On 13th May 2023, I visited the following sites:
World's End and the Ruabon Moors, Denbighshire
RSPB South Stack and Holyhead Harbour, Anglesey
NWWT Cemlyn, Anglesey
Glaslyn Ospreys, Gwynedd
After picking up my rental car in Chelmsford on 12th May 2023, I first returned home before driving 165 miles to Travelodge Halesowen for my overnight stay. A journey that should have taken just over 3 hours took almost 4.5 hours due to traffic congestion on the M25, M40 and M42. Driving the quieter roads of Wales couldn’t come quick enough! At least the drive enabled me to see a Red Kite close to J21 M25 and 12 more Red Kites plus a Sparrowhawk and a Kestrel from the southern stretch of the M40.
I had a very early start from Travelodge Halesowen to drive 85 miles to World's End.
World's End is a narrow valley located between Wrexham and Llangollen. It lies at the head of the Eglwyseg Valley enclosed by the cliffs of Craig y Forwyn, Craig y Cythraul and Craig yr Adar. A remote 11 mile single track road with panoramic views between the small village of Minera and Llangollen crosses Esclusham Mountain and the Ruabon Moors to a public car park at the top of the Eglwyseg valley.
I have visited World's End many times and it is an exceptionally good site for upland birds including a well-known Black Grouse lek.
I arrived at the Black Grouse lek at 6 a.m. and noisy displaying male birds were already evident. I spent around 1.5 hours here before the hill mist descended.
The highlights, amongst 28 species recorded during my visit and from the road between Minera and Llangollen, were as follows (heard only records in italics): Black Grouse (10 males seen at the lek and 13 other males seen distantly further south), Red Grouse (4 males and 3 females seen plus at least 4 other calling males heard), Wheatear (8), Whinchat (4 singing males plus 2 other singing males heard), Stonechat (1 pair plus 3 other birds), Common Whitethroat (2 singing males), Wood Warbler (1 singing male), Willow Warbler (1 singing male plus at least 6 other singing males heard), Chiffchaff (at least 3 singing males), Blackcap (1 singing male), Cuckoo (1 seen in flight plus 4 calling males heard), Swallow (3), House Martin (1), Skylark (3 singing males plus others heard), Meadow Pipit (c.15), Marsh Harrier (1 female), Siskin (1), Canada Goose (a pair plus goslings)
Additions to my 2023 year list: Black Grouse, Red Grouse, Whinchat, Wood Warbler
I initially visited Holyhead harbour, not the most scenic birding location, but an almost guaranteed site for Black Guillemot and certainly much nearer to home than the west and north coast of Scotland. I managed to locate this species very easily and saw 3 birds.
I then visited RSPB South Stack, a site that I visit most years for its
wonderful scenery, its seabird colony and its most notable species, the Chough.
The highlights, amongst 15
species recorded during my visit, were as follows: Chough (4), Puffin (1), Guillemot (+++), Razorbill (+), Fulmar
(1), Shag (1), Herring Gull (++), Lesser
Black-backed Gull (++), Greater Black-backed Gull (1),
Raven (2), Rock Pipit (2), Common
Whitethroat (4), Swallow (c.10), House Martin (2)
Additions to my 2023 year
list: Chough, Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin,
Shag, Raven
NWWT Cemlyn comprises a unique,
elliptical shingle ridge known as Esgair Cemlyn. Beyond the ridge, there is a
shallow lagoon surrounded by gorse and grassland. All year round, waders and
wildfowl can be seen around the lagoon at the adjacent shorelines but the site
is best visited from May through to July when the islands within the lagoon
host the large and very noisy nesting colonies of Sandwich, Common and
Arctic Terns.
The highlights during my visit were
as follows: Arctic
Tern (++), Common Tern (++), Sandwich Tern (+++), Mediterranean
Gull (1), Red-breasted Merganser (8), Oystercatcher (6), Little
Egret (2), Cormorant (1), Mallard (2), Sedge Warbler (1
singing male)
Addition to my 2023 year
list: Arctic Tern
I had initially planned on making my usual visit to the MWT Dyfi Osprey Project just south of Machynlleth but given that the site closed at 5 p.m. and was a 90 mile drive from Holyhead, I decided instead to visit Glaslyn Ospreys on my way south to my overnight stay at Llety Brynawel Guest House in Pennal.
Glaslyn Ospreys at Pont Croesor in the River Glaslyn valley just north of Porthmadog was the location of the first breeding pair of Ospreys in Wales for hundreds of years in 2004. The RSPB ran the first viewing centre at Pont Croesor from 2005 until a group of local wildlife enthusiasts took over the management of the project in 2013. Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn Wildlife (BGGW) was set up as a community interest company to continue the work of protecting Ospreys in the valley and highlight the wealth of other wildlife in the area.
This was my first visit to this site for many years but I still recall seeing my first Welsh Ospreys here.
It is a beautiful location overlooking the River Glaslyn and the mountains of Snowdonia.
Photo: River Glaslyn and Snowdonia mountains from the visitor centre
Photo: River Glaslyn and Snowdonia mountains from the visitor centre
The highlights during my visit were as follows: Osprey (2), Swallow (c.5), House Martin (c.5), Sand Martin (1), Mallard (2)
Addition to my 2023 year list: Osprey
The view of the Osprey nest
is very distant and requires a telescope although the visitor centre has some
set up if birders do not have their own as I do. The view was extremely difficult during my
visit due to sun and heat haze but the visitor centre has an excellent live stream
which is also available on
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