After scraping frost off the car at 4-00a.m this morning, by 7-00a.m we were hurtling along Leeds runway and climbing into the still dark sky. As we flew towards the South Coast of England, a red glow appeared in the East as the sun rose and we maintained a steady 42,000ft on our flight to Faro. By 11-00a.m, we were driving to the fishing town of Alvor, our favourite location. This should do nicely for the New Year celebrations, then it's out into the country next week for some serious Algarve year listing!
I would like to thank all the visitors who look at my site and my 'Twitter followers' and wish you all a Happy New Year and excellent birding in 2017. I've been waiting for numbers of Waxwings to arrive in East Yorkshire for some time. Sizeable flocks have been roaming Northumberland and North Yorkshire for weeks now and it was only a matter of time before they appeared here.
This site in Hessle has always been a favourite and as soon as it was light, a flock of around 35 Waxwings were eager to start feeding on the rowan trees. These photos were taken across the road at Aldi's car park, where the early sun in a 'yellow' rowan, created some lovely colours. A bright, frosty morning and I was off to North Cave Wetlands for a chilly walk around. In the field by the entry road, a large flock of Greylags were resting. A search through the flock revealed three Pink-footed Geese and a single White-fronted. The White-front showed poorly at the back of the field and I moved on, hoping for a better look later. On the maize field feeders, the Marsh Tit was there and a female Brambling came occasionally. A good number of Tree Sparows and mixed finches were around, a total of six Bullfinches on the reserve also. On main lake, I counted 17 Little Egrets and 3 Grey Herons in the roost area. This Cormorant captured a sizeable roach which would keep it satisfied for a while! At carp lake, the drake Mandarin was seen briefly before hiding behind bushes. A nice mix of ducks included Mallard,Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Pochard, Teal and a Shelduck. A Green Woodpecker flew into the trees at the side of carp lake. The Greylag Goose flock had left the field and the majority had landed on main lake, including the White-fronted Goose, found after some searching. Half an hour later, Gary Dayes rang me to say the White-front was now in North field. I was able to get some superb views of this winter goose, as it ignored the farmer's bird scarer and ate his juicy vegetables.
This day, three years ago, I awoke after a restless night and made prepartions for a fast getaway, in the direction of Patrington Haven some twenty miles from home. An incredible find in the form of a 1st winter IVORY GULL had been made, late the previous afternoon and was seen to fly out to the estuary. Normally residing in the high Arctic, an Ivory Gull is a very rare occurence in the UK and one I did not want to miss! Arriving by the pumping station as it became light, I found a few birders already there. It wasn't long before a steady procession of birders were making there way to the pumping station, where the gull had been seen eating fish scraps, perhaps left by an angler on the day before. Among the birders settling in was the late Martin Garner, laden down with carrier bags containing fish - whole ones at that! Martin laid the fish around the enclosed area we were hoping the gull might return to, making a tempting banquet. Martin had the foresight, the experience and certainly the hope that the Ivory Gull would come in again. As it turned out, his actions provided countless numbers of birders with point-blank views of this beautiful rarity. No doubt that was one of his intentions too, to provide and share his enjoyment with others. I was standing with Graham Catley when he picked up what was best described as a 'brilliant white' gull, flying towards us from Welwick. Flying low along the saltmarsh and down the drain to the pumping station, the young Ivory Gull circled overhead a few times - it was a 'holding your breath moment'. Martin's fish proved too much to ignore and in seconds, the gull was on the ground and consuming the fish. The 1w Ivory Gull remained for a couple of days, as I recall, feeding on the supply of fish or resting on the estuary. It was a beautifully marked gull with the black tips along the wings and tail, making it my most memorable sighting of 2013.
This morning I set out early and drove down the M1 towards Chesterfield, then on to the small village of Beeley in Derbyshire. Arriving just after 8-00a.m, it was still barely light and appeared to have been a damp night. There must have been around forty birders there already, the favourite place was around the small orchard. I was able to get a view of the Dusky Thrush straightaway, as a fellow birder had his scope on it, as it perched in a tree. A quick look and it flew off, over the building next to us. It was around an hour, before it returned. Some birders had 'followed' it around the village and the rest had stayed put at the orchard. This Dusky Thrush was my second 'siberian' type thrush, my other being a Black-throated Thrush and was a delight to watch. It was more than capable of seeing off a local male Blackbird at times. Until lunch-time the light was low and sharp images were difficult to obtain. It was good to see the many birders there this morning, and residents getting on well and sharing 'the occasion'. Refreshments were available for the visitors and money kept dropping in the bucket for a local charity. Nice to catch up with birders I haven't seen for a while too!
The juvenile Pallid Harrier has remained on the Humber estuary for a little while now, but is not the easiest of birds to see. Most sightings have been in the early morning and late afternoon, as it flies to and from its roosting area. I wrote a few days ago, that I had seen it at great distance, around the Spurn lighthouse and, in view of its rarity I thought I'd spend the day looking for it. It was exactly on sunrise when I first saw the Harrier coming off a field and flying over the saltmarsh. It perched on a distant bush for a short while but was maybe spooked by a large fox which was seen, heading quickly towards it. The Harrier flew off in an Easterly direction and was lost to view. After an hour, it had not returned over the saltmarsh and I decided to move a little to the East myself. Another two hours later and the Pallid caught me by surprise as it quickly passed, low over the marsh. Having had a good look at its underside coloration, I rattled off a few images, knowing they were totally hopeless! I subsequently found my red focus spot was not centred, but had shifted to the right. A flying away shot! In the nearby fields, a couple of hundred Brent Geese were feeding on the grass and it only took a minute, to locate a stunning Black Brant amongst them. The large white blaze on its side and substantial neck collar, are very typical of this Brent subspecies 'nigricans'. A pleasing day out really, with other raptors too - 2 Marsh Harrier, 1 Peregrine, 2 Merlins together and 2 Short-eared Owls.
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