Newport Wetlands. (I disappoint myself)

A visit to Newport Wetlands today - again lovely weather despite the best efforts of the weatherman!

I walked all around the main reserve and inspected all three pools at Goldcliff - and walked a great deal. My limbs are exhausted this evening.

In the car park outside the visitors centre there were Greenfinch, an overflying Grey Heron, a number of Robins, Great Tits and a lone Kestrel.

Around the reserve I bagged:

Gadwall
Mute Swan
Coot
Curlew
Moorhen
Goldfinch
Blue Tit
Little Egret
Wood Pigeon
Redwing
Starling
Fieldfare
Song Thrush
Dunnock
Blackbird
Bulllfinch
Reed Bunting (first for the year)
Tufted Duck
Crow
Jackdaw
Redshank
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Greater Black-backed Gull
Black-headed Gull (no sign of a Mediterranean Gull)
Knot (a first for the year)
Dunlin (probably Sanderling too, but I'm not confident enough to identify them at a distance)
Shoveller
Wren
Black-tailed Godwit
Great Crested Grebe
Long-tailed Tit
Chaffinch
Pochard
Cormorant
Wigeon
Shelduck
Magpie

and heard about a hundred Cetti's Warblers - alas no sighting.

At Goldcliff pools / sea wall, the following:

Lapwing
Wigeon
Oystercatcher
Canada Goose
Wren
Pintail
Teal
Avocet (seven of them, and first for the year)
Dunlin
Curlew
All the regular Gulls.
Shelduck

Unfortunately, I think I timed my visit badly. I went straight to the main reserve in the morning and early afternoon. This was the time of high tide, and so by the time I got to Goldcliff pools many of the waders had flown out with the tide. So... I saw no Greenshank or Spotted Redshank on the pools mid-afternoon (but read on RBA that they were seen early-afternoon!).

By now the tide had receded significantly, and from the sea wall there was lots to see, but no Greenshank or Spotted Redshank that I could positively identify. The Sun caused a lot of silhouetting and I find this difficult when viewing birds on estuary. Although, I'm sure I would've picked out the distinctive features of the two in silhouette.

Argh. Two birds I should've seen today - but didn't. I'm a birder-in-progress. My confidence with waders - and my timing to get the best chance of spotting them - has a long way to go.