flurry of migrants

At last a flurry of migrants.

I was demolishing the last of my breakfast kipper when Dave Elliott tweeted to say he was watching was avocet and ruff on the Budge fields. My morning cuppa was soon glugged and I soon joined Dave at the Budge screen, watching both birds.

Pied wagtail

Ruff, once a prospecting breeder at Druridge, is now scarce on passage, I dipped them for the last two years. Avocet is another great patch bird, the morning had gotten off to a good start. A pair of pintail were also on the Budge fields, but no garganey yet. A drake red-breasted merganser was on the big pool and the female common scoter is still hanging around.

drake wigeon on the big pool

Walking through the bushes, a redwing lifted and move along in front of me. Redwings at this time of year are in 'breeding nick' and look very smart. An unusual spring record.

A trudge around the northern dunes produced nothing, it was very windy, but a scan along the beach finally added sand martin to the year-list. Alan Gilbertson had let me know about a dead white-beaked dolphin on the beach near the Dunbar Burn, so I went for a look.

the dead white-beaked dolphin looked quite odd as a silhouette on the beach

close-up of the deceased dolphin. It looked quite small, so I guess it wasn't an adult?

A heavy rain shower made its way up the bay from the south, so I scarpered back to the car, but not before I clocked two swallows dropped down by the impending rain. A quick check of the plantation on the way home turned up nothing.

A photo of one of last week's black redstarts in the gloom

97 avocet
98 ruff
99 redwing
100 sand martin
101 swallow

PWC score 125

Seawatch

After hearing that there has been a couple of pom skuas off Beadnell this afternoon (presumably Gary Stringer?) I decided a short seawatch after work was in order.

The highlight was 10 to 12 white-beaked dolphins performing offshore, they were a bit distant but showed well through the scope. There were also at least six harbour porpoise in the bay.

A med gull on the beach was a year tick, other highlights were:

Manx shearwater 22 N
Velvet Scoter 1 drake N
Common Scoter c65
scaup 1 drake N
Arctic skua 3
roseate tern 4
great-crested grebe 1 on sea
red-throated diver 4 on sea
sanderling 57 on beach

Ringing related

Most of my activities this weekend have been ringing related, but very little of that activity has been on the patch.

The only ringing we did do on the patch was to ring the swallow chicks in the Oddie hide, three of them, all looking fit and healthy, which is good considering the amount of rain the parents have had to endure. Offshore on Friday evening there were three arctic skuas harrying terns in the bay and a lone white-beaked dolphin, heading north at a colossal speed. It was clearing the water in long jumps every 3 seconds or so for a good two minutes.

Today, I had a chance for wander around the patch either side of serious net-ride maintenance. Offshore this morning, I picked up a female velvet scoter flying north before landing on sea just off the Dunbar Burn. At the mouth of the Dunbar Burn, 14 sanderlings were feeding, still looking colourful as they moulted out of their summer garb. Also offshore of note were five red-throated divers (all in summer plumage), a pair of great-crested grebes and a single arctic skua.

At least three cuckoo's were on the patch this afternoon. One of them was an adult, I only saw the other two against the light.

126 velvet scoter

Cuckoo confusion

Apologies for the lack of blog-action over the last couple of weeks, work and other commitments has meant little time to visit Druridge and even less time for blogging and it isn't going to get any better over the next two weeks.

To make up for long-days, I took a half-day today to get the nets up at Druridge. Ringing was slow, catching ten or so warblers, sedge, willow, whitethroat and blackcap. We bumped into Mike Hodgson, he spotted a cuckoo flying over the road, first at Duridge this year, I remarked "hope it's flown into out net" - well it did.

Ageing and sexing it has proved somewhat tricky however. We are sure it isn't a juvenile or an adult male. Which leaves the female, which in cuckoo comes in two morphs - grey, very much like the male, and brown or rufous.

Our bird showed some of the characteristics of a brown morph female but not all, more like something in between. A trawl of internet images hasn't helped much, other than apparently ruling out a juvenile due to the lack of white fringing on the upperparts. Looking at Collins, the brown morph is barred dark/rufous brown and the upper tail/rump are also rufous brown, our bird had a grey/brown uppertail and rump.

This bird http://www.pbase.com/charlie_fleming/image/113357739/large has a grey/brown uppertail. This one closely resembles our bird and has been labelled 'hepatic morph female' http://www.flickr.com/photos/nigelblake/3118599073/.

Seemingly there is much variation - Any thoughts?

This is the second cuckoo caught and ringed at Druridge, Janet caught an adult may here in July 2007. This one was a ringing-tick for me.

Here are a couple of other photos from today's ringing.

juvenile robin

Fresh juvenile sedge warbler

juvenile blackcap

Other highlights today, Janet saw an adult hobby at close quarters, before it headed towards the dunes then south. I was checking the nets at the north end... There was also an adult merlin hanging about -  I always think that mid July is a good time for merlins on the coast.

Last night, about 8.30pm, the sea was like a millpond, with a light pink sky as the sun started to set. I was watching a 'gang' of arctic skuas harassing the terns on their way north to Coquet Island - I counted at least six by the end of the night. The highlight was mammalian, rather than avian - a pod of white-beaked dolphins about half-way out, visible with the naked eye because the sea was so flat. At first they were in a tight group, with much activity, before spreading out over 300-400 metres. Amazing!

yesterday I had both green and wood sandpipers on the big pool and on Saturday evening I watched a little egret going into roost in the heronry  -amazingly, my first of the year!

133 garden warbler
134 great-spotted woodpecker
135 little egret
136 green sandpiper
137 merlin
138 cuckoo