A nice pleasant morning again with a refreshing cool breeze.
I got down to Amwell a bit earlier than usual and was pleased to see and hear a number of Blackcaps singing. On crossing the bridge I also heard a Willow Warbler. What I did not get to hear was the Sedge Warbler that had been heard earlier.
I had barley got to start scanning the waters when Bill had a call from Jan in the main hide-he was listening to a rather early Reed Warbler. Unfortunately by the time we got there it had shut up. Not much to see from the hide, until the Oystercatchers flew in.
Back at the viewpoint it seemed that the big influx of migrants reported nationally yesterday just was not happening to us and it proved to be rather quiet until a couple of parties of Swallows went through. After a couple of hours, my hay fever was starting to get a bit much and so I decided to leave, but just as I was going, someone found a Sand Martin over the water.
Sunday, 3 April 2011
Brecks and and Washes
Following a really crappy week with some sort of flu thing, it was great to get out in the Spring air this weekend and I am starting to feel much better.
On Saturday we decided to do a fairly short run around the Brecks and finish up in Cambridgeshire hopefully with migrant ducks and terns.
8am saw us getting a bit cold at Foxholes Heath where we soon heard Stone Curlews and a couple of singing Woodlarks. Finding either proved rather tricky as we assumed the Curlews were beyond the ridge. However, after about twenty minutes, six flew up out of a hollow and dropped down in plain sight and shortly after, I located a further four birds.
We never did find the Woodlarks, and in fact just about the only other birds on the heath were a few Linnets.
Next stop was Santon Downham. We parked in the main forestry car park and walked up to the river. A small cherry bush in a garden held a number of Siskin and Redpoll, with more higher up in the big trees along the river. Also present were a large flock of Crossbills.
Along the river, we encountered a pair of Nuthatch, and also one or two Kingfishers.
Green Woodpecker was heard, and a distant Great Spotted Woodpecker caused a bit of confusion as our main target and hence mindset was on Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. I eventually located a pair flying above the trees and calling, but never got satisfactory views. Another confusion bird was a tit we found gathering nesting material. The call as it flew over the river and landed by us sounded rather Marsh like but it looked much like a Willow. I found it again soon after, and the identification was confirmed when I heard the distinctive Willow calls.
Grimes Graves just to the north is a good raptor viewpoint, being high and open. It also held a Great Grey Shrike. The dull windy conditions were not conducive to raptors, though three low soaring Buzzards were seen, as well as Sparrowhawk and Kestrel. Despite a long search by several birders, the Shrike could not be located.
We went next to Lyndford Arboretum in the hope of picking up one of the Hawfinches-apparently heard singing, but no-one was able to find one. I did get my first Swallow of the year and we did encounter several elusive Firecrests managing to get good views of one. Also and seemingly abundant were more Nuthatch. We were shown the location of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker nest site, but the birds were not obliging, though they had been seen earlier in the day. We did find a singing Marsh Tit in the area. There seemed to be plenty of Brimstone flying in the area, and I also got to see my first Orange Tip of the year.
RSPB Ouse Washes was the last site of the day as both Colin and I were feeling a bit tired-we had hoped to get to Graffham in the evening. As it was it was a pretty good couple of hours. The Tree Sparrows were showing quite well on the feeders and as we went down to Welches Dam hide one or two Sand Martins went through.
The large expanse of mud and shallow marsh held an enormous number of Black Tailed Godwits, many in full breeding plumage, several Ruff and surprisingly four Knot. Vast numbers of Wigeon and Teal are still present, but despite a long search we failed to find any Garganey- nor did we see the drake Blue Winged Teal that had been reported the previous evening.
On Saturday we decided to do a fairly short run around the Brecks and finish up in Cambridgeshire hopefully with migrant ducks and terns.
8am saw us getting a bit cold at Foxholes Heath where we soon heard Stone Curlews and a couple of singing Woodlarks. Finding either proved rather tricky as we assumed the Curlews were beyond the ridge. However, after about twenty minutes, six flew up out of a hollow and dropped down in plain sight and shortly after, I located a further four birds.
We never did find the Woodlarks, and in fact just about the only other birds on the heath were a few Linnets.
Next stop was Santon Downham. We parked in the main forestry car park and walked up to the river. A small cherry bush in a garden held a number of Siskin and Redpoll, with more higher up in the big trees along the river. Also present were a large flock of Crossbills.
Along the river, we encountered a pair of Nuthatch, and also one or two Kingfishers.
Green Woodpecker was heard, and a distant Great Spotted Woodpecker caused a bit of confusion as our main target and hence mindset was on Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. I eventually located a pair flying above the trees and calling, but never got satisfactory views. Another confusion bird was a tit we found gathering nesting material. The call as it flew over the river and landed by us sounded rather Marsh like but it looked much like a Willow. I found it again soon after, and the identification was confirmed when I heard the distinctive Willow calls.
Grimes Graves just to the north is a good raptor viewpoint, being high and open. It also held a Great Grey Shrike. The dull windy conditions were not conducive to raptors, though three low soaring Buzzards were seen, as well as Sparrowhawk and Kestrel. Despite a long search by several birders, the Shrike could not be located.
We went next to Lyndford Arboretum in the hope of picking up one of the Hawfinches-apparently heard singing, but no-one was able to find one. I did get my first Swallow of the year and we did encounter several elusive Firecrests managing to get good views of one. Also and seemingly abundant were more Nuthatch. We were shown the location of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker nest site, but the birds were not obliging, though they had been seen earlier in the day. We did find a singing Marsh Tit in the area. There seemed to be plenty of Brimstone flying in the area, and I also got to see my first Orange Tip of the year.
RSPB Ouse Washes was the last site of the day as both Colin and I were feeling a bit tired-we had hoped to get to Graffham in the evening. As it was it was a pretty good couple of hours. The Tree Sparrows were showing quite well on the feeders and as we went down to Welches Dam hide one or two Sand Martins went through.
The large expanse of mud and shallow marsh held an enormous number of Black Tailed Godwits, many in full breeding plumage, several Ruff and surprisingly four Knot. Vast numbers of Wigeon and Teal are still present, but despite a long search we failed to find any Garganey- nor did we see the drake Blue Winged Teal that had been reported the previous evening.
Sunday, 27 March 2011
Summer Time
Just got past the 'first day of Spring' courtesy of the equinox and we changed the clocks to British Summer Time today. Not acclimatised-the body clock is a bit screwed.
Most of March has been pretty dry, and the pond level had dropped considerably. Ever since I re-profiled it about six years back, and extended the liner slightly I have suspected a leak, as the level has always seemed rather lower than intended. Decided to do something about it and a few evenings back removed the large iris clump, Purple Loosestrife and the Marsh marigolds, along with most of the pebbles. Bailed more of the water out and stored it in the wheely bin and surveyed the liner. Seems as if some of the plant roots have got under the extension, so used butyl tape to repair it.
Also used the tape to stick some of the larger pebbles back-no more sliding into the water hopefully. Replanted Friday, and finally finished things off this morning by topping up the water. Noticed that some of the tadpoles have hatched within the last week and that the Pond Skaters are back.
Working in the garden has produced a few surprises. We definitely have a Robin's nest in the ivy-until recently my garden was between two territories so this is new. Also there is a good chance the ivy has a Wren nesting as one or two birds are almost permanently in the garden. A pair of Great Tits visit frequently-I suspect they have a nest in the Oak in the front. Not sure where the Blackbird pair have their nest, but the Bay is a possibility.
After last weeks warm weather, the weekend has been quite a bit cooler. Yesterday was a bit of a shock to the system when I went to Amwell-cold ad misty first thing and it never really warmed up as it remained cloudy.
Singing Chiffchaffs everywhere but nothing else in the way of spring birds-unless you count the pair of Oystercatchers back again for the summer. Most of the winter ducks have gone-only a few Teal left now. Hardly any gulls either, though it looks like a few Black heads are taking an interest in the tern rafts. Had hoped to pick up the Kingfisher now that they have returned, and had a stroll with Colin round to Hollycross but were were not successful, but we did come across the Marsh Tit and a few Cetti's Warblers.
The low misty cloud also meant that there was little chance of seeing any Sand Martins, or even an early Swallow, and to some extent it was a bit of a disappointing visit.
Most of March has been pretty dry, and the pond level had dropped considerably. Ever since I re-profiled it about six years back, and extended the liner slightly I have suspected a leak, as the level has always seemed rather lower than intended. Decided to do something about it and a few evenings back removed the large iris clump, Purple Loosestrife and the Marsh marigolds, along with most of the pebbles. Bailed more of the water out and stored it in the wheely bin and surveyed the liner. Seems as if some of the plant roots have got under the extension, so used butyl tape to repair it.
Also used the tape to stick some of the larger pebbles back-no more sliding into the water hopefully. Replanted Friday, and finally finished things off this morning by topping up the water. Noticed that some of the tadpoles have hatched within the last week and that the Pond Skaters are back.
Working in the garden has produced a few surprises. We definitely have a Robin's nest in the ivy-until recently my garden was between two territories so this is new. Also there is a good chance the ivy has a Wren nesting as one or two birds are almost permanently in the garden. A pair of Great Tits visit frequently-I suspect they have a nest in the Oak in the front. Not sure where the Blackbird pair have their nest, but the Bay is a possibility.
After last weeks warm weather, the weekend has been quite a bit cooler. Yesterday was a bit of a shock to the system when I went to Amwell-cold ad misty first thing and it never really warmed up as it remained cloudy.
Singing Chiffchaffs everywhere but nothing else in the way of spring birds-unless you count the pair of Oystercatchers back again for the summer. Most of the winter ducks have gone-only a few Teal left now. Hardly any gulls either, though it looks like a few Black heads are taking an interest in the tern rafts. Had hoped to pick up the Kingfisher now that they have returned, and had a stroll with Colin round to Hollycross but were were not successful, but we did come across the Marsh Tit and a few Cetti's Warblers.
The low misty cloud also meant that there was little chance of seeing any Sand Martins, or even an early Swallow, and to some extent it was a bit of a disappointing visit.
Saturday, 19 March 2011
First Garden Butterfly
Just finished a spell of gardening, and found a mating pair of Commas warming themselves on some dark coloured washing that was still hanging up on the line.
Monday, 14 March 2011
Hoopoe and Eagle
With the fine weather and the prospect of early migrants we had pretty much decided on Friday that Sunday would be spent at Portland-we had had a good time last March so figured it would be worth the drive. Knowing a Hoopoe was present made it definite.
The dull drizzle as we drove past Southampton was a bit worrying but we hit sunshine soon after and the weather turned out really well for us.
We arrived at the Bill just after nine and bumped into some birders I knew and was told that the Hoopoe was some way along the cliffs east of the light. Bit of a walk out past the beach huts but we eventually found it. It proved very flighty but by waiting by the coast path i eventually got a few good images.
I was on the lookout for migrants while we were searching, particularly as there were a lot of alba Wagtails reported-strange that my first was a Grey Wagtail flying in off the sea. Found plenty of Pied, but failed to locate any White. Also present of course were Rock and Meadow Pipits. The open areas held a large number of Wheatears as well.
Searching the quarry south of the Lower Admiralty failed to locate any of the Black Redstarts so we went to the cliffs to look at the sea birds. A few Gannets went past, as well as numerous Fulmar and Kittiwakes. Auks were abundant, flying out from the cliffs, and Colin eventually found a Puffin among them. I had to wait a while but eventually one flew out and sat on the sea-the greyish head and dull bill was a bit disappointing as mine had yet to acquire full breeding plumage.
Despite being very busy at the Bill we eventually found a small flock of Turnstone and Purple Sandpipers on the rocks.
A quick stop at the Fleet produced a single Mediterranean Gull before we called in at Radipole. The sleeping Hooded Merganser was seen from the bridge and I spent some time getting images of the ducks, grebes and flying gulls while Colin photographed it. The walk around the reserve did not produce much apart from a Small Tortoiseshell.
We had planned on visiting the New Forest but decided to go to Old Basing and see if the White Tailed Eagle would show and we arrived mid afternoon. The small crowd informed us that we had just missed it some way away. A couple of rather pale Buzzards proved interesting while we waited, but after about an hour I noticed a commotion above the distant trees and realised that corvids were mobbing something big. Even at nearly a mile it was clearly the White Tailed. It gradually drifted closer, but as it did so it got higher, and was continually harassed by the Buzzards-very spectacular and from time to time the corvids also joined in.
Eventually the camera was able to get a decent focus lock, despite the great hight and I got a few poor images.
Unfortunately i then decided to head back down towards the distant woods where we eventually lost it.
Still, it more than made up for the frustrating day down at Hordle.
The dull drizzle as we drove past Southampton was a bit worrying but we hit sunshine soon after and the weather turned out really well for us.
We arrived at the Bill just after nine and bumped into some birders I knew and was told that the Hoopoe was some way along the cliffs east of the light. Bit of a walk out past the beach huts but we eventually found it. It proved very flighty but by waiting by the coast path i eventually got a few good images.
I was on the lookout for migrants while we were searching, particularly as there were a lot of alba Wagtails reported-strange that my first was a Grey Wagtail flying in off the sea. Found plenty of Pied, but failed to locate any White. Also present of course were Rock and Meadow Pipits. The open areas held a large number of Wheatears as well.
Searching the quarry south of the Lower Admiralty failed to locate any of the Black Redstarts so we went to the cliffs to look at the sea birds. A few Gannets went past, as well as numerous Fulmar and Kittiwakes. Auks were abundant, flying out from the cliffs, and Colin eventually found a Puffin among them. I had to wait a while but eventually one flew out and sat on the sea-the greyish head and dull bill was a bit disappointing as mine had yet to acquire full breeding plumage.
Despite being very busy at the Bill we eventually found a small flock of Turnstone and Purple Sandpipers on the rocks.
A quick stop at the Fleet produced a single Mediterranean Gull before we called in at Radipole. The sleeping Hooded Merganser was seen from the bridge and I spent some time getting images of the ducks, grebes and flying gulls while Colin photographed it. The walk around the reserve did not produce much apart from a Small Tortoiseshell.
We had planned on visiting the New Forest but decided to go to Old Basing and see if the White Tailed Eagle would show and we arrived mid afternoon. The small crowd informed us that we had just missed it some way away. A couple of rather pale Buzzards proved interesting while we waited, but after about an hour I noticed a commotion above the distant trees and realised that corvids were mobbing something big. Even at nearly a mile it was clearly the White Tailed. It gradually drifted closer, but as it did so it got higher, and was continually harassed by the Buzzards-very spectacular and from time to time the corvids also joined in.
Eventually the camera was able to get a decent focus lock, despite the great hight and I got a few poor images.
Unfortunately i then decided to head back down towards the distant woods where we eventually lost it.
Still, it more than made up for the frustrating day down at Hordle.
Saturday, 12 March 2011
First Butterfly
Did not know where to go this morning-the warm southerlies have been producing the first migrant Wheatears and Sand Martins, and it was about time to listen out for Chiffchaffs. In the end I went to Amwell and did not see any of these.
The warm sunshine was tempered by a southerly which at times seemed a bit chilly. I had missed a Green Sandpiper, but the first of the sites Redshank had appeared and was very mobile-it had been here for a couple of days but had yet to settle. One Little Egret was present, and the Cormorants and Herons seemed busy in the nesting trees.
Lots of raptors today-several Sparrowhawk and Kestrel with at least 8 Buzzards in the air at one point. A nice bonus while counting them was seeing the two local Ravens-they are usually only seen very early and very late in the day.
Other bonus birds were my first Grey Wagtail and Treecreeper for the year.
On the way back to the car I encountered my first Brimstone butterfly.
The warm sunshine was tempered by a southerly which at times seemed a bit chilly. I had missed a Green Sandpiper, but the first of the sites Redshank had appeared and was very mobile-it had been here for a couple of days but had yet to settle. One Little Egret was present, and the Cormorants and Herons seemed busy in the nesting trees.
Lots of raptors today-several Sparrowhawk and Kestrel with at least 8 Buzzards in the air at one point. A nice bonus while counting them was seeing the two local Ravens-they are usually only seen very early and very late in the day.
Other bonus birds were my first Grey Wagtail and Treecreeper for the year.
On the way back to the car I encountered my first Brimstone butterfly.
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