[seggs]

thought i would start a new thread about my local area..
not to take any shine off the great durham thread but to be able to put more detailed reports on here for all to see..and hopefully some other local lads or visitors might contribute...of course main reports will still go into the durham thread.
here goes...
today dull and overcast morning....visited trow and leas mound area first..
walked my normal route from the car park around the quarry edges, no little owl showed and only a few wrens sounded.Then i was pleasantly surprised when a goldcrest appeared near the bush area of the quarry.
walked over to the bay areas ..a few oystercatchers ,redshanks and turnstones in the bays...1 shag and 2 cormorants fishing near the shore..and 7 eiders off frenchmans bay..a few fulmars soaring along the cliffs here also.
the leas mound area only had a few brave meadow pipits flying up and piping and a pair of linnets starting to set up territory..a female kestrel hunted here.
walked back down the path and 18 turnstones feeding on the grass beside target rock...and 20+ redshanks resting on the rocks on trow point...
3-4 jackdaws along the cliff line..
rabbits along the quarry more bold now.

[seggs]

went in search of the firecrest again, walked around the wooded area a couple of times before heading down the old mineral line a pair of l.t.tits in the wooded area at the bottom and a weasel ran over the path.
2 cock yellowhammers sang.
the horse fields had loads of thrushs including 20+ redwings and a pair of mistle thrushs.
back at the fircrest area again...i stood and waited on the small path and listened...sure enough a high pitched call sounded 20 yards ahead of me..
followed it and located the firecrest, watched for about 2 minutes before it headed off into the dense hawthorn not to be seen again by me on this visit..
had a another look around 3 pair of bullfinch, 2 pair of goldfinch and a pair of goldcrests(which i thought at first might be the firecrest again but no)..along with blue and great tits,robins,wrens,pheasants and chaffinch.
so its 4 out of 6 times for me with the firecrest..

[will@bill]

Originally Posted by seggs

went in search of the firecrest again, walked around the wooded area a couple of times before heading down the old mineral line a pair of l.t.tits in the wooded area at the bottom and a weasel ran over the path.
2 cock yellowhammers sang.
the horse fields had loads of thrushs including 20+ redwings and a pair of mistle thrushs.
back at the fircrest area again...i stood and waited on the small path and listened...sure enough a high pitched call sounded 20 yards ahead of me..
followed it and located the firecrest, watched for about 2 minutes before it headed off into the dense hawthorn not to be seen again by me on this visit..
had a another look around 3 pair of bullfinch, 2 pair of goldfinch and a pair of goldcrests(which i thought at first might be the firecrest again but no)..along with blue and great tits,robins,wrens,pheasants and chaffinch.
so its 4 out of 6 times for me with the firecrest..

not on you bike yeh and where is photo of firecrest

[seggs]

on the way back today stopped at the flats..
2 canada geese, 3 greylags and the pink footed goose flew in with 2 greylags.
10+ redshanks,3 dunlin,15+curlew and 3 snipe...60+ wigeon, 30+ sleepy teal and a few pair of mallards..lapwings displaying..2 stock doves..
a lbb gull amoung the usual gulls
and a 2nd weasel of the day darted thro- the grass
the water level here has dropped big style looks like the sluice gates have been opened.
.................
marine park
still alot of maintenance work going on here, half the lake still drained.
apart from the swans..3 pochard only one female..and 10+ tufted duck..
the park area had all the usual robins,wrens,blue and great tits,dunnocks..etc.
and a pair of herring gulls were getting intimate!

[seggs]

Originally Posted by will@bill

not on you bike yeh and where is photo of firecrest

sorry lads the firecrest still is winning on that front!
and the bike is winning on the other front....sorry behind!!!!lol...

[nellieberta]

Thought I'd put these picture on again of the Yellow Browed Warbler from Jarrow Cemetary taken on 08.03.08, seeing as this is the local board!
If the little blighter had co-operated they would have been great!
Also, an unusually pale black G.S.Woodpecker in the cemetary on the same day.

Joanne

[smitsel]

Originally Posted by seggs

back at the fircrest area again...i stood and waited on the small path and listened...sure enough a high pitched call sounded 20 yards ahead of me..
followed it and located the firecrest, watched for about 2 minutes before it headed off into the dense hawthorn not to be seen again by me on this visit..

Great report Steve,sounds like you've had a good day.Some nice shots too, unlucky with the firecrest maybe next time

[seggs]

Originally Posted by nellieberta

Thought I'd put these picture on again of the Yellow Browed Warbler from Jarrow Cemetary taken on 08.03.08, seeing as this is the local board!
If the little blighter had co-operated they would have been great!
Also, an unusually pale black G.S.Woodpecker in the cemetary on the same day.

Joanne

hi joanne
well done on the warbler shots...seen the bird a few times here but did not manage a single good shot..don,t know if the bird been seen lately.

[seggs]

Originally Posted by smitsel

Great report Steve,sounds like you've had a good day.Some nice shots too, unlucky with the firecrest maybe next time

hi pete
this little belter can be a real pain to find ...many have still not picked the bird up..sound can be the real key at times to finding it..
the best of a bunch of naff shots taken a few weeks ago

[geordie121]

Hi,
bit late but yesterday at the Lea's i saw, 1 SEO, 2 Kestrels, 1 Stonechat, 6 Eiders, 1 Shag, 5 Fulmars,7+ Skylarks. Quite an enjoyable trip out my first time there. The SEO views were amazing! Shame not to have seen the Little Owl.

Cheers

Geordie

[echo24]

Hi folks, back online after suffering from a dodgy computer for the last day or two...... Steve, the new thread is a great idea by the way - nice one mate ! :-))

Not too much to report as I could only manage an hour or so in Trow & the Leas late afternoon, I was hoping for a Wheatear as there's one due north any day now ;-)) but had to settle for a pair of Grey Partridge instead ( on the mound )........ Trow extremely quiet compared to a few days ago - no sign of any Owls and no Stonechats either - most unusual - wrong time of day i guess??

I'll be out & about in Marsden, Cleadon & Whitburn tomorrow so will hopefully have a bit more to post tomorrow night - fingers crossed :-))

Good birding everyone :-))

Cheers, Dougie.

PS, my Kestrel never lets me down - he loves getting his picture taken Lol!! ;-))

[nellieberta]

Originally Posted by seggs

hi joanne
well done on the warbler shots...seen the bird a few times here but did not manage a single good shot..don,t know if the bird been seen lately.

The guy my other half goes birding with, it's his local patch. He says he hasn't seen it for a few weeks now which is a shame as it's a fantastic bird, just doesn't keep still!

Off out tomorrow to look for the Firecrest at Boldon. Will this come under this thread?! Although I've been living here 7 years, I'm not from these parts originally, I'll have the ask the hubby which thread to put it on now! Geography was never my strong point.......

Joanne

[seggs]

Originally Posted by nellieberta

The guy my other half goes birding with, it's his local patch. He says he hasn't seen it for a few weeks now which is a shame as it's a fantastic bird, just doesn't keep still!

Off out tomorrow to look for the Firecrest at Boldon. Will this come under this thread?! Although I've been living here 7 years, I'm not from these parts originally, I'll have the ask the hubby which thread to put it on now! Geography was never my strong point.......

Joanne

hi joanne
the main theme of this thread is so you can give detailed reports of all the birds you have seen in this area..either common or rare they all count so everyone reading it can enjoy and get a good insite info. wise to whats about.. all reports are very welcome no matter how small... any important birds or something different i will also post on the durham site as others should, .. the durham thread is a important link to the bird club..committee wise and for viewing whats going on further afield than in s.tyneside..
the boundries are strange..old style from river to river really, not like the modern style..

[seggs]

Originally Posted by geordie121

Hi,
bit late but yesterday at the Lea's i saw, 1 SEO, 2 Kestrels, 1 Stonechat, 6 Eiders, 1 Shag, 5 Fulmars,7+ Skylarks. Quite an enjoyable trip out my first time there. The SEO views were amazing! Shame not to have seen the Little Owl.

Cheers

Geordie

hi geordie
me too on the bit late front..its confusing a few people.. the two threads..
but your report is what it is about tell us what you see..
on your visit..great stuff glad you enjoyed it
them little owls can be funny at times..either showing out in the open yards away or not even out..

[seggs]

Originally Posted by echo24

Hi folks, back online after suffering from a dodgy computer for the last day or two...... Steve, the new thread is a great idea by the way - nice one mate ! :-))

Not too much to report as I could only manage an hour or so in Trow & the Leas late afternoon, I was hoping for a Wheatear as there's one due north any day now ;-)) but had to settle for a pair of Grey Partridge instead ( on the mound )........ Trow extremely quiet compared to a few days ago - no sign of any Owls and no Stonechats either - most unusual - wrong time of day i guess??

I'll be out & about in Marsden, Cleadon & Whitburn tomorrow so will hopefully have a bit more to post tomorrow night - fingers crossed :-))

Good birding everyone :-))

Cheers, Dougie.

PS, my Kestrel never lets me down - he loves getting his picture taken Lol!! ;-))

glad you got the pc. problem sorted dougie..
look forward to the report tomorrow...not seen the partridges all week..
but the female kes..showed today... have found the stonechats near the old life guard station latterly ..worth a check...
nice. pics.. keep them coming..and reports

[nellieberta]

Unsuccessful attempt to see the Firecrest, but I'm not giving up yet!

Joanne

[rokermartin]

Pager report Whitburn this morning 94 Whooper Swan,Black Swan,5 Velvet Scoter,10 RT Diver flew past.

[seggs]

Originally Posted by nellieberta

Unsuccessful attempt to see the Firecrest, but I'm not giving up yet!

Joanne

thats the spirit!
some people have been here hours waiting...i tend to hang around for a while.. and then move off up the mineral line and come back..its a great spot for wheatear at the right time(horses fields) of year and warblers in the summer

[seggs]

Originally Posted by rokermartin

Pager report Whitburn this morning 94 Whooper Swan,Black Swan,5 Velvet Scoter,10 RT Diver flew past.

good report martin..i got it also on rba..text alert.
but no mention on the threads(except yours on here)

[nellieberta]

Originally Posted by seggs

thats the spirit!
some people have been here hours waiting...i tend to hang around for a while.. and then move off up the mineral line and come back..its a great spot for wheatear at the right time(horses fields) of year and warblers in the summer

Mick went there 3 or 4 times before he finally saw it. I'm Monday so might have another wander down!
We're waiting for the Wheatear in the field down the road (from Wardley) it was here around this time last year but possibly a bit early still. Having said that, I think the summer birds are on their way judging by all the Chiff Chaffs we've heard and seen today!

[rokermartin]

Hi Steve good idea of yours starting a South Tyneside thread, have to start checking the Leas and the Whitburn area for Wheatears and other migrants .

[echo24]

Hi folks, a great five hours out today…..

Cleadon hills this morning, nice & sunny :-)) – the missus dropped me off in whitburn and I walked back home….. single mistle thrush amongst a flock of c60 fieldfare, also great, blue & lt tits, yellowhammer, wren, blackbird, kestrel, chiffchaff (heard near water tower) and plenty of wood pigeons & corvids……..

Marsden quarry – cloud thickening ;-) …… dunnock & wren both singing beautifully, cock pheasant, kestrel, little owl, great & blue tits…..

Visited the lime kilns at souter, had a bit neb around and found evidence of foxes being in residence – plenty fur, bones & feathers knocking around – but most bizarrely there’s loads of peacock feathers at the north end of the site – maybe the fox has taken a local domestic bird?? Any ideas anyone??

Marsden bay – everything as normal (still waiting for sand martin) but one or two Kittiwakes have now started to occupy nest sites on the cliffs as well as c200 birds in the water north of the rock…..

The leas… skylark, stonechats, mipits, oystercatcher - no shorties though

Trow quarry – raining heavily now :-( …. Turnstones, redshanks, male kestrel, jackdaws & little owl…..also for those who are interested, there’s colts foot, scurvy grass & lesser celandine in flower now – great stuff!....

Good birding everyone…
Cheers, Dougie.

[seggs]

ive been off all week and had hoped for a wheatear on the leas.. and also checked marsden quarry/ golf coarse area,lizard lane etc. but no luck...
this time last year i was working away so did,nt get the first arrivals on the leas,..but did have 3 wheatears in the horses field(mount pleasant) on the 6-5-07.. also w.warbler and chiffchaff and swifts and l,whitethroat at barmstone the same day.

[The gaffer]

Steve,

This thread is an excellent idea but as Mark Newsome found out with his Whitburn birding website it is often difficult to get people to leave postings of sightings. Anyway good luck and I hope all goes well and I will contribute as often as possible.

Marsden Old Quarry this morning there were the usual inhabitants but no sign of any migrants yet. One item of note was a pair of kestrels carrying out an aerial display over the quarry made to look more dramatic by the brisk breeze.

Brian

[seggs]

started the day at mount pleasant..
no firecrest showed whilst me and the better half were here.
but one chiffchaff sang and showed(looks like the same bird as joanne had here..ringed)..also another one further down the mineral line towards downhill lane..song only with this one..the pair of l.t.tits here also.
much the same around here as before..bull,chaff and goldfinch,robins etc..
and 2 patridges in the horse field..
jarra cem..
a kingfisher flew over the road at the bottom of cem bank! nice surprise the first one ive seen around here all winter..the cem had more redwings than my last visit..50+ here..all the usual birds..only one gsw.and one treecreeper today...and 3 mistle thrush..but a chiffchaff on the outskirts(north end)..
the slake..
pretty much the usual redshanks 30+ and 10+ curlew...a few teal along the don.
decided to go to st.marys so our lass could see a firecrest next and were not disappointed