed Tits, 2 Siskins , 125 Redwings , 3 Song Thrushes , 10 Blackcaps , 6 Cetti's Warblers , 4 Water Rails and a roost of 70 Jackdaws . In St Aubin's Bay were 450 Brent Geese, and in Beaumont Marsh were 4 Pied Wagtails , 3 Little Egrets and a Grey Heron . A Grey Wagtail was a garden visitor in Old St John's Road and in Bouley Bay were 9 Fulmar .

18.12.2025 A beautiful close up of the Bittern at St Ouen's Photo, thanks to Dave Warncken. Seen roosting at Petit Port today were 170 Oystercatcher , 26 Curlew , 4 Great Black-backed Gull , 2 Little Egret and 4 Shag . Yesterday evening 2 Wigeon , 3 Woodcock and 12 Snipe were at St Ouens Pond and 2 Snipe were at Grantez.

17.12.2025 A recent Fulmar passing Grosnez taken by Mick. Some are now returning to the cliffs along the north coast. At Crabbe from dawn were 120 Chaffinch , a Brambling , 25 Reed Bunting , 30 Goldfinch , 3 Skylark , a Stonechat , a Sparrowhawk , 3 Marsh Harrier and 2 Raven . In St Ouens Bay the Snow Bunting was still near Kempt Tower, 20 Rock Pipit were at Le Pulec, a Bittern flew over the Scrape and at the Pond were 20 Shoveler , 24 Brent Geese , a Water Pipit , 2 Little Grebe, 2 Stonechat and 50 Stock Doves in the back fields. Passing Corbiere were 1,370 Razorbill , 4 Guillemot , 47 Gannet , a Fulmar , 9 Cormorant , 328 Kittiwake , 3 Mediterranean Gull , a Common Gull , 29 Great Black-backed Gull and 5 Bottle-nosed Dolphin while at Petit Port this evening were 6 Lesser Black-backed Gull , 65 Oystercatcher and 2 Little Egret . Near to Grouville Church were 35 Cattle Egret and 6 Pied Wagtail, 7 Fulmar were on cliffs near Bouley Bay and 26 Redshank were at St Aubin. In St Catherine's Woods were a Firecrest , 2 Goldcrest , a Blackcap and 4 Moorhen while in the bay were 102 Black-headed Gull, 27 Brent Geese , 2 Chiffchaff and 4 Goldcrest .