Symonds Yat and Forest of Dean

Hello

Just back in from a day out in Gloucestershire and to one of my favourite places, Symonds Yat Rock and the nearby Forest of Dean. Sunshine and breeze is key to success at these sites early in the year so today seemed the best recent opportunity...

We started at Symond's Yat Rock overlooking the River Wye and were the first ones there. Most of the action was over and done by 9.30am with two or three male Goshawks (mostly at long range) careering around high up, displaying and interacting. One did arrive overhead but as usual we still didn't manage nice close views. The Peregrines were on form and came closer as they gained height to attack passing pigeons and as the strength of the breeze grew, battalions of Common Buzzards filled the air with as many as thirty individuals displaying and calling. The Ravens were active too and fly-over finches included Crossbill.

In the Forest of Dean we encountered Mandarin Ducks at two sites, eight Goosanders, another three or four Goshawks, plenty more Buzzards and Ravens, three Hawfinches, the wintering Great Grey Shrike at Crab Tree Hill and the usual supporting cast of woodland birds.

Regards

Neil M

Nuthatch

Immature male Goshawk

Peregrine, showing considerably
closer than the Goshawks!

Drake Mandarin Duck.

Male Crossbill.

Sadly the only Wild Boar
we saw in the forest
was this dead one
beside the road...

Storm Doris

Hello

Well it was indeed quite a storm, at least in the NN6 district, with power cuts, trees uprooted, walls crashing down and debris everywhere! I thought it was supposed to have stopped by now but it's still raging outside!

A quick look around East Hunsbury (Northampton) at lunch-time succeeded in finding just two stalwart Waxwings stoically feeding on completely wind-blown cotoneaster bushes in Penvale Road just up from the school. They weren't moving for anyone, it was such a shame that the light was dire and that they were partially hidden in the vegetation.

The gull roost at Pitsford Reservoir failed to deliver much of interest this afternoon but the Red-necked Grebe had moved from the causeway and was fishing the still waters in front of the Sailing Club, and a Kingfisher was there too.

Initial ringing details have come through of one of Chris Payne's control Goldfinches. A young male he caught at Greens Norton on 29th January 2017 bearing the ring Z078021 had first been ringed as a juvenile at Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire on 9th October 2016. This is a distance of 253km over a period of 112 days.

Regards

Neil M

Waxwings at East Hunsbury today...

Help your buntings!

Hello

Mild, still and rather wet before the big blow tomorrow! 

Harrington Airfield hosted up to five Grey Partridges this morning with plenty of common birds such as Chaffinch, Reed Bunting and Yellowhammer coming down to the broadcast mixed seed.

A wet and grey Pitsford Reservoir continued to host the Red-necked Grebe today, the bird being visible just south of the causeway at 1.30pm (but seemingly not being visible earlier in the day). Two Redshanks also remain...

The commencement of the 'hunger gap' is about now whereby certain seed-eating birds struggle to find sufficient food to survive and/or remain in suitable condition for breeding. Modern farming practises, minimal and poor quality stubble and spent wild bird cover all add up to no food for birds such as buntings and finches. No new seed has been produced since the early autumn and won't be available again until early summer, so with the exhausted seed bank Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings rely very heavily on feed stations and gardens. Our garden is small and not to the liking of Yellowhammers, but several have been present during the last couple of weeks and are likely to increase in number as they come in for broadcast grain and seed.

If you want to maintain your local Yellowhammer population, why not think about starting your own open air feeding station, which with the permission of the landowner might be the edge of a field, a footpath or somewhere where you know there are already Yellowhammers?

Best of luck!

Neil M

Red-necked Grebe
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Reed Bunting.

Yellowhammer.

Long-lived Chaffinch

Hello

Chris Payne spent a couple of hours ringing at Bradden in South Northants today, processing 47 birds made up of a Siskin, 6 Goldfinches, 4 Chaffinches, 23 Blue Tits, 10 Great Tits, 2 Long-tailed Tits and a Nuthatch.

One of the Chaffinches was a male first ringed at Greens Norton in April 2012 when it was aged as an adult. This bird will be at least seven years old this year, pretty exceptional when you think that this species is currently suffering widespread disease issues which is seriously affecting longevity.

Regards

Neil M

Oystercatcher at
Summer Leys.
Courtesy of Robin Gossage.

A nice healthy-looking
male Greenfinch courtesy of
Robin Gossage. This species
is very susceptible to suffering
from a condition called Trichomonosis.
This is a parasite that causes lesions in
the throat of infected birds. They can't feed
or drink and quickly become weak, fluffed
 up and in due course die. One infected bird
 is enough to affect a whole population and
 despite cleaning feeders regularly and below them,
 it is difficult to contain. All finches and sparrows can 
be affected and it occurs in pigeons, doves and
raptors too.

This picture of a male Chaffinch
courtesy of Cathy Ryden shows the early
onset of a crumbly leg disease which
will probably be 'fringilla papillomavirus'
or could be a result of avian pox and/or mite
infestation. Locally up to half of our
Chaffinches suffer from this and in general
the birds learn to cope and can be affected for
years. However the condition will
undoubtedly worsen and it is not uncommon
to see abscesses or 'bumblefoot' take hold.
Toes and claws are lost and it is possible
to see affected birds with just stumps for legs.
However, generally these birds remain healthy
even if towards the end they cannot perch or
hop about! Bullfinches and Yellowhammers can
exhibit similar features, although it is thought they
don't suffer the papillomavirus itself.

A pair of healthy-looking Bullfinches
courtesy of Robin Gossage!

Phew it's warm!

Hello

Sarah and Kenny Kramer tried some more ringing at the Milton Keynes Community Orchard today and netted 18 birds of 8 species which included five Blackbirds, two Song Thrushes and two Redwings. One of the Blackbirds was already bearing a ring which originated in Sweden, so we await details of the initial ringing details with anticipation! Such were the MK day temperatures today, Sarah and Kenny enjoyed Comma and Brimstone butterflies flying around them!

This mild period and relatively high night temperatures ensures that moths are active with local moth(er)s reporting plenty of individuals being attracted to nocturnal moth traps.

Two Great White Egrets were visible in the Scaldwell Bay at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon and the Kelmarsh Estate woodlands were full of subsonging Redwings. A small party of Siskins were also vocal in Scotland Wood and the damp fields in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton were alive with Fieldfares, Redwings and Starlings...

Regards

Neil M

Redwing.
Courtesy of Cathy Ryden.

Song Thrush.
Courtesy of Cathy Ryden.

Fieldfare.
Courtesy of Jacob Spinks.

Short-eared Owl.
Courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Woodford Starling murmuration

Hello

The following account, images and information has kindly been submitted by Annie Ford who has discovered and photographed a Starling murmuration in the village of Woodford...

'I first spotted that Woodford had more starlings than other villages in the area when I drove through the village one sunny afternoon in September last year and took some photos. Later on in the year someone showed me a few photos of a murmuration over the streets of Woodford. I went to look for the starlings a couple of times without success. In January this year I noticed them again flying over the houses in Mill Road, but was too late to photograph them because they were just settling. So I made it my mission to find out the best spot and best time to catch them. 

I realised that like us humans the starlings prefer good weather for outdoor activities. When it's dull they just settle down to roost, but when the weather is clear, they will provide a really good spectacle. The better the weather, the more starlings arrive and the bigger the spread of the murmuration. 

I have been to Titchmarsh Lakes and to Summer Leys, where murmurations occurred before, but the weather turned dull on me so I cannot comment if they still happen or not. 

I attach a few photos for you from the various days I have been in pursuit of the little darlings. 

The brightest day was 13th February, when I was watching the murmuration from the field adjacent to Mill Road. The starlings flew right across the village down to Thrapston Road and up to the playing field. Friday wasn't quite so bright, but the sun kept coming out so I decided to try my luck near the playing field again. At first I thought they were just settling straight away in a piece of scrub near Mill Road, but just as I thought of going home, I realised a lot of starlings had arrived and were settling in a field to the left of the playing field. The noise was quite considerable. All of a sudden, they started taking off from that field and flew towards Mill Road in a vast stream of birds. They flew just over the hedge of the playing field. I did take a short video of that because it was quite spectacular. They assembled into a murmuration over Mill Road and beyond and then settled in their place near Mill Road, although I did hear some on the other side of the playing field. 

The action currently happens between 5 - 5.30 pm It's difficult to say, where the best place is to see the murmuration, as they often break up into smaller flocks and then combine again. Sometimes the best vantage point is at the edge of the village in Mill Road, sometimes in or near the playing field near the working men's club. 

I attach a map for you which I prepared for one of the members of my photoclub. Where I wrote murmuration is the scrub where they settle. The field below the hedge, where I wrote park here is the one where the starlings had settled en masse before the murmuration yesterday. (the google map is incorrect, as the working men's club is in the same place as the community sports complex - which is where you can park the car)

I presume the murmurations will stop soon, as the starlings will start pairing up and nesting, but you might catch some if we have reasonable weather before then.

I came back from shopping Thrapston yesterday (Saturday) and the afternoon had brightened up. I saw a few  starlings arrive  at about 5 pm, so I rushed home to dump the shopping and get my Nikon D300 (I only had my  little Nikon S9000 compact in my handbag) and drove back up to Woodford. I just pulled in a few hundred yards  before getting to the Village on Mill Road.

The murmurations started in the usual way with a few starlings, then more and more came and they split and  joined together flying over the whole village and the fields to the left and the right of me. Then finally they started  painting spectacular pictures in the sky. I was stunned. I think there must have been more starlings than ever...'

Annie Ford

Images courtesy
of Annie Ford

Female Starling
courtesy of Cathy Ryden.

Early spring Sunday

Hello

Jacob wandered around the reserve at Pitsford Reservoir in his continued effort at finding new birds for his patchwork challenge and found a new bird - a House Sparrow! Other birds included the Red-necked Grebe, the White-fronted Goose, two Great White Egrets, a drake Pintail, a drake Red-crested Pochard, a second calendar year Yellow-legged Gull, a Green Sandpiper, two Redshanks, five Siskins and four Marsh Tits.

Eric Graham returned to the Titchmarsh Reserve today and located nine Little Egrets and three Redpolls. John Woollett and team committed to some ringing at Stortons Gravel Pits today and caught 25 birds which included a Redwing and five Reed Buntings. Two Ravens were over Astcote this afternoon.

A wetlands bird census at Ditchford Gravel Pits today was a day slogging through the mud in very spring-like temperatures. An adult drake Scaup was on pits west of Ditchford Lane and two Great White Egrets were present (Viaduct Pit and the Wilsons Pits complex). Other birds included six Little Egrets, two Oystercatchers, a Jack Snipe, 39 Common Snipe, three Goosanders, one or two Shelduck, five Water Rails, two Chiffchaffs, seven Cetti's Warblers, two Stonechats and three Grey Wagtails.

Regards

Neil M

Drake Scaup.

Great Crested Grebe.

Plenty going on out there!

Hello

Jacob's efforts at Pitsford Reservoir this morning yielded birds in the shape of the Red-necked Grebe off the causeway, two Great White Egrets, two Redshanks, a Green Sandpiper and an Oystercatcher. The relatively small gull roost again failed to attract any scarce gulls.

Jacob recorded Redpoll and Siskin at Scaldwell village and the Reed Bunting count in our garden went up to 13 birds! 

Harrington Airfield hosted 36 Golden Plovers today and Brixworth Water Treatment Works attracted a Chiffchaff, a Grey Wagtail, about eighty Pied Wagtails and several Siskins.

Eric Graham reported a pair of Oystercatchers at Thrapston Gravel Pits today and sadly vandalism to two of the hides on the Titchmarsh Reserve there. Steve Austin counted 44 Waxwings commuting between Wootton village and the Wyevale Garden Centre off the Newport Pagnell Road on the outskirts of Northampton this morning.

Eleanor watched three Otters playing in the water at Ravensthorpe Reservoir this morning and the usual two Great White Egrets were present too. She went on to see two Ravens at Staverton, four Goosanders at Daventry Country Park and an adult female Peregrine and a pair of Stonechat at Borough Hill Country Park.

Regards

Neil M

Scarlet Elf Cup
Courtesy of John Gamble.

Water Rail
courtesy of John Gamble.

Male Bluethroat at Willow Tree
Fen, Lincolnshire. It is rare for a
mid-winter Bluethroat in the UK
and this one is very much a show-stopper!
Images courtesy of Dave Jackson.