A record year for Common Sandpipers at the mere this year

It's been a good year for Common Sandpipers at the mere so far. I only realised how good when I did a bit of analysis on my database this evening. Over the past 21 years, only 1993 compares with this year, when both years have seen Common Sandpipers present on 14 days. There has also been a maximum of 33 different birds so far this year, with the next best being 25 birds in 2006. However, 2006 is skewed by the fact that there was an exceptional flock of 12 Common Sandpipers present on one day.

With July being a peak month for the species, I would be very surprised if we have seen the last of them this year. Below is a table showing a comparison of the past 21 years.

Year	Days present	Max number
2013	14	33
1993	14	20
1997	11	17
2006	10	25
1999	8	9
1995	7	12
2005	6	12
2003	6	9
1998	6	6
2000	5	7
1992	5	5
1996	4	10
2009	4	5
2008	4	4
2001	3	6
2007	3	6
1994	2	5
2002	2	3
2012	2	2
2011	1	2
2004	1	1