Ross Ahmed
Sunday 22nd June 2008, 17:20
Something I've really been missing lately is a local patch (due to spending a lot of time in various parts of the North-east through work). Various factors have however resulted in me birding a series of ponds in south-east Northumberland. In the past couple of months (and to a lesser extent earlier in the year), I've been getting into the habit of regularly checking these ponds.
Sites are as follows:
St Mary's Island Wetland (and inter-tidal rocks)
Holywell Pond
Backworth Pond
Beehive Flash
Wallsend Swallow Pond
So the plan for the autumn is to keep on checking these as much as possible whenever in the area, with quantity prevailing over quality. I normally spend no longer than 15mins at each site, during which time I reckon I see the majority of birds present. Therefore the more regular I do 'the circuit', the more chance I have of seeing good birds. If I could manage at least 2 visits per week then that will be good.
My aim to count everything present, but hopefully to add some rare waders and wildfowl to my self-found list (due to spending the majority of my birding career in wetland-free areas, I have never found a rare wader or duck).
So here's this morning's birds......
St Mary's Island
Redshank 7
Shelduck 1
Moorhen 4
Mute Swan 2
Arctic Tern 1st-sum S over wetland
Beehive Flash
Shelduck 2 ads + 4 young
Mute Swan 2
Redshank 10
Swallow Pond
Tufted Duck 4
Great Crested Grebe 1
Holywell Pond
Gadwall 1 fem/ecl drake
Common Tern 1
Shelduck 2 ads + 1 young
Shoveler 1 ecl drake
Grey Heron 1
Cormorant 2 (both carbo)
Sand Martin 4
Swift 35
Common Sandpiper 1
Backworth Pond
(nothing - flash more of a puddle, even after last night's rain)
Sites are as follows:
St Mary's Island Wetland (and inter-tidal rocks)
Holywell Pond
Backworth Pond
Beehive Flash
Wallsend Swallow Pond
So the plan for the autumn is to keep on checking these as much as possible whenever in the area, with quantity prevailing over quality. I normally spend no longer than 15mins at each site, during which time I reckon I see the majority of birds present. Therefore the more regular I do 'the circuit', the more chance I have of seeing good birds. If I could manage at least 2 visits per week then that will be good.
My aim to count everything present, but hopefully to add some rare waders and wildfowl to my self-found list (due to spending the majority of my birding career in wetland-free areas, I have never found a rare wader or duck).
So here's this morning's birds......
St Mary's Island
Redshank 7
Shelduck 1
Moorhen 4
Mute Swan 2
Arctic Tern 1st-sum S over wetland
Beehive Flash
Shelduck 2 ads + 4 young
Mute Swan 2
Redshank 10
Swallow Pond
Tufted Duck 4
Great Crested Grebe 1
Holywell Pond
Gadwall 1 fem/ecl drake
Common Tern 1
Shelduck 2 ads + 1 young
Shoveler 1 ecl drake
Grey Heron 1
Cormorant 2 (both carbo)
Sand Martin 4
Swift 35
Common Sandpiper 1
Backworth Pond
(nothing - flash more of a puddle, even after last night's rain)