Birdwatching Holidays In West Wales
Snipe
Small bird. Bill very long, straight. Often flaps up noisily just in front of you on marshland or mud. Catch sight of its very stripey, mottled feathers as it flies away. Wings: dark; pale line along the rear edge. Tail stumpy. Wings often look ‘crooked’ at the wrist. Breeds on Dyfi.
Snow Bunting
Often feed on lines of seaweed on beaches in winter. They are only black and white in summer; in winter they show rust ‘stains’ on pale head with streaky rust/black/buff on back. Edge of wing is white as are underparts. Never in trees. Runs along; doesn’t hop.
Sparrowhawk
Upperparts all-over grey/blue with pale rust bars and white below. Shorter, more pointed tail than Kestrel. Long, yellow legs. No spotted feathers above. Often flies a few feet above the road for quite a distance. Females bigger than male with browner upperside.
Stonechat
Loves coastal gorse and thorn bushes. Sits atop a bush and says ‘Chat’ very loudly. Hops on ground. Very like Whinchat but no white eyestripe. Dark head and back, white splash on side of neck. Rosy breast, fading to buff. In flight: blunt tail is dark – no white side stripes like Whinchat.
Storm Petrel
Pelagic. Skokholm mainly . Smallest seabird in British waters – a bit bigger than a sparrow! Dark plumage, white rump, showing as V shape in flight (like House Martin). It flutters near sea with feet dangling. Very square tail; white bar on underwing. Migrants pass close to headlands Sept/Oct – especially in stormy weather.
Swift
Always on the wing like martins, swift is grey-brown all over, has deep forked tail and very pointed wings like a war plane, cutting through the air in a broad curve. Never perches like swallows do. Utters high screaming note.
Teal
Likes the edges of lakes. Has large head with band of golden orange from base of bill leading over top of head down to base of neck. Face divided into green and wine red. Chest smart grey with thin black lines like Pintail. In flight: green rear wing, white mid wing stripe.
Tree Pipit
Very similar to Meadow Pipit but summer only. Walks and wags tail. Pale grey or brown above; at rest has dark streaks and prominent white-edged black ‘frill’ at top of wing. Very streaky breast – cream or pale yellowish. Flies direct and fast; no fluttering. Edge of woods, plantations and heaths.
Treecreeper
An extremely cute little bird; it creeps up tree trunks to find insects. Little downcurved bill. Mottled pale brown on top with darker patches on wing. Pales underside. Doesn’t visit garden feeders.
Tufted Duck
Common on lakes but not upland. Rounded head, golden eye and male has unique tuft which droops down back of head. Male black with white side panels on wings. Summer male is dull like female dark chocolatey brown.
Turnstone
Sometimes resident. Likes rocks, shells and seaweed. Noisy groups. It is the ONLY bird of this size with such a black breast and white below. Dark stripe round neck and very mottled brownish wings. In flight: white patches on wings and back.
Wheatear
Early summer visitor. Appears March. Favours open grassland on cliffs. Back pale greyish brown and yellowish breast; black eyestripe edged white above; in flight: dark wings, bright white rump and black T-shape at tip. It runs along the ground rather than hopping around.