A Few More Birds!!

 Since my last post, Jayne and I have been out and about, and have managed to add another 6 species to the "Year List!.

The first new species was Pied Flycatcher (155), a single male heard singing at Linacre on 24th April. Several other were also seen and heard at Padley Gorge today. The next species, Garden Warbler (156), was special, as it was a female bird, with a brood patch, that was caught and ringed at Linacre on 26th April. Fingers crossed for successful breeding this year.

The other new species were all seen or heard at Padley Gorge and Big Moor this morning. Cuckoo , 1 heard (157), Redstart, several heard, but none seen - annoying leaves!! (158), Tree Pipit, 1 seen and heard singing (159) and finally, Whinchat - 1 male seen on Big Moor (160).

Tree Pipit

Whinchat

One new butterfly was also seen at Padley Gorge, namely, Green Hairstreak.

Green Hairstreak

Year List Update

 As well as the ringing, Jayne and I had a few walks to try and catch up with a few "year ticks".

The first new bird, Garden Warbler, (164) was seen at Linacre on 4th. The next three: Cuckoo (165), Whitethroat (166) and Redstart (167) were all seen at Burbage Moor and Padley Gorge. The final bird, Pied Flycatcher (168) was found at Linacre on 6th. 

Although not a year tick, another bird I wanted to highlight was this stunning male Garganey that had been reported at Manvers Lake, near  Barnsley, for a few weeks. Unfortunately, it has spent all the time coming to bread (!) along with the resident Mallards, so it may well have escaped from somewhere. Nevertheless, it's still a stunning bird, and great to get close to.

Garganey

Longshaw and Padley Gorge

Jayne and I had a walk around Longshaw and Padley Gorge this morning. It was surprisingly quiet, but we did manage to hear a single Cuckoo (158), 1 singing Redstart (159) and 1 Tree Pipit (160).

Other birds seen/heard were: Kestrel, Jackdaw, Woodpigeon, Meadow Pipit, Stonechat, Pied Flycatcher, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff. 

Year List Update - 2nd May 2022

 Over the weekend, Jayne and I have had a couple of trips out and about, and have recorded a few new species for the Year List.

Our first trip, on Sunday, was a walk around Padley Gorge and Longshaw Estate, were we recorded Snipe (139), Redstart (140), Cuckoo (141) and Pied Flycatcher (142).

The second trip (Monday 2nd) was to RSPB Frampton Marsh, were we added the following birds: Sedge Warbler (143), Reed Warbler (144), Black-tailed Godwit (145), Ruff (146), Avocet (147), Spotted Redshank (2 breeding plumaged birds - 148), Little Gull (1 1stwinter/1st summer bird - 149), Common Tern (150) and Yellow Wagtail (151).

Spotted Redshank

Yellow Wagtail

London and Norfolk - Birds and Insects

 Jayne and I have just had a few days away in London and Norfolk. Whilst there we enjoyed a mixture of sightseeing, theatre and wildlife watching.

Two new bird species were seen: Ring-necked Parakeet and Red-crested Pochard. The parakeets were seen (and heard!) all around, whilst the pochard was seen in Kew Gardens. 

Red-crested Pochard

Whilst at Hampton Court Palace we also spotted a new hoverfly species: Merodon equestris and our first Banded Demoiselle damselflies of 2021.

Merodon equestris

Whilst in Norfolk, we went to RSPB Strumpshaw Fen, hoping to see Swallowtail butterflies and Norfolk Hawker dragonflies. Unfortunately, due to the cold May, both species were yet to emerge. Thankfully, the Marsh Harriers were a lot more cooperative, as were 2 Cuckoos (heard and seen), pinging Bearded Tits , a reeling Grasshopper Warbler and a Grass Snake.

Other insects seen here were: Variable Damselfly, Banded Demoiselle, Blue-tailed Damselfly, Azure Damselfly, Red-eyed Damselfly (1), Scarce Chaser (4) and Hairy Dragonfly (5+ seen, including a resting male).

Hairy Dragonfly

The Year List has now moved on to 150 species.

Year List update:

140 - Redstart

141 - Lesser Whitethroat

142 - Peregrine Falcon

143 - Bittern 

144 - Cetti's Warbler

145 - Ring-necked Parakeet

146 - Red-crested Pochard

147 - Marsh Harrier

148 - Bearded Tit

149 - Cuckoo

150 - Grasshopper Warbler

Year List Update - 15th May 2020

I last updated my year list back in February (see here). At the time, I had recorded 91 species in the UK, and was looking forward to an Easter trip to Majorca!! Obviously, due to the Corona Virus lockdown, the trip was cancelled, as was all other, non-essential travel, and opportunities to see some of my usual spring birds didn't happen.

Having said that, the list has continued to increase, with birds seen over the garden, or on our daily exercise walks, and it now stands at a not- too-terrible 108 species.

Year List update:
92 – Yellowhammer
93 – Chiffchaff
94 – Whooper Swan
95 – Dipper
96 – Skylark
97 - Blackcap
98 – Willow Warbler
99 – Raven
100 – Linnet
101 - Swallow
102 – House Martin
103 – Whitethroat
104 – Garden Warbler
105 – Swift
106 – Pied Flycatcher
107 – Meadow Pipit
108 – Cuckoo (heard)

Birds 92 - 105 were all first recorded in Dronfield and the surrounding area, with the exception of the Whooper Swan, which was a late addition, having been seen over Linacre on 21st March (my last visit before lockdown). Willow Warbler was first recorded in the garden, my first ever garden sighting! Numbers 106 - 108 were seen yesterday, by Jayne and me, on our first car trip since March, when we had an hour at Padley Gorge (4pm - 5.00pm).

Scotland - The Last Few Days

My last post about my recent Scotland trip is one covering a few days, and several different places.

The first place is a forest called Allean, near Queen's View in the Tay Forest Park. Jayne and I had a walk around this site for a couple of hours and recorded the usual suspects (tits, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeons), and a "year tick", Crossbill. Unfortunately, the only bird we saw was very distant, and silhouetted against the sky, so I wasn't able to see if it was a Common Crossbill or another, more exciting, species!! Afterwards, we went to Dunkeld for some delicious vegan food at The Atholl Arms Hotel, where we also saw our first Sand Martins of the trip, and a fly-over Jay.

Next stop was St Andrews on 25th April. We had a walk around the town and the old cathedral, and spotted about half a dozen nesting Fulmars, and 100+ Eider Ducks.

Fulmar

Our last trips of the week were to Cairn Gorm and the RSPB Loch Garten reserve. We visited Cairn Gorm yesterday morning. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't great (windy, raining on and off, and a low mist!), but we did get great views of at least 4 Ring Ouzels, including this male in the car park, a Mountain Hare and a male Wheatear in the small garden area.

Ring Ouzel

Wheatear

We then visited RSPB Loch Garten. There are no breeding Ospreys there this year, but we did see a pair of Goldeneye, a couple of Red Squirrels, many (!) Siskins, but no Crested Tits!!

The last bird, and the latest "year tick", a Cuckoo,  was heard, by Jayne, at 5am this morning, from our accommodation in Killikrankie. Thankfully, she woke me up so I could hear it too!

Year List update:
157 - Crossbill
158 - Cuckoo

Year List Update

As always the "year list" has continued to grow over the last week. Number 141, the Garden Warbler was added on Sunday 6th when I was lucky enough to find a singing male in the ringing site at Linacre. A very productive trip to the National Trust's Padley Gorge and nearby Barbrook Valley last Monday added numbers 142 - 146, whilst my first confirmed sighting of Swift came later in the week. The final bird, a stunning Short-eared Owl, was seen today.

Year List update:
141 – Garden Warbler
142 – Pied Flycatcher
143 – Redstart
144 – Cuckoo
145 – Whinchat
146 - Stonechat
147 - Swift
148 - Short-eared Owl

Red-footed Falcon!!

News of a 1st summer male Red-footed Falcon on Dunwich Heath on Tuesday evening had me up early (again!) this morning, to see if I could catch up with this species. I've seen a female Red-footed Falcon in Britain before, but this was my first male, so I was really keen to see it. Luckily, as the blog title suggests, I got lucky, and had super, 'scope views of the bird as it perched up in a dead tree in the reedbeds at the bottom of the National Trust's Dunwich Heath. It was also seen flying around briefly, catching dragonflies! An excellent addition to the "year list". No photos unfortunately, but here's a link to see photos of this species.

In addition to the falcon, I also added Little Gull to the "year list", with a first summer bird that flew overhead, along with several Mediterranean and Black-headed Gulls. Other birds seen on the heath were: Linnet, Goldfinch, Dartford Warbler, Green Woodpecker, Stonechat and several Whitethroats, including 1 carrying food to a nest.

Whitethroat

Whilst looking for the falcon, I also heard a booming Bittern, pinging Bearded Tits and a calling Cuckoo. A Little Owl was seen on the drive.

Year List update:
165 - Red-footed Falcon
166 - Little Gull

Year List update

I was looking through the blog yesterday, when I realised I'd not updated the Year List since the start of May. Since then, I've added another 8 species to the list, including one (Lesser Whitethroat) that I've not had a for a few years. This species was seen (briefly), and heard singing at Holmebrook Valley Country Park in Chesterfield on 7th May. After seeing this bird I picked Luke up, and travelled to Barlow where we had great views of a Little Owl.

Little Owl

We then drove up to Padley Gorge where we recorded Pied Flycatcher (2 singing males), Redstart (1 singing male), Cuckoo (1 calling male) and Tree Pipit (2 singing males at nearby Barbrook Plantation).

The final "tick" came at the weekend, when a male Whitethroat was recorded singing in the ringing area of Linacre. Hopefully, we'll be able to confirm breeding of this species here again this year.

Year List update:

146 – Swift (first seen in Chesterfield on 5th May)

147 – Lesser Whitethroat

148 – Little Owl

149 – Pied Flycatcher

150 – Redstart

151 – Cuckoo

152 – Tree Pipit

153 - Whitethroat

RSPB Strumpshaw Fen

I've been keen to see Swallowtail butterflies and Norfolk Hawker dragonflies for several years now, but both species have a very restricted range in Britain, being restricted to just a few sites in East Anglia. So, with a free day, and a reasonable weather forecast, I drove down to one of these sites, RSPB Strumpshaw Fen in Norfolk, to try and catch up with these 2 species.  Although it was slightly overcast when we (Jayne and I) arrived we still managed to see both species and get a few photos.

The Norfolk Hawkers were quite easy to see, patrolling the numerous dykes that crisscross the reserve. We managed to find one that was close to the path, and kept returning to a favourite perch time and time again. I got a few photos, which I've cropped down. Note the green eyes- gorgeous!

Norfolk Hawker

The Swallowtails were much more difficult to see, and we very nearly came away empty handed! As I said, the weather wasn't great, a bit too overcast for this species, but thankfully, the staff at the reserve spotted this individual fly into the reeds, just before we left! The butterfly was about 10 metres away from the reception hide, but I managed to get a few shots, one of which I've cropped. Quite pleased with the outcome.

Swallowtail

Whilst looking for the insects we came across 4 Common Lizards that were sat on the boardwalk. They were very easy to approach and we managed to get shots of this pristine individual and a less than pristine one! I think the second picture shows an individual that has lost its tail after being attacked by a predator.

Common Lizard

Common Lizard

As well as the insects we also managed to see several Marsh Harriers hunting over the reedbeds, hear Cetti's Warblers and see this stunning Bee Orchid (1 of at least 6 present near the reception).

Bee Orchid

Afterwards we went for a short drive to Thorpe St Andrew for some lunch, and saw a pair of Banded Demoiselle damselflies and a family party of Egyptian Goose (year tick) on the river.

Banded Demoiselle (female)

On the drive home we saw a Hobby (year tick) flying by the A17. Not a bad day!

Year List update:-
140 - Egyptian Goose
141 - Hobby

Year List Update and a new Dragonfly

This week is half term, which means I've had a bit of time to get out and about to do some birdwatching and increase my "year list". I've also added a new species of dragonfly to my "life list" with a Scarce Chaser seen.

The first new bird that I found was the Long-eared Owl. I saw this bird hunting over the moorland in the Peak District. I won't give the exact site, as it is a site where the bird has been known to breed.

The next birds, numbers 132- 138 (except House Martin, which I saw a few weeks ago, but forgot to add on), were all seen on a recent trip the RSPB Ouse Washes reserve in Cambridgeshire. I'm particularly pleased with the Short-eared Owl, Bittern (heard booming), and the Common Cranes, which are never easy to find. Whilst on site, we also saw and heard at least 2 Cuckoos, saw a Great-spotted Woodpecker feeding chicks, a fly-over Green Woodpecker, Swallows and caught up with my first dragon and damselflies of 2015, namely Blue-tailed Damselflies, Emerald Damselflies and this beautiful Scarce Chaser, which is a new species for me!!. I'm pretty sure its a young male, and, as its name suggests, its pretty scarce in the UK. See here for more details about this species.

Scarce Chaser

The final new bird is a Nightingale, which is now imposssible to see in Derbyshire. For this bird we, Jayne and I, travelled a little further south to Paxton Pits Nature Reserve. We were very lucky and managed to hear and actually see at least 2 male birds singing around the Kingfisher Hide. If you've never heard  the song of the Nightingale, listen to it here, as its an amazing sound. Whilst there, we also heard more Cuckoos, and saw a couple of males flying around the site. 

Year List update:
 131 – Long-eared Owl

132 – Common Tern

133- Common Crane

134 - Little Egret

135 – Short-eared Owl

136 – Bittern

137 – House Martin

138 – Reed Warbler

139 - Nightingale

Derbyshire Year Listing

This morning I got up early and had a couple of hours on the moorland in the Peak District National Park, adding 6 new species to the "Year List".

I started off at Padley Gorge where I heard a couple of Cuckoos calling from the moorlands. I then walked down into the oak woodlands where there were a couple of male Pied Flycatchers and several male Redstarts singing.

Padley Gorge

Back up on the moorlands I added a singing Whinchat to the list, before driving across to Ramsley Reservoir. On arrival I had a singing Tree Pipit, several Meadow Pipits, a pair of Stonechats, a singing Redstart, and, best of all, a "reeling" Grasshopper Warbler on neighbouring Leash Fen.

Year List update:

124 - Cuckoo

125 – Pied Flycatcher

126 – Whinchat

127 – Stonechat

128 – Tree Pipit

129 – Grasshopper Warbler

RSPB Nightjar Walk

On Friday I spent 4 hours in Clumber Park with several members of the Chesterfield RSPB Group, on our annual trip to see the Woodcocks and Nightjars that breed there.

We met at 7.30pm, and spent the first couple of hours looking round the main lake and grasslands by the Chapel. Despite super weather conditions, warm and sunny, we didn't see too many birds, just the expected water birds (Mute Swan, Canada and Greylag Goose, Mallard, Gadwall, Coot, Moorhen, Great-crested Grebe), and a few summer visitors (Swallow, Swift and House Martin).

We moved over to the regular area to see the Nightjars at about 9.15pm, and, within half an hour, we spotted the first birds. We were lucky enough to see 3 Nightjars over the next hour, along with about half a dozen Woodcocks, and a calling Cuckoo.

Here's a photo of one of the male Nightjars taken by a fellow RSPB member and friend, Norman Crowson.

Nightjar

Year List update:
151 - Woodcock
152 - Nightjar

Year List update and a new bird for Linacre

In the 9 years that I've been watching and recording the birdlife at Linacre there is one species of bird that, although very common in the surrounding area, I've never managed to record there, namely Greenfinch. I'm not sure why this is, but on Saturday, while leading a walk for the rangers, I spotted a male bird in the woodland by the bottom reservoir. A very nice new addition!

Apart from the Greenfinch, the walk was quite quiet, the highlights being my first Linacre Swift of the year, a couple of Common Buzzard, singing Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Blackcap, and 2 Coot chicks.

Today (Sunday), I spent a few hours with Jayne, at RSPB Old Moor. We'd just gone, for a walk and a spot of lunch, but, in the end, we ended up with super views of a hunting Hobby, 12 Whimbrels, a booming Bittern along with singing Reed Warblers, a Common Sandpiper and a lovely summer-plumaged Dunlin.

Year List update:

143 – Tree Pipit (Longshaw Estate on 5th May)

144 – Cuckoo (Longshaw Estate on 5th May)
145 – Swift
146 – Hobby
147 – Whimbrel
148 – Reed Warbler

Nightjar Walk - Clumber Park

Every year, at about this time, I join up with Chesterfield RSPB group to lead an evening walk around the National Trust's property of Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire. The key species we're looking for are Woodcock and Nightjar, and this year we managed excellent views of both species.

The evening started in the main car park, where we spent a couple of hours walking around the lake and woods. We managed good views of many different duck species, including Mallard, Tufted Duck and Gadwall. Canada and Greylag Geese were present in very good numbers (50+) of each species and there were at least 30 Mute Swans, with one group of 7 cygnets. Gulls were represented with several Black-headed and 1 over-flying Lesser Black-backed.

Summer migrants were present around the site and included Swifts, Swallows, House Martins attending nests on the buildings, a singing Cuckoo and 3 species of warbler, Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler.

The night ended with a short drive to another area of the park where we heard and saw the stars of the night; Woodcock and Nightjar. Lovely birds!

Year List:
145 - Nightjar

Ladybower Wood SSSI

Spent a couple of hours out at the DWT's Ladybower Wood reserve with Stewart from the ringing group to check a few boxes and ring my first Redstart pulli. He had 1 box  with 4 chicks in it and we ringed 2 each. Thanks Stewart!

Redstart pulli

 

We checked a few other boxes and ringed some Blue and Great Tits, but the 4 boxes with Pied Flycatcher chicks and eggs weren't ready, so they'll have to wait for another day.

 

Pied Flycatcher chicks

 

Pied Flycatcher eggs

 

As well as these birds we also managed to record several other species including 2 "year ticks", namely Wood Warbler and Tree Pipit. Cuckoos were calling all morning and Stewart managed a quick glimpse of one as I dragged myself up the hill!!

 

Year List:

142 - Wood Warbler

143 - Tree Pipit

RSPB Lakenheath- 28th May 2013

During our recent trip to Suffolk Jayne and I popped across to the RSPB's Lakenheath Reserve in the search of a male Red-footed Falcon, that had been present for over 3 weeks. Unfortunately, the day before our visit it had had a run in with a local Sparrowhawk and wasn't playing ball. Added to that, the weather had turned cool, wet and windy, so we left slightly disappointed!

Despite the "no-show" from the falcon, we did manage to see and hear 25 species of bird including 3 Hobbys hunting together, hunting Marsh Harriers, Reed, Sedge,Cettis and Grasshopper Warbler, "pinging"Bearded Tit, a Kingfisher and several Cuckoos, including this one that perched briefly.

Cuckoo

This Reed Warbler sat singing in the reeds near the path and I managed to grab a few shots before it disappeared again.

Reed Warbler

Minsmere Magic!

Just been down to Suffolk for a week's family holiday. I managed to get quite a lot of birding done, including 3 visits to RSPB Minsmere and a drive over to RSPB Lakenheath.  Over the course of the week I managed a respectable total of 101 species, including 15 "year ticks".

We stayed in a small village called Sweffling, which was about 20 minutes from Minsmere. I went across to this superb reserve on 3 ocassions, incluidng 2 early morning visits. Bitterns were heard booming on all visits and Jayne and I watched one feeding from the aptly named Bittern Hide for over 30 minutes one evening.

Bittern

Over the three visits we recorded a total of 69 species including Cuckoo, Bearded Tits, Nightingale, Marsh Harrier and Hobby, as well as a Great White Egret. This really is an amazing place, well worth a visit at any time of the year.

Hobby

Year List update:

126 – Hobby

127 – Cuckoo
128 – Nightingale
129 – Marsh Harrier
130 – Common Tern
131 – Cettis Warbler
132- Reed Warbler
133 – Bearded Tit
134 – Red-backed Shrike
135 – Dartford Warbler
136 – Woodlark
137 – Grasshopper Warbler
138 – Dunlin
139 – Great White Egret
140 – Barn Owl

More details of some of the above birds to follow.

Clumber Park - 10th June 2011

As a birdwatcher, there are certain events that I look forward to every year, such as the first returning summer migrants or winter thrushes. Another event that I always enjoy is this early summer evening visit to Clumber Park, in Nottinghamshire, to look for the Nightjars and Woodcock.

Clumber lake with Greylag Geese

Tonight's visit, run as part of the Chesterfield RSPB's programme of events, began at 7pm in the chapel car park where the first birds, a beautiful pair of Stock Doves were seen in one of the nearby trees. Walking down to the lake we soon spotted Swift (dozens feeding low over the water), Swallow, House and Sand Martin. Waterbirds were present on the lake itself and included Gadwall, Coot, Mute Swan, Mallard, Canada and Greylag Goose, all with young in tow.

Coot's nest and young

Other waterbirds seen, but which didn't have young were Moorhen, Tufted Duck and a pair of Shoveler, the male of which was going into eclipse plumage.

The walk continued down the side of the water where we managed to locate a few more summer migrants with Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and a Blackcap/Garden Warbler all singing. An Oystercatcher found feeding on the grass, was an unusual sight and was my first at this site. The highlight, however, of this part of the walk was a pair of Spotted Flycatcher that we managed to find and watch "flycatching" on the far side of the lake.

At about 9.15pm we headed back to the car park and drove to another area of the park where we had seen both Nightjar and Woodcock in previous years. We got in position next to an area of cleared plantation and waited for the light to fade.

Nightjar habitat in Clumber Park

Whilst waiting for the first Nightjars, we heard a distinctive call and saw a couple of Woodcock"roding" overhead. A Cuckoo was also calling, but wasn't seen. After about half an hour (about 9.40pm before the I think!) we heard the first "churring" and its wasn't long before Nightjars appeared flying low overhead. At one point we had 2 birds singing at the same time and saw at least 3 birds, including a female that flew up from the floor, presumably from a hidden nest. If you've never herard a Nightjar "churring", follow this link, it's an amazing sound!!

The evening ended at about 10.30pm and we all left the area leaving the birds churring away. Many thanks to all that attended.