Report from 01 to 03 March 2023

The days straddling February and March typically see the season’s first Little Ringed Plovers arriving at La Cassinazza; and here they were, right on schedule, kicking off the shorebird migration. The season’s first Greenshank followed just one day later.

The migration became spectacular with the passage of several Crane flocks on two consecutive days. Once again, they were heading due east.

The time has come for the Gadwall to leave, but the Shovelers are still all here.

Among passerines, the spotlight is on the Chiffchaff, which evidently arrived in numbers. Its rythmic, repetitive song – “chiff chaff, chiff chaff”, reflected in its English, German (Zilpzalp) and Dutch names – has been the soundtrack to the week.

Yellow-legged Gulls are rather uncommon at La Cassinazza. Every year we see two adults, occasionally joined by an immature or two. We can’t be sure whether they are a mated pair and whether they are always the same individuals. If they were, they would be pretty old at almost twenty. Quite some years ago they attempted to nest and even laid eggs, but breeding ultimately failed.