After recording my first Swifts from my flat for the year on 21st May 2021, I saw a further 2 birds this morning at 7:40 a.m.
However, whilst small numbers of Swifts seen from my flat or over my local patch site around St. Nicholas Church are always welcome, they pale in to insignificance when compared with the huge numbers (100s and maybe 1000s) flying over Hanningfield Reservoir yesterday evening.
I had picked up a rental car in Chelmsford and decided to return home via Hanningfield Reservoir in the hope of seeing my first House Martins and Common Terns of the year. I was successful with both species. There were large numbers of House Martins present, albeit in lower numbers than the Swifts, plus c.10 Common Terns on and around the nesting raft. One of the Common Terns flew over the causeway right in front of my car. These 2 species increased my UK 2021 year list to 115 species.
When I left Chelmsford it was raining heavily but by the time I reached Hanningfield Reservoir it was dry and sunny. It is well known that large numbers of Swifts and hirundines congregate at reservoirs in spring in advance of or after a weather front carrying rain. Whilst I saw Swifts and House Martins in large numbers, I failed to see a single Swallow or Sand Martin although these 2 species were probably present too.
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