SBSG - Photographs and Info

Birds and Habitats in the SBSG area.
Photographs and Information.

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Gadwall

Gadwall
Photograph Copyright © Mark N Reeder

Despite the generally grey and brown plumage, Gadwall is probably one of our most attractive and most appreciated ducks, presumably because they are not exactly common and are very localised, being guaranteed at only a handful of localities. Just a couple of decades or so ago there were no known breeding records in the area, although there may have been the odd isolated and 'un-recorded' pair. It is still mainly a winter visitor, with numbers increasing from September to a peak in December and fewer during January to March. At the time of writing, the highest area count was 69 at RVCP on 13th November 1996, the previous highest being 52 at Renishaw Park in January 1983. Probably the best site to see winter Gadwall is RVCP, but Thrybergh CP and Old Denaby often hold smaller numbers. In fact the traditional locality for the species, Renishaw Park, still holds reasonable numbers, but the site is STRICTLY private. However, the main lake can be [partially] viewed in winter from the Renishaw to Staveley B6053 road.

In recent years Gadwall has bred annually, in small numbers and at only a small number of localities, with 1998 being one of the best years on record. See "Birds in the Sheffield Area, 1998" for details. These two photographs of a pair at Rother Valley Country Park were taken on 17th February 2001 by Mark Reeder. Last updated 24th February 2001.

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