Sunday 31 May 2015

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - May 30, 2015

I was out locally today and set off for Eyebrook Reservoir but saw very little on route but one of the Little Owls obliged as I approached the reservoir.  A stop at the bridge produced a Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and a male and female Blackcap.  I parked overlooking the inlet and could see a number of Ringed Plovers on the far shore and as I scanned through them I found a Sanderling and a Dunlin.  I thought I might be able to see them better from the coral and drove around to the Leicestershire side.  However on entering the coral I couldn’t see a single wader and so returned to the Rutland bank.  Graham had arrived and I parked close to him and his friend and finished up counting thirty Ringed Plovers, four Dunlin as well as seeing the Sanderling again.  Graham then departed and shortly afterwards Roger arrived and I stayed with Roger looking for the Sanderling and counting the Ringed Plovers again.  We soon located the Sanderling and three of the Dunlin but couldn’t get as many as thirty Ringed Plovers and we assumed that some birders were now resting amongst the ground disturbed by the cattle and were out of sight.  I picked up a Red Kite and three Buzzards on the Leicestershire side and Roger found a soaring Sparrowhawk.  Roger then found a Pink-footed Goose amongst several Greylags and there was a single Shelduck roosting on the Leicestershire bank.  The geese eventually flew off and I picked up the Pink-footed Goose amongst only to realise that were in fact two.  We eventually called it a day and headed off to Rutland Water but not before I added a Little Egret in flight as I drove away.

At Rutland Water we went straight to sandpiper hide on lagoon four as two Temminck’s Stints present since Thursday evening were apparently still on lagoon four.  When we arrived in the hide it was pretty full but we were able position our scopes and were soon watching the two Temminck’s Stints.  There were quite a few waders on both islands six and nine that we joined by a narrow strip of land exposed by the low water.  There were twenty-six Ringed Plovers, fourteen Sanderling and a couple of Dunlin and these were joined briefly by a single Redshank.  Elsewhere on the lagoon were two Egyptian Geese, four Shelduck and two Oystercatchers.  One of the Temminck’s had disappeared when Ken joined us in the hide and as we got him on to one, we eventually realised he was in fact looking at a different bird and that they were now both on few again.


Roger and I went on to Shoveler hide on lagoon three, which was pretty quiet but we did have a Mallard with a brood of three, a Little Egret, a Hobby and three Common Terns and a Cetti’s Warbler was heard.  I called Ken as we left the hide to return to the car park and he joined as we walked along the summer trail.


Female Mallard with one of the three ducklings


Common Tern over lagoon three


Common Tern over lagoon three


Common Tern over lagoon three


Common Tern over lagoon three


Common Tern over lagoon three

After lunch we went to Snipe hide on the Wet Meadow where we saw a couple of Oystercatchers.  I had seen both the Avocets that were closer to harrier hide but we decided to go there to get better views as Roger hadn’t seen them and Ken only part of the head of the sitting bird.  When we arrived in the hide both Avocets were still present and there was also a Redshank.  As I scanned the sky above lagoon one I picked up a Hobby above Brown’s Island and eventually found a second as they were hawking over the wood.  We moved on to Pintail on lagoon six where there were four Shelduck but there was no sign of any Oystercatchers or chicks.

As we continued around the path towards the 360° hide an Osprey flew over heading towards lagoon one only to return a few minutes later.  From the 360° hide there we saw a couple of Oystercatchers but again no young, two Redshanks and there were at least four Common Terns nesting on one of the islands.  With little else we made our way back to the centre but other than three drake Wigeon and a Little Grebe there was little else and I called it a day.

During the day at Rutland Water I had also observed two Red Kites, a Sparrowhawk, six Buzzards a Blackcap, a Garden Warbler and Whitethroat and also heard Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler.

An afternoon at Frampton Marsh, Lincolnshire - May 29, 2015

David, Roger and I had agreed we would go to Frampton today as there had been a couple of Black-winged Stilts present for a couple of days.  However as the weather forecast was pretty awful for this morning we decided that we would wait and go late morning if the birds were still there.  The first news was that there was a possible White-rumped Sandpiper visible from the old car park, which was then confirmed shortly afterwards but there was no news on the stilts.  After speaking to David we agreed we would go at about eleven as the White-rumped was a pretty good bird anyway.

Roger picked me up and he then drove to David’s before setting off to Frampton, knowing that the Black-winged Stilts were not there but hoping for the sandpiper.  On arrival we drove to the old car park where we found Steve and Erik amongst another group of birders.  There were plenty of waders on the wet meadows both east and west, most of which were tundra Ringed Plovers but I also saw a Little Ringed Plover, Dunlin and Redshank and David saw a couple of summer plumage Curlew Sandpipers but there was no sign of the White-rumped.  There was also a nice male Garganey.


Steve indicated that he and Erik were going back to the centre and then walking to the east hide and suggested that we went east along the sea wall towards the east hide, which we agreed to do.  There now appeared to be very few waders in the area east of the old car park and initially we saw just two Oystercatchers, a Black-tailed Godwit and few Redshanks as we walked along the sea wall.  However as we went further we began finding a few Ringed Plovers and I could see even more and some Dunlin further along but it was difficult using a scope due to the now fresh north west wind.  We therefore decided to go on further and despite the wind we could now identify the birds much easier but all I could see were Ringed Plovers and a few Dunlin.  David then said he thought he might have it and gave us directions and I soon found the particular bird but Roger was finding it more difficult.  David then saw it fly and confirmed that it had a white-rump.  We walked further along and joined Dave Holman who was sitting on the bank and we were now much closer and had some reasonable views.  I had called Steve to let him know we had the bird and Erik then joined us with Steve following up a few minutes later.  The waders then suddenly flew and settled closer to the path to east hide and I and Erik walked the short distance and dropped down from the sea wall and along the path to the hide.  The wind was less noticeable here and we found the bird quite close and over the next half hour we had some cracking views and also found a winter plumaged Curlew Sandpiper as well.


White-rumped Sandpiper (Erik Ansell)

Eventually David, Roger and I decided we would walk back to the car by completing the circuit.  As we set off there was a nasty looking black cloud approaching and so we quickened the pace and went into reedbed hide.  It was just a few minutes later when the rain arrived and we were pretty pleased we had made it back as it was extremely heavy.  We failed to see the reported Mediterranean Gulls amongst the Black-headed Gulls as most were hidden by the vegetation.  After the rain had passed we set off back to the car and reached it without a further downpour.  Since leaving the east hide area we hadn’t seen a great deal but we did find a Barnacle Goose amongst a flock of Canada Geese and we heard a single Sedge Warbler and several Reed Warblers.  On reaching the car park we scanned to the east and found a party of Dunlin that contained three summer plumaged Curlew Sandpipers, one being a very dark looking individual.  Again Ringed Plovers seemed to be everywhere, although there were very few birds to the west of the car park now but we felt that there must have been at least 100 on site.

Wednesday 27 May 2015

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - May 26, 2015

I called at Eyebrook Reservoir briefly on route to Rutland Water seeing a Red Kite as I approached the reservoir and saw a male and female Blackcap near the bridge.  I then found sixteen Ringed Plovers, a Dunlin and perhaps more surprisingly a Common Sandpiper at the inlet.


Red-legged Partridge

On arrival at Rutland Water I walked to Snipe hide on the Wet Meadow but there was very little with five Little Egrets, four of them flying over being the best.  I then went to Shelduck hide on lagoon five seeing a couple of Redshank on lagoon eight on route.  I viewed lagoon seven before entering the hide and there were at least thirteen Common Terns that appeared to be sitting on nests on two of the islands but there was very little else except for a pair of Egyptian Goose with a well grown brood of seven and six Shelduck.  On lagoon five there had been two Oystercatchers sitting on nests for some time now but I couldn’t find any of them or young on the any of the islands from Shelduck hide.  I did however see another pair of Egyptian Goose with a brood of ten well grown young.  I called at the 360° hide to get a different view of the lagoon and found two Oystercatcher, one of which was feeding a single young bird.  There was also a couple of Redshank on the lagoon that were quite vocal and flighty.


Redshank

With two more pairs of Oystercatcher had been sitting on lagoon six so I called at Pintail hide and immediately found a pair feeding three young but there was no sign of the other pair either from Pintail or tern hides.  Again there were two Redshanks on the lagoon and a couple of European Hares.


European Hare

It was disappointing that out of six pairs of Oystercatcher that I could only find two with young and one with only one. I called at harrier hide next and found that the Avocets David had seen yesterday were still present and it looked as if one was possibly sitting on a nest, which was surprising as they apparently only arrived yesterday.  I called at Snipe hide again on the way back to the centre and had some nice, if brief views, of a Stoat on a couple of occasions and distant views of both Osprey and Hobby.  There is an area quite close to Snipe hide that can be good for insects, which was sheltered from the wind and pleasantly warm.  There was an Orange-tip, an Azure Damselfly and a Four-spotted Chaser.  A visit to Mallard hide on lagoon one produced nothing of note and after calling at the centre I went for my lunch.


Orange-tip


Male Pheasant from Snipe hide


Jackdaw from Mallard hide

Erik had joined me as I walked back to the centre and just as I finished my lunch Steve returned from the northern lagoons indicating he had seen very little.  However Erik and I decided we would go and take a look.  There was very little visible from Shoveler hide on lagoon three, although five male and two female Pochard was perhaps a little unusual, although they have bred very occasionally in the past.  We then called at Bittern hide where we saw a Buzzard and another Osprey and brief views of a Sedge Warbler.  A Wren had also built a nest in the hide and we were able to determine that there were several young but we didn’t see an adult whilst we were in the hide.


Mute Swan with five cygnets on lagoon three

A visit to plover hide on lagoon four produced a Little Ringed Plover and a couple of Ringed Plovers and there was a pair of Oystercatcher feeding along the bund just in front of the hide and we eventually managed to see a young bird with them.  As we were thinking of moving Erik found a Sanderling that was now with one of the Ringed Plovers and we suspected that it had just dropped in.  A visit to sandpiper hide, also on lagoon four, enabled us to establish that there were at least four Little Ringed Plovers, five Ringed Plovers, a Curlew and a Redshank on the lagoon, although we were unable to find the Sanderling again.  We also found another pair of Oystercatchers on the western bund but we couldn’t see any young with them, although it wouldn’t be too difficult for any to hidden within the vegetation.  Erik departed and I stayed a little longer but other than a third Osprey sighting and another Hobby over Burley Wood I found nothing else.  A made fairly quick visit to Osprey hide on lagoon two where I heard a Cetti’s Warbler on several occasions and once very sounding extremely close but failed to see it.

During the day I had seen or heard Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler and recorded seventy-four species at Rutland Water with eight-two in total during the day.  Not bad for what appeared a pretty quiet day.

Sunday 24 May 2015

An early morning in Wigston Magna, Leicestershire - May 24, 2015

I put the moth trap out last night but only caught eight moths of five species: Light Brown Apple Moth [4]; Chinese Character [1]; Brimstone Moth [1]; Pebble Prominent [1] and Buff Ermine [1].


Chinese Character


Pebble Prominent


Buff Ermine

A day at Frampton Marsh, Lincolnshire - May 23, 2015

With things being quiet locally Ken, Roger and I decided to go to Frampton Marsh in Lincolnshire which is one of the few reliable sites, these days, for Turtle Doves.

When we arrived the car park was almost full as there was a special event taking place that involved the unfailing of a new sculpture.  We therefore decided to walk


to the reservoir in the hope of finding a Turtle Dove.  When we reached the clearing along the path a scan of the wet meadow produced a drake Wigeon, drake Garganey, twelve Black-tailed Godwits and several Little Egrets.  There was also at least three Reed Warblers singing from the nearby reeds.  As we approached the end of the first part of the footpath we heard a Turtle Dove singing but it flew out of a silver birch as we approached.  We were now able to scan the open fields and I picked up three Turtle Doves flying over the field and we watched as they headed towards the reservoir before turning back over the field and disappearing.  We continued on to the reservoir and then walked a little further out towards the marsh to view the hedge.  We saw two Turtle Doves flying around and briefly perching in the dead trees on several occasions and then three, presumably the same as we had seen earlier, flew along the hedge and beyond the reservoir but we continued to see the other two, making five in total.  We went back to the car park for lunch seeing a couple of Reed Warblers at the gap and hearing a Sedge Warbler as we neared the road.


Swallow


Swallow


Yellowhammer

On reaching the car we drove to the end of the road to the old car park for some lunch and to view the wet meadows.  We soon found two of the three reported Curlew Sandpipers both of which were in summer plumage with one looking particularly stunning.  They were feeding with a small group of nice summer plumage Dunlin and several Ringed Plovers.  A Little Ringed Plover dropped on the drier area on the other side of the road before flying around calling and disappearing.  When we had finished our lunch we walked to the sea wall where we had a better view of the marsh and could also see the salt marsh.  We soon relocated the party of Dunlin containing the Curlew Sandpipers and we also counted nine Brent Geese and I found a single Pink-footed Goose.  The salt marsh was very quiet except for a few Redshanks but Roger then found four Ringed Plovers and as we scanned we found another five.

We went back the visitors centre but other than the reported Mediterranean Gulls we had seen most of what was present.  We spent a short while scanning the islands for the Mediterranean Gulls but were unsuccessful but there was a pair of Avocet quite close with three tiny young.  When we walked back to the car park two other birders informed us they had heard the reported Quail calling and so we walked back along the track towards the reservoir hoping we might hear it.  We gave it about twenty minutes before we had to leave but without success.

Despite not hearing the Quail we had seen two of our target birds, Curlew Sandpiper and Turtle Dove and were quite satisfied with the visit and a surprise on the way home was a Barn Owl perched alongside the A151.


Dakota FZ692 ‘Kwicherbichen’ over the marsh


Dakota FZ692 ‘Kwicherbichen over the marsh

A day trip to Hampshire - May 22, 2015

A Greater Yellowlegs had been a very erratic visitor to Titchfield Haven for quite some time but this week its visits had suddenly become more predictable and as David needed it, Ken, Roger and myself made the trip with him.

As we approached Southampton there had been no news of the legs and so we decided to go to Chessel Bay as a Bonaparte’s Gull had been seen again this morning.  We had come through some rather dismal weather but it was dry as we parked but as we walked through a wood and along the shoreline there was some light drizzle.  We joined several other birders who were watching the bird on a distant exposed mud bank.  It was a first-year bird and was with several summer plumaged Black-headed Gulls and being the only immature it was easy to locate.  It was noticeably smaller than the nearby Black-headed Gulls and the ear-spot seemed more prominent than expected on a first-year Black-headed Gull.  The bill was dark and appeared slighter than the Black-headed Gulls and in flight the wing pattern whilst similar to a first-year Black-headed Gull appeared to contrast a little more.  We watched the bird for a good thirty minutes but as it appeared quite settled and the rain began to increase we left for Titchfield Haven.


Although it was only about twelve miles between the sites it took quite some time to reach Titchfield Haven as the speed limit was mainly thirty and the roads were quite busy.  On arrival we parked alongside the road overlook an area where the Greater Yellowlegs had been seen over the last few days.  However all we saw was a single Black-tailed Godwit and on checking in the centre there had been no reports of the legs.  We went back to the car to view the area hoping it might drop on and whilst sitting in the car sheltering from the rain a party of eighteen Black-tailed Godwits dropped in.  The legs had apparently been associating with godwits over the last few days and our hopes were raised but the godwits were all that dropped in.  Whilst scanning the area we did see a Little Egret and a couple of Oystercatcher and there were a few Swift over the reserve.  As I walked back to the centre there was a single Turnstone at the mouth of the River Meon but as time progressed are hopes faded.  David then picked up a first-summer Mediterranean Gull that obligingly flew over the reserve for several minutes before dropping onto one of the scrapes.  We had agreed that we would give it until 13:00 before we called it a day and headed off home.  As 13:00 approached David got out of the car to change his shoes and whilst doing so another birder walked up saying the legs had been found and was on view from Suffern Hide.  David quickly changed back into his boots and after paying our entrance fee we were taking the short walk to the hide.  I was surprised to find the hide quite full when we arrived but we did manage to use our scopes and view the bird, which was preening just behind a bush.  After a few minutes it flew and joined several godwits that were feeding further out and we were able to get some reasonable views.  After short while feeding, the godwits and the legs got up and flew down stream and disappeared from view.  We quickly left the hide and made our way back to the road and found the bird feeding the area we had spent most of the time viewing.  It was now much closer and I managed to get some photos of it before it flew back up stream.


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs with Black-tailed Godwit


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs


Greater Yellowlegs

Success at last but with the weather still not particularly good we set off home with the intention of stopping at Greenham Common to break the journey.

We arrived at Greenham Common at about 14:50 where the weather had improved significantly.  Bird wise we heard a Garden Warbler and saw two Whitethroats, a male Stonechat and three Tree Pipits in the forty-five minutes we were on site.  We also saw Dingy and Grizzled Skippers and a Common Blue as well as a Treble-bar moth.


The old silos on Greenham Common

The traffic was pretty bad from about Didcot and we eventually decided to come of the A34 and head across country, which wasn’t any quicker but at least we were able to keep moving and arrived home at 18:55 after a successful day’s birding.

Wednesday 20 May 2015

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - May 19, 2015

I was helping with a wildfowl count at Rutland Water this morning but made a brief visit to Eyebrook Reservoir first.  One of the Little Owls was at in the old oak as I approached the reservoir and after parking I could see that there were quite a few waders at the inlet.  As Scanned through them with the scope and there was a Little Ringed Plover, twenty Ringed Plovers, four Sanderling, six Dunlin and a Turnstone.  As I started to go through them again they took to flight and as they hadn’t returned within a few minutes I headed for Rutland Water.

On arrival at the fishponds I called Steve to see if he knew which areas we were counting.  He had already made a start and was on lagoon four and we agreed that I would do South Arm Three and lagoon one and he would do lagoon two, three and four.  Tim then called and was ok with what we had decided but was waiting for Nigel to make contact as he was hoping he would be doing the new lagoons.

When I arrived in the south arm there was a Whitethroat singing as I parked but there was very little in the south arm, just a few Mute Swan, Canada Geese, Egyptian Geese, a single Pochard, Tufted Duck, Great Crested Grebe and Coot.  On lagoon one there was a pair of Shelduck, a few Shoveler and a Wigeon but otherwise just more of what was in the south arm.  I walked to Snipe hide on the Wet Meadow to view the backsides of the islands but I added very little.  The pair of Pintail was still on the Wet Meadow flash and I saw my only Teal of the day on the flash as well as a couple of Redshank.  Nigel joined me in the hide and he had already counted the new lagoons and the Wet Meadow was his last area to count.  He had seen nothing of note on the lagoons just several 
Oystercatchers and a couple of Redshank.  As we were talking I saw nine Black-tailed Godwits drop onto lagoon one, two of which were still pretty much in winter plumage.  I called Steve to make him aware and it turned out he was rather conveniently placed to see them as he was in the centre.

I walked back to the car for some lunch before walking to sandpiper hide on lagoon four with Steve hoping that the now increasing showers would drop something in.  We soon found several Ringed Plovers and Dunlin and a Turnstone, which was pretty much what Steve had seen earlier.  However the number of both Ringed Plover and Dunlin appeared to increase during the afternoon and we eventually counted seventeen Ringed Plover and twenty-four Dunlin.  There was also two Oystercatcher, two Little Ringed Plover and a Redshank and amongst the small number of Common Terns we found three Arctic Terns.

Birds of prey were a little disappointing today with just two Red Kites, a single Buzzard and two Kestrels observed.


As the number of waders appeared to have increased I thought it would be a good idea to call in at Eyebrook Reservoir again on my way home.  I drove around to the northern coral where there was a Little Ringed Plover, ten Ringed Plovers, three Sanderling and two Dunlin and from the island coral there were two Little Ringed Plovers, a Ringed Plover, a Sanderling and three Dunlin.  As at Rutland Water there were plenty of Swifts and hirundines with all three species present but other then four Common Terns there was little else and I made my home.

Monday 18 May 2015

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - May 16, 2015

I called at Eyebrook Reservoir first this morning seeing a Green Woodpecker just after passing through Tur Langton and one of the Little Owls obliged as I approached the reservoir from the north.  I went to the northern coral to view the reservoir where I found three Little Ringed Plovers but other than circa fifty Swift there appeared to be very little else.  I was joined by another birder in the coral who had been observing the reservoir from the Rutland bank but with same result.  As we stood talking he said “what’s this that’s just dropped in, I think it is a Sanderling”.  I got the scope on the bird and sure enough it was a Sanderling but surprisingly it was almost in winter plumage, being very white below and greyish above.  He then said there is a Dunlin just a few feet to the right but when I looked there was another Sanderling but this one was almost in full summer plumage.  I then find five tundra Ringed Plovers and I assumed that they had all just dropped in.  There were four Shelduck and four Common Terns and two Swallows and three House Martins appeared to pass through.  I then received a call from Roger who was in Oakham and I agreed to meet him in the Egleton car park at Rutland Water.

Roger was already in the car park when I arrived and we decided to go to Horn Mill Trout Farm to see if we could catch up with the Kingfisher I had missed on Tuesday.  When we arrived it was quite windy and as we walked along the footpath we had a Red Kite, Buzzard and Kestrel but there was no sign of any Kingfishers.  We walked down the road to check the stream further down but with the same result although we did see a Whitethroat and heard Chiffchaff and Blackcap.


Having no luck with the Kingfisher we returned to the north arm at Rutland Water but the hoped for Goldeneye was not in the fishponds and there was very little else.  On arrival at the Egleton Reserve we went to the Bird Watching Centre to view lagoon one but other than a pair of Shelduck and a single Oystercatcher it was pretty quiet.  We went next to Snipe hide on the Wet Meadow and saw both Garden Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat briefly before reaching the hide.  The male and female Pintail were on the Wet Meadow flash and we also had a couple of Little Egrets and a single Shelduck.






Swifts over the Wet Meadow

With lunchtime approaching we returned to the car park and were joined by Ken before we set off again to the northern lagoons.  From sandpiper hide on lagoon four we found a single Oystercatcher, three Little Ringed Plovers, twelve Ringed Plovers, four Dunlin and a Redshank and there was also ten Shelduck on the lagoon but there was only nine Common Terns resting on island ten spit.

I had seen a couple of Hobbies hawking over lagoon three and so we went to Shoveler hide next to hopefully get better views.  Ken had gone on ahead and had seen three Hobbies but there were now just two visible.  Roger then found a drake Scaup before he and Ken went to Lapwing hide to view south arm three.  Not too long after they had departed I had four Hobbies over the lagoon but they soon dispersed and only one was visible for most of the time.  Ken and Roger both returned having seen very little and soon afterwards Roger decided to go and look for the Goldeneye again in the north arm, which he did find.  Ken then left a few minutes afterwards to go back to the centre whilst I remained in the hide.  It was some time afterwards that an Osprey flew over the lagoon and passed right over the hide as it did so and I was able to get a few photos of it.





Swifts over lagoon three




Little Grebe on lagoon three


Female Gadwall over lagoon three



Common Tern over lagoon three






Osprey over lagoon three

I called at sandpiper hide on lagoon four again where I counted seventeen Ringed Plovers, a Sanderling and six Dunlin before I called it a day and returned to the car park before setting off home.

Great news today was Leicester’s one all draw at Sunderland and with Hull losing at Tottenham guaranteeing their place in the Premiership next season.  They were considered no hopers just a few weeks ago with just nineteen points before accumulating another nineteen from just eight games.  The greatest escape ever?