Withymoor - Amblecote, Stourbridge..... (2 Viewers)

[rollingthunder]

Phil Andrews clicked with some ystda - link to thread and map ref below...

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=271922

Sometimes you can be on a roll and at others you just cannot seem to hit anything - i've dipped on Glossy Ibis, Iceland Gull and GGShrike within the last 2 weeks not to mention flailing around @ Uffers ystda. Will post later.......best of luck at least the weather is reasonable today - before the next lot!

Laurie:t:

 

[steve_zodiac]

Couple of Goosanders flying around Netherton res this afternoon when I drove past from work.

 

[rollingthunder]

Sun 2 Feb........

An hour or so with a mate and the dogs @ Uffers.....(1130-1230).

First off was bumping into Paul from Withers, his grim expression said it all - he was cutting his losses (and 2nd visit this week) after spending over 2 hours extricating himself from the pathways.

I gathered that the bird was seen, briefly, about 9:30 i do not know whether somebody picked it up subsequently? There were parties of mixed Tits all over the wood some even had feathers.

Next up was a lone figure squelching toward us on the Southern boundary path. This turned out to be none other than the 'Mud Magnet of Middleton' GeoffWilliams1946. We discussed the finer points of Middleton silt vs the heavy Worcestershire clays and the status of Ruddy Duck in the West Midlands.

I am still surprised by the amount of single birders arriving to mooch around for this sort of thing, you would think that in this day and age of modern communicating gadgets etc that some sort of pooling of vehicles would be to everybodys' financial and social benefit?

Last and certainly not least i managed to, finally, put another face to a name. A plaintive mewing from the car park and i was able to shake hands with Pam-M who is off to Madeira:eek!: this week - nice to meet you and have a nice break Pam.

A quick pop in to the tip @ Wildmoor revealed zilch gulls on the pools and half a dozen Ravens crossing from the other side - did'nt have time to check the workings. Mary Stevens Park held a single male Goosander and a good number of BHG's to check ca350. In addition were 4 1w and 1 2w Herring with a 1w and 2w LBB Gulls.

It felt appropriate squelching around Ufmoor with the centenary of WW1 - if you have'nt visited for the YBW be prepared to put some time in and the wood is extremely wet. The central network of paths are raised and dry with the outer linking and boundary paths soggy to say the least (it does'nt get much better in the Summer). The Southern track intercepts the field drainage and is an almost continuous quagmire.

Below - waiting for a 'whizzbang' from Oh What a Lovely Warbler.

Laurie:t:

 

[Paul Allan Legge]

lakeside pool this morning. Tufted Ducks (5Drakes 6 Famale). little Grebe,Goosander(Female). 2 Adult Lesser Black Backed Gulls. 50+ Black Headed Gulls.Grey Wagtail. 2 Green Woodpeckers in erea. May go again Uffmoor Wood in morning as Brian Stretch had Y.B. warbler this morning. 3rd time lucky hopefully. surprising News this Afternoon Red Flanked Bluetail seen in Gloustershire.

 

[Brian Stretch]

lakeside pool this morning. Tufted Ducks (5Drakes 6 Famale). little Grebe,Goosander(Female). 2 Adult Lesser Black Backed Gulls. 50+ Black Headed Gulls.Grey Wagtail. 2 Green Woodpeckers in erea. May go again Uffmoor Wood in morning as Brian Stretch had Y.B. warbler this morning. 3rd time lucky hopefully. surprising News this Afternoon Red Flanked Bluetail seen in Gloustershire.

Hi Paul,

The Yellow-browed showed well, albeit briefly at c9.20am and again at 9.50am in and around the last holly tree on the left as you walk down the last muddy ride from the car park here. It then showed again for a couple of minutes back down the ride, say c100 yards at c10.20am. I left soon afterwards but have since heard that it was not seen again by midday at least.

Problem is, it doesn't seem very vocal. Didn't hear it once in the time I was there. Just kept checking every bit of movement and struck lucky when it appeared in the holly tree. It was loosely associating with a small flock of Long-tailed Tits so it may be worth trying to locate these and then go from there.

Best of luck if you go again.

Brian
________________
Worcester Birding
Follow Worcester Birding on Twitter @WorcsBirding

 

[rollingthunder]

Brian - glad to hear you clicked, bit of a bugger that it's not calling frequently.....Paul - if you go and it will probably be earlier than me as i shall be cycling text me if you nail it and locale in relation to B's map?

Weather luks ok, cloudy with sunny spells.

Laurie:t:

 

[rollingthunder]

The weather this week is going to be more of the same with very strong winds and heavy rain to come in the next few days - Sunday looks the better of the weekend days with more to come next week.......We have still got away relatively lightly in the Midlands compared to coastal areas but what lurks in the bushes and valleys of the West coast of England? A minimum of 35 Kumliens Gulls estimated!

I check and listen to weather guru Phillip Eden and he has a regular slot on Radio 5 Lives' Up All night on Monday mornings. Below is a link to this mornings report covering January which is full of all sorts of nasty statistics with no apparent let-up - it starts at 46:15 and runs for 6 or 7 minutes.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03szmjf

Also an attached pic of a leucistic Curlew in Suffolk the change in pigmentation makes it look Ibis-like, most striking:eek!:

Laurie:t:

 

[Paul Allan Legge]

Hi Laurie, no luck again. Had 3hrs again, seen early morning before I got their. Seen briefly by Eric's mate Jim for a few seconds. Very elusive. Red Flanked Bluetail showed again today.

 

[rollingthunder]

Hi Paul - you deserve a medal, the least i can do is to Photoshop you one on yet another day full of rain:C I ca'nt be @rsed to even comtemplate cycling up there and will wait and go with a mate on Sunday which looks a 'reasonable' day weather-wise altho i suppose that's relative to all the others

The question is - do you stomp around adding increasing layers of clay to yourself and actually becoming part of Uffers or do you stand in one place and........wait?

Somebody clicked with a handful of Mealy Redpolls - even they would be nice. For those terminally confused by the taxa below is a link to a picture depicting no less than 4 'types' spp/subspp. There is also a link to the chaps blog at the impressive sounding 'Thunder Bay':eek!: Ontario with all sorts of goodies found by local birders. The current page has nice shots of Slaty Backed Gull.

http://www.sibleyguides.com/2011/02/four-redpoll-taxa-in-one-photo/

Feb is the month for rare Buntings and here is the link for the PineB found a few years ago with a mention of the much-watched Halesowen bird on the feeders @ Bibbys Hollow, i recall the former only being scopeable in a large hedgerow a distance away.

http://www.wbrc.org.uk/WORCRECD/Issue 18/pine_bunting_in_worcestershire.htm

Yesterday @ Withymoor -

80+ BHG's
Tufties - 5f 4m
Little Grebe - 2 still present
LBB - 2 adults

Great Tit, Coal Tit and Dunnock all singing.

Mary Stevens Park ca1430 -

Took a 'scope down in anticipation of some larger Gulls but none present and just as i started to work thru the BHG's (200+) a dog the size of a Polar Bear jumped the fence and scattered everything!

3 Goosander present, 1 male and 2 females.

Below - it never ceases to amaze me the size of prey that Stoats will pursue this is a picture of one in partial Winter pelage chasing a Rabbit.

Best of luck if you are out and about today, you wo'nt be bumping into me...

Laurie:t:

 

[Paul Allan Legge]

Hi, Laurie not been out to day , weather to bad to do any walking. I had 3 Mealy Redpolls on Sunday with 20+ Lesser Redpolls down Uffmoor Wood. Red Flanked Bluetail still showing today Gloustershire.

 

[rollingthunder]

Paul - have you been down for it? I remember when they used to be rare:eek!: One influx year more were recorded than all the previous records put together, still, it's a cracking inland record in whatever county it's feeding in......

The weather continues and will continue to dominate. Yesterday, in the Midlands it rained just after midnight to about 3 o'clock ystda afternoon there might even be some light flooding around here over the next few days? You have to feel for the residents of the 'Levels' whose homes have been isolated or flooded since the New Year and are now attracting the attention of, wait for it, looters:C

The area must look reminiscent of settlements from the Middle Ages when villages were isolated islands during the Winter and people lived in the surrounding Mendips and Quantocks. Early names suggest the current name derives from 'settlers by the sea lakes' or Summer settlers. The radio interviews that i have been privy to shows little hint of local accent so there is a chance that the current tenants are blissfully ignorant.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somerset_levels

It is also sad to see a section of Brunels' railway line hanging like some adrenalin-junkies fairground ride the ballast having been swept away by high tides and stormy surges. For those without a car this represents the only link West of Exeter to Cornwall. Dawlish holds many memories not least the Serins @ Star Cross which were on many a budding twitchers hit-list during the '80's.

There is a window of opportunity for a few hours today before the rain comes in forecast for early afternoon so i might pay a return visit to Uffers. I will not expect to see the elusive sprite so if i succeed it will be a bonus and if not the cycle ride will be useful. The Met Office has forecast perhaps the most severe weather thus far tomorrow night with very strong winds and heavy rain accompanied by high tides and storm surges in the usual places compounding the misery all-round. We have got off very lightly around here.

Attached are a couple of relevant pics of a farm in Zummerzet and a railway line in Devon both high and dry and a suitable track from the late Johnny Cash penned from his childhood memories of the 1937 floods where he lived in Dyess, Arkansas (now acquired as a museum and visitable) where people still dance to the tune of the mighty Mississippi:eek!:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14zHgCrywjU

Laurie:t:

 

[steve_zodiac]

Had some good birding days along the front between Dawlish and Dawlish Warren. Ive been through on the train as well, great views of the Exe estuary.

 

[rollingthunder]

Thur 6th Feb........

A combination of a 3/4 hour cycle ride, ankle deep mud, 2 hours of neck-stretching and piss-poor lighting conditions made the whole experience @ Uffers ystda a most unsatisfactory affair......I did, however, achieve a result - of sorts.

I decided, this time, instead of a 'search and destroy' mission to base myself around the large clump of Hollies to the right-hand side of the crossroads track. This group of bushes are adjacent to the ones with the bird feeders and two Green chairs. I arrived @ about 10:30 lit a cigar and waited.......at about 11:15 i heard it call 3-4 times the other side of the 'clump', moving quickly, with a loose group of Tits - mainly LongTails and that was about it:C No views and nothing more heard. I will not be returning until there is at least some decent light rather than craning my neck at silhouettes. I left in light drizzle at 12:30.

I was joined by a couple of other birders one of whom had just driven back from the BlueTail, which was a tick, but so was the YBW - shame on you It's always good to meet new faces particularly ones with distinct crazy hair! Mark Wheeler from K'ford, hope to bump into you again mate:t:

I also had a lovely chat and made the acquaintance of the lady who tops up the feeders. She's a relatively keen birder and this was evidenced by her heavily patinated Nikon bins. She also had her 6 year old male Boxer c/w undocked tail with her. I made her aware of the presence of 'the boy' and showed here Craigs' picture from last Monday on my Tablet along with the flight call and the subtle differences of Humes' in order to confuse the poor creature (the lady, that is).

I cycled back in light rain via Mary Stevens Park which contained nothing more than about 30 Black Headed Gulls let's hope that the strong winds over the next couple of days brings something in from the coast to look for.

Finally, as a dog owner, my thoughts go out to 'Colonel' - a Special Forces dog captured and now languishing in the hands of the.......Taliban. Let's hope he gets better treatment than other dogs in Afghanistan.........I do'nt suppose it will do any good in reporting the handler to the RSPCA?:C

Laurie:t:

 

[rollingthunder]

The attached image says it all - best of luck if yr out and about......

Laurie:t:

 

[rollingthunder]

Sat 8th Feb.........

Spent an hour so so poking around either side of the canal adjacent to The Moorings. I have, albeit some time ago, recorded Snipe, Jack Snipe and Woodcock over a period of time. These areas, which were the site of former steel rolling mills were cleared and intially provided rough grassy habitat which held areas of damp/wet grassland in the Winter. They are now heavily scrubbed over as the areas succeed to another stage in vegetating so i was not surprised to record only Redwings and Finches.

Might have another stab at the 'Uffmoor Shuffle' today after a shuftie @ Wildmoor for Gulls and Ravens etc.

Talking of which - below is a link to a Yankee Woodcocks' 'moves', for some reason it reminds me of the antics of some birders at the post-log discos held @ the Porthcressa during the '80's (like the '60's you had to be there).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEISiCmjwH8

Laurie:t:

 

[rollingthunder]

Sun 9th Feb...............

3 hours spent chasing shadows, i do'nt know what it is but stuff just seems so difficult and frustrating to catch up with but at least things are sticking around:C.......Popped in to Wildmoor but all the Gulls were up in the air in strong winds, i did'nt clock anything but there was about 30 Ravens.

An hour spent over at Hopwood standing by the side of the road looking like a prat to the motorists whizzing past was the second unproductive visit. Rain beckoned so losses were cut and the briefest of visits was paid to Mary Stevens Park where a solitary female Goosander was feeding along with about 50 Black Headed Gulls.

Needless to say i did'nt bother with another mud-gathering mission to Uffers!

The presence of a Myrtle (i still prefer Yellow-Rumped) Warbler found during an RSPB garden birdwatch in County Durham has set the pulses racing of lots of low-listers. It was found in the village of High Shincliffe which, apparentley has a reputation for being posh and snooty........Things must have changed since i used to live in the area it was all unemployed miners/minors!

It should be somewhere in Central America feeding on exoctic invertebrates but it's stuck here on baited feeders in the North West of England - i know where i would rather be!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow-rumped_Warbler

The bird also brings back happy memories of 1985 which was probably the best year of the best decade for twitching on the Isles of Scilly. The quality and quantity of the birds that Autumn but particularly the Nearctic spp that were to be found on the 'Magic' isles was incredible. I was fortunate to be able to spend 3 weeks during October and did'nt miss a bird:eek!:

Below are 2 images of YRW - the current 'boy' and a sketch from Suffolk birder and artist Terry Palmer of the one from '85 that 'did'nt get away'........Enjoy what you can of the birding week when the weather allows.

Laurie:t:

 

[yamyam]

WOW !! What an October that was it started off for me with an American Wigeon, Red Eyed Vireo and Parula Warbler on the 5th. Spotted Sandpiper on the 6th. Yellow Rumped Warbler on the 7th. Bee Eater, Bobolink and Night Heron on the 11th. Yellow Billed Cuckoo, Rose Breasted Grosbeak and Black Billed Cuckoo on the 12th. Olive Backed Pipit and Ring Necked Duck on the 14th and I finished off with a Booted Warbler on the 15th. Good days...
Good Birding YAMYAM

 

[rollingthunder]

YamYam - the hits just kept on coming, i had 5 lifers in a day including both Cuckoos picking up a moribund one one evening.........:eek!:

Laurie:t:

 

[rollingthunder]

There appears to be no let up in the 'Midlands Monsoon' season:C......

Whilst Somerset has disappeared, Devon and Cornwall are cut off, Lake Berkshire has appeared and there are a lot of soggy, angry (Tory:-O) voters in Surrey. We have got off very lightly but that might be about to change. Altho the rain is not forecast 'heavy' it will be light->moderate but slow-moving and persistent. Bridges over the Severn are being closed as the tributaries to its' major and minor feeders start to approach bank height. The Stour runs close to the canal thru the Mill Race Lane industrial estate and has been rising alarmingly over the last 2 days as has the Smestow near to the Stewponey. Both join the Severn......eventually.

Bird records, both locally and nationally were noticeably scant yesterday, i'm certainly not walking far and definately not cycling anywhere so it's down to those with 4 wheels if they can be bothered.

Meanwhile our overpaid and underworked representatives down in that London place have prioritised their targets and debated outlawing people that choose to smoke in a car if they have young children. Like all laws they have to be enforced. I, personally, do not know of anybody that would smoke in a car whether it contains ankle-biters or not but i would have thought that any adult that would inflict cigarette smoke on their children would have a lot of serious child-raising issues and cigarette smoke would be the least of the little sprites worries? They would probably have been conceived in the thing and Mum/Dad could most likely still point out the footprints on the inside roof!

I have had to laugh at the 'blame game' that has been doing the rounds. With Pickles blaming Smith, Smith sticking up for the EA (his imployer BTW) and Cameroon blaming everybody. Quite what qualifies Chris Smith to be gainfully employed by the EA beggars belief - what the former Minister for Culture, Media and Sport can bring to the table as regards the Environment apart from his opinion, well, answers on a postcard pls..... Jobs for the boys springs to mind, he already has a job for life in the unelected House of Lords, he is a busy fool imo. The only positive thing about Chris Smith has the letters HIV in front of it.

Pickles, on the other hand, has gone up in my estimation. Believe it or not he is an avid birder, has been since his youth, regularly undertakes dawn choruses near his home and keeps a pair of 'bins by his desk in that London place - i kid you not.

What has all this ranting to do with birding you may ask? Well, there will be some ornithological 'blowback' once the accusations have stopped flying and the insurance claims have been settled. The Rail Network people have come under fire for not undertaking assessment work on the railway section @ Dawlish because they were evaluating bird habitat work around Dawlish Warren and the EA had spent millions on wetland and wader habitat adjacent to the Levels in Somerset - all or most of which should have been devoted to dredging or so they reckon.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/w...y-accused-of-putting-birds-before-humans.html

Tory Minister Ken Clarke (Hush Puppies and little cigars) has tried to add a voice of reason, he has a foot in either camp and is another keen birder (recently seen on a well-known birding holiday companies' trip report). He is pictured below with the lovely Paul Holt who i have'nt seen for years unfortunately.

http://birdingbeijing.com/2014/01/16/birding-with-the-right-honourable-mr-kenneth-clarke-mp/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...mob-attacking-government-handling-floods.html

There are more 'sleb' birders than you might think.......

http://www.theguardian.com/culture/...rity-birdwatchers#/?picture=367965417&index=0

Guy Garvey (the chunky monkey from Elbow) is very keen and partook in a visit to Shetland as part of a Radio 4 series, it's not available at present but here is the link anyway.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00mdy17

It stands to reason that rivers can hold more liquid if they are not half full of crud but when these rivers are higher than the surrounding fields and still lower than the sea there is only a certain amount of alleviation that can be made. The 'Levels' themselves are the Levees that is common sense.

Rumour has it that a loose alliance of concerned folk from New Orleans, Bangladesh and Indonesia are going to send blankets, sandbags and umbrellas to the besieged villagers of Dachet, Dawlish and Thorney - you could'nt make it up. I wonder how many of these poor folk game the thumbs up for all the funds for the Millenium Dome and The 'LimpPrick' Games and wonder why there is nothing in the kitty?

The picture below is of Waterbeach in Cambridgeshire, the clue is in the name - classic 'flood-plain' and permission has been sought to........build.

ATB Laurie:t:

 

[Pam_m]

Last and certainly not least i managed to, finally, put another face to a name. A plaintive mewing from the car park and i was able to shake hands with Pam-M who is off to Madeira:eek!: this week - nice to meet you and have a nice break Pam.

Laurie:t:

Hi Laurie, it was good to meet you too and thanks for your good wishes for my holiday, which was a good one and sunny! Berthelot's Pipit, Spectacled Warbler and Madeira Firecrest made up for the lack of my sighting or hearing the YBW at Uffmoor!

Sorry to read that you only heard the YBW on your last visit!

What a 'Batten down the hatches' day today!!:eek!: