Yorkshire Birding (1 Viewer)

[Lawts]

Went to Anglers this morning to pick up the slavs, fond them but they were very distant. Then spent the remainder of the day at Potteric. Plenty of interesting bits and bobs including a Garganey and 2 Green Sands (is it October?).

Not LSW today, and not one reported since the 2/10 so maybe winter is best for these.

I did the walk round Angler's this afternoon. Bumped into Uncle Lawts by chance in the car park. Both Slav's still present but distant, and the Arctic Tern still present.

 

[Keith Dickinson]

Tough with the LSW Marcus, that's a hell of a late garganey though.

 

[Marcus Conway - ebirder]

Tough with the LSW Marcus, that's a hell of a late garganey though.

That's what I said, but was firmly put into place. It is the fourth October record for juv type garg, and two of those have stayed to winter...

So there

 

[Keith Dickinson]

Well I'll be b*ggered....I accept the slapped wrist with good grace. I must remember to visit next year during October if i don't manage to track down a gargar before then..LOL

 

[Dawn Balmer]

I'm looking for birders in Yorkshire to help out with the Bird Atlas that starts on 1 Novemeber. I'm the atlas organiser for the Leeds & Wakefield area, Hull area, East Yorkshire, SE and SW Yorkshire and still have many 10-km squares in these areas with huge gaps in.

There are two elements to the atlas fieldwork.
1. Timed Tetrad Visits. These are timed counts in tetrads (2x2 km squares). You would need to make two visits in the winter, and two visits in the breeding season to each tetrad. The minimum requirement is one hour per visit. Once a tetrad has received a pair of visits in the winter, and a pair in the breeding season, then that tetrad is done. In each 10-km square, we are looking to cover a minimum of 8 tetrads.

2. Roving Records. This is about building up a cumulative species list for every 10-km square for the winter period (Nov-Feb inclusive) and the breeding season (Apr-Jul inclusive). You can do this whilst out birding, and can cover 10-km squares near where you live, where you go birding or any trips you make to other areas.

The methods are equal priority, so any help you can give would be excellent. You never know what you might find too!

You can sign up for tetrads on www.birdatlas.net. You'll need to register for the bird atlas first (by clicking one of the three big buttons). You can also download Roving Record Forms by clicking on 'Taking part'.

Alternatively, drop me an email at [email protected] and we'll chat about where you can cover.

Other parts of Yorkshire are covered by other Regional Organisers. You can find out your local organiser on the bird atlas website by clicking on 'Taking part' and then 'Your Regional Organiser'.

Cheers
Dawn Balmer
Atlas Coordinator

 

[Hotspur]

Had a Great White Egret from the train between Selby and Howden. Saw it on a pool to the north of the line long enough to see that Heron was all white and very large (ducks and moorhens close to it for size comparison. Bonus

 

[Ingsbirder]

James, can you be a bit more specific as to where it was, that's an awful lot of railway to cover!! Was it between Selby and Wressle, or between Wressle and Howden, for example?

 

[Ingsbirder]

Woodall appears to be the only obvious pool

http://www.streetmap.co.uk/streetmap.dll?G2M?X=469520&Y=431685&A=Y&Z=3

though presumably you would have noticed the buildings nearby and the fact that you'd not yet crossed the Derwent?

 

[Hotspur]

I dont know whether it was before or after wressle specifically- the train didnt stop there, i was just gazing out the window as i had zoned out of a friends conversation. That pool you have there looks like a goer, there were buildings about. It was such a fluke and only seen very briefly but definitely a large all white heron (it went through my mind as, that grey heron is all white!). Obviously views from a train aren't great or long but i must have had 4 or 5 seconds to see it. Definitely too large for little egret.

 

[liverpool_bob]

I dont know whether it was before or after wressle specifically- the train didnt stop there, i was just gazing out the window as i had zoned out of a friends conversation. That pool you have there looks like a goer, there were buildings about. It was such a fluke and only seen very briefly but definitely a large all white heron (it went through my mind as, that grey heron is all white!). Obviously views from a train aren't great or long but i must have had 4 or 5 seconds to see it. Definitely too large for little egret.

Possibility of leucistic Grey Heron... the jizz of GWE is quite different but you'd need to (at least) confirm bare-parts colouring to get it accepted.


Cheers,
Bob.

 

[Ingsbirder]

A sighting of this brevity would never be accepted at any level as a GWE, but is, of course, of interest to try and follow it up to try and pin down the bird in question - which would hopefully be a nice stuck-on GWE!!. There is more to GW Egret ID than being big and white as othrs have found out in the past )

 

[Mike Richardson]

Sounds like I missed some bloody good birds over the last two weeks!!! I'm not bitter at all (honest!!).

 

[birdieboy123]

Sounds like I missed some bloody good birds over the last two weeks!!! I'm not bitter at all (honest!!).

That'll teach you to go on holiday in october

 

[Hotspur]

A sighting of this brevity would never be accepted at any level as a GWE, but is, of course, of interest to try and follow it up to try and pin down the bird in question - which would hopefully be a nice stuck-on GWE!!. There is more to GW Egret ID than being big and white as othrs have found out in the past )

I wasn't going to submit the record as i was aware it had no chance of being accepted but Iam fairly confident on the ID. Once i get my new car over the next few days i may head down to the area to have a scout about.

 

[Marcus Conway - ebirder]

Red flanked blue at Flam. Even though I have a pass, I am going to leave it until tomorrow...

 

[Hotspur]

Damn and blast- no chance until monday at earliest.

 

[davidtucker]

Back from the Scillies,
list includes: Blackpoll Warbler, Wilsons Snipe, Grey Cheeked Thrush, Rustic Bunting, Red Breasted Fly Catcher, Yellow Brows, Blythes Pipit, Short Toed Lark and an Osprey, Brings my Life total to 269 and if I bag the Red Flanked Blue tomorrow (going for 1st light, hope it sticks) will make 270! Mmm starting to worry about the list starting to become addictive.
Dave

 

[birdieboy123]

Just got back from seeing the Red-Flanked Bluetail. What a cracking little bird, showed really well
Hope it sticks around for you guys

 

[Marcus Conway - ebirder]

Super birding

I have already posted two seperate threads on my day one around a stoat catching a killing a rabbit and another here summarising a remarkable raptor encounter.

I called in at the Strid first light to try and find some woodland birds, I thought I could hear some monkeys! I followed the sounds down to the river and found the culprits sat in the trees. They were not monkeys, but so out of context I couldn't work out what I was watching. Then in clicked, and in the trees were 24 Mandarin ducks making the most peculiar sounds possible.

I then watched the usuals and some nice nuthatch and brambling, when -near to the spot we BFers had the first wood warbler - a party of crossbill arrived chup chupping away. Happy with the start I decided to head up to some moorland to see what I could find, and the theme was raptors. Buzzard, Sparrowhak, Kestrel, Merlin, Red Kite and Hen Harrier all showed in a spectacular 2 hour session.

Eyes to the skys as 2000 thousand fieldfare passed through with their staccato call. In amongst a small fall (is it a fall on the moors?) there are 5 Ring Ousels and 100 Redwing. I need to pinch myself. My phone buzzes 'red flanked blue at Flam' but I think sod it. I'm on top of the world on my own on the moors in God's Country.

I sit back happy with my lot and a male Stonechat joins me in the sunshine.

 

[James Thomas]

Nearly went to Bolton Abbey today for the Valley of Desolation walk, with the week off I might take the lads up there this week if this weather continues. Took them to Filey instead, nice day all round. Birding wise theres a Slav grebe, Eider and Long tailed Duck off the brig, saw a Red Throated Diver fly over and some great views of the regular cast - Purple Sandpiper at about 8' !! Apparently some Lapland Bunting proving elusive on top of the cliffs. Going to the coast later in the week, family day at Whitby Wed, then on my own Friday.