Dancing on ice

This weekend the lakes around Brynmawr were 90% frozen with resident wildfowl restricted to small areas of open water. This made for easy viewing. 

At Machine Pond a white call duck rallied the troops and those falling in line included 66 Canada goose, 2 teal, 3 wigeon, 2 great crested grebe, 2 mute swan, a single snipe as well as decent numbers of coot, mallard and moorhen.

The roof top gull breeding site opposite ASDA was well populated with herring gull with a smattering of lesser black-back's. Notable was the return of a pair of great black-backed gulls. These birds have bred at the site for the last two years and are back taking up a position on the roof which is exactly the same as previous years.

Dunlop Semtex Pond has been substantially de-watered thereby reducing wildfowl numbers. The resident pair of mute swan were both ringed birds the male being the colour ringed individual that originates from mid Wales.

At Beaufort Pond there was a pleasing count of 38 wigeon and the small population of mainly immature gulls included a 1st winter (2CY) herring gull with an extra long bill.