7th July
An early morning visit to Dagenham Chase resulted in no Wood
Sandpiper and only some of the Little Ringed Plovers. The Ruddy Duck family had been joined by
another pair and two single males. The afternoon
was spent at Thorndon CP dropping off my paintings before we hit the cinema for
Muppets Treasure Island!
14th July
An in the dark start saw us at the Eel’s Foot bridge at Eastbridge
by 0610. Two Barn Owls slowly quartered
the roadside and marshy fields. A
perfect start. A Red Underwing was on a
cottage wall and was a new moth for me.
We ambled off down the footpath towards the Sluice bushes
with Marsh Harriers all around and it did not take too long to get three
Spoonbills on the list as they circled into land on a hidden pool. Reed Buntings, Goldfinches, Yellowhammers and
Linnets were vocal and a Bittern drifted over.
It was rapidly warming up and the flies were massing so we started to
walk back [Eds: I have no idea what they could have been to cause a retreat].
Our return was perfectly timed as when we reached the
highest point on the path the remaining 16 Spoonbills flew up and around. A truly memorable sight as they wheeled
around in loose formation for several minutes before dropping back out of
sight.
It was pushing 0900 so we made our way to the main Minsmere reserve
and in the car park we found Marsh Tits and Spotted Flycatchers along with
others Tits and Treecreepers. The Purple
Heron obliged on the walk round and was perched up in a tree for the duration
of our visit. A much browner bird than
the one I found a month ago. The scrape
was almost devoid of waders so we made our way back for a cuppa before heading
around to Dunwich to look for Dartford Warblers but the weather had turned and a
cold and claggy mist had rolled in but we were lucky and ended up with seven
Dartfords along with Tree Pipit and Stonechats.
From here we headed north towards Fritton lake where the a
pair of Red Kites were reported to be breeding but despite our patience we
were unsuccessful A slow drive home followed after a rewarding day out.
16th July
A long twitch north to Cumbria with Ken Barrett, Rob Wilson
and two lads from Basildon for the Spanish Sparrow that had been discovered on
territory on a cottage in the tiny village of Waterside. I slept as much as possible on the way up as
usual and upon arrival it only took a few minutes to see this dapper chunky
sprog with definite pretentions of grandeur.
He spent most of his time advertising his presence with strident chirruping
and fervent wing shivering but the local female House Sparrows seemed
uninterested and kept heading into their nests in the Virginia Creeper.
Numerous Tree Sparrows were nesting in the holes in the oak
trees that lined the road making it a sparrow treble for the day. Of the male
Common Rosefinch there was no sign and as Rob did not want to do any more
birding we came straight home…
21st July
Too hot really to be out on the south coast but Pete G
offered to take Andrea and I out for the day so we began the day at Farlington
Marshes dipping a Citrine Wagtail that ended up staying for a month!
There were lots of waders with Ruff, Snipe, Blackwits, Whimbrel,
Curlews and Oystercatchers while a Grey Heron struggled to contain a large
squirming Eel. Yellow Wagtails were numerous but mobile and Bearded Tits
regularly popped out and pinged.
From here we headed into the traffic hell that was the New
Forest. Denny Wood was pretty good
although the air was stifling.
Redstarts, Nuthatches and Spotted Flycatchers put on a good show and we
heard Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers but the only species that we saw was
found by Andrea. We could hear it tapping
quietly to itself but Pete and I failed to pick it up till Andrea asked what
the tiny black and white bird was. A
quick shift and the scope and we were all watching a female Lesser Spotted Woodpecker as she diligently
excavated grubs from under a dead oak branch.
A severely distressed Blackbird suggested that a Tawny Owl
was nearby and surprisingly we were able to actually find it in a Holly but it
also spied us and quickly moved to a higher oak where the Blackbirds followed.
Once back out on the open the heat was almost unbearable and
we quickly moved between belts of cover.
A fine Red Deer hind stood in the shade with the New Forest Ponies and
watched us go by. Of Woodlarks,
Dartfords and Buzzards there was no sign and the heat haze was so intense that
it seemed to start just 50 yards away.
The walk back gave us a few Stonechats and we rescued a 65
year old Dutch lady from the bogs who had taken three hours to almost make it
back to safety having fallen through up to her armpits. She was very upset and exhausted but we
helped her back to her car where we gave her water and Pete made her a nice cup
of tea. Thankfully she had not lost her
car keys and we left her sleeping in the shade before we headed homewards into
the heat and traffic.
22nd July
Armchair tick day: Steppe Shrike and Hume’s Warbler were
officially split today but I had already ticked them anyway, rebel that I
am. [Eds: Steppe did not last long!]
However, I was not expecting such a quick decision on Oriental Bonelli’s
Warbler and hence I had a tock coming my way #433
25th July
A Clouded Yellow over the Lucerne meadow at the Chase
brightened my lunchtime but the scrape was almost dry and the reserve birdless
bar the Ruddy Duck family.
28th July
A morning visit to Cliffe with Steve and Mike proved
worthwhile with seven very smart Little Egrets and plenty of waders including
four summer plumaged Curlew Sandpipers amongst the Dunlin and Ruff flock. A lone Little Gull paddled around in the
muddy water.
[Eds: It is already noticeable by this point that my art work had dropped off and I apologise for only one drawing with this post.]
