Steve's Birding & Wildlife Blog

Monday, 26 November 2018

Local Patching.....Saturday 24th November 2018.

A full day to myself today,out on the patch,resulted in no major rares like on my last visit,but still today was as rewarding as ever,with some nice sightings logged,the following is what i recorded over the 9 hours i was on site.

I started as always,at my parking place at Winter's Pond,just as it was trying to get light,i say trying as it was wall to wall thick cloud cover.

A quick scan of the pit revealed a single adult Whooper Swan,which was a nice start i thought and some good numbers of wildfowl present included a drake Pintail,49 Gadwall,22 Tufted Duck,116 Mallard,8 Shoveler and 35 Teal.

As i walked down the hedgerow to the Humber floodbank,a decent amount of thrushes were encountered which included 39 Blackbird,51 Redwing and at least 150 Fieldfare.

When i reached the floodbank i decided to spend an hour or so watching the river,with highlights including a Peregrine chasing a Lapwing over the bank and river before heading over to the north bank to Paul Holme Strays flushing a huge cloud of waders in it's path and a Cream crown Marsh Harrier following in the same direction.The only other sighting of note was a whopping bull Grey Seal seen at fairly close range adding some welcome variety.

The next section of my visit between Winter's and the Skitter saw 98 Linnet in two flocks of 30 and 68 being logged and 3 Stonechat,a female and a pair on the mitigation site.Two Roe Deer along here also added to the days mammal sightings.

Some serious effort walking all the hedgerows and the freshwater pools at the Skitter revealed no surprises,but another pair of Stonechat and the 3 Water Pipits were still around.A drop in the number of Rock Pipits to 2 after the previous visits 7 was expected.Other notable counts included 24 Reed Bunting,20 Yellowhammer,35 Chaffinch and 24 Blackbird being seen with 3 Song Thrush and 5 of each of both Fieldfare and Redwing also.

After the knackering walk around the Skitter pools,it was nice to get back on the flat floodbank and a spluttering female Cetti's at Ruins pond kept the interest going.

As i neared Dawson City,i could see a decent sized flock of Pinks in the distance using their usual winter feeding pasture and i hoped they would still be present for my walk from the Haven back to the Skitter later.

A scan of the good numbers of Waders off Dawson saw a nice flock of 24 Grey Plover being noted with 320 Dunlin,11 Black-tailed and 3 Bar-tailed Godwit also being added to the days sightings.

As i reached the pasture i had viewed from Dawson earlier,there was a good sized flock of Pinks present,approx. 2000 and i noticed a neck collared bird in amongst them which was interesting and i knew were to send the records at the WWT.

Further along East Marsh Road a single Little Egret was watched feeding alongside a large ditch,probably the bird i had seen earlier.

The final section of my visit along the sea wall saw some great views of 4 Short-eared Owl as they hunted the rough grass pasture in the mitigation site,what a nice end to the days sightings i thought.

Well after a good 11.5 miles walked,i was relieved to get back to the car and made my journey back home to Barnetby after another great day out local patching.

Looking Along The Humber Floodbank Towards Hull Docks In The Distance.

Ruins Pond Between East Halton Skitter And Dawson City.

Grey Plover On The Sandbank Off Dawson City.

Autumnal Colours On The Rookery Along East Marsh Road.

Pink-footed Geese,Goxhill Marsh.

Neck Collared Pink-feet XVX and XVH Which Are A Mated Pair,With What May Be Their Juveniles To The Left Of Them.

The Humber Floodbank At East Halton Skitter.

Part Of The Mitigation Site At East Halton Skitter.

Doe Roe Deer Watching Some Dog Walkers Nearby.

Short-eared Owl,East Halton Skitter.

Information Kindly Received From Kane Brides At The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust On The Two Neck Collared Pink-footed Geese.

Monday, 19 November 2018

Donna Nook,Atlantic Grey Seal Colony,Sunday 18th November 2018.

A visit today,with Trace and my sister Kirsty and her husband Kev to the brilliant sights and definitely smells of the Atlantic Grey Seal colony at Donna Nook,saw us arriving in wall to wall sunshine,perfect weather for some photo opportunities.
As we walked along the fenced,viewing area,it was soon apparent that there were several new born pups on show,which was really nice to see.I managed to get some really nice images of both the pups and their attendant mothers.
A few notable birds seen while on site included a Peregrine overhead and 19 Eider which flew south along the tide edge.
A really nice visit today and great to re-acquaint ourselves with these lovely marine mammals.

Friday, 16 November 2018

Little Swift,Hartlepool Headland,Monday 12th November 2018.

After hearing the amazing occurrence of both a Little and Pallid Swift together at Hartlepool in Cleveland and that the Little Swift had gone to roost on a nearby house,it was all systems go to add this cracking species to my life list.
To be honest,after seeing the superb White-rumped Swift back in October this was an ideal opportunity to see Little and compare ID features of the two species and obviously add it to my life list.
So at 2.30am i woke and couldn't sleep with the anticipation of twitching this North African species and i headed off.
Approximately 2 hours later and i was at Hartlepool and parked about 50 yards from where the bird was roosting.
So i got out the car and went and had a quick look,bumping into Elliot Montieth and a few other birders already looking at this mega huddled under the soffet of the big bay window.After a few minutes looking,i went back to the car for some kip until it got light.
At last it started to get light,so i got all the warm gear on and joined the group gathered to watch this cracking little bird,ready for it to leave it's roost.At about 07.15 a quick stretch of those long wings and it was off.
The bird was quickly re-located feeding along the northern edge of the headland and we got in position to try and get some pics.To be fair it was just too quick for my ageing camera,but i managed to get some record shots.
The bird showed fantastically close at times,sometimes passing the crowd at just a few feet away,what a great experience!.
I watched the bird up until about 8.30,but then it was time to travel home for work sadly,but what a great few hours watching my 4th species of Swift for the year and second rare species after the Pallid on my local patch yesterday,what an amazing couple of days.

One Of The Locals Watching The Crowd.

Wednesday, 14 November 2018

Mega Patch Swift.....Sunday 11th November 2018.

Another day out on the patch today and an organised meet up with John to carry out his WEBS count between the Skitter and Goxhill Haven resulted in my best find of the year and my best it has to be said for some time.The following is what we saw on our visit.
We began as usual,by parking at Winter's Pond and after getting the pack up in the rucksack and warm clothes on we were off.
Winter's was holding the usual species,with the best being 103 Mallard,4 Little Grebe,160 Lapwing and at least 30 Fieldfare.The 4 Goldeneye from last weekend were still here and were joined by another bird,which was great to see.
The weather unfortunately,was pretty crap today and rain looked like it was on its way as we turned the corner towards the Skitter.
A quick couple of nice sightings involved a fairly late House Martin as it flew east and i joked that we will have a Pallid Swift next,as we were both aware of a bird earlier at Spurn and the national influx taking place,little did we know what was in store later.The next nicety was a Short-eared Owl being harassed by a local Maggie on the mitigation site.I always feel sorry for them,as they don't look capable of defending them selves,a great record all the same.
By now it had started to drizzle as we reached the Skitter and we decided to do a circuit to see if any Wipits were present.
After walking the shore and pools,at least 3 Water Pipit and 7 Rock Pipits were logged,the latter a big increase from the 2 the previous weekend.Just as we reached the flood bank,i looked over and on the rough ground near to the gas compound to see 5 Twite were feeding quietly.They showed brilliantly,but it was a proper struggle to try and get any images in the rain.This is no doubt part of the flock seen the previous weekend and i was really pleased they were still around.
After leaving the lovely moorland finches we carried on towards Dawson City and Goxhill Haven.It was obvious as we walked that there had been an arrival of Thrushes with at least 20 Blackbird and 61 Redwing being logged,a considerable increase on the handfull seen the week before.
As we neared Dawson,all of a sudden i turned around to see a Swift and i shouted to John 'SWIFT' as i tried to get as many shots of it as i could,but the light was garbage.This had to be a Pallid and we watched as it hawked over the saltmarsh and then out over the Humber,it then came closer and i noticed it looked chunkier than Common Swift with possibly broader based and blunter tipped wings than that species,plumage detail was very hard to see.The bird suddenly gained speed and we lost it in the direction of Goxhill Haven.I tried to alert other birders further west,including Chaz Adland and Graham Catley,but sadly no one else got onto it.The whole sighting had lasted about 10 minutes and now it turned from panic into elation as the realisation of what i had just found,on my inland patch.....BOOOM!
This is the first sighting of this species for myself on my patch and was a lifer for John,but interestingly the species has a history here,as Graham Catley(GPC) had the first record for Britain in exactly the same spot in June 1977 and another unidentified Swift sp. on October 29th 1982 which was most probably a Pallid also.
After all this excitement,it was back to more normal fare,but i just couldn't stop smiling and saying out loud f$$@@@g hell we've just had a Pallid Swift.
More rain on the walk back to the car and a female Stonechat at the Skitter was the only different species added to the day's records,but what a day!,i had reached my target of 140 species for the year for the patch and what a way to do it.
As a postscript and after reaching home,it was apparent that the Pallid Swift we had,was in fact the same bird seen at Spurn earlier in the morning,as it showed a distinct step between the belly and tail which was really obvious when the bird was observed side on.I would just also like to say a big thankyou to both Graham and Adam Hutt for comments on the bird and help with editing images.

Twite,East Halton Skitter.

Pallid Swift,Dawson City LWTR.

Female Stonechat,East Halton Skitter.

Wednesday, 7 November 2018

Bonby-Saxby Carrs,Monday 5th November 2018.

With a relatively decent forecast,albeit a tad misty,i decided to head out today,with half a mind on finding a Rough-legged Buzzard in the hotspot for the species that is the Ancholme Valley.
A brief visit to Barton in the morning,saw the only highlight being a single Chiffchaff at Far-Ings,so i decided to head over to Bonby and give the Ancholme Valley a visit.
I parked near the Soak Drain,my usual parking place when i visit here,had some lunch and headed off with anticipation in finding something good.
It wasn't long before i realised the above wasn't going to happen,as the fields,all bar one were bone dry = no wildfowl to attract hunting raptors.
A scan to the south saw the first notable,a Merlin,as it flew along the fields before alighting on a fence post,as they do and further scans revealed a Common Buzzard watching me from an adjacent hawthorn bush and a couple of hunting Kezzies.....things weren't all bad after all.
There was one notable absence on my walk down to the river,apart from the lack of wildfowl,was also an absolute lack of passerines.I have found this on visits before,but today was particularly bad.
As i reached the river,the familiar sight of a pair of Stonechat's sallying after flying insects along a riverside reed bed was nice to see,but sort of expected at this time of year here.
As i walked along the river on the new cycle/walking path(The Ancholme Valley Way),i noticed quite a few swans up ahead,a quick scan through them all revealed only Mute's today,but a decent count of 35 birds in total.The majority were 2nd calendar years,but 9 up at Saxby Bridge contained a family party of 6 birds,with the four cygnets still with their parents.
As i walked,a lovely,close,flyby by a Common Buzzard was a great sight to see and as i neared the long plantation half way to Saxby Bridge,the distinct 'Eeep' of Brambling brought back memories of Saturday's visit to the local patch,as at least 30 Brambling flew out of a riverside Hawthorn into the adjacent wood.
A proper count of these birds later revealed 25,but they were a nice surprise all the same and at least 20 Chaffinch were seen in the same flock.Also here in the same area were 17 Yellowhammer and 10 Reed Bunting.
As i neared Saxby Bridge,another pair of Stonechat's were seen,these being slightly more photogenic than the earlier birds,but as earlier nice to see.
After a quick look from the bridge,i started my journey back towards Bonby,seeing the Stonechat pair again,this time gaining some nice shots of the female,the male was far too jumpy to get anywhere near.
I passed the long plantation again and saw a few more Brambling again and Reed Buntings gleaning aphids off the leaves of the Sycamores,something i hadn't watched them do before.Also in the wood was a roving Tit flock,which contained a Coal Tit,Treecreeper and a couple of Goldcrest and nearby a Great-spotted Woodpecker called.
As the sun was beginning to set and the light going,i watched as a superb Ringtail Hen Harrier hunted the pasture fields and a strip of Elephant Grass along the Soak Drain,what a privilege to see.
A last few scans when i reached the car,saw at least 10 Roe Deer being observed and a nice surprise in the form of 2 Noctule Bats hawking insects high over the pasture fields.
So no RLB's or strangely Owl's of any type,the latter i thought would be a cert,after all the recent immigration of SeO's along the coast,maybe next time.A nice visit today all the same.

Chiffchaff,Far-Ings NNR,Barton.

Common Buzzard,Bonby Carrs.

Stonechat Pair,Saxby Carrs.

Female Stonechat,Saxby Carrs.

Sundown On Bonby Carrs.

Sundown On Bonby Carrs

Great-white Egret At Last!........Saturday 3rd November 2018.

A planned visit today to the local patch,certainly paid dividends again,with another 4 species added to the year list,with one of those being a first for the patch also,this is what i saw over the six and a half hours on site.
I started in usual fashion at Winter's Pond for first light and a quick cursory scan revealed very little on the pit.
A few minutes later after getting the layers on and i was off.A few scans of the pit revealed 5 Little Grebe still,8 Teal,7 Shoveler,3 Black-tailed Godwit and some new arrivals,4 Goldeneye.The latter showed really closely,but the early morning light was garbage,so i didn't even bother trying to take any pics.
A quick look around the bushes bordering the river bank saw a couple of Goldcrest,3 Redwing and a confiding flock of 13 Long-tailed Tit which are always a joy to see.
As i passed Winter's by and began to head towards the Skitter,the familiar 'Eeep' of Brambling was heard,as three birds rested in a Hawthorn along the bank side,but as soon as they saw me they were off and flew towards Winter's.Finally i had added this species to my patch year list,with birds being seen all over the place locally.
As i reached the Skitter,a single Knot was feeding on it's own and i decided to walk around the freshwater pools to see if any Water Pipits had arrived yet.As i approached the first of the pools a female Stonechat showed really nicely,then 2 Water Pipits flushed from virtually the same area and i tried to get some flight shots,but it wasn't easy.Also along the shore here were a couple of Rock Pipits which offered a great comparison with the Wipits and a very nice find in the form of 3 Twite.The Twite were quite flighty and i had to try and get as close as i could without flushing them to try and get a few pics,but they eventually flew again and along the shore for several hundred yards before dropping back down again.This latter sighting was a really nice surprise,as they are always a lovely bird to see,particularly inland along the Estuary.
Between the Skitter and Dawson City it was fairly quiet apart from a decent sized flock of about 800-1000 Pinks feeding on a grass pasture,30 Fieldfare and 3 Siskin which flew west.
Some prolonged scanning of the large sandbank in front of Dawson,saw 160 Mallard,50 Teal,190 Dunlin,6 Ringed and a single Grey Plover.A redhead Red-breasted Merganser flew east along the tide edge here also.
As i reached the reserve itself,i turned around to see a Great-white Egret as it flew over my head and over the saltmarsh and out across the Humber heading north east.This bird was later seen flying south at Spurn Point and constitutes the first record for my patch,certainly a long expected one as well.
As i headed back towards East Halton through Goxhill Marsh and along Skitter Road i added 2 Common Buzzard and a couple of Grey Herons to the days sightings,but little else,but i could hardly complain after what i had already seen today.
I arrived back at the car at Winter's after a good 10 mile walk today and a quick scan of the pit saw a couple of Pintail with the Mallard flock,a nice end to the day's visit i thought.
Well,as i drove home i thought to myself,what a brilliant visit again today,adding another 4 species to the patch year list,putting me on a respectable 139,1 species away of my target i had set myself for the year of 140,onwards and upwards for the final 2 months of the year.