Levels-birder

November 29th 2008

 

 

A two hour search around King’s Sedge Moor yesterday morning didn’t find the Richard’s Pipit of three days ago. However, I did see a large flock of c.600 Golden Plover and flushed 40+ Common Snipe; while this Cormorant was most obliging, staying put on the bank of the King's Sedge Moor Drain as I walked past.

 

 

 

 

This morning, on an overcast, cold, misty day, I walked a circuit of Cheddar Reservoir searching for yesterday’s Slavonian Grebe. I was unlucky, but did come across this Black-necked Grebe, among the large flock of Coots, and managed these photos (below) in the poor conditions. I also saw 9 Goldeneye, including 3 smart drakes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 27th 2008

 

Two days spent looking at sea-duck was very rewarding. Yesterday, with a fellow birder, I was at Dawlish Warren in South Devon, where the female Surf Scoter gave reasonable ‘scope views as it was diving for food in the bay (my 3rd in Devon, its coast seems to suit them). Also present, among the usual estuary birds, were three species of diver: Red-throated, Black-throated and Great Northern, a pair of Red-breasted Mergansers and c.150 dark-bellied Brent Geese.

 

Surf Scoter - juv/female (library photo)

 

This afternoon, found me on a coastal walk from Stolford to Hinkley Point looking for a reported Long-tail Duck. I had just finished watching 10 pale-bellied Brent Geese and 4 Greater Scaup, when my mobile rings (it’s my companion of yesterday) with the exiting news that he was watching 2 female Common Eiders that had just landed on the sea about half-a-mile from where I was. I hurried in his direction and managed reasonable 50x ‘scope views before they flew off west and disappeared. Hoorah! At last, a much wanted new bird for my Somerset list. Later, as we walked back to our cars at Stolford, we found 11 Common Scoter on the sea, and with them was the very smart looking drake Long-tail Duck in his winter finery – brilliant. My very distant, 'scope range, record shot shows three of the Scaup on the sea, the 1st-winter drake just about identifiable from its white forehead patch.

 

 

November 25th 2008

This afternoon, I went with a birding friend to look for Jack Snipe on the salt-marsh at the Brue Estuary. We were successful and flushed 6 of them, also 37 Common Snipe. Other birds of interest were 2 Spotted Redshank and a Peregrine, also a lone fox, fossicking on Stert Island and seemingly cut-off by the rising tide.

 

November 20th 2008

An afternoon visit to King’s Sedge Moor on the 18th was fairly uneventful: the usual Peregrine (an adult female) and two flocks of Golden Plover, totalling some 250 birds. Then, as we walked along the boardwalk at Greylake RSPB Reserve, I heard some splashing noises and was soon watching a delightful little Water Vole below the overhanging vegetation of a narrow drainage rhyne.

Today, over high-water, I was with a birding friend at Steart Point and nearby Wall Common watching the aerial manoeuvres of a large flock of c.6,000 Dunlin. We also saw c.300 Golden Plover, 90 Grey Plover, 60 Knot, 3 Bar-tailed Godwits, A dark-bellied Brent Goose and an adult male Peregrine. After a bit of crawling, I managed to get close enough to some of the waders to take these photos…

 

In reducing size: 2 Grey Plover, 2 Knot and 8 Dunlin.

 

Grey Plover

 

November 16th 2008

After a family get-together to watch last night’s Glastonbury Carnival procession, we had just finished Sunday’s roast lunch when our phone rings (thank you Brian) to let me know of a male Dark-eyed Junco, a sparrow-sized bird from North America, found this morning feeding on a garden bird-table at East Coker in Somerset. Three-quarters of an hour later and I’m taking my shoes off at the front door and being ushered into the house owner’s conservatory to join 15 other birders, crammed into the small space. After 20 minutes or so the bird flew in to feed on the bird-table, allowing me this record-photo, taken through double-glazing in the gloomy last light of the day. Very many thanks to the owners for kindly allowing access into their home.

 

 

 

November 14th 2008

Yesterday, from the Lincs Bird Club website, I found it was possible to easily drive and park as close as 200 metres to where the Steppe Grey Shrike was being seen. Not having to make the 3/4-of-an-hour walk from the advised parking area at Horse Shoe Point meant that Kay could come with me. So this morning we left early and almost five hours later (having, somewhat astonishingly, seen a Rough-legged Buzzard that flew past us as we drove along the A46 near Newark) we were driving along Keyholme Lane, a long single-carriageway road come track, from the hamlet of Eskham, leading to Grainthorpe Haven on the Lincs coast just south of the Humber Estuary. In no-time-at-all we were watching the shrike, which was amazingly tame and obliging. Not showing any fear of people, it flew towards our small group of birders, perching, and feeding on the ground only a few metres away, and allowing me to take these close-up photos – absolutely brilliant!

 

 

 

 

Afterwards, we dove the short distance to Donna Nook to visit its nationally important breeding Grey Seal colony. We were not disappointed, and for the first time in my life, at a ridiculous close distance, I saw lots of females with their new-born pups among some 400 plus seals. Whilst here, we also saw a 2nd-winter Glaucous Gull with other large gulls, no doubt attracted by the ready supply of fresh placentas following the many births.

 

Grey Seal - female

 

Grey Seal - mother and pup

 

Grey Seal - pup

 

Grey Seal - the same pup, close-up

 

Grey Seal - a very recently born pup

This new-born was still bloody and lying next to the placenta. Worringly, there was no sign of its mother.

 

Grey Seal - another fairly recently born pup

 

Grey Seals - "too close" females threatening each other

 

Grey Seal - adult male

 

Grey Seal - another adult male

Males come ashore waiting for females to become receptive.

This is usually about three weeks after they have given birth.

 

Our final stop was just south of here, along the coast at Saltfleet. Here we saw and photographed this Desert Wheatear, another very obliging bird, that had taken up a short residence on a sandy-beach, backed by dunes. Later, after a short walk along the beach, we came upon a flock of 31 feeding Snow Buntings – super little birds in their black-and-white dress, a fine way of ending a great day out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 12th 2008

 

Whilst our car was being serviced this morning in Yeovil, we enjoyed a cooked breakfast and the morning papers. Afterwards, we drove the short 25 miles to Weymouth, where we were soon watching this 2nd winter male Hooded Merganser on Radipole Lake. According to the BBC’s Autumn Watch programme: it was found, in an exhausted condition, in a drain-culvert at Ferrybridge, Portland in early June, when still in its drab 1st winter plumage. It was apparently taken into care and then released on Radipole Lake. Bill Oddie, of Autumn Watch, reckons that this could mean it is a genuine vagrant from North America. Anyway, whether wild or not, it’s a very smart looking small sawbill, and was great to see. Later in the day we also saw a Great Northern Diver in nearby Portland Harbour.

 

 

 

 

November 11th 2008

Over the past few days, Kay and I looked for Cattle Egrets along Sharpham Lane, just south of Walton Heath. We had some success, seeing 4 on the 8th and 5 on the 9th, together with a flock of 27 Little Egrets. Also, on the 9th, we saw an adult female Marsh Harrier at Meare Heath, one of three present around here. But we had no luck on the 11th at Catcott Lows, arriving just after a Hen Harrier had been seen – the reason for our visit. We did see a small male Peregrine (distantly) and this rather confiding female Stonechat, just in front of the hide.

 

 

 

November 6th 2008

On a misty afternoon with low cloud and very fine drizzle (not much good for taking photos), Kay and I went to Ford Common at Berrow and had reasonable views of the 3 juvenile Whooper Swans that have been present here for the past week, and despite the weather I managed to get these photos.

 

 

 

 

 

November 4th 2008

On the first-day-of-the-month, Kay and I watched 6 Cattle Egrets (my largest count in the County) feeding among cattle with a few Little Egrets at Sharpham. The afternoon of the 2nd found me at Shapwick Heath NNR, where I saw a juvenile Marsh Harrier, a large flock of 120+ Siskins and a smaller flock of c.30 Lesser Redpolls. I also heard the loud trumpeting calls of at least two answering Whooper Swans coming from the middle of Meare Heath, but I never saw them! The only swans I saw were Mute, and this photo shows an aggressive adult cob (male) at full speed ahead, chasing young males out of his territory.

 

 

I also came upon a roving mixed flock of tits, together with a few Goldcrests and a Tree Creeper. Although the daylight was fairly grim and grey, I turned the camera's sensitivity up to a high 1600 ISO setting and took these photos of a Long-tailed Tit and a Goldcrest.

 

 

 

Yesterday, Kay and I had a drive around King’s Sedge Moor and made a short visit to the hide at Greylake RSPB. Apart from good numbers of winter thrushes, an adult Peregrine and the usual Buzzard or three, it was pretty quiet, although using the car as a hide I did manage to grab this photo of a Redwing feeding on hawthorn berries.

 

 

This morning the weather was pretty poor, dull and grey with a very fine drizzle, but the birding was good. I met-up with Ash Warne and we walked the Huntspill Seawall and ‘bog-trotted’ the salt-marsh on the Brue Estuary. We were rewarded with 4 Curlew Sandpipers, 3 Avocets, a Common Sandpiper, a single Jack Snipe – among c.30 Common Snipe, a Merlin and Peregrine, a ‘littoralis’ Scandinavian Rock Pipit and, best of all, a flock of 19 Pink-footed Geese that flew northwards out of the Parret Estuary, perhaps en-route for the WFT goose-grounds at Slimbridge? This goose is a rare winter visitor to the County and this is only the 3rd notable flock since one of 50 in 1947; the others were 16 in 1985 and 30 in 1996.