A Short-eared Owl is still showing well from Sammy's Point along to Spurn most days. There were a few fresh Wheatears in this morning and a female Redstart at Sammy's Point. The Yellow Wagtails (3) were looking brilliant , together with 2 Pieds but no White Wagtails. Around the Canal area, Sedge Warblers were singing and a Grasshopper Warbler too. A Ring Ouzel was along Big Hedge and 2 Jays spent a while in the canal bushes, before flying over Kilnsea. 2 Cuckoos were seen and heard around Beacon Lane.
This attractive Little Egret was feeding voraciously on sticklebacks, on Canal Scrape. An early start found me at the car park at Sammy's for 07-10 a.m. It's the only way to make the journey easy and not spend the morning looking at the bumper in front! First impressions in the paddocks were that it was very quiet, a Shelduck and a couple of Meadow Pipits were the only obvious birds - not the array of Wheatears and Yellow Wagtails we hope for at this time. Walking along the flood bank, I came across this stoat foraging in and out of the rocks. I'd reached the main section of bushes before anything significant was found and the first warblers began to appear. Single Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler, followed by a pair of Blackcaps, then a Wheatear on the fenceline. It was still quiet, even the Chiffchaff wasn't calling!
I met with Mick Turton and he called out a Hooded Crow flying up-river. I followed its path and it joined a large flock of assorted corvids, feeding in fields West of the car park. One reason for my visit was to 'list' the female Garganey on Holderness Field and knowing that bird numbers often build up at Sammy's later in the morning, I moved on to Kilnsea for a while. The Wetlands had another Wheatear and the Avocets were stunning in the morning sunshine. I found the Garganey dabbling in the pool amongst a few Teal and Redshank. A surprise find this morning was a Green Woodpecker, which appeared to fly out of Cliff Farm, cross the road in front of me and over Church Field. Unfortunately, I didn't relocate it again. 2 Wheatears were at Southcliff Farm. Around Canal Hide were - Sedge Warbler, Willow Warbler, 2 Chiffchaff, male Blackcap and 2 Swallows. A Whimbrel took off from Clubley's Field. My second reason for today's visit was to find a Ring Ouzel and it was time to return to Sammy's. 2 Swallows flew East and Chiffchaffs were calling now along with 2 Whitethroats. 2 Yellow Wagtails were in the paddocks when I heard an Ouzel calling and found it sitting on top of the roadside hedge. It flew to the bushes along the drain and I only managed a distant shot as it was very flighty and took off East. Another walk through the bushes showed more Chiffchaffs (10), a Redwing was deep in a hawthorn bush and then I saw the male Redstart - a stunning bird but seen only briefly, twice in half an hour. Just had to post a couple of images of my Amelanchia tree which is looking splendid, due to the absence of frost and rain! It has attracted a lot of bees all week. Since the last Garden post, there has been no sign of the male Blackcap. Indeed the following morning, there was a cluster of small grey feathers on the lawn which didn't belong to my two Dunnocks. Perhaps one of those two 'vandals in the sky' which are always soaring around here, may have done their worst - again. The Bullfinches continue to visit daily though the female is showing less often, making me wonder if they are nesting locally - maybe some juveniles soon! Around the garden on a busy morning were - 2 Bullfinch, 1 Chaffinch, 4 Greenfinch, 2 Goldfinch, 2 Dunnock, 5 House Sparrow, 1 Wren, 2 Blackbird, 1 Robin, 2 Great Tit, 2 Coal Tit, 3 Blue Tit, 5 Starling, 3 Wood Pigeon, 2 Stock Dove, 1 Magpie and 1 Collared Dove.
A bright morning and an early start was made to Tophill to look for the Black-necked Grebes, reported this week on 'D' reservoir. Viewing from the car park hide didn't reveal them, there were about 20 Goldeneye with males displaying and around 40 Tufted Duck. The middle hide revealed the Grebes to be in the far Eastern corner and as most of the wildfowl was in that vicinity, including a male Scaup, I continued through 'D' woods to the far hide. A good deal of patience was required before the Grebes in their splendid summer plumage, came any where near the waiting cameras. In the 'woods', Blackcaps seemed to be everywhere this morning, 2 Treecreepers were seen along with both Marsh and Willow Tit, including this one in 'D' woods. A walk at Swinemoor on the banks of the River Hull. Still in pursuit of Spring migrants, I thought a walk along these wet meadows would prove useful at this time of year. 3 Swallows and 2 Sand Martins flew low over the fields. The wet areas held 3 Ruff along with Redshanks,Teal and a single Curlew. 2 Grey Heron and a Cormorant were also seen. Sitting for a while, showed a good number of smaller species to be in the grass. Linnets and 4 Meadow Pipits commenced a movement of wagtails across the meadows, which accounted for 4 White Wagtail, 7 Pied Wagtail and 14 Yellow Wagtail - a colourful spectacle. Stunningly colourful birds.
Have spent the last two days at Rutland Water now the Ospreys are returning. At the camera site, activity was looking good as the female spent much time on the nest and the male went off fishing frequently. Another Osprey was seen in the Lyndon reserve area. Spring migrants were much in evidence, with Chiffchaffs, Willow Warblers and Blackcaps all singing well. Swallows, House and Sand Martins were on site and annoyingly, I missed an Alpine Swift 4 miles away! There were plenty of Red Kites and Common Buzzards in the air around the Water.
An early morning visit for a couple of hours saw my first Wheatear of the Spring, a female off Dryham Lane. 4 Little Ringed Plovers were on Dryham Ings as were the two adult Mediterranean Gulls which have been present for a while now and 4 Ruff. Avocets numbered 22 this morning on the Ings alone. 2 Snipe were also seen.
I was hoping for Yellow Wagtails but none were evident, despite sightings yesterday. In the Southella patch yesterday, a Green Woodpecker at the end of our road was calling from a Birch tree. This is a very uncommon sighting in this residential area, however, it has been around on previous occasions. A Chiffchaff has arrived in the trees adjoining the 'Beech Tree' car park. In the garden, a pair of Bullfinches are appearing daily and one of two regular Coal Tits was cleaning aphids off my Acer tree. At last, a warm Spring morning and beautiful sunshine. Hilla Green is a gem of a habitat on the upper reaches of the River Derwent and set in part of Troutsdale. Arriving at this peaceful setting, only the sound of bird song could be heard - Chiffchaffs in good numbers, Wrens singing loudly along the river banks, Goldcrests up in the trees and even a Dipper calling. In the first ten minutes, there were two Dippers, two Grey Wagtails, a Kingfisher over and Nuthatch in a nearby tree. A short walk on the riverbank saw 6 Siskins feeding, a Treecreeper and a pair of Bullfinches. As the temperature rose late morning, my attention turned to the sky and walking up the Dale, 4 Common Buzzards were circling together. Soon there were 8 in different locations and higher up, a male Sparrowhawk displayed to its female partner. Kestrel and Peregrine were also making appearances. Later, in a different location, 2 Goshawks flew low across the forested areas. A really excellent day out. One of the Common Buzzards seen in the area.
An interesting visitor to the garden has been a male Blackcap. I'm sure it's not a new migrant as one has appeared in both December and January and, I've had one on Christmas morning in previous years! This bird has appeared all week, at first feeding on insects in the bushes and later finding the fat balls more appetising. I'm also keenly supporting a small Starling flock, as they're a declining species. The flock numbers around thirty birds but no more than about seven are in the garden at any one time. Other notable birds were a male Bullfinch, 4 Sparrowhawks (1m/3f) flew East early morning and a Common Buzzard also flew East p.m.
A short visit this morning revealed 3 pairs of Great Crested Grebes on Main Lake. One pair in particular were busily displaying to each other and I was able to capture the moment of the 'weed dance'.
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