Ten targets for 2017 (1 Viewer)

[Farnboro John]

Oh, and Farnboro John wussed out and went to Cornwall instead! Next time mate.

I had a bad feeling about the WWS, based on only one report during the week and Davis's Law... We had a decent seawatch at Pendeen with singles of Cory's and Great Shearwaters just outside the rocks, a dribble of Sooties and Balearics, and thousands upon thousands of Manx passing at all ranges. Pale adult and ginger juvenile Arctic Skuas, a Bonxie and a pale adult Pom with spoons provided a good supporting cast, a Sunfish was just outside the rocks mid afternoon and a couple of Peregrines plus a pair of Choughs intervened for the landward side.

And home by 8 pm with wine in the fridge!

John

 

[JWN Andrewes]

And home by 8 pm with wine in the fridge!

John

I think you made the right call.

Although I have to say that, in spite of failing to see the main target (which was reported an hour and a half or so after we left, though “distant”) we had an excellent couple of days, chatting, joking and playing games in the car, cooking meals (well, hot dogs at least) by the road, enjoying some fine wildlife… I can see us doing this again!

The attached pics are a story of the trip told by the boot of the car.

Starts off all organised – from left to right along the back we have a folding stool for helping the shorter stature team members to see over hedges, walls, fences etc, bag of wellies (and beach stuff, just in case), larder/bar, water bottle with saucepan and kettle, luggage, camping stove in front on the right, and of course scope. Also a camping chair, an essential piece of kit if you’re having to spend extended periods scanning with a scope at a height at which you can then quickly pass the eyepiece over to kids.

By the second pic we have the stove on the go with bread rolls and tomato & barbeque sauces at the ready.

Then the third pic, post cloudburst, with a stack of sodden rained on gear at front left and the luggage at back right hastily rifled through for dry clobber!

 

[JWN Andrewes]

August 24th

The Mrs took the boys off to Erddig to meet up with friends today, and they found a Brown Long-eared Bat flapping about on the lawn. The staff at Erddig took it in, and we managed to pass on the contact details of a nearby bat worker. (A few weeks back there was one roosting in quite an accessible building at work, but by the time an opportunity came around to take the boys it had gone, so they were very pleased to catch up with one.) Next time we’re at Erddig we’ll see if we can find out what became of it.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

August 29th

We arrived at Griesdale Hide, Leighton Moss, a little after eight. The small gathering of birders within quickly put us onto the patch of poolside vegetation currently concealing today’s objective. Bit by bit, over the next few minutes, it emerged, working its way through the edge of the reeds, a fine juvenile Purple Heron whose course eventually returned it to obscurity for the time being so we headed off to explore. Not much on show from the Skytower, other than a distant Kingfisher that quickly scooted off over the pools. Causeway hide was next (with an unseen Cetti’s Warbler singing briefly from by the boardwalk en route) where the little island just in front of the hide was crammed with waders, Redshank mostly, but with a few Greenshank and at least one Spotshank, as well as a Ruff and a couple of Blackwits. Turned out these were likely displaced birds from the nearby wader pools which were being worked on today, a new sluice being installed according to a woman in the hide. No Otters were on show though, so we headed back to the reserve café for a refuel, after which there was a unanimous vote for second helpings of the Heron, so back to Griesdale we went, just in time to obtain splendid views of it flying the length of the pools and landing in full view. A most propitious return visit! Wasn’t long before it was back in cover, and having handsomely capitalised on our revisit to the hide we decided to withdraw to allow more room for people arriving, as the Heron was now only possible through the windows facing out from one end rather than across the front. A fun morning out, with an excellent bird showing well. Who could ask for more?

 

[Jos Stratford]

The attached pics are a story of the trip told by the boot of the car.

Starts off all organised ...

My boot tells a sorry tale - your picture three is rather akin to mine on a good day, regardless of whether before or after a trip

 

[Farnboro John]

The attached pics are a story of the trip told by the boot of the car.

Starts off all organised – from left to right along the back we have a folding stool for helping the shorter stature team members to see over hedges, walls, fences etc, bag of wellies (and beach stuff, just in case), larder/bar, water bottle with saucepan and kettle, luggage, camping stove in front on the right, and of course scope. Also a camping chair, an essential piece of kit if you’re having to spend extended periods scanning with a scope at a height at which you can then quickly pass the eyepiece over to kids.

By the second pic we have the stove on the go with bread rolls and tomato & barbeque sauces at the ready.

Then the third pic, post cloudburst, with a stack of sodden rained on gear at front left and the luggage at back right hastily rifled through for dry clobber!

I am seriously concerned by the level of OCD implied by the planning required to even devise a series of pictures like this let alone remember to take them during a serial twitch with youngsters!

John

 

[JWN Andrewes]

August 30th - September 3rd; part I

Just got back from an end of the summer hols camping jaunt down to Cornwall. As a family break it was excellent, and we all enjoyed our trips to St Michael’s Mount, St Ives, Minack Theatre and so on, but for wildlife it felt like a bit of a bust, when you consider the area’s potential and the effort we put in. Rub of the green I guess. Started with an attempt on the Otter Beavers on Wednesday evening, but we came away after the equivalent of a feature length movie of watching a river go dark with the occasional Kingfisher scooting by. Overnight near Exeter, then on down to our campsite just north of St Just, tent up and then a walk out to the coast and round into Kenidjack. We did this several times over our stay, but just picked up Whitethroats, Chiffchaffs, Stonechats, a single Wheatear, all easily attributable to local birds without the need to invoke migrants. Best sighting of these walks was prolonged close views of a young Peregrine perched up (at the west end of the Yellow-throated Vireo garden, for those with long memories) stretching, preening and ignoring the angry Choughs that came by for a brief mob. Other than that it was mostly just standard bread and butter birds, although close views of Grey Seal in St Ives harbour and Common Dolphins bow riding the Chunder Bucket as seen from Minack were cool.

 

[Farnboro John]

A nice assortment of pictures! I was going to say I like the Swallow not on a wire, then I wondered what the Peregrine had caught but realised it was perching on pine cones, then enjoyed the inclusion of your very unBritish-holiday-wear shoes and grey trousers with the seal and finally the excellent catch of the dolphin bow-riding, as you say, the Great White Stomach-pump. The Turnstone is competent but outclassed - it really needs to be picking shreds of flesh from a washed up Killer Whale.....

Great stuff James!

John

 

[Nutcracker]

perching on pine cones,

Monterey Pine Pinus radiata to be precise :t:

- it really needs to be picking shreds of flesh from a washed up Killer Whale.....

Or a human corpse, per that famous British Birds letter . . . :eek!: :-O

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Thank you John for the kind words, and Nuttie for the cone ID. And yes, the Turnstone's a bit of a make-weight, I just can't resist putting up five pics, given that's the maximum allowed, and it was either that or a stupidly distant shot of two sleeping Spooners on Hayle, taken from Lelant Saltings railway station while waiting for the park and ride into St Ives.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

August 30th - September 3rd; part II

The bacon saver as far as wildlife was concerned was a Wryneck at Land’s End. Reported as at the east end of the car park it sounded pretty straightforward, until we turned up and encountered acres and acres of good looking Wryneck habbo all around the east end of the car park. This could take a while, so best get on with it. Took two paces and out of the long grass at the base of a dry-stone wall up flies the Wryneck onto a nearby gate! Bonza! He then got down to business on an adjacent grassy bank, burying his face in the turf, presumably hoovering up ants, showing brilliantly at close range in beautiful light. Eventually a couple of passers-by spooked it into the brambles and that was that, but what a cracking bird, one of the best Wrynecks I’ve had.

Our original plan had been to spend till Sunday down in Cornwall, but the forecast was deteriorating fast, and we really didn’t want to be taking a wet tent down right at the end of the season, so we hatched a plan B. On Saturday afternoon we decamped and headed back to the River Otter for a screening of Watching a River Go Dark II, an altogether darker affair than the original, rather longer and with fewer Kingfishers. Bah! Perhaps a spring visit next time. Overnight near Tiverton.

Woke Sunday morning to find the rain had arrived earlier than advertised. Breakfasted and headed off, arriving at Dripping Sogbury around 10:00 for a two hour stake out in decidedly Shrike unfriendly wind and rain. Managed a handful of Whinchats & Redstarts, a Hare and a Green Woodie. Another Bah! A long and dismal drive home in the rain, car unpacked, and I decided to have a go at the Burton Mere Wetlands Pec. Alas it was not to be, we lasted a mere half hour, but by that time we’d just about had a bellyful of standing hunched over a scope in the rain. Thus ended the summer hols. Autumn next…

 

[Jos Stratford]

Not joking about close with the Grey Seal! Nice shoes

 

[MKinHK]

Wonderful shots of the Wryneck!

 

[JWN Andrewes]

September 9th

It was a very last minute impulse decision. I’d picked the boys up on the way home from work, it was a nice sunny evening, not a school night, and so I asked “do you want to go anywhere?” To which Arch gave his stock response of “what’s about?”. Well, there’s a Wilson’s Phalarope up Preston way but that’s a bit further than I was thinking. “Awww….”

Hmmm. Technology’s a wonderful thing when you can get it to work for you; according to google maps on my phone we could be at Alston a little after seven. Well, we’d been playing cricket last night until eight, and it was rather more overcast then, so light shouldn't be an issue, so how about it? Two things persuaded me. 1) What with work commitments I don’t have any full days available for birding with the boys this month (just a couple of short mornings and afternoons) so what few opportunities that present themselves should be gratefully accepted and 2) Phalaropes are cool.

As predicted a little after seven we arrived on site, and there is positive news from departing birders. Soon enough we had Wilson’s Phalarope in the scope, scampering and pirouetting along the far shore in the slowly fading light, a class tick for the boys and my first in the UK since two in the same month exactly thirty years ago!

Anyone with any photographic pride wouldn’t have dreamed of attempting pics, but I have none, so snapped a few scrap-book shots as the sun slowly slipped away. I attach one, in its uncropped state, cropped in close, and a slightly more sensible (but still pants) in-betweeny.

 

[Farnboro John]

Glad you all scored, phalaropes are a bit special! Now you need them in summer plumage.....

Cheers

John

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Glad you all scored, phalaropes are a bit special! Now you need them in summer plumage.....

Cheers

John

One thing at a time! Their first Red-neck was a sum plum female, as was my first Wilson's (Radipole, July '84). I've yet to see a summer Grey....

 

[Farnboro John]

One thing at a time! Their first Red-neck was a sum plum female, as was my first Wilson's (Radipole, July '84). I've yet to see a summer Grey....

I've just had the one, and needed 100% of that impulsiveness that drives twitchers.... worth it though! Felt like a second tick out of one species.

John

 

[JWN Andrewes]

September 16th

It’s an unwritten law that all good autumn seawatching conditions round here take place when I absolutely cannot get away from work, to the extent that I have only ever twice managed to get up to North Wirral shore to see Leach’s Petrels, in spite of living most of the last 40 years less than forty odd minutes away. So it was no surprise that all the action happened over the last week, when playing hookey big time would have been the only way for me and the boys to get anywhere near New Brighton or Leasowe or any of the other sites that have been experiencing some pretty serious Leach’s traffic, not to mention Sab’s, Grey Phals and the odd Skua and Shearwater. Finally had a morning to fill today, and the weather was lovely, therefore of no use whatsoever. We had a go for the Grey Phalarope that’s been camped out at Conwy RSPB the past few days but that had predictably made the most of a clear spell and buggered off. Good luck to it. A couple of Lesser Whitethroats in with the Chiffchaffs & Blackcaps in the scrub behind one of the hides saved the morning, eventually showing really well, and a good catch-up for a bird I had reckoned we’d probably missed for the year. What could also turn out to be the last Swift of 2017 was also noteworthy. Nothing doing off Rhos Point bar a handful of Sarnies, so pleas to go and play in a nearby park were easily granted.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

September 30th

Just a morning to play with so we kept things local. Nice little run down to Burton Mere Wetlands to year tick some calidrids. En route out to Inner Marsh Farm hide we lucked out with flight views of a very vocal Cetti’s Warbler, barrelling out of a pathside willow after giving voice, which will do for the year thank you very much. Once in the hide Little Stint and Curlew Sandpiper were on tap, with nine and three respectively feeding merrily up and down the muddy margins at the back of the marsh, and the resident Cattle Egret also threw in a cameo. Scene stealers though were a handful of Snipe going about their business at short range right in front of the hide.

 

[edenwatcher]

Not posted much on our doings lately.
Rather quiet over the summer, a nice white-tailed eagle on our descent from Spidean Mialach in the west Highlands a highlight. Daniel gripped me off with little stint which ran through the scope field of view after I had set it on a group of ruff for him to look at!
At the end of September the boys caught up with a very showy barred warbler at Kilminning - a lifer for both.
It is currently their half term, so we are down visiting my mum in Lincolnshire. Despite the dreadful weather for east coast birding, today we had a cracking day at Spurn. We kicked off with the low-hanging fruit - the showy juv/1st winter rose-coloured starling in Easington (British tick for both), followed by an equally showy red-backed shrike nearby (also a British tick for them). Much persistence got us good views of Arctic warbler in Kilnsea churchyard (lifer), before we went to Kilnsea wetlands and saw slav grebe, little stints, little egrets and a flock of brent geese over. We finished up with seconds of the starling and shrike. I heard several yellow-broweds through the day but never clapped eyes on one.
A good day out.

Rob