Mid term report from England

Lately back from England due to Storm Franklin which first cancelled and then delayed our return journey. Despite this we had a good (if wet) trip. Northumberland turned up a couple of dry days including the dawn to dusk birdathon. Manchester was basically wet and windy as three storms came through in a week. Let's cut to the chase then. A trip round Elton Reservoir turned up three new birds for the year - Canada goose, reed bunting and nuthatch. Despite seeing one locally it was nice to get prolonged views of a male great spotted woodpecker on my son's feeder along with jay and bullfinch.

Northumberland posted 78 species which was the highest ever. The forecast rain did not arrive and we got away with a dry day and some incredible skies. I managed 11 year ticks which sort of fell into three categories:

Absent from NI: grey partridge , red-legged partridge.  

Scarce, rare or hard to get in Northern Ireland: stock dove, sanderling, pink-footed goose, Slavonian grebe, common scoter.  

Missed them locally so far this year but I’ll take the tick: red-throated diver, fulmar, stonechat, grey plover, ruff, skylark. 

We also picked up whooper swans, white-fronted geese, goldeneye, merganser, purple sandpiper, snipe, bar-tailed godwit, redwing, tree sparrow and twite along with all the usual common species. We really only missed greenfinch.

David (rustic bunting) Miller has a better camera than me so I let him get on with it, all the attached photos are his. 

The return to Bolton followed the scenic route via Langdon Beck for black grouse and added a bonus red kite en route.

Big sky at Snab Point

Pink-footed geese.....

..... in flight

Snipe

Snipe and wigeon (and a carrion crow)

Ruff behind curlew at Druridge Pools

Shoveler

Sanderling

Red-legged partridge

Scenic grey plover at Hauxley

Coquet Island from Hauxley

Nothing much to report in the garden apart from a sparrowhawk in the apple tree. All the optics were packed so there is only a phone photo. WOW has very high water levels but no new birds reported. Gull numbers are building up - 10 + common gulls, at least 20 lesser black backs and probably 200+ black-headed gulls some of whom were having a look at the islands where they nest. Roll on the spring.

Sorry about the washing!!

Not normally water behind the coot

Water level right up on the island

2022

93: Kingfisher

94: Reed bunting

95: Nuthatch

96: Canada goose

97: Fulmar

98: Stock dove

99: Pink-footed goose

100: Skylark

101: Ruff

102: Grey partridge

103: Sanderling

104: Common scoter

105: Red-throated diver

106: Red-legged partridge

107: Slavonian grebe

108: Stonechat

109: Grey plover

110: Red Kite

111: Black grouse

NDCP

47: Wren

Belfast RSPB

59: Pintail