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

Withymoor - Amblecote, Stourbridge..... (2 Viewers)

Hi Steve - nice to know that the raptor watchpoint that is St Michaels is still operating;)

Murky and mild with a distinct unseasonal feel to the weather - 15c in Hereford this week:cool:.....Don't bet on a White Christmas.

Half an hour around the perimeter of Mary Stevens Park ystda produced a small party of 3 Goosander - 2 males and a Redhead. BHG's estimated at around 250 birds with an adult LBB in attendance. No sign of the female Teal:C

It would appear that Golden-Winged Warblers (Maidstone, Jan '89:eek!:) are sensitive to impending tornado's, desert the nest and then return!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30531060

BBC Radio 4's Tweet of the Day has gone all international which is a pity as there was the rest of Europe and then the Western Palearctic which would have been more relevant as far as i was concerned. Yesterdays species bought things a bit closer to home and was presented by the silky-brogued biologist.....Liz Bonnin. It featured an 'Eastern' Orphean Warbler scratching away in an Olive grove somewhere near Athens. The accompanying blurb says "much like a large blackcap with a white throat and greyish-brown back".

Don't forget to put that in your field description when submitting;)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04t0hgk Disregard the first 30 seconds it's a bit confusing as it starts off about migrants and moves on to the Modern Slavery Bill - tell me all about it, i have tea to prepare! You think the Beeb would edit these things a bit better? You probably have more chance of one of these than seeing a Turtle Dove that's purring away in the background.....

Laurie:t:

Attached - Goosander MSP, Egyptian mural depicting the catching of poss Mergus spp in the Nile Delta, GWW twitch and 2 smart-looking birds for the price of one - Corvo and Giza:t:
 

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The pic of the Golden-winged Warbler twitch reminds me of the good old days when it was just binoculars and Kowa scopes........no cameras taking up all the available space and no birders wearing designer labels.....well, apart from Mr Evans anyway :)
 
Hello Laurie,
You Tube Video of the Little Grebes I filmed this afternoon at the 'Golden Pond'.
I don't think much of 'You Tube' these days?
May see you again one day - this 'thread' is very interesting.
Keep your Brompton bike tyres up to 100 psi.
Regards, Phil (ex Saltbrook pub)http://youtu.be/JmTBI52bFqw
 
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Two World Wars, One World Cup and a re-enactment.....

Hi Phil - nice to hear from you, we last spoke over a pint at the Plough and Harrow IIRC. I won't hear a bad word about Youtube it can really brighten up a dull day. I saw some of yr footage of the Pacific Golden Plover @ Muddleton. Nice vid from the 'Golden Puddle' it certainly shows Little Grebe living up to its scientific name of Tachybaptus ruficollis - Swift-Diving Red-Neck.....YeeHaaaaa! The place does'nt get much but the more observer coverage the better. The Grebes can be elusive and very active, i often only see one bird at a time in upto 45 mins of being down there. It's a good job that they have different plumages then at least you know that both are present. The pale bird would be a 1w/2cy and the much brighter bird a Winter adult. Whether they are a different gender only time will tell. I don't think there is enough edge cover for them to breed personally but we shall see. It certainly seems to have been a very good breeding season at other localities, particularly Sheepwash, and we seemed to have reaped the benefit of young overspill?

Yesterdays early visit, in excellent light, saw Tufties at 6m4f and an increase in BHG's to 100+. Two adult LBB's were joined, briefly, by a handful of their own and an adult Herring Gull which loafed on the water until driven off by the residents. The HG looked quite intimidating with its distinct eye and streaked Winter head. I always think they have a fiecer look than the LBB's which, to my eyes, are rather benign by comparison. a female Sprawk ended up tangled in the Birch embankment after chasing something and was quickly surrounded by a 'committee' of the local Magpies and given short shrift. Both Grey and Pied Wagtails, Bullfinch and a handfull of Redwings also noted.

Mary Stevens Park held 7 Goosander (4m3f) who were keeping together in a flotilla, close by were a group of amateur R/C boaters with their craft and the two groups resembled a Jutland-type scenario manouvering before opening fire. BHG's were the only Gulls present with and estimated 250+ to sift thru a Nuthatch trilling in the distance completed the scenario.

Finally got round to watching the 'Sainsburys Tommy Advert' - very well produced and must have cost a fortune - a good job they've got one!.....The poignant piano and strings during the match and towards the end is by a composer called Carter Burwell who is a long-time collaborator with the Coen Brothers and this music featured on the excellent remake of True Grit and for any film buffs out there i would thoroughly reccomend. It is much more faithfull to the superb book and is told from the viewpoint of the girl. World War 1 films are much harder to come by. I would reccomend Stanley Kubricks 'Paths of Glory' and the classic 'All Quiet on the Western Front'. Two stand-out movies, for me, are David Leans 'Lawrence of Arabia' - more like Aquaba! Excellent performances and location scenery, they filmed in the Basalt formations of Jordan and i scoured the frames looking for the distinct 'Basalt' Wheatear to no avail and Dickie Attenboro's 'Oh What a Lovely War' - a superb anti-war theme with a lesson on the inbred European aristrocracy thrown in for good measure and a veritable who's who of British cinema at the time...'War Horse' is another good story well told as you would expect from Steven Spellbound - box of Kleenex required for the last one. The advert is well worth watching, a Robin puts in a brief appearance and thankfully the only Poppy that appears is the British Legion one at the end and not any lingering shots of flowering plants on Christmas Eve.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWF2JBb1bvM

What has this to do with birds? - At the end of the advert there is a flock of birds that pass over the battlefield and i thought further investigation in a Martin Garner-stylee might yield results but it would appear that these creatures are in invention of a graphic artist who knows nothing about the physiology of birds (probably of both sorts). An enlarged image shows a distincly un-aerodynamic shape (much like the bride). A pity as i'm sure there would have been wintering geese in Flanders. Somewhere a football match was played of that there is no doubt but for most the boredom and bombardment continued. A symbolic re-playing of this took place recently with soldiers of the same units partaking and relatives attending. I think we won 1-0 but the PC-correct Biased Broadcasting Corporation shows no mention of it.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-magazine-monitor-30036471

Today is the Winter Solstice and tomorrow the Sun begins its ascent. in the early hours i was entertained by the screeching of a female Tawny Owl and awoke to the scratchy strains of a territorial Robin proclaiming its Winter domain. I derive simple pleasure in knowing that even in the depths of mid-Winter things, birdwise, are ticking over.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_solstice

Laurie:t:

Attached - 6 out of 7 Goosander @ MSP, 2 of the Sainsburys 'birds' and TE Lawrence @ the 'Tooth Hill' camp, the vehicle is a Rolls-Royce btw.
 

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MSP - Goosander hit double figures and a GullFest (ish).....

A quick Xmas Eve dash down to Mary Stevens Park prior to finishing off a bit of shopping for tomorrows glorified Sunday Lunch!

A quick scan revealed a bevvy of Redheads, 10 in total, consorting with 4 cracking males - record count thus far. Ca 250 BHG's present along with the expected couple of adult LBB's but in addition a total of 4 Herring Gulls - 3 x 2nd-Winter types and a single 3rd-Winter bird, notable for this locale.....

A lot of stuff 'singing', a Robin at 2:30 this morning and Coal Tit/Mistle Thrush/Goldcrest in the park.

GND's seem to be on the move, nationally, and the presence of a spanking bird @ Clayhanger for several days is notable - might go over after Boxing Day. There are some superb shots both on the water and in flight on this blokes blog..... http://clayhangermarshlog.blogspot.co.uk/ ..... A quick peruse of the posts reveals a man after my own heart a trail of irreverance runs thru the blog - i shall be keeping an eye out and hope to bump in to him at some stage.

Definately worth keeping a prepared mind open for Caspian Gull with the species being reported from no less than 4 West Midlands 'razzers'. Blithers, Belvide, Chasewater and Bartley:eek!:. There must be one down at the Goldfish Bowl, just needs somebody who can..........easy boys, only joking;).

Talking of which - I watched the new Equalizer with our Denzel the other day. It's slick, well-paced and well-acted imo. It's in the style of the Bourne franchise and Taken where you have to fill in the 'how did he do that' or 'how did he get there' but it's worth a watch. Some very good sequences and distinct camera work. Denzel is well-matched with the main protaganist who resembles a 'hard' Kevin Spacey. The body-count is not too high as in Taken but in common with Liam Neesons good-guy they are all Eastern European Ruski types and as Arnie said in True Lies.....Dey Verr Awl Badd! There is some blatant product placement with all the baddies, the crooked cops and our Denzel using Sony Smartphones and D having a VAIO laptop - surprise, surprise the film is a Sony production. The company has been in the news of late as it has been likened to an animal without a backbone or bollocks. Criticism from no less than Obama has led to them allowing the screening of The Interview in a couple of hundred cinemas - appeasement never works as the Japanese found out after Pearl Harbour.

What has this to do with birds? There is a sequence at the end (no spoilers) where Den has to make a final visit what is presumably somewhere in Moscow and there is an opening, lingering shot of a long-winged LBB-type Gull. The bird looks like an adult, the foliage in the Kremlin-type shot would be from late-Spring onwards i would have thought. It must be from stock footage as the films shooting locations did not take place in a suitable region. The bird has a very distinct, dark, outer primary wedge. The footage could be from the Bosphorus or the Caspian area, maybe armenicus/barabensis? I don't know but intriguing none the less.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_gull

Below - Equalizer Gull, possible stuff, a suggestion for the new Sony logo and 'hard' Spacey.....
 

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Brrrrrrrr -

A pleasant day to get out and about, after the rigours of festive socialising - moderation was the watchword and was duly adhered to. I could quite happily get by without any of it, i am no longer a recipient of anything except possibly a little bit of goodwill and do not partake in presenting items to anybody - bride and son included.....anyone for a humbug?:C

The previous nights plan of having a look at the Clayhanger GND had to be binned due to the fact that the driver had another attack of OPDS..... Overnight Petal Dick Syndrome - a chronic condition to which he is prone to and so Plan B is detailed below.

An hour or so with the dog and a cigar down at the Golden Puddle (ca50% ice cover) produced an impresssive 100+ BHGulls, 3 Tufties including a female 'scaup'-face altho not the usual one as this bird had a more restricted White patch and the 2 resident Little Grebes. Groups of Chaffinches and Goldfinches made for a bit of colour and noise and that was about it. Plenty of small parties of large Gulls overflying all looking like LBB's, mainly adults from what i could make out.

Spent a couple of hours or so around the West Hagley Fields via Mary Stevens Park en-route. MSP held in excess of 400 BHG's this in turn must have attracted the larger gulls. 6 adult and one 3rd winter-type LBB were bobbing on the water with a mix of Herrings - an adult, 2 2nd winter-types and a 1st winter bird. At one stage everything went up which was like a scene from Hitchcocks 'The Birds':eek!: I scanned for a Peregrine but only managed a passing micro-lite which i assumed was the source of the angst as the birds quickly settled. No Sawbills were present but i was happy with such a good concentration of gulls to check thru.

For mere mortals such as myself the ever-increasing familiarity of Yellow-Legged Gulls and the possibility of finding a local Caspian Gull or a handsome Med is enough to contend with. Even during 'good' years the number of White-wingers in the region can be counted on the fingers of one hand so thoughts of mega-rare finds can be comfortably stored in the brains equivalent of the Carlsberg Complaints Room.

We now, finally, have a putative Thayers Gull moving between sites in Yorkshire. Irelands monoply on the spp has been broken, if accepted, more and more people are 'Gulling' so records of Slaty-Backed and American Herring should become more frequent. Who knows, maybe California or Vegas (preferably adults) might not be wishful thinking? I don't envisage having to carry a change of underwear with me around here but at least i now carry a camera to record anything of note.

A link to the creature taken @ Mirfield where it was first seen before relocating to Pugneys..... http://www.birdguides.com/iris/pictures.asp?v=1&f=451496

There is a wintering Swallow on the Channel Islands which makes me feel better already. A link to Manfred Manns 'Come Tomorrow' (Song of the Swallow) a TOTP video, i particularly like the innocent prodding and adulation of the young girls while Paul Jones is trying his best to mime!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBQ_nJGXaB0

Laurie:t:

Below - a panorama of the edge of the Black Country from the West Hagley Fields and a trusty bit of equipment for measuring my interest in the festivities at this time of year;)
 

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I'm a Leo but is it a LEO?.....

A short walk into Stourbridge last nite takes me down to the Industrial Estate into a 'hollow' of sorts with the ring-road rising on one side and the housing estate road and traffic on the other. This is part of the Stour Valley with the river running adjacent and thru the municpal Tip. It makes it a relatively quiet area with a natural funnel for sound. Subliminally i became aware of a distinct noise coming from the direction of the Tip. There are small areas of surrounding low woodland with larger trees running the course of the river for several hundred yards. I stopped and cocked my ear to hear a distinct 'creaky-gate' call. This went on for several minutes before stopping. It has been quite a few years since i have heard Long-Eared Owls calling like this and the last time was up on Cannock Chase. The call is associated with juvenile birds begging for food. From what i have read birds call at roost outside the breeding season but it is usually of the 'hoot' variety. I wonder whether the call is from a first-Winter individual still in post-juvenile mode? It could of course be something else but i have wracked my brain trying to think.....what?

The note was distinctly bi-sybillic with the first part stronger and louder than the second half. I will return over the next few days, one plus this time of year is that it is dark very early which is good because i am not much of a night Owl - no pun intended. I shall of course have a pair of binocuolars and a tin of WD40 as plan B;)

http://www.xeno-canto.org/118308 This is obiously recorded very close to the bird, imagine it quite a bit further and weaker.....

The 'freeze' is almost over and will be replaced by variable, strong winds and milder weather from the North West. The hard weather continues on the other side of the North Sea with tantalising reports of wayward Little Bustards - that would make a nice New Years tick for me but as i only manage about one new addition to my UK list per annum a tad early methinks.

Withymoor has been 90% froze over with a thin East-facing strip of open water catching the Sun. The diving duck have departed but the Little Grebes, surprisingly, remain. Perhaps they have weighed up the expense of expending energy looking for more open water or just can't be @rsed. BHG's have been around 125 birds with a couple of LBB's present and others overflying the pool. A few Redwings and my first party of Fieldfares for quite a while have also been noted plus Bullfinch and Grey Wagtail.

Mary Stevens Park is about 50% ice cover. It has a fountain which tends to keep a larger area of open water at times like this. Surprisingly there was'nt a single gull present at 2 o'clock ystda and no other species of note apart from a Coal Tit singing in the canopy.

A Happy New Year B :)B :)B :) and good birding for 2015 to anybody who finds the time to read this rubbish.....

Laurie:t:
 
Another bright, dry, day so a circuit of local 'notspots' beckoned. So, about 11, i departed for a 3 hour sojourn with Brompton, beef cob, 'bins and bird book - a winning combination if ever there was!

First stop, Netherton Razzer. It might have been better to have visited during the 'freeze' as this small canal-feeder is deep and the last to freeze over locally. Ystda it held about a dozen or so large gulls including 4 Herring (3ad, 1 x 1w). Nothing else of note, where have all the Tufties gone? Have they been elevated to 'delicacy' level over the festive period by our new Eastern European 'friends'?

Next up, the Fens Pools complex. Looking at the dedicated thread you would have thought that birding was illegal such is the dearth of information but i know it is done regularly and info is passed around but it's a bit of Black Hole as far as BF is concerned.....The disused railway line with its viewing seat is a good vantage point. There was a local birder already present and one of the wardens (Terry) sauntered up, with his Collie, hard at work gathering up various items of rubbish and dog shit. A record count of 38 Cormorants was mentioned. About 25 large gulls were present, the usual mixed age Herring and Lessers. A couple of other birders had been by so i did'nt bother exploring further. Instead i set up my scope and tucked into a superb beef cob that i had left over from a visit to the Anchor @ Caunsall the previous day. Upon hearing the staccato alarm-call of a Carrion Crow i was entertained for the next few minutes by a dogfight involving a pair of the brutes and a dusky-Brown first-Winter Peregrine! Increasingly a commoner sight locally but if you tire of watching Peregrines, whatever the setting, then take up stamp collecting.

Off i pedalled deeper into the land of the salad-dodgers, past the humungous Police station, down the High Street and into the Indoor Market like Martin Sheens character in Apocalypse Now. My quarry? My Colonel Kurtz? - Sour Dummies and Pontefract Liquorice cakes with a large % of Aniseed contained within - a treat to myself. Cycled past the Bathams flagship tap-house the 'Bull and Bladder' averting my gaze as i did so in case anybody who knows me (PAL) saw me commit the Cardinal sin of NOT entering the premises for the purposes of imbibement.

Final stop at the Golden Puddle. 3 Tufties had returned, 2 males and the well-marked Scaup-faced female, 6 x ad LBB's and a 1w and a couple of Herrings (1ad, 1 x 2w). The 1w-type Little Grebe was seen the other must have been either diving or hidden.

The Goldfish Bowl.....

Has featured recently, for a couple of reasons. Bad news first - a dead Bittern:C was found on the reserve, possibly the victim of a power line collision? The good news is that local stalwart John Belsey was a featured nomination for Birdwatch magazines' 'Local Hero of the Year'. With characteristic Brummie modesty John insists that, some 30 years ago, all he did was light the touchpaper - true but without having done that there would be nobody to carry the torch mate! The little and often 'management' down at the reserve has meant a wide range of habitats that benefit both resident and migratory birds and who would have thought that Avocets would be breeding in deepest Worcestershire? When i first visited in the late 70's, having cycled from Sedgley, not me that's for sure. Despite my, perceived negativity (at times) and infrequent visits to the place i am glad it and the volunteers are there it shows what can be achieved with a bit of TLC. The habitat diversity and observer coverage means that, for me, it is a barometer for seasonal movement and during periods of migration i check for updates as a heads-up for what might (or might not) be Withymoor-bound.

http://www.birdwatch.co.uk/open/?page=birders-choice-results

Here's to finding a first for BritainB :) there or The Blues winning the FA cup8-P - i know where the smart money is and i have my 3 quid for the next tick waiting.....

Laurie:t:

Below - Brierley Hill High St.....The horror, the horror.....
 

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A gloomy afternoon in the fog was brightened up with the sight of 18 Goosanders (6m + 12f) at Ladies Pool (Blakedown), they were close by the footpath which helped us to count them as they soon disappeared into the fog when they moved to the back of the pool! A Kingfisher was also heard and finally seen at the edge of the pool.

A quick visit to Brake Mill Pool (Hagley) yielded 10 Goosanders (2m + 8f), 1 Tufted Duck, 1 Little Grebe, 1 Grey Heron and 1 Grey Wagtail.
 
B :) To you too as well Gary, did u see either Higgo or Curly-Cale over Crimbo? I just wondered whether they returned to their roots;) Hope to bump into you either birding or down at the Plough at some stage. It must be 'back to work' for you today, those paper clips aren't going to thread themselves:-O

I will think of you when i happen upon the big 'un today!

Hi Emma - 28 Goosander is an impressive count no wonder there were only 3 (2m1f) down at Mary Stevens Park ystda! Only ca40 BHG's as well, i would have expected several hundred with all the free bread etc but i don't know where they have all gone? The trouble is is that you definately get more of the larger gulls when they are about.....Withymoor was 50% Ice, the rest open water with the Sun gradually vaporising more so H2o was present in all 3 forms.....very moody. Both Little Grebes were active and a solitary female Tuftie was present. This bird was the 'Lesser' Scaup-face as opposed to the other, 'Greater' Scaup-face, i haven't seen both birds present at the same time so am taking pictures to prove there are two individuals involved. I don't get much variety in the ducks around here but female Aythya hybrids are always a possibility. I remember my first wild Fudge Duck on Netherton Razzer more years ago than i care to remember. A nice tick but i would rather be watching them in Morocco with the sun on your back - nothing planned thus far this year:C

I note that some very quick results from a local vet came to the conclusion that the UW Bittern had injuries that were consistent with a collision:C I wonder whether anything can be done? Some of them have hi-viz Orange balls spaced along them.....the power lines that is!

Another collision involving a 'Bittern' off of Portland..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Bittern_(1897)

Laurie:t:

Attached - In Loving Memory.
 

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Not much change over the last week, if anything, gull numbers decreasing - i don't know where they are all going there must be another food supply somewhere? The same with Goosander i had a maximum of 3 birds last week down to a single female on Thursday. The-one-and-only Paul Allan-Legge had a pair down at the Golden Puddle on Saturday morning. This constitutes the first 'on water' record since i have been watching the place over the last 3 years. A solitary circling male is the best i can offer. The most notable bird i had last week was a calling Chiffchaff on Tuesday which, for me, is a good record.

I haven't ventured much beyond Stourbridge due to the naff weather and lack of enthusiasm. My 'chauffeur' is currently on hols in Mexico so a visit to see the GND is in order upon his return. I have no wish to cycle thru the endless village that is the Black Country so if it is still there it will have to wait.....

I did toy with the idea of a good mooch around the West Hagley Fields but when i last went over all the habitat i look at had been ploughed and harrowed for the Winter. All very smart and nice looking, very tidy. That's fine if you are one of the many ramblers and dog-walkers. It is countryside after all i.e. it hasn't been built on! At present the area holds no food at all, save for what is at the bottom of the hedges and so is of no use to parties of foraging birds:C Which brings me nicely to local birder and naturalist Brett Westwood.

For the last 40 years Brett has been keeping a local diary. Despite his increased workload, broadcasting and travelling he still lives in Stourbridge. He has been logging the changes during this period whilst carrying out a minimum of one walk a week in the area. Bretts local 'patch' covers parts of the areas i bird and it is interesting to hear him flitting from one decade to the other in areas that i look at depending on season. Whether it be migrants or parties of 30+ Corn Buntings (i wish) it is an interesting listen and the first of 5 daily instalments on Radio 4 can be found here and then just follow the links to the others.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04xnczz

For those of you of a certain age and dispostion you may be familiar with Lee Evans birder, twitcher and adjudicator. Here is a link to a favourite site of mine whose author dispenses humour via videos and cartoons - this one parodies him as 'The Man with no Name'..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv2R9s2nVCc&feature=player_embedded#!

Looks like a rough few days ahead, a marked change from the festive period where the temperature hit 15c around here. Even in the depths of Winter there is always something in flower but this survey shows just how much and how mild it has been. Global warming? The plants don't lie..... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30754443

Laurie:t:

Attached - this time last year i was chasing a Yellow-Browed Warbler around a Worcestershire wood, i have had a possible Firecrest a few weeks ago and if i am still able to hear the song and the thin call of a Goldcrest then dementia hasn't set in;).....here's all 3 for comparison.
 

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A belated Happy New Year to you Laurie!

3 Goosander (1 m & 2 f), 2 Little Grebe, 1 Tuftie (m), 1 Grey Heron, 6+ Redwings, 2 Mistle Thrush and a singing Song Thrush, Treecreeper, Jay, Robins and Tits aplenty and a perched Buzzard where the highlights at B M Pools this morning! A good amble enjoyed around there this morning and I was glad that I had arrived back home as the rain started!

Coal Tits were stashing seed from my garden feeders this morning , a sure sign of cold and frosty weather! Brrrr!!!!!!:eek!:
 
And to you Pam - just going out into town and MSPark myself in the last of the light.....

Just listened to Bretts second instalment..... 'Valley' http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04xp4wg in this one he covers the changing landscape of Ismere, altho he does'nt mention it by name. I am only used to seeing it covered in thorn scrub but his notes start when the habitat was rough grazing with little cover. This meant breeding Whinchat, amongst the last in the county and wild flowers such as Basil Thyme and Hoary Cinquefoil. I am familiar with both spp but certainly not in a local context.

Laurie:t:

Below - Basil Thyme and Hoary Cinquefoil, gone but not forgotten.
 

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A couple of hours ystda was spent gingerly testing the road surface for safe passage! Side roads were out and the bike was only ridden on the main ones. I had toyed, again, with the fields but the tracks would have been messy and i would have had to have carried the bike over long sections so gave it the thumbs down. The previous day i had picked up my 3rd puncture in the year or so of acquiring the Brompton:C There is no such thing as a convenient puncture but i carry tools, repair kit and spare inner tubes so it's not a problem. The tyres are Kevlar-lined but a Titanium-tipped Hawthorn managed to breach the defenses!

Batten down the hatches for the next 24 hours 'Storm' Rachel still has plenty of punch - an extremely vigourous jet-stream has provided the assistance.

I managed to click with the pair of Goosander feeding down at Withymoor altho they were not present ystda. Joining the now resident 2 Little Grebes if you are a small fish be afraid, very afraid. The Grebes, altho easily viewable, are extremely wary if approached and rapidly swim away - i doubt whether they will breed? The newly-arrived female Mute Swan has decided to stop after disappearing for days at a time (tart). Yesterday she was gathering dead vegetation in the Typha bed, must be getting broody? She is a noticeably 1/3 smaller than the male. Tufties were 3m1f, a nice male Pied Wagtail and a screeching Jay over the embankment and that was it.....

Mary Stevens Park held a couple of female Goosander, 200 Black Headed Gulls, a 1w LBB and an adult Herring Gull.

The 3rd instalment of Brett Westwoods remenisces was a gem of an episode. It covers his formative birding at the old Whittington Sewage Farm. I only birded there when i came back to the area on visits, usually Autumn but remember Curlew counts of over 500!. Bretts statistics on local Lapwing and wintering Curlew and Tree Sparrows are a sad indictment not just on the demise of the treatment beds but the sterile nature of the countryside in general. This site would now be considered a birding treasure if it was still functioning in its previous incarnation but alas EU regulations insist that you cannot spread shit about. It's nice to know that it is all concentrated in both the House of Commons and the 'other' place. He recalls a pair of wintering Spotted Redshank and first sightings of Hobby now at an estimated 3000+ pairs nationally so it's not all bad news:eek!:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04xrj95

Unfortunately not everybody is as keen on raptors and there are still the dickheads http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-30777299 these dinosaurs work for somebody and vicarious liability is the way to go. The link below could be one way altho the 'smart' gamekeeper if that is not an oxymoron (accent on the moron) of the day will dispose of birds accordingly. The keeper in question does'nt look like he splits the atom in his spare time and so would probably get caught one way or the other.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30802401

Laurie:t:

Below - Withymoor stuff and foxes in the morning sun and the bespoke Brompton toolkit that fits in the bike frame, a bargain:C @ 48 quid!
 

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Interesting article on Radio 4 yesterday regarding the development of new techniques to catch people who kill birds, esp raptors and egg collectors. A university in Scotland has developed a technique for 'lifting' finger prints from the feathers of birds and the shells of eggs. Obviously it wont work if people wear gloves, but as most if not all these people are idiots, some will slip up. Another useful tool to help catch and prosecute these morons. Sadly the fines and sentences are still too small to act as a punishment!

Gavin
 
Hi Gav - my last link was to the very people.

Vicarious liability has long been insisted perhaps the Scots will be the first to dip their toe, unlikely in my opinion. There are too many rich English landowners with their friends down in the House of Lords and who would put the RSPB up for the weekend?

The new guilty-by-association crime of 'Joint Enterprise' (no it's no a new drug-dealing franchise) is for the working classes, chavs, great unwashed, plebians, riffraff and hoi polloi - definately not for the blue-bloods and upper-class inbreds;)

I don't see any change anytime soon just look at the hundreds of hours spent debating fox-hunting and now they can get round it by carrying a Golden Eagle with them, the same people that would be setting traps and shooting them elsewhere! There is also talk of a repeal, you could'nt make it up mate.....

What do we 'Townies' know? A damn site more than them that's for sure:t:

All the best -

Laurie:t:
 
Following a Mark Avery tweet..... http://nblo.gs/12IL4r ..... it would appear that VL exists, in law at least, certainly in that Scotland place altho i have yet to hear of any high-profile landlords doing any chokey.....

https://raptorpersecutionscotland.wordpress.com/2012/03/10/vicarious-liability-whats-it-all-about/

The Tories appear to 'favour' it, certainly as far as garnering votes are concerned but we all know how manifestos are watered-down post election, just take a look at the fox-hunting fiasco.....

Just a quick visit to Withymoor ystda accompanied by a not-so-keen dog! BHG's @ ca125, LBB x2 adult, Tufties 4m 1f, 2x Pied Wags (nice male) and a feeding party of Goldfinch - it's possible to sex them if you feel a need to. Below a link to an excellent ringing blog.

http://two-in-a-bush.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/sexing-goldfinches-photographic-study.html

Brett's 4th instalment was 'Woodland' and covers the local area of Fairy Glen and Bunkers Wood mentioning the re-colonisation of the habitat by both Buzzard (22 following a ploughing tractor!) and Raven (1m of Stourbridge town) and the demise of passage, singing, Wood Warblers - good stuff http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04xrvb7

A nice bright day and coincidentally i shall be mooching around the old Whittington Sewage Farm area and circling back round Bunkers and the Stourbridge Tennis Club - it's an ideal time of year to look for any Merlin, Firecrest or Ravens displaying:eek!:

Laurie:t:

Attached, a smart singing male Wood Warbler - Spring is nearly here;) 'sibilatrix' means 'whistler' so, the Leaf-gazing whistler. Despite the coin-spinning song it's the Chiffchaff that is given a more appropriatly associated description.....'collybita' - money-changer or the sound made by coins being clashed. I can almost hear the first arrivals singing for the new digital generation of birders (NGB?).....'bit-coin', 'bit-coin', 'bit-coin';)
 

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In the footsteps of..........

Fri 16 Jan -

Decided to visit one or two local sites spurred on by Brett Westwoods series this week. I visit most of the localities that he mentions but perhaps only about 4 times a year concentrating instead on the local bodies of water and adjacent bits and bobs. His last instalment covers the area of canal from Cookley via Caunsall and down to the sewage treatment beds with the emphasis on the linear nature of the habitat and its' relative location adjacent to the river. The canal was constructed to run following the course of the Stour at this juncture due to the heavy sandstone outcrops that occur.http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04xs4b0

I have enjoyed Bretts' reminisces hugely. Not just because i have met him and chatted whilst out birding and the overlapping 'patch' aspect but also the fact that it highlights the enjoyment, knowledge and pleasure that is to be gained in simple observation and in doing so making some notes to jog the memory and compare as time, inevitably, marches on.

In a birding world that, if you peruse forums like this, that would appear to be dominated by twitching, rare birds, feather detail and DNA analysis it is refreshing to listen to a dedicated, knowledgeable observer that actually takes field notes (remember them?). I am no luddite and am keen to embrace technology, i carry a camera and an ipad in addition to a mobile phone and binoculars. None of this take up a lot of room and can come in so useful for recording and identification purposes but their is still room for notes.....

It is important to remember, for all the petrol-head twitchers out there, that the bulk of rare birds are found by local birders working their 'patch'. Granted that every county has their 'honeypot' sites and key nature reserves, particularly those posessing a coastline but a lot of stuff gets found by somebody walking the dog 'doing their bit'.

Recently a well-known big-hitter and annual participant in the 'Azores Club' stated that 'local birding' was for those with 'no transport and no money':C I took him to task and did not recieve a reply - those using the last precious hours of fossilised sunlight take note..... A lot of twitchers do a local patch (one within 5 miles, not one 30 miles away altho it depends on your definition of local) an awful lot don't and just hang on to the shirt-tails of those that get out and find things - being in a good location does help.....

Digression over.

First stop was Mary Stevens Park, a mix of half a dozen LBB's of different ages, single ad Herring Gull, ca300 BHG's, Grey Wagtail and 3 Goosander 2m1f. Of more interest was the presence of a couple of photographers. Not birders as such, a nice old lady in her mid-70's sporting a digital camera with a 600mm lens that weighed nearly as much as she did and a mid-50's Black bloke. Both were discussing the merits of equipment, the lady liked photographing stuff in flight and he just liked chucking bread and photographing birds. I pointed out the Goosander, Grey Wagtail and the different Gulls, plugged Withymoor and cycled on my way. The different socia-economic classes of this pair but their unified interest in cameras and birds was a pleasure to listen to.

Briefly popped in to Stourbridge Crematorium as it contains a decent clump of large Scots Pines which i feel will hold breeding Raven in the not too distant future? It was very quiet save for a party of chatty Goldfinches, always a pleasant sound, this contrasted with the solemn tinkling of a nearby wind-chime. Further investigation revealed the last resting place of a young boy - if there is a sadder thing than a childs grave then let me know:C.....

Down past Gibbett Wood and the old Whittington Sewage Farm now renamed Roundhill. It's halcyon days of hundreds of Curlew and wintering Spotshanks has long gone but there is still a decent range of habitats to be investigated. There is also the former Stewponey Sandpit which used to hold local Sand Martins. There is so much 'used to' about this area but one has to be positive. Ca300 BHG's circled the inaccessible settling tanks, a party of Linnets overhead, mewing Buzzard, feeding Coal Tit and a pair of displaying but not tumbling Ravens were noted. The fenced boundary of the sandpit has nice sections of Scots Pine which has recorded Firecrest in the past. One spp Brett did'nt mention was Goshawk, i predict this as a breeder within a couple of miles of Stourbridge within 5+ years.

Finished by cycling adjacent to Bunkers Wood. Feeding Bullfinch in the first of the Spring Hazel catkins, hunting female Sprawk and several vocal Mistle Thrushes in the bright conditions. The latter were still vocal whilst i was sheltering from a sleet attack earlier on, not for nothing are they know as 'Stormcocks':eek!:

Nothing to report to RBA but somebody, somewhere, doing their local patch will find a goodie for all those DINKIES from that London place to ogle!

Laurie:t:

Attached - Goosander, Storm over Stourbridge, Firecrest Pines and the new-look Bunkers!
 

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I had a quick walk around the partly frozen lake at M S Park yesterday afternoon, nothing out of the ordinary except for this little cutie!
 

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