Local Patching Update......17th,24th & 26th August 2019.

Another compilation here of the latest visits to my local birding patch at East Halton and Goxhill,a pretty good few visits adding another three species to the patch watching year list,including Whinchat,Spotted Redshank and Curlew Sandpiper,putting it at a respectable 139 species,1 species off last years total.

Saturday 17th

Some nice weather conditions today,saw Trace and myself walking the square encompassing Winter's Pond,the Mitigation Site,Grange Farm and Skitter Road.
 The best sighting on Winter's was the superb sight of 12 juvenile Knot roosting with the Black-tailed Godwits at high tide,a new species for me for the site.Other species here included singles of Green Sandpiper and Little Egret.
 A few nice bits along the Humber floodbank between Winter's and the Skitter included 2 pristine juv. Wheatear feeding in the newly cut grass field at the Skitter,with 4 Common Sandpiper,2 Whimbrel & Greenshank along the shore.
 The Skitter itself was pretty much covered by the tide,but still held 106 Black-tailed Godwit,6 Little Egret and a single Ruff,with 60 Sand Martin and 3 Swift overhead.

Saturday 24th

With the continuation of the previous weeks south/south easterly airflow,plenty of anticipation was in the air for today's visit with dreams of Red-backed Shrike or even an inland Icterine Warbler,but lots of effort put in revealed only 8 Whinchat on the Mitigation Site,a single Wheatear and a good smattering of juvenile Warblers,including 9 Lesser Whitethroat.
 A certain surprise on Winter's today,was a juvenile Goldeneye,certainly an early record for the patch,but could conceivably be a scottish reared bird wandering.
 Other wildfowl and waders included a Greenshank,Green Sand,27 Teal and 35 Black-tailed Godwit on the Mitigation site,with a nice variety at the Skitter including another Greenshank,7 Turnstone,2 Whimbrel,3 Common Sandpiper and 3 Little Egret.
 A nice surprise amongst the large numbers of Black-headed Gulls moving south along the Estuary,was a cracking juv. Little Gull,only the second record for the patch this year,after the birds in the spring.

Monday 26th

Some serious effort put in today,covering the whole patch and walking over 14 miles in 30 plus degrees,really warranted something good to be found,but 2 wader editions to the patch list for the year had to suffice.
 Winter's was very busy first thing with the juvvie Goldeneye still being present along with a Green Sand,275 Greylag,1 Little Egret a singing male Cetti's and the first Wigeon of the autumn period,with 12 being seen.
 Waders featured heavily on today's visit,with 6 Avocet,52 Knot,5 Common Sand,Whimbrel & 8 Turnstone between Winter's and the Skitter,with a further 3 Avocet,Grey Plover & Bar-tailed Godwit being seen near Goxhill Haven.But it was the star birds which i was happy to add to the year list today,with a single juvenile Spotted Redshank watched distantly on the shore at the Skitter and a flyby Curlew Sandpiper near Dawson City,both species i did not record last year.
 Also at the Skitter first thing were 8 Common Tern which flew along the estuary to the south and at least 196 Teal flying in the opposite direction.
 Non bird sightings today,consisted of a buck Roe Deer near Winter's at first light and 2 bucks and a doe near Dawson City.A single Grey Seal was seen near the Skitter early a.m.
 As a general observation while walking around,it looks like this year has been a great year for breeding passerines,with lots of juv. Goldfinches,Linnets and Swallows being particularly noticeable,really nice to see.

Another nice series of visits,now autumn proper is on the horizon,i wander what this year will turn up on my local patch.

Knot Roosting With Black-tailed Godwits At Winter's Pond On The 17th.

Record Shot Of The Juvvie Goldeneye At Winter's Pond.

Juvenile Willow Warbler,Near Winter's Pond,24th.

Juvenile Willow Warbler,Near Winter's Pond,24th.

Juvenile Willow Warbler,Near Winter's Pond,24th.

One Of The 8 Whinchat On The Mitigation Site On The 24th.

One Of The 8 Whinchat On The Mitigation Site On The 24th.

Juvenile Little Gull,East Halton Skitter On The 24th.

Adult Summer Plumaged Turnstone,East Halton Skitter,24th.

Adult Summer Plumaged Turnstone,East Halton Skitter,24th.

Whimbrel Flypast,East Halton Skitter,24th.

Reed Warbler,Looking Rare In One Of The Hedgerows At The Skitter,26th.

Massive Crop Of The Juvenile Spotted Redshank At East Halton Skitter,26th.

Huge Crop Of The Curlew Sandpiper Near Goxhill Haven On The 26th.

Golden Plovers,Goxhill Haven,26th.

Big Bird...An RAF Airbus A-400M Over The Patch On The 26th.

Scarborough Birders Pelagic & Wykeham Forest,Sunday 18th August 2019.

Today's agenda was going to consist mainly of travelling around on a organised pelagic trip off the coast at Scarborough,followed by a visit for the remainder of the day at the fantastic Wykeham Forest.
 After picking Tim up from Beverley,on a bright and breezy morning,we made our way over to Scarborough through the sleepy Wolds landscape,arriving at Scarborough in pretty good time.
 After a few last minute issues with the parking machine,before we were due to meet Nick and the lads at the boat,these were thankfully sorted by Tim and we were on our way and heading out of the Harbour.
 The usual superb organisation by Nick and Micky with bucketfuls of very smelly chum and various other types of food to try and entice in the seabirds,just didn't work on today's trip sadly,but it was great to get out again on the sea.
 Highlights went to a couple of Bonxie,which came into check the Gull melee out following the boat,before carrying on on their migration,a couple of Puffins,Guillemots,Common Scoter,Common and Sandwich Terns and the local Kits.
 A couple of colour ringed Gulls seen,included a Norwegian ringed Great black-backed Gull,ringed at Nordre Svartoyane,Bomlo,Hordaland on the 25.06.19. and a adult Herring Gull ringed at Harewood Win Landfill near York on 01.04.16. and subsequently being seen at Attenborough Nature Reserve in Notts on 21.03.17.,Scalby Mills,Scarborough on 31.07. & 01.08.17. and then at Kirkby-On Bain Landfill in Lincolnshire on 11 & 14.12.18.
 After an enjoyable few hours on the sea,Tim treated us to a monster brekkie before heading over to Wykeham,slightly full it has to be said.
 Some pretty breezy conditions at Wykeham saw us seeing at least 5 different Goshawks and between 6 and 8 different Common Buzzards,most of the birds were at the usual half distance range to the horizon,but we had some nice closer views on a couple of occasions of those big,powerful Accipiters and their Buzzard cousins,but no Honey's on today's visit sadly.
 Other bits and bobs seen included a few Siskins and we heard some Crozzers,but did not see them.
 A decent day out and about today,with another great visit to this cracking area and i will be back again in a couple of weeks time weather permitting.

Adult Gannet.

Juvenile Herring Gull.

Juvenile Herring Gull.

Great Skua.

Great Skua.

Adult And Juvenile Guillemot.

Juvenile Kittiwake.

The Stunning North Yorkshire Coast.

Juvenile Kittiwake.

Juvenile Kittiwake.

Adult Common Tern.

Herring Gulls Following The Boat.

Norwegian Colour Ringed Juvenile Great black-backed Gull.

Norwegian Colour Ringed Juvenile Great black-backed Gull.

2nd Calendar Year Great black-backed Gull.

2nd Calendar Year Great black-backed Gull.

2nd Calendar Year Great black-backed Gull

Wykeham Forest Vista.

De-Ja Vu And Another BIG Swift In The Bag!......Saturday 10th August 2019.

I had planned to visit the local patch at East Halton this morning,albeit the forecast wasn't great,but i went anyway.

 I got parked up at Winter's as usual,got the kit together and headed along the side of the main lake,when my phone went off.....possible Pacific Swift or White-rumped Swift at Hornsea Mere!.This was a complete repeat of last Octobers events,when for those who made it in time,added White-rumped Swift onto their life and British lists....thankfully i was one of them!.

 So back to today,i knew i would have to act fast,i walked back to the car ringing Tim in the process,jumped in the car,drove to Barton and filled up with diesel,checking my phone when i got parked up,to see if the bird was still there,it was!.

 I then headed to Hornsea in the hope the bird was still present and obviously,the hoped for Pacific Swift!.

 On arrival,a small crowd of about 20 people including Tim,were watching the bird and i was quickly one of them.

 I was straight onto the bird and first views for me pretty much confirmed from the long scythe like wings and long tail,this was a Pacific and not White-rumped Swift....Yessss!.

 I proceeded to watch the bird as it hawked for insects over and around Swan Island,in a melee of Common Swifts,Sand and House Martins and Swallows.The gale force breeze didn't help the cause and occasionally we lost the bird,but it was great to appreciate this species build and ID features.

 The wings looked to me,really long and the tail giving the body a long,pointed end,both features i hadn't seen on any other species i had observed before,the rump patch looking larger than the White-rumped Swift i saw last October as well.

 All of a sudden,all the Swifts and Hirundines scattered as a Hobby flashed through,but they did come back and the bird showed around Swan Island again,albeit more distantly.

 It was about 1.15pm when the last reliable sighting was,as Mick Turton had seen it right at the far end of the Mere,before all the main group of Swifts it had been with had disappeared and that was that.

 A few other niceties seen while on site included the afore mentioned Hobby,20 plus Little Gulls and a smart juvenile Garganey.

 So another flying visit,excuse the pun,by a rare Swift has cemented Hornsea Mere into the annals of birding folklore,as a site to see vagrant Swifts and thankfully i have connected with the last two.

 Amazingly,Paul & Georgia French had the Pacific over their garden in Easington near Spurn late evening and it showed over the church briefly for a few locals before disappearing.

 This is the 10th record for the UK,with incredibly,this bird being the 5th for the Spurn recording area and my 5th species of Swift in the last 2 years.....What a class bird!.

Pen Llyn & North Wales....August 5th - August 9th 2019.

Tracey and myself had booked to stay away in a lovely cottage near Tudweilog on the Llyn Peninsula in lovely North Wales for 4 nights and the following is the places we visited and some of the brilliant wildlife,birds and wild flowers we encountered.

Day One - Monday 5th August

Travelling bright and early we eventually made it to our first stop at Betwys-y-Coed,this was only really a stop for a drink and a few photos and we were quickly on our way to stop number two,a personal favourite,Beddgelert.
 Here after a cuppa and some lunch,we walked part of the impressive Aberglaslyn Pass.This is a very impressive part of the Glaslyn rivers journey through the area and has to be seen to be believed with some lovely scenery.
 After walking this area,it was time to check in at the cottage and we made our final part of our journey to Bryn Odol,just outside the village of Tudweilog.The cottage was situated on a working farm and was in a fantastic setting.
 After un-packing the car,we decided to travel to one of our favourite places on the nearby coast,Porth Dinallaen.
 On arrival a quick swipe of our National Trust membership card and we were off exploring.The weather was superb and it wasn't long before we were seeing some of the local wildlife.
 Over the sea,at least 70 Manx Shearwater were passing by south,no doubt from their breeding grounds on Bardsey Island.Also from the headland here were at least 7 Grey Seals,Harbour Porpoise,a few Kittiwakes and a couple of Shag roosting on the rocks.
 The nicest surprise though,was a flock of 24 Mediterranean Gulls in the bay and they gave some great photo opportunities as they flew about and loafed on the beach.I also managed to find a colour-ringed adult which had been ringed as a 3rd calendar year at Antwerp in Belgium and had subsequently been seen in Portugal and Germany.
 Back at the cottage,a bit of garden watching from the balcony saw Spotted Flycatcher,1 Raven and 2 Chiffchaff being seen.

Day Two - Tuesday 6th August

A busy day today,saw us having a quick watch in the garden at breakfast seeing a Common Buzzard,a few Goldcrest and Coal Tits.
 First stop today was the superb Braich y pwll,right at the very tip of the peninsula and looking out towards Bardsey Island.
 Here we saw the expected Chough with only two birds seen today,7 Raven including a group of 4,6 Stonechat and over the sea 40 Manx Shearwater and Harbour Porpoise.
 After a hearty welsh breakfast in Aberdaron,we travelled onto destination number two,Borth y Gest where we had a lovely,if slightly hot walk along the coast to Black Rock Sands and back.This is a beautiful stretch of coastline along the vast Glaslyn Estuary and has some nice beaches and rocky coastline,making for more photo opportunities of the stunning scenery.Birds were a bit harder to find along here and included 5 Raven,2 Common Tern and a hand full of Sandwich Terns.
 A noticeable amount of the quite rare Ivy Broomrape were seen in several areas along our walk,the most i have seen anywhere.
 The final place of the day we visited today was Porth Oer,with its famous 'Whistling Sands'.This is another beautiful stretch of coast and i managed to spot another Med.Gull here,a juvenile,but little else.

Day 3 - Wednesday 7th August

Garden watching again this morning over breakfast,saw some great sightings being seen and included 4 Raven,Spotted Flycatcher,Great-spotted Woodpecker,Chiffchaff,Nuthatch,Grey Wagtail and superb close views of a Tawny Owl as it flew right past me.
 Our first port of call today,was another visit to the lovely Porth Dinllaen,with more birds and the local wildlife showing well.Today's highlights consisted of 10 Shag,including a colour ringed juvenile bird from nearby Bardsey Island,3 Med.Gulls,Sandwich Terns and Kittiwakes in the bay and a Wheatear on land with 3 inquisitive Grey Seal showing brilliantly.
 A drive further along the coast up to Pistyll,saw us seeing the most Choughs for the trip,with a nice flock of 14 birds watched over the hillside,the calls being heard all over the place!.Also seen here were a Stonechat and 3 Raven.A nice sighting from the insect world,was a stunning male Beautiful Demoiselle watched flitting along a nearby stream.
 Final stop for today,was the very impressive Nant Gwrtheyrn,what an amazing place to visit.The soaring cliffs and mountainside scenery of Yr Eifel and the now redundant granite quarries make for some really fantastic scenery.
 Apart from the lovely views,the only highlights bird wise were 4 Raven,but this place is a must for any visitor to the area.

Day 4 - Thursday 8th August

Our last day today,before travelling home,saw us visiting just two places on the beautiful island of Anglesey.First stop of course,was South Stack RSPB reserve and we walked all the way down to the lighthouse on today's visit(Beware there are 420 steps back up),and we also went up the lighthouse tower which was really impressive.
 Bird highlights here were 3 Stonechat,15 Manx Shearwater and 3 Chough,the latter showed brilliantly,allowing some superb photo opportunities of a juvenile as it begged for food from its parents.
 Our final place we visited,was the quite impressive Trearddur Bay,here we just had a nice leisurely walk after those steps earlier!.
 After returning back to the cottage and packing ready for our journey home in the morning,we had a last look in the garden from our balcony watchpoint and this time saw 3 Common Buzzard,5 Raven,Blackcap and 2 Chiffchaff,what a fantastic place to stay!.

Day 5 - Friday 9th August

Sadly it was time to travel home from our lovely cottage and this beautiful area of Wales and we certainly will be back again next year as the Llyn is a hidden gem,where you can enjoy fantastic scenery and encounter some special wildlife and birds.

Betwys y Coed.

Llyn Gwynant.

Beddgelert.

Beddgelert.

The Aberglaslyn Pass.

Porth Dinllaen.

Porth Dinllaen.

Juvenile Mediterranean Gull,Porth Dinllaen.

Porth Dinllaen.

11 of the 24 Mediterranean Gulls,Porth Dinllaen.

Belgian Ringed Adult Mediterranean Gull,Porth Dinllaen.

Male Stonechat,Braich y pwll.

Bardsey Island From Braich y Pwll.

Raven,Braich y pwll.

Morfa Bychan.

Morfa Bychan.

Porth Oer.

Porth Oer.

Record Shot Of A juvenile Shag Which Had Caught A John Dory,Porth Dinllaen.

Colour-ringed Juvenile Shag From Bardsey Island,Porth Dinllaen.

Grey Seal,Porth Dinllaen.

The Lifeboat Station,Porth Dinllaen.

Porth Dinllaen.

Wild Goats,Pistyll.

Nant Gwrtheyrn.

Nant Gwrtheyrn.

Nant Gwrtheyrn.

Helen's Tower And South Stack Lighthouse,Anglesey.

South Stack Lighthouse,Anglesey.

Adult Lesser black-backed Gull,South Stack,Anglesey.

Juvenile Chough,South Stack,Anglesey.

Juvenile Chough,South Stack Anglesey.

Juvenile Stonechat,South Stack,Anglesey.

Trearddur Bay,Anglesey.

Sea Holly,Trearddur Bay,Anglesey.