6th-7th May
A weekend in Darlington visiting Uni friends, with clouds of
Swift sand hirundines swirling around and my first Little Terns of the year on
the beach.
20th May
A mid-morning dash to Vange Marsh was successful
with the pair of Black-winged Stilts showing well on the marshy flash. He was defending their chosen island against
all comers and they had taken over a first attempt Coot nest. Unfortunately they did not stay and breed in the
end. A Common Sandpiper and some
Redshanks were the only other waders present.
22nd May
There was some unnecessary dithering before I made my way to
Cambridge and joined Adrian W on a now shorter dash up to Holme and the male
Rock Thrush that had taking a liking to
the golf course and we quickly joined the amassed ranks to watch this showy
bird. After watching him feeding on the
fairway with many Wheatears we pottered over to the paddocks where a female
Red-backed Shrike eventually popped into view.
There were both Whitethroats in the bushes too.
The Rock Thrush was worthy of a second look and then we
headed off and stopped for a pleasant evening with many old friends on the bridge
at Hilgay where several Golden Orioles put on a show and frequently flew over
our heads. Pie and chips and a Newcastle
Brown Ale rounded up a fantastic day out.
The Rock Thrush was briefly taken by a Sparrowhawk shortly
after we left but was scared off my the birders! The thrush spent the night in a box and was
released back onto the golf course the next morning. [Eds: to this day ‘people’
say you can’t tick it if you saw it once released…]
29th May
A somewhat disastrous morning with a pre-dawn visit to Rye
Harbour for a pair of Gull-billed Terns that had obviously snuck out before
first light. The other terns were nice
and a female Ruddy Duck was just outside the hide while Marsh Frogs noisily
called. The regrettable mistake was not going for the singing male Eye-browed
thrush in Aberdeen afterwards [Eds: still not seen one] and by 0650 I was back
in bed.
3rd June
News that the White-headed Duck at Abberton Reservoir had
undergone a probably very expensive sex change had us heading up for a look and
it was certainly worth it and he now had a vibrant turquoise bill, vermiculated
body, full length tail and patchy pied head.
A look at the rest of the reservoir produced a few Common
Terns and a dashing Hobby as a late year tick.
15th June
I started work in Silvertown at BOC Baker and my one hour
lunch break was my only escape from office work. The tiny local Lyle Park with the old Harland
& Wolff gates in it provided me with a respite from the boredom of
filing. I was delighted to find a pair
of Black Redstarts on the wharf of the chemical plant next door along with
several Common Terns and a surprise Little Tern over the Thames.
16th June
The Black Redstart was still present in Lyle Park and a
Yellow-legged Gull was a new bird. Later
as I walked back through Barking Park I was pleased to find two pair of Spotted
Flycatchers [Eds: none for many years now], a Great Spotted Woodpecker [Eds:
just moving in] and a singing Reed Warbler.
17th June
An overnight trek with Ian W and Adrian W to the scenic
north-east – Cleveland in fact and by 0415
we were overlooking the creek where the Ross’s Gull had bee frequenting for the
past week.
As the light improved it became obvious that the only different
small gull was a hooded first-summer Little Gull. We checked many local areas and eventually we
joined others on a slag heap overlooking Dorman’s Pool where the bird had been
rediscovered. [Eds: I think that this is
now all part of Saltholme and I can remember it being completely surrounded by
industry and waste land].
 |
| Ross's Gull |
This full adult had a full neck ring and bright red legs and
orbital ring but inly a hint of pink underneath. A couple of brief flight views showed off the
wedge tail to good effect.
A Greenshank was another late year tick and there were lots
of Reed Buntings and Warblers, Snipe, Curlews and Redshank while patches of
Northern Marsh, Common Spotted and Pyramidal Orchids pushed through the damp
grassland.
Our next stop was Seaton Carew from where the ranging Lesser
Crested Tern had occasionally been seen but there were only a few Sandwich and
Common Terns present. The South Gare
Spotted Sandpiper was a no show so we had a fry up in an early opening sea
front café before heading south again with a stop at Robin Hoods Bay to walk
along the beach and have a top up snack from a tea room!
We saw a single Red Grouse on the drive out and by early
afternoon were in a busy Filey where a small group of birders suggested that we
had found the right spot for the singing brown male Scarlet Rosefinch and
within seconds we had heard him but it took an age to see him well. He was subsinging too – quite unlike the
normal song and more like a sylvia warbler.
Fortunately the long onward journey was punctuated by an
immature female Red-footed Falcon at Little Paxton and the evening sunshine had
brought up many insects and with it the Red-foot and three Hobbies. Close views of both species were had in
flight and perched.
 |
| Red-footed Falcon |
Nightingales were still singing and there were many Warblers
and active Cuckoos while clouds of Swifts and hirundines were feeding over the
pits.
The weather turned and the rest of the drive home was spent
in atrocious driving rain.
18th June
A day trip to Suffolk with Dad and Lowestoft was to be the
focus for the day and it began perfectly with the adult Rose-coloured Starling
flying in over the Birds Eye Factory to parade around the old net drying posts
on the Denes. His pinkness did not
longer long and soon flew back into the factory grounds.
Rose Coloured Starling
We ambled down to the Denes Oval and were quickly on the female
Woodchat Shrike as she fed from a Wild Cherry.
I never tire of shrikes. We
headed back to the van for lunch and the Starling did the decent thing and
joined us while we ate.
 |
| Woodchat |
On to Minsmere and down to the North Hide where the adult
Greater Flamingo was on show and asleep as usual. There were Terns and Gulls everywhere but
there was no sign of the any Little Egrets or Med Gulls but then we realised we
had been looking too far away and one of the Egrets was literally below us on
the closest pool. A third Suffolk tick in
one morning.
A Grasshopper Warbler reeled from the North Wall and was
perched up on the top of a Bramble clump. Beardies pinged and Reed and Sedge Warblers
created as much noise as possible. There
were two Spotted Redshanks, Snipe and now three Little Egrets from the West
Hide where the Avocets and Black-headed Gulls were furiously bombarding them
while Marsh Harriers cruised around off toward Island Mere. Time to go home.
19th June
A very long day. Chaos ensued last night with the mis-locating
and mis-identification of a Little Bittern as a Night Heron on Hampstead
Heath. Ian and I arrived at 0520 to find
Kettle and Tony already leaving having seen nothing but some dubiously clad and
unclad gentlemen in the woods! A chatty Bill Oddie was present but no Little Bittern
so it was back to work!
After work Dad and I went to Old Hall Marshes and walked all
the way out to Penny Fleet where the female Wilson’s Phalarope took off as we
arrived, flew around and disappeared and never returned before dark. We saw Marsh
Harriers, a few Waders and two ghostly Barn Owls while waiting. The four mile
walk back in the gloom was great despite the atrocious hay fever. Reed Warblers, Lapwings and Redshanks were vocal
and a couple of large Bats whizzed back and forth while a Wood Sandpiper called
overhead. A group of young Foxes came
within a just a few feet of us.
23rd-25th June
Friday afternoon saw me heading up the M11 to Wander’s and
by 6pm we had been joined by Kettle and Tony and were on our way to John O’Groats
and beyond. Our quarry was the first
ever twitchable Pallid Harrier – an immature male on Orkney.
The journey was a bit blurry and I don’t think I slept too
much and I remember seeing Rock Doves in the fields somewhere north of Brora.
We arrived at John O’Groats at 0520 in an very thick and
unpromising fog but surely this bird which had seemingly been around since April
would not have done an overnight flit.
The journey across was fine and calm but the fog never
lifted as we crossed the Pentland Firth until we docked. We did see all the auks and two Red-throated
Divers but no Petrels. It was a scramble to get to the four coaches laid on for
the 260 birders and we were soon off on a convoy across the island. It took us
an hour and our coach driver regaled us with the WWII history of the islands –
Scarpa Flow and such like and by 9am we all safely ensconced on the roadside at
Birsay staring at fog covered hill where the harrier had been hunting but would
the fog ever clear?
Arctic and Great Skuas flew up and down the valley en route
to a colony passing over displaying Curlew, Oystercatcher and Snipe in the
fields below where several Short-eared Owls quartered.
Everyone was starting to flag and there were bodies
scattered in the verge for several hundred yards all with eyes closed and
willing the fog to clear enough for us to see far enough! I was one of those when the shout went
up! ‘There it is!’ I left up, not
knowing who or where I was, scrambled to my scope and popped my scope straight
onto the Pallid Harrier not 50 yards away as it drifted back into the fog!
Most people had missed it…
Five minutes later a male Hen Harrier came through causing those
who had not seen the Pallid to doubt our earlier sighting. Franco had somehow arranged for a provisions
vane to appear and serve us with tea and coffee and loads of small snacks
including cakes, pizza and quiche and sandwiches.
Feeling distinctly more human we settled back down and
waited another three hours until some of us briefly saw it the harrier again
and Hen Harriers had also been making sporadic appearances. And then the fog lifted and there it was and
over the next hour wonderful views were had as he hunted the hillside in
delicate effortless flight and sometimes he even hovered briefly. We learnt that he had paired up with a female
Hen Harrier but the eggs were taken by a Hooded Crow.
With spirits high we all settled down to wait for the
coaches to come and pick us up and once on the road we saw more Skuas and
Whinchats on the way back to the harbour.
[Eds: I seem to remember finding some nice Garnet crystal with the huge
sea defences while we waited for the boat]
We hit severe fog once again as soon as we left Orkney and
at one point we had to actually stop to let a huge tanker pass in front with
much honking of horns. Back on the
mainland we disembarked and started the drive back south towards Wick and some
dinner. [Eds: the local fish n chip van was not prepared for the arrival of dozens
of ravenous birders but he did a roaring trade.
I had Sausage I batter with chips – I seem to recall Adrian W having
deep fried White Pudding…]
Being June it barely got dark and I stayed awake till 2300
when we headed through Inverness but was then out of it until we almost reached
the River Warbler at Scotsman Flash near Wigan.
It was 0515 and the sun was back on duty and it took mere seconds to
hear and then locate this noisy reeler.
We left the warbler at 0540 having had it wonderfully on
view for the whole time and we had to get the hire car back to Colchester. [Ed:
A story: Kettle hired this little diesel Vauxhall Corsa on a one day car hire
from Colchester. It cost £28 and for the
Saturday hire he were allowed to pick up on Friday evening at 5pm and bring it
back on Sunday morning by 10am. There
was no mileage limit which was a good thing as the car had under 30 miles on the
clock and we added at least another 1500. The company were not amused with
Kettle and asked if we had been to John O’Groats – cue car park ticket and an
instant but unwarranted ban from hiring with them again…]
[Ed: Me again. My
final 60 mile haul from Cambridge to Ilford was interesting to say the
least. I was a little tired and when I
got overtaken on the M11 by the Tour de France Peloton with the Yellow Jersey
in the pack I decided that, as I was actually awake when this happened that I
should get off the motorway and hence wiggled through the back road from
Sawbridgeworth to get home safe and sound.]
2nd July
A day out at Thursley Common was disappointing with little
insect life but we did see some Dartford Warblers, Redstarts and Tree Pipits.
5th July
A quick afternoon dash down to Creekmouth for a female
Woodchat Shrike and I was one of the first on site after the news got out. A very pale washed out bird with some white
showing through the orangey crown. There
was not much else bar some Meadow Pipits.
Woodchat Shrike
8th July
Sometimes you just know when a day is going to go
poorly. In brief we dipped the Laughing
Gull at Sizewell in the morning and then at Lowestoft before dipping it for a
third time at Minsmere in eth evening. In the interim we dipped Cattle Egret
and Serin at Potter Heigham, drove to Cley to collect all eight of my unsold paintings,
saw two Spoonbills on Holkham and ended up with another Spoonbill and the ‘mingo
at Minsmere while re-dipping the gull.
Nightjars sung on Woodchat Shrike but the Corncrakes did not crex at
Martlesham… a crap day
16th July
James H and I headed down to Dungeness where the 1st-summer
Laughing Gull had relocated to and to my relief it was still loafing on the
beach with the other gulls. There was a Little Gull with the birds on the Patch
and a Balearic Shearwater weaved in and out of the throng.
Laughing Gull
News of the Woodchat in the Desert had us heading that way
and we soon had this smart male in view.
He was very energetic despite the stiff breeze. We noticed that he lacked a white wing covert
patch suggesting that it was of the Balearic race – badius.
badius Woodchat
The reserve was quiet with nothing of notes and after a
quick squint at the Tree Sparrows we headed home pleased with our efforts.
19th July
A phonecall from Wander set things in motion for and I was
heading down after work [Ed: I think] to Sidlesham Pool for a Least Sandpiper
which was tottering along the closest edge of the pool with a group of
Dunlin. Twenty minutes later it flew to
the back of the pool and you had to look directly into the sun to even see it
so I was very pleased to have made the effort.
There were many Dunlin and Common Sandpipers and a couple of
Ruff, Redshank and Black-tailed Godwits and with the Least now a dot I came home
hoping that plans had been made to get to Inverness for the Ivory Gull!
21st – 23rd July
After working through my lunch break, I left work at 4pm and
dashed home before heading off to Wander’s and by six we were on the road once
again and off to Tynemouth for the Petrel ringing. I was Proplussed unto the hilt! [Ed: no ‘energy’ drinks back then]. They did not trap the Swinhoe’s but we did
see amazing Storm Petrels in the hand.
How these little balls of fluff survive for 30 years at sea is a mystery
to me. On release they would sit on the
volunteers open hand, until with a little shuffle it would stand up, flutter
its wings and shoot off into the night.
By 0100 the ringers had had enough and so we too packed up
and headed further north towards Inverness.
We arrived about 0700 to be greeted by the adult Ivory Gull sat on the
Moray Firth picking food from the river’s surface under the bridge. Kettle described it as an Aylesbury
Duck. It actually felt like a slightly
funny albino Common Gull with a larger greeny grey bill with yellow tip, black
legs and eyes. In flight it glowed and
flew very buoyantly and gracefully using only the hands. It even foot pattered over the surface of the
outfall like some odd oversized white petrel.
Feisty Bottle Nosed Dolphins leapt clear of the water and
there were large flocks of Merganser and Goosanders, ten Tufted Ducks, Mallards
and some Shags.
We left the gull bobbing around and drove into Speyside and
had a walk around Forest Lodge but saw no Killer Capers and just a few vocal
Crested Tits. After breakfast we decided
on a partial ascent of Carn Ban Mor for Ptarmigan. Wander chickened out after twenty minutes and
we ended up climbing to the summit before finding four smart birds and
amazingly cryptic unless they flew off on white wings. The descent was quick and we were back on the
road to Tynemouth for another long Swinhoeless night and our one last stop the
following morning was at Langdon beck where 13 male Black Grouse obliged on the
roadside.
30th July
REM (with Blur!) were amazing at Milton Keynes Bowl in the
searing heat but this prevented me going for another attempt at the Swinhoes.
On Sunday morning once back home news broke of a Gull-billed Tern at Seaforth
and after a short delay we met up at Cambridge with the usual crew. Tony drove and the others had not slept for
several days and our journey can be best described as ‘swift’.
News was not good as it had not been seen for two hours but as we approached the hides a shout went up and there it was cruising around at close range. After 15 minutes of getting grief from the Common Terns it climbed high over the docks and was not seen again till a brief visit the following afternoon. Definitely a close call. With that we packed up and came home again!
 |
| Gull-billed Tern |
No comments:
Post a Comment