Durham Birding (5 Viewers)

StevieEvans · Sep 30, 2008

Thrushes

Kinghorn the bird brain. said:
Wow Scuzz they are great photo's! It most take some patients Hobby in Durham is something I'd love to see.

The Hobby mostly takes flying insects - i think your gonna have to have a great deal of patience while walking up & down doing your rounds, as the patients must all be safely tucked up in their horse-pittle beds by now.

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Lots of thrushes about this morning, approx 50 Song Thrush & 100 Blackbird around Rainton Bridge/Meadows area. Also 4 Redwings at Joes Pond with another flock of 12 flying over SW.

Shaggy2070 · Sep 30, 2008

Sandwich Tern

A bit late now

, Sandwich Tern at Newburn Bridge yesterday.
I thought it would've been long gone by now:flyaway:

IanF · Sep 30, 2008

Shaggy2070 said:
A bit late now, Sandwich Tern at Newburn Bridge yesterday.
I thought it would've been long gone by now:flyaway:

A tad late! Let hope it still make it south!

IanF · Sep 30, 2008

Not much chance to get out today with the lousy weather.

Greatham Creek - Greenshank x1, Little Egret x2, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Cormorant, Dunlin and loads of Redshank. Linnet c.20, Stonechat and Goldfinch c.20 along the path by the Creek.

A fox came wandering down the path towards where I was sat in the car. saw me and sat down! 30 secs later it was off again back down the path.

A Sparrowhawk spent most of the morning in the garden as well.

rokermartin · Sep 30, 2008

Shaggy2070 said:
A bit late now, Sandwich Tern at Newburn Bridge yesterday.
I thought it would've been long gone by now:flyaway:

Sandwich Terns are usually the last terns to leave.You can sometimes see them well into October and even November.Saw my last Sandwich Tern on the 17th of Nov last year at Hartlepool.Some winter in the UK and Ireland.

JBee · Oct 1, 2008

Shaggy2070 and I spent a few hours on the headland beach at Hartlepool before moving along to Newburn Bridge where the sandwich tern flew in and sat for us for what must have been a good hour.
Setting up on the beach just before low water is ideal as when the tide turns and starts pushing the birds towards you they seem to accept you being there quite readily.

Fingers crossed the ID's are L-R
Sandwich tern, Knot, Sleepy Dunlin, Redshank, Squabbling Ringed plover

Ray.Scott · Oct 1, 2008

Hetton Boggs today:
Very quiet with a few of the regular Titts, mallards, coots etc, I think mainly because of the regular fly overs of the sphawk all day.

Nice meeting Seggs again today :t:. Not much happened after you left other than the pheasant, the odd chaffinch & a few common darters :C.

IanF · Oct 1, 2008

Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park this afternoon - Very close views of Buzzard over ploughed field on north side of Claxton Beck. It certainly gave a shock to two Crows and a Sparrowhawk they were berrating as they all shot out of the tree as it passed. It headed west and then north towards Greatham works.

Also Barnacle Goose x4 over the same area following Claxton Beck west towards Wynyard - a year tick if not a patch tick.

Very few other birds seen away from the main pond and car park hedges where Blue Tit, Great Tit, Dunnock, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Reed Bunting and Tree Sparrow were making use of the table feeders. Also Magpie and Wren in the hedge.

Quite a few dragonflies around in sheltered areas with Migrant Hawker 12+, Ruddy Darter c.10, Common Darter c.8 all in the brambles in the NW corner of the pond. Speckled Wood 20+ around as well.

JWTodd · Oct 2, 2008

note

The Durham Bird Club field trip to Holy Island & the Northumberland coast on Sunday (5th) is now fully booked.

Ray.Scott · Oct 2, 2008

Managed a couple of hours at RM's today:

Much the same on the main pond with the exception of:. A Whooper Swan made two brief landings. Only very brief as when it touched down both times, It was chased of by one of the mute swans. When It departed It was heading North West.
Another first time photo for me :t:.

JBee · Oct 2, 2008

Behavioural question
I was wondering whether gulls ate insects?
It would seem that frantic activity seems to occur when a hatch takes place on the water and that activity doesn't appear to be associated with "washing/preening".
All the flock seem to react and cease at the roughly the same time with the activity lasting a minute or so.
I took the shots today as a caddis fly hatch seemed to be be going on (judging by the caddis flies landing near me)
The birds method seems to vary between hurried water skipping/hopping/dipping and full blown gannet type dives.
Am I right in my assumption or a mile off the mark?

rokermartin · Oct 2, 2008

Hi JBee gulls do catch and eat insects mainly the smaller gulls such as BH Gulls and especially Little Gulls.

StevieEvans · Oct 3, 2008

Scuzz said:
Managed a couple of hours at RM's today:

Much the same on the main pond with the exception of:. A Whooper Swan made two brief landings. Only very brief as when it touched down both times, It was chased of by one of the mute swans. When It departed It was heading North West.
Another first time photo for me :t:.

Right place right time there Ray :t:
Ah, the joys of local patching
time after time its the same old usual suspects from the hide..... then something new out of the blue to add a bit colour & interest...
(Whoopers not a common sight down there - only ever seen one on the lake myself)

Sadly missed your Swan, but late aftnoon produced:- 5 Dunlin (Cleadon Lane eat your heart out!), 1Water Rail, 14Snipe, prGadwall, 1PFGoose, mRuddy Duck, 33M.Pipit, 12R.Bunting, 1swGrey Wagtail, 1swG'SWpkr, 1-2Kingfisher (with 2 also on the wildfowlers flighting pool)

Lots of raptors up yesterday,Buzzards prominant 5 over Lord Lambtons, another 5 over the Wear valley between Finchale & Ch-le-St with singles at Rainton, Morton Wood, & nr Warden Law

StevieEvans · Oct 3, 2008

JBee said:
Behavioural question
I was wondering whether gulls ate insects?
It would seem that frantic activity seems to occur when a hatch takes place on the water and that activity doesn't appear to be associated with "washing/preening".
All the flock seem to react and cease at the roughly the same time with the activity lasting a minute or so.
I took the shots today as a caddis fly hatch seemed to be be going on (judging by the caddis flies landing near me)
The birds method seems to vary between hurried water skipping/hopping/dipping and full blown gannet type dives.
Am I right in my assumption or a mile off the mark?

never noticed this John, (v.many caddis fly about yestday aftnoon) looks like theyve targeted them just as they were to emerge.

BHGulls are regularly seen soaring up a height in summer , often mixed with Starling taking flying ants etc.

Have seen BHgulls several times taking (what i presumed would be moths emerging ..??) from standing Hay crops in the Dales at dusk (& after !).
They (sometimes 30 over one field) hawked low just skimming over the tops of the seed heads, grabbing at items from the grass or in flight just above it, but never once landing.
The effect in the half light was of a flock of barn owls:eek!:

DEREK.C. · Oct 3, 2008

A few pics from the last week.

DEREK.C. · Oct 3, 2008

And a few Gulls.

NeilF · Oct 3, 2008

DEREK.C. said:
A few pics from the last week.

Well done Derek for managing to capture a YBW. Just out of interest is that the one from Cresswell or somewhere else?

DEREK.C. · Oct 3, 2008

NeilF said:
Well done Derek for managing to capture a YBW. Just out of interest is that the one from Cresswell or somewhere else?

Hartlepool Headland Neil, last Saturday.

Ray.Scott · Oct 3, 2008

A few from RM's freezer/hide today:

Not sure on image 2, GBB Gull, I think, but the beak looks different!. If It wasn't for the beak, I would guess 3rd winter, looking at my book.
Image 4 is the cross Canada or whatever, looks to be in a bad mood.

The gaffer · Oct 3, 2008

JBee said:
Behavioural question
I was wondering whether gulls ate insects?

Where I work I regularly see herring gulls diving about the grassy areas eating crane flies when they are hatching.

Brian

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