Mark Newsome
Born to seawatch...
I suppose everyone has their favourite habitats and favourite type of watching. That's the good thing about birding, everyone can do their own thing and get equal enjoyment.
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East coast or West coast UK (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter rokermartin
- Start date
rokermartin
Well-known member
I agree the south coast can be excellent for birds and it has some good reserves.
rokermartin
Well-known member
Reading on the Norfolk thread there are still quite alot of underwatched areas on the Norfolk coast.Birdwatchers tend to go to the hots spots like Holkam,Cley,Twitchwell,etc.I am sure birdwatchers if they wanted to avoid the crowds could find some new interesting areas to check out and find there own rarities.I think bank holidays are the worst time for birdwatching and getting round in Norfolk with all the traffic on the coast road.
Gill Osborne
Well-known member
I just NEED to be near the coast!!! :king:
I love Northumberland and all it's varied habitats but the western coast of Scotland DOES sound very appealing......especially as we have a couple of friends who run a B&B in the Ardnamurchan area :t: I think we MUST go up to visit them in June when we are next off
I love Northumberland and all it's varied habitats but the western coast of Scotland DOES sound very appealing......especially as we have a couple of friends who run a B&B in the Ardnamurchan area :t: I think we MUST go up to visit them in June when we are next off
Adam W
Well-known member
To be fair John i dont think it was ever meant to be an argument just wondering out of interest what other poeple think.
You're more than welcome to stay away from the east coast if you like.
Totally agree with Martin that i'd hate to live inland though.
Gill Osborne
Well-known member
That was the deciding factor in Neil and I deciding not to move to Cumbria. We had planned to base ourselves around the Penrith area but, after much thought, we decided we need to be close to the coastline wherever we move to :smoke:
Adam W
Well-known member
I couldnt imagine not being able to walk along the beach or cliff tops even if i'm not birdwatching and i would hate to have to travel to do a bit of sea watching.
rokermartin
Well-known member
Hi Adam i definitely prefer coastal birdwatching to inland birdwatching.I have had some good days in woods watching Redstarts,Pied Flycatchers,Wood Warblers etc and watching Woodcocks,Nightjars,Tree pipits in woodland clearings and heaths.Also i have had excellent days watching raptors up on the moors and over forests.But you cannot beat coastal birdwatching especially at migrations times. I think i would find it hard going birdwatching inland.
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Gill Osborne
Well-known member
I wouldn't say no to Shetland
mountain man
Guest
Aha! So now we've reached the bigger question: coastal or inland?
Inland for me every time - nicer weather, nicer people and usually better birds. Sure, there's beaches and sea and cetaceans on the coast, and that's all very well and good, but you can't beat inland birding.
Inland for me every time - nicer weather, nicer people and usually better birds. Sure, there's beaches and sea and cetaceans on the coast, and that's all very well and good, but you can't beat inland birding.
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rokermartin
Well-known member
There are some very friendly people in the northeast were i come from.I have noticed people tend to be less friendly down south.
mountain man
Guest
Also, there was a paper in Birdwatching magazine (I think it was October 2007?) that said that statisically Staffordshire was the best birding county, coastal or inland. Staffordshire has the second highest bird list of any county (after Northumberland), the birdwatchers are the wealthiest per capita in Western Europe (ie they have better optics = better birders) and the county has more open space per square metre than anywhere else in Britain.
Staffordshire also has land in three separate national parks (Peak District, Snowdonia and Brecon Beacons) and has the most number of RSPB reserves of any county (16).
Staffordshire has recorded the 4th highest number of birds new to Britain since 1959 (after Shetland, Scilly and Kent).
More BBRC members and employees of the RSPB and BTO cite Staffordshire as their place of birth than any other county.
At its deepest point, Blithfield Reservoir is the deepest man made body of water in Britain - a staggering 176m. Obviously that doesn't have anything to do with birds directly, but the nitrogen rich waters of Blithfield are believed to be one of the reasons why so many birds are attracted to the county.
Staffordshire also has land in three separate national parks (Peak District, Snowdonia and Brecon Beacons) and has the most number of RSPB reserves of any county (16).
Staffordshire has recorded the 4th highest number of birds new to Britain since 1959 (after Shetland, Scilly and Kent).
More BBRC members and employees of the RSPB and BTO cite Staffordshire as their place of birth than any other county.
At its deepest point, Blithfield Reservoir is the deepest man made body of water in Britain - a staggering 176m. Obviously that doesn't have anything to do with birds directly, but the nitrogen rich waters of Blithfield are believed to be one of the reasons why so many birds are attracted to the county.
mountain man
Guest
Well I totally agree with you there. I think a lot of people south of Coventry believe themselves to be a better breed of person than northerners.
mountain man
Guest
Just found it, it's in September 2007. So perhaps a little bit out of date?
Jacana
Will Jones
It's the reservoirs that make Staffordshire so good. Shropshire has better and more varied habitat and more open spaces, yet it has very few reservoirs in comparison and is also renouned as one of the worst English counties for rarities (second only to Herefordshire maybe...)
Xenospiza
Distracted
Luckily they don't have any impact on the birds that turn up (and infamous (former) pockets of suppression include both northern and southern locales).
