Year Tick at Big Waters and ......

On Wednesday evening I headed up to Big Waters after an email and sure enough a Black-necked Grebe was having a wee wander round the lake, unfortunately it was right over the other side but still good views through the scope and a few distant bits of video were obtained.

A friend of mine who lives in the West End has a CCTV camera outside his house and has been leaving out food for anything that passes.  He had been seeing a Fox for several nights when one night when the Fox arrived a Cat was already at the table grate.  No blood was spilled although a fascinating battle took place.

Nearly Got To 20, Damned Grey Plover & Stupid Pilot

On Sunday I headed up to Graeme Bs, then we picked up Dee and Phil and headed off in search of Waders  as Graeme and Dees target for the day was to tick 20 Waders.   Our first stop was West Hartford where it was absolutely beautiful as the mist hung over the pond and hundreds of spiders webs dripped with dew and more importantly we managed to pick up a couple of wader ticks.

From then on it was stop,  walk,  look, walk drive and this formula was repeated all day.  It was great fun even though by the time we hit our last stop at 19.00 at the Wansbeck my poor little legs couldn't handle the clamber down so I just stood on the bridge and tried to look like a birder (failed impressively) scanning the area.  We did visit many places including Stringers Scrape, Budle Bay, Holy Island, Fenham Flats, Cresswell, Hauxley, Warkworth, Amble Braid and many others but by the time we got to Cresswell about 17.00 we were only 1 or 2 birds away from the 20 (I had lost count).  At Cresswell we were looking for a Pectoral Sandpiper when a Jet Provost Trainer which is based at Newcastle did a low overfly and a pullup with its engines screaming that sent just about every bird up within a mile radius.  That was the moment that the counting ended.  It was still a great day out visiting a couple of places I had never been before.  Our Bogey Bird of the day turned out to be a Grey Plover which despite many reports of said bird not a fleeting glance was seen.  We did see some great birds though, including Whimbrel, Curlew Sandpiper, Yellow Wagtails and my favourite bird of the day was when passing that amazing Ice Cream shop at Cresswell and Graeme shouted Great Skua.  Sure enough it flew over the car and over the Ice Cream shop.  Now I have seen ones before but only when someone had shouted Bonxie and had then been told that the dot/blob way over the horizon was one so it was great to see it and I can now tick as definitely "seen".  Once again a great day out with seasoned birders for company, no time for pics as the pace was a bit faster than my normal saunter, stop, chat, stop, look, look, saunter, eat an ice cream/burger/chinese then rest.

Saturday at the Patches

Had quite a full weekend starting on Saturday with my favourite patch,  Big Waters, till lunchtime then back home for another session my other favourite, the garden, tidying things up then a bit of admin on the computer and finally a session photographing Butterflies and other things in the Garden.  At Big Waters I bumped into Graeme B and he confirmed the Snipe and Ringed Plover I had seen from the other hide, the latter being the first one I had ever seen at Big Waters.  Also present as well as the regular inhabitants were 9 Pochard, a couple of Gadwall, a Shoveller, 3 Teal and the Mute Swan population had rose to an unbelievable 40.  After Graeme departed for the Cricket Alan J arrived and we went for the short walk but in the reverse direction to normal.  Not a great lot was seen apart from a couple of Redstarts although this was to be expected as the local farmers were transporting Straw in massive tractors and trailers throughout the area.   There were quite a few Sand Martins around and a definite movement of Hirundines to the South.  There were also 3 Buzzards spiralling around.  Then Alan J spotted the 2nd of the Olympic Liveried British Airways planes WOW.  Photographs were taken and the Registration No plotted into my new Samsung App which shows all scheduled flights in the UK live on my smartfone so I can keep track of it.  I receive delivery of my new anorak next week.

I also had a couple of attempts at videoing a Hawker that was flying around but am not sure which one it is.  I think it looks like a Migrant Hawker but no doubt someone will tell me different.

After a bit of work in the Garden I sat down for a cuppa with Carole and just let the world pass by, it was glorious but I couldn't resist the urge to take a few more pics of Butterflies and creepy crawlies.  Whilst I can identify the Butterflies as Red Admirals and Peacock the Creepy Crawlies are still unknown but I will eventually find some time to sit and peruse the internet and attempt to identify them.  On quite a few occasions there was up to 7 Butterflies and at least a dozen Bees, of at least 3 different species, on our small Buddleia Bush.

The Creepy Crawly that I can identify in this pic in the background is yours truly's reflection in the garden shed window

This amazing looking beastie flew in as we were making yet another cuppa and landed on a cupboard door and never moved for over 2hrs

Grey Heron and its Sunday Lunch

As promised in my last blog here is the video of a Grey Heron making short work a 3 course meal out of a one meal object.

This "Wee Beastie" wandered over my Fuji camera and lens cap for over 20mins as I was using Mr Nikon to take pics although I did take this pic with the Fuji when it dropped onto the lens cap

Also my first 2 Spot Ladybird of the year, where have they all gone?  I am sure I seen loads last year

Spot The Flycatchers

Sunday and off for our usual walk around the patch.  Within 10mins of setting off the coats were coming off as it started to get quite warm.  On the pond there were a couple of Great Crested Grebes, 22 Mute Swans, a couple of Teal, a Pochard, a couple of Gadwall, 4 Tufted Ducks, an indeterminate amount of Little Grebes but at least 10 and lots of Mallards and Moorhens.  Off on the walk the first thing we noticed was a few Southern Hawkers.  

Treecreepers were heard, Long Tailed Tits were observed and some birds that just looked different as they gave a couple of millisecond glimpses were hunted but nothing came of them.  2  Redstarts were seen in one of the regular places but no Partridge unfortunately.   I requested that we do the short walk so I could get round and get a pic of the new Emirates Boeing which started its regular slot on Saturday and becomes the biggest plane to fly in and out of Newcastle on a regular schedule.

There was quite a lot of Common Darters out also as the sun was really shining now which also meant that we saw plenty of Walls which were definitely the most numerous Butterfly of the day..

As we reached Alan Js predicted ideal spot for the Spotted Flycatcher a short while was spent looking but to no avail but just as we started off again a bird flew in and sure enough it was a Spotted Flycatcher.  I took a couple of pics but they were pretty lousy.  After about 10mins viewing we counted at least 3 and also a Whitethroat.  We then headed for the hides and after a look over the ponds we headed back to the Car Park.  We saw a Grey Heron having a bit of a battle with quite a large Eel which I videoed but havent got round to sorting it out yet so will post it later on this week.  I dropped Alan F off and headed for a burger as Carole had too many episodes of Eastenders to catch up on.  After I finished my burger I headed back to Big Waters to try and get a couple of shots/videos of the Spotted Flycatcher so that you could at least recognise them.  After about an hour I was positive that there were 4 of them and 2 Whitethroats all feeding from the same area.

I also put together a video with excerpts from about 20 short videos I took

Always better to watch thru UTube HD

Finally when I got home the next door neighbours had brought a caterpillar around to identify.  A quick look at the books and I was positive it was an Elephant Hawk Moth which when I looked at pics of the Moth itself it was absolutely amazing colours.  Carole's job is now to watch for them as she has now got hundreds of pics of Peacocks, Whites and a few Red Admirals on the Budelia Bush in the garden.

We put it back in the exact spot they had found and the next morning I sneaked in and found 2 by what appeared to be bean plants.

Some Pretty Birds and some Pretty Stupid People

Saturday I had a little lie in and then did a bit of work in the garden so didn't get out till 13.00 and went to St Mary with the intention of staying on the island over the high tide.  The place was packed so wandered along the promenade for about an hour and a half watching the Swallows feeding their young and the mass of birds including 2-300 Golden Plover.

As I neared the causeway I could see loads of people still crossing as the tide was coming in and the crowd at the end of the causeway was getting rather large so I waited and waited as not many seemed to want to come off.  Eventually I decided not to bother as the Golden Plover took off en masse as the tide came in and headed for the island although they took a swift detour when they got there as it still had loads of people on and they then flew off North and I eventually lost sight of them somewere around Blyth.  It then got a bit silly as around 50 people came across when the causeway was completely covered .

Eventually they all came off apart from about 15 - 20 most of which are in this photo but there was still at least a family of a father and 4 children round the other side of the lighthouse.  

Then the guy with the 4 children decided to be a "sensible man!!!!" and lead the four children off with the tide still coming in and eventually got across even though the water was well over his knees.  When he started off must have been the time when people started ringing the emergency services as when he came out of the water on the other side the police, ambulance and RNLI cars arrived.

At the same time unbeknown to most of us 3 lads of about 20-25 came onto the causeway from the front of the promenade as they had been trapped by the tide and had to wade in waist deep water round the promenade.  Then a RNLI Life Guard waded across to the island (waist deep now) and spoke to the people on the island as another RNLI chap with a Jet Ski and some sort of towing device waited in the distance.  When he came back another 2 Lifeboats came out and eventually all the people were transferred and whisked away in the direction of Cullercoats.

The funny thing was that as the people were getting transferred off 5 Divers waded across up to chest height to go diving off the East side of the island.   Why didn't the police and RNLI leave the people there for a couple of hours instead of wasting man and machinery hours in giving people a "lift to the mainland".  I also hope the chap with the kids who came across was given a "stern talking to" and the 3 lads who ended up soaked to the skin were also reprimanded.  Now I am the first to admit that I might not have known the whole picture of what was going on, but, to the crowds watching this, who mostly thought the same way as I did it did not present the idiots, who allowed themselves to be stuck on the island and the RNLI, who should have just said you are in no danger just stick it out there for another 90 mins till the tide drops, in a good light.  People did comment that why was all this donated and taxpayers money wasted in bringing this situation to its finale.

Quiet Weekend, Still Got A Lifer Though

Very quiet weekend mainly due to the weather.  Saturday went to Big Waters early and returned home within an hour, it was absolutely hissing it down so spent the rest of the day sorting out photos and backing up everything apart from a foray out to a restaurant for a bit of Bass, Mussels and Squid which was Bootiful.

Sunday morning and back to Big Waters where the water had risen a fair bit but a small bit of scrape was still showing although it was covered with Mallards dozing in the sun and even when I accidentally dropped a shutter nothing seemed to disturb their rest.  There was 5 Teal leisurely drifting in the bay and a Male Shoveller which occasionally raised its head then swam into the reeds then returned to its original spot and dozed off again.  A walk round with Alan J, ISD and Keith B produced nothing out of the ordinary although we did see 4 Redstarts.  After the walk I did a few fleeting visits to local places but nothing of note was seen so I worked my way down to the coast intent on seeing if I could get a glimpse of the Greenish Warbler that Jack Bucknall had found but it was like Dodgems with bikes so I gave it a miss and headed home which took me over an hour.

Next morning I picked up Sedgedunum Warbler and we headed down to St Marys for a looksee for the Greenish Warbler.  Others had the same idea so after an hour and nothing seen we headed down to Tynemouth to see if anything else had arrived.  We bumped into Tony from Howdon who informed us that the Greenish Warbler there had flew off into the park so after looking at loads of Goldfinches, a couple of Blackcaps, Robins and a few others we spent half an hour Sea Watching, not a pleasant experience for me as I thought it was such a nice day I had left my coat in the car.  Before the icicles started forming we managed to see a couple of Gannets, a Red Throated Diver, a few Common Scoter with a couple of possible Teal and hundreds of Gulls.  We headed back to the car and found that the Greenish Warbler was now showing in St Marys so off we went.  It took about 45mins before we managed to see it properly but a very nice looking bird indeed.  Didn't want to venture too far away as the skies got darker so headed for a rare visit to Holywell.  Very little mud at the public hide so no waders showing and at the other hide several Little Grebes were quite close and a few Tufted Ducks although the rest seemed to be a bit more distant than  is normally the case when I have been there.  We were kept entertained though when it decided to hiss down by the antics of birds in the Feeding Station, specially the Moorhen taking advantage of the Feeders (see video).  A pleasant weekend with the notable exception of the outstanding Greenish Warbler and the company I kept.  John is away down to Kent for a couple of weeks so I will be venturing out on Saturdays on my lonesome and on Sundays that well known Anor Birder, Keith will be away in some foreign far off place taking pics of unorganic flying things (have a nice time).

I am getting a bit better with the videos now I took time to read the manual but can only manage a step at a time.  I've managed to do the joiny uppy thing now and putting writing on the screen (although not too well yet), now I just need to get rid of John A's voice doing his commentator thing in the background and my beloveds insistence in having Radio Newcastle on at all times when she is sitting in the garden so the Spuggies can hear the weather forecast.

Little Grebes Galore

Quick trip to Big Waters last night after an afternoon in the garden cutting/trimming hedges and delivering said remains to the Recycling Centre.  Lots of Black Headed Gulls around in the main hide John L and a young lady who was paying her first visit to Big Waters for a couple of years.   They informed me that I had just missed the Otter which had been out for about an hour but no sign of the Kingfisher.  After a while they left and after about 5 mins the Kingfisher put in a brief appearance and did a bit of fishing from one of the perches and the far end of the scrape but was in competition from one of the many Little Grebes that gathered around the scrape which at one stage numbered 10 although I could see at least another 2 a bit closer to the island.  Then just as I was about to leave an Otter appeared very close to the public end then headed towards the 1st hide moving most of the wildfowl towards the main scrape.

Snippets of the Little Grebes

"That Hole Has Just Flew Away"

On Sunday set off for Big Waters for the normal 9.30 wander with Alan, Ian and Keith.  The pond had risen a fair bit and both scrapes had no mud as far as we could see and the island was definitely lower in the water.  Although prior to this a Common Sandpiper appeared on the island and then vanished without me seeing it fly in or out ore even walk round the island.   I was probably too busy recording all the sightings in the book.

On my walk in early on I did see the Golden Rabbit which has been seen by a few of the Birders recently and it actually stopped still long enough to get a pic

Off on the walk and we had to stop and detour when Alan and then Keith heard a Goldcrest or possibly 2 calling whilst the 2 senior members of the company who couldn't hear a thing were told where it was and when it was calling and I realised what Mrs Blogger must have felt like when she couldn't  hear the Grasshopper Warbler and I could and kept telling her where it was was etc etc and many more etcs.  After a slow wander in what was becoming quite a warm morning we came across the first 2 of a probable 9 different Redstarts which we spotted during the walk in different combinations of sex and age.  Whilst we were all standing searching a field a bird came from very low and flew right in front of us and behind us, it was my first sighting of a Cuckoo in Big Waters.  Unfortunately we didn't see it again.  We carried on the walk and on 3 more occasions we spotted Redstarts.  It got a big quiet in a couple of places we normally see things but there had been a lot of footfall and cyclists through prior to our arrival so that was proably the reason.  There was quite a few Butterflies out including a few Walls

Then came the highlight of the day, so far, for one member of our party when Keith (resident Anorak plane spotter) informed us that the BA plane approaching was the Olympic Flame one, so immediately out came the cameras and our Apprentice Anorak (not Ian or I) got off a couple of shots which he was mega happy with.  My Pics were OKish but here is a borrowed one with the plane in all its glory.  

Every time we walk round we stop at a certain place as Alan tells us it is the most obvious place for a Spotted Flycatcher and as usual there wasn't anything there but a 100m further down we looked back and Alan called Spotted Flycatcher and after retreating back a further 20m on the opposite side of the hedge sure enough one was seen along with a couple of Whitethroats and a further 2 Redstarts.  We also had a morphing bird, which changed to a rabbit then a squirrel then back to a rabbit which is a bit more than the Chiffchaff in Fife got as it at least only had 2 legs in both variations (it was just so funny, I'm still laughing about it).

Another great walk, 2 Patch Lifers, and the best remark of the day from Ian after Alan informed us of a possible Redstart nearly 150m away in a hedge, lots of looking and eventually someone said it looks like a hole in the hedge so we moved to another angle to check it out although we were saying that if you move the hole would not be visible from another angle but as we were edging along Ian said "you won't see the hole from that angle cos its just flew away".  Yes it was a Redstart, Alan does it again.  Must of you know I'm just a beginner at this game compared to most and walk in the shadows of these guys and get the P*** taken out of me royally but what the hell, its great getting taught at 62 even though my full little brain doesn't retain a lot nowadays as others keep telling me.  In a couple of months no doubt I will have to go and get another anorak fitted for my aeroplane watching as last week I actually emailed another nurd (probably Ians equivalent) in the aeroplane world describing a plane as that old fashioned RAF looking thing and within a couple of hours had an answer back.  Must stop prattling on and get back to watching TV and talking to Carole.

South Of The Tyne and Down Whitburn Way

On Saturday, John A and I headed down South clutching passports to check out the delights of Whitburn Coastal Park, South Shields Pier and attempt to see the Bonapartes Gull which John had dipped on the last two times it had been in the vicinity.  I wont bother to reiterate the itinerary and sightings  which can all be read and seen at Sedgedunum Warblers Blog  A couple of extra pics and a small video (turn the sound down if you watch it)