25/11/2017 RSPB Pulborough Brooks with the East Grinstead RSPB Group

Saturday 25/11 2017
RSPB Pulborough Brooks.

Another great turnout for our November visit to RSPB Pulborough Brooks.  On a crisp, cold, autumnal day, 17 members were rewarded with an interesting trip, with over 50 species seen.

The highlights are itemised below.

• 2 Peregrines were seen from the Winpenny hide.  It is not often we see 2 together.  What made it more unusual was that they were on the ground rather than perched on a tree or a post.

• Winter thrushes were very much in evidence as you would expect at this time of year.  We enjoyed splendid views of Redwing and Fieldfare throughout our visit.

• Waders were thin on the ground and we had to satisfy ourselves with a dozen or so Black-tailed Godwits, a few Snipe, a Redshank, a Dunlin and a single Ruff.

• Incredibly we saw 3 Swallows flying over the water on the brooks.  They should have long gone overseas.

• At least 4 Pintails  brought us great delight and complemented the Wigeon, Teal Mallard, and Shoveler.

• Pick of the passerines were Bullfinch, Siskin, Stonechat, Greenfinch, Long-tailed Tit, Goldcrest, Nuthatch and Redpoll.

• A couple of Buzzards and a Kestrel were seen but we were out of luck with Red Kite.

A very satisfying morning!

A planned trip to the Burgh in the afternoon had to be abandoned as there were no car parking spaces when we arrived.  Several groups were visiting the area today and most seemed to be following a plan similar to ours - the RSPB reserve in the morning and the Duke of Norfolk's Estate in the afternoon.

22 to 24 November 2017 In NW Cumbria

Wednesday 22 November to Friday 24 November 2017

Spent a very short time in Cumbria visiting family.  

• On the way up, on Wednesday afternoon, I was rewarded with brilliant views of 25+ Red Kites on the section of the M40 between the M25 and Oxford. 

 On Thursday, Brian took me to Bowness-on-Solway for a Cumbria Spectacular!  With the Scottish hills (and Criffel in particular) providing the backdrop, the views were as outstanding as the birding.

• Pick of the day for me was the sight of 100+ Whooper Swans on the estuary near Anthorn.
• Not far behind, was the sight of 1000+ Barnacle Geese at the same place.
• Between Bowness-on-Solway and Port Carlisle, we saw hundreds of Pink-footed Geese flying over.
• At RSPB Campfield Marsh we had superb views of a Tawny Owl perched on the branch of a tree some 50-100 metres away.  At the feeders, there was an abundance of Tree Sparrows as well as a few very welcome Greenfinches.  A couple of flyover Siskins caught our attention.
• Most of our effort was taken up following the several thousand Golden Plover in the hope of finding the single Dotterel that had been seen with them recently.  Try as we may we could not find it, but the movement of the plovers was a spectacle in itself.

On the way home on Friday, I detoured to Shrewsbury to twitch the American Night Heron at Quarry Park in the Dingle Gardens.  

• This had to be the easiest twitch of the year; the heron was sitting out on a branch of a bush, enjoying the sunshine, not more than 10 metres from me.

Superb!  

NW Cumbria is right up there with the best birding sites in the country.  

07/11/17 to 09/11/17 Norfolk Tour with Chris Mills

Tuesday 7 November to Thursday 9 November 2017
North Norfolk Coast

My final tour of the year was a cracker with a species count of 110 and some memorable birding experiences.  7 of us, including a lively U3A group of 5 women from Crowborough, met up with Chris Mills at the Burleigh in Hunstanton for the 3-day event.

We started, at first light, at Snettisham where, as well as a high tide spectacular, we enjoyed some terrific visible migration.  There were birds everywhere with numbers well in excess of 100 000!

• Our trip got off to a flying start!  Even before we reached Snettisham we spotted a pair of Barn Owls in a field adjacent to the road so we stopped and admired the views.
• As high tide approached we watched in awe and wonder as the birds began to move.  We are talking about huge numbers of Knot, Oystercatchers and Pink-footed Geese.  The Knot tended to stay at sea instead of flying inland to the nearby gravel pits so they made up a stunning "murmuration type"  spectacle as they weaved in and out during their flight.  The skeins of geese were a joy to see.  

Snettisham at first light
courtesy of Chris Mills

Knot on the move
courtesy of Chris Mills

Snettisham again
courtesy of Chris Mills

• Visible migration (VIS_MIG) centred on several birds.  There were huge movements south of Starlings, Chaffinches with associated Brambling and winter thrushes, predominantly Fieldfare and associated Redwing.  It was reminiscent of the hirundine migration events we see on the south coast in the autumn.

We returned to the Burleigh around 10.30 am for a very late, cooked breakfast before heading off to Holme.  

• Our target bird was Shorelark.  We walked east along the shore for about 500 metres when Chris heard the bird flying near us.  We watched its flight for a while until it went to ground some distance ahead of us but try as we may we could not find it again.

We were also keen to see more visible migration and we were rewarded with some exceptional sights.  

• The most fascinating species was blackbird and we watched several birds coming in off the North Sea seeking refuge at the nearby pines and other trees.  I suspect that this was the event of the trip for Chris and he had reports of huge numbers of these birds on the move.
• Lapwings were another species on the move in huge numbers - again Chris was ecstatic.
• A quick sea watch gave us Red-breasted Merganser and Common Scoter but not much else.
• After a late lunch, we headed for the bird observatory at Holme.  Pick of the sightings here were the Raptors.  Kestrel and Sparrowhawk were seen.
• We ended the day at Thornham where we soon found our target species - Twite.  Also seen was a Peregrine Falcon and a Merlin.  A delightful Kingfisher put in several appearances.

Our second day was much quieter, with far fewer birds, but just as interesting.  We started at Kelling Quags before heading for Cley in the afternoon.

• At Kelling Quags, we had superb views of a Spotted Redshank as it moved around among the Dunlin.  Despite our best efforts, we could not find the Jack Snipe that had been seen previously. On the sea, we added Eider and Long-tailed Duck to our list.  We also had a distant view of a Short-eared Owl as it came in off the sea - another example of VIZ_MIG.  Our first Red Kite was a welcome sight.

• At Cley, we went onto the reserve to see the Grey Phalarope and after a short delay, it duly put in an appearance.  From the hide, we could see other birders watching a flock of birds so we exited the reserve and drove round to the beach where we soon found the flock - between 40 and 50 Snow Buntings. We then spent the next 30 minutes or so watching these lovely birds as they moved around.

Our final day took us to Stiffkey and then to Burnham Overy.  Again it was much quieter than on day 1 but, again, we did see some interesting birds.

• We soon saw the 2 Cattle Egrets on the south side of the A149 trunk road before we crossed the road to look for waders on Stiffkey Fen -  a Greenshank being the best of the bunch.
• We then went looking for Harriers from the car park by the coastal path just to the west of Stiffkey.  We were rewarded big time with excellent views of a distant male Hen Harrier and yet another Merlin.
• From the road west of Holkham Hall, on the way to Burnham Overy, we twitched the Great White Egret to complete our 3 Egret set and saw our first White-fronted Geese of the trip.  In superb lighting, we admired the circling Red Kites and enjoyed watching a Stoat chasing a Rabbit.
• We finished the trip, as we started,  with a close view of a Barn Owl in a field adjacent to the A149.

• A great trip, in excellent company, resulting in a birding experience to savour.  
• Visible Migration certainly appeals to me.  
• How refreshing to see the cream of Norfolk birding waxing lyrical about migrating Blackbirds/Lapwings and the like rather than the rarities. 

04/11/2017 Dusky Warbler at Sandwich Bay

Saturday 4 November 2017
Sandwich Bay


On a miserable, wet day I journeyed to Sandwich Bay to see the Dusky Warbler.  

• When I arrived there were 8 other birders, including Lee Evans, on a mound overlooking a clump of trees.  The warbler had been seen on and off all morning, following a familiar loop around the bushes just ahead of us.  After a while, it appeared but quickly flew to an adjacent bush, then into an area of scrub, then into a huge gorse bush.  Lee moved around the bush trying to lure the bird out using sound mimicking techniques.  It then flew some 20-30 metres, allowing us good views, before disappearing.

Well done Lee Evans!

02/11/2017 Lesser Scaup at Blashford Lakes

Thursday 2nd November 2017
Blashford Lakes, Hampshire

Another fine day so I carried on twitching - this time down into Hampshire to Blashford Lakes. 

• The Lesser Scaup was in the NE corner of Spinnaker Lake as per Bird Guides and was showing well.

courtesy of Mark Leitch, Hampshire Birding Group

Well worth the effort!
Making up for lost time!

01/11/2017 Rock Thrush Twitch

Wednesday 1st November 2017
Blorenge, Gwent, South Wales

This was my first opportunity to go birding since the Yorkshire trip, so I decided to treat myself.  The Rock Thrush seemed to be lingering in Wales ready for my visit so how could I resist.  On a bright sunny day I left home mid morning and arrived in Wales just after 2 pm.  

Thankfully there had been several sightings earlier in the day so confidence was high.  The site was Gilwern Hill, some 1300ft up in the beautiful Brecon Beacons National park near Blaenavon in Gwent.  As I made my way to the quarry I met a couple who had just seen the bird and they advised me to stay on top of the quarry where the bird was showing from 50 metres or so.  

• They were right - although the bird was not showing as I arrived.  Within minutes it appeared on the rocks ahead of me and I was able to get superb scope views.  It had a really mottled appearance with white fringed uppermost feathers and a rich orange, yet mottled, underparts.

Rock Thrush
courtesy of  South Wales Argus

The Rock Thrush was a first for Gwent and only the third in Wales - the last one being in the 1980's.  

• The common rock thrush (Monticola saxatilis), formerly rufous-tailed rock thrush or rock thrush, is a chat belonging to the family Muscicapidae. It was formerly placed in the family Turdidae. The scientific name is from Latin. Monticola is from mons, montis "mountain", and colere, "to dwell", and saxatilis means "rock-frequenting", from saxum, "stone".

• It breeds in southern Europe across central Asia to northern China. This species is strongly migratory, all populations wintering in Africa south of the Sahara. It is an uncommon visitor to northern Europe. Its range has contracted somewhat at the periphery in recent decades due to habitat destruction.

Back on track with a "lifer"