A day at Rutland Water, Rutland - December 29, 2015

I headed for the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water this morning with the promise of some decent weather before tomorrow’s severe storm Frank arrives.  When I arrived in the car park it appeared pretty quiet but as I was getting my gear on a party of thrushes flew over and I did see a couple of Fieldfare perched at the top of a distant tree.  I went and checked out the feeders first, which were almost empty, but there were a few Blue and Great Tits in attendance and a single Coal Tit and a couple of Tree Sparrows also made visits and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was also seen in a nearby tree.  I continued down to Teal Hide to view the South Arm and found a single drake Goosander and a Little Egret close to the Manton Bay bund and there was also one of the Great White Egrets and a single Little Egret on the edge of Brown’s Island and another drake Goosander flew just in front of the hide.  With nothing else of note I decided to head for Normanton to see if I could find any Mandarin and had a Sparrowhawk fly out of a bush as I drove off up the hill.

Drake Goosander from Teal Hide

When I arrived at Normanton the sun was up and there was a light south westerly breeze, although it did feel a little cooler than of late but it was a pleasant change for the overcast and windy conditions of late.  There was no sign of any Mandarin in the harbour and so I continued to walk towards the church to search the area just the other side of the harbour where I have seen Mandarin in the past.  Again there was no sign but I did manage to see three distant Great Northern Divers at the mouth of Whitwell Creek.  As I walked back I found a Grey Wagtail on the rocks at the harbour entrance and saw five Greenfinches briefly before they flew off to the west.  Steve had also called to say that he and Terry were watching four Great Northern Divers, an adult and three juveniles, in Whitwell Creek and so I head off hoping for some decent views.

The car parks were both open today and I walked the short distance to view the creek and found the adult Great Northern Diver almost immediately but there was no sign of the three juveniles.  Another birder the joined me and eventually we were satisfied that we had seen all four divers, with one juvenile being located near the mouth and the other two, seen together at the northern end of the creek.

From Whitwell I drove the short distance to the unnamed road at Barnsdale to view Dickinson’s Bay and the North Arm but found nothing of note and headed for the fisherman’s car park on the Hambleton Peninsula.  Although the light was excellent from this spot I couldn’t find the red-headed Smew, Red-necked Grebe or the two Black-necked Grebes that Steve and Terry had seen earlier.  I went back down the peninsula to view the North Arm from the point at the end of the cottage lane.

A Great White Egret had been seen just before I arrived in the fishponds but it had disappeared although I did find three drake and two female Goosanders.  I walked down to then end with another birder and found a third birder who had just located the two Black-necked Grebes but hadn’t seen anything else.  As I scanned the area I found the two Barnacle Geese on the north shore but the light wasn’t brilliant looking up the arm.  I continued to scan the area hoping to find either the Smew or the Red-necked Grebe and did eventually pick up the red-headed Smew just beyond a flock of Tufted Duck but there was no sign of the Red-necked Grebe.  As I walked back to the car for some lunch the Great White Egret was visible and I presumed that it was probably different to the one I had seen earlier in the South Arm.

When I reached the Egleton car park it was pretty much full and I found Steve and Terry having their lunch.  They hadn’t seen too much since we had talked earlier on the phone and I found out that they had seen the Red-necked Grebe close to the tower and I wasn’t therefore too surprised that I hadn’t seen it.  As I stood taking to Steve a Sparrowhawk appeared briefly before quickly disappearing to the north and I saw my only Redwing of the day before eventually making my way to the Bird Watching centre.

There were plenty of birds on the lagoon with two Shelduck and a pair of Goosander amongst the other wildfowl but the number of Pintail was well down with circa forty being present.  There were about forty Golden Plover amongst the Lapwing on the long island and I also found a single Dunlin.  When Steve arrived he found a Curlew and another birder found a second and the Steve then found the pair of Stonechats feeding in scrub just in front of Mallard Hide.  The Lapwings took to flight on several occasions and shortly afterwards on one occasion there was also c.100 Golden Plover as well.  There was a Buzzard perched on the man-made Osprey nest platform and Steve picked up two more over Hambleton, which were mobbed briefly by three Raven and a forth Buzzard was seen towards Lagoon Three and a single distant Red Kite towards Berrybut Spinney.  A Great White Egret, which was presumably the one I had seen on the edge of Brown’s Island walked from the bay in front of harrier hide before we headed off to the northern lagoons.

We walked towards the northern lagoons Steve heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker and we located in a distant tree but we saw very little else.  The water level on Lagoon Three was still suitable for waders and we found eight Snipe, a Green Sandpiper and five Redshank but other than another five Pintail there was little else and we eventually went to Dunlin Hide on Lagoon Four.

Female Teal on Lagoon three

Green Sandpiper on Lagoon three

Green Sandpiper and Redshank on Lagoon three

There was a couple of Shelduck on the lagoon and small number of Golden Plovers amongst the Lapwing. And the gull flock contained all five of the commoner species. Steve did pick out a possible Yellow-legged Gull amongst the flock but we couldn’t get a decent view, due to other birds and some vegetation but he then found another very white-headed gull amongst the gulls directly in front of the hide, which did turn out to be an adult Yellow-legged Gull.  Other than a distant Green Woodpecker I saw very little else before I set off back to the car park and home.

A day at Rutland Water, Rutland - December 22, 2015

The weather forecast today was for strong winds and some late afternoon rain and so I decided to head for the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water.  When I arrived in the car park it was still pretty dull and there was nothing at the feeders and so I continued on to Teal Hide.  I had seen a couple of Fieldfare as I walked down to the hide and found four Little Egrets on the Heron Bay bund and there was a Redshank just to the left of the hide.  On looking for the island I found that it was almost gone and clearly water had been pumped into the reservoir and probably still was and I suspect that the reservoir will be full again by the New Year.  Steve then joined me in the hide and he hadn’t been there too long when he picked up one of the Great White Egrets flying over South Arm Three, which then landed near Brown’s Island.  There was a Buzzard over Brown’s Island and another two Little Egrets in South Arm Two but other than the Redshank reappearing to the right of the hide and two Meadow Pipits to the left there was little else.

We walked back and spent ten minutes or so viewing the feeders where we had a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a couple of Coal Tits and five Tree Sparrows at the feeders and there were a few Redwings flying over.  As we were viewing the feeders we noticed that many of the Lapwing that were roosting on the bunds were now flying high and on closer inspection found circa thirty Dunlin amongst them.  Steve and I then both simultaneously picked up a Peregrine that was just hanging in the wind before it suddenly swooped and disappeared.

Steve departed and was heading for Normanton Church to view the Main Water where he was to find a drake Mandarin and a Great Northern Diver.  I went to view the North Arm and on arrival found four male and two female Goosanders in the fishponds.  As I walked down towards the spit there was a Little Egret on the bund and I found the two Barnacle Geese in amongst a party of Greylag Geese.  Scanning from the point I soon located the two Black-necked Grebes but there was no sign of the Red-necked Grebe and so I decided to head for the fisherman’s car park on the Hambleton Peninsular but not before picking up a Red Kite over Burley Wood.

As I got out of the car a party of passerines flew over but disappeared almost immediately, although I was pretty sure that they were Siskin.  As I walked back towards the road they reappeared and landed in a tree on the other side of the road before dropping down in a gateway and I was able to confirm that they were Siskin.  As I started to scan the North Arm there were six Little Grebes just of shore and just beyond them was the Red-necked Grebe, which provided some nice views.

Having found and seen the Red-necked Grebe rather well I went to the Bird Watching Centre on the Egleton Reserve to view Lagoon One.  I counted a 128 Pintail and there was also good numbers of Gadwall and Teal with smaller numbers of Wigeon, Mallard and Tufted Duck and I also noted two drake Goosanders.  There were five Curlew amongst the Lapwing and when the Lapwing took to flight I noticed two Dunlin in the flock.  It was now approaching lunchtime and so I went back to the car for an early lunch before heading off to the northern lagoons.

As I walked along the path there were quite a few Redwing and Blackbirds in the area I call the cathedral but I saw little else between there and Bittern Hide on Lagoon Three.  I had gone to Bittern Hide as Joe had told me that the volunteers had been doing some habitat management and I found that there was now a wide channel running away to the left of the hide but it was very quiet bird wise.  I called at Plover Hide on Lagoon Four and found quite a large party of Wigeon feeding to the right and also a male and four female Pochard.

I retraced my steps back along the track and then headed for Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three.  There was a Green Sandpiper and a couple of Redshank feeding just in front of the hide and I found a Green Woodpecker clinging to one of the fence posts at the rear of the hide, where it remained for close on fifteen minutes before it flew towards Bittern Hide and landed in a tree.  A single drake Pintail and a party of twenty-three Pochard were on the water and there was a single Shelduck along with several Cormorants on the distant island.  There was very little else with just a few Teal, a couple of Shoveler and a few Tufted Duck and Goldeneye.  I sat in the hide for quite some time hoping for a Water Rail but had no joy and so moved on to Dunlin Hide on Lagoon Four.

There was c.200 Golden Plover amongst the large number of Lapwing and again there were two Dunlin in the flock.  There was another three Shelduck and good numbers of Wigeon on the bunds but few other birds were noted.  There were a few gulls, mainly Herring but also a few Black-headed, Common and Great Black-backed and also two Lesser Black-backed.

It looked as though the forecast rain was perhaps not too far away and so I made my way back to the centre and found a Great White Egret and another Shelduck on Lagoon One before I called it a day.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland and Cambridgeshire - December 19, 2015

David, Roger and I left home today in quite windy conditions but it was very warm for December with the temperature almost at 15°C.  Our plan for the day was to bird locally until just after lunch and then head off to Eldernell in Cambridgeshire to finish off.  Based on news from yesterday we headed for the southern end of Eyebrook Reservoir hoping for Smew and Slavonian Grebe.

We didn’t see anything of note on route and the light hadn’t improved a great deal by the time we arrived and so we viewed the first bay from the road were we found a Little Egret, a male and female Pintail and a couple of drake Pochard on the water.  There was a Red Kite towards the Fishing Lodge and a Kingfisher was observed flying towards the lodge.  We continued to the island coral and after a few minutes David found two red-headed Smew in the bay to the north of the island.  They looked a little different with one showing a white patch on the upperwing with the other being blacker around the lores and we considered one to probably be a juvenile male.

As we moved further on we found Malcolm viewing the bay and he had found the Slavonian Grebe but hadn’t seen the Smew.  He gave us directions for the Slavonian Grebe, which we soon located and then got him onto the Smew.  We continued and checked the old oak for the Little Owl with no joy and at the southern end we had two more Little Egrets, three Red Kites and circa fifty Golden Plover in flight before they settled amongst the Lapwing resting in the grassy edges.

David, who was driving, decided we would head towards Lyddington and approach the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water from Lyndon.  There was a Red Kite over Stoke Dry as we left Eyebrook Reservoir and we had another along with thirty-seven Golden Plover just after passing through the village.  We stopped briefly at an area of scrub near Wing where we found a Marsh Tit and a couple of Bullfinch and as we approached Lyndon we saw another Red Kite to the east and found a Treecreeper near the church.

On reaching the Lyndon Centre we intended to just view the feeding station where we found three Tree Sparrows and a single Coal Tit amongst the more numerous Blue Tits.  David, who had taken his scope, found one of the Great White Egrets near Gadwall Hide in South Arm Three and a Redshank at the base of Lax Hill.  We also had a couple of Fieldfare and circa twenty Redwing around the centre and a Sparrowhawk flew through the feeding area.

With little else we headed for the Egleton Reserve and initially went into the Bird Watching centre to view Lagoon One.  I counted 124 Pintail on the lagoon, which is a significant count in the Counties and I also found a male and female Goosander and Roger located nine Curlew feeding on the meadow but when I looked I could only find seven.

With little else on Lagoon One we headed off to Shoveler hide on Lagoon Three where we found Malcolm.  He had only seen a couple of Green Sandpipers, one of which was still present but we did see the second before we left the hide.  The only other birds of note were three more Pintail, a Kestrel and a couple of Redshanks.

From Sandpiper Hide on Lagoon Four we located four Shelduck and the juvenile female Peregrine was on the long strip at the back of the lagoon.  There was also circa sixty Golden Plover amongst the more numerous Lapwing but we couldn't find anything unusual amongst the small party of gulls that was present.

Malcolm had seen a party of Siskin feeding in the alders close to Grebe Hide and I went to look for these on the way back, whilst David and Roger went straight back.  There was no sign of any birders feeding in the alders and when I caught up with Roger near the centre I found out that he and David had seen three fly over as they walked back.  As Roger and I walked back to the car we had a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Mistle Thrush fly over.

Our next stop was to be the North Arm and with some light rain falling we decided to check it out before taking lunch.  It didn’t rain for very long and I found two male and a female Goosander in the fishponds before walking further down the spit.  We soon found two Barnacle Geese on the north shore and David located the two Black-necked Grebes, which were rather distant.  There was another Redshank on the shore and a Little Egret way down the arm but we couldn’t locate either the Red-necked or Slavonian Grebes.  A Nuthatch put in a brief appearance whilst we were having lunch but with little else of interest we moved on to Whitwell.

After parking near the restaurant we walked out on to view the main water and David picked up a Great Northern Diver in flight, which was joined briefly by a second that then continued heading towards the south shore.  The first bird turned and headed towards and eventually landed in the creek where it began to feed.  We saw it dive on a few occasions and it was surprising how far it was travelling between dives as it went further into the creek.  I walked along the shore to see if I could get a photo and on seeing it surface and dive again I moved quickly along the shore hoping it might come up in the same area.  However it was the last time I saw it and Roger had also lost it and despite a thorough search we couldn’t find it again.

Great Northern Diver over Whitwell Creek

Great Northern Diver alighting on Whitwell Creek

Great Northern Diver alighting on Whitwell Creek

It was now about 13:30 and so we left Rutland Water and set off to Eldernell seeing another five Red Kites on route and arrived at Eldernell at 14:30.

We found a Derbyshire birder, Glyn, already on site and as we got out of the car he informed us that there were four Cranes in flight.  When we reached him two had disappeared but the others had landed and we were able to see them on the ground, although as usual they were some distance away.  Roger then indicated that three of the distant swan where Whooper Swans and we found another with several Mute Swans.  David had found a couple of Buzzards low over the near dyke and Roger then picked up a Short-eared Owl but again it was quite distant and we eventually had two feeding in the same area.  David then found a male and female Marsh Harrier west of the car park and Roger, who was obviously having a purple patch, picked up a ring-tailed Hen Harrier, which provided some nice if distant views as it flew east.  We saw it again as it came back west and the other two Cranes also flew over but disappeared behind the distant bund.  Another nice female Marsh Harrier came in from the east and shortly afterwards I picked up another male coming from the same direction.  It passed in front of the car park and headed further west  and shortly afterwards flushed the ring-tailed Hen Harrier and two Short-eared Owls and we considered that the two owls were in addition to those seen earlier.  A perched falcon then caused some discussion with several thinking it was a Merlin but I wasn’t convinced and after repositioning itself on the post I was certain it was just a Kestrel.  A party of circa Lesser Redpoll flew over and David found a male Stonechat and shortly afterwards a Barn Owl was seen around the old buildings behind the near bund but by the time we got to the top it had disappeared and wasn’t seen again.

With the light fading we eventually called it a day after what had been an excellent day’s birding in conditions that were not ideal.

An afternoon in North West Leicestershire - December 17, 2015

David and I went out to Swithland Reservoir this afternoon and initially went to view the southern section.  There were plenty of birds viewable from the road and we found thirteen Mandarin Duck along the western edge of the reservoir.  There was a good selection of wildfowl on the water including Mute Swan, Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Shoveler and Tufted Duck and here were also seven Cormorants, surprisingly thirteen Grey Herons and a few Great Crested Grebes.

As it started to rain we went around to the northern section where we found a female Scaup amongst a small party of Tufted Ducks.  There were a few Teal on a spit merging from the western shore and I counted thirty-one Goldeneye and a Buzzard few over but there was little else and we moved off to Cossington Meadows.

When we arrived at the entrance to the meadows it was raining quite hard but after a brief wait in the car it soon eased and we so we set off down the track hoping to see Short-eared Owl.  The track was very muddy and we had more rain during our visit but we did see three Lesser Redpolls as we made our way along the track.  We found a couple of photographers who were waiting for the owls but so far they hadn’t seen them and so we continued along the track.  We continued on as far as Hobley Lake seeing a drake Goosander on Upper Marsh but other than four Shoveler and eleven Cormorants we saw very little else and walked back to the meadows where the owls were being seen.

When we got back the photographers had disappeared but there was another couple waiting and hoping.  We stood talking for a while seeing a Buzzard over the Moor and just after a Reed Bunting had caused some distraction as it flew into a nearby bush I saw a Short-eared Owl flying low over Swan Meadow, which then perched on the northern fence.  David then picked up a second over the meadow that went and perched two fence posts further away from the first.  After remaining on the posts for a while they both began to feed over the meadow and eventually they both moved off but not before one settled on a fence post again and this time much closer giving excellent views particularly through the scope.  As we scanned the area I found another Buzzard perched in a tree and a Cetti’s Warbler called nearby but there was no further signs of the Short-eared Owls and with rain threatening again we called it a day.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - December 15, 2015

I left home in misty conditions and it wasn’t too long before it started to rain, which it did until I was almost at Eyebrook Reservoir.  As I approached Eyebrook Reservoir the mist thickened reducing the visibility significantly and on arrival it began to rain quite hard.  I initially went to the Stoke Dry car park, seeing ten Little Egrets along the stream as I did so. The feeders where back in the tree and there were a few Blue and Great Tits, several Chaffinch and a single Yellowhammer whilst I waited for the rain to ease.  As the rain eased I drove back to the bridge where I met Mike and I spent the remainder of the time viewing from the bridge.  The feeders here produced Blue and Great Tits again and a single Great Spotted Woodpecker also made a visit.  As we stood on the bridge the visibility improved and I picked up ten Golden Plover in flight, a Kingfisher flew along the stream and landed on its favoured perch and there was a single Tree Sparrow in the bushes.  As the fog began to clear I agreed to meet Mike in the Egleton car park at Rutland Water and that we would then head for Whitwell to look for the divers.

Not surprisingly there was no sign of the Little Owl in the old oak as I left Eyebrook Reservoir and as I climbed the hill heading towards Uppingham it became quite foggy.  The fog was still quite thick on reaching the Egleton car park and so I agreed to see Mike in the Bird Watching centre after I had made a brief visit to the Volunteer Training Centre.

Mike was still in the car park when I returned and with no improvement in the visibility we walked down to the centre to try and view lagoon one.  From the viewing gallery we could just make out the long island and could see very few birds, the best being a few Pintail quite close to the centre.  It wasn’t long before we agreed it would perhaps be best to go to Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three hoping the fog might clear.

We checked the feeders near the centre before setting off where there were a few Blue Tits and single Great and a Coal Tits, along with several Pheasants and Moorhens feeding under the feeders.

As we headed off towards Lagoon Three we had a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Jay near Badger Hide and there were quite a few common passerines, including a few Redwings between the centre and Redshank Hide but we saw little between there and Shoveler Hide except for another Great Spotted Woodpecker.

When we opened the flaps on the hide we could barely make out the reedbed to the left but there was a single Green Sandpiper closer and we eventually made out another two and five Redshanks slightly further away.  There were quite a few Teal feeding on the area of exposed mud and at one point we counted eight Snipe, which were my first on site in over a month.  A Goldcrest moved through the reeds in front of the hide but other than a single Shoveler we saw nothing else of note and with no sign of the fog lifting, we headed back for lunch.

Goldcrest from Shoveler Hide

As we were having lunch the fog lifted considerable and on returning the centre we could see the whole lagoon reasonably well.  I counted eight-five Pintail and there were also Wigeon, Gadwall, Teal, Mallard, Shoveler, Pochard and Tufted Duck.  I picked up one of the Great White Egret on the Wet Meadow but with little else we went back towards the northern lagoons.

The visibility was now much better and we saw a Sparrowhawk on route and on reaching Dunlin Hide on Lagoon Four we were able to see the whole lagoon.  There were forty Golden Plover and fourteen Dunlin amongst the near flock of Lapwing and another forty Golden Plovers further back and a fifteenth Dunlin on another island.  David had seen a couple of Caspian Gulls yesterday but initially all we could find were the five commoner gulls until I picked up a white-headed bird amongst them.  With a south easterly wind the gulls were mainly being seen head-on, which didn’t make identification easy.  The white-headed gull was clearly quite a large adult and after watching it for some time we identified it as a Yellow-legged Gull based on the head and bill shape and pale iris.  Another white-headed bird found a little later insisted on hiding behind Lesser and Great Black-backed Gulls and although it initially looked like a possible Caspian we eventually agreed that it was in fact a Lesser Black-backed Gull, which we confirmed as we had several brief views of the dark mantle.

We returned to Shoveler Hide hoping to get better views of the waders and anything else on the lagoon but found that some of the volunteers had ventured out onto the lagoon meadow and there were now very few birds on the mud other than a single Green Sandpiper and two Redshanks.  There were nineteen Pochard, including six males, feeding on the lagoon before they flew off towards Lagoon Four and we eventually called it a day.

A morning at Rutland Water, Rutland - December 13, 2015

I went to Rutland Water today to help with the monthly WeBS count and did my normal area of South Arm Three and Lagoon One but also Lagoons Five, Six and Seven and the Wet Meadow as there appeared to be a lack of counters.

Although the weather forecast suggested it would be dry until 11:00 there was light rain during the whole of the visit, the visibility wasn’t too good and it was colder than of late.  I started off in South Arm Three were there were good numbers of Wigeon, Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Goldeneye but also Mute Swan, Egyptian Geese, Wigeon, Teal, Mallard, Moorhen and Coot.  There was also a couple of Little Egrets, two Grey Herons and a Redshank.

From the south arm I went to count Lagoon One on the Egleton Reserve which produced sixty-seven Pintail and over one hundred Gadwall.  There was also Mute Swan, Egyptian Goose, Wigeon, Teal, Mallard, Shoveler, four Pochard, Tufted Duck, a single Goldeneye and small numbers of Moorhen and Coot.  I heard a Golden Plover but couldn’t find it and there was a good number of Lapwing and a couple of Curlew on the lagoon.  One of the Great White Egrets was present but there was no sign of the other two that had been present yesterday and there was also a single Little Egret and a Grey Heron.

After talking to Tim I agreed to count the Wet Meadow and Lagoons Six and Eight but there was very little on the Wet Meadow or Lagoon Six, although a single Shelduck on six was my first of the today.  The plan then changed and I went to count Lagoons Five and Seven.  There are no hides on Lagoon Seven and so I climbed the bank slowly to count the visible birds and managed to do so without flushing a single bird.  There were another two Shelduck along with several Mute Swans, Wigeon, Gadwall, Teal, Mallard and Tufted Duck.  Lagoon Five was very disappointing with just nineteen Wigeon, four Mallard and three Tufted Duck.

I made my way back to the centre to hand in my figures and found out that four Great Northern Divers had been seen on the Main Water and that Tim Mac and Lloyd had seen three Slavonian and two Black-necked Grebes in the north arm.  The most interesting report though came via Terry Mitcham who had found a Short-eared Owl perched on a fence post near Shoveler Hide and I went with the other counters hoping it might still be there.  We arrived just after Tim Mac and Lloyd and Lloyd had already located it still sitting on one of the posts on the edge of the meadow to the south of the hide.  It was looking rather sorry for itself in the rather dismal weather and presumably it was the same bird that had been seen several times during November.

There were clearly more Fieldfare and Redwing around today, which was probably due to the colder weather further north and I saw a Great Spotted Woodpecker near the cottage.

A day in West Norfolk - December 11, 2015

With David and Ken away Roger and I decided to have a day in West Norfolk and set off for King’s Lynn at 06:30.  The journey over, considering it was a week day, was pretty uneventful and we arrived at Fisher Fleet in King’s Lynn at 08:25 hoping two see a juvenile Iceland Gull.  As we parked a couple of birders informed us that it was on the mud at the entrance to the fishing fleet dock.  As we walked towards the area there were plenty of Black-headed and Herring Gulls and a single Lesser Black-backed Gull along the shore of the Great Ouse and there were more gulls on the other side of the entrance.  We scanned these and other birds on the near shore but we couldn’t see the Iceland Gull.  I walked a little further back up the road and found it resting on the near shore and the reason we hadn’t see it was that from most positions it was at least partially hidden by the grasses along the bank.  We watched the bird for about twenty minutes and I was able to get several photos despite the bird’s position and the poor light before it flew to the far side of the dock when we decided to leave.

Juvenile Iceland Gull

Feeling pretty pleased with the views of the Iceland Gull we headed for Choseley Barns where we were hoping to see one of the Rough-legged Buzzards that had been hunting over the fields during the last few days.

We saw a couple of Marsh Harriers as we were approaching Choseley and on parking we flushed several Chaffinches and a Fieldfare.  Roger noticed a couple of coveys of partridge and whilst I was getting ready he identified one group as Red-legged Partridges but the other whilst mainly Red-legged also contained at least three Grey Partridge but another birder flushed them before I could get my scope on them and I had to be content with seeing them through the bins.  We scanned the fields but there was no sign of any birds of prey but we did find several Meadow Pipits and four Yellowhammers.  Another birder then arrived and as he scanned the fields he indicated that he possibly had the Rough-legged.  Roger then picked up a bird of prey flying towards us, which we were able to identify as just a Buzzard as it came closer.  The birder hadn’t said anything but as I scanned the fields again I saw a bird on the ground with a pale head and on mentioning it, it was what he had seen before the Buzzard diverted his attention.  We all got our scope on it and were pretty confident that it was in fact a Rough-legged Buzzard and when it flew it confirmed its identity.  We had it flight on a couple of occasions before it disappeared behind a conifer and almost certainly landed in the far side.  The views of the bird were quite distant but despite these the flight views were rather good with the white base to the tail and the single diffused bar were clearly seen as was the dark belly.

From Choseley we went to Brancaster Staithe where there had been a Red-necked Grebe and we saw this almost immediately after getting out of the car.  The tide was out and it was feeding in Mow Creek, which is quite narrow at low tide and we were able to get some excellent views and a few photos.

Red-necked Grebe

It was going quite well today as so far everything had been relatively easy and we decided to go to Thornham and considered walking out to the point in the hope of seeing the Shore Larks again.  However when we arrived the wind had got up quite a bit and it was getting close to lunchtime and as it would be a last a ninety minute round trip, we decided to see if we could see them from the car park, although the chances were pretty slim.  As we scanned the area we did manage to see several Skylarks and I found a party of circa twenty Twite and we felt if the birds were on view we would possibly be able to identify them.  As we continued scanning a party of birders had gathered and they were clearly showing some interest in something and one was actually using his camera.  However we couldn’t see anything where they were looking until three larks suddenly flew and went by the group before appearing to land.  The group had swung around and followed the birds but then began to meander back along the point.  We felt that the birds were certainly the Shore Larks but that they hadn’t actually come down and had continued along the spit and out of sight.

As it was now lunchtime we headed off Titchwell where we had lunch before venturing onto the reserve.  The first group of feeders near the centre were quite busy but there was nothing of note and after passing through the centre we found those at the rear to be totally devoid of birds except for a few Woodpigeons feeding on the ground.  A new group of feeders just along the Meadow Trail produced a Great Spotted Woodpecker and as we walked back towards the centre we found lots of activity around the rear feeders.  We stood and watched birds coming and going, which included Blue and Great Tits, Chaffinch and Greenfinch and eventually we had a female Brambling.  There was also a mixed flock of Goldfinch and Siskin feeding in the alders.

We set off down the west bank and found that the Freshwater Marsh water level was particularly high and not very suitable for waders but we did find an Avocet and four Dunlin.  Lavender Pool on Thornham Marsh held quite a few Teal and we also found five roosting Snipe.  As we reached Volunteer Marsh we found quite a few Redshanks along with a few Curlew and a couple of Black-tailed Godwits but a pipit turned out to be just a Meadow.

There were more birds on the Tidal Marsh where we found our first Bar-tailed Godwit of the day and then I found a single Ringed Plover and three Spotted Redshanks and Roger found another two Avocets.

On reaching the beach the tide was way out but there plenty of waders, mainly Oystercatchers, Dunlin and Bar-tailed Godwits but there were also at least four Ringed Plovers, several Grey Plovers, Curlew, Redshank and Turnstone.  We scanned the sea and found a four Common Scoters, a couple of Velvet Scoter and six Red-breasted Mergansers but there was little else except for a drake Goldeneye and several Great Crested Grebes.  As the tide began coming in the waders started moving around, with some appearing to go onto the reserve to roost and we located our first Sanderling of the day with at least ten being eventually seen.

Common Gull over the beach

Common Gull over the beach

When the tide had virtually covered most of the good feeding area we found quite a few Oystercatchers now roosting on the Tidal Marsh and there also appeared to be more Dunlin and Black-tailed Godwits feeding along with the three Spotted Redshanks.  A party of roosting Shoveler contained five Pintail and four Little Grebes were also observed.  As we scanned the Volunteer Marsh I saw a bird fly in, which I initially suspected might be a Grey Plover but there was no black armpit and on scoping the now settled bird found it to be our first Knot of the day, after which Roger found three more.  Three Avocets then flew over and appeared to drop onto the Tidal Marsh but we saw little else until we reached the Freshwater Marsh.  As we scoped the marsh Roger found a single Ruff and two Snipe on the few exposed islands but other than another six Pintail there was little else.

Curlew on Volunteer Marsh

We stopped by Island Hide to view the reedbed and saw at least nine Marsh Harriers come into roost, of which only one was a male.  A Cetti’s Warbler called as we started to walk back and after a coffee and the light almost gone we set off for home after what had been an excellent day’s birding.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - December 8, 2015

The overnight rain had ceased as I left home and headed for Eyebrook Reservoir, which I approached from the north.  There was no sign of the Little Owl as I approached the reservoir and I stopped and parked first near the inlet bridge.  There were a couple of Little Egrets in the stream and a Kingfisher was perched near the willow on the edge of the stream.  The plantation to the north of the bridge was fairly quite with just a few Fieldfares being the highlight but there was a couple of Red Kites over the field to the east of the bridge, a single Buzzard over the road just to the west and two more Buzzards between the bridge and the Stoke Dry car park.

I drove further around on the Rutland bank to view the inlet where a further rise in the water level had resulted in it covering all the exposed mud.  Consequently the only waders were several hundred Lapwings.  There was a fair sized concentration of gulls on the water, mainly Common but also good numbers Black-headed and few Herring and a single Lesser Black-backed.  The light looking out onto the reservoir was poor as the sun was trying to break through and it was reflecting off the water but I did manage to find a single Shelduck amongst the gulls and a single Goldeneye amongst the more common wildfowl.

With the light making viewing difficult I headed off to the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water and after parking walked through the gate to view the feeding station.  As usual there were plenty of Blue Tits visiting along with two Coal Tits and there were also several Chaffinches, three Greenfinches and a single Goldfinch.  I decided to head to Waders Scrape Hide to check out Manton Bay seeing a Little Egret in the bay as I set off.  There were small numbers of Fieldfare and Redwing today as I walked along the path but there were plenty of Blackbirds and I also saw several Goldcrest and three Bullfinches before reaching the path to the hide.

The water in the bay was still much higher than the reservoir and still unsuitable for waders but there were at least four Little Egrets in the bay and I could see a fifth on the bund across Heron Bay.  There was also four Egyptian Geese, good numbers of Wigeon and Teal in the bay with smaller numbers of Shoveler, Tufted Duck and Goldeneye.

As I walked back towards the centre a party of circa ten Siskin were observed in flight and on reaching the centre there was now a Marsh Tit and four Tree Sparrows on the feeders.  Looking out towards Gadwall Hide I found one of the Great White Egrets and a Little Egret.

There was news of a probable Black-throated Diver with the Great Northern Diver off Whitwell yesterday and I therefore made this my next port of call.  The car park near the restaurant was closed and so I had to park in the main car park and walk through the closed car park to view the main water.  I noticed another birder on the shoreline as I walked across the car park and when I reached the area found Ben, Brian, Roger and Terry all viewing the area.  They had found three Great Northern Divers, two of which were actually in Whitwell Creek with the third out on the Main Water and a little closer to the dam.  They got me on to all three of the divers but they were all actively feeding and were only showing briefly between divers.  There was no sign of yesterday’s probable Black-throated Diver, which we assumed might have been one of the Great Northern but a Red Kite and Sparrowhawk flew over and there were ten Little Grebes in the creek.

Terry had left just after I arrived and eventually we all headed off to the north arm to look for the wintering grebes.  After parking we walked down towards the end of the spit and Ben and I scanned the northern section whilst Brian and Roger continued on to view the area towards the tower.  There was no sign of anything out of the ordinary and so I went to join the Brian and Roger only to be called back by Ben who had found a Black-tailed Godwit on the northern shore amongst the gulls.  When we joined Briand and Roger they had located the two Black-necked Grebes and shortly afterwards I found the Slavonian Grebes off the fisherman’s car park and there were three Redshanks in the bay to our right.  I called Terry to see if he had located the birds and he had seen them form the Fisherman’s car park and had also probably had the Red-necked Grebe but it was even further down the arm.  Brian picked up a Peregrine over the fishponds and we viewed the fishponds as we walked back where there were three male and a single female Goosander.

Brian and Roger headed off to Egleton and Ben set off for home whilst I stayed to have my lunch in the shelter of the trees.  When I got to the car park at Egleton Briand and Roger was just finishing their lunch and we all went to the Bird Watching Centre to view Lagoon One.  The recent rains had raised the level of water on the lagoon but there were still ten Dunlin on the long island and I counted fifty-nine Pintail with another seven visible on Lagoon Two.  Roger then had a purple patch finding a Curlew in the meadow, two Jays on the Wet Meadow and a male and female Stonechat towards Mallard Hide and there was also what was probably the second Great White Egret, a Little Egret on the lagoon and five more Curlew flew over.

Brian and Roger decide to head off to Eyebrook Reservoir whilst I went to view the northern lagoons.  I met Terry coming back who had seen very little except for thirty to forty Golden Plover and two Dunlin on Lagoon Four.  After a brief chat I continued on seeing very little before reaching Sandpiper Hide on Lagoon Four.  When I opened the flap most of the birds were in flight but when they eventually came down I counted thirty-seven Golden Plovers but other than five Shelduck there was little else and I moved to Shoveler Hide on Lagoon Three.

I saw very little from the hide and fared no better from Redshank Hide and so continued back to the car park.  Gerry was now back with me and we stopped until it was almost dark looking out over the meadow with the owl box in, hoping for a Barn Owl but other than a few Redwing flying over we saw nothing else and we eventually called it a day.

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - December 1, 2015

This morning I headed for Eyebrook Reservoir and approached the reservoir from the south.  I parked near the entrance to the fishing lodge where I found four Red-legged Partridges in the field and a Kestrel perched on the hedge before moving on to the island coral.  There was nothing of note from the coral and I so I continued to the north side of the island to look for the Slavonian Grebe, which didn’t take too long to find and a Little Egret also flew towards the island.  Satisfied with the views of the Slavonian Grebe I went to check out the old oak for the Little Owl but there was no sign this morning and so I went back to the bridge at the inlet.  Since arriving I had seen quite a few Fieldfare and smaller numbers of Redwing and also five Bullfinches between the island and the second coral.

As I parked at the bridge there were six Little Egrets feeding on the stream but they all flew towards the reservoir as I got out of the car.  I was surprised to find that the water had risen considerably since my last visit but looking towards the reservoir I found three Shelduck, seventeen Dunlin flying amongst a flock of Lapwing and a distant Red Kite.  There had been a Common Redpoll seen yesterday but all I saw today in over an hour were two Lesser Redpolls and a nice party of circa thirty Siskin.

Further along the Rutland bank I counted thirty-nine Golden Plover amongst the Lapwings and there were another nine Red-legged Partridges in a field on the Leicestershire side.

With little else I moved to the Lyndon Reserve at Rutland Water where there were more Fieldfare and Redwing in the car park area.  There was a constant flow of Blue Tits at the feeding station along with small numbers of Great Tits, a couple of Coal Tit and Chaffinches and single Greenfinch and Goldfinch but there was no sign of any Willow or Marsh Tits.  Ten Egyptian Geese flew over and from Teal Hide four more Egyptian Geese, a pair of Goosander, seven Little Egrets on the Manton Bay bund and a Curlew below Lax Hill were observed.  As I walked back to the car I had another look at the feeding station but there was nothing new and so I went to the north arm.

After parking near the cottage I walked down the gate and viewed the fishponds where there were another thirteen Egyptian Geese and a nice red-headed Smew.  I found Bob at the end of the spit and as I joined him a Redshank called and I saw it flying towards the northern shore.  The two Barnacle Geese were on the north shore and there was a Little Egret on the bund.  Bob had seen what he assumed were the two Slavonian Grebes, which were quite distance but when we found another Slavonian Grebe nearer the fisherman’s car park we looked to see if the other two grebes were still present.  They were and now being much closer and we could see that they were two Black-necked Grebes.  Bob then found a Pink-footed Goose amongst the mass of Greylag and Canada Geese and we also saw a Red Kite and Buzzard over Burley Wood.

We drove to the fisherman’s car park on the Hambleton Peninsular to try and get a better view of the Slavonian Grebe.  However after spending probably fifteen minutes viewing the area we couldn’t find it and so we decided to go over the fence and view the arm from the shore.  As I walked down towards the shore there were a couple of Little Egrets and two Redshanks on the shore but they took to flight with a party of Wigeon.  I soon found the Slavonian Grebe towards the fishponds but was surprised that it was still quite distant but I then found a second bird that was much closer, along with three Pintail.  We continued to scan the arm to the east where there were quite a number of Great Crested Grebe in the hope of finding the Red-necked Grebe,  Our first few scans failed to produce anything other than Great Crested but I then saw a bird dive that I thought might be the Red-necked.  When it surfaced it looked very white on the sides of the face and I was unsure as it dived again.  I got Bob in the right area and we waited for it to surface again but this time, although it still looked very white around the face, I could see the yellow base to the bill, which confirmed that it was the Red-necked.

I left Bob having is lunch on the peninsular and I went to the Egleton car park to have mine before going onto the reserve.  Stephen who I hadn’t seen for a few weeks joined me in the car park as he finished his volunteer stint in the centre.  We discussed what I had seen today and our experiences during November and whilst doing so several Redwings were observed in the bushes and I was able to photograph one of them.

Redwing

As I walked down to the centre I heard a Grey Wagtail call and then saw it as it flew over heading towards the lagoon.  I viewed Lagoon One from the centre but it was pretty quiet except for sixty-two Pintail and a single Little Egret.  Both Great White Egrets had flown over earlier but there was no sign of either of them on the lagoon.  David then called to say that he had seen what might be a good contender for the Common Redpoll at Eyebrook Reservoir but he and other observers weren’t certain on the views they had but suggested that it might be worth me returning.  Whilst considering what to do I scanned Lagoon Two and saw a male Stonechat on top of the reeds between the centre and the Lagoon.  As it was appearing to be fairly quiet on the reserve I eventually decided that returning to Eyebrook Reservoir might be a good option and called it a day at Rutland Water seeing a Buzzard as I headed off.

This time I approached the reservoir from the northern end but there was still no Little Owl, although David had seen it when he arrived.  I joined a small group of birders near the bridge spent almost two hours viewing the trees to the north of the reservoir.  I did see a number of Siskin and at least four redpolls that were all quite clearly lesser and other than another three Red Kites I saw very little else.

I checked the oak again as I was departing and third time lucky as the Little Owl was sitting in its normal spot.  I headed towards Blaston and on reaching Stockerston Lane a Peregrine flew over the road and there was a Kestrel on a wire as I left the village and finally there was a Buzzard alighting in a tree as I approached Cranoe.