Species Account
Extract from Bird Report 2024
Common resident, typically breeding at a handful of traditional sites. Included in 29.6% of BirdTrack lists. (Green list).
Individuals were at most large bodies of water and rivers across the county, including some smaller ponds such as one in the middle of King’s Wood, Heath & Reach and another perched on a tree in a Henlow garden.
Extensive records from Priory CP (DK) provided an insight into the breeding timelines, as follows:
23rd January – 13 nests attended by adults
10th February – at least 13 nests with incubating adults
18th March – 33 adults with 20 nests occupied, although not all of those necessarily held eggs
23rd March – 18 occupied nests and two of those with young
26th March – 6 nests with young
13th April – 17 occupied nests of which at least 11 had young
21st April – 13 of the 17 nests had young, most with two chicks
7th May – more than half of the nests had well-grown juveniles
15th May – 30 young from 15 nests, and 3 more nests from late starters
7th June – 2 nests, from the late starters, had newly hatched young; in total 34 young fledged from 17 nests.
Breeding also took place at Blunham Lakes, Coronation ClP, Harrold-Odell CP, Rookery North ClP, Southill Lake and Woburn Park. Priory CP had the highest counts of all sites at all times of the year.
