And Now for the Good Smews

Today's reserve failed to live up to the quantity and variety of species compared with more than 2 years ago and further back in time.  However, there were Pochard, Shoveler, Teal, Gadwall, Tufted Ducks, a Great Crested Grebe and an obscene number of Coots from the first hide.  

Smew (drake) [2nd winter?]

The walk down the green tunnel yielded very few birds, although plenty of shy Redwings could be seen leaving the tree-tops as we made our way over the yellow leaves.   There was nothing at all to see at the new hide, but when we reached the embankment we could see some Wigeon as we looked West.   

 From the rickety hide we saw the same species as the first hide, but we did get a much better view of a female Goldeneye.  Meanwhile Aileen manage to photograph a Goldcrest directly outside the hide, which was in the company of some Long-tailed Tits

All remaining pics (c) 2012 Aileen Urquhart

Goldcrest

 Cutting across the meadow I heard and then we all glimpsed a Willow Tit.  There were calls of a Bullfinch and some of the afternoon session managed to get their binoculars on a stunning male, but he quickly flew off again.

Willow Tit

When made our way to the deeper pools and on here were at least 3 drake Goldeneyes, and some Tufted Ducks.  A flock of Goldeneye could just by made out through the hawthorn hedge as they flew past, and with them was a drake Smew.  Unfortunately, it spotted us, and flew away again.  However, luckily for us it alighted directly in front of the final hide.   

Mute Swan

Some of us were able to sneak up to the hide and carefully lift up the flaps to get a better look.  It was an extremely nervous bird and almost immediately swam towards the channel leading out of this pool.  It must have later flown away from the main water while no one was looking, as it later turned up on a lake a quarter of a mile away.  

Drake Smew [White Nun] (c) 2012 Tony Robinson

The Smew was replaced by a pair of Great Grested Grebes, which came and fished for both groups.  Both sessions also had very good views of a female Kingfisher from this hide, especially the afternoon gang, as it perched within about 6 feet from the hide.  It was an excellent way to bring the Wednesday Autumn sessions to a conclusion.

Urban Birding

It was too windy for our planned location today, so we switched to a supermarket car park. Yesterday there were reports of 115 Waxwings there. At least 50 were still present at 9.30. They showed well in good light, but wouldn't come down to the berries in the tree they favoured as a chap with a very big lens was stationed really close to their tree. We viewed from some distance away, and were able to get adequate photos. We spent half an hour or so with the birds, but when they all took off we took that as our cue and went to the Humber Bridge Park in the hope of catching up with some Bullfinches.

All photos (c) 2012 Chris Cox
Waxwing

Part of the flock

Unfortunately, the East Riding staff chose this particular day to be tweaking the willows growing around the feeding station, so there were no Bullfinches to see, or anything else of interest in the area. As small compensation one morning participant spotted a Jay, which I've never seen in the area before, but we all managed to sneak a view. We also had good views of at least 2 different Treecreepers, several family parties of Long-tailed Tits and some Goldcrests. Unfortunately in the afternoon virtually all the small birds had disappeared. We did see a couple of Long-tailed Tits, but that was it. 

About to snatch a berry

 Swallowing

However, the afternoon session started in the supermarket car park, and this time there were well over 100 birds. This was a 'lifer' for several participants. My camera decided to die at this point, so I've had to rely on Chris Cox's pictures from yesterday to illustrate the blog.

Kingfisher Comes to the Rescue

There were a lot more ducks around at this venue than there were 3 weeks ago.  A female Goldeneye was the highlight with very smart Shovelers, plus Gadwall, and a couple of Pochard and a single drake Teal and 2 females.

At the brand new hide there was a single Redshank, but the site has been beautifully landscaped, so has great potential for the future.

On the river there were a few more Redshank, and in the afternoon through John's scope we saw five Black-tailed Godwits, a couple of Dunlin, some Wigeon & more Redshank.

There were Long-tailed Tits, Goldcrests, Bullfinches and Redwings among the Hawthorn bushes, and a couple of drake Goldeneyes near the hotel.  However, the highlight for both the morning and the afternoon was a male Kingfisher near the hotel hide.  However, Maggie went back at lunch time & managed to photograph a very close female Kingfisher.  A pair of Great Crested Grebe were also pretty confiding from the Hotel Hide.

All photos (c) 2012 Maggie Bruce

Female Kingfisher

 Ditto

 Ditto

 Ditto

Hull Birds Available Online

In 2002 Richard K Broughton published Birds of the Hull Area.  To mark the 10th anniversary of this milestone volume, the information included has just been made available online for the first time:  Birds of the Hull Area

A male Bullfinch taken within the Hull boundary at the Humber Bridge Country Park.  Numbers of Bullfinches continue to do well at the Park.  There are a great number of Ash trees at the park - one of the Bullfinches favourite foods  - but their food is definitely supplemented by food left at the feeding station.  These are the most confiding Bullfinches I have ever seen, sometimes flying down before the person putting down seed has retreated from the bird table!

 Unfortunately, the one off records mentioned in the book such as the Wood Warbler singing in May 1986, and the skull of a  Hawfinch hitting the kitchen window in 1998 have not been repeated.  However, there have been some more one off records to compensate.  In the very dry April of 2011 we had a succession of surprising visitors to the water in our garden: Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat even a Reed Warbler, but the biggest surprise was a male Ring Ouzel - a first since we have been watching in 1969.  Further investigation revealed it was trying to find earthworms among the male Blackbirds during the day in the cemetery, but for at least 2 evenings it sneaked into the garden for a drink.

A Ring Ouzel in the cemetery

 The previous evening here he is looking to slake his thirst

 We didn't see our first Great Spotted Woodpecker in our Hull garden until 18th September 1977, but now they are an almost daily visitor - especially the young birds in June and July.

Juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker Bathing 

 In the 2000 book my photo of a male Brambling which stunned itself for a few seconds in our window was published.  Since then they are not quite an annual visitor, but we do get a few in the garden on average one or 2 every other spring or two.  We've yet to have an autumn record, all our birds seem to be on the way back to Scandinavia in April or May.

A female Brambling in our garden April 2008

 Another of my photos of a Tawny Owl perched on a drainpipe on the maternity home was included in the 2002 volume.  Unfortunately, the maternity home has gone, as has such an obvious place for the owls to perch.  We still have Tawny Owl in the trees, but the only time when they are easier to find is when the mother is sat guarding her nearby chicks.

Adult Tawny Owl

 Tawny Owl Chick

One of the most recent unusual one-off birds was a Lesser Whitethroat which was first seen on Boxing Day 2009.  It excited some local interest, as it its late arrival meant it could have been of an eastern race.  However, it's true identity was never definitively  established.  It was then seen subsequently on an almost daily basis until mid-April 2010.

Lesser Whitethroat at our feeding station in early January 2010

Tit Willow, Tit Willow, Tit Willow

On Thursday we revisited a trip of a couple of week’s ago.  http://www.eybirdwatching.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/blue-sky-birding.html

The first difference this time was that there was a Yellowhammer singing right next to the level crossing, and a Tree Sparrow on a fence surrounding one of the new Rabbit hutches.  The first section of the walk was a lot quieter than it used to be only a couple of years ago, but there was a Song Thrush, Magpies and Goldfinches flying over.  At the first junction we turned left, and this is where the action started.  In the Oilseed Rape there were a couple of Reed Buntings, a Whitethroat and a massive mixed flock of finches: Goldfinches, Greenfinches, Chaffinches & Linnets.  In the afternoon a pair of Bullfinches swelled the finch species seen, as they dropped into the same crop.  At a stump there were several tiny baby birds which I assumed were Wrens in the bad light, but the photos seem to show they were Whitethroats.

Willow Tit

 Yellowhammer

 Yellowhammer

 Chaffinch [female]

 Chaffinch [male]

 Willow Tit

 Willow Tit

A Yellow Wagtail flew from the OSR field across the path carrying food, and headed almost the whole length over a field of wheat before being lost to sight.  At the end of the path a male Great Spotted Woodpecker was observed by almost all participants, and Alan identified a pair of Bullfinches in the same area.  We started to retrace our steps and encountered our 4^th Yellowhammer, and a Wren.  A little further on we heard a distinctive nasal ‘tchay-tchay-tchay’ and we were able to pick out 2 Willow Tits.  A couple of years ago I used to see Marsh Tits near here, but these were definitely Willow Tits.  Hopefully, the photos taken will prove this. The afternoon bird was the finest Willow Tit Ken has ever seen out in the wilds – the Willow Tits on the Potteric Carr bird table don’t count!   In the afternoon the birds were still present, but were several hundred yards further east.  This is the second encounter with Willow Tits in previous Marsh Tit hotspots in a week.  Are they finally making a comeback, or are young birds dispersing after a very successful breeding season, or have I just been lucky?

 Willow Tit

 Record shot of a Linnet

 Common Tern

 Common Blue Damselfly

In the morning Phil spotted 3 Herons fly up from the water-skiing lake at this point, whilst in the afternoon 7 took to the air at roughly the same juncture.  Margaret was the first to spot a distant speck in the sky – a singing Skylark, even though she couldn’t hear it!  Shortly afterwards Brian found one of the best birds of the day when he saw a male marsh harrier hunting low over the wheatfield.  At the end of the lane we turned left & joined the path to the river.  On reaching the fishing ‘complex’ the air was full of many low-flying House Martins and a few Swifts.  There were a few damselflies at our feet, which I hope we managed to avoid, and soon we also saw a fresh looking Speckled Wood.  There were many more of these in the afternoon when the sun came out – but the only other butterfly was a Red Admiral in the afternoon sunning itself not far from the river, just before we surprised the skinnydippers.   The river seemed high both in the morning & the afternoon so there were no waders to be seen and only a Lesser Black-Backed Gull over the water.  In the reedbeds there was some desultory song by a Reed Warbler, and more energetic renderings by both Reed Buntings and a Sedge Warbler.  This area was almost devoid of birds in the afternoon.  

Weevil

 Fledgling Whitethroats

 Male Common Whitethroat

On the return leg there was a sharp ‘peep-peep’ to our right and shortly afterwards a Kingfisher headed through a gap in the hedge and headed towards the fishing lake.  Later more peeps were heard & I snatched a view of it returning, probably on a mission to catch fish for its chicks.  Later even more sharp calls were heard, and even Chris can now say he’s heard a Kingfisher, if he can’t actually confirm he has actually seen one.  A Blackcap revealed itself opposite the entrance to the angling complex, after singing beautifully.  The weirdest thing on the return journey was a small dark mammal (seemingly with no visible legs) moving swiftly across the road.  A Shrew seemd to be the best bet.  It certainly seemed even smaller than a mouse or vole.


Stop Press.  Here's what the UK's leading expert says of the above Willow Tit pics:  It's definitely a Willow Tit, and it's a juvenile (can tell by tail feather shape). It could be a new juvenile from this year, just dispersing, or one from last year which hasn't started the moult yet, but I'd verge towards the former because it's quite dapper. The clinching all-dark bill is evident on pretty much all of the pics. Plumage-wise, juv Marsh and Willow can be almost identical on the head at this time of year, so bib and crown is no use. The greater coverts are also distinctive (dark centres), but it's pretty subtle.

Marsh and Willow Tit juvs are dispersing at the moment (they do it as soon as they're independent, about 10 days after fledging), which is when they make the biggest movement of their lives. They normally move a few km, but could go much further (10 km or more), so it suggests that a pair might have bred nearby perhaps within 5 km, but isn't conclusive. It might also decide to keep moving before it settles, if it doesn't find a friend (they're looking for a vacant territory and a member of the opposite sex).

Red Stars

Male Redstart [at this location 3 years ago]

 Female Redstart

 Spotted Flycatcher

 Mayflies

 Micromoth

Rockrose

Yesterday afternoon was the first of the daytime wildlife events organised to coincide with Robert Fuller’s summer exhibition.  Four people met in the gallery from where we shared cars, and another 2 were waiting for us at the destination.  I also brought along my nephew who was often able to spot things quickly for the attendees.   On the journey we nearly slaughtered 8 Red-legged Partridges and an escaped lamb, but we managed to successfully avoid adding blood stains to the road.  Along the way there was a singing Meadow Pipit which I actually managed to spot on the return trip.  

From the car park we could hear a Yellowhammer singing just across the road, and this bird flew right over us and landed in the hedgerow we were shortly to walk past.  Here were also Goldfinches around the car park, but the usual Linnets were absent.  We plunged down the valley, and from the scrub there were distant Blackcaps and Willow warblers, but a more vibrant Song Thrush whilst another was visible on top of the Hawthorns.  One thing I noticed straight away was how noisy it is on weekends when there are a lot more non-birdwatchers in the area.  There was one family in particular of about 8 daughters, only half of whom were dressed in the compulsory pink who dawdled & made a hell of a lot of noise, and made my task that bit more difficult.  It was noticeable that Ben (12) did most of the complaining at the behaviour of the public, and came across as an old man!  

In the valley bottom I could hear a male redstart singing.  We went through a handgate an almost immediately I spotted a bird going into a cavity where Redstarts had nested 2 or 3 years ago.  I couldn’t believe they were using the same dirty old hole, but they were.  Both parents were going in and out regularly, so it was clear that their young were being fed.  We remained there for about half an hour, and although the Redstart’s movements at first were too quick for some of the viewers eventually both genders sat perched long enough looking for most people to get decent views.  This was a more colourful female than many, as a definite peachy blush could be discerned on her breast.  A Spotted Flycatcher also appeared briefly, and some Bullfinches flew over, and there were some Goldfinches perched on one of the dead Hawthorns.  

When we left the Redstarts and began to walk along the old railway line I could hear the very distinctive ‘chup’ of Crossbills, so these must have been in the stand of conifers which had been behind us when we were watching the Redstarts.  Along the early part of this walk we heard both a Chiffchaff and a Willow Warbler, and the latter was even spotted with its wings outstretched.  We also heard a Blackcap, but this could only be glimpsed among the thick hedgerow, although it was seen in flight, as it flew from one side to the other.  A Mayfly was clinging to a nettle, and when I looked at the photo there were actually 2 mayflies there.  There were singing Chaffinches, a Wren and another Chiffchaff near the quarry.  Meanwhile we had Swifts, House Martins and Swallows flying over us at various times.  

On the return to the gallery there were almost as many red-legged Partridges dicing with death, but the only new birds seen were a pair of Linnets flew up as we drove back past a quarry.

A Logical Viewpoint

All pictures (c) 2012 Richard Whateley

Thursday morning was our final visit to an urban nature reserve.  Everyone but the lady from Castle Howard seemed to find it OK, but she probably isn’t used to real urban driving!  The car park was quieter in the gentle drizzle, but we did see a few Linnets, a House Sparrow and low-flying Swifts and House Martins.  I left my camera at home because my previous one ‘died’ in heavy rain, and downpours were forecast.  Richard was braver, so I’m completely reliant on him to illustrate this blog.  On the playing field there were 2 Lesser-Black Backed Gulls for the first time, and the Starlings, Rooks, Carrion Crows, Magpies and Jackdaws were still present.  A male Bullfinch flew from left to right just at the beginning of the walk but it couldn’t be relocated.  There were actually more birds singing on the walk up the hill in today’s bad weather than the 2 gorgeous days we visited last week.    

Water Vole

 Linnet

For the second Thursday am running we heard a Cuckoo, but this time despite several apparently close encounters we failed to see it.  The Warblers were harder to see this time, though we did have an early Chiffchaff near the beginning and then a definite Willow Warbler at the end.  The Lesser Whitethroat had gone silent again, and we only heard a couple of Whitethroats this time.  A Chiffchaff was heard, but it was harder to locate this time.  There were a few Blackcaps singing from deep cover on the path parallel to the Poplar Avenue, but apart from one brief flyover, again these remained concealed from sight. 

Chiffchaff

 We waited for a time on the bridge but there were fewer things to see round here too.  2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers flew from a young Ash tree on the bank & headed into the reserve towards some large Willow trees.  The adult soon flew off, but a fledgling remained for several minutes.  I don’t think everyone managed to lock onto it in time, but those that did were able to watch trying to peck at the bark for and climb the tree.  People were discussing this sighting when Phil G spotted something swimming across the drain.  Everyone spun round and got a great view of a Water Vole.  It was then busy for a few minutes on our side of the bank, because we could see the ripples spreading out from our side, but the vegetation screened it from any further views.  

Immature Great Spotted Woodpecker

 ditto

 Chaffinch

We popped into the reserve again, but took a different circular path, which took us past a Willow Warbler and the den area, which was recently featured in the local press.  There were fewer butterflies and other insects to see because of the drizzle, but we were climbing the steps out of the reserve when the Cuckoo stared calling again nearby.  Unfortunately, a Search & Rescue helicopter then flew low over us, and we weren’t able to track it down.  The final sight of the morning was provided by a Greenfinch, which at first twittered & wheezed in the car park before embarking on its slow-motion butterfly courtship flight.  A nice way to bring these urban visits to an end.

 Willow Warbler

Greenfinch