Fieldfare
Before we get to Spurn I drove through Stone Creek on Sunday afternoon. There wasn't much to see, but there was a flock of Fieldfare with a sprinkling of Redwings and a Pied Wagtail. I also checked out Alkborough Flats on Monday. There had been a high tide since my last visit, which had filled in the bare area infront of the hide with muddy water. However, the waders haven't yet returned. Despite the very strong winds, I was rewarded with a glimpse of a male Bearded Tit, which shinned up a reed. It was the only sighting of note.
On a beautiful sunny and calm Tuesday morning we met at the Blue Bell car park. As I waited for the class to arrive, three separate flocks of Whooper Swans headed south. Of course, no further winter swans were seen once the others had arrived. Some colourful singing Starlings sported under the eaves accompanied by some less charming House Sparrows.
We went to Kilnsea Wetlands because a Cattle Egret had been reported. There wasn’t much water, but despite this there were still plenty of birds to see. A Black Swan flew in with 3 Mute Swans. It was a revelation for many to see the large white patches on the wings. These white patches are largely invisible on the birds we had previously seen floating on the water. Scanning the birds we noticed a drake Pintail. Other birds seen included: Black-tailed Godwits, 3 Avocets, Dunlin, Shoveler, Wigeon, Teal plus a flock of Brent Geese headed over towards Beacon Ponds. Meantime on the mud a series of Passerines sported in front of the hide. They included: Reed Buntings, Pied Wagtails, Goldfinches, Linnets, Chaffinches and Meadow Pipits.
A walk to Beacon Ponds resulted in Little Egrets, better views of Brent Geese, a Redshank and various other wildfowl. Margaret spotted a Wren on the netted wall, whilst Bridget drew everyone’s attention to a Stonechat on the reeds.
We then went on to Sammy’s Point, which was almost balmy in the October sunshine. Here, we saw a more pristine Stonechat and several waders including a Grey Plover, but also Curlew, Dunlin, Redshanks and possibly Golden Plover, but we could only see silhouettes. When we first arrived a flock of over 10 Long-tailed Tits flew over our head, but my camera would only focus on one.
Wednesday showed the same location utterly transformed by strong easterly winds. As soon as I arrived the radio crackled with the news of an owl over the sea. Unfortunately, I couldn’t catch sight of it. The early birds had to put up with a Kestrel instead. Once everyone arrived we walked to watch some ringing. We saw a Redwing, a Song Thrush and then a Robin being released. While we were waiting at the ringing two Grey Wagtails flew south, and then a small flock of Bramblings, whilst several Redwing were continually being scattered across the sky. The walk along the canal produced a few waders on the mud. These included Redshank, Curlew and Dunlin. Plus, there were a great number of Shelduck all congregated in the same area. We walked towards the breach, but only added Reed Buntings.
Retracing our steps for a while we eventually reached Canal Scrape. The hide was packed to the gunnels because a Jack Snipe was bobbing up and down. It was extraordinarily difficult to discern among the short vegetation. However, everyone finally managed to see it before we gave up in despair. At least one observer wryly remarked that if it hadn’t been constantly in motion then they would never have spotted it. We were almost satiated by the perpetual motion when a Fieldfare landed in front of us. Originally, it faced us, but quickly turned and spent a few minutes displaying its smart back to us. It was probably our best and most prolonged view of this species ever.
In the afternoon as we waited for someone stuck in traffic some yapping Herring Gulls led Sue to discover the gulls mobbing a Short-eared Owl above our heads. Unfortunately, the Jack Snipe wouldn’t reappear after lunch, but there had been a massive influx of Goldcrests and a smaller ‘fall’ of Robins since the morning. We saw another SEO near the Warren, and Adam kindly allowed the pm session to watch the ringing of a Redwing, Song Thrush, Robin & Goldcrest. The waders were slightly closer which this time included 2 Greenshanks and a Grey Plover.
Thursday was supposed to be a complete washout, but the bad weather meant that a lot of birds were forced down into the Spurn area. I went to have a look in the afternoon. It was drizzling a little, but nothing like the torrent forecast the previous evening. I parked in front of the gate from which I could see the estuary mud, and the bushes clustered around the entrance to the reserve. There were quite a few Brambling, Redwing and Fieldfare, but the most unexpected bird was a Black Redstart on the unimog and gate…
Goosander (c) 2022 Peter Moizer
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