Peterstone Gout

 

I visited Peterstone Gout this morning and had a wonderful morning watching waders at high tide.

There was a big tide today and it had pushed up a great deal of birds up towards the seawall all along the gout and the wharf.

Peterstone Gout has a viewing screen on the sea wall where you can stand and watch the bird life. It provides some shelter from the wind and offers a nice view across the estuary.

The sea wall is relatively easy to access in this area if you park at the nearby golf course.

ⓒOpenStreetMap Map of Peterstone Gout

On arrival I was greeted by a group of friendly birders and my friend Phil ( a fellow Goldcliff Gang member). I knew that I was going have a good morning as Phil always brings help from heavenly on high.

Keen eyed birdwatchers

The viewing screen

The weather ended up being pretty good despite the yellow weather alert in place for thunderstorms and heavy rain.

The Wader Roost

There was a lovely breeze and the fresh air really helped to calm my mind as its been spinning all week.

By 10.30 am the tide was at its peak and I was amazed to see a large roost of waders not far from the viewing screen.

The roost was very accommodating and we watched from a  respectful distance whilst we stood behind the sea wall. I was glad I had brought my Nikon P1000 as its great for getting some close ups without causing any disturbance.

Dunlin Roosting

Ringed Plover

As the tide reached its zenith and began it retreat the estuarine mud was soon revealed. The birds that were roosting began to wake up and get agitated. Some took flight and landed close to the waters edge. A flock of Knots and Redshanks landed in amongst the grass and several times took to the air and flew in front of where we were standing.

It was great to see a flock of Knots flying past us in close proximity. I must admit I have been missing this kind of activity at Goldcliff Lagoons and at Peterstone it was a joy not to be viewing anything through fencing.

The Knot flock. Note the Pintail in the background.

As the tide turned more and more food rich mud was revealed and the waders left their roost on the rocks of the seawall and landed on the mud in front of the viewing screen.

I really enjoyed watching the waders feeding and doing their thing.

My Bird List.

1. Pied Wagtail
2. Lapwing
3. Curlew
4. Common Sandpiper
5. Cormorant
6. Wigeon
7. Mallard
8. Little Egret
9. Green Woodpecker
10. Linnet
11. Meadow Pipit
12. Swallow
13. House Martin
14. Starling
15. Carrion Crow
16. Cettis Warbler
17. Black Headed Gull
18. Herring Gull
19. Oystercatcher
20. Pintail Duck
21. Dunlin
22. Knot
23. Ringed Plover
24. Shelduck