Spurn Week 21

Spurn 07.11.2016

With northerlies still the main wind on the agenda I decided to finally spend some time at the Seawatching hide. In the hour that I spent though, I missed basically everything that went past. The only time I got were four Snow Buntings flying north along the cliff top, and a few commoner seabirds.

I spent the most part of the day around the obs, trying to catch up on the odd jobs that had accumulated during October when I was too busy birding to be working. I did make one rush out of the garden when the Pallid Harrier from the day before was picked up flying south already at the Warren. We drove down in time to see it circling high above the breach, before seeing it slowly fly down the peninsula and then off the point towards Lincolnshire. It was always distant and against the light, so there was very little I picked up on it unfortunately, It’s just a good thing I connected with it well yesterday.

In the evening when we had all but wrapped up with work I went out again to have a look at a Water Rail that had been trapped in the Churchfield. It was obviously getting gloomy by this point which made taking photos a struggle, but it was a fantastic species to see in the hand, a cracking little bird. It was fairly placid in the hand, which was somewhat unexpected, I had thought it would be kicking and screaming!

-Water Rail

Species List:

Triangle: Wigeon, Pallid Harrier, Rock Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Mallard, Teal, Skylark, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Moorhen, Water Rail, Waxwing,

Spurn 08.11.2016

Again we spent all day working in the garden. We burned all the unusable wood from the shed, which helped take the edge off the first frost of the autumn. The only time I left the garden was for a grey phalarope but sadly it cleared off before I connected with it. However, dragging me away from the garden did bring me to a flock of four Waxwings sat in a tree just down the road, which looked absolutely stunning to say the least.

Species List:

Spurn Bird Observatory: Waxwing, Grey Wagtail, Greylag Goose, Robin, Fieldfare, Blackbird, Redwing, Goldcrest, Brent Goose, Mute Swan,

Spurn 09.11.2016

A bit of wasted day, but given it rained all day perhaps I have an excuse. Work started on the shed again, but the cold and persistent rain soon put pay to that idea. In the end, the day ended on something of a damp squib.

Spurn 10.11.2016

The ongoing shed project is doing a good job of keeping us busy. However, good progress was made and it looks like it will be wrapped up in the next few days freeing up more time for birding and other odd jobs

However I did get out birding a little bit today, namely a long overdue look for the Richards Pipit at long bank. Given its now in its fourth day present and it’s a lifer I should have probably gone earlier, but just chose not to. However, I finally cracked today and made my way up. It was only a short while in the area it was frequenting before I heard the diagnostic call, alerting me to the bird incoming. However, I was looking directly into the sun and it took a few heart stopping moments before I was able to connect the bird to the call. The bird’s silhouette was everything I had imagined it to be against the sun, looking more like wagtail than any species of pipit I have previously seen.

The bird landed in the field not too far in front of me. I dropped my bag to try and get the camera, but the next thing I knew was the bird was calling from the next field south. It took some time before it returned, following exactly the same pattern as before. This time I had my camera and eventually managed to grab some record shots. Sadly though, when it landed it did exactly the same as before, leaving after only a few seconds. In all I managed to get one acceptable photo of the bird…

-Richards Pipit

Species List:

Long Bank Marsh: Richards Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Starling, Skylark, Fieldfare, Redwing, Blackbird, Peregrine, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Wigeon, Mallard, Mute Swan, Knot, Grey Plover, Dunlin,

Spurn 11.11.2016

We spent the day burning off the excess wood from the garden livestock shed that we were stripping down. I did go out birding a bit, mainly round the triangle, but there was not much to see. A bit of viz-mig early morning soon died off leaving us only with what there was already present. A few Waxwings were undoubtedly the best of it, but even they were only flyovers as they headed north out of the area.

Species List:

Triangle: Waxwing, Blackbird, Redwing, Fieldfare, Shelduck, Mallard, Wigeon, Teal, Little Grebe, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, Chaffinch, Brent Goose, Meadow Pipit, Skylark,

Spurn 12.11.2016

Today was something of a write off given that it rained all day, not letting up until the evening. I decided to venture out into the downpour once, which was during mid-late morning in the hope of something dropping in. I made my way up round Kilnsea Wetlands and Beacon Ponds. The overall number of birds was quite low, with wildfowl moving about in the rain, the best I could manage for Wigeon was just over 150, but I did not count Holderness Field due as a result of a lack of effort on my behalf.

The undoubted highlight was a Black-throated Diver that flew in over the ponds before getting lost in the mist. When I first picked it up I thought it might be grebe, but when I saw clearly that it was a diver I made a move to photograph it, just putting it down as a red-throat. It was only when I came to do log that I thought to have another look, which is when my suspicions were aroused. Consulting with other birders the consensus was unanimous that it was indeed a Black-throated Diver.

-Black-throated Diver

Species List:

Kilnsea Wetlands & Beacon Ponds: Little Grebe, Black-throated Diver, Mallard, Wigeon, Teal, Mute Swan, Black-headed Gull, Reed Bunting, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull,

Spurn 13.11.2016

The weather was much improved on yesterday’s poor excuse and as a result I actually did get outside to do some proper birding. There was tree planting planned for the morning so as a result I headed up to Kilnsea Wetlands first thing. The numbers of birds was well down, but there were a few nice bits and pieces, namely a Brambling on the fence line and a Goldeneye female on the wetlands themselves.

Tree planting was done by lunchtime, being out and about at Spurn even whilst busy still brought out some good birds, including a Waxwing that flew over us whilst planting the trees. In the afternoon I went for a walk round the triangle, but sadly that was extremely unproductive and there was nothing of any particular note. A Merlin flying distantly down the Humber was probably the best of it, but it was so distant it hardly warrants a mention.

Species List:

Kilnsea Wetlands: Goldeneye, Starling, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Brambling, Reed Bunting, Wigeon, Mallard, Mute Swan, Teal, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow,

Triangle: Shelduck, Redshank, Knot, Dunlin, Turnstone, Curlew, Blackbird, Redwing, Robin, Dunnock, Reed Bunting, Waxwing, Great Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Mallard, Mute Swan, Little Egret, 

Spurn Week 20

Spurn 31.10.2016

Another day largely built upon westerly winds. The strength of the wind had dropped off markedly, but there did seem to be a large number of thrushes in, with Blackbirds lining the road and fieldfares in most of the bushes. I decided once again to head down the point, but the trip was punctuated by other birds. It started fairly poorly, when I returned at the breach to have a look a couple of Twite that had been caught at the Warren.

-Twite

Once down the point I struggled to concentrate as not long after I arrived at Chalk Bank, news broke through that a shrike sp. had been seen in Canal Hedge, but it had only been seen briefly. I initially stalled in the area so I could race back if I needed to, but when no more news was received I decided to continue down the point. At the lighthouse I stumble across 5 Snow Buntings, including a bird that appears to be an Icelandic individual based on how brown it is.

-Snow Bunting

Not long after this the radio buzzed again regarding the shrike, suggesting that it ‘looked interesting’ but nothing more would be said. I made a call to head back to make sure I was near if anything was going to become of it. I was just on the far side of the breach when the Paul French announced that he had seen it clearly, and thought it looked like a Brown Shrike. Panic set it and I fair paced it back to the hedge.

The Shrike proved difficult at first, showing clearly but not for long at all. However, with only Spurn Regulars on site it was easy to manoeuvre ourselves into a position where we were able to see it clearly. The bird was clearly much more uniform brown than would be expected for a red backed and was obviously too dark for either Isabelline race. Its mask was also striking. A cracking bird, and Spurns seventh MEGA of the autumn (Five of which I have connected with).

-Brown Shrike

In the afternoon we continued with the ongoing odd jobs associated with the observatory garden. However we did see the four White-fronted Geese that were knocking about in Easington, although from a distance.

Species List:

Spurn: Blackbird, Fieldfare, Redwing, Song Thrush, Robin, Wren, Dunnock, Reed Bunting, Linnet, Twite, Snow Bunting, Dunlin, Sanderling, Knot, Grey Plover, Mallard, Mute Swan, Wigeon, Brown Shrike, Woodpigeon,. Swallow, Water Rail, Moorhen,

Spurn 01.11.2016

The first day on November brought with it cold northerly winds, leaving the whole of the Spurn area feeling rather wintery. I headed down the point early on to try and find whatever was down there first. Sadly though I failed to find anything good and, despite good numbers of thrushes, there was a general dearth of species variety. The undoubted highlight was relocating the Icelandic Snow Bunting on the beach. This time I was sure to get some rump shots, the dark centres of which confirm the bird to be of the subspecies ‘insulae’. An interesting and extremely educational bird!

-Snow Bunting

In the afternoon, with the bushes continuing to be hard work, we continued to work in the garden, clearing rubbish and storing firewood. In the end a rather steady day but a pleasant affair anyway!

Species List:

Spurn Peninsula: Blackbird, Fieldfare, Redwing, Brambling, Chaffinch, Snow Bunting, Reed Bunting, Curlew, Common Scoter, Turnstone, Starling, Wren, Robin, Cormorant, Herring Gull, Dunlin, Sanderling, Great Black-backed Gull,

Spurn 02.11.2016

November is meant to mark the slowing down of autumn with fewer birds and generally colder weather. My parents were coming today, so I was in no rush to really do much, rather try and keep myself in order. After a lie-in I headed down to the Seawatching hide in the hope of something flying past.

And something did. We were all watching out to sea, when the radio crackled into life with obvious excitement. The only word I heard clearly was Egret flying north over the warren, but a quick pivot round quickly put me on a Cattle Egret flying straight over my head. If only I had picked it up sooner, as my photos were all of the bird flying away from me. It looked initially like it might drop in, but instead it flew off out over the Humber and then north. It was only when it was out over the Humber that I finally got decent views of its bill and a more general impression of its overall structure. I had rattled off record shots as soon as it had come over, a lifer after all, sadly though all but a few were of just the wings and feet. I managed a few of the bird in profile when it flew more westwards towards the Humber over the triangle. I scoped it out over the Humber and followed it as It drifted up river until it was pointless following it anymore. Another lifer this autumn and only the third record for the Spurn area!

-Cattle Egret

Once the excitement had reduced I realised I should probably head back up to the obs in order to meet my parents. I had only just got back when the radio again crackled with the news of the Rough-legged Buzzard in the triangle. It was apparently flying north, but neither myself nor Ian who were there could see it. However the behaviour of the crows suggested it could be flying quite low, and when I checked the Humber we had it flying low down going north. Again, if we had gotten onto it sooner we would have got cracking views and shots, but sadly not to be.

The afternoon with the parents nice. I took them out to see a couple of birds in the hand, which included a Twite and a Woodcock. Both cracking birds and really nice to see in the hand, especially the Woodcock, which was docile enough to be held in a ringers pose without too much bother.

-Twite

-Woodcock

Species List:

Triangle: Woodcock, Twite, Linnet, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Tree Sparrow, House Sparrow, Rough-legged Buzzard, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Gannet, Guillemot, Common Scoter, Mallard, Wigeon, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Common Snipe, Blackbird, Redwing, Fieldfare, Robin, Dunnock,

Spurn 03.11.2016

Having discussed with Sarah about trying to catch Snow Buntings down the point today we headed off in the hope of finding some by the lighthouse. It quickly seemed like we might not have to go down, having come across three approachable birds at the breach, but they were not having any of it. One bird took a long look at the spring trap before changing its mind, and that was as close as we got. On the other hand I did get a cracking view of the buntings, two of which I reckon were Icelandic Snow Buntings judging by its brown rump with dark centres. Being around the breach meant we were in luck when a Waxwing was caught at the Warren. Its great to see these stunning birds up close like this. 

-Waxwing

After a while the buntings took flight and headed south down the peninsula. We did not come across them again on our trip down the peninsula. To be honest, we did not find much of anything, the best of it probably a Woodcock flushed. The highlight was a single run of the Heligoland trap at the point, which produced a whopping 17 Blackbirds, plus a single Redwing. That was extremely exciting, as I scribed or Sarah who ringed them.

-Blackbirds

-Redwing

Species List:

Spurn Peninsula: Woodcock, Robin, Redwing, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Reed Bunting, Kestrel, Goldcrest, Turnstone, Cormorant, Snow Bunting, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull,  

Spurn 04.11.2016

After a night of drinking it was remarkable that we all woke up at a reasonable time and that we continued with our original plan of going down the point. The walk down was good fun, but we saw very little. There was an obvious clearout of birds down the point, with thrush numbers much reduced on what they had been the previous day. Still we ran the Heligoland trap a couple of times and caught a small sample of Blackbirds which was nice.

The obvious highlight was an absurdly tame fox on the main loop path. When we first saw it we all quietened down in order to not scare it, but then it came running up to us. We were able to touch it the thing came so close.

-Fox

On the way back we spotted the three Snow Buntings that Sarah and I had spent the previous morning trying to trap. We tried again, but sadly we were not successful once again. Whats worse is that this time one of the birds actually stepped into the trap but failed to set it off. After at least an hour of trying the buntings all got up and flew south, and that was the end of that. Two of the birds were Icelandic Snow Buntings, and this time I got a few pictures, although nothing spectacular.

Species List:

Spurn Peninsula: Woodcock, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Reed Bunting, Snow Bunting, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Redwing, Robin, Dunnock, Dunlin, Sanderling, Curlew, Knot,

Spurn 05.11.2016

The weather started cold, wet and windy. It was not pleasant. When I did eventually get out birding I went round ponds and wetlands but it was a waste of time. Besides the usual wildfowl species there was not much happening. The wind made it a struggle to hold the scope steady. It felt good to get out though, even if it was pretty unproductive.

Species List:

Kilnsea Wetlands, Beacon Ponds & Holderness Field: Wigeon, Mute Swan, Teal, Mallard, Greylag Goose, Brent Goose, Dunlin, Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot, Grey Plover, Common Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Redshank, Greenshank,

Spurn 06.11.2016

I could have got up early and gone to Welwick to see if the Pallid Harrier came out of roost, but I didn’t. As a result, when I was proven wrong and the bird was seen in the morning there was a massive sense of disappointment, even though it was my own stupid fault.

We walked up to Sammies to hopefully pick it up flying over the saltmarsh. A few other birders were also there and after a bit of time I did manage to pick the Pallid Harrier up. It was distant but a clear view, with a distinctive white rump and rusty underwings both obvious in flight. It then dropped and despite our efforts we were unable to pick it up again from Sammies. As a result I managed to flag a lift round to Welwick to try and spot it closer and showing better. Sadly though, despite two hours waiting there, the heavy rain and hail meant that the bird did not show again.

The heavy rain, wind and cold temperature put pay to most of the rest of the days birding. On the way back we had a look at the putative Greenland White Fronted Geese in the fields in Easington. I would rather spend the time in the Obs warming up after the morning’s cold session.

In the afternoon we headed out again, back to the Harrier site at Welwick marsh. After a  short while it showed much better in the evening gloom, slowly flying across the saltmarsh. This time I was able to fully take it in, including the neck collar among the other features. A cracking bird that’s for sure.

-Pallid Harrier

Species List:

Sammies Point/Welwick Marsh: Pallid Harrier, Turnstone, Little Egret, Sparrowhawk, Greenland Whitefront Goose, Brent Goose, Shelduck, Teal, Wigeon, Mallard, Mute Swan, Marsh Harrier, Reed  Bunting, Meadow Pipit, Redshank, Common Snipe, Dunlin, Great Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Common Gull, 

Spurn Week 19

Spurn 24.10.2016

Without rain the easterlies did not deliver in the way that the previous set had. That being said there was still a host of goodies to be had. We started the day by going down to the Snow Bunting that was present at Sandy Beaches and had continued to show well. We were able to get fairly close to it and get some nice photos.

-Snow Bunting

We walked the triangle and ended up back at the Obs. Whilst snacking at the obs we received news of a Long-tailed Duck at Kilnsea Wetlands. We raced up there but the bird had already gone, shortly after to reappear on the Humber. Having got to wetlands in the first place I could not face continuing to chase the duck around and proceeded to count the wildfowl. However, when we had finished there the duck was still present, so I headed down. At this point the bird, which had been sat in the middle of the Humber, began to move closer and soon was paddling just offshore allowing fantastic views of the species which previously I have only seen out at sea.

-Long-tailed Duck

Buzzed from that I decided to have a walk round the triangle, for which I was joined by Mick Cunningham. We had a good walk, the highlights being the presumed Northern Bullfinch, but we did not hear it call and see the bird at the same time. We also saw a Yellow-browed Warbler in Canal Hedge, which was the first one I have seen for some time.

Species List:

Kilnsea Wetlands: Mallard, Wigeon, Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Teal, Lapwing, Grey Plover, Golden Plover, Bar-tailed Godwit, Dunlin, Knot, Little Grebe, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Curlew,

Triangle: Chaffinch, Goldcrest, Siskin, Blackcap, Robin, Bullfinch, Song Thrush, Fieldfare, Snipe, Lesser Whitethroat, Yellow-browed Warbler, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Little Grebe, Mute Swan, Mallard, Wigeon, Teal, Chiffchaff, Brambling, Peregrine, Black-tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Redwing,

Spurn 25.10.2016

Of the most recent easterlies period today looked the most promising. However it started slow and until the afternoon not much really happened. A pine bunting was seen briefly but flew north and was not seen again. The search round the area did not produce much and by lunchtime I had all but given up on it reappearing.

As a result I made the plunge and went down the point again to have another look at the Stenejers Stonechat. Given the wind change tomorrow, I doubt it will be staying overnight. I got down there and soon got to grips with the Stonechat. It was not showing massively close but was showing well and I was able to get better views of the rump.

-Stenejers Stonechat

I made a small detour to have a look for a reported Little Bunting, but I did not look particularly hard. I wandered round the point but became disillusioned with not finding any birds. As a result I called it quits and was about to set off back when the radio buzzed into life that a Red-flanked Bluetail had been found at the point. Despite a few rare things turning up back at the top I decided to stay and have a look at the Bluetail down here. On my way through the shrubbery to the location described I spotted a passerine lift up from the path into the bushes, and when I got onto it through bins I was surprised to see that it was the Little Bunting. It sat in the open for a few seconds before it dived into the shrubbery calling. I had a quick look but decided it was not worth chasing.

I got to the Bluetail location where a handful of people were already. Dave Constantine showed me the back of his camera and was absolutely stunned. The bird was a fully blue adult male. Now seriously excited I continued looking for the bird. The relief and awe when we first picked it up, before we got to enjoy it all and revel in what was a truly stunning bird. We saw it a few more times but the bird was mobile and quite elusive. It sat out when it showed but not for long, before it would drop into the bushes and go missing. Over an hour or so we had a few good views of it, but nothing that would allow me to get the cracking shots that would do the bird justice. After an hour it dropped and did not show again for long enough for me to decided that the time had come to leave and head back up north. Views through the bins were almost exceptional, and the bird was without doubt one of the best birds I have ever seen.

-Red-flanked Bluetail

Back up top I decided to check out the rarest bird of the day in Easington; an Eastern Black Redstart. Not a tick, but a really smart bird. When I got up there the light was fading but the bird was showing well and I was able to get a few acceptable photos of it. Obviously the bird is only a subspecies but it’s still a stunner and I’m glad I went up to see it.

-Eastern Black Redstart

Species List:

Spurn Peninsula: Little Bunting, Siberian Stonechat (Stenejeri), Red-flanked Bluetail, Reed Bunting, Siskin, Greenfinch, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Redwing, Mistle Thrush, Fieldfare, Sparrowhawk, Swallow, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Robin, Wren, Chaffinch, Brambling,

Kilnsea: Long-tailed Tit, Common Snipe, Stock Dove, Black Redstart, Robin, Wren, Chaffinch, Swallow, Skylark, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow,

Spurn 26.10.2016

The weather changed again, from the short easterly period into a period of prolonged south-westerly. I was hoping for an insane vis-migging session, but sadly movement as very steady and there was not a great deal moving. The undoubted highlight was when a shrill call alerted us to the presence of a Waxwing on the bushes at the Warren and showing nicely. It showed for about 10 mins before it turned around and flew north.

-Waxwing

Late morning/afternoon was spent wandering round the wetlands and the triangle to see if there was anything new in. Wetlands was fairly quiet, with a large clear-out of wildfowl but still a few bits and pieces. Paul caught a Woodcock at Kew which I went to have a look at. During the afternoon I walked round the triangle where I had a smashing Merlin north and a flock of six Whooper Swans south.

-Woodcock

-Whooper Swan

A much quieter day overall than yesterday…

Species List:

Triangle: Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Wigeon, Robin, Siskin, Blackbird, Goldcrest, Song Thrush, Merlin, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Little Egret, Wigeon, Teal, Turnstone, Redwing, Waxwing, Woodcock, Jack Snipe,

Kilnsea Wetlands: Mallard, Mute Swan, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Little Grebe, Wigeon, Teal, Black-tailed Godwit, Grey Plover, Dunlin, Knot, Brent Goose, Black-headed Gull, Woodpigeon, Goldcrest, Magpie, Carrion Crow,

Spurn 27.10.2016

With a RL buzzard on the east coast I was out at Numpties for first thing. Sadly though the bird never appeared and the steady state of passage that we had seen yesterday continued into today. In fairness though there were still plenty of good birds. Up to three Swallows went south, which could well be the last ones I see this year and are almost certainly my latest birds ever.

As yesterday, there was clear highlight when 3 Shorelarks flew south flying past numpties. Common Buzzard, Twite and a reasonable passage of corvids and tree sparrows made for a reasonable supporting cast. However once passage had slowed down the day ground to something of a halt, with previous days remaining birds seemingly moved on leaving us with not much at all.

-Shorelark

Species List:

Triangle: Common Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Shore Lark, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Rock Pipit, Starling, Woodpigeon, Stock Dove, Tree Sparrow, House Sparrow, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Linnet, Twite, Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Kestrel, Little Egret, Wigeon, Greylag Geese, Brent Goose, Mallard, Golden Plover,

Spurn 28.10.2016

With a Spurn wedding later in the day, the birding force at Spurn was vastly reduced. I was left in charge of the daily log and sorting the daily recording. I started up at Numpties, which was where I spent most of the morning. The passage was fairly average, with a good variety of species but no massive movement. A couple of Twite, a Merlin and a Short-eared Owl were the best of it, the Merlin especially giving great views as it flew by.

Come early afternoon I decided to get on with some outstanding jobs around the Obs garden. Whilst I was doing this the radio buzzed into life that a Rough-legged Buzzard was flying over Kilnsea. I rushed over the Obs to see everyone in it rushing out! The Buzzard was already on it was down being mobbed by a crow, but once it had entered the triangle to settled down and spent the rest  of the day blogging around. At times it showed incredibly well, sat on a fence post before flying only a few feet over our heads. So far as showing well goes for raptors, it does not get much better than this. The bird is thought to be an adult male, possibly a returning bird from the last couple of years.

-Rough-legged Buzzard

Species List:

Triangle: Chaffinch, Greenfinch, House Sparrow, Mistle Thrush, Twite, Woodpigeon, Ringed Plover, Siskin, Rock Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Stock Dove, Redpoll, Linnet, Meadow Pipit, Goldfinch, Common Scoter, Merlin, Pintail, Swallow, Long-tailed Tit, Skylark, Jackdaw, Rook, Grey Wagtail, Knot, Golden Plover, Short-eared Owl, Reed Bunting, Tree Sparrow, Rough-legged Buzzard,

Spurn 29.10.2016

The continued lack of Spurn birders (for the morning at least) left open the possibility of glory, in that fewer birders to notice things meant more chance of picking it up myself. However, I was keener to test myself Viz-migging, see how much I had learnt. As a result I headed up to numpties where, for over an hour, I was on my own. It was a challenge but also rewarding, as I picked up a Lapland Bunting going down the cliffs, and a couple of Long-tailed Ducks going south on the sea.

After a while I was joined by a couple of other Spurn birders who were still on site. As the morning drew on we added a Waxwing going north and a pair of Snow Buntings going south. Overall it was a very successful morning. By mid-morning though birders started to return, so I spent most of the day either napping or doing odd-jobs.

Perhaps the most exciting bird of the day was when Barry radioed up that he had caught a Bullfinch and asked if we want to see it. I should state that I was unaware of the issues surrounding Bullfinches and ringing, so I blissfully photographed the bird. Fortunately the bird did not keel over and die in the hand, but in future I will think twice about Bullfinches in the hand.

-Bullfinch

Species List:

Triangle: Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Rook, Lapland Bunting, Long-tailed Duck, Jackdaw, Siskin, Rock Pipit, Greylag Goose, Skylark, Linnet, Greenfinch, Reed Bunting, Linnet, Lesser Redpoll, Goldfinch, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Woodpigeon, Whooper Swan, Common Scoter, Waxwing, Twite, Snow Bunting, Pied Wagtail, Wigeon, Carrion Crow, Tree Sparrow,

Spurn 30.10.2016

The continued westerlies meant a lack of new birds incoming and as a result it made birding a bit more challenging that it had been the last few weeks. I headed down the point to check the beach for wheatears, but I failed to find any. That being said I did have a few nice bits and pieces, including a Snow Bunting, Purple Sandpiper and a personal highlight; Firecrest.

By midday I had returned from the point and spent the afternoon clearing up the garden by doing a host of outstanding odd jobs. In the end it felt like a rather productive day despite the lack of birds. That is all that I can really say for it to be honest…

Species List:

Spurn Peninsula: Snow Bunting, Purple Sandpiper, Firecrest, Blackbird, Robin, Goldcrest, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Fieldfare, Redwing, Reed Bunting, Herring Gull, Black-headed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, Sparrowhawk, Wren, Dunnock,