Two really good visits to the local patch to end 2019,with some cracking highlights,particularly on the 27th,the following is a summary of the 2 visits.
21st December
After arriving at Winter's Pond,nothing of interest was noted here,until i made it up onto the Humber floodbank to see the juvenile male Hen Harrier making its way across the mitigation site from the Skitter to hunt the rough field adjacent to Winter's,before it again disappeared,a good start and nice to see this stunning bird is still around.
Nothing much between WP and the Skitter other than mentioned above,but a single Little Egret was noted again as on my last visit and a total of 9 Roe Deer.
At the Skitter the usual suspects were in residence,with 4 Water Pipit being seen,a Siskin flew south and the lovely sight of 3 Grey Partridge were noted along the edge of the track leading to East Marsh Road.
All the Winter Thrushes observed on my last visit along East Marsh Road had moved on,but 50 Collared Dove and 65 Rook were notable,the Rooks making early prospecting visits to their Rookery near the livery stables.
A lovely Fox was watched hunting Voles along here and was watched pouncing on one,just great to watch!.
It was high tide as i reached Goxhill Haven and a good scan of the Humber revealed a decent count of 226 Goldeneye,a drake Pintail,5 Gadwall and 140 each of both Mallard and Wigeon being seen off here.
As i reached the sunflower field,the juvenile male Hen Harrier was there and he gave some stunning views,as he perched on one of the Sunflower heads,what a cracking bird.Other birds in this area included a 1st calendar year male Marsh Harrier which is just starting to acquire some grey feathering on the underwing,at least 300 Linnet,Common Buzzard and a singing male Cetti's Warbler.
The Pink-footed Geese which have been feeding in the area for a couple of months now,were on the grass meadow which they have occasionally been seen on over the last few years,but unfortunately someone is shooting at them,after several decoys were in the field next door.Why people just can't leave these lovely birds alone is beyond me.A decent count of 1650 birds were present today.but it won't be for much longer!.
Also seen in the area were 2 Bearded Tit in a bankside reedbed and 2 Cetti's Warbler were calling in the long reedbed near Firecrest Corner.
27th December
Today's visit was an exceptional one for the time of the year,with some cracking birds being seen.
Winter's held the usual birds at dawn,with the only notable record being 3 female Goldeneye.
The mitigation site was similar to my last visit,minus the Hen Harrier,but was replaced by an adult female type Marsh Harrier,which flew south towards Killingholme,a pair of Stonechat,22 Curlew and the regular Little Egret were noted
The Skitter today,was pretty good it has to be said,with an unseasonal Green Sandpiper feeding in the Haven with the Redshank flock,a single Water Pipit,5 Rock Pipit,which was a sudden upsurge in numbers,a pair of Stonechat,2 Short-eared Owl and 1st calendar year Marsh Harrier.
A walk along the shoreline up to Dawson City primarily to count waders and gulls on the dropping tide,resulted in some very pleasing counts which included 685 Black-headed Gulls,71 Great black-backed Gull,514 Curlew,856 Dunlin,3000 Lapwing and 53 Carrion Crow.
A lovely surprise,as with the Green Sand earlier,was a cracking adult Little Gull watched feeding along the Humber shore with the Black-headed Gull flock,a superb record for the time of year.
Also notable among a good count of 51 Avocet,were 2 colour ringed birds,whose details i have sent away for verification and history.
As i reached Dawson City,good birds just kept coming,with a stonking male Merlin perched in the hedge at the back of the reserve,what a little beauty and the first adult male i have seen for several years.Also at Dawson were and adult male,the 1st calendar year male from my last visit and a juv. female type Marsh Harrier and a male Cetti's Warbler singing briefly.
A quick walk up to the Sunflower field revealed at least 300 Linnet still present with a sleeping female Common Scoter and 6 Goldeneye on the Humber.The former is no doubt the bird i saw on the 15th and my be associating with the Goldeneye flock off New Holland.
So what a cracking end to the patch watching year and i'm all set to start again on the 1st of January to kick off another year watching this superb area.
Welcome To My Blog,This Will Be Mainly Used As A Diary For My Local Birding Patch At East Halton/Goxhill On The Banks Of The Humber Estuary,With Occasional Twitching And Visits Elsewhere Including Photos From Mine & Tracey's Walks Around Our Beautiful Countryside.
Monday 30 December 2019
Thursday 26 December 2019
Christmas Crackers......24.12.2019.
With the continued presence of the 1st winter Eastern-yellow Wagtail at Prestwick Carr in Northumberland and the added possibility of finally seeing the drake Black Scoter at Goswick a little further up the coast,this is where i headed today.
An early start saw me heading out and it wasn't long before i was travelling along the A1 north.A stop en route for a quick kip at Durham services had the desired affect and i carried onto Prestwick,easily finding the birds chosen area.It was still dark,and chucking it down,so i stayed put as i waited for it to get light and thankfully it began to stop raining as well.
After getting the kit together,the first half an hour or so of light were nervy to say the least,but i eventually found the bird at incredibly close range,being perhaps as close as five feet away!.It was just too dark to photograph the bird,so plenty of plumage study was had.
The bird was being harassed by a Robin while i watched it,so was pretty jumpy,being seen in a few different areas and thankfully when it flew,the call was heard on several occasions and i noted two different types,one similar to Citrine and another which sounded more flutey and flava Wagtail like.
As the sun came out,the bird looked much paler,with the light change and it was great to see it spending much time finding plenty of Chironomid Midge larvae to feed on.
After enjoying my fill of views of the bird and my 9th new bird species for the year,i carried on my journey and headed for Cheswick/Goswick to look for the Black Scoter.
After parking up at Goswick golf club,a quick walk over the course and over the dunes,saw me getting in position and i began to scan the sea quickly finding the whopping Common Scoter flock,which must have contained at least 600 birds and i thought to myself this isn't going to be easy on my own as the birds were continually diving as well.
I persevered and eventually had a five second view of the Black Scoter as it aggressively attacked a male Common,before i lost it again,but at least i had seen the bird,get in!.
It wasn't long before i was onto him again and this time i watched him for about ten minutes,as he swam about posturing to the female Commons and preening,the yellow area on the bill really standing out,even at long range and at 60x.
Other species encountered here,included some lovely views of a Black-throated Diver and a more distant Great-northern,with 6 Long-tailed Duck(Including 2 cracking drakes),10 Red-throated Diver,3 drake Red-breasted Merganser,2 Puffin,6 Razorbill and 10 Eider also entering the notebook.
I was really pleased to finally see the drake Black scoter,after dipping on my last visit in January 2017 and this bird became my 10th new bird this year and 476th species overall.
As it was only 1.30pm,i decided to travel the short distance over to Bamburgh,just south along the coast,as a Black Guillemot had been present on previous days.
Plenty of looking here for the Black Guillie,sadly saw the bird had moved on,but fine compensation was had in another Great-northern Diver,2 Long-tailed Duck,60 Common Scoter and a very nice flock of 110 Purple Sandpiper which gave point blank views as they roosted,preened and bathed on Stag Rocks.
So what a fantastic days birding/twitching was enjoyed today,in one of my favourite areas in the country and it was a real shame to travel home,but i will be back next year at some point no doubt.
An early start saw me heading out and it wasn't long before i was travelling along the A1 north.A stop en route for a quick kip at Durham services had the desired affect and i carried onto Prestwick,easily finding the birds chosen area.It was still dark,and chucking it down,so i stayed put as i waited for it to get light and thankfully it began to stop raining as well.
After getting the kit together,the first half an hour or so of light were nervy to say the least,but i eventually found the bird at incredibly close range,being perhaps as close as five feet away!.It was just too dark to photograph the bird,so plenty of plumage study was had.
The bird was being harassed by a Robin while i watched it,so was pretty jumpy,being seen in a few different areas and thankfully when it flew,the call was heard on several occasions and i noted two different types,one similar to Citrine and another which sounded more flutey and flava Wagtail like.
As the sun came out,the bird looked much paler,with the light change and it was great to see it spending much time finding plenty of Chironomid Midge larvae to feed on.
After enjoying my fill of views of the bird and my 9th new bird species for the year,i carried on my journey and headed for Cheswick/Goswick to look for the Black Scoter.
After parking up at Goswick golf club,a quick walk over the course and over the dunes,saw me getting in position and i began to scan the sea quickly finding the whopping Common Scoter flock,which must have contained at least 600 birds and i thought to myself this isn't going to be easy on my own as the birds were continually diving as well.
I persevered and eventually had a five second view of the Black Scoter as it aggressively attacked a male Common,before i lost it again,but at least i had seen the bird,get in!.
It wasn't long before i was onto him again and this time i watched him for about ten minutes,as he swam about posturing to the female Commons and preening,the yellow area on the bill really standing out,even at long range and at 60x.
Other species encountered here,included some lovely views of a Black-throated Diver and a more distant Great-northern,with 6 Long-tailed Duck(Including 2 cracking drakes),10 Red-throated Diver,3 drake Red-breasted Merganser,2 Puffin,6 Razorbill and 10 Eider also entering the notebook.
I was really pleased to finally see the drake Black scoter,after dipping on my last visit in January 2017 and this bird became my 10th new bird this year and 476th species overall.
As it was only 1.30pm,i decided to travel the short distance over to Bamburgh,just south along the coast,as a Black Guillemot had been present on previous days.
Plenty of looking here for the Black Guillie,sadly saw the bird had moved on,but fine compensation was had in another Great-northern Diver,2 Long-tailed Duck,60 Common Scoter and a very nice flock of 110 Purple Sandpiper which gave point blank views as they roosted,preened and bathed on Stag Rocks.
So what a fantastic days birding/twitching was enjoyed today,in one of my favourite areas in the country and it was a real shame to travel home,but i will be back next year at some point no doubt.
 |
| Juvenile/1st winter Eastern-yellow Wagtail,Prestwick Carr. |
 |
| Looking Along The Coast From Goswick Towards Berwick Upon Tweed. |
 |
| Looking Along The Coast From Goswick Towards Lindisfarne. |
 |
| Bamburgh Castle Taken From Stag Rocks. |
Wednesday 25 December 2019
Stunning Buteo!.....23.12.2019.
After hearing the juvenile Rough-legged Buzzard was still present at Stainforth near Doncaster,i decided to pay it a visit this morning.
On arrival at the birds chosen area and getting wrapped up,as it was decidedly cold,i made my way to where the bird had been observed the day before.
Initially we did not see the bird,but then i picked it up sat distantly in a line of Silver Birch.Even at 60x mag this bird stood out as a classically marked juvenile,what a stunner!.
It then moved several times,moving slightly closer each time and then eventually as the weather slowly improved it began hunting and flying around it's new temporary home.
Just how anyone would mistake one of these birds as a Common Buzzard is beyond me.with their much longer wings and totally different structure compared to Commons chunky profile,that's without the striking white and brown plumage tones and dark belly patch of this species.
It was observed hunting over Hatfield Pit Top,with that curious hovering action with legs dangling,another usefull trait of this species when identifying them from Common Buzzard.In my experience i have never seen a Common Buzzard dangling it's legs in this fashion when hovering.
The bird seemed to be covering a hunting territory,flying around the same circuit on a couple of occasions,overhead,giving some fantastic views,what a cracking bird.
Other species observed while on site included singles of Grey Wagtail and Green Sandpiper and 17 Whooper swans passed over.
A nice few hours out,familiarising myself again,with this stunning northern visitor.
On arrival at the birds chosen area and getting wrapped up,as it was decidedly cold,i made my way to where the bird had been observed the day before.
Initially we did not see the bird,but then i picked it up sat distantly in a line of Silver Birch.Even at 60x mag this bird stood out as a classically marked juvenile,what a stunner!.
It then moved several times,moving slightly closer each time and then eventually as the weather slowly improved it began hunting and flying around it's new temporary home.
Just how anyone would mistake one of these birds as a Common Buzzard is beyond me.with their much longer wings and totally different structure compared to Commons chunky profile,that's without the striking white and brown plumage tones and dark belly patch of this species.
It was observed hunting over Hatfield Pit Top,with that curious hovering action with legs dangling,another usefull trait of this species when identifying them from Common Buzzard.In my experience i have never seen a Common Buzzard dangling it's legs in this fashion when hovering.
The bird seemed to be covering a hunting territory,flying around the same circuit on a couple of occasions,overhead,giving some fantastic views,what a cracking bird.
Other species observed while on site included singles of Grey Wagtail and Green Sandpiper and 17 Whooper swans passed over.
A nice few hours out,familiarising myself again,with this stunning northern visitor.
Wednesday 18 December 2019
Avocet Surprise And The Big Corvid Finally!......7th & 15th December 2019.
More local patching here,over two dates,which provided some superb sightings and included a surprise wader count and two more additions to the patch year list,one a long awaited addition to the local patch life list,the following is what i recorded over the two visits.
7th December
I decided today,just to walk up to Goxhill Haven and back and it provided me with some cracking sightings as always.
First thing on Winter's,a lone Whooper Swan was present,initially being harassed by the male of the resident pair of Mute Swans and it made me wonder if this is the lone adult which turned up the previous winter also.
Also here,were the male Cetti's Warbler singing occasionally,68 Teal and an adult Grey Heron.
The area between Winter's and the Skitter was pretty productive to be fair today,with some good numbers of Fieldfare,with at least 211 entering the notebook,with some good numbers of Waders using the flooded pasture field at the Skitter.Today it held 58 Curlew,33 Redshank,224 Lapwing and a single Bar-tailed Godwit,really good to see some birds finding an extra food source with the recent flooding here.A single Water Pipit flew along the shore past me and onto the Mitigation Site here,with plenty of habitat for it to explore that is for sure.
At the Skitter,the biggest surprise of the day was seen,a huge flock of Avocet,well for here anyway,with it containing 101 birds.These must have been displaced from the South Ferriby/Read's Island area,as they are now wintering here.The flock contained 2 colour ringed birds,but they were just too far away to get the combinations correct.
Also around the Skitter area were 2 Rock Pipit along the shore,a further 3 Water Pipit around the pools and 2 Short-eared Owl which were inadvertently flushed from their day time roost as i walked through the long grass.The latter birds are the first i have seen down here all autumn/winter.The only other notable was a single female Stonechat.
Goxhill Marsh was a bit devoid of birds to be fair today,with the only record entering the notebook being 27 Redwing and a possible Raven over the duck farm,was frustrating to say the least.
On towards Dawson City and the resident male Cetti's Warbler was singing away as i passed by and 2 Bearded Tit pinged in a bank side reedbed.A little further along towards the Haven and i encountered another male Cetti's warbler singing in the borrow pit opposite Klondyke,so three for the day along here was pretty good.
The Finch flock in the Sunflower field near Klondyke was pretty impressive,with at least 50 Greenfinch,20 each of Tree Sparrow and Chaffinch and a huge flock of at least 250 Linnets.The Greenfinch count is the most i have seen anywhere for years it has to be said.
The return walk back to the car saw more of the same being recorded and another attempt to read the Avocets colour rings was fruitless as it was now high tide and they had disappeared to roost.
15th December
Another all day visit today covering Winter's,the Skitter,East Marsh Road,Goxhill Haven and Goxhill Marsh,saw a superb day's birding being had with 2 year list additions and one patch lifer,the following is what was recorded in the 8 hours on site.
After arriving just before first light and getting plenty of warm gear on,a quick scan over the surrounding area for any Owls,saw 2 Barn Owl heading across the fields towards East Halton village,while 5 Roe Deer quietly browsed in the rough field next to Winter's.
Wildfowl wise,Winter's was very quiet,with the only notables being a juvenile Marsh Harrier,Common Buzzard and 2 Canada Geese.
Between Winter's and the Skitter,it was equally quiet,compared to my last visit,but a few waders were using the flooded field at the Skitter,with 140 Dunlin,39 Curlew and 3 Redshank being noted.
The Skitter area as always received plenty of attention,with highlights consisting of 3 Water Pipit,a female Stonechat,2 juvenile Marsh Harrier hunting the Saltmarsh and a single Short-eared Owl.A flock of 67 Wigeon were loafing on the Humber off here,no doubt the birds which feed on the sandbank off Dawson at low tide.A surprise was a single Barnacle Goose flushed from the pools,which headed north along the Estuary.
A change of scenery today,saw me heading inland past the the new gas pipeline and along East Marsh Road,with some decent numbers of winter thrushes being recorded,with 142 Fieldfare and 107 Redwing being logged.
A scan from Goxhill Haven looking for winter duck species,saw 23 Goldeneye being seen and a single female Common Scoter dozing as it drifted on the out going tide.
The finch flock near to Klondyke is building nicely,with 67 Greenfinch and at least 300 Linnet today,with smaller numbers of Chaffinch and Tree Sparrows.
The sandbank off Dawson was really productive on today's visit,with 39 Ringed Plover,212 Dunlin,3 Grey Plover,374 Curlew,5 Bar-tailed Godwit,60 Avocet and 6 Turnstone being logged.Gull's also featured in some good numbers with 62 Great black-backed Gull,300 Common Gull and 400 Black-headed Gull.
While watching this superb melee of birds,the murmer of Pink-footed Geese could be heard and sure enough the flock seen earlier were all on their favourite grass meadow.A good count of 3600 birds were seen today,a decent increase on recent weeks,but i could not locate any other species in amongst them.
While watching the lovely Pinks,i heard a familiar call and looked up to see 2 Raven flying overhead,over the Pinks and towards East Marsh Road and they looked like they landed on fields on the opposite side of the road.To put this sighting into context,it is probably the first time the species has been recorded at Goxhill and is certainly a new species for the patch,a long awaited one it has to be said and i was well chuffed to have seen them.The bird i had in the same area on the 7th was no doubt a Raven after today's sighting and i hope they stay around for the winter.
After the excitement of the Ravens,came another cracking species,with a juvenile male Hen Harrier watched flying along the Saltmarsh edge,before returning in the opposite direction back towards the Skitter.This bird has eluded me for the past few weeks and i was really pleased to finally connect with him.
The walk back towards the Skitter and another look here for the Avo flock,saw 2 Rock Pipit being added to the day's notes,with the 4th Common Buzzard being logged for the day and 70 more Fieldfare.
The final leg of the visit along Skitter Road and back to Winter's saw another sighting of the stunning Hen Harrier,as he flew across fields near Grange Farm and 2 Jay called in Red House Wood as i passed by.
Final sighting of the day went to the 3rd Stonechat to enter the notebook,with a single male seen along the approach road to Winter's a nice end to a fantastic local patch visit.
7th December
I decided today,just to walk up to Goxhill Haven and back and it provided me with some cracking sightings as always.
First thing on Winter's,a lone Whooper Swan was present,initially being harassed by the male of the resident pair of Mute Swans and it made me wonder if this is the lone adult which turned up the previous winter also.
Also here,were the male Cetti's Warbler singing occasionally,68 Teal and an adult Grey Heron.
The area between Winter's and the Skitter was pretty productive to be fair today,with some good numbers of Fieldfare,with at least 211 entering the notebook,with some good numbers of Waders using the flooded pasture field at the Skitter.Today it held 58 Curlew,33 Redshank,224 Lapwing and a single Bar-tailed Godwit,really good to see some birds finding an extra food source with the recent flooding here.A single Water Pipit flew along the shore past me and onto the Mitigation Site here,with plenty of habitat for it to explore that is for sure.
At the Skitter,the biggest surprise of the day was seen,a huge flock of Avocet,well for here anyway,with it containing 101 birds.These must have been displaced from the South Ferriby/Read's Island area,as they are now wintering here.The flock contained 2 colour ringed birds,but they were just too far away to get the combinations correct.
Also around the Skitter area were 2 Rock Pipit along the shore,a further 3 Water Pipit around the pools and 2 Short-eared Owl which were inadvertently flushed from their day time roost as i walked through the long grass.The latter birds are the first i have seen down here all autumn/winter.The only other notable was a single female Stonechat.
Goxhill Marsh was a bit devoid of birds to be fair today,with the only record entering the notebook being 27 Redwing and a possible Raven over the duck farm,was frustrating to say the least.
On towards Dawson City and the resident male Cetti's Warbler was singing away as i passed by and 2 Bearded Tit pinged in a bank side reedbed.A little further along towards the Haven and i encountered another male Cetti's warbler singing in the borrow pit opposite Klondyke,so three for the day along here was pretty good.
The Finch flock in the Sunflower field near Klondyke was pretty impressive,with at least 50 Greenfinch,20 each of Tree Sparrow and Chaffinch and a huge flock of at least 250 Linnets.The Greenfinch count is the most i have seen anywhere for years it has to be said.
The return walk back to the car saw more of the same being recorded and another attempt to read the Avocets colour rings was fruitless as it was now high tide and they had disappeared to roost.
15th December
Another all day visit today covering Winter's,the Skitter,East Marsh Road,Goxhill Haven and Goxhill Marsh,saw a superb day's birding being had with 2 year list additions and one patch lifer,the following is what was recorded in the 8 hours on site.
After arriving just before first light and getting plenty of warm gear on,a quick scan over the surrounding area for any Owls,saw 2 Barn Owl heading across the fields towards East Halton village,while 5 Roe Deer quietly browsed in the rough field next to Winter's.
Wildfowl wise,Winter's was very quiet,with the only notables being a juvenile Marsh Harrier,Common Buzzard and 2 Canada Geese.
Between Winter's and the Skitter,it was equally quiet,compared to my last visit,but a few waders were using the flooded field at the Skitter,with 140 Dunlin,39 Curlew and 3 Redshank being noted.
The Skitter area as always received plenty of attention,with highlights consisting of 3 Water Pipit,a female Stonechat,2 juvenile Marsh Harrier hunting the Saltmarsh and a single Short-eared Owl.A flock of 67 Wigeon were loafing on the Humber off here,no doubt the birds which feed on the sandbank off Dawson at low tide.A surprise was a single Barnacle Goose flushed from the pools,which headed north along the Estuary.
A change of scenery today,saw me heading inland past the the new gas pipeline and along East Marsh Road,with some decent numbers of winter thrushes being recorded,with 142 Fieldfare and 107 Redwing being logged.
A scan from Goxhill Haven looking for winter duck species,saw 23 Goldeneye being seen and a single female Common Scoter dozing as it drifted on the out going tide.
The finch flock near to Klondyke is building nicely,with 67 Greenfinch and at least 300 Linnet today,with smaller numbers of Chaffinch and Tree Sparrows.
The sandbank off Dawson was really productive on today's visit,with 39 Ringed Plover,212 Dunlin,3 Grey Plover,374 Curlew,5 Bar-tailed Godwit,60 Avocet and 6 Turnstone being logged.Gull's also featured in some good numbers with 62 Great black-backed Gull,300 Common Gull and 400 Black-headed Gull.
While watching this superb melee of birds,the murmer of Pink-footed Geese could be heard and sure enough the flock seen earlier were all on their favourite grass meadow.A good count of 3600 birds were seen today,a decent increase on recent weeks,but i could not locate any other species in amongst them.
While watching the lovely Pinks,i heard a familiar call and looked up to see 2 Raven flying overhead,over the Pinks and towards East Marsh Road and they looked like they landed on fields on the opposite side of the road.To put this sighting into context,it is probably the first time the species has been recorded at Goxhill and is certainly a new species for the patch,a long awaited one it has to be said and i was well chuffed to have seen them.The bird i had in the same area on the 7th was no doubt a Raven after today's sighting and i hope they stay around for the winter.
After the excitement of the Ravens,came another cracking species,with a juvenile male Hen Harrier watched flying along the Saltmarsh edge,before returning in the opposite direction back towards the Skitter.This bird has eluded me for the past few weeks and i was really pleased to finally connect with him.
The walk back towards the Skitter and another look here for the Avo flock,saw 2 Rock Pipit being added to the day's notes,with the 4th Common Buzzard being logged for the day and 70 more Fieldfare.
The final leg of the visit along Skitter Road and back to Winter's saw another sighting of the stunning Hen Harrier,as he flew across fields near Grange Farm and 2 Jay called in Red House Wood as i passed by.
Final sighting of the day went to the 3rd Stonechat to enter the notebook,with a single male seen along the approach road to Winter's a nice end to a fantastic local patch visit.
 |
| Looking Towards Killingholme Haven On The 7th. |
 |
| Fox On The Mitigation Site On The 7th. |
 |
| Greylag Geese Over The Humber On The 7th. |
 |
| The Single Whooper Swan Overhead At The Skitter On The 7th. |
 |
| Goxhill Marsh On The 7th. |
 |
| One Of The 2 Short-eared Owls On The 7th. |
 |
| Sundown Over Red House Wood On The 7th. |
 |
| Phone Scoped Shot Of The Moon Over Winter's Pond At Dawn On The 15th. |
 |
| Barnacle Goose Heading North On The 15th. |
 |
| Dawson City LWTR,15th. |
 |
| Raven From The 15th. |
 |
| Raven From The 15th. |
 |
| Raven From The 15th. |
 |
| Juvenile Male Hen Harrier,Goxhill Marsh,15th. |
Monday 9 December 2019
North Yorkshire.....Saturday 30th November & Sunday 1st December 2019.
Not really a birding trip,but a night away with Mrs R to stay at Runswick Bay visiting Scarborough,Staithes & Filey.
Saturday 30th
The day was spent at Scarborough,with my time mainly spent around the Harbour areas and Marine Drive,with a visit also to Scalby Mills.
Highlights went to stunning views of the male of the pair of Peregrines along Marine Drive,with a couple of Red-throated Divers,single Razorbill & a female Goldeneye off here also.
At the Mills,a Kingfisher was fishing in the rock pools,with a Guillemot fishing in the outflow of Scalby Beck as the tide came in.
Sunday 1st December
A visit to lovely Staithes today,saw 2 Waxwing briefly in the car park bushes at the top of the village,before flying off towards Cowbar Nab and at least 10 Red-throated Diver passing by off the Harbour with a few local Fulmar's blogging about over the sea.
After Staithes we made the journey over to one of our fave places,Filey.Here we walked out to the Brigg end to witness some fairly stormy seas,with hundreds of Guillemot and again several Red-throated Divers fishing in the big swell.
A nice couple of days away to this cracking part of the
home county.
Saturday 30th
The day was spent at Scarborough,with my time mainly spent around the Harbour areas and Marine Drive,with a visit also to Scalby Mills.
Highlights went to stunning views of the male of the pair of Peregrines along Marine Drive,with a couple of Red-throated Divers,single Razorbill & a female Goldeneye off here also.
At the Mills,a Kingfisher was fishing in the rock pools,with a Guillemot fishing in the outflow of Scalby Beck as the tide came in.
Sunday 1st December
A visit to lovely Staithes today,saw 2 Waxwing briefly in the car park bushes at the top of the village,before flying off towards Cowbar Nab and at least 10 Red-throated Diver passing by off the Harbour with a few local Fulmar's blogging about over the sea.
After Staithes we made the journey over to one of our fave places,Filey.Here we walked out to the Brigg end to witness some fairly stormy seas,with hundreds of Guillemot and again several Red-throated Divers fishing in the big swell.
A nice couple of days away to this cracking part of the
 |
| Male Peregrine,Marine Drive,Scarborough,Taken With My Samsung S8 And Swarovski ATX85. |
 |
| Scalby Mills Rainbow. |
 |
| Scalby Mills. |
 |
| Boulby Cliffs,Taken From Staithes,The Highest Point On Britains East Coast. |
 |
| Staithes,What A Picturesque Little Place. |
 |
| Staithes Harbour. |
 |
| Mrs R At Filey. |
 |
| The Unique Shapes And Shadows Of Filey Brigg. |
 |
| Long Shadows At Filey. |
Thursday 5 December 2019
The Big Walk,Sunday 24th November 2019.
A full day visit to the local patch today,covering all the habitat just about,which included the Beck,Goxhill Marsh & Goxhill Haven and back to Winter's,with about 11 miles walked,saw some nice birds being seen.The following is what entered the notebook.
As i drove down the approach road and just before i reached the gate at Winter's,an Owl was hunting the grass verge,before flicking over the hedge into the rough field next door.I recorded it as a Short-eared,but it conceivably could have been a LeO.As it got light,another look for it revealed no hunting birds and i will keep my eyes peeled on future visits.
After getting the kit together and some warm clothes on a good look around Winter's itself revealed few surprises,but 12 Tufties,25 Mallard and the regular pair of Mute Swans were present and as i walked,a female Sparrowhawk nearly took my head off as it chased some unsuspecting passerine.
A few small birds along the hedgerows included 9 Long-tailed Tit,11 Blackbird,5 Song Thrush and 3 Redwing and the ever present male Cetti's Warbler,gave occasional bursts of Song.
Onto the Humber floodbank and it was slightly misty to say the least for round two of the Icelandic Goose survey,but some incessant scanning revealed at least 2200 Pink-footed Geese,which at first were all sat on the Humber together,before lifting off onto the fields to feed.Also on the outgoing tide,were a single female Common Scoter,7 Goosander and 4 Goldeneye.
A scan over the mitigation site,revealed a single male Stonechat sallying after it's prey,a single Common Buzzard and 3 more Song Thrush.A nice surprise,was a lovely Fox,watched as he went about his morning business and at least 14 Roe Deer were logged.
A really good tramp around the Skitter and pools,again revealed no big surprises,but the stunning old male Marsh Harrier put in an appearance along with a brief view of the male Barn Owl along the Beck.The pools and foreshore held a single Water Pipit,2 Rock Pipit,12 Yellowhammer and 11 Reed Buntings,but wader wise it was very quiet,with the only highlight being 5 Avocet.
The decision was then made to head inland along the Beck and cover Chapel Field Farm and Road and then onto East Marsh Road and up to Goxhill Haven just in case there were any Geese lingering on the fields,as the hunt for White-fronts continued,after the recent influx.
The usual suspects were encountered along the Beck,with a hand full of Redwings and Fieldfare and the lovely sight of a flock of 45 Stock Dove,they are such underrated birds,just stunning!.
As Chapel Field Farm was passed by a flurry of activity along the approach road to the farm,saw 41 Redwing and 7 Fieldfare being seen,but then a good sized flock of 67 Chaffinches were feeding along the harvested wheat field and adjoining hedgerow,a nice sight to see.
Along East Marsh Road,no sign of the Pink flock in their usual fields,but they were playing hide and seek with us over towards the Haven,but out of view and i hoped we would get a good,clear look through the flock before the day was out.
As we reached Goxhill Haven,the only highlight was a Great-spotted Woodpecker seen on a telegraph pole and 6 Bar-tailed Godwit fed on the mud as 100+ Golden Plover flew over head.
The leg back towards East Halton Skitter,including the huge sandbank off Dawson City was the most productive area for the day,with some nice sightings to make just reward for all the effort put in today.
The sandbank off Dawson held 294 Curlew,480 Lapwing,400 Golden Plover,1 Oystercatcher and 2 Rock Pipits were seen along the shoreline,with a pair of Stonechat watched on the Saltmarsh,the 2nd and 3rd birds for the day and as we neared Ruins Pond,a calling Cetti's Warbler was heard and then a little further along at the pond itself a singing male,so 2 along here was good.
At last the chance had arrived to get to grips with the Pink flock,as they were feeding on a Winter Wheat field.Putting the zoom eyepiece to good use on the big Swaro scope,i managed to pick out 2 Eurasian White-fronted Geese...yes!,i knew there would be some somewhere along the Humber and my little,local flock had 2 in it.The birds were watched at some range as they browsed on the crop,thank god for a 60x zoom.Soon the flock was off again and that was that.
Nothing else of note was recorded as the last leg of the walk was completed back to the car.
A bit knackering today,but rewarding when you can watch a patch as good as this,it's just great to be able to get out in the fresh air enjoying a hobby i love.
As i drove down the approach road and just before i reached the gate at Winter's,an Owl was hunting the grass verge,before flicking over the hedge into the rough field next door.I recorded it as a Short-eared,but it conceivably could have been a LeO.As it got light,another look for it revealed no hunting birds and i will keep my eyes peeled on future visits.
After getting the kit together and some warm clothes on a good look around Winter's itself revealed few surprises,but 12 Tufties,25 Mallard and the regular pair of Mute Swans were present and as i walked,a female Sparrowhawk nearly took my head off as it chased some unsuspecting passerine.
A few small birds along the hedgerows included 9 Long-tailed Tit,11 Blackbird,5 Song Thrush and 3 Redwing and the ever present male Cetti's Warbler,gave occasional bursts of Song.
Onto the Humber floodbank and it was slightly misty to say the least for round two of the Icelandic Goose survey,but some incessant scanning revealed at least 2200 Pink-footed Geese,which at first were all sat on the Humber together,before lifting off onto the fields to feed.Also on the outgoing tide,were a single female Common Scoter,7 Goosander and 4 Goldeneye.
A scan over the mitigation site,revealed a single male Stonechat sallying after it's prey,a single Common Buzzard and 3 more Song Thrush.A nice surprise,was a lovely Fox,watched as he went about his morning business and at least 14 Roe Deer were logged.
A really good tramp around the Skitter and pools,again revealed no big surprises,but the stunning old male Marsh Harrier put in an appearance along with a brief view of the male Barn Owl along the Beck.The pools and foreshore held a single Water Pipit,2 Rock Pipit,12 Yellowhammer and 11 Reed Buntings,but wader wise it was very quiet,with the only highlight being 5 Avocet.
The decision was then made to head inland along the Beck and cover Chapel Field Farm and Road and then onto East Marsh Road and up to Goxhill Haven just in case there were any Geese lingering on the fields,as the hunt for White-fronts continued,after the recent influx.
The usual suspects were encountered along the Beck,with a hand full of Redwings and Fieldfare and the lovely sight of a flock of 45 Stock Dove,they are such underrated birds,just stunning!.
As Chapel Field Farm was passed by a flurry of activity along the approach road to the farm,saw 41 Redwing and 7 Fieldfare being seen,but then a good sized flock of 67 Chaffinches were feeding along the harvested wheat field and adjoining hedgerow,a nice sight to see.
Along East Marsh Road,no sign of the Pink flock in their usual fields,but they were playing hide and seek with us over towards the Haven,but out of view and i hoped we would get a good,clear look through the flock before the day was out.
As we reached Goxhill Haven,the only highlight was a Great-spotted Woodpecker seen on a telegraph pole and 6 Bar-tailed Godwit fed on the mud as 100+ Golden Plover flew over head.
The leg back towards East Halton Skitter,including the huge sandbank off Dawson City was the most productive area for the day,with some nice sightings to make just reward for all the effort put in today.
The sandbank off Dawson held 294 Curlew,480 Lapwing,400 Golden Plover,1 Oystercatcher and 2 Rock Pipits were seen along the shoreline,with a pair of Stonechat watched on the Saltmarsh,the 2nd and 3rd birds for the day and as we neared Ruins Pond,a calling Cetti's Warbler was heard and then a little further along at the pond itself a singing male,so 2 along here was good.
At last the chance had arrived to get to grips with the Pink flock,as they were feeding on a Winter Wheat field.Putting the zoom eyepiece to good use on the big Swaro scope,i managed to pick out 2 Eurasian White-fronted Geese...yes!,i knew there would be some somewhere along the Humber and my little,local flock had 2 in it.The birds were watched at some range as they browsed on the crop,thank god for a 60x zoom.Soon the flock was off again and that was that.
Nothing else of note was recorded as the last leg of the walk was completed back to the car.
A bit knackering today,but rewarding when you can watch a patch as good as this,it's just great to be able to get out in the fresh air enjoying a hobby i love.
 |
| Distant Shot Of The Fox On The Mitigation Site. |
 |
| Rock Pipit At The Skitter. |
 |
| Some Nosey Locals Down Goxhill Marsh. |
 |
| Sundown Over The Skitter Fields. |
 |
Wednesday 13 November 2019
A Tale Of Two Pipits......10th November 2019.
With the continued presence of the Paddyfield Pipit at Sennen in West Cornwall and the fact it was a new species for the Western Palearctic,today,well tonight,saw Tim,Mark and myself making the huge journey south to see this bird.Also on offer as a bonus bird,was another species of Pipit,Buff-bellied or American Pipit as it is also known,one which i have wanted to see for some time,so a double whammy if we got both!.
A trouble free journey through the night with the lads,saw us eventually reaching the village of Sennen to a very wet and windy dawn and we snoozed after our journey as it struggled to get light.
Eventually a break in the rain,saw us getting the gear together and the obligatory waterproofs on and we were off and searching for our first target the Paddyfield Pipit.
It was still struggling to get light,as several banks of heavy rain passed over,but it eventually began to clear and at about 8.30am the Paddyfield Pipit put in it's first appearance.On first views i was struck by how pale and leggy this bird was,with a considerably shorter tail than either Richard's,Blyth's or Tawny Pipit.The latter species was as close a match as the Paddyfield looked in appearance,without the obvious dark lores of that species,but similar paleness.
As it flew,i heard it call once,realising retrospectively that it was the birds call when i reached home and was listening to it on Xeno Canto,almost Tree Sparrow like to my ears.
We continued to watch the bird enjoying some superb views and after we had got our fill of the bird,it was all out to try and locate the Buff-bellied Pipit,this took a considerable amount of time to be fair.
We were stood scanning the eastern side of one of the Maize fields,when Tim called that he thought he had the BBP and sure enough there it was,i quickly got onto the bird and enjoyed some cracking,but brief views of this striking Pipit species,what a beauty!.I called Mark over,but in the excitement he knocked my scope and the bird had flown....crap!.We continued to look for the bird as we wanted more views and more than anything to get Mark onto the bird and after a considerable amount of time i found it again and saw it three times at some distance,as it ranged about the Maize field with the Meadow Pipit flock it was associating with and then it was gone again and we did not see it again,despite more searching.
Unfortunately time was getting on and we had to leave to make the 8 hour journey home and Tim and myself were gutted Mark didn't see the bird,as it would have been a UK tick for him,but at least he had seen the species before in America.
We travelled the long journey home in good spirits,although a little weary it has to be said,but i was really chuffed i had added my 470th and 471st species to my list and obviously gained experience of another two species which i had not seen before.
Thanks to Tim and Mark for the company and I've just about caught up with my sleep now.
A trouble free journey through the night with the lads,saw us eventually reaching the village of Sennen to a very wet and windy dawn and we snoozed after our journey as it struggled to get light.
Eventually a break in the rain,saw us getting the gear together and the obligatory waterproofs on and we were off and searching for our first target the Paddyfield Pipit.
It was still struggling to get light,as several banks of heavy rain passed over,but it eventually began to clear and at about 8.30am the Paddyfield Pipit put in it's first appearance.On first views i was struck by how pale and leggy this bird was,with a considerably shorter tail than either Richard's,Blyth's or Tawny Pipit.The latter species was as close a match as the Paddyfield looked in appearance,without the obvious dark lores of that species,but similar paleness.
As it flew,i heard it call once,realising retrospectively that it was the birds call when i reached home and was listening to it on Xeno Canto,almost Tree Sparrow like to my ears.
We continued to watch the bird enjoying some superb views and after we had got our fill of the bird,it was all out to try and locate the Buff-bellied Pipit,this took a considerable amount of time to be fair.
We were stood scanning the eastern side of one of the Maize fields,when Tim called that he thought he had the BBP and sure enough there it was,i quickly got onto the bird and enjoyed some cracking,but brief views of this striking Pipit species,what a beauty!.I called Mark over,but in the excitement he knocked my scope and the bird had flown....crap!.We continued to look for the bird as we wanted more views and more than anything to get Mark onto the bird and after a considerable amount of time i found it again and saw it three times at some distance,as it ranged about the Maize field with the Meadow Pipit flock it was associating with and then it was gone again and we did not see it again,despite more searching.
Unfortunately time was getting on and we had to leave to make the 8 hour journey home and Tim and myself were gutted Mark didn't see the bird,as it would have been a UK tick for him,but at least he had seen the species before in America.
We travelled the long journey home in good spirits,although a little weary it has to be said,but i was really chuffed i had added my 470th and 471st species to my list and obviously gained experience of another two species which i had not seen before.
Thanks to Tim and Mark for the company and I've just about caught up with my sleep now.
Tuesday 12 November 2019
More Wet Weather & Seabirds,November 6th + 8th 2019.
More local patching in some horrible weather to be fair,with a deluge on the 8th,but a few highlights observed thankfully to keep interest ticking over.The following are the highlights observed on the two days.
6th November
After learning i did not have to go into work for my night shift,i decided to make an afternoon visit to the patch for a change.
No major highlights were seen today,but plenty of wader and raptor activity provided interest,with flocks of 45 and 68 Curlew seen at Winter's and on the mitigation site respectively.Raptor sightings went to 3 each of Common Buzzard on Winter's and the mitigation site as with the Curlew and the cracking adult male Marsh Harrier put in an appearance as he headed towards Winter's.
A wander around the Skitter pools and shoreline revealed singles of both Water and Rock Pipit and a couple of Goldeneye were loafing on the Humber off here.
The most incredible sighting for the day,was a whopping count of 27 Roe Deer between the Skitter and Winter's which included 3 groups of 5 individuals,just great to see and they are lovely animals to watch,with a couple of fawns chasing each other around and oblivious to my approach.A lovely ending to the day was watching and hearing Pink-footed Geese heading to roost,just bliss.
8th November
After the overnight rain,the fields adjacent to Winter's were again flooded and were a hive of activity at dawn,with 2 Whooper Swan,39 Curlew,15 Redshank,2 Black-tailed Godwit,66 Common Gull and 58 Black-headed Gulls taking advantage of this feeding opportunity.Similarly Winter's was also quite busy with birds and this included 24 Gadwall,65 Greylag,7 Little Grebe,46 Mallard and 6 Shoveler.The male Cetti's Warbler was also still in residence,with occasional bursts of song.
With the north easterly breeze and occasional showers,i was hoping for a few seabirds,but things were not that exciting to be fair,but i still managed to see 46 Common Scoter in flocks of 10,2 and 34,2 Guillemot and 6 Goldeneye.All these birds were observed moving north up the estuary.
A walk around the Skitter revealed 2 separate female Stonechat and then the rain started.The forecast had said sunshine and showers,it didn't stop raining for the next 4 hours at least and put an end to the visit as i had enough and all the gear was soaked.I travelled home,slowly drying out thankfully.
Another couple of visits to 'My' little part of Lincolnshire and i look forward to my next visit.
6th November
After learning i did not have to go into work for my night shift,i decided to make an afternoon visit to the patch for a change.
No major highlights were seen today,but plenty of wader and raptor activity provided interest,with flocks of 45 and 68 Curlew seen at Winter's and on the mitigation site respectively.Raptor sightings went to 3 each of Common Buzzard on Winter's and the mitigation site as with the Curlew and the cracking adult male Marsh Harrier put in an appearance as he headed towards Winter's.
A wander around the Skitter pools and shoreline revealed singles of both Water and Rock Pipit and a couple of Goldeneye were loafing on the Humber off here.
The most incredible sighting for the day,was a whopping count of 27 Roe Deer between the Skitter and Winter's which included 3 groups of 5 individuals,just great to see and they are lovely animals to watch,with a couple of fawns chasing each other around and oblivious to my approach.A lovely ending to the day was watching and hearing Pink-footed Geese heading to roost,just bliss.
8th November
After the overnight rain,the fields adjacent to Winter's were again flooded and were a hive of activity at dawn,with 2 Whooper Swan,39 Curlew,15 Redshank,2 Black-tailed Godwit,66 Common Gull and 58 Black-headed Gulls taking advantage of this feeding opportunity.Similarly Winter's was also quite busy with birds and this included 24 Gadwall,65 Greylag,7 Little Grebe,46 Mallard and 6 Shoveler.The male Cetti's Warbler was also still in residence,with occasional bursts of song.
With the north easterly breeze and occasional showers,i was hoping for a few seabirds,but things were not that exciting to be fair,but i still managed to see 46 Common Scoter in flocks of 10,2 and 34,2 Guillemot and 6 Goldeneye.All these birds were observed moving north up the estuary.
A walk around the Skitter revealed 2 separate female Stonechat and then the rain started.The forecast had said sunshine and showers,it didn't stop raining for the next 4 hours at least and put an end to the visit as i had enough and all the gear was soaked.I travelled home,slowly drying out thankfully.
Another couple of visits to 'My' little part of Lincolnshire and i look forward to my next visit.
 |
| The 70 Year Old Cruise Ship Astoria As It Was Leaving Hull. |
 |
| Looking Towards North Killingholme Haven At Dawn On The 8th. |
 |
| Common Scoters Heading Along The Estuary. |
 |
| Goldeneye Heading North Along The Estuary. |
 |
| Phone Scoped Photo Of One Of The Female Stonechats At The Skitter On The 8th. |
Tuesday 5 November 2019
The River Wharfe....Burnsall To Grassington,Sunday 3rd November 2019.
After attending the lovely bonfire night and fireworks at Bolton Abbey the previous evening,we were up and at it this morning after enjoying a lovely fry up at the B&B before heading to Burnsall.
Today saw us getting away with parking for free at the riverside and we quickly got ready and headed along this beautiful stretch of the River Wharfe.
The weather wasn't great overall today,but we began the walk in some lovely autumnal sunshine.
Bird wise it wasn't as productive as some visits we have made in the past,but we still enjoyed lovely views of Dipper,Goosander and last but not least a Kingfisher which showed brilliantly near Hebden,so i could let Trace enjoy watching it through the new scope.
This really is a lovely walk and its just bliss enjoying the autumn colours and great scenery,one for anyone who enjoys riverside walking.
Sadly after returning back to Burnsall and enjoying a very nice sunday lunch at the Red Lion,it was time to head home,but i certainly look forward to my next visit here to this beautiful river.
Today saw us getting away with parking for free at the riverside and we quickly got ready and headed along this beautiful stretch of the River Wharfe.
The weather wasn't great overall today,but we began the walk in some lovely autumnal sunshine.
Bird wise it wasn't as productive as some visits we have made in the past,but we still enjoyed lovely views of Dipper,Goosander and last but not least a Kingfisher which showed brilliantly near Hebden,so i could let Trace enjoy watching it through the new scope.
This really is a lovely walk and its just bliss enjoying the autumn colours and great scenery,one for anyone who enjoys riverside walking.
Sadly after returning back to Burnsall and enjoying a very nice sunday lunch at the Red Lion,it was time to head home,but i certainly look forward to my next visit here to this beautiful river.
 |
| Hebden Suspension Bridge. |
 |
| Lovely Colours On The River At Hebden. |
 |
| Riverside Trees At Hebden. |
 |
| Kingfisher Near Hebden. |
 |
| Kingfisher At Hebden. |
 |
| Linton Falls. |
 |
| Linton Falls. |
 |
| Trace At Linton Falls. |
 |
| The River Wharfe At Grassington. |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)