On Saturday I had the opportunity to share my local patch with a group from the Natural History Society of Northumbria. This is the second guided tour of the patch I've given recently after the North Northumberland Bird Club visited in October.
About 18 participants came along and my colleague Ellie made sure that we didn't lose anyone along the way. I think I was allowed to lose up to 10 per cent of them.
We had three hours and I took them on what would be a normal walk around the patch for me. We had to be done by midday so I could get to the football on time so we didn't have time for a seawatch.
And in the round window...
We started at the entrance to the reserve after some confusion about the meeting point had been resolved and everyone enjoyed good views of the local celebrity - the little owl was in his favoured spot of the round window.
Five whooper swans were in the front field.
Four of the five whooper swans
Passerines were thin-on-the-ground but everyone enjoyed the spectacle of hundreds of waders and ducks on the Budge fields, notably curlew, lapwing, wigeon and teal. We had a huge count of 19 grey herons and watched them carrying nesting material into the shelterbelt. They'll be on eggs soon.
Onward to the Oddie hide. There wasn't much to see on the big pool, a couple of goldeneye and little grebes were nice, so we made our way north to the dunes along the coal road. before we got there a huge flock of pink-footed geese came south, well over 1000. A lot kept going bu hundreds landed in the fields west of the road.
Some of the pink-feet heading south
A flock of 40 or so twite flitted back and forth, settling close-by at time affording great views through the scope. There were linnets, reed buntings and chaffinches in with them. Tariq Farooqi kindly put the group on to a huge female peregrine that he had found perched on a fencepost beyond the geese and everyone enjoyed good views of it.
The group enjoying the peregrine on a post
We managed to see 38 species by my reckoning, which isn't bad given the size of the group and the time of year.
I made it to the match on time. Maybe I should've just stayed at Druridge?
I've taken a couple of days off work to coincide with a trip to Sheffield Utd last night to watch the Toon win.
I've also managed a couple of short visits to the patch. Yesterday was a bit gloomy with a strong SW wind. I stopped to look at the geese in the fields to the south of Druridge Farm, there were a good number pink-feet in the second field from the road and after a few scans through them, I finally picked out two Eurasian white-fronted geese.
By the gate opposite, at least 50 twite were feeding and there were 10 grey partridge.
twite in very gloomy light
The little owl was in the 'round window' (and again today) and there were lots of wildfowl on the Budge fields which are still brim-full of water.
Today was brighter with some sunny spells and quite mild for the time of year.
I headed north from the turning circle and the first bird I go onto was a juvenile merlin in pursuit of a finch. It was so fast, twisting and turning, the camera just couldn't lock onto it - I did manage a couple of shots though - great bird.
first-winter merlin
Heading north along the haul road, there were ten whooper swans and over 1000 pink-feet just off the patch behind Chibburn Links. There didn't appear to many finches in the dunes compared to recent days.
distant whoopers at Chibburn Links
Coquet Island with a 400mm lens from Druridge
There was very little on the sea, a few sanderlings and couple of pied wagtails on the beach.
Pied wagtail on the beach
The pheasant shooters were out in force towards the Preceptory which was spooking the wildfowl and waders on the Budge so I gave it a dodge and headed home.
Life has been pretty hectic lately, so much so I haven't been able to update my blog. Since the last post I finally caught up with a patch RING OUZEL on Saturday . The bird had been reported two days earlier by a visiting birder in the dunes to the north , I had two brief chances to look for it on the Thursday but couldn't find it. After another couple of hours on the Friday I finally found it in what remains of the Druridge bushes (the cows have hammered them lately). No photos unfortunately as it was a skulker.
On 10th April a spoonbill arrived and was joined later by a second bird.
Since then I have been visiting the patch whenever I get a second. As I was away to Jersey for a long weekend last week, Saturday brought a flurry of year ticks. First off was this reeling grasshopper warbler - so much for being a skulking species, this one hadn't read the rulebook, it's been singing from this fence for three days!
It was amazing to watch at close hand, it's entire body vibrating when it was reeling.
Next up was a drake green-winged teal on the Budge fields. This bird had been around for a day or two, so it was nice to catch up with it - mind it took some finding! Other highlights on the Budge fields were three to four ruff, an amazing 28 whimbrel - which flew off when the cows arrived, a stunning brick-red bar-tailed godwit and a few blackwits. Also new for the year was sedge warbler, little owl and common tern.
Little Owl
On Sunday I had a quick around through the dunes to the north looking for migrants - it was very windy but a count of 15-20 wheatear in the grazed dunes was impressive.
One of the wheatears
This poor hedgehog must have investigated the pipe socket that is by the turning circle and drowned itself or decided it couldn't face a bank holiday weekend at Druridge and did itself in.
Suicide?
Today the wind was a bit lighter but still out of the east making it feel cold. I headed for the Budge screen and bumped into Peter Williams of Patchwork Challenge fame. Peter picked out the wood sandpiper that arrived yesterday. Also of note were at least five ruff, two of which were starting to look a bit dapper, a handful of blackwit and a single dunlin. No sign of the green-winger.
I mentioned cows earlier - four have arrived on the Budge fields and the timing couldn't be better for the breeding and passage waders so 'Well done' to NWT. (seemingly, according to the local farmer they had been released last week but had escaped - anyway it is good to see them.
One of the 'Druridge four'
I've got another couple of busy weeks ahead of me but hopefully I'll find time for a visit to the patch.
I've been down to the patch a couple of times post. No photos though, it's just been too dull.
I had a nice dusk visit on 20th, it was nearly dark when I left at 16.15. Highlights were two ruff and eight dunlin on the Budge fields and flock of about 15 fieldfare flying over and into the bushes, quite often a species I have to wait until autumn for.
Standing at the Budge screen, I heard a water pipit calling, but I couldn't find it, I think it was overhead. There were also three drake pintail still present.
On Sunday, I took look one look at the number of people at the Budge screen and gave it a dodge. I had a quick look offshore, but it was very quiet other than a flock of about 40 scoters flying south which included five velvet scoters!
This morning was quite warm, but the strong southerly wind and overcast skies made it feel colder. And there very few people about - which is good.
There are still plenty geese about though. The majority, a flock of over 3000 pink-feet, were over by Low Chibburn somewhere - they lifted and settled gain after a light aircraft flew over. A smaller group of about 350 came down into the fields west of the Budge - there were at least five European white-fronts and five barnacles with them.
I saw three species I wouldn't normally expect in January:
Greenfinch - one on the feeders, a species I wouldn't normally expect until the big post-breeding flocks of finches arrive in late summer - the presence of feeders has dramatically increased the number of finches, tree sparrows and reed buntings overwintering at Druridge.
Shelduck - normally a February arrival (there were two on New Years Eve - not a species I would expect in December at all). Stock Dove - Two on the Budge fields - again a February/March bird
My other year-tick today was little owl - thanks to Dave Elliott for the tip-off
From the Budge screen, I picked up a very large (must have been female) peregrine sat on a fencepost beyond the Haul Road way over towards Low Chibburn Farm. The drake scaup was still on the big pool.
My year list now stands at 86 species and 99 points for the Patchwork Challenge.
Not much to report this week. A couple of short visits to the patch produced little of note other than some rather smart summer-plumaged sanderlings on the beach.
Today I spent the morning at Druridge before the rain arrived. First I checked the Budge fields where a common sandpiper on the mud was year-tick, it was accompanied by a couple of juvenile dunlin, a few snipe and a handful of lapwing...oh and two yellow wagtails.
To the dunes - There was some kind of co-ordinated cetacean watch this weekend, which saw Neil and Andrea Anderson and Tom an Muriel Cadwallender spending most of the weekend sat at Snab Point slowly freezing to death. So I thought I would have a quick look in the Bay to see if there were dolphins and amazingly there was - a pod of bottlenose dolphins about half way out.
A call to Tom confirmed that they had already seen these beasts heading north passed Snab. The dolphins were very active, breaching regularly with some getting out of the water altogether, performing pirouettes. They swam pretty quickly north and were soon just specks heading towards Coquet Island.
Excitement over, I headed for the Little hide where the same common sandpiper or a different one was on the mud. Buzzards circled the far shelterbelt and a little owl was perched on the farm buildings.
I couldn't see much from the Oddie hide as the grass was so high in front of the shutters. Nothing else for it - I trooped back to the car and got my trusty grass-knife and went back to cut the grass. What seemed like a good idea at the start seemed less-good when I had only done about half the job and I had blisters on my hand and was knackered - not used to hard graft.
I persevered and eventually had the whole lot cut. I headed off, hand bleeding, to the Country Barn for a well-deserved pasty. I hope the photographers will thank me when the mega yank or eastern wader turns up this week.
The bird as Druridge had grey scapulars like the bird above, but I didn't notice the yellowy-brownish outer primaries that this bird has, mind it was a long way off. I am convinced it was a leucistic HG though.
On Tuesday night, Hugh Hanmer and I ringed four little owl chicks from a nestbox on the coast, they are fantastic little birds. I've not ringed them before, compared to barn owls they are 'wide-awake' and interested and a wee bit feisty!
Little owl chick, one of four ringed on the Northumberland Coast AONB
My only visit to the patch this weekend was yesterday morning, there was no updates last nights due the appalling display by the toon in the FA Cup which saw us exit the competition at the hands of lowly Stevenage. I was too emotional to post anything last night!
I was cheerfully optimistic about the football and my visit to Druridge yesterday morning, I shouldn't have been about either.
mallard and teal on thin ice
There was very little to see at Druridge and the westerly wind made it bitterly cold. The pools is largely still frozen, a few hardy teal and mallard hanging about by the unfrozen patch.
The normal wigeon flock has been gone for weeks now, I wonder where they go? Grey herons are thin on the ground too, I hope it is a case of them having moved on rather perishing, we might even get a ringing recovery from the pullus we ringed last spring, the big rings should be readable in the filed if a bird is on ice.
Still no robin, dunnock or wren on the 2011 patch list, again, I wonder where the wrens go, they tend not to fly far so it'll be interesting to see if we catch any of 'our' birds in the spring.
A look offshore was worthwhile, 14 red-throated and two great northern divers were in the bay, three drake red-breasted mergansers and a handful of common scoter. Frustratingly, I saw a bird I couldn't identify, it was a long way off mind, long-winged like a wader, but with a more gull like jizz. It looked short-tailed and 'dumpy' and had an obvious dark leading edge to an otherwise greyish looking wing, overall it appeared to whitish/greyish. Befuddled me.
peek-a-boo, a little owl on Druridge Lane
On the drive to Widdrington farm shop for a fat-free diet pasty, an unfortunate moorhen, frozen off the ponds, was a roadkill victim by High Chibburn Farm and the little owl was in its usual tree on the lane.
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.
Firstly, Janet and I arrive in the Oddie hide this morning, having taken a day off work, get talking to a photographer chap who tells me he had a snow goose over Druridge Pools yesterday. I've seen snow goose before at Druridge but it was yonks ago and it would have been a great year-tick.- Gutted!
Secondly, after we found a little owl (my first and only owl species of the year at Druridge) being mobbed by small birds in the pine plantation, we split up, me going down the field side of the willows, Janet along the road. She gets onto a great-spotted woodpecker (a year-tick), calls me over, it flies off, I don't see it - Gutted.
Thirdly, I read the comments on yesterdays post, ST telling me had been watching two barn owls at Druridge on Friday. Two more than I've seen this year.
Humph
Still lots of woodcock about and a rock pipit on the beach
Just heard there's a lesser white-fronted goose in Norfolk, that would be nice!
