Wet Wet Wet

There is probably no eighties band that I detest more than Wet Wet Wet but those three words are a good description of what it was like on the patch today after, yet more, overnight rain. It was also windy and cold.

Once the rain stopped, we headed out and headed north - from the car with a plan to cut through the dunes onto the beach at the top of the patch. As we crossed the Dunbar Burn we got a blast of icy air from the sea and changed our minds, heading inland instead along the 'Coal Road'  towards Chibburn Preceptory. 

Looking North-east from High Chibburn with water everywhere

The farmland was very wet, the track to the farm was flowing like a stream and the Dunbar Burn was at full bore. We didn't see a lot of birds. 69 Curlew were on winter cereals and a small flock of 26 Chaffinch were feeding by the wood. Three Red-legged Partridges were new for the year (NFY).

Great and Coal Tits were on the feeders at the Druridge Farm Cottages and also 'NFY' as was Mark Eaton and Sam the dog who we 'year-ticked' on our return to the car. 

There was no sign of the Water Pipits in the hinterland or on the Budge fields but I guess there's plenty of Water Pipit habitat everywhere at the moment. The four Ruff that have been flitting between the Budge Fields and Widdrington Moor Lake were back, hanging out with some redshanks on one of the few dry bits.

Today's full list

A goose for Christmas?

A goose for Christmas? Why not?

Two days late - but that doesn't matter.

With my patch year-list perilously close to 180, Janet and I set off this morning with the intention of a walk around by the farm in search of Yellowhammer - a species that has evaded me all year. We didn't reach the farm - a flock of geese stopped us in our tracks.

Some of the flock

There was a huge flock of Pink-footed Geese in the 'Front Field' at Druridge - "there must be something different among that lot" I said, and we pulled over - scope out. It was a bitterly cold wind, cold enough to bring a tear to the eye! 

I started scanning through the geese, which Janet estimated numbered about 2000, until I got onto a different bird, with thick orange legs and I immediately thought Bean goose - but which one? I went to get Janet and my phone from the car and lost the bird, another 300 geese arrived. Another 25 minutes of searching through them, I found it again, I got better, but brief views of the orange legs (most definitely orange, I've seen Pink-foots with  'orangey' or 'orangish' legs - these were pure orange - and thick.), head and bill shape and bill colour. The bird looked thick-necked and a bit more bull-headed than the pinks but the colour on the bill was definitely more orange than pink and it extended down to the gape. I was pretty-sure this was a Taiga Bean Goose and attempted some digi-scoped shots just before the bird sat down and promptly went to sleep with it's head under it's wing. I put the news out on the chance I was right.

Orange-legged bird on right (digi-scoped)

Orange-legged bird at top - note thick orange legs but 'thick neck, bull-head'

Orange-legged bird left of central group, but again, looks thick-necked. Not so obvious on this pic but colour in bill was more orange than pink, but bill not the right shape for Taiga Bean

Graham Sorrie arrived and it was still asleep and then the Farooqi boys arrived. The bird woke up and Jonny got straight to work on it, he thought that the bill-shape didn't look right and neither did the tail, which was very much a 'Pink-footed' tail. Taiga Bean was ruled out and were looking at an odd Pink-foot with very orange legs, a shorter, thicker neck and orange in the bill but everything else about seemed to fit Pink-foot.

Jonny started scanning the flock and soon picked out another orange-legged bird, this time it was a Bean - but of the Tundra variety. The bird came very close but my photos were rubbish - this is the best I could do. 

Tundra Bean 'arse-on' showing tail pattern and thick orange legs.

Everyday is a school-day when you're birding. A quick look at photos on the Macaulay Library when I got home confirmed the bill-shape and tail were wrong for Taiga Bean, but an interesting bird nonetheless. 

I did get a walk around the farm this afternoon without a Yellowhammer to be seen. 

It was a nice walk though, in the late afternoon sunshine. The sky looked ominous a couple of times but it stayed dry.

Ominous

Six Mistle Thrush were in the fields by the Coal Road and both Redwings and Fieldfare in the Hawthorns by the farm. Near the Preceptory, two Water Pipits were feeding in a wet corner next to the Dunbar Burn, before flying off, calling. Presumably two of the birds from the nearby Budge fields.

Fieldfare at High Chibburn

The Budge fields, with a flock duck, and the dunes from the 'other side'

There was still some light when I got back to the car, so I had a look on the sea. Gulls were pouring in from the land to roost on the sea, Black-headed and Common, but as they settled I scanned through and counted at least nine Mediterranean Gulls amongst them - there could've been many more as gulls were still arriving but he light was going. I estimated 3200 in total by the time I left.

Tundra Bean Goose takes the year-list to 179. Tomorrow I shall be mostly scoping the chimney pots and TV aerials at Widdrington Village for Collared Doves. 

A walk to the extremities

I set out to explore the less-frequented extremities of my patch today with a walk out to High Chibburn Farm, Low Chibburn Preceptory and the northern dunes. I included the farm and the Preceptory in the patch boundary for some variety but I rarely get out that far. Today I was in search of Collared Doves and Yellowhammers. I failed on both counts. 

Low Chibburn Preceptory

The right of way back to the Reserve

The farm is good for House Sparrows and the countryside around it can be good for Red-legged Partridge and today was no exception, otherwise I didn't see much. Walking back along the path to the hides, it was quite warm in the sunshine and out of the northerly wind and it brought out some late insects. 

Male Common Darter

Male Small Copper on Ragwort

Migrant Hawker

A single Whooper Swan was on the big pool and a Kestrel hunted along the road.

Kestrel hunting

The Kestrel successfully caught a small mammal and flew off into the bushes with it

In the weedy dunes there was a flock of at least 27 Reed Bunting - probably an undercount. I grilled them for any rarer buntings and the finch flock (about 120) didn't contain any Twite. Given that I walked 6km, I didn't come away with a huge list an the year list remains on 170.

One of the Reed Bunting flock

Male Blackcap in the Elder

Last night I had an hour grilling  the scoter flock for the potential Surf Scoter, no luck but there were 22 Red-throated Divers and a handful of Razorbills with the Scoters. 

Six Whooper Swans came in-off and another five went south and landed on the sea opposite the Drift Cafe. Here are a couple of arty-shots as the first six flew west. My first Whoopers of the Autumn

Whooper Swans headed west

Into the clouds...

Snow days

It's been a bit wintery this week.

I managed a midweek excursion to the patch on Wednesday (one benefit of working at home), frosty ground made it an ideal day to walk through the fields towards the Preceptory and back via High Chibburn and Druridge Farm.

A song thrush was on the path towards the hides and the usual selection of duck were on the big pool which remained unfrozen. Towards the Preceptory a handful of lapwing and golden plover were feeding in the pasture field - they sat tight as a peregrine passed over heading north, it was high so they probably did the right thing.

Down to the farm and a large flock of about 25 chaffinches where in the small copse with three coal tits - it's so unusual to see coal tits at this time of year at Druridge, they are normally just an autumn bird.

One of the coal tits at the farm

House sparrows and skemmie pigeons were numerous around the farm buildings but I was hoping for yellowhammers - I was out of luck there. Stock doves were notable in the fields as I returned along the road to Druridge and a large female sparrowhawk flew past me and landed on the fence.

In the hawthorns a robin sat out - my first of the year.

Robin in the hawthorns

On Saturday Janet joined me and we walked the same route - only this time there was snow underfoot and all around us - the song thrushes on the track had multiplied to four.

Snowy track to the hides where song thrushes flew

The field that held the goldies now had over 70 curlew feeding with a few lapwing, goldies and black-headed gulls for company, with a couple of hundred starling.

As we walked to the farm, two skylark flew up calling, 'the cold weather has brought them in' I said to Janet.

snowy track

frozen fields with a flock of pink-feet flying over

Ten tree sparrows were flitting about the farm with the chaffinches and house sparrows and as we approached the cottages two fieldfare flew over the fields - another bird of hard weather.

In front of Druridge Farm at least 800 pink-footed geese grazed, a single greylag was the only exception. We cut through to the beach hoping for snow buntings which we didn't see but we did see five meadow pipits in the dunes - another species brought in by the cold.

With no home-working this week, it will be the weekend before I am back.. but the evenings are getting lighter now and some post-work birding isn't far off.

Wild Westerlies

Strong westerly winds dominated the weekend's weather, not conducive to good autumn birding. A slow start on Saturday morning following a night at the Cluny, we met up, over a cup of tea and a bacon buttie, with Steve Taylor and Dave Elliott at the Drift Cafe, to swap gen on Poland and Spain.

Onwards to Druridge, Janet and I had a good wander around the patch seeing not very much. From the Oddie hide, lapwings, golden plovers and curlews were put up by a passing helicopter from RAF Boulmer. The lapwings gave some nice views from the hide, the goldies were much higher (later settling in winter wheat at Hemscotthill). A late swallow flew south and a buzzard was floating around to the north - it was well-grilled, given the recent records of rough-leg nearby.

Two views of passing lapwings

We decided to walk to the Preceptory, to check it for roosting owls. It was empty, not even a skemmie or jackdaw. We walked back via High Chibburn, I had my heart set on year-ticking bullfinch - the long shelterbelt by the farm is often good for them, but not today...

Cows at High Chibburn

On the way back to the car, a great-spot called from the bushes. A quick look on the sea yielded nothing - the strong westerly had whipped it up and nothing was passing.

With even stronger westerlies today, I didn't even venture out.

A bit of a wander roond the patch

I had a bit of a wander to the far flung ends of the patch today.

After seeing twite and pied wag on the dunes to the south, my route took me firstly to the Oddie hide, but not before I had stopped to look at a lone whooper swan on the Budge fields. Initially the big pool looked empty (for some reason when the pool is full (the outflow is blocked with flotsam and jetsam) there are never any birds on it - an edge thing?) other than a handful of tufted duck and teal, then a long-tailed duck popped up in the middle of the pool. Then, when I scanned the seaward side, a red-throated diver had appeared. It didn't hang around long before it flew off towards the south.

red-throated diver. A rare visitor to the big pool

My route then took me to the preceptory, which was owl-free, and then down to High Chibburn Farm where a flock of 200 or so golden plover lifted off the fields. At the farm  house sparrow, collared dove and dunnock were added to the year list. At the cottages, tree sparrows and a great tit were coming to the feeders.

Low Chibburn Preceptory

In front of the cottages, a skein of over 2000 pink-footed geese dropped in. I scanned them later in the scope, they were all pink-feets.

Whiffling

Pink-footed geese settled for a graze

Four pintail were on the Budge fields and two black-tailed godwits with the usual teal, wigeon and shoveler.

Offshore there were at least 77 red-throated divers in the bay, among them was a red-necked grebe, a good patch bird. Also on the sea were at least 25 guillemots and a couple of razorbills, mergansers and shags. A single sanderling was on the beach.

40 chaffinch
41 twite
42 pied wagtail
43 rook
44 gadwall
45 grey heron
46 jackdaw
47 golden plover
48 dunnock
49 house sparrow
50 woodpigeon
51 tree sparrow
52 great tit
53 collared dove
54 pintail
55 red-necked grebe
56 shag
57 cormorant
58 razorbill
59 red-breasted merganser
60 sanderling
61 eider
62 whooper swan

PWC score 74

What's wrong with Druridge Pools?

What is wrong with Druridge Pools?

Before you switch off, this isn't a rant about the lack of grazing.

Mr (or Mrs) Greater Yellowlegs mustn't like the look of something. It has been commuting between Hauxley, Druridge Bay Country Park, Chev and Cresswell Pond for the last three weeks, so it must be flying over Druridge Pools, why has it never landed?

I've just looked its movements up on the RBA website and it has never been reported from Druridge, so I am presuming it hasn't been seen there - unless somebody knows otherwise (do let me know). Today, it was a stones-throw away, on a small flash pool just north of Hemscotthill Farm. How frustrating! I could see the twitchers watching it from the little hide. Is this as close as I am going to get to it? The chances of seeing it fly over as it commutes along the bay are very, very slim.

The water level on the big pool is as low as it has been all year, so there is loads of 'edge'. Three redshanks thought it good enough this afternoon, so why not a yellowlegs. Maybe it's a snob, come from Boston or New England and doesn't like the look of down-trodden, rough-around-the-edges Druridge pools?

My mood was lightened by a year-tick, snow buntings at long last. Six of them flew off from the beach over the dunes towards the big pool. A patch-record was also broken today with a mahooosive count of 21 collared doves at High Chibburn Farm, easily smashing the previous total.

There was a huge flock of mixed finches on Hemscotthill links, including about 60 twite, certainly worth a scan through them if your passing.

Out like a lamb

The new year didn't really come in like a lion at Druridge and it looks like it might be going out like a lamb....

Probably my last visit of 2010 to the patch and it was very, very quiet. There is a bit of a thaw on, even some green grass showing in places, but the budge fields are still frozen solid, so is the big pool apart from a postage-stamp sized bit of open water which was occupied by bathing gulls. The wigeon and teal stood around it, together, for safety.

Grey partridge are still easy to spot and two coveys of eleven and twenty were at  the north end.

The farmer at High Chibburn has agreed to put up a little owl box in his barns, so I called in there to drop him a box in. I've been seeing a little owl regularly on Druridge Lane and there has been one around the hamlet too, so hopefully they will find the box in the new year.

All going to plan there should be an annual review posted tomorrow before I sign off to celebrate the passing of another year with copious amounts of lager.