The ducks have it!

Hello

Ducks stole the show today with the drake Garganey again being seen on Otter Lake on the Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows reserve section of Ditchford Pits this morning. Nearby at Stanwick Pits Steve Fisher found a/the drake Green-winged Teal on flood water behind the Main Lake. The drake Scaup was again on Grendon Lakes on the Earls Barton Pits complex today and the 'redhead' Smew was again reported on the Main Lake at Clifford Hill Pits this morning.

This afternoon there were four mobile Short-eared Owls on the eastern edge of Blueberry Farm, Maidwell at the juncture of Lamport Farms fields - access is from footpaths from the Brampton Valley Way running up to Blueberry Farm. Six Common Snipe were present too. This morning a Short-eared Owl, presumably one of these birds, flew up from cover in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton near to 'shrike hedge', with two Green Sandpipers and two Stonechats just west of the Brampton Valley Way. 

Two Siskins were on a nyger feeder at Scotland Wood this morning and birds around Kelmarsh Hall included a Woodcock, two Ravens and some audible Siskins. A described owl seen on the events field there yesterday by staff members suggested another Short-eared Owl but it couldn't be relocated today.

Two Cattle Egrets were on the Summer Leys reserve today and other birds recorded included a Marsh Harrier, three Great White Egrets, three hundred and eighty Golden Plovers, two Redshanks, four Oystercatchers, six Common Snipe and two Chiffchaffs. 

A very impressive Starling murmuration took place again at Stortons Pits this evening, well captured on video by Graham Bentley.

Regards

Neil M

Great Crested Grebe
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Tufted Ducks courtesy
of John Tilly.

Redshank courtesy 
of Tony Stanford.

Oystercatchers courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Dull weather Wednesday

Hello

An early morning stint at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell in the mist provided some birds which included at least one Short-eared Owl, a Barn Owl, several calling Grey Partridges and two Common Snipe. Two Green Sandpipers were in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton.

Harrington Airfield attracted hundreds of Fieldfares and Starlings feeding on the saturated fields, an influx of Chaffinches and a covey of twelve Grey Partridges.

An adult Yellow-legged Gull was again off the dam at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon and the Earls Barton Pits complex included a Scaup at Grendon Lakes and Summer Leys LNR attracted two Cattle Egrets, four Great White Egrets, five Pintail, four Oystercatchers, three hundred plus Golden Plovers, two Redshanks and two Siskins. The Mary's Lake Starling murmuration was still impressive the previous evening.

Three Siskins and a Blackcap were in a Weston Favell, Northampton garden this afternoon and a single Siskin was a visitor to a garden in Moulton.

A ringing session at Stortons Pits today provided forty-five birds which included Blue and Great Tits, Long-tailed Tits, a Chiffchaff, two Reed Buntings, two Goldfinches, a Blackbird, a Wren and four Dunnocks.

Regards

Neil M

Green Woodpecker courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Bittern courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

Mute Swans courtesy
of John Tilly.

Goldfinch courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

A Garganey and some Waxwings

Hello

An early drake Garganey at Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows was an excellent record this morning, later an adult Caspian Gull, two Oystercatchers and a Dunlin were on the reserve too. Nearby six Cattle Egrets were visible in a flooded field off Ditchford Lane next to the container complex and eighty-one Golden Plovers were seen in flight heading towards Neville's Lodge.

Elsewhere and a Cattle Egret was off Mary's Lane at Earls Barton Pits with birds on Summer Leys LNR amounting to two Cattle Egrets, two Great White Egrets, at least fifteen Little Egrets, five Oystercatchers, four Redshanks, four hundred Golden Plovers, four Pintail, plenty of winter thrushes and a Chiffchaff. An Otter showed very well there this morning.

Ten Waxwings turned up in roadside hedging on the Oundle bypass again today and another was seen at Brackmills Country Park, Northampton.

At Hollowell Reservoir today there were two adult Caspian Gulls, a Jack Snipe, eleven Common Snipe, a Woodcock, five Stonechats and two hundred and fifty Fieldfares moving south-east.

Garden birds today included singing Blackcaps at Brackley and Hanging Houghton, six Redpolls in a Grange Park, Northampton garden, another Redpoll on feeders in a Duston garden and two Siskins on a garden feeder in Moulton village.

Two Ravens were at Hanging Houghton first thing, another was in Cottesbrooke village and two Short-eared Owls showed briefly at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell where there was also a calling Grey Partridge.

A Green Sandpiper and a pair of Stonechats were in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton.

Regards

Neil M

Dunnock courtesy
of John Tilly.

Robin courtesy of
John Tilly.

Drake Wigeon courtesy
of Dave Jackson.

Canada Goose courtesy
of Dave Jackson.

Pitsford WeBS count

Hello

It was a rather late and quiet WeBS count at Pitsford Reservoir today, the strong north-easterly wind making it feel rather cold too!

Wildfowl were in very low numbers which is the norm for the time of the year and the water levels are extremely high with lots of brown water still. A Great White Egret was in the Walgrave Bay and a Little Egret was south of the causeway. A Jack Snipe and about eighty-three Common Snipe was a decent number considering most of their usual waterside vegetative cover was in the water. Other than that there were a few Siskins and a Redpoll flying around and lots of Common Buzzard and Red Kite activity in the sunny, breezy conditions. About twenty Siskins were at the adjacent Brixworth Country Park.

At least one Cattle Egret was reported at Summer Leys LNR today and late reports from yesterday include four at Ditchford Pits again to the west of Ditchford Lane and a single near Stanford Reservoir.

Three Siskins were at Scotland Wood today with others heard at Kelmarsh Hall. A Stonechat and an Oystercatcher were at Upton Country Park.

Details of a ringing recovery received recently refers to a Tawny Owl ringed as a nestling at Kelmarsh Hall on 10th June 2023. Unfortunately it was found freshly dead having sustained injuries at Great Bowden, Market Harborough on 26th October 2023. It was tested for avian flu and the result came back as negative. Sadly this young owl didn't live long and was found at least eight km due north from where it was hatched, 138 days elapsing between the date of ringing and recovery.

Regards

Neil M

Basic map detailing
movement of the Tawny
Owl ringed at Kelmarsh
Hall and recovered at
Great Bowden courtesy
of Nick Wood.

Greylag Geese courtesy
of John Tilly.

Black-headed Gulls
 courtesy of John Tilly.

Stonechats.

Oystercatcher.

Above four images courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

A rather old Great Spotted Woodpecker!

Hello

A ringing session at Sunderland Wood on the Kelmarsh Estate today yielded fifty-seven birds of nine species today made up of twenty-seven Blue Tits, nineteen Great Tits, four Coal Tits, a Marsh Tit, a Nuthatch, two Great Spotted Woodpeckers, a Robin, a Dunnock and a Chaffinch. One of the Great Spotted Woodpeckers was a re-trapped male, first ringed at the same wood in December 2014. The exact age was not established in 2014 but this individual is at least nine years old and the national longevity record is eleven years and ten months.

Five Smew were at Eyebrook Reservoir today and birds at Summer Leys LNR today included two Cattle Egrets, at least four Great White Egrets, two Pintail, two Redshanks, two Oystercatchers and twenty-five plus Pochard.

A male Blackcap was in a Weston Favell village garden and two Common Snipe and twelve Grey Partridges were at Harrington Airfield this afternoon.

Two Woodcock were at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this morning and a Green Sandpiper and four Stonechats were in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton.

The Starling murmuration at Stortons Pits this evening was again impressive and an adult Yellow-legged Gull was off the dam at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon

Regards

Neil M

Adult male Great Spotted Woodpecker
at Sunderland Wood, Kelmarsh today, he is
 at least nine years old!

Images courtesy of
Lewis Aaron.

Great Crested Grebes.

Mute Swan.

Above two images taken at
Pitsford Reservoir courtesy
of Dave Jackson.

Ringing at Scotland Wood today.

Hello

After a cold start (-3C) and moonlit night, today developed into a lovely winter's day with plenty of sunshine.

A ringing session took place at Scotland Wood on the Kelmarsh Estate today in somewhat wet and muddy conditions and after a slow start with ice-bound mist nets a reasonable number of 151 birds were processed of thirteen species. The star of the catch was a stunning-looking Tawny Owl and other birds were a Song Thrush, a Dunnock, five Robins, two Wrens, a Goldcrest, forty-four Great Tits, seventy-one Blue Tits, nine Coal Tits, three Marsh Tits, two Nuthatches, three Chaffinches and eight bright Siskins. At least two Woodcock were present.

A Short-eared Owl was hunting next to the old Beck Dairy on the outskirts of Cottesbrooke this morning, a 'redhead' Smew was still at Eyebrook Reservoir and two Cattle Egrets were on Hawthorn Island at Summer Leys LNR where there were also two Pintail, two Great White Egrets, two Oystercatchers, two Redshanks, sixty-five Golden Plovers and at least three Chiffchaffs. Approximately thirty Siskins were in alders along the path to the Double-decker hide.

A Goosander was on the fishing lake in Wellingborough opposite Sainsbury's on the Northampton Road and four Great White Egrets and a Grey Partridge were at Ringstead Pits. A further influx of Siskins included at least twenty in a garden in Creaton and three in our garden at Hanging Houghton where there was also singles of Brambling and Reed Bunting. A pair of Stonechats were at Borough Hill Country Park, Daventry this afternoon.

Five Waxwings flew NW over Stanford Reservoir at about 4.10pm, hopefully the first of a late winter/spring passage as they consider moving back to the continent.

Regards

Neil M

Tawny Owl at Scotland Wood
 today courtesy of Bethan Clyne.

Nuthatch at Scotland Wood
today courtesy of Bethan Clyne.

Male Siskin at Scotland Wood
today courtesy of Lewis Aaron.

Marsh Tit at Scotland Wood today
courtesy of Lewis Aaron.

A dry(ish) day!

Hello

A much better day's weather today but with cooling temperatures during the night.

Two pairs of Stonechats and a Green Sandpiper were in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton today and at nearby Blueberry Farm a single Short-eared Owl was seen this afternoon, perched in a field before being moved on by a Carrion Crow. Two Woodcock were noted here too.

A male Blackcap was again attracted to apples in our Hanging Houghton garden today and a Raven was heard nearby with the usual pair at Lamport village. Three Snipe and up to three calling Grey Partridges were at Harrington Airfield this afternoon.

The run of Cattle Egrets continues with two just east of Ditchord Lane in alpaca fields at Ditchford Pits and two again at Summer Leys LNR where there were also two drake Pintail. A Stonechat and two Oystercatchers were at Quarry Walk, Earls Barton.

At Hollowell Reservoir today noteworthy birds were two adult Caspian Gulls, a Jack Snipe, ten Common Snipe, eight Stonechats and seven Siskins. Stanford Reservoir hosted a Stonechat, a Peregrine, an Oystercatcher, a Water Rail and a Cetti's Warbler.

Two 'redhead' Smew remain at Eyebrook Reservoir and the 'redhead' was still at Clifford Hill Pits today. Two Goosanders and a pair of Stonechats were in the Stortons Pits/Sixfields Lake area and a Woodcock and three Siskins were at Scotland Wood on the Kelmarsh Estate.

Regards

Neil M

Green Woodpecker.

Common Toad.

Common Buzzard.

Goldfinch.

Stonechat.

All images from the Stortons/
Sixfields area today courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

A day of heavy rain

Hello

Very few reports of interesting sightings today which isn't a surprise in such appalling wet weather!

A Cattle Egret was again reported from Summer Leys LNR today and the pair of Stonechats remain in the very flooded Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton. Yesterday there was a Pink-footed Goose and four Goosanders at Stanford Reservoir.

Regards

Neil M

Muntjac.

Kestrel.

Male Water Rail.

Female Water Rail.

 Six new Water Rails have been ringed in
 the Nene Valley so far this year and they
and re-trapped birds continue to be 
fitted with colour rings too.

All images courtesy of
Tony Stanford.

A wet couple of days (again)!

Hello

Rain for much of the day and potentially even more tomorrow!

At least one Cattle Egret was at Summer Leys LNR today and there was a repeat of the Starling murmuration over adjacent Mary's Lake.

At Clifford Hill Pits today a 'redhead' Smew was present as were two Oystercatchers.

A male Brambling and a singing Siskin were at Scotland Wood on the Kelmatsh Estate this morning and at least three Siskins were at Kelmarsh Hall.

A male Merlin was again in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this afternoon as were two Stonechats. The male Merlin was subsequently seen at nearby Blueberry Farm, Maidwell where it decided to have a half-hearted go at some gathering Starlings which have been feeding on the saturated fields there. Two Short-eared Owls came out hunting there this afternoon in-between the rain showers.

A subtle shift in the garden birds here at Hanging Houghton during the last few days with the arrival of a few Reed Buntings and a Yellowhammer as well as the passage Siskins.

Regards

Neil M

Long-tailed Tit courtesy
of Bethan Clyne.

Lapwing courtesy of
Tony Stanford.

Reed Bunting.

Egrets galore!

Hello

Birds in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this morning included a pair of Stonechats, a Barn Owl, a Green Sandpiper, a Woodcock, a Grey Wagtail and a Peregrine.

A bit of a hotchpotch of a WebS count was completed at Ditchford Pits in very flooded conditions today but we were unable to gain access to a couple of the pits. West of Ditchford Lane there were five Cattle Egrets, two Little Egrets and up to three Great White Egrets, two Egyptian Geese, two Shelducks, two Oystercatchers, a Stonechat, a Cetti's Warbler and a Chiffchaff. East of Ditchford Lane birds amounted to a pair of Stonechats, two Common Snipe, two Grey Wagtails, a pair of Goosanders, a Green Sandpiper, three Chiffchaffs, a Little Egret, a singing Siskin and a Cetti's Warbler.

Earls Barton Pits, particularly Summer Leys LNR and Mary's Lake, attracted plenty of attention today which resulted in quite a list of birds prior to the main event which was the Starling murmuration of at least twenty-five thousand birds around Mary's Lake. Egrets on the reserve during the afternoon included three Great Whites, seven Littles and three Cattle with additional egrets flying in to roost towards dusk which boosted Great White Egrets to nine and Littles to fifteen. At least three Sparrowhawks were attracted to the gathering Starlings and nearby roosting thrushes and other birds included four Oystercatchers, a Redshank, a Dunlin, about one hundred and fifty Golden Plovers, six Siskins, large flocks of Chaffinches and Linnets, a Stonechat and a Chiffchaff. Unfortunately there were two sickly Greenfinches at the feeding station showing early signs of trichomonosis.

Another Starling murmuration pre-roost this afternoon at Stortons Pits was assessed to be between ten and fifteen thousand birds and believed to be one of the biggest roosts there in recent years. A Cattle Egret was on Roadside Pit, Stanwick Pits this morning.

Regards

Neil M

Otter spraint at
Pitsford Reservoir today.

Siskins at Summer Leys
 LNR today courtesy of
Tony Stanford.

Golden Plovers at Summer Leys
LNR today courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Cattle Egret at Summer Leys LNR
today courtesy of Neil Hasdell.

Birds of a flooded county

Hello

Birds in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton today included a pair of Stonechats, a Grey Wagtail and at least seven Grey Partridges with a male Siskin again on our garden feeders in the village. A Grey Wagtail and a flock of at least forty Stock Doves were in the Brampton Valley below Brixworth.

A pair of Stonechats and an Oystercatcher were at Upton Country Park today and birds in the Walgrave Bay at Pitsford Reservoir included a Woodcock in Christie's Copse and three Ravens.

A very large and impressive Starling murmuration was over Mary's Lake/Summer Leys LNR this afternoon and a Cattle Egret was on the nature reserve at lunchtime.

Seven Smew were again at Eyebrook Reservoir today and a first winter Caspian Gull was at Ravensthorpe Reservoir this afternoon.

Yesterday (Sunday) afternoon two Short-eared Owls were at Neville's Lodge, Finedon and a Short-eared Owl was caught and ringed in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton.

Regards

Neil M

Stonechats courtesy of
Tony Stanford.

Short-eared Owl courtesy
of Michelle Spinks.