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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park, Billingham. UK (1 Viewer)

A morning visit today. Sunny when I arrived but clouding over pretty quickly after that. At least the winds were lighter and the temperature far miler today.

Car park tables - Bullfinch x4, Yellowhammer x6, Greenfinch, Reed Bunting, Robin, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Tree Sparrow x12, Goldfinch, Greenfinch. GSW in trees above and twice seen in trees by lake.

Heron & Sparrowhawk sunning themselves in bushes on west side of lake. Smew still present but no sign of the RN Duck. Little Grebe x2, Tufted Duck x16, Pochard x8, Gadwall x18.
 

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Called at Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park 28-02-2012, i see that the small ponds have been fenced in, i can understand the fence along the top maybe for health and safety issues but all around and on top of that planting a hawthorn hedge to box it all in doesn't seem to make sense, surely when hedgeing grows it will cut out a lot of natural light. I know the ponds are recognised as breeding ponds for Grt. Crested Newts but they also are breeding ponds for a good number of Damselflies and Dragonflies.
Can anyone give a reason for this Fencing/Hedgeing?
 
I think the whole thing was done on the grounds of Health and Safety to help prevent people falling in. I think the fence has done a great job of keeping the dog walkers out as well. Several times I've seen people letting/encouraging dogs to plodge through the pools and jump in the lake by the hide.

It would be nice to think it was also done to help protect the habitat for the newts as well.

Viewing the dragonflies is going to be a problem and as you say the planted hedge seems a little odd as it will enlcose the area if it survives.
 
Pretty quiet this afternoon. A lovely sunny afternoon for a wander over to the lake and back. A little noisy though with tree felling/thinning ongoing.

Smew, LTT x12, Kestrel x2, Bullfinch x4 - all around lake area.
 

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A lovely sunny afternoon though a tad windy and feeling pretty chilly in the wind.

Birds of note included - Smew, Treecreeper x2, Little Grebe x4, Shoveler x2, Gadwall x12, Cormorant.
 

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A little more activity this morning. The Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs seem to be well established now with a dozen of each around the park. The CHiffchaff were evenly spread out but the Willow Warbler were mainly together in the Faith Wood area, all but one in fact which was by the hide. Blackcap x3 heard.

A male Great Spotted Woodpecker was in the tree tops by the hide calling. A Sparrowhawk was displaying by the lake when I arrived but headed off east spiraling along the line of pylon wires towards the tip. Bullfinch x4 were by the hide as well.

The lake itself looked empty but there were quite a few birds around. Tufted Duck x15, Gadwall x6, Pochard x6, Cormorant x6, Canada Goose x3, Mute Swan x2, Little Grebe x2, Mallard x8.

The only bird in the car park was the friendly Crow.
 

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Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park - am - Sedge Warbler on the car park ponds plus Whitethroat, Wren and Linnet.

The lake was very quiet with just a few Mallard, Coot, Moorhen, Gadwall, Pochard and a Cormorant. The trees and bushes around the lake were more active with several Whitethroat, Blackcap, Tree Sparrow, Blue Tit, Linnet. A Kestrel was hunting the hillside and a Cuckoo called a couple of times from the direction of the bushes alongside the railway line on the side of the hill but I didn't see it - first one I've heard this year. two Swallow and two House Martin made a brief appearance.

Walking along Claxton Beck revealed very little, likewise with the cycleway other than a few Yellowhammer and Whitethroat. A Mistle Thrush was feeding on the horse paddock.
 

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I ended up back here again yesterday morning when our very own MalR came across a Nightingale back in the same area it was in last year!

It was singing plenty yesterday but not giving very good views.

Also around today Lesser Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler x1, Reed Warbler x1, Common Whitethroat, Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff all singing by the lake.

A very short video clip. I'd just got set up on it when it decided to move.

http://youtu.be/suvyvHB4sbw

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The Nightingale was still singing and showing well the last two days.

Also seen Reed Warbler and Sedge Warbler on the lake and another Sedge Warbler plus Grasshopper Warbler by the car park.

Last night a Great Spotted Woodpecker found the Blue Tit nest box by the hide. It was tapping on it with the adults going wild just above it. Luckily it did't get in with me stood there but it knows where it is now. I dare say it heard the young ones inside.

I arrived around 6.15pm but the Nightingale didn't show itself until 7.00pm when it began singing. It didn't stop until gone 7.30pm.

It was in view for most of that time but partially obscured. After that it dropped to the ground frequently making it's croaking call as it scuttled about. A blackbird disturbed it and it flew off towards the beckside trees returning a few minutes later to the same bush. Just before I left it did the same again without any apparent reason, returning to the bush a few minutes later.

Video clip from 10th May 2012 - http://youtu.be/W8gD-JvCjew

Video clip from 11th May 2012 - http://youtu.be/RkBdXIi56UY

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I spent a couple of hours wandering around the park yesterday. On the whole a pretty quiet visit.

Most notable birds were Great Spotted Woodpecker with 3+ seen and more often heard. A Reed Warbler was still sining by the lake and the Nightingale was singing on and off, often competing with two Blackcap males either side of it and a Blackbird perched above.

Also seen - Kestrel x1, Blackcap x4, Chiffchaff & Willow Warbler still singing, Garden Warbler x1. Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler on lake margins. Several Common Darter, damselfies and Orange Tip butterflies.
 

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On 7th June the Nightingale was still sining at 11.40am.

The only other birds of note were a pair of Reed Warbler which appeared to be nesting where the two becks meet. Same place as they've been the last couple of years.
 
No sight/sound of the Nightingale mid-morning. It was still present yesterday.

Very little on lake - Little Grebe x1, Pochard x1, Mute Swan x1, Tufted Duck x4, Moorhen x2, Coot x2, Mallard x6.

Still plenty of singing Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Wren. Grasshopper Warbler x1 reeling.

Great Spotted Woodpecker and Kestrel around lake side bushes.
 
It's been a while again since I last posted and update. I must admit that I've only been visiting about once a week and not seeing very much.

A revisit on Thursday revealed a few more birds with LTT x6, Willow Warbler and Blue and Great Tits in the bushes by the railway line. Lots of Moorhen around with 23+ on the lake plus a few Tufted Duck, Coot, Gadwall and Pochard.

Best sighting though was of two Marsh Harriers, a male and female on the field beside the railway. The male looked as if it caught something n the corn field as it was down and out for sight for around 20 minutes. It only reappeared when a female approached from the tip.

Quite a few butterflies around with dozens of Speckled Wood, a few Meadow Brown, Small Heath, Red Admiral and Whites. Very few dragonflies other than good numbers of Common Darter and damselflies. It was perhaps a little windy for hawkers to be out.
 

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Excellent sightings reports and pics from your local patch Ian as ever...Keep up the good work, Its a joy to read this thread.:t:
 
I've still been visiting at least once every week but there's been very little of note to see though I must admit I've forgotten a couple of times to update the thread.

The only noteworthy birds have been a Treecreeper seen a couple of times now by the hide, the odd Redwing over the last month but no large flocks, up to five Cormorants and two Herons have been on the lake.

The last couple of weeks up to five Goldeneye including one male have been on the lake but today it was mostly iced over and just one female was present. Also present today was a Pochard male, Tufted Duck x8, Gadwall x2, Coots, Moorhen, Mallard. No sign of the Swans today nor the single Canada Goose that has been present the last couple of months. The only things of note in the bushes around the lake were a few Blue Tits, Great Tits, Blackbirds, Magpies and two Grey Squirrels.

The car parks tables were pretty active, mostly with Tree Sparrows x.12, Coal Tit x3, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Robin, Blackbirds and Chaffinches.
 

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I only got as far as the car park today due to the dense freezing fog. It was clearing as I left home but had drawn back in again by the time I reached the car park.

The feeders were pretty busy today with a good few more Yellowhammer than what there have been.

Yellowhammer x12, Reed Bunting x8,Tree Sparrow x15, Coal Tit x3, Chaffinch, Dunnock, Robin, Blue Tit, Great Tit.
 

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A new patch tick with Crossbill x10 all brick red males. Feeding in the larch trees by the lake 12.15-12.25.

They headed off towards RSPB Saltholme.

Also present Goldeneye x3 (1m, 1f, 1 immature), Gadwall x4, Mute Swan x1 immature, Tufted Duck x4, Heron, Cormorant x3.
 

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A miserable grey day but at least it remained fine.

Heading down Seal Sands Road I saw a flock of small birds 40-50 strong in the alders beside the road so I pulled over for a better look. They were mostly Redpoll with a few Siskin amongst them. They're the first decent sized flock of Redpoll I've seen here this year. They soon flitted across the road to the north side and were lost from view.

As I parked up in the car park I saw three Crossbill in the trees above. There could have been more but as I got out the car a dozen or so birds flew off west from the tree tops.

The car park tables were pretty active with Tree Sparrow, Yellowhammer, Coal Tit etc.

Nothing of note seen heading over to the lake. The lake though held a good number of ducks compared to my last few visits. There were eight Goldeneye present which included three adult males. One male was in what looked to be family group with a female and four juveniles. Two males came quite close to the bank below the viewing screen.

Also around were Tufted Duck x12, Gadwall x10, Pochard, Cormorant x2, Little Grebe, Mallard, Moorhen, Coot. Around 30 BH Gulls were also present.

A Heron was perched in the dead tree on the west side. Apart from a couple of Magpies, Blackbirds and a Robin there was nothing else in the bushes around the lake.

Heading back to the car park I came across Bullfinch x4 by the visitor centre. A few Blue Tit, Reed Bunting and Great Tit were in the same area. A Kestrel was in the pump station.

Just as I reached the car park I thought the Crossbills had returned but it was just three Redwing briefly landing in the same trees before heading off west.
 

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