Gulls, thrushes and Ravens

Hello

A thoroughly miserable day's weather yesterday (Thursday) made for difficult birding conditions. A Great White Egret was noted at Stanford Reservoir and the juvenile Great Northern Diver and an adult Yellow-legged Gull were north of the dam at Pitsford Reservoir in the afternoon.

Today (Friday) and there were two Ravens at Hanging Houghton and still hundreds of winter thrushes at Harrington Airfield plus a Redpoll with a Siskin in Scaldwell village.

Birds at Borough Hill Country Park, Daventry this afternoon included two Ravens, two Redpoll and a pair of Stonechat and there were still four Stonechats at Upton Country Park plus the Barnacle Goose and a few Ravens.

A Little Gull at Lilbourne near to the DIRFT complex was a good winter record and the gull roost at Boddington Reservoir contained an adult Caspian Gull and an adult Yellow-legged Gull with other birds there being five Goosanders, a Kingfisher, two vocal but unseen Water Rails and a Grey Wagtail.

The Common Scoter was again near the dam at Ravensthorpe Reservoir and rather static birds at Hollowell Reservoir included the Pink-footed Goose, two adult Caspian Gulls, the pair of Mandarin Ducks and four Stonechats.

A Pintail and a pair of Stonechats were noted in the Scaldwell Bay at Pitsford Reservoir today and Stanwick Pits hosted six Cattle Egrets and five Redshanks. Another Cattle Egret was seen at Wicksteed Water Meadows Nature Reserve this morning.

At Stanford Reservoir there was a first winter Mediterranean Gull in the gull roost plus a Great White Egret and two Goosanders and the ringers processed sixty-seven Redwings, twelve Blackbirds, five Fieldfares and two Chiffchaffs during a ringing session there.

Some ringing recoveries associated with Northants Ringing Group activities are as follows:-

1. A second year Mute Swan ringed at Linford Lakes on 27th August 2022 was seen at Furzton Lake, Milton Keynes just 10km away on 23rd October 2023, 422 days elapsing between the two records;

2. A first year female Sparrowhawk was ringed at Harrington Airfield on 10th September 2023 and unfortunately then found freshly dead at Earls Barton on or about 11th November, 62 days later and 19km in a SSE direction from where originally ringed;

3. A first year male Goldfinch was ringed at Cropwell Bishop, Nottinghamshire on 19th October 2023 and caught again at Greens Norton on 11th November, 23 days later and having travelled 84km in a southerly direction;

4. A Blue Tit ringed as a nestling in a nest box at Stortons Pits, Northampton on 6th May 2022 turned up in a mist net at Stanford Reservoir on 22nd October 2023, 24km away and 534 days later;

5. A juvenile male Blackcap was ringed at Wilstone Reservoir, Tring, Hertfordshire on 3rd September 2023 and was caught again at Pitsford Reservoir on 10th October, 37 days later and having travelled 61km north;

6. A belated report of an adult Reed Warbler first ringed at Noyant, Soulaire-et-Bourg, Maine-et-Loire, France on 14th August 2017 was caught again at Stortons Pits on 14th July 2019 when judged to be an adult female and probably breeding on-site. Some 699 days had elapsed between the two records with Stortons Pits being 522km north of the original ringing site;

7. A first year Chiffchaff ringed at Big Waters, Seaton Burn, Tyne & Wear on 11th September 2023 was caught again at Linford Lakes, Milton Keynes on 7th October having travelled 335km south in 26 days;

8. An adult female Green Woodpecker was ringed at Brixworth on 19th July 2019 and found injured with collision injuries from which it did not survive at Brixworth on about 27th June this year, 1439 days after being first ringed.

Regards

Neil M

Raven.

Kestrel.

Lapwing.

Red-crested Pochards.

All images courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Cold winter birding

Hello

A cold night and day ensured there were plenty of birds on the garden feeders and on the feeders at the outlying feeding stations dotted around locally.

The female/immature Common Scoter was again at Ravensthorpe Reservoir today, it's tempting to think it's the bird originally at Pitsford.

At Hollowell Reservoir today there was a Pink-footed Goose, the female Ruddy Shelduck, two adult Caspian Gulls, a pair of Mandarin Ducks, six Stonechats and excellent counts of 347 Teal and 405 Mallard.

A Blackcap was noted at Bucknell Woods and at Pitsford Reservoir there were two Yellow-legged Gulls (adult and first year), three Red-crested Pochard (two drakes), four Common Snipe and two Bramblings at the Old Scaldwell Road Feeding Station. Twenty Redpolls were in Scaldwell village gardens and a Siskin was at Scotland Wood on the Kelmarsh Estate with at least one Redpoll at Hanging Houghton.

Four Smew were at Eyebrook Reservoir today (one adult drake).

I have just returned from a five day Naturetrek tour to the Camargue in search of Wallcreepers and other wildlife of the region. We only saw one Wallcreeper but it provided very good sustained views and the other birds were excellent including Moustached Warbler, Penduline Tits, Eurasian Eagle Owl and plenty more. Some images from the trip are on the page/tab Wallcreepers & the Camargue Nov/Dec 2023.

Regards

Neil M

Great Black-backed Gull.

Sparrowhawk courtesy of
John Tilly.

Male Chaffinch in winter
plumage courtesy of Claire
Nuttall.

Wet today, cold tomorrow

Hello

A wet night and morning with some reprieve this afternoon but a cold night ahead of us.

Two Redpoll, four Ravens and a Grey Wagtail were in the vicinity of New Covert, Kelmarsh this morning. A Barn Owl and a Woodcock were at Harrington Airfield today with a flock of twenty-five Wigeon and two Woodcock located at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this afternoon.

A Great Spotted Woodpecker caught in Scaldwell village today was first ringed at nearby Pitsford Reservoir seven and a half years ago, a very good age for this species.

A female/immature Common Scoter was at Ravensthorpe Reservoir this afternoon, visible off the east end of the dam.

Two Egyptian Geese were at The Embankment, Wellingborough yesterday afternoon and today ten Goosanders were on the main lake at Abington Park, Northampton at lunchtime.

At Pitsford Reservoir the juvenile Great Northern Diver was off the dam this afternoon and was repeatedly calling, a sound rarely heard locally. Other birds included two Yellow-legged Gulls (an adult and a first year), a Grey Wagtail and at least one Siskin.

Regards

Neil M

Great Northern Diver
at Pitsford Reservoir today.

Stonechats.

Reed Bunting.

Above four images
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

More of the same !!

Well the weather might have changed but the birds have not and the long stayers remain.  The Great Northern Diver and female type Common Scotor can still be  found between the dam and pines at Pitsford Reservoir.  Close by at Hollowell Reservoir the Pink Footed Goose,  Stonechats,  Caspian and Yellow Legged Gull can be found.       Two Glossy Ibis and several Cattle Egrets appear settled at Stanwick GP although today there was a sighting of a single Glossy Ibis at Summer Leys.  I'm not sure whether it is a 3rd bird which would be pretty amazing or one of the Stanwick birds having a fly round the Nene Valley.                 Other birds of note around are 3 Red Crested Pochards in the Walgrave Bay at Pitsford Reservoir and 4 Stonechats and a Barnacle Goose at Upton Country Park.                                       There are several Stonechats at Summer Leys which are showing well and delighting the photographers.  Some amazing pictures of them on social media.  Just across the county boundary in Market Harborough the Otters have been seen and filmed swimming and playing in the river in the middle of the town.  Well worth a slow walk along the river if you visit Market Harborough,  although of course with wildlife nothing is guaranteed. 

I have been out and about around Blueberry and Harrington Airfield and I've just bumped into the same 2 Woodcocks and hundreds of Redwings/Fieldfares.   

Hopefully with more folk being able to get out and about over the weekend a few different birds may be found. Birding can be difficult at this time of year with less hours of daylight and family commitments in the run up to Christmas.    But enjoy your time out birding whether it be 10 minutes or 2 hours, but please remember to feed and water the birds now that the weather is decidedly wintery. 

Regards Eleanor 

International travels of a Redwing.

Hello

A cold but sunny day with little new found in the county today.

At Pitsford Reservoir both the Great Northern Diver and the Common Scoter were north of the dam this morning with a Grey Wagtail north of the causeway.

At Stanwick Pits today the two Glossy Ibis were braving the cold temperatures as were two Cattle Egrets, nine Goosanders and a Pintail. Summer Leys LNR hosted two Stonechats, a Siskin and a hundred Golden Plovers. A Goosander was at Kinewell Lake, Ringstead Pits

At Eyebrook Reservoir the Smew number went up again with five birds present including three drakes.

Two Woodcock were seen at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell and a Barn Owl was in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton. A Brambling flew over Scotland Wood, Kelmarsh this morning and a Siskin was at New Covert.

A first year Redwing mist-netted at Harrington Airfield on 17th November was bearing a Dutch-scheme ring and was first ringed in Holland on 17th October 2023. In thirty-one days this migrant thrush had travelled a minimum of 487km from Reddingsweg, Schiermonnikoog, Holland in a SSW direction to reach the hawthorn bushes at Harrington.

Regards

Neil M

Stonechat.

Song Thrush.

Blue Tit.

Wren.

All above images taken at
Summer Leys LNR today
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

The Dutch-ringed Redwing
at Harrington Airfield courtesy
of Jane Neill.

A basic map depicting
the two locations where
the Redwing was initially
 ringed and then re-captured.

Birding the north of the county

Hello

In stark contrast to yesterday it was a sunny, bright day with plenty of sun although it seemed very cold once the sun went down!

Eleanor had a day out to the north of the county starting with a long run around the Fineshade Wood complex with her collies and hound, then a walk around Top Lodge. Then it was over to Wakerley Wood on the opposite side of the A43 where she walked around the car park and pretty much the whole complex to the south. Then it was a quick revisit to Top Lodge to re-check for Waxwings before moving on to Blatherwycke and Deene Lakes. The last part of her day out was to check the Welland Valley and finish at East Carlton Country Park.

The Fineshade Wood complex including Westhay Wood hosted plenty of birds with about fifty Siskins, nine Bramblings, eight Crossbills, about eight Redpolls, a Chiffchaff, a Woodcock, two Ravens and a fly-through male Merlin. Again there was no sign of the Waxwings.

At Wakerley there were about ten Crossbills in the larches in the car park with a flock of at least twenty-five Bramblings feeding on beech mast deep in the south part of the wood. A few Siskins were there too but it was much quieter than Fineshade.

At Blatherwycke Lake there were at least forty-eight active Mandarin Ducks, two Egyptian Geese, a Black Swan, two Kingfishers, two Little Egrets and a Green Sandpiper. A mostly drained Deene Lake hosted a Shelduck, three Black Swans, two Green Sandpipers and a pair of Stonechat. A Peregrine was at Harringworth Viaduct in the Welland Valley and there were two Grey Wagtails at East Carlton Country Park.

Stanwick Pits was the continued venue for two Glossy Ibis, six Cattle Egrets, eight Goosanders, a Grey Plover over, thirty Golden Plovers and four Stonechats and a Marsh Harrier was at Summer Leys LNR.

Harrington Airfield was still full of Fieldfares and Redwings today and the only other birds of note included a single Siskin and two Ravens.

Hollowell Reservoir attracted a Pink-footed Goose, a pair of Mandarin Ducks, one hundred and nineteen Cormorants, a Green Sandpiper, two adult Caspian Gulls and two adult Yellow-legged Gulls. Three Smew (two adult drakes) were at Eyebrook Reservoir today.

At Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon birds north of the dam included the Great Northern Diver and female/immature Common Scoter still, a mobile first year drake Scaup, an adult Caspian Gull and singles of Redpoll and Siskin.

Regards

Neil M

Muntjac.

Dunnock.

Blackbird.

Above images courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Great Crested Grebe.

Great Black-backed Gull.

First year drake Scaup (distant)!

Water Rail colour ring project

Hello

A thoroughly miserable, wet and cold day but our wildlife still has to cope out there!

This month sees the start of a colour-ringing programme of Water Rails in the Nene Valley with the first four birds now having colour rings on their legs. Although not a bird regularly seen out in the open for long, there are places in the Nene Valley where it is possible to obtain reasonable views of these secretive birds. 

The key purpose of this project is to enable recognition of individual birds using cameras or observer sightings with a view to determining movements around sites, monitor nesting behaviour and to perhaps discover post-breeding dispersal, without the need to trap them again. Being so secretive, very little is known about Water Rails during the breeding season, and hopefully this project will shed some light on their behaviour and requirements.

The birds are initially trapped, aged where possible and their gender established with the measurement of tarsus, bill and wing. Each bird is affixed with a metal ring and a colour ring with a number, a white coloured ring denotes a male and yellow a female.

This project will initially run for three years with  birds being trapped and marked during this time and is managed by members of the Northants Ringing Group. Anyone seeing a Water Rail so marked is asked to photograph and report it.

A few stoic observers out there today reported the two Glossy Ibis still at Stanwick Pits and a Bewick's Swan was photographed at Summer Leys LNR this morning. Birds in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton today included hundreds of Fieldfares, a Great White Egret standing in a field and just two Common Snipe at nearby Blueberry Farm. A quick visit to Fineshade Top Lodge in the rain this afternoon to check on the whitebeam and rowan trees failed to locate any Waxwings (a flock of 47 reported yesterday there).

Regards

Neil M

Water Rails courtesy
of Chris Payne.

Here comes winter!

Hello

Another cold and dull day and with a period of rain just around the corner it is forecast to remain wintry for a while yet.

Stanwick Pits continued to attract birds more associated with the Mediterranean/southern Europe in the shape of the two Glossy Ibis and six Cattle Egrets. A Marsh Harrier was there this morning too.

A little more seasonal was a report via Birdguides of a flock of forty-seven Waxwings in a Whitebeam tree at Fineshade Top Lodge this afternoon. From memory there are only a couple of such trees so if this is a genuine record that number will quickly eat all the berries!

Hollowell Reservoir hosted two adult Yellow-legged Gulls, a hundred and ten Cormorants (very large number for this site), three Stonechats and a Common Snipe. Single Lesser Redpolls were noted at Scaldwell and Hanging Houghton villages.

At Pitsford Reservoir the juvenile Great Northern Diver was still consuming crayfish off the dam and there was also a female/immature Common Scoter north of the dam plus an adult Caspian Gull and two Yellow-legged Gulls (adult and first year). A Great White Egret was north of the causeway.

Regards

Neil M

Mute Swans.

Grey Heron.

Magpie.

Robin.

All images taken by Tony
Stanford at Stortons Pits.

Birds of a cold November day

Hello

Stanwick Pits tended to be the site of the day with the two Glossy Ibis and the six Cattle Egrets in attendance, the ibis tending to remain around the west side of Roadside Pit and the egrets are much more mobile and tend to move between North and the Main Lakes.

The Great Northern Diver and the Common Scoter were still visible from the dam at Pitsford Reservoir today, at times both of them being in the main basin.

A Grey Wagtail was at Hanging Houghton and at Kelmarsh there were eight Siskins near New Covert and a single at Kelmarsh Hall with a Lesser Redpoll at Scotland Wood. Up to three Blackcaps have been visiting Jon's garden in Hollowell and eating berries in recent days.

The 'redhead' Smew was still at Eyebrook Reservoir today and two Crossbills and a Brambling were at Fineshade Wood north east of Top Lodge this afternoon.

In the Nene Valley there was a Barnacle Goose still at Upton Country Park plus two Stonechats and Ian's walk from Whiston Lock to Cogenhoe and Ecton Sewer Works provided four Stonechats, three or four Green Sandpipers, a Great White Egret and at least twenty Grey Partridges.

The moon this evening displays an impressive halo around it and although all the indications suggest the Northern Lights might be possible to see at this latitude tonight it's cloudy where we are!

Regards

Neil M

Female Blackbird.

Great Tit.

Goldeneye courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Crossbill courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

Pitsford Reservoir WebS count

Hello

Today was the wetland count day at Pitsford Reservoir which took some five hours with three observers. South of the causeway the Great Northern Diver was present but rather elusive today, the female/immature Common Scoter was present in The Narrows again, plus eight Little Egrets, two Grey Wagtails, two Redpolls, a pair of Stonechats and three Chiffchaffs. It was quieter north of the causeway but there was a Great White Egret, a female Stonechat, at least eight Siskins, eight Pintails, eleven Common Snipe and a Grey Wagtail.

Two showy Glossy Ibis showed up at Stanwick Pits today plus the six Cattle Egrets were there too.

At Hollowell Reservoir there were three adult Caspian Gulls, a first year Yellow-legged Gull, a pair of Mandarin Ducks, a Goosander, a good count of seventy-one Cormorants and four Stonechats with a Chiffchaff at nearby Ravensthorpe Reservoir.

An Oystercatcher was at Clifford Hill Pits this morning plus a Great White Egret and two Stonechats and a Cattle Egret was at Stanford Reservoir. Eyebrook Reservoir hosted a 'redhead' Smew and a Black-necked Grebe.

Regards

Neil M

The Glossy Ibis at
Stanwick Pits today
courtesy of Jim Dunkley.

Black-headed Gull.

Siskin.

Above two images taken at
Pitsford Reservoir today
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Sunrise across the nation

Hello

A quieter day in the county for birds but just like many areas of the country we enjoyed an absolutely stunning sunrise! The mild days of the last week has stimulated Song Thrushes to sing in the early mornings but they will quieten again once the cooler temperatures arrive.

Steve Fisher's daily early morning patrol of Stanwick Pits yielded six Cattle Egrets, two Redshanks, four Stonechats and a Ring-necked Parakeet.

At Stanford Reservoir today the two Cattle Egrets were seen again as was a Great White Egret and a Water Rail and at Eyebrook Reservoir the Red-throated Diver remained and a 'redhead' Smew was present.

Birds at Pitsford Reservoir this afternoon included the Great Northern Diver again off the dam area plus a female/immature Common Scoter just a little further north at the confluence of the Pines and the Narrows. A Redpoll and a Grey Wagtail were there too.

Harrington Airfield was again full of berry-gobbling Fieldfares plus a covey of five Grey Partridges and a Redpoll with a Siskin at nearby Scotland Wood, Kelmarsh. Two Barn Owls were active at dusk in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this evening.

Regards

Neil M

Sunrise in the Brampton Valley
below Hanging Houghton this
morning.

Cetti's Warbler.

Female Stonechat.

Male Stonechat.

Male Lesser Redpoll.

Goldfinch.

Shoveler.

Red Kite.

Above seven images
courtesy of Tony Stanford
depicting birds photographed
locally.