Stonechats!

Hello

Certainly warmer today but perhaps not as much sunshine as forecast, but still very nice for the time of the year.

The Bittern re-appeared at Summer Leys LNR today, extending it's long stay with days of not being seen (a typical Bittern)!

At Stanford Reservoir today there were two Red-crested Pochards, a Marsh Harrier, a Hobby, a Peregrine, a Green Sandpiper, a Siskin and a very late Garden Warbler was ringed.

Stonechats included a pair at Blueberry Farm, a pair at 'shrike hedge' and another pair nearer the brook in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton. Two more pairs of Stonechats were at Harrington Airfield where there were also two Redpolls and six Siskins. Two Grey Wagtails remain at the brook in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton with another one in the village itself.

A ringing session at Linford Lake, Milton Keynes caused over eighty captures which included good numbers of Chiffchaffs (which included a control) and Blackcaps and a mixture of common birds with Song Thrushes, tits, Goldcrests, two Meadow Pipits and a Magpie for variety. A Grey Wagtail, several Siskins and Redpolls, a Great White Egret and six Egyptian Geese were also present.

Some ringing is planned for Harrington Airfield on Monday when access to the bunkers and old airstrip including the scrubby areas will be restricted. The main concrete track is unaffected.

Regards

Neil M

Male Stonechat courtesy
of Dave Jackson.

Female Stonechat.

Grey Wagtail.

Redwing courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

Not many Redwings here yet
but with an estimated three
thousand today on Holy Island,
Northumberland they are not
far away!

Warm weather on the way?

Hello

The quiet period in the county continues but it is possible that the unseasonal rise in temperature and swirling weather from Iberia forecast for this week-end may create some avian interest?

The four Red-crested Pochard remained at Stanford Reservoir today where there was also a Garganey and a count of one hundred and fifty Meadow Pipits. The single Cattle Egret remains at Eyebrook Reservoir and a family party of Otters have been recorded in recent days on the River Welland at Market Harborough.

At Summer Leys LNR today there was a Cattle Egret and an adult Yellow-legged Gull and a Ruff at the New Workings section of Earls Barton Pits.

An adult Caspian Gull was off the dam at Ravensthorpe Reservoir today with a Pink-footed Goose, a Dunlin and two Stonechats at nearby Hollowell Reservoir.

Two Grey Partridges were noted at Clifford Hill Pits this morning and two pairs of Stonechats were in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton near to 'shrike hedge'. At least one Raven was in Hanging Houghton village and at Pitsford Reservoir there was a Grey Wagtail and a few Siskins in the Walgrave Bay this morning and three adult Yellow-legged Gulls off the dam this evening plus a Grey Wagtail and a female Stonechat on the fence line below the dam.

Regards

Neil M

Linnet courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Kingfisher courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Lesser Redpoll courtesy
of Chris Payne.

Caspian Gull.

Thursday ringing

Hello

Yesterday (Wednesday) was a quiet day in the county but there were four Stonechats in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton and today (Thursday) there were just two!

Also yesterday birds at Pitsford Reservoir north of the causeway included a Great White Egret, a Raven, two White Wagtails and at least one Yellow-legged Gull and a pair of Stonechat between Maytrees Hide and the causeway.

Today and birds noted at Hollowell Reservoir were a Dunlin, a Redpoll and four Stonechats.

Birds at Stanford Reservoir today included a Merlin, a Marsh Harrier, four Red-crested Pochards, a Great White Egret and a Caspian Gull with a Goosander, ten Lesser Redpolls and a Redwing yesterday.

Stortons Pits hosted some ringing today which provided sixty captures of which only nine were re-traps from previous sessions. Twenty Blackcaps indicates a slow-down of this species moving through the county and interestingly no Chiffchaffs after very large numbers locally in recent weeks. Other birds processed included sixteen Long-tailed Tits, six Blue Tits, two Wrens, three Robins, five Dunnocks, four Blackbirds, two Cetti's Warblers and two Goldfinches.

Another ringing session took place at Christies Copse in the Walgrave Bay at Pitsford Reservoir with seventy-five birds being processed. Again no Chiffchaffs were caught and only eight Blackcaps and no other warblers were encountered. Other birds were made up of two Blackbirds, fourteen Goldcrests, twenty-eight Blue Tits, fourteen Great Tits, a Marsh Tit, two Long-tailed Tits, a Wren, three Robins and two Chaffinches.

Up to four Grey Wagtails were attracted to the new ponds in Christies Copse, a Barn Owl was seen pre-dawn and other birds noted included a Raven and several Siskins and Redpolls.

Regards

Neil M

Female and male
Stonechats.

The humble Rook!

The finely-marked and 
handsome drake Gadwall.

Blustery Tuesday

Hello

A blustery and cooler day today but it didn't affect the small birds moving over which included Swallows, Meadow Pipits, wagtails and Skylarks and still more Siskins.

A ringing session on the Courteenhall Estate yielded well over a hundred birds with finches dominating with seventy-seven Goldfinches, seven Linnets and three Chaffinches being caught and ringed. Other birds included a Marsh Tit, two Chiffchaffs and four Blackcaps and a Sparrowhawk and a Grey Wagtail and a couple of Barn Owls were in close attendance.

At Stanford Reservoir today the best birds were four Red-crested Pochards, a Garganey, a Great White Egret, a Pintail, a Water Rail, two Kingfishers and two Cetti's Warblers. The Cattle Egret was still at Eyebrook Reservoir.

A Jack Snipe was at Hollowell Reservoir today and other birds included the female Ruddy Shelduck, a Common Snipe, a Dunlin, an adult Caspian Gull plus a Stonechat.

At Pitsford Reservoir there was a juvenile female Peregrine hurtling around the reserve this morning plus a Raven, a Great White Egret and a few Siskins in the Walgrave Bay. From the dam this evening there was a juvenile Caspian Gull and seven Yellow-legged Gulls (at least one juvenile). A large gull at range with the mantle a little darker than the Yellow-legged Gulls and with moderate head and upper neck streaking plus the structure and bill colouration and strong, bright plumage tones suggested the rarer Azorean or 'Atlantis' Yellow-legged Gull. However it wasn't possible to see the colour of the legs or feet and I didn't see enough to rule out a hybrid.

Twelve Cattle Egrets was a great count at Stanwick Pits today and other birds included two Ruff, two Pintail, a Yellow-legged Gull and a Common Sandpiper.

A Golden Plover, six Grey Partridges and four Stonechats were at Clifford Hill Pits this morning and at Harrington Airfield there were two pairs of Stonechats, a Wheatear, a late Common Whitethroat plus twenty-five Golden Plovers, thirty Siskins and six Redpolls.

The Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton also hosted a pair of Stonechats at shrike hedge and another pair near to the Brampton Brook plus five Golden Plovers and a Curlew over.

Regards

Neil M

Siskin courtesy of
Dave Jackson.

House Sparrow courtesy
of Dave Jackson.

Goldfinch courtesy of
Lewis Aaron.

Cattle Egrets.

Ringing at Harrington Airfield.

Hello

Some more ringing at Harrington Airfield today ahead of the downpours of this evening yielded one hundred and thirty-five captures, the majority being new migrants. The mild conditions seem to be making a difference to the species encountered with a late Grasshopper Warbler and a late Garden Warbler amongst the more seasonal forty-three Blackcaps and twenty-nine Chiffchaffs. Other birds included three Goldcrests, sixteen Meadow Pipits, five Lesser Redpolls, a Bullfinch, four Reed Buntings and three Yellowhammers.

Other birds there included a female Stonechat, about eighty Golden Plovers moving over north and a few on the ground, several more Redpolls and Siskins and a Grey Wagtail moving through plus a couple of Ravens and lots of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks flying around the site. Amongst the more common butterflies present was a Painted Lady.

At Stanford Reservoir today there were four Red-crested Pochards again plus a Great White Egret, a Pintail, a Spotted Flycatcher, three Redwings, a Stonechat and twenty-seven Redpolls. One hundred and forty-six new birds were ringed which also included a late Garden Warbler. The Cattle Egret was at Eyebrook Reservoir again today.

At Stanwick Pits today there was a Hobby, two Pintail and four Yellow-legged Gulls and at Summer Leys LNR there were three Hobbies and a Great White Egret.

Sadly the Wryneck at Dallington Cemetry, Northampton wasn't seen today.

A Kingfisher and two Grey Wagtails were at the brook in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton today and four Hobbies were near Blueberry Farm, Maidwell.

Regards

Neil M

Spotted Flycatcher courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

The difference in crown colours
between male and female Goldcrests
courtesy of Jane Neill (the male
the lower bird).

Grasshopper Warbler at
Harrington Airfield today
courtesy of Jane Neill.

October Wryneck

Hello

A rather quiet day in the county again today with plenty of common bird migration still on-going but little in the way of scarcer birds until that man Stuart found a Wryneck in Dallington Cemetry, Northampton this afternoon! Well done Stuart!

Very mild, almost humid conditions if cloudy with little sunshine didn't feel very seasonal and visible migration included Swallows, Skylarks, Meadow Pipits and finches.

A Merlin over Irthlingborough early this morning is seasonal though and a quiet day at Summer Leys LNR provided an adult Yellow-legged Gull and two Common Snipe. Another adult Yellow-legged Gull was on the Titchmarsh reserve at Thrapston Pits this afternoon.

At Hollowell Reservoir today the female Ruddy Shelduck was on show plus two Ringed Plovers and a Dunlin. Four Ravens (two feeding on a road kill Pheasant) and a couple of calling Grey Partridges were at Harrington Airfield today with another Raven at Hanging Houghton.

Two Great White Egrets were in the Walgrave Bay at Pitsford Reservoir this morning.

Regards

Neil M

Wryneck - but not the
Dallington bird!

Skylark courtesy
of John Tilly.

Common Buzzard.

A Hen Harrier, a Tawny Owl and Redpolls.

Hello

A ringing session at Pitsford Reservoir around the Old Scaldwell Road Feeding Station completed by Dave Francis this morning provided seventy-two captures of fourteen species. A Wheatear was a definite surprise - not only is it now a scarce migrant at Pitsford it is also not a species regularly caught in mist nets. Other birds included nineteen Chiffchaffs, twelve Blackcaps, four Reed Warblers, seven Blue Tits, a Great Tit, five Long-tailed Tits, four Dunnocks, three Robins, two Wrens, three Greenfinches, three Tree Sparrows, five Goldcrests and two Meadow Pipits. Small Copper butterflies were present in the morning sunshine.

At the same time there was some more ringing being conducted at Harrington Airfield which provided seventy-five captures also of fourteen species. The first bird caught was a male Tawny Owl and he was bird of the session. Thirty-eight Blackcaps provided the numbers and thirteen Chiffchaffs was a good number for this open plan site. A single Lesser Redpoll was a smart little bird, there was surprisingly only one Meadow Pipit caught and other birds processed included Song Thrush, Blackbird, three species of tits and other common birds. A Queen Hornet came to inspect us in the rather grey conditions and other birds on the move included a few more Redpolls, several parties of Siskins, a Grey Wagtail, four Golden Plovers and lots of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks plus calling Grey Partridges.

A Hen Harrier hunting over some wild bird crops between Dale Farm and Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this morning was a great sighting and there were two Wheatears and a Grey Wagtail in the horse paddocks at Dale Farm. Good numbers of Linnets, Skylarks and Meadow Pipits were in the same area. Blueberry Farm hosted a Common Redstart, a Whinchat and at least ten Siskins with a pair of Stonechats at Shrike Hedge in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton (but not seen there this evening). Two Grey Wagtails remain on the brook there.

This afternoon there was a Common Redstart in a field hedge along the footpath between Hanging Houghton and Scaldwell villages and a male Stonechat was in a field hedge off the track leading from Old village to Pitsford Reservoir. Three Redpolls were at Hanging Houghton.

About forty Golden Plovers were seen in flight over Kettering and the Bittern was again showing well on the Summer Leys LNR scrape.

At Stanford Reservoir today two hundred and sixty-three birds were newly-ringed and other birds there included four Red-crested Pochard, a Pintail, two Common Snipe, several Siskins, about twenty Lesser Redpolls, a Barn Owl, a Lesser Whitethroat (ringed) and a hundred Meadow Pipits. The Cattle Egret was again at Eyebrook Reservoir.

Regards

Neil M

Tawny Owl courtesy of
Jane Neill.

Lesser Redpoll courtesy
of Jane Neill.

Queen Hornet courtesy
of Michelle Spinks.

Late September birding

Hello

Birds at Stanford Reservoir today included four Red-crested Pochards, a female Mandarin Duck, a wing-tagged Marsh Harrier and a Common Sandpiper. The Cattle Egret was still at Eyebrook Reservoir today.

At Summer Leys LNR today a Bittern was showing well early this morning and a Marsh Harrier and a Ruff were seen later.

Birds in the Scaldwell Bay at Pitsford Reservoir today were a bit sameish with twelve Pintail, two Great White Egrets and an adult Yellow-legged Gull. Birds at Harrington Airfield were nine Golden Plovers and a couple of calling Grey Partridges this evening.

Two Grey Wagtails were at Duston Mill weir and the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton attracted two Kingfishers, two Grey Wagtails, a pair of Stonechats and a Wheatear. A Common Redstart and a Whinchat were at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell. A Grey Wagtail was in Hanging Houghton village.

Hollowell Reservoir today hosted seven Ringed Plovers, two Common Sandpipers, a Dunlin, two Stonechats, a Common Tern and a Kingfisher. A Wheatear was noted on the Brington to Brockhall track.

Perhaps the most visible migrant over the county today was Skylark with flocks of up to a dozen seen at a variety of places. Meadow Pipits, Siskins and wagtails were also on the move, it will be the thrushes soon! The sunshine brought forth plenty more Red Admirals and Comma butterflies.

Regards

Neil M

Grey Wagtails at Duston Mill
weir today courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Juvenile Yellow-legged Gull.

Comma.

Migration on a cloudy day

Hello

A day for the most part spent out and about in mostly cloudy and dull conditions which didn't stop the trickle of Meadow Pipits, wagtails, hirundines, Skylarks and Siskins moving through the county.

The Black-necked Grebe remained on Town Lake at Thrapston Pits today and a pair of Stonechat were on the Titchmarsh reserve. Four Great White Egrets were noted at Summer Leys LNR this morning. Several Siskins and a Water Rail were at Fawsley Park and the Walgrave Bay at Pitsford Reservoir at lunchtime continued to attract two Great White Egrets, a Hobby and a Raven.

The dam area at Pitsford Reservoir this evening provided four Yellow-legged Gulls, two Common Sandpipers, a Raven and a Grey Wagtail.

A flock of ten Ring-necked Parakeets were over Little Billing, Northampton this evening flying towards Bellinge. A Raven was over Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadow reserve this morning and Raven and Grey Wagtail were again in the village at Hanging Houghton.

The hedgerows, copses and gardens continue to attract plenty of shrill-calling Chiffchaffs in the county currently and in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton today there were two Whinchats and two Wheatears near 'shrike hedge' and two Stonechats at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this morning which later made their way down to the 'shrike hedge' area this afternoon.

A ringing session is planned for Harrington Airfield this coming Saturday when access to the bunkers and old airstrip will be restricted. Should anyone wish to come along and observe proceedings please let me know beforehand. The footpaths along the concrete track and further west are unaffected.

An additional page has been created on the blog depicting some of the wildlife highlights of a recent ten day tour in Romania exploring the Carpathian Mountains and Danube Delta...

Regards

Neil M

Juvenile Red Kite.

Buck Muntjac.

Gis us a kiss!
Cormorants jostling
at Ravensthorpe Reservoir.

Pink-barred Sallow moth.

Ringing recoveries and Hobbies still

Hello

The stormy weather influencing the west coast of the UK took it's time reaching us with some influence from the winds and showers this evening. A steady passage of Meadow Pipits, wagtails and Siskins have been filtering over the county all day.

The Cattle Egret remained at Eyebrook Reservoir and the moulting adult Black-necked Grebe was again at Town Lake, Thrapston Pits with two juvenile Hobbies showing well on the Titchmarsh reserve.

At Pitsford Reservoir today there were two Great White Egrets in the Walgrave Bay plus a Hobby, several Siskins and a Raven. Four Hobbies were at Blueberry Hill today and in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton there were two Wheatears by 'shrike hedge' this morning plus a male Stonechat near the Brampton Valley Way car park.

Singles of Grey Wagtail and Raven were in Hanging Houghton village today and both Otter and Mink were recorded in Market Harborough alongside the River Welland earlier this week.

Recent ringing recoveries include:-

1. A male Blackcap was ringed in West Berkshire on 19th September 2022 and re-trapped at Pitsford Reservoir on 8th September 2023, 354 days later and 105km NNE from where first ringed;

2. A male Blackcap ringed at Pitsford Reservoir on 8th September 2023 was caught again eight days later at Stanford Reservoir which is 21km WNW from where first ringed;

3. A nestling Blue Tit was ringed at Wigsthorpe on 2nd June 2023 and caught and processed as a juvenile at Barnwell on 10th September 2023, 100 days later and just 4km NNE from where initially ringed;

4. A juvenile Reed Warbler was ringed at Woolston Eyes, Warrington on 28th July 2023 and captured again at Pitsford Reservoir on 16th August 2023. This bird had travelled 162km in a south-easterly direction and was part of a large fall of acrocephalus warblers at Pitsford on that day.

Regards

Neil M

Hobby courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Adult Hobby.

Male Blackcap courtesy
of Lewis Aaron.

Juvenile Shag courtesy
of John Tilly. Perhaps a bird
to look out for locally following
another blast of westerlies!

Quiet September day

Hello

A rather quiet day in the county with few birds of note reported.

A Cattle Egret was at Eyebrook Reservoir on the island this morning and another was at Summer Leys LNR this afternoon.

A Black-necked Grebe remains at Thrapston Pits on Town Lake and a juvenile Ruff was on the Titchmarsh Reserve.

Hollowell Reservoir sported eight Ringed Plovers, a Dunlin and two Great White Egrets this afternoon.

Birds at Pitsford Reservoir included eleven Pintail in the Scaldwell Bay plus an adult Yellow-legged Gull, a Green Sandpiper and three Great White Egrets. There wasn't much room for birds at the dam this evening what with a drone, paddleboards, canoeists, wild swimming and more disturbance...but there was a juvenile Yellow-legged Gull, two Common Sandpipers, a Grey Wagtail and a Kingfisher.

Sadly an Otter was found dead on the road just outside Scaldwell village over the week-end, probably following the little stream between Lamport and Pitsford Reservoir and probably struck after dark.

Many people up and down the country study prey remains from Peregrine nests and roost sites and bird remains at Market Harborough recently have included pigeons, Black-tailed Godwit, Little Grebe, Blackbird, Little Grebe, Golden Plover and Water Rail! Many of these species migrate at night so it is assumed they are intercepted as they fly over Market Harborough during the hours of darkness.

Regards

Neil M

Elephant Hawk-moth caterpillar
courtesy of Jim Dunkley.

Great White Egret at
Pitsford Reservoir today.

Ruddy Darter.

Ditchford WeBS count

Hello

A ringing session at Linford Lakes on Saturday by a very small ringing team nevertheless provided ninety-one captures of twelve species including just eight re-traps. The numbers were made up of thirty-one Blackcaps, twenty-six Chiffchaffs, a Cetti's Warbler, four Reed Warblers, two Wrens, two Robins, two Dunnocks, six Blue Tits, eight Great Tits, five Meadow Pipits, a Goldfinch and three Siskins. Other birds present there at the week-end included a Bittern and a Black Tern.

Some garden ringing near Overstone Park yesterday provided fifty-five birds made up of thirty-eight Blue Tits, four Great Tits, seven Goldfinches, two Dunnocks and singles of Woodpigeon, Robin, Chiffchaff and Blackcap. All were newly-ringed and first year birds with the exception of a re-trap Great Tit.

Today (Monday) and a WeBS Count was completed at Ditchford Pits in sunny, breezy weather. West of Ditchford Lane there was a female Peregrine, three juvenile Hobbies, three Cetti's Warblers, three Egyptian Geese, a Kingfisher and a Grey Wagtail. East of Ditchford Lane and there was a Great White Egret, a Water Rail, two Kingfishers, five Grey Wagtails, two Cetti's Warblers and five Siskins. Odonata included Migrant Hawker, Common Darter and Willow Emerald damselfly and butterflies seen were Red Admiral, Comma and Speckled Wood.

Migrants at Harrington Airfield this morning were made up of a Common Redstart near Bunker One, two Redpolls, at least eight Siskins, a Marsh Harrier and a Peregrine with a constant flow of Yellow, Grey and 'alba' Wagtails overhead, Meadow Pipits, Skylarks and hirundines. Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Blackbirds, Goldcrests, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps were all in good numbers too.

A Whinchat was at Sywell Country Park today and at least one Cattle Egret was present at Earls Barton Pits with single bird(s) seen on Mary's Lake and on the Summer Leys reserve this afternoon. A first winter Caspian Gull was at Daventry Country Park this morning.

Regards

Neil M

This Migrant Hawker selected
a large prey item at Ditchford
today when it grabbed and munched
a freshly-emerged Crane Fly.

Blackbird courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Meadow Pipit courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Siskins courtesy of
Kenny Cramer.

On the move !

 It has been a very pleasant couple of days following the wet and windy weather earlier in the week. Although I had got a few commitments I made sure that I could get my "birding fix" which revolved around walking the dogs. It was a typical autumn morning when I set off early yesterday morning with the mist hanging over the valley.  On the stream below Lamport were 5 Little Egrets dabbling about in the water. On my walk up to Blueberry I could hear Meadow Pipits and Skylarks flying around but couldn't see them due to the mist which had cleared by the time I reached my destination.  The stables/small pond area has been quite productive this year and as I stood and watched the area a passerine appeared on the roof of the stable. I knew what it was before I confirmed it's identity with my binoculars,  a Black Redstart.   In the bushes around the pond was a Common Redstart.  Really good to see both these birds virtually side by side.   I couldn't loiter any longer as I wanted to check shrike hedge area on my way home. Again good numbers of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks plus 2 Northern Wheatears.                                                                            No further birding until I managed a visit to Harrington Airfield which yielded Common Redstart, Whinchat,  Northern Wheatear and Marsh Harrier. 

Today I started with the same circuit as yesterday and again it was a misty mirky morning. When I reached the stables/pond area at Blueberry there were birds everywhere!! I was literally tripping over Chiffchaffs,  they were in the bushes,  on the ground and hanging from weed stems. 20+ is a conservative estimate. It was quite spectacular and something I have witnessed on the Scillies but not on my local patch.  Other birds included 3 Common Redstarts,  6+ Blackcaps, 2 Grey Wagtails,  Northern Wheatear and a flock of at least 60 Swallows low over the fields. I had to drag myself away and headed to shrike hedge, where again there were birds everywhere.  The overgrown ditches were alive with tits, Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs all moving along the ditch, calling as they went. It was quite incredible.  Other birds here included 2 Northern Wheatears,  Whinchat and 8 Siskins over. Again a steady movement of Meadow Pipits,  Skylarks and Hirundines.                                                                                       The dogs were probably relieved when I left shrike hedge as they thought that we were heading home for breakfast.........wrong !! I couldn't resist a quick visit to Harrington Airfield.  Around the bunkers were Common Redstart,  Whinchat and Northern Wheatear.  Again lots of birds on the move with a constant passage of Meadow Pipits,  Skylarks and Swallows plus 2 Redpolls,  4+ Siskins  and 2 Golden Plovers. There was just a handful of Warblers, 4 Chiffchaffs and 2 Blackcaps in the bushes at the end of the track.                                                             It was quite an amazing morning watching these birds on the move knowing that this was part of their incredible migration journey and I just had a glimpse into their world.      Eventually we did head home for breakfast!!

Birds around in the county include a Hoopoe reported in Oundle but despite searching it could not be relocated.  A Black Necked Grebe has been on the Town Lake at Thrapston,  Pectoral Sandpiper at Stanwick GP,  Red Crested Pochards at Pitsford and Stanford Reservoirs. Whilst over at Hollowell Reservoir Stonechat,  Whinchat,  Pink Footed Goose, Ringed Plovers and Dunlin. 

Regards Eleanor 

Wild and Windy

 It was certainly a "bad hair" day or one for "blowing the cobwebs " away today. I started off by running around Pitsford Reservoir where I saw 2 Common Sandpipers and a Great White Egret. Initially it was quite pleasant running until I ran across the causeway and headed towards Brixworth when it was like running through treacle as I  battled against the wind.    I wasn't the only one battling with the wind as all through the day I have noticed a steady trickle of hirundines low over the fields flying directly into the wind.   Other birds were definitely trying to find shelter from the wind with 2 Common Redstarts,  Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs in a sheltered hedge at Blueberry and a Whinchat and Northern Wheatear finding shelter around the stables.                   Harrington Airfield was pretty bleak and uninviting this afternoon and all I managed to find was a Common Redstart and Northern Wheatear around bunker 1 and a Peregrine heading over at speed.                      Yesterday I made an early morning visit to Harrington Airfield and initially there was a steady movement over of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks, plus 6+ Siskins and 2 Grey Wagtails. There was also a noticeable influx of Blackbirds and Song Thrushes.  There was a Marsh Harrier loafing around with the Red Kites and Lesser Black Backed Gulls feeding on the recently scuffled fields.                          From Harrington I decided to check Blueberry area and there was still a Common Redstart,  Whinchat and Northern Wheatear around the stables and on the fields near to shrike hedge good numbers of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks. 

It is definitely my favourite time of year, it is quite exciting to witness the movement of birds on my doorstep,  even if they are common.  I  suspect that some of the Blackbirds now at Harrington are " continental".           

Around the county it appears that we have 2 Pectoral Sandpipers , one at Summer Leys and a new bird at Stanwick GP.  The  Bittern has been showing well at Summer Leys especially early evening.  Other birds at Summer Leys include Swift, Ruff, and  Marsh Harrier.  Yesterday at Hollowell Reservoir there was Pink Footed Goose,  Northern Wheatear,  Ringed Plovers, Dunlin, Common Sandpiper and Hobby.               Today at Daventry CP there was RedCrested Pochard,  Common and Green Sandpipers. 

Regards    Eleanor 

Ringing at Stortons and Linford

Bird records have been few and far between over the last couple of days. Yesterday there was a Honey Buzzard and 2 Marsh Harriers at Stanford Reservoir and Pectoral Sandpiper and Bittern at Summer Leys.  I managed a quick visit to Lamport Hall and Blueberry but it was very quiet. Today I popped to Harrington Airfield which again was quiet with the only birds of note being Common Redstart,  Northern Wheatear and 2 Golden Plovers. The Pectoral Sandpiper remains at Summer Leys and 2 Marsh Harriers again at Summer Leys. 

The ringers have been busy. Yesterday at Stortons GP a total of 95 birds were ringed of which 68 were new Blackcaps and 8 Chiffchaffs. Other birds included Long Tailed and Blue tits, Robin, Cetti's and Reed Warbler. Bird of the day went to Kingfisher with young Song Thrushes coming a close second. An Otter was seen at the west side of the complex.       

Today at Linford Lakes, Milton Keynes a total of 154 birds were ringed of 13 species. An amazing 92 Blackcaps and 35 Chiffchaffs were ringed along with Lesser Whitethroat, Sedge and Reed Warbler.  Several firsts of the Autumn season were noted, a " continental type Blackbird", 3 Meadow Pipits and an early Lesser Redpoll. 

Regards Eleanor 

Lesser Redpoll courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Lesser Whitethroat courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Meadow Pipit courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Song Thrushes courtesy
of Chris Payne.

Kingfisher courtesy
of Tony Stanford.