Gannets!!

 I don't often go out "birding" nowadays, without there being the potential for a "tick", but today was a little different, as Jayne and I headed over to RSPB Bempton Cliffs for our second time this year. The reason for today's visit was to see, and photograph, this year's juvenile birds (something we'd never done, despite saying we would every year!!).

Juvenile

The weather forecast was perfect, and, for once, it stayed perfect, with beautiful blue skies, little wind, and temperatures of 23 degrees. There were still lots of adult birds present, along with juveniles, in varying stages of development, and other, immature birds from previous years. The RSPB also have a great display showing how the birds develop, and change, as they mature.

Very young bird, covered in down

Preening out that pesky down!

3rd year birds?

Most of the other breeding birds had left, but we did spot a few Fulmars, 3 Razorbills (juveniles on the sea). Other birds seen were: Linnet, Goldfinch, Tree Sparrow, Jackdaw and a fantastic brood of 5 Swallows in a nest on the Visitor Centre.

Swallows

Year List Update - 4th August 2025

 Jayne and I are up in Scotland for a couple of weeks. On the drive up, we stopped off at Musselburgh Lagoons, near Edinburgh, to look for some scoters. 

There were 4 species of scoter to find, but, as you can imagine, we only managed to find 2 of them, Velvet Scoter (185), Common Scoter (186). Annoyingly, the White-winged and Surf remained elusive!! Other species seen were: Eider Duck, Razorbill (187), Redshank, Gannet, Sandwich Tern, Herring Gull and Goosander.

Arriving in Anstruther, we spotted 6 species of gull, around the harbour area: Black-headed, Common, Herring, Great Black-backed, Lesser Black-backed and a single Kittiwake. 2 Kingfishers were also seen feeding in the rockpools, along with Redshank, Ringed Plover, Oystercatcher, Curlew and Turnstone. A single Shag (188) and a single Common Tern (189) were spotted on the nearby rocks.

A walk along the coastal path to Pittenweem added Linnet, Painted Lady and a single Hummingbird Hawkmoth.

Linnet

Weekend Birding

 This weekend, Jayne and I went up to RSPB Bempton Cliffs, Teesdale and RSPB Fairburn Ings. Over the two days, we managed to spot 10 new species for the "year list".

The first new species was Gannet (152), followed closely by Kittiwake (153), Puffin (154) and Razorbill (155). Back at the Visitors' Centre, we added Tree Sparrow (156).

Tree Sparrow

Afterwards, we drove up to Teesdale, to visit Langdon Beck and the Black Grouse (157). We had two visits, one on Saturday, and one again on Sunday morning. Black Grouse were seen on both occasions, with 27 displaying (lekking) males on the Sunday visit- a very impressive sight and sound. One bird, presumably a young male, by the look of the plumage, wandered up from the lek, right to the car, from where this photo was taken!

Black Grouse

A short while later, this female bird was spotted, posing beautifully. Again, this photo was taken from the car, at a distance of about 15m.

Black Grouse (female)

Other birds seen in the area were: drumming Snipe (158), a male Wheatear (159), Curlew, Lapwing and lots of Meadow Pipits. Driving back to our accommodation, we dropped very lucky, and saw two hunting Barn Owls, and a Red Squirrel!

Barn Owl

Our last stop was RSPB Fairburn Ings, where we added Spoonbill (160) and Common Tern (161).

Brown Booby!!

 An adult female Brown Booby (species 187) has been present in and around South Gare, near Redcar for just over a week. This morning, I have a drive up there and added it to my "Life List". 

Brown Booby

It had just flown out to sea, when I arrived at about 8.45am, but it returned within a few minutes, and posed nicely on a small pier - excellent views!!

Twitchers and the Booby

Whilst there, I also saw a couple of Arctic Skuas (species 188) harassing the Sandwich Terns, which were, surprisingly, also a "lifer" for me!! Other species seen were: Guillemot, Razorbill, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Herring and Great Black-backed Gull.

Booby and Cormorant

RSPB Bempton Cliffs and RSPB Old Moor - 22nd April 2023

 Jayne and I had a trip over to RSPB Bempton Cliffs to catch up with a few "year ticks" today. First up was Tree Sparrow (133), with several birds around the main centre, busy setting up their territories.

Tree Sparrow

After a quick walk down to the cliffs we soon added the other new birds: Puffin (134) (thanks for the spot, Jayne!), Guillemot (135), Razorbill (136), Kittiwake (137) and Gannet (138).

Puffin and Guillemot

Razorbill

When we had finished at Bempton, we checked Bird Guides, and noticed that the male Ring-necked Duck (139) had been reported at RSPB Old Moor. We popped in on the way back, and got great, but distant, views from Wath Ings Hide. 

Ring-necked Duck

Other birds seen were: Shelduck (140), Gadwall, Mallard, Canada Goose, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Starling, Green Woodpecker and Cetti's Warbler.

Wales - 15th - 22nd April 2022

 Jayne and I have just spent a week in Llanbedrog, North Wales. Although primarily a family break, we did manage to do some birding, and added 10 species to the "Year List".

The first new bird was a very nice surprise, a drumming Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (129), that was heard  from our bed!! Unfortunately, we couldn't see it, but we heard it for three mornings on the trot (at 6:30am!). The next two additions were Gannet (130) and Whitethroat (131), which were both seen in Aberdaron. The 132nd species seen was Osprey. We saw 2 pairs of birds at the Glaslyn Osprey Centre, near Porthmadog. 

Yesterday, we had a trip to Cemlyn Lagoon and RSPB South Stack. Cemlyn was very busy with 100+ Sandwich Terns (133) coming and going, along with a similar amount of Black-headed Gulls. We popped in to the old harbour at Holyhead and managed to see three Black Guillemots (134), before heading across to RSPB South Stack, where we added Razorbill (135), Kittiwake (136), Puffin (137) and House Martin (138) to the list. 

Other species seen here included: Chough, Raven, Guillemot, Stonechat, Meadow Pipit, Swallow, Lesser, Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls, Linnet. 

Scarborough, Saltburn and Whitby

 This weekend, Jayne and I had a couple of days on the East Coast. We stayed in Scarborough, and saw Herring, Black-headed and Great Black-backed Gulls. There were also several Terns around, including this one (below), which I presume is either Common or Arctic.

"Commic" Tern

There were also many Razorbills and Guillemots very close in, including 18 in Scarborough Harbour this morning. An adult Kittiwake was also seen, as were 5 Red-throated Divers (3 from Saltburn Pier and 2 in Scarborough South Bay.

Razorbill

Guillemot

Waders seen were: Redshank, Oystercatcher, Turnstone and Curlew.

Year List update:

171 - Hobby (seen at school!! on 6th September)

172 - Red-throated Diver

RSPB Bempton Cliffs - 4th July 2020

Most years, Jayne and I try to get up to RSPB Bempton Cliffs near Bridlington to see the seabird colony there. Normally, we go up around Easter time, but, for obvious reasons, we didn't get there this year, so instead, we went up yesterday.

One of the main reasons for this year's visit was the see a Black-browed Albatross that had been seen on Friday. Unfortunately, there was no sign, so instead, we enjoyed the fantastic Gannets, Kittiwakes, Guillemots, Razorbills, Fulmars, Puffins, Herring Gulls, Tree Sparrows, and two new species for us at this reserve, Long-eared Owl  and  Great Skua.

Gannet (adult)

Gannet (Sub-adult, possibly born in 2019, or 2018)

We don't normally see many mammals here, so a couple of very active Weasels by the side of one of the viewpoints was a very nice sight.

Weasel

Farne Islands

I last visited the Farne Islands in 2011 (see here), so, when deciding where to go away this year, Jayne and I decided to visit this group of islands off the Northumberland coast at the height of the breeding season. We visited on Friday 31st May, and, despite heavy rain for most of the visit (!), had an amazing time seeing all the birds at such close quarters.

We went across to the islands and spent about one and a half hours travelling around them (seeing Fulmar and Gannets), before landing on Inner Farne for an hour long visit. Whilst on the island we walked up through the Arctic Tern colony, passing the nesting birds (and being pecked by them). We also saw nesting Sandwich Terns, Eider Ducks, Black-headed Gulls, Shag, Guillemot, Razorbill and Puffin, all within touching distance of the paths - fantastic!!

Arctic Tern

Eider Duck

Razorbill

Guillemot (including a bridled individual)

Puffins

Black-headed Gull (and chick)

Year List update:

178 – Kittiwake

179 – Puffin

180 – Arctic Tern

22nd April 2019 - 5 Year Ticks

On Monday Jayne and I had a drive around and manged to get 5 new species for the year. The first two, Stonechat and Black-throated Diver, were seen at a loch near Carrbridge, along with 1 male Wheatear, Meadow Pipits, Oystercatchers, Mallard, Greylag Goose (2) and Black-headed and Lesser Black-backed Gulls. The divers put on a fantastic show, swimming to within 20ft of the car, where we were sitting, allowing some fantastic views of this full breeding plumage!

Black-throated Diver

The next stop of the day was the seaside town of Nairn on the Moray Firth, where we enjoyed the 22 degree heat and fantastic sunshine. We went looking for a King Eider, which we unfortunately, didn't get, but instead we enjoyed watching our first Sandwich Terns, Razorbills and Gannets feeding in the sea from the end of the pier.

Year list update:
149 – Stonechat
150 – Black-throated Diver
151 – Sandwich Tern
152 – Razorbill

153 – Gannet

North Wales Weekend

The title of this post isn't quite correct, as I didn't spend the weekend in Wales, but I did have a couple of days over the Bank Holiday there with Jayne. We were based in Llandudno and had a visit to RSPB South Stack to try and catch up with a few "year ticks".

South Stack lighthouse

The "year ticks" in question were Puffin (2 seen on the water), Chough (2 seen flying around the cliffs) and Black Guillemot (1 seen in the Old Harbour in Holyhead). Other species seen included Raven, Guillemot, Razorbill, Herring Gull, Jackdaw and Linnet.

Along with the birds we were also lucky enough to see several insects, including a "lifer". The first insect we saw was Wall Brown (a minimum of 4 individuals) feeding along the cliff tops. We also spotted a Painted Lady, a Drinker moth caterpillar, a Green Tiger Beetle and, best of all, a Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary (a new species!!).

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Year List update:
149 - Puffin
150 - Chough
151 - Black Guillemot

Year List Update

I haven't updated the "year list" for a few weeks, so, after visiting the RSPB Bempton Cliffs reserve yesterday I thought I'd do a quick post to bring it up to date.

The first 2 species (numbers 114 - 116) were seen last week at Linacre. The next 2 species, House Martin and Blackcap, were seen on Thursday, the former over school, and the latter at Linacre. The two grouse species were seen yesterday in Langdon Beck, County Durham, whilst the last 3 species were also seen yesterday, this time at RSPB Bempton Cliffs.

Gannets

Fulmar

Year List update:
114 – Common Sandpiper
115 – Swallow
116 – House Martin
117 – Blackcap
118 – Black Grouse
119 – Red Grouse
120 – Gannet
121 – Guillemot
122 – Razorbill

Year List Update - a Lifer!!

On Tuesday, Jayne and I spent 4 hours on a wildlife watching boat trip with AK Wildlife Cruises in Falmouth Bay. The trip was aimed mainly at cetaceans, but obviously, birds were also seen, including, as the title suggests, a lifer for me!

The first wildlife seen was Grey Mullet, with dozens of these fish feeding in the shallow water around the marina. As we set out on the water, we saw Herring and Black-headed Gulls. Mediterranean Gulls were also seen, including several juvenile birds. Other birds seen during the trip were: Fulmar (1), Razorbill (2; 1 adult and a juvenile), Peregrine Falcon (1 juvenile), Little Egret (1), Gannet, Whimbrel (1), Manx Shearwater ( 50+) and Storm Petrel (2) - a LIFER1!!

Manx Shearwater

The marine mammals were playing a little harder to get, but we did manage to get great views of several Grey Seals that were hauled out on the rocks. We also saw several Harbour Porpoises (perhaps up to 10 individuals), including adults and juveniles. They were very difficult to photograph, but I did manage a few shots.

Harbour Porpoises

Year List update:
176 – Manx Shearwater
177 - Whimbrel
178 – Storm Petrel

Birthday Lifer

It was my birthday this weekend, so I travelled up to Teesdale and RSPB Bempton Cliffs with my family for a couple of days. High on my wish list was a bird that I've looked for before - Black Grouse. This year luck, and a bit of research, paid dividends, and I got to watch an amazing 22 males and 19 females at a lek site in Upper Teesdale. The birds were seen (and heard) from the road, with the birds about 500m away. After the lekking was over, a female bird and 2 males flew closer to me, allowing a couple of reasonable shots from the car.

Black Grouse (female)

Black Grouse (male and a Curlew)

Driving back down to our hotel in Barnard Castle I managed a couple of lovely photos of 2 other moorland birds; Lapwing and Snipe.

Lapwing

Snipe

Other birds seen in Teesdale were: Red Grouse, Common Sandpiper (1 on the Tees in Barnard Castle), Dipper, Grey Wagtail, Curlew, Swallow (5) and Red-legged Partridge (year tick).

After Teesdale, we drove across to Bempton Cliffs in North Yorkshire, and added another 4 species (Razorbill, Puffin, Gannet and Kittiwake) to the "year list", taking me to 141. It was pretty windy when we got there, and the Gannets, in particular, were hovering just on the edge of the cliffs, and dropping down onto the grass to grab mouthfuls for  their nests, allowing some decent photo opportunities.

Gannet

Other species seen here were: Guillemot, Tree Sparrow, Skylark, Fulmar and Herring Gull.

Year List update:
136 – Black Grouse
137 – Red-legged Partridge
138 – Razorbill
139 – Puffin
140 – Gannet
141 – Kittiwake

Scarborough, Bempton and Bridlington

I spent yesterday out and about in Yorkshire with Luke. We started the day off in Scarborough, before driving down to the RSPB Bempton Cliffs reserve, and finishing off in Bridlington.

We started off in Scarborough so that Luke could see his first Black-necked Grebe. Luckily the bird was still present in the harbour, and we managed to see it straight away, swimming around the boats. The Turnstones were around (no colour rings today though), as were Herring Gulls, Kittiwakes, and, best of all, a single male Wheatear, hopping about on the sea defences, presumably having just arrived in the country. Luke managed to grab this distant record shot, before it continued on its journey to who knows where...

Wheatear

From Scarborough, we headed off down the coast to RSPB Bempton Cliffs. The weather turned when we arrived, and we ended up being blown about and rained on, as we stood looking over the famous cliffs. Luckily, we managed to spot all the key birds through the rain, with excellent views of Gannets, Kittiwakes, Fulmar, Guillemots, Razorbills and, best of all for Luke, Puffin ( a new species)! 

Puffin

After Bempton, we drove down to Bridlington so we could go for a boat trip out along the coast. We had an hour long ride up towards Flamborough Head. Unfortunately, the weather didn't improve and we only managed to see  a few birds, including Kittiwakes, a couple of Gannets, several Herring Gulls and a winter plumaged Guillemot. The only highlight, though, was a "year tick" for me and a new species for Luke; Common Scoter. We saw about 6 birds flying past in small groups.

After the boat trip we walked around the harbour where we spotted another dozen or so Turnstones, another Black-necked Grebe (!), Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls and a Barnacle Goose.

Black-necked Grebe

Barnacle Goose

Further investigation via Twitter, lead me to find out that the Barnacle Goose is a feral bird that has been around the harbour for about 5 to 6 years. A very strange and unexpected addition to the day's birding.

Year List update:
131- Wheatear
132 - Gannet
133 - Razorbill
134 - Puffin
135 - Common Scoter