Withymoor - Amblecote, Stourbridge..... (4 Viewers)

[rollingthunder]

Has it been that long since posting.....

Not going abroad in the Autumn hasn’t helped and the inclement weather 6 weeks either side of the-christmas-that-never-was doesn’t bear thinking about.

One small point - what happened to BF? I find it difficult to navigate or is it just me?
Wtf are the emojis?

In reality i have seen nothing to write home about. Yes i have been out and about but no distance - just Stevens Park for Winter Gulls, Fens Pools to give me an excuse to fettle n clean the bike and the less said about the Golden Puddle the better...

Spring is, however, around the corner and half a dozen species are in song of sorts. Making my spirits soar is the car park Pavarotti - a fruity, robust, ‘Merlot’ if ever there was!

Never mind Covid19 make way for Corvid21 - the Waterfront Ravens were clocked refurbishing a coupla weeks ago

I have taken time since Jan 1st to purchase some books. I normally only buy Field Guides, even countries or regions i am unlikely to visit e.g. Kazakhstan and Mongolia. At present both Keele and Manchester is pushing it :-( The books i have recently added to my inventory are different. They are accounts of trips, expeditions, birders and 1st record account finders. Some historical, some hysterical and a few that cover my own 45+ years of birding - i will put up some info etc shortly.

Meanwhile attached are images of Raven refurb and of a male Shoveler from Mary Stevens Park, Stourbridge - no great shakes i know but in ten years of watching the place it is the first record so it’s all relative. I won’t bother posting my finders account ;-)

Good Birding -

Laurie -

 

[the Harborne Flyer]

Has it been that long since posting.....

Not going abroad in the Autumn hasn’t helped and the inclement weather 6 weeks either side of the-christmas-that-never-was doesn’t bear thinking about.

One small point - what happened to BF? I find it difficult to navigate or is it just me?
Wtf are the emojis?

In reality i have seen nothing to write home about. Yes i have been out and about but no distance - just Stevens Park for Winter Gulls, Fens Pools to give me an excuse to fettle n clean the bike and the less said about the Golden Puddle the better...

Spring is, however, around the corner and half a dozen species are in song of sorts. Making my spirits soar is the car park Pavarotti - a fruity, robust, ‘Merlot’ if ever there was!

Never mind Covid19 make way for Corvid21 - the Waterfront Ravens were clocked refurbishing a coupla weeks ago

I have taken time since Jan 1st to purchase some books. I normally only buy Field Guides, even countries or regions i am unlikely to visit e.g. Kazakhstan and Mongolia. At present both Keele and Manchester is pushing it :-( The books i have recently added to my inventory are different. They are accounts of trips, expeditions, birders and 1st record account finders. Some historical, some hysterical and a few that cover my own 45+ years of birding - i will put up some info etc shortly.

Meanwhile attached are images of Raven refurb and of a male Shoveler from Mary Stevens Park, Stourbridge - no great shakes i know but in ten years of watching the place it is the first record so it’s all relative. I won’t bother posting my finders account ;-)

Good Birding -

Laurie -View attachment 1366968View attachment 1366969

Glad to know you'll still around and you're sounding as miserable as the rest of us.

 

[rollingthunder]

Glad to know you'll still around and you're sounding as miserable as the rest of us.

'Still around' - whatever dooo you mean?

I still have plenty of residual vitamin D from the Spring mate

Had the first jab weeks ago after a phone call from a friend (yes i do have them) saying that due to people not turning up they would have to dispose of opened batches unless they could pressgang some victims so not wishing to see the stuff wasted.....or be given to the EU i did the decent thing...

 

[rollingthunder]

You say carbo i say sinensis - let’s call the whole thing off!

I am as interested in subspecies, forms, morphs etc as much as full species and make every effort to see them when abroad. Where it pertains to plumage features it can be fairly straightforward but when it comes down to biometrics it can be problematical particularly if there is a gender difference

Sunday last i clicked with a couple of ‘Continental’ type Cormorants, the first for a coupla years. I normally see the odd one in the Spring which i presume are wandering unpaired individuals. This Winter i have seen ‘carbo’ at all my regular sites as follows:

Mary Stevens Park - upto 4.
Fens Pools - upto a dozen.
Withymoor - 1 record.
Netherton Razzer - upto half a dozen.
Sheepwash - <20 - 30>.

A bird on Sheepwash followed by another on Netherton Razzer were the first for a while. Apparently the ‘sinensis’ features can be shown by our resident birds but as i see them so infrequently they are noted down as such and i record them as ‘sinensis’ types... These birds have appeared following inclement weather from the East and widespread freezing of inland waters so whether that is a factor i can only speculate.

I never really see that many in Southern Spain but in Morocco i am familiar with the ‘marrocanus’ types that sport a White neck. As i travelled South to Dhakla, where you are virtually in West Africa, there were more ‘lucidis’ appearing with the White extending to the breast. Distribution maps show them to be no further North than Mali-Southern Mauretania but the Royal Terns i watched fishing come from the Gambian colonies. That far South in the Maroc/Western Sahara is turning up all sorts of extra-limitals e.g. breeding Sudan Golden Sparrow, Cricket Warblers and now a species that should be kept in a Fort Knox vault.....Golden Nightjar

Expect the unexpected is the tagline.

Other species noted Sunday were Kingfisher and adult Little Egret at SW and a flyover buzzer Lesser Redpoll at FP - the Sheepwash ‘sinensis’ was in advanced pelage whilst the NR less so. Whoever said Punk was dead should have gone to Specsavers

Attached:
Sheepwash
Netherton Razzer
A bird seen on a Polish beer bottle last year
Diagram depicting gular angle although getting clinching views should be an Olympic discipline imo.

Good Birding -

Laurie -

 

[rollingthunder]

Cold or what.....

I intended hitting half a dozen local sites for a quick roundup fro 10-2 yesterday but wrapped up at 12:30 after 2 hours in the field as snowflakes started falling at Netherton Razzer. With both Withymoor and Sheepwash circularly walked it was decided to give Fen Pools and Kingswinford Park a miss particularly with the increasingly biting wind picking up - coldest January thus far for a decade.....

Withymoor continues to underwhelm with no Tufties for a year and not a reported wader since the Grey Phalarope it can surprise when you least expect it e.g. Long-tailed Duck

Sheepwash was hard going with any walking off of the hard perimeter resembling the first day of the Somme - the ground, everywhere, is unbelievably waterlogged. The Cormorants on cursory views were back to the regular number of 25 but binocular views revealed an eye-popping minimum of 14 birds sporting ‘Continental’ head markings A record number for me

In addition were a coupla female Goosander, 5 Pochard, a male Shoveler and a pair of Teal on one of the pools. Kingfisher along with an adult Little Egret were seen fishing on the river and a smart adult GBBG was fettling itself before departing - a species i look for as i like them.

Attached:
Cormorants including arrowed sinensis-types.
GBBG.
Little Egret caught in mid-flight.

Good birding -

Laurie

 

[rollingthunder]

Braved the elements ystda for a circuit of habitats, it was actually milder when i let the Dog out at 6am than later on when the wind had picked up bringing with it a skin-removing temperature and then some!

Withymoor held 4 smart Goosander, 3f1m, the most for 18 months.

Sheepwash had <20 Cormorants with only 3 'sinensis' types this week. Of note was a good gathering of large Gulls with 150+ on the edge of the main pool ice. The bulk appeared to be 1w LBB with no GBB noted.

An adult YLG candidate was in amongst them with intermediate mantle tones and pale legs. The latter is not a feature that i obsess on outside the breeding season. I like to assess a range of features concentrating on the build and head features - the bird looked good to my eyes but i stand to be corrected. Goosander and other Duck were present including 15 Pochard which is a good number at the sites i go to these days.

Onward to Fens Pools where the wind had really picked up and the large Gulls on Top Pool were bunched up and from my viewpoint were awkward to look at. What i thought was about 30 turned into 50+ when the all went up. I zapped a coupla bursts of stuff flying around without attempting finer ID as i scanned the sky for a marauding Peregrine. I got back to look through the batch at another YLG candidate to find a picture of what appeared to be a 'White-winger' - this bird must have been hidden in the group because i did not clock it at all. It looks to me like a glaucoides with crisp mantle and edges and pointy wingtips. The bird has a clear head and legs that look like the darker side of Pink so maybe it is in breeding pelage.....

Good birding -

Laurie

Attached:
glaucoides and 2 different YLG-type candidates - lighting was highly variable yesterday btw.

 

[rollingthunder]

For clarification the bird on the ice is the same bird i posted to emphasise the changeable lighting conditions

I looked at all the group shots of the Fens Top Pool bird and the 'glaucoides' was not or did not appear to be in the group and i think it was elsewhere on the pool and flew into the group when they all went up

What i was looking at was an individual that looked good for a YLG - possibly the same bird, or another in similiar plumage, that Todd Chater saw on Thursday or Friday.

Attached is said bird on FTP.

Good birding -

Laurie

 

[Phil Andrews]

Nice find Laurie, especially as there have been no reports of white-wingers at either Chasewater or Bartley.

 

[rollingthunder]

Nice find Laurie, especially as there have been no reports of white-wingers at either Chasewater or Bartley.

Thank you Phil - it is scant reward but i didn’t know about the paucity of White-wingers so that’s cheered me up. I hope you and yours are keeping well - fingers crossed and there is light at the end of the tunnel..........just hope it’s not an oncoming train

Good birding -

Laurie

 

[Phil Andrews]

Thank you Phil - it is scant reward but i didn’t know about the paucity of White-wingers so that’s cheered me up. I hope you and yours are keeping well - fingers crossed and there is light at the end of the tunnel..........just hope it’s not an oncoming train

Good birding -

Laurie

Not to bad all things considered Laurie. Have managed 105 species on foot from since start of lockdown around Sutton Park and just over the border into south Staffs near Shenstone and Little Hay - Quail, Red Kite, Grey Partridge, Barn and Short-eared Owls, Firecrest, Red-backed Shrike, Whinchat, Jack Snipe, Tree Sparrow, Woodcock, Gropper plus numerous Yellow Wag, Wheatear and Redstart. Plenty of targets left for the forthcoming spring.

 

[rollingthunder]

A coupla weeks since my last posting and the last few days has made all the difference, finally you can preface the word 'morning' with 'good'. We all know it's not over but it is a contrast to 4 months of crap weather on top of the problems experienced by all those that allow themselves to be cooped up. The sites i visit localy are veritably teeming with unmasked citizens and although i like places like Fens Pools to myself early doors it is nice to bump into other like-minded Vitamin D afficionados.

I never see ringed or wing-tagged Cormorants but the number and sporadic appearances of these 'sinensis' types at least highlights birds moving about compared to the usual 'carbo' birds. Now that, to all intents and purposes, the Continental-type birds are assuming breeding pelage i was wondering whether you could identify individuals by their punk-type head and neck markings? If no further moult takes place for a while maybe these features do not change until the post-breeding moult? This form of individual ID is used on the beak markings of Bewick's Swans whilst Barnacle-type growths are also an individual feature on both Grey and Humpback Whales as is dorsal fin shape and body markings on Killer Whales.....

I tried 3x 2 hour sessions up at Fens Pools this week in the 2-4 slot hoping for large Gulls en-route to their reservoir roosts dropping in for a wash n brush up but a couple of dozen at most turned up. BHG numbers have dropped at Mary Stevens Park, Stourbridge, as elsewhere so i presume all species are now moving towards their breeding colonies so i shall revert to mid-morning at FP ca11-2 gradually moving earlier as the mornings lighten. The very wet Winter has meant that water levels at FP and elsewhere are back up to normal so a dry period is in order to allow some exposed edge over the next 6 weeks or so. A smart adult YLG put in an all too brief appearance as did a 1w Common Gull that flew past me yesterday afternoon as i was admiring one of the locals' Staffordshire Bull Terrier - thus missed a picture of this decidedly uncommon Gull - only my 3rd record for the site and Todd Chater only reports a singleton during his whole tenure. A calling Chiffchaff heralded Spring but i suspect a wintering bird and a lone female Goosander on the Top Pool has been present for most of the week. Lots of stuff singing and my local Blackbirds are cranking up a about 5:15.

Attached: Sheepwash Cormorants, Fens Pools YLG and a Mary Stevens Park 'sinensis' type thingy.

Good Birding -

Laurie

 

[rollingthunder]

With the weather looking decidedly changeable todays jaunt to Grimmers has been put on hold until Sunday, which was planned anyway - maybe the winds will do some good in that neighbourhood

Yesterday was another Wheatear-free day only of note as the 10th of March is my earliest local record some 3 years ago. The fields at West Hagley approach 600' at the Water Treatment Station and although not isolated do provide annually cultivated fields which are tilled in preparation about now. I have only drawn 2 blank years in the 15+ of covering them and that coincided with good ongoing weather for passage migrants. Contrast that with the above earliest date and i recorded Wheatear until the 10th of May which is 2 months of movement! My average arrival date is 15/16th March so it could be nearly 2 weeks until i record the first bird.....or early next week. I had anticipated an earlier date due to a window of weather allowing birds to take advantage of an area of high pressure over the Mahgreb and Iberia providing a corridor of warm Southerly airflow. A small number of birds made it but are probably spread very thinly and there is always a recording bias towards the coast anyway...

The current state of the fields means there are only 3 prepared for sowing and they are all on the SW side from the WaterWorks and thus open to the prevailing wind - the ominous dark outline of the Malverns some 28 miles hence is a brooding reminder of the winds' origin. Yesterday saw Linnets and Skylarks hugging the ground along with a pair of RedLegs. Two Corn Buntings were heard singing but not seen as they were obviously using a clod of recently turned soil as a song post. 2 different pairs of Ravens were clocked one of which circled high around the other pair calling until they had flown through - possibly a territory thing. Unfortunately no repeat of Sundays Mach1 Merlin but fingers remain crossed and hopes high🤞

I had to smile as i was texting a mate with regard to breeding Ravens and my predictive phone offers Covid instead of Corvid - a sign of the times.....😷

Attached is a map of the fields with the Pump Station circled and the radiating arrows showing the West Midlands fields. To the West is Staffordshire (S) and to the South is Worcestershire (W). The 3 cultivated fields are all West Midlands as is the bulk of them in the recording area. Of note is the boundary line which at the angle point shows all 3 counties each with a field adjoining them. This makes for interesting records - the year of my earliest record was 2 males feeding in the WM one of which flew on to W. Had the other flown to S i would have had the earliest 'reported' records for the species for all 3 counties - instead i had to make do with just 2😪

Good birding

Laurie

 

[rollingthunder]

Has Spring sprung? Technically yes but practically no - with the winds stuck firmly either side of North the last coupla weeks or so migration continues locally at glacial pace although i would argue that the latter is retreating more than the former is advancing.....

Out and about at the usual sites with odd Chiffchaffs at all locales and now a Blackcap at Fens Pools to herald what will probably be an avalanche with the next decent change of wind direction from hopefully Iberia. Perhaps they are all being turned back by Border Farce as their papers are not in order? Those anticipating Red-backed, Great Grey or Lesser Grey Laniuds may be disappointed as Bozza and his unelected advisors are only allowing in Masked Shrikes.

With no Wheatears at West Hagley Fields a revision of my records now puts the average arrival date at 19th /20th March. From 2009-2015 earlier birds made it 15th / 16th but the run of progressively late arrivals from 2016 onwards has moved the average - the earliest on the 10th bucked the trend. Anything on the 15th is early and anything after 25th is late for me. Weather is probably the most important factor - recent Springs have see winds similiar to those currently present. A 5-day window from today until Friday should make a difference.....we shall see.

Migrants aside there are plenty of sparring Skylarks, at least 2 Corn Buntings and hedgerow Yellowhammers up at WHF along with good numbers of Stock Doves, i believe they are cavity nesters so quite where they all breed i do not know? A markedly leucistic Buzzard is present - this is the palest of a brood from about 4 years ago. It's a good job i knew what it was as it looked like a large Gyr from a distance! A pleasant visit to Sandwell Valley last Sunday yielded 3 Goldeneye including a male, always nice to see - we didn't clock the LRP that was reported mid-morning. I like to think it wasn't there.....

The Ravens at Merry Hill are on eggs with the male in 'King of the Hill' mode keeping an eye on all and sundry. A second pair have built a nest in the middle of Doodlay and i shall photograph that for record purposes this week - it is opposite the Bride's office and it was her that alerted me to the possibility of breeders when a bird regularly drank from a pool on an adjacent flat roof. I have a number of Raven sites to cycle around in the next 2 weeks and they are all in the local countryside to the West but it is the colonising urban birds that i will pay more attention to. A pair of Peregrines were on one of the pylons at Whittington over the weekend having just taken a Wood Pigeon. There is a considerable size difference as was the birds at the Delph last year that i thought would nest so they could be the same. Whittington Sewage Works have a large area divided by several bunds of 'night soil' on the former site. It looks very good for a passage wader or wagtails - yesterday it was all mushy with little pools everywhere and can be viewed from inside the fence of the former Stewponey sandpit - i look forward to something turning up shortly.....

The highlight, apart from the all too brief WHF Merlin, of the last month was an excellent record on Saturday morning. I did a 13.5 mile cycle of Withymoor / Netherton Hill and Razzer / Fens Pools - it was cool and unproductive save from the aformentioned Warblers. As i exited the Razzer i heard a screeching that sounded like a cross between a Green Woodpecker and a distressed baby. This was interspersed with the alarm calls of two Carrion Crows - the call they give when they are attacking a predator. The Crows were hard on the heels of a Goshawk, a male judging by the size, which was indeed carrying a Green Woodpecker in its talons the latter pleading for its life. I have recorded Gos locally but no nearer than Stourbridge Golf Course which is urban fringe. Netherton is decidely urban but there are surprisingly large areas of 'wild habitat' mixed in with the cheek by jowl housing and industry. Adjacent Saltwells Wood is Domesday Book Oak woodland. Bumble Hole has Industrial Revolution open fields and Fens Pools has medieval ridge and furrow meadows containing Great Crested Newt. Indeed some of the 'Brownfield' sites around here are argueably richer in species than so-called wild habitats out in the boonies.
Back to the Gos. I would have thought GW a rare prey item but if selected easily taken in flight considering the Woodpecker's slow undulating pattern? Netherton Hill with its large areas of heathy grassland and ant hills is probably where it was selected but where was the bird going? A couple of pairs i have checked recently are on eggs so is this prey being taken to a locally sitting female or to be consumed by a non-breeding male? Answers on a postcard please.....

Good Birding -

Laurie -

Attached: Leucistic Buzzard, Stock Dove, Male Goldeneye, Corn Bunting and Male Yellowhammer.

 

[rollingthunder]

Attached: a handy guide from the RSPB incumbents at Sandwell Valley, King of the Hill up at the Waterfront, a super smart pair of Fens Pools LBB's, Woodie on the nest in Mary Stevens Park and a Whittington Peregrine not.....

 

[rollingthunder]

Whilst scanning the West Hagley Fields for migrants i espied this - is assume it's an Owl pellet of sorts.....any ideas?

 

[rollingthunder]

Booooom!

OK only a Wheatear but it's a March one on the afternoon of the 31st in a stunner of an afternoon. Only a single bird seen but as they say a win is a win In addition at least 3 White Wagtails were present mixed in with half a dozen Pied. A lone tractor was working a field establishing potato furrows and that's where all the action was including half a dozen Buzzards and a coupla dozen large Gulls.

An hour up there late yesterday afternoon (Good Friday) yielded another 2 male Wheatears. All fields are now under cultivation which means lots to cover but from the high point it is relatively easy to spot a pale Wheatear against the freshly tilled soil as whilst they are cultivating the top soil they are also gathering stones with another piece of equipment - all this means less isolated 'pale' pebbles to trap the unwary.....

The weather is forecast to stay cool with winds more or less in the North apart from a brief 3-4 day ESE respite next week. The usual culprit is responsible - namely the Jet Stream - this is irritatingly nearby to the North West when ideally it should be well the other side of Iceland. It means, for birding, a Groundhog Day scenario of cold Polar air being pulled down as far as central Iberia

Good Birding -

Laurie -

Attached: White Wagtail, Male Wheatear, furrowed field habitat and 2 shots of one of the Buzzards plus a photobombing 'alba' - this Buzzard struck me as being very 'Tawny Eagle' in its looks and demeanour.....from what i remember

 

[rollingthunder]

Spring continues, for me, painfully slow only field birding every other day due to the temperatures associated with the cool wind. Although the direction will vary between now and the end of the month the origin will remain Polar with it switching either side of North for at least the next 2 weeks unless the Jet Stream weakens and moves away. More migrant species are finally arriving with perceived ‘falls’ when the wind abates.

Chiffchaffs are widespread locally and i have recorded singing Willow Warblers and Blackcaps at all the sites i regularly visit. The Ravens at The Waterfront remain on eggs whilst i have yet to personally confirm the Dudley birds - i will rectify that shortly. I haven’t bothered to chase reported Ring Ouzels as they have attracted the usual parasitic bellends that now infest this hobby with reports of so-called ‘birders’ chasing them in order to obtain an image with which to bore everybody with on Social Media :-( With only alternate daily visits to the West Hagley Fields it has been a bit hit and miss with Wheatears recorded by me on 4 days since my single March record of a male on the afternoon of the 31st. In addition i have noted a female, 2 males and yesterday 5 males all in a single prepared and deep ridged Potato field. Paul Legge reported 2m1f the day before (Thursday) in another field about 1/4 mile away - i assume the population is dynamic and move on each day..... My brother clicked with the Sheepwash Black-necked Grebe and a solitary Common Sandpiper on Thursday whilst Todd Chater was on Netherton Hill with a stonking male Redstart and an overflying Osprey whose presence was announced by the usual coterie of aggrieved large Gulls. Hirundines are thin to say the least - i recorded my first House and Sand Martins as a mixed feeding party on Fens Middle Pool on Tuesday. They were hawking in the lee of the Dam on whatever insects were braving the ‘moderate’ breeze. I also recorded my only Swallow yesterday with the 5 Wheatears.

Good birding -

Laurie -

 

[rollingthunder]

Nearly a month since last posting and it’s migration time - says it all really :-( Spring stumbles, falters and splutters virtually into early Summer without any settled high pressure. I look at the few Hirundines about and think - why bother? Despite living in the World’s largest open prison over the last year i derive what little pleasure this wretched Government cannot control by cycling and birding several local patches but the last six months has tested my resolve vis-a-vis the weather and my ability to drum up enthusiasm on a daily basis but i always wipe the sheet clean at bedtime and think tomorrow is another day - Groundhog or otherwise.....

I have clicked with a reasonable number of expected species with several ‘8 warbler’ days 9 if you add a Cetti’s that has taken up residence on the old Netherton Hill Settling Pool along with 1, now 2, Reed and a Sedge further up on the canal. Quite a few Wheatears at several locations but only a max of 5, all males, up at the West Hagley Fields. White Wags have been scarce with a handful at WHF and a nice male at Grimmers on Sunday last. Fens Pools has had a good range of Warblers upto 6 Yellow Wags and a daily mix of all 3 Hirundines + Swifts. Waders have disappointed with only the odd singles of Common Sand thus far. Local Rouzels at Netherton Hill have eluded me as they are apt to do regularly on an annual basis :-( I could dash off when texted but i do not tend to chase other peoples birds - not initially anyway. I might be tempted at the weekend if the Boney’s is still at Upstart Warren - a good find and just reward for the time put in by JTB👍🏻 It would be nice if the Little Legs is still at Clifton but maybe that is a wish too far..... The Waterfront Ravens are now feeding young

Sunday at Grimmers was a very pleasant and productive 3 hours in half-decent weather although the threat of rain was never far away. Species seen included:

6 spp of Warbler.
Both Cattle and Little Egret.
All Hirundines + Swift.
Both White and Yellow Wagtails.
5 Wheatear noted.
4 spp of Wader, inc 2 pairs of LRP one of which appeared to be sitting on a ‘scrape’.
Notably were a minimum of 4 Hobbies all hawking together high up at one stage.

No Terns noted which was a surprise. What wasn’t were a number of people that only sported camera equipment :-/

Good birding -

Laurie -

Attached - Hobbies.

 

[rollingthunder]

YWag - Grimmers.
Nesting Blue Tit - Chasewater.
GCGrebe - Fens Top Pool.
Leucistic Buzzard - West Hagley Fields.
Female Wheatear - Netherton Hill.

 

[rollingthunder]

Pair of Mallard - Fens Middle Pool.
Adult YLG - Fens Top Pool.
Female and male Raven clocking a passing Buzzard - Waterfront, Merry Hill.
Recently installed ‘sculpture’ at the entrance to Fens (Middle) Pool. A tribute to the site’s SSSI status due to the breeding Great Crested Newts. The species is known locally as The Pensnett Dragon - a tad confusing as my ex-wife lives in adjacent Swan Street!
Male Raven keeping guard at The Waterfront.....