Notable passage migrants were both whinchat and spotted flycatcher (above) on the 9^th. Meadow pipits started passing over on the 17^th and were seen or heard on several dates from then on. A late swallow was seen on the 29^th.

September usually sees the highest counts of the year for several duck species. Wigeon (above) were seen all month with the peak count being nine on the 4^th. Shoveler (below) reached 50 with gadwall not far behind. The most numerous duck in September though was pochard, which reached 89 on the 6^th.

We also had two visits from red-crested pochard, with a male in eclipse plumage on the 17^th and possibly the same bird with two females on the 22^nd.

The first water rail of winter was heard in the reed-bed on the 1^st, with the first snipe being seen on the 22^nd. By the end of the month there were probably at least three water rails and there could be any number of snipe, but with the water levels currently high, these species can be very difficult to see.

Kestrel is a bird which in the past has been fairly common here, with pairs breeding just off site, but until the middle of September we had gone over a year without one being seen. Happily the situation now is very different, with frequent sightings of both a male and a female.

House martins often tend to form into a big flock here in September as they get together prior to migration and this year over 100 birds were seen fairly often early-to-mid month. A solitary swift was sometimes amongst them, and was last seen on the 19^th, the latest record here for the species.

The total number of bird species seen here in September 2022 was 70, a couple above the historical September average.