Orgreave Lakes

With the dissertation coming together I decided to spend my afternoon at Orgreave in the hope of patch-ticking the Greenshank that had been around for a few days. The only downside being that I was badly caught out in a wintry shower, which was extremely unpleasant. That being said though, there were good numbers of birds to enjoy, and it was a nice afternoon out of the library.

I picked up the Greenshank almost straight away but it was distant and the light appauling so it wasnt until on the way back that I got any photos, even then they were not brilliant. I also got to enjoy a pair of Shelduck, which I can't remember seeing before but I'm sure I must have.

-Greenshank

-Shelduck

There were also good numbers of migrants, which felt a little odd in the falling snow. A wheatear foraging in the snow is not something I ever really expected to see. There were also plenty of Hirundines, including a couple of House Martins. They were perching up on the wooden fences, probably to try and stay warm and dry given the conditions.

Not only Hirundines though, as there were plenty of Warbler singing in the trees alongside the river, including Chiff-chaff, Blackcap and Willow Warbler, plus my first Whitethroat of the year, which was not especially showy

-Hirundines

-Whitethroat

But the highlight of the walk was another self-found patch tick in the form of a solitary Raven that flew over going north. The bird was so tatty it took me a while to be sure I'd got it right, although its fairly clear that it is a Raven. I never expected to get one of these on my patch list here.

-Raven

In addition to these goodies there were also plenty of other birds I did not photograph, including the Yellowhammer again, a couple of flyover Yellow Wagtails and a few very nice Little Ringed Plovers. Other waders included Common Sandpiper, Ringed Plover and an abundance of Redshank.

Species List:

Orgreave Lakes: Robin, Willow Warbler, Linnet, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Kestrel, Blackbird, Reed Bunting, Pied Wagtail, Yellowhammer, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Raven, Gadwall, Moorhen, Coot, Great-crested Grebe, Mallard, Canada Goose, Graylag Goose, Lapwing, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Little Ringed Plover, Redshank, Common Sandpiper, Swallow, House Martin, Sand Martin, Wheatear, Black-headed Gull, Whitethroat, Chiff-chaff, Willow Warbler, Shelduck, Greenshank, Common Buzzard,

Audenshaw Reservoir

Even if I wanted to, today was going to be a difficult day to twitch given I had a meeting at 12.00 regarding my dissertation. In the morning I saw the news of a white stork in South Yorkshire and though it would have been difficult, it was doable by public transport, and it was slightly gripping. Anyway, that bird up and left at 10.00, so any thoughts of twitching it were quickly dispelled.

However, another curveball was thrown from the opposite side of Sheffield, where a Kentish Plover had rocked up on a reservoir in Manchester. This was certainly doable and, waiting on news, was a go ahead after my meeting. Problem was, the site description said permit only, and nobody on twitter seemed particularly keen to give out any news of access. 

That was my only concern, so fast forward a couple of hours and I rocked up to the site at half 2, hoping beyond hope that I would find a way in and see the bird. Fortunately I bumped into a birder who pointed me towards a way in; through a hole in the fence. Nice.

Once inside we had a bit of bother tracking down the bird. Initially we could not find anyone watching it, although a leaving birder said it was still present. He gave us directions so thats where we headed, scanning the far bank to pick it out. The other birder did pick it out but it was so far away, on the far side of the reser.

For some reason, nobody seemed to want to go round, and I was reluctant to go in case, although unlikely, flushed it. In the end though I got frustrated with distant views and headed round, to truly incredible views, the bird really seeming to not give a care. It took a good half an hour before I was joined by anyone else, birders continuing to scope it from at least 400m away.

It was a stunning little bird, showing really well. I managed to get some nice record shots at least. If you positioned yourself right, it would walk along the shoreline past you. That being said, it did take numerous attempts before I had positioned myself right, but when I had was the only moment in the afternoon when the sun came out.

-Kentish Plover

Possibly my favourite lifer of the year so far, fighting with Hoopoe for top spot. It was not a species I expected to see this year, and certainly not on a reservoir in Manchester. But stranger things...

Other birds on site were a little sparse. I did get a full house of Plovers with both Ringed and Little Ringed also present alongside the Kentish. Common Sandpipers were also present. The sky was full of hirundines, mainly Swallows and Sand Martins but also a few House Martins which were my first of the year.

-House Martins

I could have maybe stayed longer on site, but the sudden lack of rain had brought out some serious swarms of flies, and after three hours watching the bird it did not seem worth lingering in the unpleasantness that had suddenly erupted. I left the site at 5.00 and headed home. What a twitch that was.

-Swarm

Species List:
Audenshaw Reservoir: Grey Wagtail, Little Ringed Plover, Linnet, Pied Wagtail, Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Swallow, Sand Martin, House Martin, Carrion Crow, Mallard, Mute Swan, Great-crested Grebe, Common Sandpiper, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Black-headed Gull, Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon, Starling

Rother Valley CP

Having seen the forcast for Sunday, heavy rain, and that public transport is also dreadful I had no major intentions for birding today. It was also a friends birthday on the Saturday night, and without any plans I may have drunk a little too much.

Imagine then my horror when I check my phone at 10.00 to see a Bee Eater at Rother Valley CP. I staggered out of bed, raced around sorting stuff out, checked tram times, one in 10 mins, then pegged it all the way down to the tram stop, all while still drunk.

Reports on the bird were few and far between and there had been no report since 9.35 when it had returned following it departing. However, I arrived on site and eventually found the birders to find out that it had not been seen since that report. So here I was, feeling rotten, on a excessively windy day not watching the bird I had come to watch.

There were good numbers of Hirundines though, mainly Swallows but I did pick out my first House Martins of the year which was some bonus. I managed a few photos but the camera had been left on since I last used it and as a result I only risked a couple of record shots.

-House Martin

Granted, I was in no real fit state to enjoy any birding so after a quick check post the negative news I decided it might be worth my while just heading home. Like I said, the wind was very excessive and was blowing the water from the lake all over the path. For the sake of novelty I took a few photos of the Mallards that were grazing by the side of the lake, frequently getting splashed by waves.

-Mallard

So that was that! No bee eater but I did get my first House Martin of the year as consolation. Granted, I did not really look round but I probably now feel the better for it!

Species List:

Rother Valley CP: Swallow, House Martin, Coot, Mute Swan, Graylag Goose, Mallard, Canada Goose, Common Buzzard, Robin, Pied Wagtail, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon,

Spurn NGB Weekend Day 1

The first day of the NGB weekend of Spurn, but without many NGB's. There were 4 of us at Numpties in the morning; Martin, Jonnie, Tim and me. Together we had a good time, clocking an incredible passerine passage. The species of the day was Tree Sparrow, of which there were 2285 birds going south, the second highest ever Spurn count and only 40 off the record. There were also 312 House Sparrows and 701 Skylarks, which were also both notable counts and the best for some time. There were other finches moving too; 84 Chaffinch, 106 Greenfinch, 876 Goldfinch, 5 Siskin, 1047 Linnet, 1347 Meadow Pipit, 91 Rock Pipit, all of which made for an impressive mornings spectacle.

There were other goodies among the birds moving south, including a Jay which came south and then banked and turned round north. The highlight of the moving birds was a Lapland Bunting which Tim picked out. I grabbed a photo in of it as it turned back north and though it is a poor attempt you can clearly make out the fact that it is a Lapland Bunting, a Lifer for me.

-Lapland Bunting

We also had a small flock of Whooper Swans fly over the triangle and down the Humber. They were quite distant but that was my tarts tick for the year gone, which is a relief. They were also the first of the autumn for Spurn, There were other wildfowl going too, including Brent Geese and Pinkfeet as well as a couple of duck species, but these were mainly moving over the triangle and not going south. 

-Whooper Swan

-Pink Footed Geese

There were also good numbers of Hirundines moving. Considering before today I had only seen 3 'October swallows' it was great to see 574 going south, including 80 House Martin, which are the first time I have ever seen the species so late into the year.

-Hirundines-Swallows and House Martin

But there was an undoubted highlight of the morning. As we were all counting at numpties there came Steve's calls from the seawatching hide. His cry was of 'Whale, Whale Whale'. I have never seen a whale so I, along with all the others present turned our eyes straight to the sea. Steve had picked it up quite south but its breaches were irregular and difficult to follow. I only pick it up the once but the view included Spray and the Fin, all that you could realistically hope for. That was fantastic, made all the better for the fact that it was so unexpected. Steve said he had spent 2500 hours watching the sea since his last whale, so to be there for this was a privilege. There were birders all along the Spurn coast that had heard the message, and they followed its progress as it moved up north. As to its identity, we remain unsure. Based on the spray it may have been a humpback,but Minkie seems to be the most common thoughts about it based on peoples previous experiences with the species, and that is what most people have put it down as.

That was early morning so left me buzzing for the rest of the day. By early afternoon the passage had dried up so I headed over to Canal Scrape to see if there was anything about on there. There was not a lot, in fact the only bird was Long-John Silver the redshank. who is somehow still alive despite having only half of one of its legs. Considering he was there when I left my job back in September it has done remarkably well for itself. 

Since it was so quiet I went back for an afternoon kip. Turns out a woodcock was caught at kew but I did not hear about it, which was a big blow. The evening was spent back up at Numpties seeing what was moving. There was much less than the morning counts, the highlight being a few Whooper Swans that came down and landed on the sea, and a few large Skeins of Pink-footed Geese with a single Graylag in tow.

-Whooper Swans

-Pink Footed Geese

In the pub later on I met some more NGBs, which was great, a chance to get together with other birders my own age. It had been a good start to the weekend, with a bird lifer and a Whale, can you ask for much more.

Species List:

Vis-Migging: Siskin, Merlin, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Brent Goose, Teal, House Martin, Swallow, Jay, Pink-Footed Goose, Rock Pipit, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Mallard, Reed Bunting, Rook, Skylark, Magpie, Woodpigeon, Linnet, Feral Pigeon, Goldfinch, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Greenfinch, Greater Black-Backed Gull, Tree Sparrow, Lapland Bunting, House Sparrow, Whooper Swan, Little Egret, Cormorant, Knot, Whimbrel, Minke Whale, 

Vis-Migging: Red-Throated Diver, Swallow, Meadow Pipit, House Martin, Whooper Swan, Pink-Footed Goose, Kestrel, Little Egret, Knot, Curlew, Pintail, Brent Goose,

Orgreave Lakes

I got back to the flat at 3 that this afternoon, maybe intending to take the afternoon lightly, work on my essay kind of thing. When I checked birdguides every single site I have ever visited while at uni had seen arctic terns go through, including Orgreave. Their terns were at 7.00 in the morning though. However since I had time I decided to go for it, just in case.

They were not there. The highlights for my trip were Ringed Plover on the near shoreline which was lovely to see, but the real highlight was the sheer number of hirundines that were all over the lake, of all 3 species. Whats more is that they were coming very close, so I got incredible views.

-Ringed Plover

-Hirundines

I would like to say they were ample compensation for missing out on the terns but it did not feel like that at the time. I seemed to be destined to miss out on this influx...

Species List:

Orgreave Lakes: Linnet, Skylark, Woodpigeon, Sand Martin, House Martin, Swallow, Canada Goose, Graylag Goose, Mallard, Jay, Great Crested Grebe, Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Wheatear, Gadwall, Pied Wagtail, Coot, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Black-Headed Gull, Tufted Duck, Meadow Pipit, Carrion Crow, Mute Swan,

Orgreave Lakes

I decided that after my lecture today I would go to Orgreave Lakes to see what all the fuss was about. Orgreave, for anyone who does not know won the inland patchwork challenge last year and has been described as one of the best new nature reserves, though it is in fact a development site, so I dunno how long its going to remain  like this.

Its convenient to get to, only one 40 min bus journey and then your there, hence why I had enough time after lectures. The weather was fluctuating but for the whole time I was there it held out and was a rather nice day. As soon as I arrived I spotted my first year-tick of the day-Skylark, singing up very high, hence it took a few moments to locate but I managed it.

I followed the path round the two lakes and found more and more skylarks and meadow pipits too, all in good numbers. The real birds I wanted to see were ringed plover and so I was checking all the shorelines. There were Cormorants, mallards, gulls, coots, moorhens, Canada geese and mute swans, as well as Gadwall. I made my way round to the second lake following a small group of Mipits and managed to track down some skylarks that were less flighty

-Skylark

The second lake was bigger but still had a good variety of wildfowl on offer, including tufted duck and goosander. There was quite a big goosander flock and they drifted in quite close so I was able to get a record shot.

-Goosander

I followed the path but it lingered nearer the river now rather than the ponds, there was less here, but still stuff to be had. The highlight was a pair of teal, as well as gadwall and mallards.

I reached the point at which the lakes stopped but the site carried on, and as I had never been before I decided to carry on going up the river. I did not get very far, but on that bit of the walk I spotted lapwings on the far fields and there were a lot off bumble-bees next to the path. But the highlight of this part of the walk as that 3 hirundines flew over me. They were not swallows and seemed quite dark so I reckon house martin, though only sand martins were recorded from the site today. Either way its my first Hirundines of the year so that was very exciting.

I then turned back and continued walking around the lakes. I continued to scout the shores and eventually got lucky when I spotted a small brown bird feeding on the water edge. I got closer and was please to find that it was a ringed plover, no less than the bird I had wanted. However, there was a twist in the tail because as I approached I began to realise that this was not actually a ringed plover but a little ringed plover, a species I am very unfamiliar with. I only realised what it was a few mins before it took off. They had not been recorded at the site yet this year, so I wondered if I was the one that had found the first, but when I got home I found that somebody had been earlier and found them first. I say them because they spotted 2, whereas I only found the one.

-Little Ringed Plover

I continued on the way round and added to my list oystercatcher, wigeon and actual ringed plover. I found a pair of ringed plovers on the far side of the first lake, so that was nice, actually finding the birds I had wanted to see. This time there was no doubt, the orange on the bill was unmistakable through the bins. They were quite flighty and there was a dog running around so I was unable to get particularly close. But either way I managed a record shot.

-Ringed Plover

I decided to wander back so that I was not late for football, and I had seen the site and wandered round. I was well impressed, even as I was leaving I spotted another teal on the river which was quite close, or at least close enough for me to get a record shot.

-Common Teal

I was almost out when I decided to check out a marshy area for jack snipe. I found none but did flush a female reed  bunting which was nice, another species for the day. But that was not the highlight, as I also found my first identifiable butterfly of the year; small tortoiseshell. I realise now though that I had the wrong lens on as I had been photographing birds, and so was unable to get a great shot of it, either way I still managed a shot to record this, my second butterfly of the year.

-Small Tortoiseshell

And that was that. I was pretty impressed with the site and will defiantly be coming back multiple times due to the ease of getting there. And I had recorded 4 year ticks for the day, bringing me to the bumper score of 88!

Bolton Abbey

We decided to go to Bolton Abbey today since it was a nice day, though very humid. There were quite a few insects about and that was why we saw lots of swallows and house martins hunting on the river as soon as we reached it. Some must have also been drinking from it given how much water they were throwing up, either that or their aim was poor.

-Swallow

As we walked along the riverside we flushed a brown hawker dragonfly. It landed and I tried to track it down but flushed it again and it moved off so I was unable to get a photo

In my pursuit though I did find a couple of small coppers, which I would have thought were quite late. They were very approachable and I was able to get some good photos of them.

-Small copper

Up by the bridge we found a good number of wagtails hunting on the shingle beach, both pied and grey, as well as one dipper perched on the far side of the river.

-Grey Wagtail

We made it to the cafe without anything else particularly exciting. At the cafe there were the usual Mallards and feral pigeons about. The feral pigeons were very bold and they would sit on the tables picking up crumbs once the people had left their trays.

-Feral Pigeon

Walking back was just as unevetful until we reached the bridge again. Here we found an obviously very sick, but very large and colourful caterpillar on the path. We moved it off the path and I took some photos for i.d. It appears to have some kind of fungal growth on its back end, but I have no idea what it is.

-Caterpillar

A little further down the river we found three mandarins sheltering under a tree on the far side of the river. There was also a female goosander hunting in the river. It was quite bold too, not flying away at the first sight of us, and happily continued fishing.

-Goosander

And so we end where we began, with a large number of swallows and martins hunting the river. There seemed to be more on the way back, and the numbers were quite something.

-House Martins

-Hirundines

And so we headed back to the car, the only other thing of note was a speckled wood butterfly which we found flying along the path

that afternoon

driving through doncaster after our visit to our freinds near sheffeild. There was a sign-post for an air museaum so we went there for my brother. There was a lake nearby, surrounded by big name brands. I forget the name but It might have been something like the quayside or the lake-complex but whatever it was, thats where I went to see what would happen. As it so happened amongst the numbers of mallards and canada geese there were a number of tufted ducks. Then looking up I got my first hirundines of the year, house martins flying high above the lake. A walk into the nearby birch woodlands and I heard a skylark singing which is unusual considering we were right next to doncaster, in the middle of an out of town shopping estate. The weather was a bit gloomy but there were still lot of insects around like peocock butterflys and acurious bright red bee with a bright yellow bum! overall and exciting day, but it really needed to camera!!

dumfreis and galloway, holiday day 7, part 1

a majestic gannet flock

a juvenile stonechat hiding in the bush

a cmmon blue

a smile of kittywakes

a mipit

went back to the mull off galloway, what a difference a few days can make. the calm still sea was perfect and all the butterflys and songbirds were out. :

kittywakes-lots

black guillemots

common guillemots

1 kestrel

stonechats

wheatear

linnets

mipits

shags

house martin

feral pigeons

rock pipits