Afternoon on the North York Moors

There had been up to 10 Dotterel present on Danby Beacon (North Yorks) for a number of days so the family and I went to see them. It had been a year and five days since we had seen one there. We set off and saw 2 Merlin from the car between Scarborough and Whitby. We got to Danby Beacon and there were 5 female Dotterel feeding in front of us. Unfortunately they were slightly more distant than last time and they were annoyingly hard to photograph as there was a very strong heat haze. However they still remain my favourite wader. There were also Curlew, Red grouse and Meadow pipits present. We then drove to the ruins of an iron works at Bank Top above Rosedale where there were 5 Golden plover and lots of Red grouse and Lapwing.

Dotterel

2 Dotterel

Dotterel

Golden plover

Red grouse

Pheasant

Curlew 

Golden plover

Curlew

Tophill Low, ringing then birding

Dad and I got up at about 4am to go ringing at Tophill Low Nature reserve. On the way we were incredibly surprised to see a Long-eared owl cross the road ahead of us and continue east towards the coast. Once at Tophill we put the nets up and waited. We could hear a Cuckoo and a Cetti's warbler and a couple of Common terns flew overhead. After a little while of ringing we caught two slightly more unusual birds, two Garden warblers. We only usually catch two or three of these a year.

Garden warbler

We then went on to catch the first Sedge warbler of the year and also saw a brown-morph Cuckoo and a couple of Reed warblers. We also caught a selection of commoner birds such as two Coal tits.

Reed warbler

Sedge warbler

Coal tit

After packing away we went to Watton ponds where there was a Garganey. We then walked around the reserve. On South Marsh West there were 2 Garganey, 3 Little ringed plovers, 3 Dunlin, a Ringed plover, a Common sandpiper and an Egyptian goose (probably the bird I saw on the 1st of April). Unfortunately we didn't manage to see the Red-crested pochards and their two young.

Garganey

Garganey

Egyptian goose

We then walked around the north end of the reserve. Over D 'res' (reservoir) there were thousands of Swifts, Swallows, House martins and Sand martins. Also on the wall of the reservoir there were 3 Common sandpipers and 5 Yellow wagtails. We heard a Cetti's warbler in the scrub around D 'res.' Then, suddenly all of the Hirundines (Swallows and Martins) and Swifts flew in one direction in panic, a Hobby sped past. We walked around the reservoir wishing we would relocate it but it flew north. Then a little while later it happened again, this time there were two Hobbies hunting high over the reservoir, a fantastic spectacle. A very productive day with a wide range of species!

Hobby 

Hobbies

Swift

Yellow wagtail 

Mixed Hirundines and Swifts 

Pied wagtail

Willow warbler

Bempton then Filey

This morning I got picked up by a local birder and ringer to go and ring at a Bio Blitz at Bempton Cliffs Nature reserve. We opened the nets and waited. We heard over the radio that a Short-eared owl was heading our way (north). Then, high up being mobbed by crows, we saw it flying north. We caught and ringed 11 Tree sparrows, 2 Goldfinches, 1 Wren, 1 Whitethroat and a Blackbird. Afterwards we walked to the dell and saw 2 Lesser whitethroats. We then decided to try and see the Filey (red-spotted) Bluethroat. We waited an hour and a quarter but didn't see it, we did however see a Barn owl, 3 Snipe (north) and lots Sand martins. The weather especially made the day great with hot sun and clear skies.

Short-eared owl

Short-eared owl

Lesser whitethroat

Whitethroat

Sand martin (Starling in background) 

Swallow

Evening at Flamborough

Dad had just come back from Leicester and said we could go and try and see the Hoopoe on Flamborough Head. I had already seen a Hobby on the patch that afternoon so the day was already good birdwise. On the way to Flamborough we saw a Barn Owl gracefully hunting by the road. We got towards the Old Lighthouse, an area the bird had frequented. We saw a couple of birders and headed that way. As dad was getting his bins out I saw the Hoopoe dart across the road with it's huge rounded zebra patterned wings. We looked for it and picked it up in a garden, it then flew along into the garden of an empty house. We stood and watched it from the roadside as it probed into the ground looking for worms. It occasionally raised it's crest as the gulls, which it obviously felt threatened by, flew over. This was my first British Hoopoe as I had previously only seen them abroad. These were also the best views I have had of this fantastic bird. 

Hoopoe
(as are the following pictures)

Bank holiday weekend birding an ringing

On Friday (29th) evening the family and I went to stay up with my gran in Hartlepool. On Saturday we went to Tynemouth where we unexpectedly saw an Osprey fly south. We then walked around Tynemouth and saw some Herring gulls. We then went to the metro centre in Newcastle so saw no more birds that day.

(Record shot) Osprey

On the 1st of May (after visiting some furniture shops for my gran) we went to Saltholme. On the way we drove up the road at North Gare and saw a some Wheatears. We then called at Dorman's pool (over the road from Saltholme) where we saw some Whitethroats, Sedge warblers and Swifts. At Saltholme there were lots of Swifts and Hirundines (swallow family) moving through. There were also more Wheatears, some great White wagtails and a Marsh harrier. Just as we were about to leave I walked along to Fire station field where there were 2 Whimbrel, we then saw another Whimbrel at Seal sands. We then set off home. Driving along the A171 just west of Guisborough we saw a large bird flying north we stopped in a lay-by and it was a Crane, a great last bird for the trip.

Swift

White wagtail

Whimbrel 

Sedge warbler 

Whitethroat

Wheatear

On the 1st April Dad and I went to do some ringing at Tophill low nature reserve as part of the BTO's constant effort site (CES) scheme - link here. We captured 30 birds and a considerable number of retrap Willow warblers meaning they had successfully made the migration to Africa and back. Also present were 2 Grasshopper warblers, a Cuckoo, an Egyptian goose and 2 Little ringed plovers.

Lesser Whitethroat 

Egyptian goose 

Egyptian goose

Little ringed plover

April Patchwork challenge roundup

April was quite a good month as I managed to add a lot of species and consequently I finished on 100 points.
Over the course of the month I added 17 species and 22 points. On the 2nd April I added Sand martin and Kittiwake at Hunmanby Gap.

Distant Sand martin

The next birds were on the next day (3rd) with Fulmar and Sandwich tern, again at the Gap.

Sandwich tern

After that two mornings at the Gap produced Swallow and House martin.

Pied wagtail 

The 9th April added two great species on passage, Black redstart and Wheatear, both being at Hunmanby Gap.

Black redstart

Vismigging (watching for visible migration) at the Gap on the morning of the 10th two species were added. A Siskin (northbound) and 121 Pink-footed geese (also northbound).

Some of the Pink-footed geese

After that I finally managed to add two birds in Hunmanby itself (inland) with a Willow warbler on the 12th and a Peregrine on the 14th.

Peregrine

Additions on the 17th and 18th were again both in Hunmanby with Yellow wagtail (17th) and Lesser Whitethroat (18th).

Yellow wagtail

Lesser whitethroat

On the 24th the Gap produced a Whitethroat, keeping the record that every time I've visited the Gap this year I have added a bird to PWC. 

The next addition was at a part of the patch running into Hunmanby Gap at 'the Bay' where I heard a Cuckoo. The final new bird of April was on the 24th with a Snipe that was put down by a storm in a field in Hunmanby.