The Cotswold Water Park (Gloucestershire & Wiltshire)

The Cotswold Water Park (CWP) is an area of 40 square miles of the upper Thames valley, mostly comprising large areas of mixed farmland. For the past 50 years or more, sand and gravel extraction has been ongoing, resulting in the production of habitats not normally associated with farmland in the upper Thames, for example, the active quarrying produces shallow wetlands, expanses of gravel, sandy cliffs, reed beds and willow carr, whilst the post-extraction restoration process produces lakes of varying sizes, reed beds, duck marsh and wader scrapes. These new habitats have attracted a whole range of wetland birds not normally associated with farmland. The CWP supports in excess of 20,000 wintering waterbirds and holds nationally important numbers of Great Crested Grebe, Pochard, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Coot, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Smew and Shoveler. The BTO Winter Gull Roost count was undertaken in winter 2003-2004 and over 21,000 gulls were recorded at the main roost locations, mainly Black Headed Gull, Lesser Black Backed Gull and Common Gull but also small numbers of Herring Gull, with the occasional Greater Black Backed Gull, Yellow Legged Gull, Iceland Gull, Mediterranean Gull and Caspian Gull. Breeding waterbirds are important here, with good numbers of Great Crested Grebe, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Coot and Mute Swan with increasing numbers of Gadwall and Red Crested Pochard, plus the occasional Pochard, Teal and Shoveler!

Birding highlights include:

Early Spring: April and May for the early arriving warblers and hirundines as well as the Nightingales. The Hobbies arrive back, often in large numbers and often with a Red Footed Falcon in tow!

Summer: for breeding waders such as Little Ringed Plover, Oystercatcher and Lapwing and for large numbers of breeding ducks such as Tufted Duck and Gadwall. Also breeding Hobby, Barn Owl and Little Owl.

Autumn: for the sheer number and variety of passage birds migrating through this inland site; passage birds in have included Pied Flycatcher, Wood Warbler, Yellow Wagtail, Whimbrel, Temminck’s Stint, Grey Plover, Black Tailed Godwit and Bar Tailed Godwit, Mediterranean Gull and Black Tern.

Winter: yields large numbers of wintering waterbirds and gulls; look out for Pochard, Gadwall, Goosander, Smew, Caspian Gull, Yellow Legged Gull, Iceland Gull, Little Egret, Red Throated Diver, Green Sandpiper, and Yellow Browed Warbler. Plus large flocks of Lapwing and Golden Plover. Also look out for Cetti’s Warbler, Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, Snipe, Water Rail and Kingfisher.