Spurn Bird Observatory

  My intention had been to spend the bank holiday weekend at Spurn as a last goodbye before I return to Brazil, but with work completed I decided to extend my visit, so made the trip across on the Wednesday. This worked out rather nicely in the end, as a Death’s Head Hawkmoth had been trapped in Easington overnight and was set to be shown at lunchtime. After a quick walk around Soil Hill I made my way over in plenty of time to see the moth, the largest in the UK. Sadly due to the number of people present we could not antagonise it and so did not hear its characteristic ‘squeak’, but still awesome to see this rare migrant none the less.

  Once the moth had been seen I made my way to Beacon Lane to catch up with the Greenish Warbler that had been around for a few days. Unfortunately the wind was blowing right into the dell where the bird was, and it had become extremely elusive, but after an hour of looking I finally got some brief glimpses where it perched out nicely before it plunged back into the thicket. The photos I managed to get were very dark but helpfully all the features are on full display. This is a British tick for me, and the first time I have photographed this species. Subsequently I waited an additional half an hour before deciding it was a waste of time and went back for some lunch.

  These were the two highlights of the week, largely in part to the weather, which was a brisk northerly the whole time I was present. Normally this would mean good potential for seabirds but alas the overall passage on the sea was quite muted. There were a few Sooty Shearwaters which are always smart, as well as a couple of Arctic Skuas. Ringing was also hampered by the weather, but a Barred Warbler that we caught certainly livened things up. Tree Sparrows and Willow Warblers made up the bulk of the numbers, with a scattering of Sedge and Reed Warblers completing the migrant contingent. One afternoon we went out to capture Mute Swan chicks, which was a lot of fun although due to complications with the rings we only ringed half of the birds we caught.

  There were a few none birds as well. It was good to see my second ever Spurn Common Seal on the Humber, although it was as difficult to photograph as the last one which was in the surf off the breach. Dragonflies were thin on the ground but a Ruddy Darter in Church Field was nice. Despite the cool weather it was good to see a Barred Grass Snake out on Beacon Lane whilst I was waiting for the Greenish Warbler. 

-Death's Head Hawkmoth

-Greenish Warbler

-Barred Warbler

-Barred Grass Snake

-Common Seal

Species List:
Spurn Bird Observatory: Greylag Goose, Common Shelduck, Eurasian Wigeon, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Eurasian Collared Dove, Common  Moorhen, Common Ringed Plover, Eurasian Whimbrel, Eurasian Curlew, Ruddy Turnstone, Dunlin, Common Snipe, Common Redshank, Arctic Skua, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, Sooty Shearwater, Northern Gannet, Little Egret, Western Marsh Harrier, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Merlin, Eurasian Hobby, Eurasian Magpie, Carrion Crow, Great Tit, Eurasian Reed Warbler, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Common House Martin, Willow Warbler, Greenish Warbler, Garden Warbler, Barred Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Common Whitethroat, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Common Blackbird, European Robin, European Pied Flycatcher, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Western Yellow Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit, Common Linnet, European Goldfinch, Common Seal, Grey Seal, Brown Hare, Roe Deer, Red Fox, Barred Grass Snake, Common Blue-tailed Damselfly, Emperor Dragonfly, Migrant Hawker, Common Darter, Ruddy Darter,

Spurn Week 13

Monday 05th September

After yesterday’s mental day on the sea I was keen to get down to the Seawatching hut in the hope of a corys or something. Sadly the best of it obviously went by yesterday. A few Manx Shearwaters, Fulmars and Arctic Skuas all went past but not in the numbers seen yesterday.

Walking round the triangle produced a few goodies. Snipe and Green Sandpiper were probably the best of it, except for 8 Jackdaw which U-turned. Not a common species here at all. Once the Seawatching died down we spent the afternoon just doing odd jobs, namely cleaning out the caravan. That then turned into demolishing the old decrepit woodshed next to it, but that meant spending time around the Obs, which produced a nice Obs tick in the form of a Corn Bunting.

Sightings List:

Seawatching: Manx Shearwater, Fulmar, Red-throated Diver, Gannet, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, Black-headed Gull, Common Tern, Sandwich Tern,

Triangle: Wigeon, Gadwall, Snipe, Green Sandpiper, Reed Warbler, Jackdaw, Willow Warbler, Carrion Crow, Robin, Dunnock, Corn Bunting,

Tuesday 06th September 

Once more I was on Seawatching by 7. This was the first day with any real duck movement, as was apparent as soon as I arrived at the hide. Teal were moving past in large flocks all morning, and among them there were a few mixed flocks of other ducks. A nice gathering of species was accumulated over the morning, including a single Pochard, 9 Pintail (8 in a single flock) a Shoveler and a handful of Wigeon. The Teal total for the day clocked out at just short of 1000. A Pale-bellied Brent Goose also flew south, just to add to the variety.

-Mixed Duck flock (Pintail, Wigeon, Shoveler, Teal)

-Teal

In the afternoon the sun got especially warm, so I decided to go for a nap. As a result I ended up napping for over 3 hours. We tried ringing Terns in the evening but once again failed. Saw possibly the most spectacular shooting star I’ve seen to date, but that was about it due to a technical fault with the megaphone.

Species List:

Seawatching: Common Teal, Grey Wagtail, Pochard, Shoveler, Pintail, Wigeon, Arctic Skua, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Herring Gull, Common Gull, Gannet, Great Black-backed Gull, Meadow Pipit, Swallow, House Martin, 

Wednesday 07th September

This morning allowed me the luxury of not going birding but instead waiting for the gas men to arrive to fit some new pipework at the obs. However, fortunately they arrived fairly early, allowing us to be down at Seawatching by 8. Birds on the sea were limited, although I did miss a balearic shearwater whilst waiting for the gas men.

As a result I ended up heading down to the new narrows in order to watch the spectacular movement of Swallows, Martins and Meadow Pipits. AH was doing most of the clicking, whilst JF did House Martins. I was left at a loss and spent my time picking things out that were none of the above species. Highlights included a Black-throated Diver going north and a Black Tern flying along the side of the Humber. A Curlew Sandpiper flew past in a flock of Dunlin and a handful of Manx Shearwaters flew past. JF also got me a Spurn tick in the form of a Common Seal that swam south close in shore. A rare occurrence here!

-Common Seal

Late morning was supposed to be when we were having a haircut. It was at precisely the moment we were meant to be leaving that the anticipated Great White Egret which had flown south from Hornsea during the morning arrived at the ponds. We were fortunate that the bird was viewable from the road and we were able to stop off on our way up. The views were somewhat distant but there was no bother at all telling what it was.

-Great-white Egret

It might seem sad that we had to leave the Egret for a haircut up in Easington, but in the garden of the house where we were at I got myself another Spurn tick. A long expected Spurn tick at that; a Coal Tit! It flitted around for a little bit before it dropped into the conifer and we lost it. Still, a long awaited Spurn tick finally bites the dust.

In the afternoon I headed off round Beacon Lane and then back down to Seawatching. A Great-spotted Woodpecker was a nice addition to the day list, as were 7 Whinchat along the fence line. At Sea a few more Manx Shearwater were moving, as were a handful of Little Gull. A Merlin flew over the Seawatching hide hunting the now reduced flow of Hirundines going south.

Sightings List:

Seawatching/Vis-migging: Black Tern, Meadow Pipit, Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Swallow, House Martin, Sand Martin, Wheatear, Black-throated Diver, Red-throated Diver, Manx Shearwater, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Sanderling, Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot, Oystercatcher, Common Scoter, Common Teal, Little Gull, Kittiwake, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Great-white Egret, Linnet,

Triangle: Great-spotted Woodpecker, Coal Tit, Whinchat, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Wheatear, Redshank, Mallard, Little Egret, Black-headed Gull, House Sparrow, Dunnock, Robin, Tree Sparrow,

Thursday 8th September
Morning was naturally spent down at Numpties, initially watching the sea but then it became more viz-migging. Its worth noting that neither were particularly successful. A Manx Shearwater on the Humber was probably the best of it, giving pretty fine views.
The rest of the day was largely spent sorting out bits and pieces for the Migration festival. I did spend a bit of time hunting for the apparent diamond dove around the caravan site, but again unsuccessfully...


Sightings List:
Numtpies: Meadow Pipit, Yellow Wagtail, Manx Shearwater, Teal, Gannet, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, Swallow, House Martin, Black-headed Gull, Great Tit,

Friday 9th September
The start of the 4th annual Migfest meant only one thing: Parking duty. Much as I love talking to people as they come in, seeing old friends and chatting to new people, I would obviously rather be out birding. In the end though, I did not get much done at all.
The morning had started with promise, a corncrake dropped into churchfield, but our attempts to refind it proved unsuccessful. By the time we had wrapped that up we were called upon to show people the way to park, and so the days birding was done.

Saturday 10th September
The first full day of Migfest is probably the last day of the year that we want to rain. Sadly though, it decided to rain all day. ALL DAY!!! It became apparent early morning that we might struggle for something for the people to do, but that was not the case. People still took up the walks being given out.
Then the big one broke (In Spurn terms anyway). I was checking the book shops with Jonnie when the radio crackled into life. I barely heard the message but I could have sworn it said Kentish Plover. I excalimed this to Jonnie who said that was not what he had heard. I ran round to the next bay where there were more birders. I asked them what they heard, exclaiming what I thought I had heard. Nobody had heard it, and given that nobody was running I presumed I had been wrong. A couple of radio messages filtered through about lifts, so we decided to ask what the species had been. After about 5 minutes of trying we finally got a response that it was indeed a Kentish Plover. We raced to Sammies where it had been but as we arrived the bird apparently flew. Nobody saw it leave but we were not able to see it and it did not reappear.
We searched but it was assumed to be lost, the best hope being that the tide might push it back in. I headed down to the Warren where I was supposed to be leading a wader identification session. Whilst here a young birder told me that the Kentish had apprently relocated to Wetlands. I radioed this and it was very quickly confirmed. Que a mad dash up to Wetlands. I ran up to long bank where there was already a sizeable crowd and got the scope on it. Got it.
Just in time, as the radio buzzed up asking who was doing the wader watch that I supposed to be doing. I ran back to grab a lift and in the end I was only 2 minutes late, although I had to work hard to keep it that minimal, including leaving my scope up at the plover.
Once the session was over I headed back up to Long Bank with a few of the guys that had been on my wader watch. The Plover was still there and reunited with my scope I was finally able to settle on the bird. After a while we headed round to the hide where it showed incredibly well right in front of the hide. Fantastic, the first Spurn record since 2000! Remarkably the bird was too close to digiscope, and with all my optics fogged from the rain I did struggle to get a photo

-Kentish Plover

-Kentish Plover (Matt Hobbs)

In all the excitement it would be easy to forget other species that were about. A juvenile Little Stint on Beacon Ponds was a nice addition to the day list, although there have been birds on Holderness field for some time. A third calendar year gull landed on wetlands which has gone down as a Caspian Gull. It certainly looks like one, although I have concerns about the shape of the forehead, which seems a little steep. Sadly at this age there is nothing diagnostic on them. The consensus is that it is indeed a Caspian Gull though, and I agree despite my concerns.

-Caspian Gull (Matt Hobbs)

In the afternoon I ended up doing a walk in Easington, although I have never birded there before. It was useful to learn some of the locations but we saw precious little. A flock of Long-tailed tits was probably the highlight, an usual species south of Easington for the Spurn area.

By late afternoon people had all but had enough on the rain. I was placed on Parking duty again, probably so an eye was always kept on me to make sure I did not run away from my duties again. 

Species List

Warren: Bar-tailed Godwit, Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, Knot, Redshank. Dunlin, Sanderling, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Dunnock, Swallow, House Martin, Yellow Wagtail, Turnstone,

Kilnsea Wetlands: Kentish Plover, Dunlin, Little Stint, Ringed Plover, Knot, Greenshank, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Common Gull, Black-headed Gull, Caspian Gull, Curlew Sandpiper, 

Easington: Whinchat, Meadow Pipit, Willow Warbler, Robin, Wren, Sedge Warbler, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Long-tailed Tit, House Sparrow, 

Sunday 11th September

After yesterdays downpour all day it was a much improved day today, bright and sunny. The change of wind direction had brought a massive meadow pipit passage. Everyone seemed to have gone down there though, so I decided to head up to the Wetlands. Here there was hardly anyone about, leaving the hide largely empty. The plover was not seen again, but there was a nice Wood Sandpiper right in front of the hide which was extremely obliging for photos.

-Wood Sandpiper

The rest of the day was spent doing off bits for the festival including, you guessed it, car parking duty. It was not so bad in clear conditions and I was treated to flyby Peregrine and an impressive flock of Golden Plover.

As we were wrapping up the bits and pieces in the late afternoon I also got a Spurn Tick. We had just left Canal Scrape Car Park when the radio buzzed that a Water Rail was showing. We stopped in to have a quick look but I had no camera as we had been picking up festival bits. Still, its nice to see one showing out in the open like that.

Species List:

Kilnsea Wetlands: Wigeon, Shoveler, Willow Warbler, Ruff, Wood Sandpiper, Mute Swan, Gadwall, Mallard, Teal, Yellow Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Mediterranean Gull, Greylag Goose, Woodpigeon, Dunlin, 

scotland holiday-day 6

a nice cool sunny day. As a result we decided to canoe round to a nearby bay to do some swimming and other stuff. This however means that I could not take the camera and as a direct result of this I took no photos today. still That doesn't mean I saw anything anyway, which to be fair I didn't. The bay we went to is near to the seal bay so I saw some of those and ravens live on the cliffs behind the bay so I saw some of them and I seem to recall 2 common sandpipers flying past so it wasn't a total loss. Snorkling produced very little of any interest. I spotted about 3 corkwing wrasse but besides that there was nothing. A thoroughly disappointing day. When we arrived back at the campsite we found a sandwhich tern settling on one of the dyke's but that was ultimately the highlight of the day!

scotland-day 4

a very wet and depressing fourth day. For lack of anything better we decided to go to Lamlash, the second biggest town on the island which is not far from the campsite. The rain, it think, only got heavier the closer to the town we got. We walked along the seafront in rain but there was very little to see. a couple of grey herons and a ringed plover where all that there was to view really and they were probably as depressed as we were by the rotten weather.

after we had done here we were at a loss as to what to do. we decided to go for a look at the marine no-take zone at Lamlash to see what was there. By this time the weather looked as though it was clearing up, which is always a nice sign. when we arrived at the car-park there we had lunch and whilst we ate my dad spotted some shapes moving out in the water. (although it was cold and wet, there was no wind and so the sea was dead flat). They identified them as otters and so we all rushed out of the car to go and see more otters.

When we arrived at a suitable otter-viewing bit of the Beach we stopped. I decided to go for a little look in a large rock pool that was nearby. To be frank it was more of a sand pool with rocks in it but still. My mum had just got me a pair of wellies and I was eager to make use of them. As I waded through the pool I found things bolting away in all direction. In a flash, however, they were gone. One of them was a bit slower than the rest and I managed to get quite close to it. It was easily recognizable as a flatfish but some photos would help me identify it later.

unfortunately getting the shot right was hard. In order to do this you need immaculately calm water and at the moment the rain drops were making this quite a feat. I decided to stand in front of the fish and so protect that area of water from the rain. To my surprise it worked and I was able to take some photos. Normally rock pool flatfish are dabs but this one has Orange spots on its back which are a feature only of plaice. so, that's a tick for me. There was also a non-descript blenny in the pool which I took a photo of. Now that's better than otters in my opinion.

as the weather was clearing up we decided to take a walk along the side of the no-take zone. the habitat is a gorse scrub soil hill type of habitat. and unsurprisingly the birds were no different with mipit, wheatear rock pipit and linnet. also I found my first willow warbler of the Holiday )although it was certainly not the last)

on the shore around here there was common sandpiper and oystercatcher. as well as hooded crow plus gannet and cormorant. It was a good afternoon and by the time we were finished the weather was really picking up. We decided to go home over the moors which would take longer but be a much better drive. On the way back we found a buzzard sat on the side of the road. unfortunately we didn't stop in time for me to get a really go photo but still managed to get one which was alright.

Back at the campsite, the bird feeder that we put up was heaving, with sparrows. They are the only normal garden birds frequently seen on the island although there is a family of greenfinches near to where we were staying (but if your an egg-thief too late, they all ready fledged!). never-the-less the sparrows offered me a great photo opportunity and I took ti although to be fair I only did take one photo of them on this occasion.

In the evening my dad said that we should go for a walk along the side of the village and onto the adjacent beach. the walk was not in vain. we managed to see ravens and of course some spectacular scenery coming from the cliffs. as for the ravens I couldn't really take any photos because the light was too poor and the birds too far away.

My dad said that in one of the bays there was a lot of seals. He was right of course and I was thrilled to see so many. Two of them were really close and they were the biggest there. I think that all of these are females but I am unsure of how to tell them apart so I cant be sure.

As well as the seals I found this caterpillar. It is not a cinnabar moth, although it looks similar but I don't have a book with it in and so it will remain caterpillar X!

And the last thing we saw on our walk was the so-called key hole of Arran which I suppose is a fair enough name although it looks nothing like a keyhole.

Scotland-Day 3

And so day 3 begins, I decided to go for a morning walk along the beach to see what I could see. No sooner had I walked down to the shore did one of the shoreline campers point to something out at sea. I failed to hear what he said but when I saw where he was looking it became clear! otters, a long way out but they were there. 2 of them swimming out by one of the dykes. A truly awesome site to see. I ran back to tell my dad who seemed reluctant to get up but still managed it.
The otters did do very little during their swim and as a result we left after about half an hour of spec watching to continue along the beach. No sooner had we set off did something else caught my eye. A large flock of summer plumage dunlins was weaving its way along the shore in search of sandhoppers.
For wading birds these dunlins were quite bold, but as I say, for wading birds, which meant they still flew off whilst I was about 5m away.

By the time I had finished with the dunlins the otters had made their way to one of the dyke's and got out. Conveniently it was the dyke right in front of us they chose although they did not stay there for long. still it gave me enough time to get a reasonable record shot of the otter. There I have now got proof, not specks!

The walk back along the road produced some hooded crows. They were quite bold as well which allowed me to take the record shot that I needed. Unlike yesterdays, these particular crows were much bolder.

also on the way back spotted 3 hares in the Field opposite from the campsite, which was always nice. My mum wanted to see the otters when we told her, when we got back and so no sooner had we got in than we went out again to see the otters. I was in luck. The dyke they had sat on before was now having them sit on it again. I managed to sneak further up the dyke until I could get the photos I wanted. By this time there were 3 otters and it was clear that they were a mum and 2 cubs which is a usual set up for otters.

We lingered around until they ahd gone which was about an hour. My brother did not wake up within that time and as a result he failed to see them. Still, that is the price for sleeping in! As we walked back along the beach I spotted some familiar faces along the shore. It was the dunlin flock. I silently crept up to them again to try and take more photos and I managed it. I could touch them easily without having to stretch my arm I amanged to get that close. They wree such delightful characters and just as bold as chaffinches, not waders.

This offered me a great oppertunity to take dunlin record photos. it is always nice to get a great record shot and not some blurred mess, just like the trumpeter finch. Seeing it was one thing but it came so close that I manged to get some decent pictures of it and not just a blurred mess.

My family decided that, since the sun was out, that they would spend the day at the campsite snorkeling and canoeing. That's great but I hate canoeing. they decided that that's what they would do first and so I decided to stay at the campsite and view the local wild creatures. The otters where still in the area and a seal was perched on a rock nearby. As the otters got closer It allowed me to take a photo of two semi-marine animals together, which i am quite proud of.

I stayed within that area to try and get close to the seals. Just as my parents were pushing out their canoe, however I heard a strange noise. Its easily identifiable when you hear it but still,the noise its self was so unique and indescribable. I spotted them, 2, flying over the sea. I whipped out my camera and took a snap. One came out well but still not well enough for me to put my finger on the species. The photo I took is below and it is clear to see that this animal was a loon of some description. sadly however there is no red or black or green present on the animals neck and so I can not tell you what type of loon it is. judging by the types that live in the area I think its fair to say that it is probably a red throated but who can tell?

Not much further up the beach I manged to catch site of another wader, my fourth species of the holiday, a redshank. It too was quite bold and it allowed me to get the best redshank shot that I have ever got.

Then I returned to the seal sat on the rock to try and get some more photos of seals. I think that these are common seals because they lack the "roman nose" featured with grey seals. There was number of other seals sat behind this seal, but they were too far away to make out and so I left it like that.

When my family returned from their canoe voyage they went back into the campsite. I followed until I managed to spot this even better photo opportunity on the campsite. look at him, playing with an innocent piece of bread. I suppose that the crows will know that this area is home to a lot of scratty tourists who just throw out their rubbish and as a result the birds come down regularly to pick off the scraps.

After this we went snorkling. I can positively say that this is the coldest sea I have ever been in. The only animals I recall being in it were the seals and the only way I could see them was by poking my head out of the water. Still it made for an end to an exciting day.

In the evening the sky turned blood red, which was reflected off the light house creating this beautiful scenic image I have included here.