Where did you do your birding over the weekend? (1 Viewer)

birdman · Jun 2, 2004

Where did you do your birding over the weekend?

It was a bank holiday here in the UK, and so I had a chance to do a bit extra on Monday 31st, which, if you are interested, you can briefly read about here.

Did you go out?

Local patch, or did you watch your garden or yard? Did you, like me, go somewhere new? Did it live up to expectations? Or did you revisit a popular haunt?

Whatever, wherever, if you watched at any time from Friday 28th May to Monday 31st, don’t forget to submit your sightings to GGBsC III !!!

CJW · Jun 2, 2004

I didn't! Couldn't get out of the estate where I live because of the damn road closures for the annual TT races!

Elizabeth Bigg · Jun 2, 2004

I didn't go out - but my garden birds put on quite a good show for me. I thought I was stuck on 17 species, then a jay came to call - we haven't had one in the garden for ages.

Andrew Whitehouse · Jun 2, 2004

I had a fairly unsuccessful trip to Fife Ness. Migrants not happening sadly.

desgreene · Jun 2, 2004

We had a very pleasant slow circuit of Pennington Flash on Sunday. Some nice birds, including reed, sedge & willow warblers, redshank, reed bunting, 2 G.S. Woodpeckers that obviously had a noisy nestful nearby, jay, common tern. I think the total count was 45 species plus a mink.
Monday was a local patch along the River Mersey in Stockport. Understandably not quite so productive, but kingfisher, grey wagtail and jay were the highlights. Plus a family of blue tits and another of great tits were nice to see.

Des.

Dave Smith · Jun 2, 2004

We went up to the Lake District for our usual two days walking at half term. Going via the M40 enabled us to see two red kites. In the Lakes we saw the Golden Eagle (a UK lifer) and the nesting Osprey (a first in England for me) and also a pied flycatcher (another lifer). We also had superb views of Kestrel and Common Buzzard. Why is it that Kestrels in the mountains seem so much more colourful?

We also enjoyed nice walking in gorgeous scenery with superb weather.

Dave

crispycreme · Jun 2, 2004

Coincidentally, it was also a holiday here in the States (Memorial Day). We drove up to the White Mountains in eastern Arizona to go camping, and spent a couple of days of hardcore bushwacking birding. Among the 70 or so birds we logged, we had 22 lifers including:

Eared Grebe
Golden Eagle
Band-tailed Pigeon
White-throated Swift
Western Wood-Pewee
Townsend's Solitaire
Mountain Bluebird
Grace's Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Black-headed Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Red Crossbill

Quite a successful trip, I must say!

MarkHows · Jun 2, 2004

Saturday, I was in Chatanooga TN, watching Tanagers, Red headed woodpeckers, Brown headed nuthatches, Green Herons, Kildeers, Pine, yellow throated and hooded warblers, cliff swallows, chimney swifts, cardinals, cowbirds, mocking birds, belted kingfishers, black and turkey vultures plus loads more on Monday I was in Staffordshire for the Squacco Heron and then to Suffolk for the Icterine bit of a contrast, but well worth it

mark

Tammie · Jun 2, 2004

I was only able to count in my backyard this time around.... too busy after the move to get out anywhere. Hubby was able to add a couple of special ones from the old place, namely Golden Eagle on a moose carcass at work! I haven't seen a Golden Eagle for a number of years now so that was a good one.... but I missed it!

Can't complain, tho'. Out of 26 species seen, 23 were seen in or from the backyard alone. :hippy:
My list, in no particular order at all:
1. Evening Grosbeak - Coccothraustes vespertinus
2. Rose Breasted Grosbeak - Pheucticus ludovicianus
3. Purple Finch - Carpodacus purpureus
4. American Goldfinch - Carduelis tristis
5. Pine Siskin - Carduelis pinus
6. Chipping Sparrow - Spizella passerina
7. White Crowned Sparrow - Zonotrichia leucophrys
8. White Throated Sparrow - Zonotrichia albicollis
9. Black Capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus
10. Common Raven - Corvus corax
11. American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos
12. Red Breasted Nuthatch - Sitta canadensis
13. Dark Eyed Junco - Junco hyemalis
14. Red Winged Blackbird - Agelaius phoeniceus
15. Common Grackle - Quiscalus quiscula
16. European Starling - Sturnus vulgaris
17. Golden Eagle - Aquila chrysaetos * Hillsport
18. Cooper's Hawk - Accipiter cooperii * Hillsport
19. Sharp-Shinned Hawk - Accipiter striatus
20. Sandhill Crane - Grus canadensis
21. Hairy Woodpecker - Picoides villosus
22. American Robin - Turdus migratorius
23. Ruby Throated Hummingbird - Archilochus colubris
24. Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura
25. Gray Jay - Perisoreus canadensis * Hillsport
26. Tree Swallow - Tachycineta bicolor

Ruby · Jun 2, 2004

I was away camping in Canterbury over the weekend, but did manage to spot a few birds....

On the Saturday we had a little walk along the Great Stour starting in Chilham (very nice little village BTW) and did a once-around the Churchyard and managed a Spotted Flycatcher (lifer for me). Whilst walking along the river saw a few Grebes, Wagtails, Ducks and Warblers as well as being buzzed by a very strange looking duck. Very handsome, but couldn't recognise it at all.... had a good look through the book later on and best I could come up with is some sort of exotic escape/hybrid, probably involving an American Wigeon!! It was still there on the way back, so may still be around if anyone local wants to have a look for it.... It was approx 0.5km E/NE of Chartham.

On the Sunday, we were part of an organised walk around Stodmarsh NNR, hosted by the KOS. Very enjoyable and well led and saw lots of nice birds - highlights being :- Green & GS Woodpeckers, Cuckoo, Turtle Dove, Kingfisher, Cetti's & Nightingale (heard but only briefly glimpsed) AND...... Common Crane (2 drifting by slowly overhead)

Lovely weekend away with friends - shame it decided to rain on the Tuesday when we were packing up.....

Ruby

Geoff Pain · Jun 2, 2004

Didn't get out,was working all wekend and Monday.Will make up for it this weekend though 2 weeks holiday,YAHOOO.Off up to the Highlands and Orkney then when I come back theres the OOp North Bash,see everybody there,don't be late

tomjenner · Jun 2, 2004

I am a schoolteacher in El Salvador and this week we had a field trip to a pine area near the border with Honduras. A family of American Kestrels (the distinctive sparvarius race of Middle America) had just left the nest, whilst a pair of Common Black Hawks acted like they had a nest in the area. I was pleased to finally get some photos of White-bellied Chachalaca. This is a little known regional endemic with almost no photos available on the web. We did a long walk up a valley to swim under a waterfall. The students enjoyed watching the White-collared Swifts that were nesting behind it. I saw about 40 species in all, which is not bad considering that there were 64 grade 10 students trailing along beside me.
Tom

christineredgate · Jun 2, 2004

CJW said:
I didn't! Couldn't get out of the estate where I live because of the damn road closures for the annual TT races!

Oh,dear,CJ,I take it you are not a happy chappie:C .Never mind it is only 2 weeks!!
I had a great time ,seeing as it was the GGBsC count.I went all around the sea defences,spent time in the bird hide,went up to the sandhills,as far as my trike permited,visited a friends garden,and spent a very peaceful couple of hours in the local churchyard.It was so noisy in the village due to the fact it was a Bank Holiday,and for once it was sunny,and there are lots of nesting sparrows in the walls of the church.It is built from slate,therefore no cement,and I think the greater population of Haverigg's house sparrows had decided to nest within the walls.I would recommend quiet country churchyards for birdwatching,it is so peaceful,very relaxing.Try to avoid the local vicar,though,or one feels very guilty as to why one did not attend the morning service!!

Sal · Jun 3, 2004

I went down to Durban early on Saturday morning to spend a great few hours in the Botanical gardens there. This Botanical Garden has a small lake, a couple of ponds and a very wide variety of vegetation so it is stuffed with birds and I could have stayed there all day. Amongst others, my best sightings there were a squacco heron and a Yellow-rumped tinkerbird - oh and a collared sunbird. On the way back I stopped off in the Queen Elizabeth Park Nature Reserve (a very small reserve on the outskirts of Pietermaritzburg). The place was humming with sunbirds because all the wild dagga (Leonotis leonora) is out but most of what I saw there I had already listed. On Sunday afternoon I went into the Umgeni Valley Nature Reserve which is near a small town calld Howick, north of PMB. The weather was perfect - huge arching sky; long ,low, golden sunlight; 22C - perfect temp for walking; lots of berries, grass seeds, wild dagga to attract the birds; clean clear air; a huge silence (Bird calls? Don't count them as noise!). You can often see raptors there and I was luck with jackal buzzard, Verreaux's eagle and Lanner falcons. I was also delighted to see a Cape rock-thrush as you dont often see them here. A huge plus was seeing two Greycrowned cranes coming in to land as the sun was sinking - wonderful sight.Whilst in the air one of them dumped - have you ever seen a crane dump, it is like emptying a basin! - was I glad they were not right overhead . . . .

mountain man · Jun 3, 2004

I went to the Western Isles. Check out this unpredictable and rather temperamental thread:

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=17726

Michael Frankis · Jun 3, 2004

Four sites in Northumberland, all by bicycle and/or public transport, for the GGBsC - already posted my species list on one of the other GGBsC threads

Michael

IanF · Jun 3, 2004

I only managed to get out birding on two days. One day I covered the Langdon Beck area and Egglestone, Teesdale in the morning and then around Barnard Castle in the afternoon and evening.

Next day it was the ponds and coast around Teesmouth.

Denis J · Jun 3, 2004

Saturday-Holkham gap
Sunday-Titchwell then walsey hills
Monday- Great Ryburgh in the morning and salthouse heath later in the day
Tuesday-Lakenheath and Weeting
Wednesday Cley then 3 hours in the hide at holkham at dusk
Thurs Titchwell am then 6 hours on trains coming home

)

xenospingus · Jun 4, 2004

Hi all, last week and next sunday, good chance to watch Junin Grebe, and many other Andean specialist from east side (near of Carhuamayo) of Junin Lake, Central Peru.
If any birder is thinking to come here, please send me a email:
[email protected]

shakesmyteeth · Jun 4, 2004

just got back from the costa del sol, spain. not a birding holiday as such but managed to persuade mrs & jnr to go for walk up a fantastic river valley where we saw our first ever bee-eaters. a few days before, i'd lost my field guide (aaagghh!) so i may or may not have also spotted my first turtle dove (gave a good impression of a calling frog !), and cirl bunting. also saw an unmistakeable woodchat shrike, sardinian warbler, sparrowhawk, hoopoe, possibly a honey buzzard or two, spotted flycatcher, g-spot woodpecker, sand martin, red legged partridge, a mystery chat, and a mystery heron-type bird that flew overheard at dusk, calling (not as big as a grey heron though). heard a wonderfully noisy chorus of frogs at dusk in the rio fuengirola (glad i wasnt trying to sleep nearby). heard lots of mystery birdsong from numerous bushes (my birding ethics got the better of me and i didnt chuck any stones in an attempt to flush 'em).

Where did you do your birding over the weekend? (1 Viewer)

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