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Dowles Brook, Wyre Forest (3 Viewers)

I keep going to the Wyre Forest / Dowles Brook looking for Wood Warbler and Tree Pipit but I never seem to see any. I may be looking in the wrong places. Any advice welcome (pm me if easier), Thanks, Alex

I saw the Wood Warblers in Knowles Coppice from the path not far from where you enter it from the old railway line. The Pied Flycatcher was here as well. The tree pipits were on the other side of the railway line (going away from Dowles Brook) in the Oak tree's. I only saw them in one place today but I normally find them in clearings where there are just a few Oaks. Hope this helps.
 
I haven't been there yet this year but I have always seen the relevant birds in more or less the same spots each year. Also listening for their calls help so if you don't know their calls I advise you to try and find them out. You can't beat locating by call then tracking them down until you see them.

The Pied Fly & Wood Warbler is where Matt has suggested. I also get Wood Warbler further down the valley whilst walking along the stream back to the car park. Pied Flys can also be further into the wood.

Tree Pipit are usually in the clearing on your left as you walk from the Dry Mills car park (just before the turning for the Pied Fly).

Redstart. Cross over the second bridge you come to and go into what is called the Paddocks. You can also stop on the bridge and listen out for them. If they are not showing for a while walk to the other end of the field (away from the bridge) and go through into the next area and I have had them there as well.

John
 
I keep going to the Wyre Forest / Dowles Brook looking for Wood Warbler and Tree Pipit but I never seem to see any. I may be looking in the wrong places. Any advice welcome (pm me if easier), Thanks, Alex

Along the railway line the cross-tracks a few hundred metres west of Lodge Hill Farm is always good for Wood Warbler. I often have Tree Pipit in the cleared area above the railway line just before the gate into Knowles Coppice.
 
Thanks folks, I have been more or less in the right areas. I admit I am not the best with bird song but I think I now have a handle on Tree Pipit and Wood Warbler so I will give it a go again some time next week, Alex
 
Hi Alex - In a wooded habitat such as Wyre Forest birds are, more often than not, picked up on either call or song before locating the individual visually. If the songs are not your strong point and it's only practice then i would'nt bother with the calls such as alarm/contact at present. No matter what the weather the signature species will be singing for a while (pre-breakfast is usually good). As you will have gathered Tree Pipit has an obvious display and there are a number of clearings where birds will be present and relatively easy to pick up. The other 3 spp sing at varying levels in the canopy - i have found that Redstart can be prominent often singing from an exposed branch higher up.

Attached are 4 links from the premier site for sounds xeno-canto, just type this plus whatever species into Google and it should take you straight to the relevant page. If you look at the list of recordings then click the XC number on the right-hand side it will bring up the one you want to listen to. A right-hand click on 'download audio file' will give the option of saving to your computer where you can rename and listen to off-line.

NB - be sure to type in the accepted name of the spp in question i.e Common or Northern etc. Hope this helps as familiarising yourself with bird sound adds another dimension particularly flight calls.

http://www.xeno-canto.org/177425 Wood Warbler.
http://www.xeno-canto.org/177500 Common Redstart.
http://www.xeno-canto.org/153224 European Pied Flycatcher.
http://www.xeno-canto.org/175810 Tree Pipit.

I'm off down there today, weather permitting.

Laurie:t:
 
A bit difficult with regard to the dog walkers (i am one myself) as this area is at least one where a dog can be off the lead and not have to worry about cars. IMO the birds cope fine and get used to it. Photographers however are a difficult kettle of fish. The activities of togs can be self-regulating so disturbance can easily be controlled - by not approaching the nest.

Attached is the new BB code of practice for photographers and those without common sense. It covers all the same ground with some new advice. The most important bit is stressed at the beginning and if you have some experience of both birds and photography then you do'nt need to read all the rest.

http://britishbirds.co.uk/birding-resources/bird-photography-–-a-new-code-of-practice

The welfare of the bird is paramount.........no exceptions.

Anybody taking any photos should always bear in mind that these photos are doing the bird no favours and is possibly drawing attention to the nest this also applies to those who keep re-visiting nests of species in order to 'check on them' - selfish or what?

Oh and for those indulging in tape luring (you know who you are):C

Laurie:t:

Good point re dog walkers, the Wyre Forest is a NNR and as such dogs should be kept on leads at all times, however one of the wardens has a dog which is always off the lead, setting a bad example. During the breeding season it is paramount they are kept on leads as there are several species of ground nesting bird breeding in the woodland, however I believe this will never happen and as a consequence the wildlife will suffer as per usual.
 
Good point re dog walkers, the Wyre Forest is a NNR and as such dogs should be kept on leads at all times, however one of the wardens has a dog which is always off the lead, setting a bad example. During the breeding season it is paramount they are kept on leads as there are several species of ground nesting bird breeding in the woodland, however I believe this will never happen and as a consequence the wildlife will suffer as per usual.

Couldn't agree more, Gavo - if dog walkers want to let their dogs off leads then nature reserves are not the place IMHO - especially during the breeding season.

I used to live in the New Forest and dog walkers there have been found to be a problem for some ground-nesting birds - particularly waders - and may be implicated in reducing their populations substantially in the forest:

http://www.newforestexplorersguide.co.uk/wildlife/birds/avoid-disturbance.html

Other birds such as Woodlarks and Nightjars are thought possibly to be less affected - but statistical significance of the effects is difficult to establish. The Wyre has suitable habitat for these two species but they have been rare or substantially absent for several decades - I often wonder why.

My advice would be - If you have a dog and are into nature - be part of the solution, not the problem - keep your dogs on leads! - at least during the two or three months that they are most vulnerable.

It's all about balance - responsible dog walkers should be encouraged but they should be able to cope with this compromise - the restrictions could be a little more lenient for the remaining 8 or 9 months of the year and there are also plenty of places the can use can that are not designated nature reserves.

Anyway, that's my two penn'orth over - I won't even start ranting about those dog-walkers who put their pet's mess in a bag then leave it hanging in a bush!....Grrrr!!!! :C
 
A bit difficult with regard to the dog walkers (i am one myself) as this area is at least one where a dog can be off the lead and not have to worry about cars. IMO the birds cope fine and get used to it. Photographers however are a difficult kettle of fish. The activities of togs can be self-regulating so disturbance can easily be controlled - by not approaching the nest.

Attached is the new BB code of practice for photographers and those without common sense. It covers all the same ground with some new advice. The most important bit is stressed at the beginning and if you have some experience of both birds and photography then you do'nt need to read all the rest.

http://britishbirds.co.uk/birding-resources/bird-photography-–-a-new-code-of-practice

The welfare of the bird is paramount.........no exceptions.

Anybody taking any photos should always bear in mind that these photos are doing the bird no favours and is possibly drawing attention to the nest this also applies to those who keep re-visiting nests of species in order to 'check on them' - selfish or what?

Oh and for those indulging in tape luring (you know who you are):C

Laurie:t:
i often wonder if you once got beaten up by a bloke with a camera who was whistling the call of a song thrush, you do talk some sense but always let yourself down at the end!! ps the blokes who are the problem ain't gonna read a code of conduct, are they!! :t:
 
Dogs in the Wyre Forest are never kept to leads, go down there on a saturday or sunday afternoon and have a look, the place is a joke. I have seen 2 dipper nests been abandoned this season because of Dogs in the brook practically running in the brook around the sites and others, I won't even go into detail about how much I hate them ***** :)
 
i often wonder if you once got beaten up by a bloke with a camera who was whistling the call of a song thrush, you do talk some sense but always let yourself down at the end!! ps the blokes who are the problem ain't gonna read a code of conduct, are they!! :t:

^^^
Ditto
 
Not knowingly been beaten up mate - you're welcome to try if you feel strongly;) I do'nt see myself as having let myself down at the end of that post, i do'nt like tape-luring it's as simple as that. As for dogs, there should be a dangerous owners act. Responsible owners act, well, responsibly. Disturbance by over-zealous photographers are a growing problem, where it's fairly obvious such as twitches it can be controlled with a few polite words or impolite if required but where they are out and about on their own with nobody to reign them in it's a different ball game.

If you see me and my dogs acting improperly then feel free to mention it or thump me as you see fit but i ca'nt see either happening anytime soon however a photographer getting his iphone accidentally knocked in Dowles........

Here's a link to yet another 'incident' - a well-known London birder whos' blog i actually follow has been implicated in this:C

http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/dunwich_...em_from_nests_with_sound_recordings_1_3579470

BK56 - opinions are like @rseholes, everybody has one and just posting ditto just lets you down i'm afraid.

Sean - yes, that was the article - i only gave it a cursory glance and then re-read it as pertaining to Birdsnest Orchid (or possibly Dutchmans Pipe). I was going to photo and post it but you have the article with a picture.

Laurie:t:
 
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Sorry mate - sometimes i'm a bit quick to react (letting myself down at the end;).....)

I also included the link to that article in the post.

The birder in question was mentioned (or his blog was) on Lee Evans' Tw@tter. He also posts on BF and i have been following his blog for a while. I must admit to being a bit dissapointed to see that he appears to have been implicated in tape-luring which i have no time for whether it's a common spp or something like DW. I think there is a case for perhaps rare breeders such a Baillons for the purposes of records and difficult to identify rarities such as Slender-Billed Curlew if, indeed, the spp still exists.

I intend to PM him in order to clarify the situation and see whether he 'fesses up to tape-luring.

Laurie:t:
 
Sorry Phil - just to clarify, the birder in question with regard to the Dunwich DW's was mentioned (or his blog was) on Lees' Tw@tter - i was'nt implying that Lee was TLing?

I thought Lee had self-banned?

Laurie:t:
 
Bit of birding

Had an afternoon stroll through Dowles yesterday. Fairly quiet on the whole but had a few decent birds:

Plenty of warbler spp. - Chiff/Willow/Blackcap
7 Wood Warblers
1 Garden Warbler

1 singing male Pied Fly'

1 displaying Tree Pipit

1 Marsh Tit between Knowles Mill and Drymill Lane

Also saw a Green Wood attack a GSW and a little family of Grey Wags on the brook...
 
Two pairs of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker breeding in the Wyre this year, plus another outside the forest but nearby.

The latter pair are still attending the nest but do not appear to be feeding young, whilst one of the Wyre pairs is feeding large young, visiting the nest every 5-12 minutes and taking away a LOT of waste on their way out!!

Unfortunately this pair is in a private section of wood, and permission is essential.

The attached photo was phonescoped from a safe distance.
 

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Two pairs of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker breeding in the Wyre this year, plus another outside the forest but nearby.

The latter pair are still attending the nest but do not appear to be feeding young, whilst one of the Wyre pairs is feeding large young, visiting the nest every 5-12 minutes and taking away a LOT of waste on their way out!!

Unfortunately this pair is in a private section of wood, and permission is essential.

The attached photo was phonescoped from a safe distance.[/QUOTE

thats a good thing especially as there's another pair for people to see.

Well tracked down and great image.

keith:t:
 
Sean - what digiscope combo do you use?

Laurie:t:

That was with a little Nikon 25 x 50mm ED spotting scope coupled with a hand-held Sony Xperia Z.

Trouble with that is you always get soft images because you have to zoom slightly on the phone to avoid vignetting. Because it is a digital zoom, it softens the image the more you zoom.

With my 21x WA on the Kowa 823, the pics get better because of the light gathering of the 80mm object lens.

NOTE: there are in fact only two pairs, as the Wyre pair is a duplicate of information from elsewhere.

Sean
 

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