Northumberland

Great to be back in the North East for another yomp round some excellent bird spots. We started with a visit to Newbiggin for a walk with the family and were rewarded with Mediterranean gull and an Oystercatcher with a sense of dignity as it posed on a tombstone in the church. All the following photos were taken by my friend and birding mate David who was experimenting with his new camera - a Christmas present from his wife.

Med gull

At rest!

 Next day we set off for Linton Lane to start the dawn to dusk odyssey.  As predicted Linton was quiet with only small numbers of wildfowl but we racked up 10 – 12 species including the only pochard of the day. On to the QE2 Country Park and loads of gulls (including a Med gull) and ducks. We could not find the Iceland gull and there were no Goosanders on view but a lot of common stuff was duly ticked especially when the lady came with the bread.

Gull fest

Next stop was Snab Point and fulmars were there despite a raw biting east wind. This was a feature of the day on any exposed coastal section. It was actually easier to set up and use a scope rather than try to hold binoculars still. 

Even looks cold

Solitude

 Cresswell gave distant views of the long-billed dowitcher as well as the only shelduck of the day. The dowitcher was found for us by a gentleman en route from Yorkshire to Inverness who couldn’t stay long as his wife was in the car!! We moved to the Causeway car park for better views but never saw it again.The feeders were busy but for the first year in a long time we could not find yellowhammer.

Litle grebes

Look at me I am colourful......

..... and I am not bad either

Teal, wigeon and no dowitcher

 The threatened rain had not appeared and the sun had come out. We managed to work round the hail showers by driving or sitting in a hide until they passed.  As the road was closed we had to drive up to Widdrington so we detoured for the Widdrington waxwing that was exactly where we were told he would be. 

Billy Nomates, the Widdrington waxwing

 Back down to Druridge Pools we passed a field which was covered in Lapwing, Golden plover, Fieldfare and Redwing as well as large numbers of gulls. We were able to scope a field of Pink-footed geese and two White fronts from the end of the track at Druridge.   Then we backtracked to the car and drove to Druridge Bay CP for Goosander and the feeders. 

Goosander coming to bread!!

 We then walked south to Chevington Burn and back and were able to pick up the Black-necked grebe, Marsh harrier, Stonechat, Scoter and Twite. Thanks to Neil and “Even Sparrows” for their assistance. We then had a choice as time was running on whether to return to Cresswell for a Barn owl or go to QE2 for the Iceland. We chose the former and dipped. Nevertheless we finished with 77 species and a lifer in the form of the Dowitcher, not a bad day at all. From 0715 in the hide at Linton till 1715 in the hide at Cresswell we had a cracking day and ten hours quality birding. Looking forward to next year when Hauxley will re-open with a circular walk. Thanks to all who helped on the Forum and in the field. If you ever fancy a visit to Strangford Lough let me know and I will see what I can do to assist. 

East Chevington in the late afternoon light

2016 totals:  
104 Black-necked grebe

105 Fulmar

106 Pink-footed goose

107 White-fronted goose

108 Scoter

109 Goosander

110 Sanderling

111 Long-billed dowitcher

112Mediterranean gull

113 Meadow pipit

114 Waxwing

115 Twite

Belfast WOW

I didn't think there would be a post today but the light was good, the camera was primed and the birds were on form. I had 43 species today at WOW including golden plover, barwit, blackwit and 600+ dunlin. We even had oystercatchers for the first time in a long time and I finally got cormorant, goldeneye and eider as well using the scope at Kinnegar.  Considering there were no feeders that was pretty good. As usual it helps to have 5 people working scopes and reporting in so as the rest of us could lock on to birds. Phyllis picked up a hen pheasant, Kenneth spotted a little grebe, Gerry scoped three mistle thrushes and Dennis found a pied wagtail.The high tide roost was spectacular as 60 barwit, 400 blackwit, 10 golden plover, 600+ dunlin and 140 lapwing wheeled and displayed. A female sparrowhawk lifted a snipe and the buzzard sat in his tree. All was well with the world and when I got home there were siskins on the feeders!!

Moorhen, teal, shelduck

Mute swan

Shelduck

Siskin (F), goldfinch, greenfinch

Siskin

Wow patch
51 Little grebe
52 Goldeneye
53 Cormorant
54 Eider
55 Pheasant
56 Golden plover

London Calling

Quick update from last week in London. Regent's Park added 8 species to the 2016 list but not the hoped for firecrest which was beautifully photographed on the Saturday and the Wednesday. I was there on Monday!! Egyptian geese have hatched young and black swans are displaying

Goose and goslings

Black swans

Family with a pink-footed goose

The problem in Regent's Park is sorting out the collection from the wild, the Egyptian are introduced feral but free flying. The pinkfoot is  native but captive.

Rainham Marshes added another 4 birds to the 2016 list and Barnes Elms added 5 more. Both were pretty wet with high water levels.

Barnes Elms WWT

Somebody found a snipe in this lot!!

Locally I added jay to the NDCP patch with a cracker in the garden and Lesser black back and pied wagtail to WOW. The water levels here were also high and the Konik ponies have muddied up all the grass areas which are totally waterlogged.

A walk on the Newtownabbey Way on a cold and snowy January 30th produced little in the way of birds except for a robin inside Hillside Garden Centre. Apparenntly it overwinters here, there are at least two and they can go out of the automatic doors to feed.

Yes folks, it is real not stuffed. It was even singing its territorial song just in case there was a rival. Also perched near the bird food section as people have been buying suet balls and opening them for it. No dozer as we say in Norn Iron.


Hoping to be in Northumberland over the weekend and Bolton next weekend so should get a few more ticks. Saturday is the planned dawn to dusk with David "Dusty" Miller to see how many birds we can see in a day so there should be something to write about when we return.

2016 totals:  
85 Lessr black-backed gull
86 Egyptian goose
87 Canada goose
88 Pochard
89 Red-crested pochard
90 Mandarin duck
91 Ring-necked parakeet
92 Green woodpecker
93 Great-crested grebe
94 Kestrel
95 Marsh harrier
96 Pheasant
97 Skylark
98 Stonechat
99 Peregrine falcon
100 Bittern
101 Great spotted woodpecker
102 Stock dove 
103 Razorbill

NDCP patch :
50 Jay

WOW patch:
49 Lesser black-backed gull
50 Pied wagtail

January ticking over nicely

A few rambles along the coast, another week at WOW and the ticks are racking up. Ballyholme Bay added dunlin and ringed plover to the NDCP patch while four mallard were over the Marina - a nice tick to get out of the way. WOW on Thursday produced two rooks, barwit, long tailed tit, knot and gadwall. The rooks were unusual for the reserve and they were there three days running. The red- breasted merganser was still showing well.

A visit to Carrrick gave rock pipit and ring-billed gull while my birding pal's garden in Carnalea had a pair of brambling and some tree sparrows. 

Below are three hangovers from late 2015 of the starling murmuration at the Albert Bridge.  
 

 2016 totals: 
80 Ringed plover
81 Rock pipit
82 Ring-billed gull
843Tree sparow
84 Brambling

NDCP patch :
47 Ringed plover
48 Dunlin
49 Mallard 

WOW patch:
44 Rook
45 Barwit
46 Lon-tailed tit
47Knot
48 Gadwall

Update and Belfast WOW

The local patch is still producing new birds - purple sandpiper, common gull, goldeneye and great black backed gull were added recently. As well as a moorhen the marina produced a carrion crow. 


The garden turned up the fourth sparrowhawk sighting of the year a female which sat in the evergreens behind the garden long enough for me to to go upstairs, set up the scope and camera and get a couple of photos. I have seen the male twice and the female twice.

 Belfast WOW on Thursday morning came up with 43 species to kick off 2016 on the second patch. 39 at the reserve and 4 at Kinnegar shore. Highlights were 1 red-breasted merganser, 4 reed bunting, 1 snipe, 2 redpoll and 6 siskin. Sparrowhawk and buzzard put in an appearance, the latter eating a female wigeon whilst fending off hoodies and magpies. Once the buzzard lost interest there was a general free for all dominated by an immature great black back.

 

Hungry buzzard

 2016 totals: 
76 Golden plover
77  Purple sandpiper
78  Snipe
79 Reed bunting

NDCP patch :
42 Goldeneye
43 Great black-backed gull
44 Common gull
45 Purple sandpiper
46 Carrion crow


WOW patch:
1 Grey heron, mute swan, shelduck, wigeon, mallard, teal, shoveler, tufted duck, red-breasted merganser, sparrowhawk, buzzard, moorhen, coot, oystercatcher, lapwing, dunlin, snipe, blackwit, curlew, redshank, turnstone, black-headed gull, herring gull, common gull, great black-backed gull, woodpigeon, wren, robin, blackbird, song thrush, mistle thrush, coal tit, blue tit, great tit, magpie, hooded crow, starling, chaffinch, greenfinch, goldfinch, siskin, redpoll, 43 reed bunting.

Garden news

Just a brief post to report a female bullfinch today and a male sparrowhawk which came in and perched beautifully allowing a couple of ipod photos. It totally ignored a visiting pigeon which flew off once the hawk was perched.The quality of the photos reminded me to set up the digiscope as  I would have got some cracking shots.

It is on the washing line just to the right of the garage!!

A walk along the coastal path this afternoon gave beautiful views but no patch ticks!!

 2016 totals: 
75 : Bullfinch

NDCP patch :
41 : Bullfinch

2016 is up and running

A good start to 2016 with the first “Round the Lough “on New Years Day since 2006. We started at Islandhill at dawn and the first bird seen was a buzzard sitting in a tree. Ticks racked up quickly as the light improved: - Buzzard, Little egret, Whooper swan, Brent goose, Shelduck, Oystercatcher, Knot, Dunlin, Blackwit, Barwit, Curlew, Redshank, Black headed gull, Herring gull, Woodpigeon, Dunnock , Robin, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Mistle thrush, Magpie, Jackdaw, Rook, Hooded crow, Starling, House Sparrow, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Linnet (30)

Islandhill at dawn

Whooper swans

The flood gates at Ards added Great-black backed gull, Lapwing and Pintail, quickly followed by Collared dove at Loughries (34). Next stop was the flooded area at Anne’s Point which gave us Greylag goose, Teal, Wigeon, Grey heron, Mute Swan and Little grebe (40). A low tide at Kircubbin added Common gull, Eider, Red-breasted merganser, Pied wagtail, and Greenshank (45). Bishop’s Mill was disappointing and the run down to the Ferry only added Cormorant, Shag and Carrion Crow. (48). The ferry crossing added Guillemot and Black guillemot (50) and we stopped again at Castleward Bay to add Mallard and Gadwall. (52). A brief stop at the Great Dam added Coot, Shoveler and Tufted duck (55) before we hit the hide at Castle Island and the Quoile Pondage Nature Reserve. No feeders at all in front of the Countryside centre was a disappointment and the water levels were very high so Collector’s Bay had few birds in the open and no new additions to the list except Goldeneye.

View from the hide!

Mute swan auditions for Game of Thrones

 However two brief walks produced Redwings and a mixed tit flock with all four varieties of tits – Great, Blue, Coal & Long-tailed AND Treecreeper, Goldcrest and Wren. (64) A Jay put in an appearance near the Coal Quay. (65) It was at this stage we realised we had a number of omissions on the list – like Moorhen and Great-crested grebe - but it was also at this stage that the long awaited rain finally set in and the light dropped. As we headed North we decided to try and target omissions at Killyleagh, Whiterock and Castle Espie but not one new tick did we get in the last hour and a half, the total remained stubbornly on 65 and the moorhen was never added to the list. 

The NDCP Patch list did not really get started till Saturday and Sunday but I managed to rack up quite a few garden/local ticks in the first 5 days – Sparrowhawks were seen three times in five days and the male paused briefly in the apple tree between the feeders. Herring gulls sit on the roof and the feeders attracted  Woodpigeon, Collard dove, Blackbirds, Dunnock, Robin, Blackcap, Starling, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Linnet, Great, Blue, Coal and Long-tailed tits, House sparrow Redpoll and Siskin. In 2015 I waited until mid December for a redpoll and 31^st December for a siskin. Rook, Jackdaw, Magpie, Hooded crow and Mistle thrush appeared in the garden or nearby giving a total of 25. 

Today (January 6^th ) I walked the coastal path from the Long Hole into Bangor and home and cleaned up a lot of the well expected common stuff – Shag, Cormorant, Eider, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Turnstone, Pied wagtail, Black-headed gull, Guillemot, Black Guillemot (35),  plus two Great northern divers (36), one at the Long Hole and one at Pickie. The most surprising bird was a Moorhen on one of the pontoons in the Marina!! Not seen on the patch in all of 2015 and missed on New Year’s Day. I had a good look at it walked off, turned and looked back and lo and behold it had disappeared and I have no idea where it went. That took the total to 37, half of my total for 2015.

Update on Friday 8^th with a walk from Strickland’s Bay west to Carnalea and return added three more patch ticks in the shape of Lapwing, Grey wagtail, and Song thrush. The latter two were also year ticks.

Combining the New Year’s Day list with the local stuff now puts the 2016 list at 74. The 65 species seen on   January 1^st plus the patch ticks since then  - Sparrowhawk, GND, Redpoll, Siskin, Blackcap, Moorhen, Grey wagtail, Song thrush  and Turnstone.  The NDCP patch now stands at 40. Hopefully the RSPB Harbour patch will kick off on Thursday when I resume volunteering duties.

 2016 totals:  1 - 72 above
73 : Grey wagtail
74 : Song thrush

NDCP patch : 1 - 36 above
38 : Grey wagtail
39 : Lapwing
40 : Song thrush