A couple of short trips to Big Waters and one to Howdon Wetlands on Christmas Day was all I could fit in after our return from the Isle of Wight during the last few days as the many tasks associated with the Festive Period took up so much time. Big Waters is still holding the Scaups attention and a few Goosanders and Shovellers have been seen also. Large counts of Mallards, Teal and Wigeon were made today by Alan J although there wasn't as many Gadwall as there has been lately. Just a couple of pictures from Big Waters showing a Redwing and a Willow Tit.
Down at Howdon Wetlands it was quite busy also with up to 30 Snipe, lots of Teal, Redshank, Curlews, 7 Shelduck , flock of Lapwing and Gulls all over the place.
Finally a couple of short videos from Christmas Day
At last I have managed to get my fingers on the keys to write a short blog. Been extremely busy the last couple of weeks eating out, drinking, eating out, having fun, eating out, christmas shopping and preparing for a week in the Isle of Wight (leaving at 4am tomorrow morning). I managed a few hours at Big Waters on Friday and Saturday morning where I managed a year tick of a Scaup, and a couple of birds I hadn't see for a few months, a GBBGull, 3 Goosander and several other monthly ticks. It was also nice to meet up with Alan and Ian again for a bit of a chit chat and a bit of advice on Scaup general bird identification (thanks Alan). There were more than the usual number of Mute Swans on the pond which was causing a bit of furore as the resident birds spent so much time trying to get rid of the visitors. The Otters were out quite frequently with up to 3 being seen as you can see in the following video.
I saw the Scaup on Saturday and on Sunday morning it was very close but it was still early and quite dark so I inched myself a bit closer and got onto one of the picnic tables and set myself up and waited till it started coming closer, then I took a couple of shots but it was still dark so I tested my video out and as I was looking at it through the video everything on the bottom half of the pond lifted and flew right up the top, glancing around an Otter appeared heading straight for the spot where the Scaup had been. See video below.
Here are a few other pictures from the visits:
Juvenile Swans still testing out their flying skill but I haven't seen them leave the pond area yet
A few pictures when the place was lit up with sunlight with terrific dark clouds
in the distance giving some great contrasts
Now I wonder what put them up
Fantastic view as you leave makes you want to turn around and go back
Commonplace nowadays but still amazing to look at
3 Goosander were most rude and didn't stop but just headed straight for the coast
Goldeneye and Scaup
Well time for a couple of hours nap then off to the Sunny South
Sunday I headed up to Big Waters to try and get the monthly count off to a good start and it certainly did. Picking up Treecreeper, Bullfinch and Song Thrush in the first 10mins was certainly a bonus. Then whilst counting ducks from the hide Alan J latched onto a Med Gull with a Darvic Ring which was a year patch tick for me. It didn't stay around for long though and was off after a short nap which was rudely interrupted by something unobserved which made most of the Gulls head skywards. The first four pictures were taken around 7am.
The Med Gull having a good yawn before dropping off
Thanks to Keith B for this pictures taken with his Canon SX50
Time for a nod, could be tired after a long journey so will have to wait and see until Alan gets the ring details back to let us know where it is from
Saturday morning and armed with a key (thanks to to Jo) John and I headed to Seaton Sluice to try our hands at the Black Art of VisMig (Seawatching). We were the first ones there but the winds hadn't been as forthcoming as the Met Office had promised so with only a few Curlews, a couple of Gannets and some Eiders it was quite quiet. Then within 30mins there was another 3 watchers, still not a great lot but Teal, Shelduck, Scoter, Diver, Eider and more Curlew were seen (by them). John then I a few minutes later left the experts to sit in a bit of comfort and do some serious counting whilst we went out to look at the pretty "Seagulls". We actually did pick up Scoter, Eider, Shelduck, Gannets and some distant dots from outside but we soon left for St Marys to see what was around there. We immediately went down the steps onto the beach where there was more dogs than birds but eventually there was a break in the phalanx of advancing dogs which let the Sanderling, Redshanks, Turnstones, Rock Pipits and Pied Wagtails entertain us for a bit. The enjoyment was halted when once again a couple of dogs came charging across the sand and immediately started jumping up at me. I told the owner what I thought but I was wasting my time as he told me they were only puppies and wouldn't hurt me. John was a bit more subtle as the dogs ran around the place and the owner was screaming for them, saying something like "there still not listening, are they".
We then headed over to the North Bay where there was a lot more birds including 6 Purple Sandpipers, a couple of Dunlin, lots of Sanderling, Turnstones, Redshanks, quite a few Gulls and a couple of Curlew. These kept John and I entertained for well over an hour. We then headed back and bumped into Simon P, we compared notes and Simon shot off to count the Purple Sandpipers as them and the dozen we could see from the promontory would constitute a record patch tick. We then were put onto a couple of Knot and Simon picked up on a 2nd year Med Gull about 30m away. We chatted for a while then wandered off to the car spotting a Stonechat in the Wetlands on the way. A quick 15mins at the Fish Quay to check for white wingers, unsuccessful but the chips were lovely then off home to do a couple of chores for Carole.
Due to a couple of commitments I only managed 2 short visits to Big Waters at the weekend, Saturday only for a couple of hours and Sunday for the normal walk round. The Sunday produced a Grey Wagtail, my first for some time on the patch. It was very dull with occasional spots of rain so the camera was kept in the bag most of the time but I did manage to get a couple of pics and of course a video taken from the hide.
I was wondering why the North Scrape was very quiet when
I realised that a Sparrowhawk that had made a pass through
the Feeding Station was sitting in the trees. It stayed for over 2hrs
Some of the 100+ Greylags arriving
The Video was taken on Sunday as you can probably work out from the title
Saturday morning Sedgedunum Warbler and I headed up North stopping at Cresswell to once again admire the gorgeous Stonechats when a Tinkle on the old Batphone informed us that the Lesser Grey Shrike was still at the Long Nanny so off we went. When we arrived we were ready for a long walk but as it says on the tin the quote in Bird Guides that it was next to the Carpark was so right, I could actually see it as I opened the door. There was already about a dozen Birders there but the numbers increased steadily and others came and went. We stayed for a couple of hours taking in the the delights of the bird and chatting to Birders we knew and others who we did not which is always part of the fun of the "Twitch". I took what I thought were some great shots for a change but alas when I got home and put my card in the reader it failed and after a bit of savage beating of the temple I managed to recover the files from the card but nearly all were damaged although about a dozen did manage to extract but they were from shots early in the session but the best ones were from right at the end. Well thats Showbusiness Photography. So here are a couple of them.
I also managed to extract a couple of other shots from the day off the ruined card of a Kestrel and a Stonechat and about 4 of the Starling Murmuration at East Chevington again although I liked that one the best (it does look much better on a full screen)
Finally I did take a few short videos of the Lesser Grey Shrike with my "Toy Video Camera" so for your delights here are a couple of small compilation videos.
Managed a few hours at Big Waters last Sunday morning before heading into Newcastle
for the Rememberance Ceremony. So here are a few pictures from the day
It was a bit of a cold start to the day
Then when I got to the first hide I was suprised to see John B had beat me to it. Hadn't seen him for a while so a bit of a waffling session ensued and kept me there for a couple of hours. The lighting was changing all the time as the Rising Sun was coming up between different layers of cloud, changing the appearance of the lake every few seconds.
The Buzzard was back in its usual spot being mobbed on occasions by 1 or more Crows
For a change the Great Crested Grebe came close enough to get a couple of photographs
Then after getting a couple of flight shots I headed off to Newcastle stopping off to see Alan, Ian and Keith to explain my reason for absence on the walk.
At Newcastle I bumped into a friend who I hadn't seen for 30 years, good luck Ray and thought of some of my friends who I had shared moments with, Taff, Macs, Jean, Bleep, Roger and one friend who I bumped into on and off throughout my career and have bumped into him once again on the net, must talk more Jim.
Finally, a short video of part of the departure of the parade from the centre of Newcastle
