North Sea Thread (2 Viewers)

AFeather said:

I'm enjoying this thread.

Do you have any artificial feeders on the platform?

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No feeders. We are advised that feeders will only hold birds on the platform, which could prove hazardous. Water is the only thing we are advised to give them, but it is difficult to get water into the right place sometimes.

I must admit that I left a single apple out once when we had a big flock of Redwing about. They demolished it.

Pipit ID.

Gander said:

I've not had a chance to view the shots on a computer screen yet, but will post update when I have.

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I have now had a chance to look at the pictures I took on a computer screen. As such, I have moved from thinking Rock Pipit to Meadow Pipit. Photo attached here and also posted on Bird ID Q&A pages as final check.

Nothing new this afternoon, other than the return of the Iceland Gull.

I too enjoy this thread and today had my first Siskin ever in the garden (Shetland)- maybe it was the one off your platform

Helen

Pipit Update.

It seems that the general concensus of opinion concerning the Pipit pictured on post #182 is that it is a Rock Pipit. I will be reporting it as such, but have also sent the photos in to the NSBC recorder.

April 1st

Perfect conditions today, but no activity to report yet. Wind is now coming at us very gently out of the west, so I'm hopeful of arrivals this afternoon.

Seems like a good time to update the year list.

The 2017 List Updated
1. Herring Gull
2. Great Black-Backed Gull
3. Glaucous Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Fulmar
6. Kittiwake
7. Long-Tailed Duck
8. Common Scoter
9. Gannet
10. Guillemot
11. Greylag Goose
12. Collared Dove
13. Goldcrest
14. Woodpigeon.
15. Peregrine
16. Sparrowhawk
17. Blackbird
18. Common Gull
19. Pied Wagtail*
20. Yellowhammer*
21. Goldfinch
22. Siskin
23. Robin
24. Rock Pipit

Twenty four species is exactly half the amount of species found on the platform last year. Four species (Yellowhammer, Goldfinch, Siskin & Rock Pipit) on this years list are first reports for the platform, so first quarter of 2017 has been great. :t:

Gander said:

They demolished it

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I bet

Gander said:

Perfect conditions today, but no activity to report yet. Wind is now coming at us very gently out of the west, so I'm hopeful of arrivals this afternoon.

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Always interesting to read this thread and to see what's turning up 'out there'. Late morning today, just as the wind turned round to the southwest, I had five Siskins in two groups flying purposefully out to sea from Aberdeen. They might be with you soon.

Rock On.

Andrew Whitehouse said:

I had five Siskins in two groups flying purposefully out to sea from Aberdeen. They might be with you soon.

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Sadly, I've had no more Siskins following Friday's bird. In fact, I had no more anything yesterday, despite the conditions looking favourable. Today has also been quiet, but I did spot my second Rock Pipit. It was in the same sort of spot as the first Rock Pipit; down on the metal skirt of the SE leg, pecking away amongst the seaweed exposed by the dropping tide.

Of course, it is possible that this is the same bird I saw on Friday, and it has been hanging about unnoticed down near the splash zone.

End of trip.

Today is my last full day onboard of this trip. April has promised much with favourable weather, but delivered very lttle so far. Sadly, the only bird of note was found deceased. Body was disposed of before I could make an ID, but from the description, I have, with a bit of help, been able to confim the bird as having been a Ruff. A first report for the platform, but always a downer when it's a dead bird.

Thankfully, we don't get too many dead birds. I can only remember a handful over 25 yrs that have been because of collision with the platform. Tired birds coming into land, may get caught out by strong air currents formed by the bulk and angularity of the structure channeling the winds. Some birds do find their way into internal areas, but are unable to find an exit from the large process modules. Biggest cause of bird death though is exhaustion. Most prone to this seems to be the Goldcrests, with some years bringing heavy falls.

In the Autumn time especially, we get large flocks of birds drawn in at night by the lights. They will circle the platform for hours, but at daybreak they head off strongly. I often wonder how much of an adverse effect the platforms have on birds, especially in regards to the lights, but from what I've witnessed, the effect seems largely to be a delay rather than a full stop.

Do the platforms have any benefitial effects? Certainly, a lot of birds will rest up or even roost on the platforms. Hawks and owls will stay for days sometimes and feed up on the smaller migrants, although that could also be listed as a detrimental effect from the smaller birds point of view.

Hopefully, it all balances out, and the industry is not doing any long term damage by being here.

Last Minute Bird

I am now posting from home, but have one last bird to report on before I sign off for the next three weeks. This afternoon found me under the heli-deck waiting on the chopper that was to fly me off to Aberdeen. With minutes to go, there was a platform wide Tannoy message transmitted on the PA system, asking me to phone a certain number.

I phoned the number and was informed that a bird, specifically a wader, had been found and picked up alive on the Skid Deck. I was asked if I wanted to see it. I most certainly did!

As I had my survival suit on for the flight, I arranged to meet the person who had the bird at the entrance of the accommodation block, three levels below. I hurriedly descended the stairs and was met as arranged by two riggers, one of whom was gently cradling a bird in his hands. A year or so ago, I would not have recognised this bird, but today I knew at once that this bird would be the first Golden Plover reported for the platform. Well on its way to summer plumage, the bird looked healthy enough and unharmed. The wind had got up over night and had been over fifty knots, so it was probably just needing to rest up. I advised for the bird to be taken to a quiet spot and have water made available to it. The quiet spot was an open sided container, so once it had hopefully recovered, it would be free to leave under its own steam.

Before I hurried away to catch my "taxi", I also asked for a couple of photos to be taken. If these materialise when I return to the platform, I will of course post them.

The 2017 List Updated
1. Herring Gull
2. Great Black-Backed Gull
3. Glaucous Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Fulmar
6. Kittiwake
7. Long-Tailed Duck
8. Common Scoter
9. Gannet
10. Guillemot
11. Greylag Goose
12. Collared Dove
13. Goldcrest
14. Woodpigeon.
15. Peregrine
16. Sparrowhawk
17. Blackbird
18. Common Gull
19. Pied Wagtail*
20. Yellowhammer*
21. Goldfinch
22. Siskin
23. Robin
24. Rock Pipit
25. Ruff*
26. Golden Plover

Wow, you are getting lots of new ones this year, great to hear

Helen

Another nice platform tick ! hope the G.P recovered,

Mark

Interesting to hear your thoughts on birds arriving. From the years I have worked out in the North Sea I tend to agree with this. Even during October you can go days without anything. Fog in a morning will often drop the birds in and often you have a few hours for the fog to clear to see what is on board. There have been times where the rig has birds all over but by midday everything has gone. This is the ideal scenario as the birds just continue on. Birds that stay a day or two often don't make it although we do have Jackdaw breeding offshore, raptors can stay for long periods as well. On one job off West Africa I kept finding wings etc, of species such as Turtle Dove and Hoopoe but never saw the birds alive. The culprit turned out to be a Peregrine which was killing everything, except for some sickly Terns which were left alone, probably don't taste very good.

New trip - New Birds

I've been back out here since Wednesday, and pretty miserable it has been, with it feeling colder than in February and March. First couple of days were dominated by a cold north wind and heavy rain. Only a few Fulmar and GBBG about. Wind changed to a South Easterly on Friday and lost a lot of its strength, but no change on the bird spotting until yesterday.

A "small (but bigger than a Goldcrest), yellowish bird, that looked finchy" was reported to me as having been present in the afternoon. I'm guessing Siskin. In the evening though, I had definite sightings of six Swallows, along with a House Martin reported as being present. I see the Swallows here every few years or so, but I can't remember having seen a House Martin at the platform before.

Looking forward, the wind is back up again and changing to a north easterly, so I'm not holding my breath as to getting much new to report. As if to bear that out, my normal morning count produced a grand total of one GBBG.

I've updated the year list below with the Hirundine sightings, plus the Golden Plover that was discovered on my last day of last trip. I have not heard what the eventual outcome was for the GP, as the guys that found it have not returned to the platform yet. I'll post update when I get the word.

Golden Plover, Swallow and House Martin did not appeared on last year's list, so it would seem that I am well on my way to seeing my target of fifty species reported.

The 2017 List Updated
1. Herring Gull
2. Great Black-Backed Gull
3. Glaucous Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Fulmar
6. Kittiwake
7. Long-Tailed Duck
8. Common Scoter
9. Gannet
10. Guillemot
11. Greylag Goose
12. Collared Dove
13. Goldcrest
14. Woodpigeon.
15. Peregrine
16. Sparrowhawk
17. Blackbird
18. Common Gull
19. Pied Wagtail*
20. Yellowhammer*
21. Goldfinch
22. Siskin
23. Robin
24. Rock Pipit
25. Ruff*
26. Golden Plover
27. Swallow*
28. House Martin*

I was wrong

Gander said:

Looking forward, the wind is back up again and changing to a north easterly, so I'm not holding my breath as to getting much new to report.

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I was wrong. We had a few more arrivals yesterday. I started getting reports of the odd small bird being seen in diddrent areas. Then in the afternoon, I spotted a bird fly in and land on a high scaffold pole. It was sihouetted against the sky, so I couldn't make an identification, but I got a warbler type feel from what I saw. The bird flew off around a corner and I could not relocate it.

Later, I took a wander around the platform, and sadly the first bird I found was a deceased Chiffchaff. Heading up to the Accommodation roof level however, I turned a corner and there on the metal plate deck, a few feet in front of me was a sleeping Blackcap. This female bird had found a quiet little spot out of the chilling wind and had gone to sleep in its own little sun trap. I tried to back away without disturbing it, but its eyes opened and it dived into cover.

I now suspect the various reports of birds being seen diving into cover around the platform are probably Blackcap.

This morning, before start of work, I received a call from an off-going nightshift worker. He reported seeing a possible Peregrine flying about on the south side of the platform. I headed out to investigate, and eventually got a sighting of the bird. Not a Peregrine, but a Sparrowhawk.

The 2017 List Updated
1. Herring Gull
2. Great Black-Backed Gull
3. Glaucous Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Fulmar
6. Kittiwake
7. Long-Tailed Duck
8. Common Scoter
9. Gannet
10. Guillemot
11. Greylag Goose
12. Collared Dove
13. Goldcrest
14. Woodpigeon.
15. Peregrine
16. Sparrowhawk
17. Blackbird
18. Common Gull
19. Pied Wagtail*
20. Yellowhammer*
21. Goldfinch
22. Siskin
23. Robin
24. Rock Pipit
25. Ruff (d)*
26. Golden Plover
27. Swallow
28. House Martin*
29. Chiffchaff (d)
30. Blackcap

Swallows

Two Swallows roosting on the platform this evening. :t:

Another Good Day.

Currently, I am working on nightshift, however, as I start at 17:30 hrs and finish at 05:30 hrs, I still get quite a few hours of daylight before dusk and after dawn.

In addition to these onshift daylight hours, I also popped up to the helideck area for a quick check at about 16:00 hrs. There is a small access mezz here that allows me to look over the helideck and also over the flat roof of the upper accommodation. I have found this to be a good area for birds, as it is high up and fairly open, but with a bit of available cover in the form of ducting and support structure. It was in this area that I spotted the sleeping Blackcap a few days ago. Today, I found a wide awake Blackcap, and although it was also a female, I don't think it was the same bird.

Having checked out the area, I started to head down the access stairs when my eye was drawn by a movement. I thought it would be the Blackcap reappearing from the cover it had dived into, but instead, a busy little Willow Warbler appeared. It fussed around then flew off in an easterly direction.

An hour or so later, I was descending the south side of the platform. I had an eye open for Swallows and also for Sparrowhawk. When heading up the same route at about 06:00 hrs this morning, I'd seen both flying about. I'd known that a couple of Swallow had roosted overnight, but hadn't realised that the Sparrowhawk spotted a day or two ago, had hung about.

Now heading down the stairs, I suddenly saw a hawk in the air, but this was no Sparrowhawk this time. Instead, I found myself looking down at a soaring Kestrel. Another first for the year. Not an unusual visitor however. Later in the evening, while doing my rounds, I found the bird again. This time perched on a scaffold pole. I returned with a camera, but it was gone. Then suddenly it swooped into sight. I froze as it dived towards me and landed about 8ft away on a steel beam. I tried to slowly raise the camera, but the slight movement gave my presence away and it was off again.

I've seen the Kestrel a couple more times this evening, and also found a Chiffchaff and another Willow Warbler. I may also have seen the Sparrowhawk again at about 21:30 hrs in the semi darkness. It was certainly a hawk, and I don't think it was the Kestrel. It was at distance and heading away from the platform in an easterly direction. Whichever hawk it was, hopefully it will soon be flying in Norwegian airspace.

The 2017 List Updated
1. Herring Gull
2. Great Black-Backed Gull
3. Glaucous Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Fulmar
6. Kittiwake
7. Long-Tailed Duck
8. Common Scoter
9. Gannet
10. Guillemot
11. Greylag Goose
12. Collared Dove
13. Goldcrest
14. Woodpigeon.
15. Peregrine
16. Sparrowhawk
17. Blackbird
18. Common Gull
19. Pied Wagtail*
20. Yellowhammer*
21. Goldfinch
22. Siskin
23. Robin
24. Rock Pipit
25. Ruff (d)*
26. Golden Plover
27. Swallow
28. House Martin*
29. Chiffchaff
30. Blackcap
31. Willow Warbler
32. Kestrel

Crow

Another little surprise turned up at first light this morning in the shape of a Carrion Crow. As far as I'm aware, Carrion Crows don't migrate, however, we have had a few in the past. Usually, they seem to appear when we have a supply boat in the area, so I think they may come out with the ships, then do a bit of platform hopping. No supply boat hear at the moment, but a diving support vessel arrived a few miles away in the hours of darkness, so I'm wondering if our Corvid came with them from Dundee.

Talking about birds with boats; several fishing boats (probably from Peterhead) have turned up in the area. They have brought a lot of gulls with them. Our population of GBBGs over the last week had been running at less than ten. Last night I counted one hundred and sixty six.

The 2017 List Updated
1. Herring Gull
2. Great Black-Backed Gull
3. Glaucous Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Fulmar
6. Kittiwake
7. Long-Tailed Duck
8. Common Scoter
9. Gannet
10. Guillemot
11. Greylag Goose
12. Collared Dove
13. Goldcrest
14. Woodpigeon.
15. Peregrine
16. Sparrowhawk
17. Blackbird
18. Common Gull
19. Pied Wagtail*
20. Yellowhammer*
21. Goldfinch
22. Siskin
23. Robin
24. Rock Pipit
25. Ruff (d)*
26. Golden Plover
27. Swallow
28. House Martin*
29. Chiffchaff
30. Blackcap
31. Willow Warbler
32. Kestrel
33. Carrion Crow

Hawk report

Report of the Sparrowhawk still being present throughout the day. No sign of it when I came on shift, however, the male Kestrel from yesterday was very evident. Nearly got a photo of it perched a couple of times, but every time I try to point a camera at it, it takes off.

Later in the evening, I spotted the bird flying off the South side, when all of a sudden, there were two of them. The male has now been joined by a female. Both last seen just before dark, playing tag.

No small birds today though.

Frustration.

It has been a frustrating few days. Or really I should say it has been a frustrating few nights.

I last saw the male Kestrel on the evening of the 4th. Plenty of reports of it being about in the day, and also reports of a "Sparrowhawk". I'm not convinced about the Sparrowhawk reports. I think it more likely that it was the female Kestrel being incorrectly identified.

Yesterday, there were no hawk sightings at all. It is fairly typical for Kestrels to hang about a platform for a few days, then head off once they realise there are no voles on these metal islands. Today, however, a male Kestrel was again spotted by more than one person. My gut instinct is that it is a fresh bird, but I've not seen it myself, so I'm only guessing.

Last night was foggy, and typically, we had a few birds in. The frustrating thing is that it was impossioble to identify any of them. I would just see a flash of bird morement as something dived into one of the many dark nooks and crannies on here. Quite often, the electric strip lights are more of a hinderance than a help, as they are quite blinding if you look anywhere near their direction.

I have had a few really good nights for birds over the last 25 years. The one that really stands out in my memory was the night we had four hawks onboard together. From memory, there were two Kestrels about, but the cherry on the cake was my first, and only, Merlin. I found it sitting on a steel beam, inches under a grating walkway. I got down on my hands and knees to get a good look at it through the grating. My face was only a few feet away from its face as we watched each other. It knew I was there, but did not seem in the slightest bit bothered. Having had a good look, I backed off and left it to roost.

Heading away from the Merlin, I turned a corner, and there in front of me was a Buzzard. The bird was sat on a scaffold pole just inches above the walkway handrail. It had its head tucked under its wing. I was able to walk right up to the bird. If I'd wanted, I could have just plucked it off its perch; it was that close. I passed on by. I kick myself now about the Buzzard because though I knew it was definitely a Buzzard, I never bothered at the time to identify whether or not it was Common or Rough Legged.

This afternoon, I popped up to the high vantage point that looks out over the helideck and accommodation roof. With a heavy overcast sky and cool north wind, it didn't look promising, but almost immediately I spotted a large flock of birds heading north east, low over the water. They were at distance though. I am fairly sure they were Anser Geese of some sort, but they were too far off for a definite dentification. More frustration!!!