A trip to England

Essential child care gave the opportunity for a long weekend in Northumberland and our now traditional dawn to dusk birdathon. Then on via the scenic route to Bolton and we were able to squeeze a bit of birding in between playgrounds, Burger king and Minecraft.

Red kites over the road at Gatehouse of Fleet was a good start on the way across. A trip to St Mary's Island at high tide gave purple sandpiper, grey plover and sanderling. Saturday dawned bright and sunny but the forecast rain and cloud arrived around 11.00 and made for a damp cold finish to the day. With my pal David - he of the good camera and the rustic bunting in his garden - we followed our traditional route starting at Linton Lane and going via QE2 Country Park to Woodhorn, Lynemouth, Snab Point, Cresswell and Cresswell Pond. Linton Lane had two marsh harriers and very good views of grey partridge sitting under a hedge. We usually see them disappearing quickly into cover. The highlight at Cresswell  was an early avocet. Apparently they usually arrive late March. We have never seen one on our February visits before.  We also had a good selection of ducks and waders including 2 ruff and 6 snipe out in the open as well as large flocks of pink-footed geese.  We then went via Widdrington (red-legged partridge) to the Druridge Bay Country Park for lunch (and bird feeders) before checking the sea for red-throated divers and common scoter. Then north to Hadston Scarrs, Hauxley and Amble. We spent 15/20 minutes ambling round Amble harbour as we realised we had not yet seen a pied wagtail. In rain and gathering gloom we gave up, walked back to the car and there was a pied wagtail on the footpath beside the car!! Other highlights included at least 6 albino pheasants, in fact there were pheasants everywhere. We reckoned they must have all been newly released. I also added a kestrel to the year list - it is at least 6 months since I saw one at home as well as Canada goose which always needs a trip to England. We ended up with 70 species which is what we hope for before we set out. Bearing in mind the deteriorating weather we were happy enough. All in all a good day with cracking views, good birds and good company. 

The attached photographs are mainly David's, I have noted the ones I took in case it isn't patently obvious. I ended up phone scoping the waxwing as I omitted to lift the camera - apologies for the dodgy shots. 

St Mary's Island (Derek)

Pink-footed geese

Cresswell Pond

Mixed waders

Avocet

Snipe

Lapwing (Derek)

Derek's snipe!

Derek's avocet, dunlin & curlew

Grey partridge

Long-tailed tit

The scenic route to Bolton goes via Langdon Beck and a black grouse lekking area so it became 115 for the year. Bolton added nuthatch on the feeder, tawny owl calling around the house and a single waxwing 5 minutes from the house. Known locally as the Bolton one (or Bolton Wanderer) it has been around for about 10 days and has two berried trees all to itself in a housing estate so it might be around for a while. I took the grand-children to see it and they were mildly impressed by its cool Mohican.

The new dormer gives a good view of the garden and the feeders. I have tried several times to put a wee arrow to show where the feeders are but Blogger has defeated me. If any readers know how to do this please let me know.  The feeders are hanging above the wee green bush just to the left of the poplar tree at the end of the fence. The nuthatch uses the tree to approach the feeders and I have seen woodpecker, jay and treecreeper on the tree as well. This time I managed a few shots of birds at the feeder. The tawnies call from the wood behind, heard but never seen. 

Overview

Collared dove at the niger feeder

Magpie

A very fast nuthatch flying right!!

Great tit

A few Bolton wanderer shots to close and then it is back to WOW and the coastal path for 6 weeks.

2023

102: Wren - should have been added on January 17th!

103: Red kite

104: Grey plover

105: Sanderling

106: Pink-footed goose

107: Canada goose

108: Marsh harrier

109: Kestrel

110: Red-legged partridge

111: Grey partridge

112: Pheasant

113: Avocet

114: Ruff

115: Black grouse

116: Waxwing

117: Tawny owl

118: Nuthatch

NDCP

53: Grey heron

WOW

64: Cormorant

Half term report

Off to England next week so decided to do an update of the two patches before I go. 

WOW has been ticking over steadily and this was the first week I did not find a new species for the year.  I finally got a cormorant and am still missing starling! This year we are getting lots of snipe with a high count of 36. There have also been up to 200 lapwing. The reserve has settled into a late winter pattern and in a couple of weeks we will see the black-headed gulls staking their claim to nest sites. We already have a bit of birdsong and the shelduck are displaying - spring is rolling in. Here's a few photos.

Shelduck with feeding buzzard behind

Snipe

Curlew with snipe up behind

Coot and moorhen id challenge

Mallard

Shoveler

Teal

The North Down patch has seen a few expected species finally on the list - heron, goldcrest, mallard, grey wagtail, house sparrow and finally a jay. I didn't see one last year and one popped into the garden briefly last week. The Irish garden bird survey is nearing its end so that means winter is almost over. I'll post a summary next time but here's a few pictures to be going on with.

Blackcap(M)

Blackcap (F)

Blackbird, there have been as many as nine.

Elsewhere we have had a few grand days out which usually involve a drive, picnic or lunch, nice walk, coffee and home via a takeaway meal. These are often themed round available birds and recently have included Newcastle (common scoter, black redstart, great northern diver), Randalstown (goosander, treecreeper) and Reedy Flats in County Armagh (golden plover, hen harrier).  

Phone shot of a goosander on the River Maine

Hopefully we will get a few goodies in Northumberland and Lancashire and Richard's garden might turn up a woodpecker and a nuthatch.  Watch this space.

2023

92: Razorbill
93: Peregrine
94: Common scoter
95:Black redstart
96: Great northern diver
97: Jay
98: Golden plover
99: Hen harrier
100: Goosander
101: Treecreeper

NDCP

46: Razorbill

47: Goldcrest

48: Sparrowhawk

49: House sparrow

50: Mallard

51: Jay

52: Grey wagtail

53: Grey heron

WOW

60: Red-breasted merganser

61: Great-crested grebe

62: Black guillemot

63: Peregrine

64: Cormorant

 

Spring migrants

I have enough photos and enough birding to justify another post. It is coming in two parts, what is happening at WOW and what is happening in the garden and along the coastal path. First what about the title?? Well it is January 21 and I have seen four birds I would normally be looking for in March or maybe April:

January 2 a sandwich tern in Killyleagh

January 9 a gannet at Carnalea

January 17 a chiffchaff in Strickland's Glen

January 21 a lesser black-backed gull at Carnalea

It seems that climate change is giving species a chance to hang around over winter. Add to this the success of little egrets and increasing sightings of glossy ibis and great white egrets, plus the loss of ring ouzel and Bewick swans and the lower counts of overwintering northern ducks like goldeneye and pochard and I think we have the evidence from nature that things are changing. 

Let's move on to WOW. I have added quite a few birds to this year's list. Millet has encouraged birds to come closer to the windows and the feeders have added small passerines. The summary at the end gives an update on where we are, including the fine second winter Iceland gull which turned up this week. It was one of 11 new birds for 2023 including robin, dunnock and mute swan!!

Roosting curlew

Coot

Wigeon

Black-tailed godwit

Teal (F)

Teal (M)

Large white duck?

Hiding with the shelduck

With herring gulls, must be an Iceland gull. 😎

The coastal path has been walked (or limped) quite a few times and the garden has been well watched to see what garden birds can go on the Irish Birding garden bird survey. Again the summary at the end shows where we are and a few photographs give a flavour of what I have been seeing.

Four of these

Two very wary hooded crows

Just one song thrush

Only two goldfinch

Fieldfare

Maximum of nine blackbirds

Male blackcap - there is also a female.

I think I am slightly ahead of last year as I was around the mid 80s in January. The two patch lists are on par and as per normal I am well over 50% of the target in the middle of January. It just gets harder as the year rolls on!! Onwards and upwards as God willing I have a trip to England to look forward to.

2023

80: Twite

81: Lesser black-backed gull

82: Gannet

83: Black guillemot

84: Purple sandpiper

85: Red-throated diver

86: Grey wagtail

87: Chiffchaff

88: Iceland gull

89: Goldcrest

90: Raven

91: Guillemot

NDCP

23: Coal tit 

24: Gannet

25: Oystercatcher

26: Dunlin

27: Rock pipit

26: Ringed plover

29: Shag

30: Eider duck

31: Redshank

32: Common gull

33: Pied wagtail

34: Song thrush

35: Collared dove

36: Purple sandpiper

37: Black guillemot

38: Great black-backed gill

39: Red-throated diver

40: Great-crested grebe

41: Moorhen

42: Long-tailed tit

43: Wren

44: Chiffchaff

45: Lesser black-backed gull

WOW

38: Rook

39: Brent goose

40: Jackdaw

41: Rock pipit

42: Lesser black-backed gull

43: Dunlin

44: Meadow pipit

45: Common gull (all on January 12th)

46: Little grebe &

47: Pochard (on January 14)

48: Iceland gull

49: Goldcrest

50: Raven

51: Mistle thrush

52: Song thrush

53: Goldeneye

54: Eider

55: Guillemot

56: Mute swan

57: Grey heron

58: Dunnock

59: Robin (all on 19 January)

2023 kicks off

Good start to the new birding year with the traditional "Round the Lough" trip from dawn to dusk. This year we started at the flood gates in Ards, went south to Portaferry, crossed to Strangford and then headed north until the light faded at Killyleagh. We tallied 72 species, dipped out on a few we should get and had a few birding highlights en route.

Dawn at the flood gates was spectacular on a clear cold morning with ice on the car park. The highlight there was a large lapwing flock. Other highlights included synchronised fishing from 25 or more red-breasted mergansers in Castleward Bay, 2 Slavonian grebes in Greyabbey Bay south, 2 carrion crows at Strangford, a female pochard and three whoopers at the Quoile and a finch flock of 300+ near Killyleagh . This was largely made up of linnets and goldfinch but also contained, tree sparrow, house sparrow, reed bunting, chaffinch and yellowhammer. The icing on the cake was a sandwich tern at Killyleagh in fading light. There's a list at the end which is there for my records, but feel free to have a browse. 

Th local patch - garden and coastal path - added blackcap(garden) and kingfisher(Long Hole) plus all the usual suspects to start the year. Dunnock was the first bird seen. 

Lapwing at dawn

Rising tide at the Flood Gates

David (rustic bunting) Miller managed some bird shots as well as a few nice scenes so here are a selection.

Stonechat

Goldeneye

Redwing

Song thrush

Brent and shelduck

Buzzard

Yellowhammers

Yellowhammers

WOW on Thursday added 4 to the 2023 list and got the patch off to a 38 start including buzzard, sparrowhawk, snipe, knot and both godwits. 

I also took a run up to the Waterworks in Belfast and finally managed to see two ring-necked parakeets  which have drifted in over the winter. Not only a 2023 tick but a Northern Ireland first and a Co Antrim first as well. Flushed with success we went on to Whitehead for a spot of lunch and added twite.

2023: Great-crested grebe, little grebe, Slavonian grebe, cormorant, shag, grey heron, little egret, mute & whooper swan, greylag & brent geese, shelduck, mallard, pintail, teal, shoveler, gadwall, wigeon, tufted, eider, goldeneye, merganser, pochard, buzzard, moorhen, coot, oystercatcher, lapwing, ringed plover, knot, dunlin, turnstone, snipe, black-tailed godwit, curlew, redshank, greenshank, herring, common, black-headed & great black-backed gulls, sandwich tern, wood pigeon, collared dove, meadow &  rock pipit, pied wagtail, dunnock, robin, stonechat, mistle & song thrush, blackbird, fieldfare, redwing, blue, coal & great tit, carrion & hooded crow, rook, jackdaw, magpie, starling, house & tree sparrow, chaffinch, goldfinch, bullfinch, linnet, reed bunting and yellowhammer. (72)

73: kingfisher
74: blackcap

75 Sparrowhawk

76: long-tailed tit

77: greenfinch

78: bar-tailed godwit

79: Ring-necked parakeet

80: twite

NDCP: dunnock, wood pigeon, magpie, herring gull, robin, blue & great tit, chaffinch, goldfinch, blackbird, fieldfare, redwing, jackdaw, rook, starling, hooded crow, blackcap, black-headed gull, turnstone, cormorant, kingfisher, brent goose, coal tit. (23)

WOW: Oystercatcher, lapwing, black -tailed godwit, snipe, curlew, moorhen, coot, sparrowhawk, buzzard, mallard, wigeon, tufted, shelduck, teal, shoveler, woodpigeon, hooded crow, greylag, magpie, black-headed gull, herring gull, blackbird, pied wagtail, goldfinch, chaffinch, linnet, blue tit, redshank, great tit, long-tailed tit,  greenfinch, great black-backed gull, gadwall, ringed plover, turnstone, knot, bar-tailed godwit, rook. (38)

2022 - a tale of fractured rib, Covid and osteo-arthritis.

Time for an update and a wrap of 2022.  Things have been slow as the year wound down in the wettest November on record. Overall the year started well but a series of health issues (see title) limited the amount of birding I could do and the walking definitely slowed down and occasionally stopped altogether. Now that I have come to terms with limited mobility I will hopefully be able to work round the issues and might even do a bit more birding from the car or allow more time to walk slower and rest more often when looking for migrants. 

WOW added a few species to the list but is well off the 100 target I normally look for. Lack of walking for spring migrants didn't help and the feeders were either empty or down for a lot of weeks so I missed the odd tick there. Photo here shows a frozen WOW in early December. Most species went elsewhere and the coot and shoveler were concentrated in the two areas of open water.

I finished on 88 with a late rush of stuff I should have ticked earlier in the year plus an unexpected female pochard. Glaring omissions included peregrine, little stint, redpoll, bullfinch, reed bunting, blackcap, sedge warbler and chiffchaff. How could I miss a blackcap at WOW!!

Female pochard x 3

The local North Down patch finally added a red-throated diver, and finished on 67.  70 is the target but look what I missed - jay, siskin, greenfinch, redpoll and Mediterranean gull, -  again the main issue was the inability to walk the coast in spring and autumn. I can't remember the last time I walked into Bangor along the coast, never mind through the town to Ballyholme.  However a fieldfare on a neighbour's tree was an unexpected surprise. The big news patch wise was finally getting waxwings on the patch - only 5 minutes walk from the house. They spent over a week in a berried tree in Maxwell Road and it was nice to catch up with them along with every birder and photographer in Northern Ireland, plus one from Dublin who made a 5 hour round trip to see them. I took a lot of pictures, so here are three.

Hooded crow at sunset

A wet Christmas week in Bolton added nothing to the year list although the new dormer roof looks promising as I can easily view Richard's feeders and the trees at the bottom of his garden. Santa brought a nice tripod which will stay in England and help Bolton birdwatching.  I had nice views of treecreeper and nuthatch in the poplar tree but no woodpecker this time. 

2023 will kick off in the garden on January 1 and the annual round the lough trip on January 2. 

2022

193: Willow tit

194: Waxwing

(This includes 42 from Florida)

NDCP

65: Red-throated diver

66: Waxwing

67: Fieldfare

WOW

82: Pochard

83: Goldcrest

84: Stonechat

85: Red-throated diver

86: Rock pipit

87: Long-tailed tit

88: Buzzard