There was a report today of another oarfish washed up on our coast, this time at Tynemouth. Amazing that this is only the 4th UK record and we have had two less than 30 miles away from each other in a month. Seemingly the shouldn't even be in the North Sea, it's too shallow for them!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/tyne/7908284.stm
Now I don't keep a fish list (alive or dead).....but I know someone who does, I wonder if he twitched it?
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
Monday, 23 February 2009
Sunday was WeBS day
Visited Druridge briefly on Sunday to do the WeBS count before the match, it was a nice sunny morning, though the westerly had a bit of a bite. Nothing startling on the WeBS, but the duck numbers are up on the Budge fields now the cows have munched their way through the veg, it's looking canny for the spring now.
There was a a flock of 350 black-headed gulls on the field by the haul road, a scan through them only turned up 3 common gulls in their midst, there was two good flock of lapwings with 113 west of the Budge fields and 286 on them. Ducks were:
wigeon 136
teal 149
mallard 26
shoveler 15
My other WeBS site, Ellington Pond is usually pretty much deserted, but it was jammed with wildfowl (by Ellington Pond standards) on Sunday including 6 tufted ducks, 29 mallard and 12 gadwall.
There was a a flock of 350 black-headed gulls on the field by the haul road, a scan through them only turned up 3 common gulls in their midst, there was two good flock of lapwings with 113 west of the Budge fields and 286 on them. Ducks were:
wigeon 136
teal 149
mallard 26
shoveler 15
My other WeBS site, Ellington Pond is usually pretty much deserted, but it was jammed with wildfowl (by Ellington Pond standards) on Sunday including 6 tufted ducks, 29 mallard and 12 gadwall.
Saturday, 21 February 2009
Coquet Island
I had to work today, but it wasn't too bad, cos I got to go to Coquet Island. This RSPB reserve is not open to the public for landing, but we were working for RSPB so I got to spend the day there.
The eiders were very vocal at the fish dock in Amble, the males all displaying to the females, making their comical noises. 
Obviously at this time of year the island is very quiet bird-wise, with only the fulmars beginning to establish themselves.
There were some winter visitors around including a first-winter glaucous gull, peregrine, a few meadow pipits and a robin in the gardens.
This working on Saturday is tough going......
Tuesday, 17 February 2009
This Evening
The daylight hours are getting noticeably longer, so much so that i managed to get down to Dru after work today, it was nearly dark (5.20pm), but there was 20 minutes of reasonable light, I just looked from the Budge screen.
No owls, as I had hoped for, or bittern. I did add water rail to the year list though and there were good numbers of wigeon, teal and lapwing and 13 magpie....could be my record count for Dru?
I'm looking forward to the long evenings of May and June now.....
61 water rail
No owls, as I had hoped for, or bittern. I did add water rail to the year list though and there were good numbers of wigeon, teal and lapwing and 13 magpie....could be my record count for Dru?
I'm looking forward to the long evenings of May and June now.....
61 water rail
Monday, 16 February 2009
Gripped
If anyone has been following previous posts and comments, you may have noticed the back-and-forth about the bittern. Stu sent me a photo today and there it is, as large as life, on the Budge fields...... A BITTERN!
Bittern from the Little Hide (photo: Stu Fenwick)
Stu reckoned it was about 1pm on Saturday...that would've just been about when we finished putting the bird boxes up and went to quickly check the north end and the Budge fields, only from the screen hide.......
I could see 2 or 3 birders in the little hide, but no birds were apparent on the fields...now I know...and I am gutted, totally gutted.
There had been a report of bittern at Dru during the heavy snow too.
The woe of a patch worker, there's me doing my bit for conservation, putting up nestboxes whilst missing a bittern..
I'm off to the pub...............
Bittern from the Little Hide (photo: Stu Fenwick)
Stu reckoned it was about 1pm on Saturday...that would've just been about when we finished putting the bird boxes up and went to quickly check the north end and the Budge fields, only from the screen hide.......
I could see 2 or 3 birders in the little hide, but no birds were apparent on the fields...now I know...and I am gutted, totally gutted.
There had been a report of bittern at Dru during the heavy snow too.
The woe of a patch worker, there's me doing my bit for conservation, putting up nestboxes whilst missing a bittern..
I'm off to the pub...............
Sunday, 15 February 2009
Quiet morning
Had a quiet morning at Dru with little to report. The snow has all gone now and there is a good number of ducks on the Budge Fields, with Shoveler up to 5 now. On the big pool, there are now 10 shelduck and a very noisy canada goose on its tod!
Nothing offshore of note, on the way out there was a big flock of fieldfare with some redwing opposite Druridge hamlet along with starlings, golden plover and lapwing. A kestrel on the wires here was the only year tick. Maybe spring is in the air though, there was a skylark singing today and Alan Gilbertson had been watching the resident magpies carrying sticks into the wood.
Curlew on the Budge fields
60 Kestrel
Nothing offshore of note, on the way out there was a big flock of fieldfare with some redwing opposite Druridge hamlet along with starlings, golden plover and lapwing. A kestrel on the wires here was the only year tick. Maybe spring is in the air though, there was a skylark singing today and Alan Gilbertson had been watching the resident magpies carrying sticks into the wood.
Curlew on the Budge fields
60 Kestrel
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