Friday 13 December 2013

Feeding Stations

Hello

Well this morning was back to reality with visits to the majority of the wild bird feeding stations to top up feeders and add extra food.  Despite the relatively mild conditions the food has been disappearing fast!  A Woodcock flushed up at Scotland Wood (Kelmarsh Estate) and a vocal Raven flew through the wood.  A juvenile female Peregrine was chasing Woodpigeons in the fields between Scotland Wood and Maidwell village.  I left her perched in an ash tree waiting for her prey to return after she had frightened them all away!

At least one Grey Wagtail was at Brixworth Sewer Works and Eleanor counted about ten Bramblings on the seed at Harrington Airfield this morning.

The Hume's Leaf Warbler was heard calling at the undisclosed private site, this being it's eighth day in residence.

A mid-week ringing session by Dave Francis at Pitsford Res provided 70 birds, the majority of which were new birds.  These new individuals included a sudden influx of 23 Greenfinches plus 5 Goldfinches, 5 Tree Sparrows, 5 Yellowhammers, 2 Redwings and 2 Moorhens.

Regards

Neil M

Thursday 12 December 2013

Dull Day !

Sadly not much time for birding today. I ran around the big side of Pitsford Reservoir in the fog, so struggled to see very much. The only birds of note being 4 Little Egret, 2+ Redshank and a very vocal Water Rail.
I managed to persuade my friend to meet at Harlestone Garden Centre, with a view to walking in the Firs after our Christmas shopping spree!!.  There were at least 2 Crossbills flying around calling, 30+ Siskins and several Redpolls flying over as we walked.
So after the excitement of yesterday, it was a rather dull day.

Regards  Eleanor

Wednesday 11 December 2013

Hume's on show

Hello

Today was the day when the Hume's Leaf Warbler site was opened up for chaperoned access.  The bird was heard calling at 8am on a cool and murky start of the day and the bird was only seen fairly fleetingly in grey conditions for the first couple of hours.  Thankfully it remained vocal which aided locating it again and again.

As the day very slowly warmed up, the bird provided longer observations and at times showed rather well with all 70 plus observers seeing the bird.

Our thanks go to John Showers and Phil Jackman for their help in assisting with the day's events and giving up their time in often cold and dank conditions.

Donations by visiting birders ensured that £248 was provided for a Grade 1 listed local restoration project on-site.

A very big thank-you to all visitors for their impeccable behaviour and helping each other to stay on the bird which was a task in itself!

If the bird winters it is hoped to run a similar event in January 2014, on this occasion at a week-end.  This is naturally dependent on local conditions etc, and the event will be advertised on this blog site and linked local sites.

Eleanor visited Blueberry Farm last thing this afternoon before the mist returned and notched up 2 Red Kites, 2 Woodcock and a Barn Owl.

Regards

Neil M


Tuesday 10 December 2013

Tuesday Tidings !!

I decided to start my day with a run around the big side of Pitsford Reservoir. It was barely light when I started off and initially I flushed numerous "dozy" passerines out of the bushes and from the track !!  There were 2 Great White Egret together at the back of the Pintail Bay. However I noticed that the water level is now slightly higher and that water is being actively pumped in, which may make this bay less favourable for these birds.  Two drake Smew were in the Catwalk Bay.  As you can see I managed to spot all the "white" birds !!.
I had a small flock of Crossbills fly over calling as I reached the causeway and later I accidently disturbed them from the trees in the Catwalk Bay. Must be worth a closer look for the rarer two barred or parrot crossbill.
Other birds included 4+ Redpolls, 10 Siskin and Grey Wagtail.

Mid morning found me feeding the birds at Harrington Airfield. I only fed them yesterday but know that I have a couple of busy days ahead, so thought I'd better keep the birds topped up.  When I arrived at the entrance there was not a single bird to be seen or heard , but when I checked the ground I could understand why ?  as not a scrap of food left !!! It is a wonder any of the birds could fly after eating the amount I put out yesterday.
I fed them and did a short circuit round the airfield, which seemed quiet.  When I returned to my car the track and nearby bushes were alive with birds, including 10+ Brambling, some of which are in stunning plumage.

We maintain a number of small feeding stations in nearby local woods and other locations and one of many jobs today was to go and top up all the feeders.  So I took my handsome assistant and headed into the woods.  Again plenty of birds around, with Nuthatches, Marsh Tits, Great Spotted Woodpeckers and Siskins being very vocal.  My assistant very kindly flushed out 3 or 4 Woodcock in Scotland Wood, as well as a lovely Roe Deer.
There were also 2 Raven and Red Kite in the area.

I checked the area where the Hume's Leaf Warbler was found and after a good 30 mins of searching it started to call and showed quite well for short periods at a time.
Neil has arranged access to this site for tomorrow.  Please see previous blogs for details.

Regards Eleanor

Monday 9 December 2013

Blueberry Farm

Hello

Eleanor took a wander around Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this afternoon, the site attracting 2 Ravens, 2 Red Kites, 1-2 Barn
Owl(s) and a pair of Stonechat...

Regards

Neil M

Hume's still present

Hello

This morning the Hume's Leaf Warbler was still present at the restricted access site, hopefully with a view to remaining until at least Wednesday when viewing arrangements are being put in place - please see previous blogs for details.  However the bird showed poorly today and for much of the time could only be heard calling.

At Harrington Airfield this morning one of the Short-eared Owls was still in residence and a dozen or so Bramblings were mobile (with many of them on sown game cover behind the bunker alongside the concrete track).  The Golden Plover flock was flighty and mostly distant.

Regards

Eleanor and Neil

Sunday 8 December 2013

Glauc en-route to breakfast!

Hello

This morning a number of the Northants Ringing Group set up a ringing demonstration on the new Wildlife Trust reserve called Irthlingborough Lakes (part of the Ditchford GP complex).  Over seventy birds were captured, none of which were particularly unusual but a good range of species provided an opportunity for people to see wild birds close-up which is always a privilege.

Whilst we were there a 1st year Glaucous Gull flew west over the pits at 10.10am, no doubt on its way to Sidegate Lane Landfill.  A Grey Wagtail, a Kingfisher, a redpoll sp and a couple each of calling Water Rail and Cetti's Warbler were the only other birds out of the ordinary.

This afternoon the Hume's Leaf Warbler from the last few days was again showing on and off and calling well.

Regards

Neil M

Saturday 7 December 2013

Hume's Access

Hello

Should the Hume's Leaf Warbler be present on-site during this coming week it is planned to provide escorted access on Wednesday 11th December 2013.

It is planned to accommodate three time slots of  9am, 11am and 1pm.

Should you wish to attend please advise me by email:-

neil.mcmahonoriole@btinternet.com

Please indicate which time slot you would prefer.

On confirming the appointment I will provide a rendezvous point and my mobile number.  Please be advised that there may be a delay in me being able to respond.

I will visit the site early on Wednesday to establish if the bird is still present and update Birdguides and northantsbirds.com accordingly.  It is therefore advisable to monitor these websites on Wednesday for any relevant news.

Anyone booking for the 9am time slot is advised to be on-site in any event (the disadvantage of this early slot is that it may not be possible to confirm the presence of the bird by this time).

Future access after this date may not be possible.

Thank-you for your patience.

Neil McMahon

Raptors and owls!

Hello

A visit to Brixworth Sewage Works today provide views of a Peregrine, and two Grey Wagtails amongst quite a flock of Pied Wagtails.

Myself and Baz fed the birds at the start of the track at Harrington Airfield, and it wasn't long before at last 6 Bramblings appeared. There is quite a lot of fallen leaves on the ground which makes it rather a challenge picking out the Bramblings from the orange and gold colours of these leaves.

We flushed a Woodcock and 2 Short-eared Owls on our walk.  I suspect that the Short-eared Owls are very recent arrivals judging by their flighty action.

There were 2 Red Kites over Walgrave village, seen as I opened my parents' front door, after I had visited them.

Poor Baz really wanted a snooze this afternoon, but I had other ideas !!! It was such a glorious afternoon and I couldn't miss the opportunity of a good walk around the Blueberry Farm complex.
There was a tractor ploughing which attracted large numbers of gulls, corvids, Starlings and winter thrushes.  They were very vocal and a real test for my ears!!!  Anyway it wasn't long before there were calls of alarm and chaos as a female Peregrine whizzed through, closely followed by 2+ Ravens.

When I reached the summit of the large field I loitered awhile to give Baz a rest and there was a fantastic sight of 3 Red Kites, the resident white Common Buzzard, a Raven and a Short-eared Owl all circling around in the air together, with the Raven and kites being very vocal.  It really was a beautiful scene.

Other birds on our walk included a Barn Owl, Woodcock and a pair of Stonechat.

Regards 

Eleanor

Hume's Leaf Warbler

Hello

The apparent Yellow-browed Warbler from yesterday was seen today and primarily as a result of it's call has now been identified as the far rarer Hume's Leaf Warbler.  This used to be treated as a race of Yellow-browed but is now regarded as a full species in its own right.

Access to the site remains restricted, but if the bird remains efforts will be made to provide an opportunity for chaperoned access in the near future.

Regards

Neil M




 
Images courtesy of
Neil Hasdell


Friday 6 December 2013

Winter Woodcock & Co

Hello

Yesterday (Thursday) and a blustery walk at Harrington Airfield was enough to see two Woodcock and about ten Bramblings.

Today (Friday) and two visits to Blueberry Farm, Maidwell provided observations of a female Peregrine, a Barn Owl, two Red Kites, 2+ Ravens, two Woodcock and a pair of Stonechat.  Hundreds of Fieldfares remain on-site.

A Yellow-browed Warbler was heard calling at a private site today - efforts will be made to try and locate the bird tomorrow and if it is still present small numbers of birders may be able to visit the site by way of restricted and escorted access.

Pitsford Res continued to hold birds of interest today, two drake Smew, a Goosander and a Great White Egret were visible from the dam and birds on show from the Old Scaldwell Road feeding station included two Great White Egrets, eight Red-crested Pochard, four 'redhead' Smew, a Black-tailed Godwit and two Redshank.

A ringing session at Kelmarsh Hall today provided 95 captures which included plenty of tits, a Nuthatch, three Bullfinches, thirteen Goldfinches, a Treecreeper and nine Blackbirds.  A Woodcock was seen on our initial arrival.

Regards

Eleanor and Neil

Wednesday 4 December 2013

It's becoming colder...

Hello

A day of chores today meant that we were both out of action for much of the time.

I noticed a Grey Wagtail at Pitsford Quarry this morning and later there was a Red Kite circling over Hanging Houghton village.

Whilst at Pitsford Res restocking and organising the feed station at the Old Scaldwell Road, I noted the long-staying Black-tailed Godwit, the Bar-headed Goose and at least 6 Red-crested Pochard in the Scaldwell Bay.

A short birding session at Ravensthorpe Res this afternoon in plummeting temperatures failed to find much of note, the highlights being a Grey Wagtail, a Kingfisher and a Water Rail.

Regards

Neil M

Tuesday 3 December 2013

Oldsquaw!

Hello

Today on my early morning run there were 2+ Bramblings, a Grey Wagtail and 2 Ravens near Beck Dairy, Cottesbrooke.  I think that I gave the pair of Stonechat [at the southern end of Blueberry] a fright as it was barely light when I ran past them as they perched on the brambles next to the track!!

Whilst drinking my coffee at home and recovering from my run I had 2 Crossbills, 6 Siskins and probably the same 2 Ravens over the garden.

I found myself running errands around the Wellingborough area so I took Bazra and enjoyed a very pleasant stroll around Sywell Country Park.  It is quite a favourite walk of mine and I think a rather under-watched place.  The autumn colours were quite stunning, mind you so were the birds as I coincided my walk with a brief spell of sunshine.  Two 'redhead' Smew, a Water Rail, a pair of Stonechat, 10+ Lesser Redpolls and 50+ Siskin certainly brightened up the day.

One of my aims for today was to visit Earls Barton and hopefully photograph the 3 Long-tailed Ducks present on Mary's Lake.  I do not remember seeing three of these birds together in the county before and they certainly looked quite spectacular and were showing well - diving, preening, flying and loafing around.  Sadly the light was pretty poor this afternoon.......well that's my excuse for my poor attempts at photographing them!

Regards  

Eleanor





Monday 2 December 2013

Feeding the birds

Hello

Eleanor's walk at Harrington Airfield this morning failed to find much of note, but a dozen Bramblings were on the seed with other birds by the main entrance.

After a short period of bird ringing in the garden this morning I spent much of the day visiting and re-stocking wild bird feeding stations nearby.  Three Woodcock were noted in Scotland Wood, a private site on the Kelmarsh Estate.

Regards

Neil M

Sunday 1 December 2013

Watch out for European Immigrants!

Hello

A ringing session held in the Walgrave Bay at Pitsford Res provided over sixty birds of a variety of species.  Quite a number of Blackbirds included a female bearing a Dutch ring, further proof that many of the Backbirds around at the moment are transient European birds looking for suitable winter quarters.  A male Sparrowhawk was the highlight for many, these fierce and undaunted little predators always demand respect and generate just a little awe.  A Lesser Redpoll was also caught together with a Willow Tit and a couple of Redwings plus six tiny Goldcrests.

Other birds noted in and around the Walgrave Bay included nine Red-crested Pochard, a Kingfisher, a couple more redpoll sp and about six Siskins.

A still and cold Blueberry Farm yielded a hunting Barn Owl and two Stonechats this afternoon and a Peregrine was reported.

Regards

Eleanor, Neil H and Neil M


 
Sparrowhawk