Garden birding

Hello

Very little opportunity for birding today and nothing of particular interest when we did venture out!

In fact the garden is difficult to beat at the minute with flocks of juvenile Starlings and House Sparrows arriving each day, which in turn are attracting other birds too. The Goldfinches and Greenfinches are bringing their fledged young to feed on the sunflower hearts and niger feeders and good numbers of juvenile Blue Tits are enjoying the peanuts and fat. Smaller numbers of Great Tits and Coal Tits are sometimes joined by a couple of Nuthatch and there are a few juvenile Chaffinches and still the occasional Yellowhammer coming for food too. A few Robins, Dunnocks and Blackbirds are a mixture of juveniles and moulting adults and a few warblers are occasionally moving through the garden, sometimes in the company of a roving tit flock. A small flock of Yellow Wagtails continually call from the grass field behind our house and occasionally join the Pied Wagtails that pop in and out of the garden.

Woodpigeons, Stock Doves and Collared Doves are every day birds and Jackdaws, Magpies and Carrion Crows squeeze themselves in to our small garden too! Of course all this attracts visits from the Sparrowhawks which must hate the Swallows living next door because they nearly always see them incoming and they alert all the birds around!

Regards

Neil M

Great Crested Grebe including
catching and consuming a reasonable-
sized Perch!

Great White Egret.

Tufted Duckling!

All images taken at Blashford Lakes
courtesy of John Tilly.

Birds of Frampton.

Hello

This morning a ringing session was undertaken around the Old Scaldwell Road Feeding Station at Pitsford Reservoir. Initially it seemed really quiet and it took us some time to catch anything - but then a fresh momentum kept the birds coming until lunch time.

We encountered fifteen different species, the majority of birds being new and hatched this year. The 107 captures were made up of a Blackbird, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, four Dunnocks, two Robins, 19 Great Tits, 19 Blue Tits, two Long-tailed Tits, singles of Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Garden Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat, four Whitethroats, 49 Tree Sparrows, a Chaffinch and a Sand Martin.

All the Tree Sparrows with the exception of a single adult were youngsters hatched this year, and many of these youngsters were very young indicating that they were the result of third or even fourth brood efforts. The Sand Martin was a nice surprise and an infrequent capture at Pitsford.

With all these small birds in and around the bushes, it isn't surprising that they were buzzed regularly by at least two different Sparrowhawks.

The summering Marsh Harrier put in a couple of appearances again today, initially seen before 6am when it was watched flying across the reservoir and resting on one of the tree stumps by the shoreline between the Maytrees and Bird Club hides. An adult Yellow-legged Gull was about as usual and Neil H saw a juvenile Mediterranean Gull in the Scaldwell Bay.

The gull roost off the Sailing Club this evening was disrupted due to sailboards but it was possible to count nine Yellow-legged Gulls before dispersal.

Regards

Neil M

Ruff.

Little Ringed Plover.

Black-tailed Godwit.

Peregrine.

All images taken by John
Tilly on a recent outing to
Frampton Marsh.

Pitsford Reservoir WeBS count

Hello

It was the Pitsford Reservoir WeBS count today although in truth there were not many water birds to count. The summering Marsh Harrier was present on and off most of the morning and again at 6pm this evening, regularly spending time over The Point trees and along the foreshore between the Bird Club and Maytrees Hides. Other raptors included a Peregrine and a Hobby and other birds noted included at least seven Little Egrets, a Common Sandpiper, a Snipe, two Yellow-legged Gulls and a Raven.

Two Ravens were at Hanging Houghton again today and Eric found two Great White Egrets on the Aldwincle Lake on the Titchmarsh Reserve near Thrapston.

Regards

Neil M

Toilet humour
courtesy of Robin Gossage!

Peregrine.

Small Spotty-eyed Dronefly.

parasitic fly Eriothrix rufomaculata

All images taken today by Robin Gossage
at Pitsford Reservoir.

Birds of Monday

Hello

Eric has been at it again at the Titchmarsh Reserve near Thrapston! Today he again saw three Ospreys on-site, the birds moving around between the Elinor Trout Lake, the Aldwincle Pit and Town Lake. There were still two Great White Egrets present too and other birds included four Little Egrets and two Yellow-legged Gulls and just two calling Cetti's Warblers.

Eleanor's visit to Harrington Airfield this morning provided views of a single Turtle Dove and four Grey Partridges and still good numbers of Linnets but not much in the way of migrant warblers etc.

A Whimbrel flew south over Draughton village at 7.25pm this evening 'trilling' loudly!

Regards

Neil M

Whimbrel.

Turtle Dove.

Traditional birds of August...

Hello

A/the pair of Raven paid us another morning visit to the village here at Hanging Houghton - it is likely that they have very large territories locally and pairs regularly tour around, re-establishing the boundaries, checking foraging areas and assessing potential nest sites all in readiness for breeding attempts early in 2019.

Eleanor's trek around Blueberry Farm paid off this morning with a juvenile Marsh Harrier quartering The Hill field (harvested oat crop) and two Redstarts in the hedging surrounding the short turf field just south of the farm (a traditional stop-over site in the autumn and sometimes spring too).

Birds north of the causeway at Pitsford Reservoir today included a pair of Hobby, two juvenile Ravens and an adult Yellow-legged Gull. The Tree Sparrow flock around the Old Scaldwell Road Feeding Station totalled in excess of forty birds.

The evening gull roost of the Sailing Club contained ten Yellow-legged Gulls (a variety of ages) and the only wader seen was a smart summer plumage Turnstone.

Regards

Neil M

Tree Sparrows.
Courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Turnstone.

Juvenile Mistle Thrush.

Most Mistle Thrushes will have
finished breeding now and it is at
this time of the year that they form up
into post-breeding flocks. These groups
include birds raised this year and moulting
adults and is likely to be the only time of
the year when it is possible to see a sizable
flock of Mistle Thrushes.

Ditchford WeBS count

Hello

I visited Ditchford Gravel Pits today and completed the August WeBS counts. As is often the case this time of the year, birds of interest were few and far between but there were super number of dragonflies, butterflies and other insects. I only recorded one Kingfisher, this site generally records double figure numbers in the autumn. A Hobby was enjoying the plentiful dragonflies, there were a couple of Common Sandpipers, two calling Water Rails, three Little Egrets and a brood of hungry, noisy Sparrowhawks!

Regards

Neil M

Adult Reed Warblers.

Comma butterfly on burdock.

Pond Turtle sp. Small numbers
of released turtles/terrapins can be
found in local waters.

Migrant Hawkers.

All images from Ditchford GP today.

Tor the champion!

Hello

Well at last we have received some decent rainfall! I'm sure there are some juvenile birds that have never experienced it before!

A short walk in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton early this morning was a pleasant, dry and sunny affair after the rain the previous evening. You could almost sense the parched land healing somewhat after a decent doust of rain.

A few migrant warblers and rather tardy buntings was about all there was on offer during my walk apart from a single Crossbill flying around aimlessly at 6.25am - you couldn't help but think it was a little lost!

This evening's gull roost at Pitsford Reservoir was enlivened with the arrival of an adult Osprey at 8.20pm, departing towards Brixworth at 8.30pm without catching anything. The gulls were rather distant in the still conditions but two super juvenile Caspian Gulls were a treat. At least six Yellow-legged Gulls were present too plus singles of Little Egret and Common Sandpiper.

Regards

Neil M

Common Eider.

Harlequin ducks.

Iceland Gull.

Raven.

All the above images from Iceland in June.

'Spot the Birdie Twitcher Tor' is his
official competing name, and this week
Tor has been competing in various classes
associated with obedience, agility and jumping.
And he's been doing rather well...!

Orca!

Hello

The bird ringing at Harrington Airfield today in cooler, cloudy conditions than of late provided sixty-eight captures of thirteen species. Most were new birds again and included both residents and migrants too.

The total was made up of four Blackbirds, seventeen Yellowhammers, five Dunnocks, four Blue Tits, twelve Linnets, singles of Robin, Goldfinch, Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler, eleven Whitethroats, two Blackcaps, seven Willow Warblers and two Lesser Whitethroats.

This is the third and final ringing session at Harrington this week. Birds seen on-site there today included a Raven, six Grey Partridges and a Turtle Dove.

A dead Polecat at the side of the A508 on the outskirts of Brixworth today was the first I've seen for quite a while.

Eric's birding exploits on the Titchmarsh reserve today resulted in observations of just a single Great White Egret, but the three Ospreys present there today must have been spectacular!

Regards

Neil M

One of the highlights of our
super trip to Iceland in June
was encountering a large pod
of Orca or Killer Whales.

Birds of yellow.

Hello

Eric Graham's resilience and persistence has been paying off all summer with his regular visits to the Titchmarsh Reserve, and again today he thoroughly enjoyed his wildlife observations with plenty of birds on offer including now three Great White Egrets. Years ago we all used to enjoy encountering mixed warbler and tit flocks as these roving bands (often of juvenile birds) roamed the hedgerows and woodland edges. In recent years this has become a far less common sight, but Eric found such a flock at Titchmarsh today and among the throng marvelled at the vivid yellows of the juvenile Willow Warblers. Other birds on the reserve today included two Black-tailed Godwits in the wader channel and a Green Sandpiper.

An adult Yellow-legged Gull was perched imperiously on one of the buoys near to the Maytrees Hide at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon, a regular spot for it, and a Snipe flushed up from in front of the hide. A gathered flock of 43 non-breeding Great Crested Grebes in full summer plumage garb nevertheless reminds us that autumn as far as the birds are concerned is upon us!

We are fortunate to have grass fields bordering our back garden here at Hanging Houghton, often containing livestock. There have been transitory Yellow Wagtails visiting the fields regularly during the last month, partly no doubt attracted to the cattle. This afternoon three or four of these birds were on the house roof which was a little closer than normal!

Regards

Neil M

Willow Warbler
courtesy of Dave Jackson.

Male Yellow Wagtail.

Harrington ringing today...

Hello

A second consecutive day of ringing at Harrington Airfield today provided 69 captures of fifteen species, 59 of them being new birds. An increase in the number of Linnets gathered in a post-breeding flock was at least a hundred birds strong.

Birds examined today were made up of three Blackbirds, thirteen Yellowhammers, two Greenfinches, four Dunnocks, a Great Tit, three Blue Tits, a Sedge Warbler, two Reed Warblers, three Blackcaps, fifteen Whitethroats, four Willow Warblers, a Reed Bunting, a Chaffinch, fourteen Linnets and two Goldfinches.

A Nuthatch was on-site today, a Turtle Dove was seen briefly and three Tree Sparrows flew south.

Regards

Neil M

Blackcap.

Linnet.

Sedge Warbler.

Willow Warbler.

All images courtesy
of John Tilly.