Scoters, Med Gulls, Black-necked Grebes and raptors

Hello

Another grey and sometimes dreich weather day with a gentle but cool north-easterly breeze.

Morning birds at Pitsford Reservoir included the drake Scaup and his hybrid friend between the dam and Moulton Grange Bay, two Yellow-legged Gulls off the Sailing Club and a couple of Siskins in the trees there. A Great White Egret, two Oystercatchers and a Snipe were seen north of the causeway.

Over at Earls Barton Pits a Black-necked Grebe and a Mediterranean Gull and a Snipe were on the Summer Leys LNR with two more Black-necked Grebes on Mary's Lake. Three Mediterranean Gulls were at Stanwick Pits this morning and a flock of eight Sand Martins were over Town Lake at Thrapston Pits.

Ian saw an eagle in flight over Byfield this afternoon flying towards Fawsley and it was presumed to be a White-tailed Eagle, and Gary saw a Marsh Harrier over Byfield subsequently.

A/the Merlin was in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this afternoon, there were two Peregrines towards Haselbech and there were still about two hundred Golden Plovers and a couple of Bramblings at Harrington Airfield (restricted access tomorrow due to ringing operations).

Jacob's nocmig sound recordings over Scaldwell village during the night confirmed two over-flying flocks of Common Scoters, one just before 10pm last night and another at 3.09am this morning.

Regards

Neil M

Common Scoters.

Merlin.

White-tailed Eagle.

Drake Scaup courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Preparing for the summer visitors

Hello

A dull grey day with a few light showers didn't stop the migrants with Meadow Pipits, Fieldfares, Redwings and Starling all on the move in a northerly direction during the day.

Six Redpolls were at Kelmarsh Hall this morning with a pair of Grey Wagtails and a Raven at Lamport Hall, a Grey Wagtail and a Raven at Hanging Houghton and nearby Harrington Airfield continued to host the long-staying Merlin, about two hundred and forty Golden Plovers and at least two Bramblings.

Ringing sessions are planned at Harrington Airfield on Saturday and Sunday when the bunkers and old airstrip will be a restricted area. Access along the concrete track and footpaths will be unaffected.

Birds at Pitsford Reservoir today included the drake Scaup and hybrid female and sixty-eight Goldeneye at the south end of the reservoir. The frame of a Sand Martin bank was constructed in the Scaldwell Meadow today and we hope to have it up and running before the Sand Martins arrive in any numbers! A very significant task is rescuing two of the tern rafts which have run aground in the Scaldwell Bay and require refurbishment and anchoring with the remaining rafts in readiness for the returning Common Terns.

Thirteen Swift nest boxes are now at Lamport Hall with a view to hopefully all these going up before the screaming Swifts arrive. A big thank-you to Bill Draper and Chris Payne in the rapid production of these. We very much hope the Swifts respect the care and thought that has gone into the creation of their additional homes! There are also some grand plans, delayed a year because of Covid 19, for Swift boxes to be fitted at Kelmarsh Hall and an innovative (but currently untried) Swift tower to be erected in the gardens there. Fingers crossed that we can progress this initiative at the earliest opportunity!

Two Siskins visited Ian's garden feeders at Woodford Halse today.

Regards

Neil M

Male Chaffinch (typically
with diseased legs/feet).

Pitsford Cormorants
courtesy of Beth Clyne.

Pitsford Mallard courtesy
of Beth Clyne.

Kestrel courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

Nuthatch courtesy of
Robin Gossage (nope it's
not a Rock Nuthatch)!

Ditchford WeBs Count

Hello

Today was a slightly late WeBs count at Ditchford Pits which took all morning and into the early afternoon in a mixture of spring weather.

The drake Ring-necked Duck was on Big Lake and the drake Smew was on Delta Lake and there were between five and eight Great White Egrets with almost every pit at some stage adorned with a big white heron! In comparison there were only two Little Egrets plus two Egyptian Geese, a big female Peregrine, 2-4 Oystercatchers, a displaying Lapwing, fourteen Snipe, one Jack Snipe, five Water Rails, four Kingfishers, two Grey Wagtails, twelve Cetti's Warblers, eleven Chiffchaffs, eighteen Siskins and three Redpolls.

At Thrapston Pits the Glossy Ibis was again in the horse field adjacent to the A605 layby and two Cattle Egrets flew over the main lake at Stanwick Pits. A Barnacle Goose was visible distantly from the screen hide at Summer Leys LNR today with two Peregrines on the church at Higham Ferrers. A pair of Pintail and four Grey Partridges were the highlights at Ecton SF today.

Siskins visited a Barton Seagrave garden today and there were five in a garden at Scaldwell too. A Barn Owl was again near Old and a Brambling visited our Hanging Houghton garden this afternoon. At Harrington Airfield this afternoon there were five more Bramblings with a Raven flying towards Lamport. Jon picked up a dead adult Kittiwake at Hollowell Reservoir this morning. A pair of Great White Egrets were acting maternally at Pitsford Reservoir today, but they've done this before in previous springs and moved on...the two Barnacle Geese were near the Bird Club hide in the Scaldwell Bay.

A flock of forty-five Golden Plovers flew SW over Scaldwell today and last night's audible offerings included five Canada Geese, two Coots, a Black-headed Gull, a Common Gull and fifty-nine Redwings.

Regards

Neil M

Cetti's Warbler courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

Great White Egret carrying
nesting material at Pitsford
Reservoir today courtesy of
Dave Jackson.

Grey Heron courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

Peregrine at Market
Harborough courtesy
of Dave Thomas.

Frogs and some spawn in
our garden ponds!

Highland Cattle are used by the
Wildlife Trust BCN for reserve
management at Ditchford Pits.

The Thrapston Glossy Ibis
courtesy of Jim Dunkley.

Peregrines, a returning Osprey and owls.

Hello

It seems that up to three Peregrines are now frequenting the church at Market Harborough with two more joining the semi-resident female two days ago. One of these new birds is a colour-ringed male that was ringed as a nestling at Cheltenham, Gloucestershire in June 2018 some 100km away. My thanks to Chris Green and others for this info.

Today the first female Osprey returned to Rutland Water, apparently the same individual that was first back last year. The regular Northamptonshire Ospreys tend to be a week or two later but it won't be long now and we particularly look forward to sighting any youngsters returning from Africa for the first time.

Locally we were able to count nine Reed Buntings in our garden at Hanging Houghton and there was also a Chiffchaff just below the village, a Barn Owl in the valley and a couple of Ravens too. Sadly a Roe Deer was dead at the side of the A508 just south of the village this morning. A certain amount of frog activity in our garden ponds has resulted in a couple of clumps of spawn.

Jacob's sound recordings from overnight at Scaldwell provided wing-beats consistent with an unknown number of Common Scoters flying over, plus three Moorhens, an Oystercatcher, a Black-headed Gull, five Rooks, a Fieldfare, twenty-nine Redwings and a Song Thrush. Audible recordings from static birds emanated from a Pheasant, a Barn Owl and two Tawny Owls.

Nearby and a Barn Owl was at Rectory Farm, Old and at Harrington Airfield this morning the Short-eared Owl again flushed up from Bunker Three, a Merlin was feeding on prey in one of the top fields, there were at least eighty Golden Plovers, four Bramblings, two Ravens and two Grey Wagtails. North-bound movers included a steady flow of Meadow Pipits here and at Pitsford and Hanging Houghton with small numbers of Starlings and Fieldfares on the move in the same direction too.

Birds on show at Pitsford Reservoir today were made up of the drake Scaup and female Scaup x Tufted Duck hybrid, a Great White Egret, a Little Egret, two Yellow-legged Gulls and two Oystercatchers.

First year Caspian Gulls were reported from Daventry Country Park and Rushton Landfill today.

Eric's efforts at Thrapston Pits today yielded five Great White Egrets, several Little Egrets, two Oystercatchers, a double figure count of Chiffchaffs and fourteen calling Cetti's Warblers. The Glossy Ibis was again seen today in the horse field between the A605 layby and Town Lake.

Over at Stanwick Pits, two adult Mediterranean Gulls were still present and there was an adult Kittiwake present for a short time this morning and a Dunlin too. The Summer Leys LNR hosted a Black-tailed Godwit, a Curlew, a Dunlin and a Great White Egret.

Regards

Neil M

Golden Plovers
Harrington Airfield.

Yellow-legged Gull
at Pitsford Reservoir
courtesy of Dave Jackson.

This is a brute of a bird
and it's power can be evidenced
by its ability to tug this dead but
large trout along with much of the
fish still immersed in water. This
particularly aggressive bird is given
a wide berth by everything else at
the reservoir - it even bullies the
Great Black-backed Gulls! The jury
is out on it's exact age but it is either 
an advanced second calendar year
or a third calendar year bird.

Drake Scaup at
Pitsford Reservoir
courtesy of 
Robin Gossage.

Even Red Kites become
discombobulated in the
strong winds of recent times!

Pitsford WeBs Count

Hello

Fairly comprehensive coverage at Pitsford Reservoir today as three of us completed the WeBs count and we took note of anything else we encountered. The drake Scaup and it's hybrid companion were again off the dam and north of the causeway the two Barnacle Geese were in adjacent fields, there were two Great White Egrets, about thirty-five Snipe, two Jack Snipe, two Oystercatchers, a vocal Curlew that spent some time on-site, two Yellow-legged Gulls, a Kingfisher, a Grey Wagtail, at least seven Siskins, a Redpoll, a Crossbill and seven Chiffchaffs. A flock of two hundred and fifty Golden Plovers flew over and later a flock of about five hundred birds could be viewed distantly circling Sywell Airfield.

In some respects the mammals stole the show with a Weasel nipping across the causeway, lots of Muntjac and an Otter providing views in the Catwalk Bay. The first spawning Pike were active in the shallows.

A Barn Owl was showing nicely in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this afternoon where there were also three noisy Ravens.

Twenty Redpolls were at Harlestone Heath near to the railway line and three Crossbills were again at Hollowell Reservoir and a Mediterranean Gull was at Stanwick Pits this morning with a first year Kittiwake turning up in the gull roost at Stanford Reservoir this afternoon.

At Summer Leys LNR today there was a Black-tailed Godwit, a Curlew, a Dunlin, four Snipe and two Shelduck; the drake Ring-necked Duck was again on Big Lake at Ditchford Pits and the Thrapston Pits Glossy Ibis has taken to feeding in an adjacent horse field behind the A605 layby. A Redpoll and three Reed Buntings were in a Scaldwell village garden today.

Regards

Neil M

Grey Squirrel.

Female Muntjac.

Jack Snipe.

Otter courtesy
of Beth Clyne.

Finches, thrushes and hungry raptors

Hello

More powerful weather again today but at least this morning was mostly dry!

Scouting around the Kelmarsh Estate this morning didn't produce any birds of note and a breezy excursion to Harrington Airfield was good for three Bramblings and a pair of Grey Partridge but not much more.  A roadkill Pheasant which I moved to a safer place provided good feeding for a Common Buzzard but a Red Kite was too skittish to take advantage and the buzzard had the lion's share!

An adult Mediterranean Gull was still at Stanwick Pits this morning and the Summer Leys LNR provided for a Black-tailed Godwit and two Great White Egrets. A Peregrine was again on the church at Higham Ferrers and at Ditchford Pits the drake Ring-necked Duck was still on the Big Lake and the drake Smew materialised again on the Delta Lake.

A Lesser Redpoll, Siskins and two male Bramblings were on feeders at Wakerley Wood car park this morning with a few Crossbills in the larches there, and there were three Siskins in a Scaldwell village garden. The Blackcap was again in Ian's Woodford Halse garden and our garden at Hanging Houghton attracted four Reed Buntings and two Yellowhammers amongst more regular fare.

Nocturnal sound recording over Scaldwell last night provided fourteen Redwings, two Common Gulls, three Black-headed Gulls, a Lapwing, a Coot and a Teal and diurnal vis mig birds today comprised of one hundred and forty Fieldfares and thirty-five Redwings heading north-east.

Regards

Neil M

Happy Mother's Day
courtesy of John Tilly!

Not exactly wildlife
but certainly seasonal!

Common Buzzard.

Red Kite.

Hail storms stop play

Hello

Lean times for new birds in the county today, the strong winds not helping. Some powerful weather out there with some brief but fierce hail storms and regular showers.

Birds located at Pitsford Reservoir at the south end today included the drake Mandarin Duck again, two Yellow-legged Gulls, the drake Scaup and hybrid female, twenty-six Golden Plovers flying over moving north, a singing Chiffchaff and a Siskin.

Two Siskins were in a Maidwell garden today, a Peregrine was successfully hunting Starlings at Summer Leys LNR this evening and a pair of Blackcap were again in Clive's garden in Woolaston. Over at Woodford Halse, Ian had a male Blackcap coming to a sunflower hearts feeder in his garden and a female Brambling was at a feeding station that he maintains.

Eric's efforts at Thrapston Pits provided sightings of six Great White Egrets, a pair of Oystercatchers and a Water Rail.

Adrian confirmed the continuing presence of the drake Ring-necked Duck on Big lake, Ditchford Pits today and a Great White Egret was on the Dragonfly Lakes section of the Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows reserve.

A pair of adult Mediterranean Gulls were at Stanwick Pits this morning and a pair of Peregrines were on high at St Mary's Church, Higham Ferrers.

Regards

Neil M

Drake Mandarin Duck
at Pitsford Reservoir
courtesy of Beth Clyne.

Tree Sparrow courtesy
of Laurence Arnold.

Sparrowhawk courtesy
of Laurence Arnold.

Birds of the swirl and showers

Hello

An early morning wander around Harrington Airfield in a stiff south westerly wind provided two Crossbills battling their way into the headwind at about 8.20am, about one hundred and twenty Golden Plovers, at least two Bramblings and a pair of Grey Partridges. A Woodcock was on-site yesterday.

Birds at Pitsford Reservoir remained scant but the drake Scaup was still off the dam with his female friend and there was a particularly aggressive second calendar year Yellow-legged Gull there this evening that tore into a couple of Common Gulls. A flock of one hundred and thirty-nine Golden Plovers were in flight and presumably what will prove to be the regular pair of Oystercatchers were again north of the causeway.

Starlings, Fieldfares and Redwings were still in evidence locally with swirling flocks in the strong breeze; a pure flock of about two hundred Redwings in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton was noteworthy. Many of these birds will be steadily gaining weight whilst foraging the county fields and hedgerows, waiting for the strong winds to abate before moving on steadily east and north towards their own breeding grounds.

A Cattle Egret was a good record for the Titchmarsh Reserve at Thrapston this morning, a Peregrine was again on St Mary's church at Higham Ferrers and a White Wagtail was found by Adrian in a pony field next to the A14 near junction 12.

A male Blackcap was eating from a fatball feeder at Brixworth today and Summer Leys LNR attracted a Peregrine and also a flock of six Siskins feeding in alders.

Regards

Neil M

Redwings (these birds of
the slightly larger Icelandic
race).

Common Snipe.

Treecreeper. These birds are
very vocal at the moment.

Scaup and friend

Hello

More wind and gusts and some sharp showers today too!

The drake Scaup remains off the dam at Pitsford Reservoir and an apparent hybrid female (Scaup x Tufted Duck) is with it too. The regular Yellow-legged Gull is also in the same place and showed itself to be an adept fisher by plucking a sizeable Roach (or similar silver fish) from just under the surface! Two Oystercatchers and the two Barnacle Geese remained north of the causeway.

Four Redshanks, a Dunlin and a Snipe were seen at Stanwick Pits today and birds visible at Hanging Houghton were a Barn Owl, two Ravens and two Peregrines playing in the wind at 1.30pm.

Eric's efforts at Thrapston Pits in strong winds provided views of five or six Great White Egrets, two Oystercatchers and a Ring-necked Parakeet. The best birds at Welford Reservoir this afternoon were a single Stonechat, a pair of Grey Wagtails and a flying flock of about forty Golden Plovers.

Regards

Neil M

Drake Scaup and attendant
female that appears to be a
Scaup x Tufted Duck hybrid
Pitsford Reservoir - images
courtesy of Beth Clyne.

Birds of the bluster and rain

Hello

Windy and wet so it's perhaps not surprising that there weren't many reported sightings in the county today!

The drake Scaup was again off the dam at Pitsford Reservoir today and two Oystercatchers were seen north of the causeway with the two Barnacle Geese in fields next to the Old Scaldwell Road. A pair of Grey Partridge was the only sighting of note at Harrington Airfield this afternoon in very blustery conditions.

A pair of Blackcaps were again in a Wollaston garden today and there were two Dunlin and a Redshank noted at Summer Leys LNR this evening.

Birds recorded audibly over Scaldwell last night included Teal, Moorhen, Coot, Oystercatcher, Black-headed Gull, Rook, Fieldfare and Redwing.

Three recently received ringing recoveries are as follows:-

1. A young male Blackbird was ringed at Greens Norton on 21st September 2012 and found freshly dead in the village on 24th February this year - an eight and half year old Blackbird is a very good age (3078 days between the two dates);

2. A young Reed Bunting was ringed at Linford Lakes Nature Reserve on 22nd September 2020 and caught again at an undisclosed site in Hertfordshire on 28th February this year, this bird moving 57km in a south-easterly direction;

3. A first year female Goldfinch was ringed at Hanging Houghton on 27th November 2018 and was found recently dead in Naseby village this month, 832 days after apparently colliding with a glass greenhouse.

Regards

Neil M

Male Blackbird courtesy
of John Tilly.

Reed Bunting courtesy 
of Robin Gossage.

Goldfinch courtesy
of John Tilly.