Essex Birding (2 Viewers)

[auchinbowie]

Possible Eleanora's Falcon reported in Southampton today. INFLUX! lol

IF, and it is a big IF, these observations are indeed of an Eleonora's Falcon, it is far more likely that the same bird is involved. 120 miles is well within a day's flight range. It would take incremental information for me to expect otherwise. This could be a new sighting in Essex from a better observer, who has not been influenced by prior reports or the Hampshire record being of a dark phase bird. Actually we do not even know whether the Abberton record was of a presumed light or dark phase individual.

Far from an influx, the present status would not even make a single bird a good 50:50 bet. Wish it were otherwise.

Stewart also made a valid point that that it could be an escape. So far as I know, Eleonora's Falcon is not kept widely by falconers. IF the bird is such, this possibility must still be investigated. There are plenty of category E birds around. Harris's Hawk is a regular locally. RBA also regularly show Red-breasted Geese in Essex. These summer birds will not be wild.

Dave

 

[Original PaulE]

Stewart/Sherlock,

I think Paul E may be an observer who submits records, including Abberton, to the EBR database each year. If so Liz Huxley can confirm the identity.

Regards,

Watson

my identity remains top secret
I saw a saker type falcon at abberton a couple of years ago which i think was an escape.these people seem very careless with their birds!!! So can't be ruled out.
Be interesting to see if it hangs about

Cheers

 

[auchinbowie]

my identity remains top secret
I saw a saker type falcon at abberton a couple of years ago which i think was an escape.these people seem very careless with their birds!!! So can't be ruled out.
Be interesting to see if it hangs about

Cheers

Paul,

I suspect that you are referring to the Saker type, reported from both Abberton and Cudmore Grove in October and November 2011. I am relieved to see that you agree that it was an escape as, it has been assigned to Category E (and will appear in Appendix II in the EBR). Falconers appear to keep moreSakers than Eleonora's but I am sure that potential source will be checked (if the identification is even accepted).

Falconers get most upset when they lose a bird. The effort to train one is considerable. Short of attaching a wire to the leg, they have to run that risk with every flight. We recognise the likes of Sakers and Harris's Hawks as escapes but I suspect a small proportion of Peregrine records will also be such.

I respect your privacy. Otherwise I may have to roll up a trouser leg, hop around a room and eat liver to escope your wrath. The link to the EBWS website unmasked me. Have to find a new monika.

Please advise, if known, which phase of Eleonora's Falcon was believed to be at Abberton. Also the confidence level of the identification. I have already made it clear that I am not very confident about my identification.

Dave

 

[Alan Tilmouth]

This is not helped by "Birdguides" observations never being attributed to any individual.

This is not the case, whilst it is true that like all the main news services birdguides source a proportion of news from a wide variety of sources, some of which aren't attributable to individuals, county recorders can request the details of individual observations via email in order to chase up descriptions etc.

In this instance the early report was found via a third party source without observer details and as such would have gone out as unconfirmed even if the report had not contained the word possible.

 

[auchinbowie]

In this instance the early report was found via a third party source without observer details and as such would have gone out as unconfirmed even if the report had not contained the word possible.

Alan,

Thank you for the clarification. So far as Essex is concerned we have 2 dubious identifications, so unless there are futher reports, the record should and will be discarded. Even if the Hampshire bird is accepted, there is nothing to prove that the records are anything more than coincidental. This is probably the end of this story. So "Over and out".

Dave

 

[Frinton BO]

The earlier possible Eleonora's report which was posted on the yahoo group was from Liz (Abberton Centre Manager) who said "?? possible Eleanora's falcon reported from Layer Breton causeway 8.45am - seen only very briefly, and not seen again since. Keep your eyes open!"

Hope that closes the loop!

Regards

Paul

 

[Steve_Halstead]

Black tailed godwits en masse in Heybridge/Maldon on the ponds...

 

[Steve_Halstead]

Scores of Black tailed godwits, cormorants, gulls, Turnstones, Green woodpeckers on a walk from goldhanger to Maldon.

Highlight was coming back and seeing in this photo some gulls were fighting over a frog, not a highlight for the froggie.

 

[andygolfer]

Red kite low over the street , terling (CM3 2PG) at 5.45 today, wing and tail feathers were a bit tatty.

Only about 400metres from where I saw my first ever Essex Red kite on 9th March 2009

 

[Steve Arlow]

An adult White-tailed Eagle was reported over Tropical Wings, near South Woodham Ferrers, yesterday. No further detail other than that really but now adds another 'eagle' seen in the past few weeks around the south and east with the possible Short-toed Eagle over Benfleet/South Fambridge, probably Booted Eagle in Norfolk near Holt and the possible Bonelli's Eagle in Kent.

There is often mid-summer 'eagle' scares but four of four different species is exceptional.

 

[andygolfer]

spent the morning around Hatfield Peverel, Boreham & Terling area, 5 buzzards noted, 2 together over woodland south west of Terling then 3 together over Termitts Farm between Hatfield Peverel & Terling (see attached pics, I got one of 3 together but they were only silhouettes), 3 green woodpeckers, lots of birdsong but couldnt see the birds well enough to identify them for foliage and then back on the A12 bridge as i was putting my camera back in the car the star of the day - a red kite passed very close and quite low between the trees and down the embankment towards the A12, by the time I got the lens cover off it was disappearing into the trees south of the A12!

 

[Steve Arlow]

several sites covered locally today.

At Southend Seafront had a count of 186 Mediterranean Gulls which equals the Essex record I set here in July 2009. I was late for the tide so there was probably a lot more birds I did not see so I will have to try again and get it right with the tide.

Paglesham Lagoon was quiet apart from breeding wildfowl and 23 MedGulls, of which 5 were pristine Juveniles.

Tewkes Creek, Canvey Island gave me a superb summer plumaged Curlew Sandpiper and summer plumaged Knot along with a count of 182 Black-tailed Godwits. Many of these godwits were no doubt on Two Tree Island lagoon over the high tide along with 8 Common Sandpipers and 18 Greenshanks. A Brent Goose was scoped on Canvey Point from the Two Tree slipway and a juvenile Peregrine did a fly by.

Finally the egret roost on the east end of Two Tree Island held 56 at least birds from the hide with nice views of Common Sandpiper and Greenshank.

 

[Steve_Halstead]

I was able to see a ruff at layer causeway on abberton yesterday.

 

[BirdPics]

Very windy on the Layer Breton causeway this morning, we pulled up and the Osprey was flying around, about 9:45 it circled up high and glided off towards the estuary, went back to the causeway at 1pm and no sign of it. Interesting where the proposed platform is going to be (see pic below) quite exposed area opposite the centre, can be kept an eye on though, I was also told that because this bird has been around for a while they will probably put one up around the causeway area too.

 

[Linfordbirder]

An adult White-tailed Eagle was reported over Tropical Wings, near South Woodham Ferrers, yesterday. No further detail other than that really but now adds another 'eagle' seen in the past few weeks around the south and east with the possible Short-toed Eagle over Benfleet/South Fambridge, probably Booted Eagle in Norfolk near Holt and the possible Bonelli's Eagle in Kent.

There is often mid-summer 'eagle' scares but four of four different species is exceptional.

... been an interesting few weeks with eagle and Eleanora's falcon (possible) sightings. Keeping the camera to hand but so far only pic is of the Osprey which encouragingly has resided at Abberton LBC.

 

[Linfordbirder]

Out with my wife on a ramblers walk from Danbury yesterday, then an hour at Abberton before heading home. Some nice ruff at Abberton LBC, males still with the black blotchy chest feathers (first I've seen like that) couple of juvs (I think) too. Sharp wing patterned feathering looked good in evening sun. The osprey sat silhouetted in it's usual branch. A juvenile garganey looked very much an ugly duckling as it appeared to be doing all it was able to accelerate new plumage.

Yellowhammers, and a sparrowhawk seen on the walk, but I heard a less familiar call in the EWT Heather Hills reserve. Didn't have my bins, but I think it may have been bullfinches. Checked xeno-canto today and the call sounds close but although I have occasionally seen them before it's not a species I get very often down my patch. Anyone been birding this area and know whether they are seen there?

Steve

 

[JamesA]

Bullfinch aren't as scarce as people seem to think - I reckon they're pretty much everywhere in the county, though thinly spread and unobtrusive - and I've seen a fair few in the Danbury area. The call is distinctive once you're on to it.

 

[JamesA]

... been an interesting few weeks with eagle and Eleanora's falcon (possible) sightings. Keeping the camera to hand but so far only pic is of the Osprey which encouragingly has resided at Abberton LBC.

... and not to put too much of a downer on things, 4+ ospreys spend late summer and autumn around Poole Harbour in Dorset every year, and have done so for years. Despite there being plenty of suitable natural nesting habitat and a couple of man made perches/platforms they've never made the effort to use it...

 

[Steve Arlow]

Bullfinch aren't as scarce as people seem to think - I reckon they're pretty much everywhere in the county, though thinly spread and unobtrusive - and I've seen a fair few in the Danbury area. The call is distinctive once you're on to it.

They are scarce in South East Essex with only 3 semi regular sites for them which for a whole corner of the county shows how scarce they have become. Some areas of the county may hold more but overall they are declining.

I used to see them all the time in Belfairs and Hockley Woods but they are now gone from there.

 

[andygolfer]

I had a pair in my garden back in April, pruning the buds on my apple tree! they only stayed around for a couple of days and I ahven't seen them since - i managed to get some photos of them while they were there.....