Durham Birding (2 Viewers)

[Ray.Scott]

Called In at Far Pastures today.
From the hide, wren, LT tits, teal, mallards, moorehen, a couple of red kite, crows and a distant Roe Deer.
From the car park area,
5 red kite, one of which looked a bit rough with a lack of feathers, 2 common buzzards, sparrow hawk & another raptor, with, what looked like jessers.
Also bullfinch, chaffinch, great,blue,coal,LT & willow tits, 2 robins, nuthatch, dunnock, tree creeper, blackbirds.

And a single bank vole.

The bird with the jessers was a Harris Hawk.

 

[waxyplumer]

Blackcap

In my back garden today.

Mick.

 

[June Atkinson]

Ragged - looking kite

One of your pics, Ray, is untagged and in good condition.
The other, looking really bedraggled is a 2012 tagged Red Kite - colour Pink on left for Derwent Valley kites and red on the right wing for last year.

Called In at Far Pastures today.
From the hide, wren, LT tits, teal, mallards, moorehen, a couple of red kite, crows and a distant Roe Deer.
From the car park area,
5 red kite, one of which looked a bit rough with a lack of feathers, 2 common buzzards, sparrow hawk & another raptor, with, what looked like jessers.
Also bullfinch, chaffinch, great,blue,coal,LT & willow tits, 2 robins, nuthatch, dunnock, tree creeper, blackbirds.

And a single bank vole.

The bird with the jessers was a Harris Hawk.

 

[ALFIE TEMPLE]

Red Kite flying low over farmland behind Springwell Village,Washington-to far away to tell sex of bird,or if wing-tagged.First time i've sen one anywhere near here.
Alfie

 

[seggs]

In my back garden today.

Mick.

Always nice a Jarra wintering Blackcap, Mick:t: Any further sightings of the larger green vistors you had a while back.?

 

[waxyplumer]

Blackcap

Hi Seggs,
no further sightings of the big green parrots, but the Blackcap was back again this morning.:t:
Mick.

 

[AndyMc]

Nice surprise welcome home from work tonite - about 60 Waxwings chattering outside my front door in Whinfield, Darlo :eek!:

What consitutes a garden tick, seen from or in? These were over the road.

Where's the decent light & blue sky when you need it. Can't have everything I suppose.

 

[June Atkinson]

Waxwings

You are one lucky guy!!

Nice surprise welcome home from work tonite - about 60 Waxwings chattering outside my front door in Whinfield, Darlo :eek!:

What consitutes a garden tick, seen from or in? These were over the road.

Where's the decent light & blue sky when you need it. Can't have everything I suppose.

 

[IanF]

Low Barns - am - no sign of the Bittern(s) whilst I was there.

Lots of other birds around to see.

Highlights were several Jays, lots of Nuthatches to see and hear. Siskin c.40 and Redpoll c.60 in the trees between the car park and north hide. A real spectacular sight when the Redpoll flock came into the feeding station covering just about every branch and twig above the feeders. Also a Goldcrest and Great Spotted Woodpecker in that area plus the usual Marsh Tits, LTT and finches etc.

Marston lake - Cormorant 10+, Redwing, Goldeneye x5.

West Pond - Sparrowhawk.

A flock of LTT were by the Northumbria Water Hide as well.

 

[Ray.Scott]

Hartlepool Headland:
Common scoter, eider, redshank, purple sandpiper, turnstone, knot, oyster catchers, RT diver. Also LT Duck reported amongst the scoter, east of the Heugh Pier and glaucous gull seen near the fish quay.
No sign of the BT diver at the marina but slavonian grebe still about until about 1.45pm when it flew East.
Seaton Common:
Good number of fieldfare still about and possible Caspian gull, see Image 1.

 

[degsy_safc]

Any further sightings of the larger green vistors you had a while back.?

MARTIANS ??? Must've missed that one in the Shields Gazette :-O

 

[FoghornKinghorn]

Hartlepool Headland:
Common scoter, eider, redshank, purple sandpiper, turnstone, knot, oyster catchers, RT diver. Also LT Duck reported amongst the scoter, east of the Heugh Pier and glaucous gull seen near the fish quay.
No sign of the BT diver at the marina but slavonian grebe still about until about 1.45pm when it flew East.
Seaton Common:
Good number of fieldfare still about and possible Caspian gull, see Image 1.

2nd winter Herring Gull I am afraid.

 

[AndyMc]

You are one lucky guy!!

Aye.
Doesn't happen very often, but when it does.............

That's it for a good while, the last time was that Darlo kite - never to be seen again :-C

 

[Ray.Scott]

2nd winter Herring Gull I am afraid.

Cheers Andrew, back to the drawing board :-C.

 

[AndyMc]

Aye.
Doesn't happen very often, but when it does.............

That's it for a good while, the last time was that Darlo kite - never to be seen again :-C

Spoke too soon.....2nd day on the trot B
Typically when the suns going down.

 

[ColinSev]

Waxwings

Thanks for the info Andy, i saw the waxwings this morning 78 of them. At one point the whole flock went into someone's back garden, wish it was mine. Poor light though for photos tho, lots of interest from the local dog walkers too.

 

[Ray.Scott]

South Shields:
Very little at the Pier area other than single cormorant, turnstones and the usual gulls, crows and jackdaws.
7 snow bunting, 1 rock pipit, loads of fulmar, kestrel and the usual gulls etc along the cliff walk.
The Leas: redshank, oyster catchers, a couple of knot, meadow pipit. Didn't expect to see any owls due to high wind.
Med, gull at Marsden car park.
More gulls, fulmars etc at Souter Stack.

 

[IanF]

Hartlepool marina - am - Black-throated Diver, Red-breasted Merganser x6, Cormorant x6, Little Grebe x1.

Greenabella Marsh - Spotted Redshank, Long-tailed Duck x2 (m&f) & Slavonian Grebe x3 from sea wall. One Slav Grebe came right up the Creek to the road bridge and went back down the other side.

Tidal Pool - Greenshank x1, Bar-tailed Godwit x1, Dunlin x6, Redshank c.30, Ringed Plover.

 

[AndyMc]

Thanks for the info Andy, i saw the waxwings this morning 78 of them. At one point the whole flock went into someone's back garden, wish it was mine. Poor light though for photos tho, lots of interest from the local dog walkers too.

I'm glad you caught them. I've just counted 88 from the comfort of my son's bedroom :king: Just waiting for some decent light to arrive. Fat chance me thinks.

 

[ColinSev]

Bittern

Had a few hours at Low Barns again this morning searching for the Bittern, it showed after about 10 minutes, however it was hunting low among the reeds for most of the time that it could be seen. Most of the time it could not be seen, it flew up a couple of times just for a few feet. It is very elusive still.