Alan's Ramblings

I paid a short-ish visit to North Cave today. The weather was a bit dull and rain didn’t seem far off so I only stayed about forty-five minutes or so. I went straight to South Hide, which overlooks the Main Lake. A number of Mediterranean Gulls had been sighted there recently. I know I’ve only recently improved my Med Gull photograph at Old Moor, when I caught one in flight, but I always like to see any new bird at more than one location – I can’t explain why – it’s just me!

The Black-Headed Gulls were in abundance on the island on the Main Lake – albeit a bit distant. It took some finding, but I eventually identified a Med Gull amongst all the BH Gulls.

Whilst in the hide I overheard another birder saying that he had spotted a high-flying Red Kite. It was a moment or two before I could locate it, and when I did I quickly realised that it was being harried by another, smaller raptor. I think it’s a Peregrine in my image, but it’s very hard to be sure given how distant the bird is in the photograph, (and the dullness of the sky!).

I had no such identification difficulties when I walked along the path towards the East Hide which overlooks the Village Lake. As on each of my four previous visits to North Cave I was treated to a close-up view of a hunting Kestrel. It’s a beautiful bird and it doesn’t seem bothered about nearby humans pointing long camera lenses at it!

I do love a Kestrel; it’s a most beautiful bird, and the only British wild bird which can hover.

Each time I’ve been at North Cave I have seen multiple raptors. I like it here; it’s fast becoming one of my favourite reserves.

I hadn’t been to Adwick Washlands for quite some time, and as it was a sunny day I decided it was time for my first visit of 2016.

The water levels on the reserve are still higher than usual, so i didn’t see any waders at all today. That’s a shame because you can normally get quite close to them ar Adwick, as i did last year when the fabulous, and quite rare, Pectoral Sandpiper was here for a few days. The reserve is looking well just now though, and is ready to host this year’s breeding season. The gulls are gathering here now, so it’ll not be long now!

Birds-wise there wasn’t a lot around today, but i saw a rather nice flying display by a Lapwing, and then a Little Egret flew past me too.

Since Old Moor is only a couple of miles away, I went there next.

Two particular highlights stood out for me here today. First, the Mediterranean Gull (which I couldn’t spot last time) was back in its usual place on the island in front of the Family Hide. As i watched it, it took off and flew over in the direction of the Wader Scrape, giving me an opportunity to capture a couple of shots of it in flight, albeit a bit distant, however!

The second notable occurrence was a pair of Little Grebes which were flirting with each other in front of the Field Pool West Hide. I’d never heard them make such a loud noise before! One of them had caught a small fish and proceeded to fling it up in the air a couple of times before picking it up again from the water’s surface, the little show-off! I later realised that there had been little chance of the fish escaping, however, since the grebe had already decapitated it by that time!

Two good sightings then; another successful birding trip blogged-up!

167 – Mandarin Duck

A few days ago Helen found a facebook posting that someone had put up, showing an image of a beautiful Mandarin Duck at a pond near Loxley, just the other side of Hillsborough. As neither of us had ever seen a Mandarin Duck before, we decided we’d try to find the place to see if the duck was still there.

We drove out of Hillsborough along the road towards Damflask Reservoir and Low Bradfield. Just as we were getting close to where we needed to be, there was an almighty, (albeit brief) hail shower. Two minutes later and the sun was out again – really bizarre weather!

Once we had arrived at the pond (along a dreadfully poor road surface!), we got out of the car for a quick peek to see if our trip had been worthwhile. At this point I don’t think I was very hopeful, so we left our cameras in the car initially. Within two minutes we were dashing back to the car for them!

Here’s an image of what we found:

What a fabulous bird! It was just a few feet away from us, and a mere twenty feet or so from the car – how very convenient! Not only that, but it was quite tame and showed no inclination to swim away from us – perhaps that’s the advantage with ornamental ducks that are used to humans.

There were lots of other waterbirds on the pond – all the usual suspects were present: mallards, coots, mute swans etc. There was one other unusual specimen however: this beautiful Pintail/Mallard hybrid:

A brief birding trip, but ultimately very rewarding! We’ll certainly be visiting the pond again now that we’ve found it.

My 70th visit to Old Moor today. It’s hard to believe I’ve been that often. My first visit was on the 5th May, 2012. I had my Nikon D90 and 55-300mm lens combination with me on that occasion and came back very pleased with a couple of photos of a Great Crested Grebe, partially obscured by reeds, on a pond round on the Reedbed Trail. Looking back at the pictures now they wouldn’t make the cut and would be routinely deleted on editing my day’s shots, but hey, everybody has to start somewhere!

Today was a bit overcast, but at last the temperature was in double figures and I didn’t need my big coat!

I first went to the Tree Sparrow farm, where I saw a half-decent Yellowhammer amongst various other ‘usual suspects’. Sadly, there was no sign of Bramblings or Siskins here today.

My next port of call was the Family Hide. It was immediately apparent that Black Headed Gull numbers are increasing rapidly in time for their breeding season which gets underway very shortly. There were a few Common Gulls present too, but once again, no sign of the Mediteranean Gull. It must have had a better offer for today!

When I left the Family Hide I briefly visited Field Pool West Hide, as a number of sightings of a Green Sandpiper were reported there last week. However it was very quiet here today, with no birds to speak of really.

When I left the hide I discovered that a rather nasty breeze had sprung up and some grey clouds were brooding overhead, so I decided to cut my visit short and not venture up Green Lane towards the other three hides up that way.

I sat awhile in the Bird Garden hide from which I saw a Long Tailed Tit perform some rather interesting antics, holding onto a twig with only one foot whilst it fought with some kind of seed with the other. (I really must try to force myself to stop photographing Long Tailed Tits, but they are just so cute to look at!).

That was about it for today. Not one of my best days at Old Moor, but it’s always a pleasure to visit my ‘home’ reserve and see what’s going on. I wonder how long it’ll be before I’m reporting on my 100th visit there?

166 – Common Redpoll

Yippee! Another day, another new bird – this time a Common (or Mealy) Redpoll.

It was my 69th visit to Old Moor today. I had gone because the Mediterranean Gull I photographed this time last year has returned to exactly the same spot where it was last time!

Quite a few people had turned out today to see the Med Gull. The Family Hide was busier than usual, providing the best view of the visitor.

Green Lane was looking a bit bare due to the extensive pruning that has been going on recently. No doubt by the end of Summer the shrubs and trees will be almost impenetrable again, however! A pair of Long Tailed Tits were flitting in the trees just outside the Wader Scrape Hide as I arrived there. At least a dozen Goosanders were snoozing in their usual spot across the Mere, and ‘Cormorant Island’ was full to bursting with Cormorants and Black Headed Gulls today.

At Wath Ings I spent half an hour or so watching some Snipe on the mud in front of the hide; yes, mud – perhaps the water level is beginning to go down a bit at long last! Wath Ings has been such a good spot for waders in the past; they won’t be able to come back in numbers until more mud is exposed.

My last visit of the day was to the Tree Sparrow Farm. Wow! Here I saw a Siskin, Yellowhammer, Long Tailed Tits and a Common Redpoll amongst all the other more common species.

What a good haul of birds! The Common Redpoll takes me up to 166 birds. I wonder what my self-imposed target should be for the end of 2016??

165 – Smew

Another new bird today, taking my total up to 165. Helen and I visited Rutland Water last July and I thought it was time for another visit, albeit on my own this time.

A beautiful Tuesday morning – bright and sunny with very little breeze. Just right for Birding!

I knew it was going to be a good birding day as soon as I arrived; one of the first birds I saw was a Great Spotted Woodpecker. How pleasing was that!

My first port of call was to the Sandpiper Hide where I saw no fewer than three different birds of prey simultaneously! In the clear blue sky above me a Marsh Harrier and a Buzzard flew circles around each other for a while, whilst a Peregrine sat on an Osprey perch mid-way out into the lagoon. Glorious!

As I made my way around the various hides I saw some wonderful birds including a hovering kestrel – my fourth raptor of the day so far, and a mid-moult Cormorant that looked particularly strange with white feathers at its throat.

However, it was when I reached the Plover Hide that things got really exciting. As soon as I looked out of one of the viewing ports I could see something new right in front of me. At first I thought I was looking at a Red Necked Grebe, but soon realised I had misidentified a female Smew. There were in fact three females showing off their lovely red heads, and further away a single male resplendent in his white livery. What a cracking bird!

Other notable birds I saw from the various hides I visited included: a magnificent Shelduck showing really well with the sun shining on it, a couple of flying Egyptian Geese, several Curlews, a beautiful Great Crested Grebe and a perfect Long Tailed Tit.

As I walked back to the car I kept my eyes peeled in the hope of seeing the Woodpecker again. Sadly no sightings, but I could occasionally hear one drumming somewhere in the distance.

As I left the reserve and headed back towards home, my wildlife sightings continued; within five minutes of each other I saw two Red Kites soaring lazily overhead, and then a Roe Deer on the verge of the A1 of all places!

Five different raptors in one quite amazing day!

Total bird species count for the day: 47

Today it was back to Blacktoft Sands again. It was once again lovely and sunny but with a bit of a breeze. As I left the car park and walked towards the Reception Hide, I could hear loads of small birds chirping in the trees. I’m pretty sure I also heard a warbler in the reeds; Spring is on the way!

Of the six hides at Blacktoft, my favourites are the the ones at each end of the trail – Ousefleet at the Western end (which is quite often wader-heaven), and Singleton at the Eastern end, which is always Marsh Harrier heaven!

I spent most of my visit at Singleton today and it certainly provided me with some good views of hunting Marsh Harriers.

Other highlights of the day from Singleton Hide were: a huge flock of Pochard (some 29 according to the official blog posted today), a few Snipe at the water’s edge nearest to me, and a few Mute Swans flying about overhead.

By the time I left Singleton Hide in order to make my way towards the other hides, the weather had begun to break-down. It was windy now rather than breezy, and a few rainclouds had begun to loom overhead. Of the five other Blacktoft hides, I briefly visited all but Ousefleet before heading back to the car. Ousefleet will have to be top priority on my next visit.

It was a gloriously sunny day today, so I decided to visit Old Moor. There’s been a lot of excitement here for the last couple of weeks since a party of Bearded Tits moved into the reedbed area, and I thought it was high time I tried my luck at seeing them for myself. It is very much hoped that the beardies will stay and start a breeding colony here. That would be just great!

Last year a large amount of reeds were transplanted to Old Moor from Blacktoft Sands, (where Bearded Tits are well-established). One year later and beardies are now appearing at Old Moor. Is it just me, or does that sound like more than just coincidence?? Answers on a postcard…

Anyway, on arrival at Old Moor, the car park was already quite full. Thank goodness an overflow car-park was recently completed – it was much needed!

I went round to the Reedbed area straight-away, hoping for some luck. Lots of other people were already camped-out there hoping to see the elusive Bearded Tits for themselves. I gave it a good half-hour at the Reedbed Screen and picked-up from the other birders present that, although the beardies had been spotted already today (along with a Kingfisher and a Water Rail), they hadn’t put in an appearance in the last hour or so. I moved into the Reedbed Hide where I watched a rather beautiful Great Crested Grebe enjoying the sunshine.

A few Coots were dashing about and generally falling-out with each other. No bearded Tits alas.

Next I went to the Tree Sparrow Farm where there have been lots of good birds over the Winter. As soon as I arrived I realised there was a Siskin at the feeder right in front of me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get my lens trained on it in time before it flew down to the ground a few feet further away, but I was able to get a few shots of it on the ground before it flew off altogether.

I walked along Green Lane next and visited each of the hides there. The water levels at Wath Ings are still very high, so sadly still no wader activity for now. There were loads of Goosander on view from the Wader Scrape hide though, including several which were quite close-in to the hide.

Always impressive birds to see, I do like a Goosander (or two!).

All the other usual suspects were around today, lots of waterfowl, including a couple of distant Goldeneye on the main mere.

No Bearded Tits today, alas, but if they have moved in to stay I’ll certainly keep a keen eye on the reedbed this Spring!!

My final tally for the day was 39 species sighted.

I visited a very busy Attenborough Nature Reserve today. The sky was lovely and sunny, and it had brought out the visitors in droves. It was quite tricky to even find a parking space in the (usually spacious) car park, but it was pleasing that so many people were out and about enjoying the reserve.

First up I made a brief visit to the Kingfisher Hide, where I watched a few Tufted Ducks mooching about in the shallows just in front of me. Thereafter, I moved to the elevated tower hide, where I had seen a Water Rail on my previous visit, to wait for a Bittern to present itself to my camera. But alas, it wasn’t to be; (no) business as usual in the Bittern department! One day….

I did get a few nice shots of a passing Heron, and a rather cheeky Blue Tit perched itself at the top of the tree just a few feet from my high vantage point. The light on it was very nice, as you can see from the photo above. It was interesting to note that a number of the birds flying past, including the Heron, were carrying nesting material. Spring here we come!

On the way back up the path to the car park, I stopped by the lakeside to photograph a collection of birds including an Egyptian Goose, some dapper-looking Tufted Ducks, and a Black-Headed Gull which was well on its way to having its Summer-plumage black head again.

Even the Feral Pigeons were looking well with the afternoon sun on them!

Another visit to Frampton Marsh – this time I was accompanied by Helen. It was a much calmer day than that of my previous visit. The sun was out and there was only a little breeze. It was still a bit cold though, so we were wrapped up warmly.

On arrival at the Visitors’ Centre, a beautiful male Yellowhammer greeted us from the feeders. That made a welcome start to the visit and marked the first Yellowhammer we’d seen at Frampton; and it was a beauty!

It was the Scaup that I’d seen on my previous visit that I hoped to see again today; preferably much closer too. However, despite there being a plethora of Pochard, Tufted Duck etc showing well from the Reedbed Hide, I couldn’t spot the Scaup at all today. A fabulous male Goldeneye was feeding along the reeds just in front of the hide, however, so that provided some great photo opportunities.

From the 360 hide the skylarks were foraging on the ground just outside the hide again, and a beautiful Lapwing was standing sentinel, but not much else was in evidence from there today.

A walk along the seawall and round past East Hide provided all our other sightings of the day. As usual for this time of year, there were hundreds upon hundreds of Brent Geese both on the ground and flying low overhead. It’s great fun trying to capture sharp images of those in flight!

As the light began to fall we made our way back towards the car and took a few final photos of a Little Egret and some more Brent Geese.