Little Grebes. |
Great Crested Grebe. |
Common Buzzard. |
Cormorant. |
Muntjac. All images from Pitsford Reservoir today. |
Little Grebes. |
Great Crested Grebe. |
Common Buzzard. |
Cormorant. |
Muntjac. All images from Pitsford Reservoir today. |
Hello
Stormy weather is upon us, something we have to put up with when the temperatures are so mild.
Milky sunshine and relative warmth stimulated several Yellowhammers into singing at Harrington Airfield this morning where there were still a few Bramblings.
Efforts at finding the Dartford Warbler drew a blank at Duston Mill this morning but the pair of Stonechats were still present.
The Common Sandpiper and an adult Yellow-legged Gull were around the dam area of Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon and the drake Smew was again visible from the causeway at Ravensthorpe Reservoir this morning as were two Great White Egrets. Over at Hollowell Reservoir Mark saw two Caspian Gulls, a Great White Egret, two Stonechats and nineteen Siskins. Another twenty Siskins were in trees along the stream at Harlestone at about lunchtime and a Redpoll was in a Scaldwell garden.
Yesterday the Siberian Chiffchaff was seen for a short time in Nick's Kettering garden and a Raven was at Yardley Gobion.
Regards
Neil M
Carolina Wood Ducks courtesy of Robin Gossage. A potential vagrant from the USA, there is a small population in the UK which are mostly captive but a few escapees exist in a wild feral state. |
Aconites and Snowdrops are in profusion this year. |
Hello
Heavy rain for much of the morning probably affected the sightings in the county today.
Single Barn Owls were seen at Harrington Airfield, Lamport Crossing and in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton today, presumably the high winds and recent rains has probably affected their usual hunting practices.
An Oystercatcher was in the Scaldwell Bay at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon and a Kingfisher was by the Sailing Club.
The three White-fronted Geese were again reported from Stanford Hall today and Stanford Reservoir hosted five Goosanders, a Kingfisher and two Chiffchaffs.
Regards
Neil M
Black-headed Gull. |
Drake Goldeneye. |
Bathing Blackbird. |
Lambs! |
Carrion Crow. |
Grey Wagtail. |
Map indicating ringing and control locations of the Brambling first ringed in Norfolk and then controlled at Harrington Airfield courtesy of Nick Wood. |
Hello
A rather blustery and wet day didn't make it perfect conditions for finding wildlife and my efforts today came to very little that was different!
Forty Bramblings were noted at Harrington Airfield this morning and Ravens were seen at Hanging Houghton and Cottesbrooke. Grey Wagtails were at Kelmarsh and Brixworth and at Pitsford Reservoir the Common Sandpiper remained on the dam and the adult Yellow-legged Gull was just off the Sailing Club.
Four Goosanders were on the River Nene at Clifford Hill Pits this afternoon and a Ruff was still at the Summer Leys LNR this morning. The three White-fronted Geese were again reported from Stanford Hall today and birds noted at nearby Stanford Reservoir included a Great White Egret, five Goosanders, two Kingfishers and a Chiffchaff.
An Otter was well-photographed at Becketts Park, Northampton yesterday morning.
An adult male Bullfinch was ringed at Greens Norton on 2nd September 2021 but unfortunately some 156 days later, on or about the 5th of this month, this bird was taken by a cat in the same village.
John Woollett's garden ringing has provided 170 Goldfinches in recent weeks which provides some indication of how important winter feed stations are to some species. Like many finches, Goldfinches remain very mobile outside the breeding season and will liberally travel to find the necessary food. Over the years our local ringing recoveries indicate that many Scottish and North England breeding Goldfinches pass through and winter in Northamptonshire. It also seems that some of our breeding birds move east into France.
Regards
Neil M
Goldfinch. |
Bullfinch courtesy of Robin Gossage. |
Raven. |
Hello
A blustery south west wind dominated the weather today but this change did little to alter the local birding scene.
The Dartford Warbler remained at Duston Mill with it's Stonechat partners, the Siberian Chiffchaff again visited Nick in his Kettering garden and the White-fronted Goose was again at Sywell Country Park.
A Great White Egret was at Clifford Hill Pits as were two Stonechats and twenty-seven Golden Plovers. A Peregrine was seen at Higham Ferrers and the three White-fronted Geese remained at Stanford Hall. An array of birds at Stanford Reservoir today included a Mediterranean Gull again, two Caspian Gulls, a Great White Egret, five Goosanders and a Chiffchaff. The long-staying Pink-footed Goose remained at Ravensthorpe Reservoir today.
A census of birds at Kelmarsh Hall using bird ringing techniques provided 172 individual birds which included 107 Blue Tts, 24 Great Tits, 3 Coal Tits, a Marsh Tit, 2 Long-tailed Tits, 2 Goldcrests, 5 Robins, 14 Dunnocks, a Redwing, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, 3 Greenfinches and 9 Goldfinches. Other birds present but not caught were thirty-five Siskins, two Bramblings and a pair of Ravens.
Regards
Neil M
Blue Tit. |
Dunnock. |
Common Frog courtesy of Robin Gossage. |
Tawny Owl assessing a nest box courtesy of Chris Payne.
Hello
A raft of good birds on offer in the county today including some great new finds!
Jon's birding efforts at Cottesbrooke came up trumps this morning with two Hawfinches found in the village. These big finches stayed around for the day, moving between the church and the bus stop and sometimes seen on the ground underneath yew trees. It is important for anyone visiting the village in a vehicle to park off the road - the roads are narrow and are used by tractors and farm machinery regularly.
Nick Parker's garden in Kettering was the venue for a Siberian Chiffchaff - it's always pretty special when a scarce bird comes looking for you!
The Dartford Warbler and two Stonechats were still showing on and off at Duston Mill and ranging around at least two different fields.
The Great Northern Diver was again on view in The Narrows at Pitsford Reservoir today with a Barnacle Goose just off the Sailing Club. The first year White-fronted Goose was still with Greylags and Canada Geese at Sywell Country Park early this afternoon and other birds included a Water Rail, two Grey Wagtails, about thirty Siskins and a Cetti's Warbler. Three Caspian Gulls were on view at Hollowell Reservoir.
Sightings at Stanford Reservoir included the Mediterranean Gull again, a Woodcock, a Water Rail, a Goosander, two Great White Egrets, a Kingfisher and a Cetti's Warbler. Small numbers of Siskins were at Kelmarsh Hall.
A little ringing at Harrington Airfield today provided over sixty processed birds dominated by twenty-one Yellowhammers and twenty-one Bramblings. One of the Bramblings was already bearing a British ring from a capture in January 2020 although we have yet to find out where this encounter occurred. Other birds noted on-site included a nearby Barn Owl, four Golden Plovers, up to forty Bramblings, a Siskin and a pair of Grey Partridge.
Regards
Neil M
Fieldfare. |
Goldfinch courtesy of John Tilly. |
Mistle Thrush. |
Hello
Seemingly a rather quiet day in the county for birds today but Neil Hasdell found a drake Smew at Pitsford Reservoir, just south of the causeway plus a Barnacle Goose, a Redshank and a Great White Egret.
At Duston Mill the wintering Dartford Warbler and pair of Stonechats continued to delight and at Ravensthorpe Reservoir there was a Pink-footed Goose and two Great White Egrets.
A Peregrine was seen at Kettering and at Summer Leys LNR a Peregrine there was hunting Starlings. Three Oystercatchers had arrived back on the reserve by this afternoon.
At least thirty Bramblings were at Harrington Airfield this afternoon - a ringing session is planned for tomorrow when the area around the bunkers and old airstrip will have restricted access. Over twenty Siskins were at Kelmarsh Hall this morning.
Three White-fronted Geese were on the roadside pit at Stanwick Pits this afternoon and a Caspian Gull was identified at Clifford Hill Pits also early this afternoon.
Over at Stanford Reservoir an adult Mediterranean Gull was in the roost and there was an Oystercatcher here too plus six Goosanders.
I watched a pair of Ravens nest-building today and the lengthening days, relatively mild conditions and irregular sunshine is stimulating plenty of bird song locally.
Regards
Neil M
Drake Smew. |
Oystercatcher. |
Adult Mediterranean Gull. |
Hello
The Dartford Warbler was again on show at Duston Mill today and the Pink-footed Goose was seen at Ravensthorpe Reservoir late morning. At Hollowell Reservoir there were two adult Caspian Gulls early this afternoon plus an adult Yellow-legged Gull and four Stonechats.
Birds at Harrington Airfield this afternoon included at least fifty Bramblings, two Woodcock and a Barn Owl and the male Ruff remained at Summer Leys LNR. There was a gathering of eighty-eight Goldeneye near to the Maytrees Hide at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon, many of them displaying noisily.
A Caspian Gull was at Rushton Landfill this afternoon, the three White-fronted Geese were at Stanford Hall and a Great White Egret and a Goosander were at Stanford Reservoir.
Notable birds found wintering in the UK now includes an American Robin at Eastbourne and I went west today to see the long-staying juvenile Pacific Diver in Glamorgan which showed nicely (eventually)!
Regards
Neil M
Muntjac. |
Starling courtesy of John Tilly. |
Pacific Diver. |
Dartford Warbler at Duston Mill today courtesy of the finder Ken Prouse. |
Drake Goosander at Delapre Lake/Hardingstone Pits today courtesy of Don West. |
Partly-white Lesser Redpoll. |
Blue Tit courtesy of John Tilly. |
Map depicting two sites associated with the Belgium-ringed Blackcap courtesy of Nick Wood. |
Common Sandpiper. |
Song Thrush. Providing berries during the winter and early spring, ivy is an important food plant for birds such as thrushes, warblers, Woodpigeons and many others. |
Stock Dove. |
Hello
Cool and breezy today with a very special red and then orange sunrise.
The Duston Mill Dartford Warbler and the pair of Stonechats materialised today and the warbler provided nice views this afternoon.
Pitsford Reservoir continues to be the venue for a Great Northern Diver which this afternoon was in The Narrows and swimming towards Pintail Bay. At one stage it tried to fly in the strong wind and caught it's wing in the surface water and ungraciously summersaulted upside down in the water! Other birds at this site included a Common Sandpiper on the dam this morning and an adult Yellow-legged Gull off the Sailing Club this afternoon; a Barnacle Goose and a Redshank were north of the causeway this morning.
The wintering Black Redstart was still at the summit compound at Borough Hill Country Park, Daventry this morning and the Whooper Swan was still accompanying Mute Swans in the Tove Valley near Cosgrove.
In excess of thirty Bramblings remained at Harrington Airfield this morning with still a flock of Siskins at Harlestone Heath by the railway line. Half a dozen Bramblings were along the Brampton Valley Way near Draughton Crossing this morning.
Chris Payne's efforts at looking for wildlife using a thermal imaging camera last night provided views of a variety of wildlife near Greens Norton including two Woodcock, a Fox and two Otters!
The three White-fronted Geese were again at Stanford Hall this morning and birds at Stanford Reservoir included two Great White Egrets, a Yellow-legged Gull and four Bramblings.
Regards
Neil M
Common Buzzard courtesy of Robin Gossage. |
Sparrowhawk courtesy of Robin Gossage. |
The first year female Brambling first ringed in Rogaland, Norway and controlled at Harrington Airfield. Image courtesy of Liam Andrews. |
Map of Brambling migration trajectory courtesy of Nick Wood. |