The entrance to the River Tees in North-East England is surrounded by petro-chemical and other heavy industries. Yet in this same location, Teesmouth National Nature Reserve is a relatively safe haven for many seabirds. This was August Bank Holiday as can be seen from the heavy grey sky and drizzle passing through from time to time. Along the river mouth were many young Common and Sandwich Terns being fed by their parents. The presence of so many terns carrying fish has attracted a number of Arctic Skuas into the river, in pursuit of the terns. Again, apologies for the lack of light which has played havoc with many of the images. The first skua seen was this young Arctic, an intermediate phase between a pale and dark form. A very dark Arctic Skua was then seen well out in the river before turning back across the beach. Although like us, there were many dog-walkers out, the Skuas had no hesitation in roaring across the beach at low level, in pursuit of a Tern. A beautiful light form bird was at the seaward end and soon connected with a Sandwich Tern. You may just see the fish dropped by the Tern, before the Skua obtains its meal. The Arctic Skuas were covering the whole area and sometimes I was caught at the last moment by one flying overhead. The 'intermediate' Arctic in a great sequence. Another fish given up! A second Summer bird with dark throat patch and barring on the underwings. An hour and a half's delay on the motorway coming up to Tees-side had shortened our visit considerably. Between watching Skuas, it was obvious many birds were around the river.
Flocks of young Guillemots were inside the river, together with Gulls and Cormorants. The shore had the resting Terns, Curlew, Whimbrel, Ringed Plover and Oystercatcher. Definitely an area to spend more time in and only a couple of hours up the coast (on a good day!) Three days ago, the hide flaps were opened first thing as usual at Blacktoft Sands RSPB and there, quite obviously was a White-tailed Lapwing from Asia! Believed to be a 7th record for the UK, this is a remarkable rare vagrant to find its way into East Yorkshire.
Blacktoft has several large scrape/pools and the White-tailed Lapwing occasionally moved from one to another. On my visit (Day 2), the Lapwing was missing and remained so for a couple of hours. There were many people present, some of whom like myself had not yet had a glimpse of the bird. It was getting into evening time when the White-tailed Lapwing was seen (by some) to fly behind an island at the Xerox Hide. Another long wait followed until suddenly, quite a few birds flew from behind the island - Teal, Ruff and fortunately the rare Lapwing, re-settling in view albeit at the very back of the pool. A most elegant wader with bright yellow legs was my first impression. Clearly not a juvenile which has a spotted back, this individual is more towards an adult though some moulting is going on. The white tail from which it gets its name is only seen in flight. Still present today, for its 3rd day. Towards the end of August, the first small migrant birds begin to arrive whenever there is a hint of an Easterly direction in the wind. The accent today was not at the Wetlands but moving from one area of bushes to another, in search of any nice surprises, like these two Roe Deer in the Canal Scrape car park. The bushes behind the scrape, known locally as 'little hedge' is good for flycatchers and redstarts. A single Redstart was in the bushes and a Willow Warbler there also. The scrape itself was quiet although an adult and juvenile Water Rail made brief appearances. The Swallows which nest in the hide are on their second brood, almost ready to fly and one of the first brood youngsters was outside. Both adult Swallows here. Other Swallows had gathered on the fence and with them, a Sand Martin youngster had tagged on to the travelling Swallows. In the quiet of early morning, Tree Pipits were giving their 'bzzz' call as they passed overhead, one alighted on the power lines above me. I continued my walk around the bushes and came across Wrens, Linnets, Great Tits, Chiffchaff and a nice Song Thrush, not seen often enough now. The next area to walk was along Beacon Lane where a Greenish Warbler had been found yesterday. I walked the lane twice without seeing the Greenish but while watching Whitethroats and Dunnocks, I discovered a lovely grey Barred Warbler in the open. This was a nice find, the first of the Autumn here and a warbler I like to see each year in the UK. This bird catches me out every Autumn too. Juvenile Reed Warblers move out of the reed beds and are often seen in hawthorn bushes, seeking out insects. I made a third visit to Beacon Lane in the afternoon when more people had arrived. The Greenish Warbler was seen briefly but it was very difficult in the tree it favoured. I didn't manage a photograph but was pleased to see a rare warbler I hadn't seen for some years. At least two Whinchats had also dropped in here since morning. I took a different route back to the canal bushes, this time along the estuary side. The high tide was receding and waders were moving back to the freshly exposed mud. I thought perhaps there would be a Wheatear on the foreshore, but not today. Huge flocks of Grey and Golden Plovers took to the air, a little too late I realised what had alarmed them - an adult dark phase Arctic Skua was making its way up the river. Returning to the canal hide after six miles of walking, a most unusual spectacle was taking place on the scrape. A Merlin has been visiting around midday when the air is warmest, feeding on dragonflies just like a Hobby does. The weather wasn't ideal for many dragonflies and the Merlin made two short stops on the ground. The Merlin was seen off by local Magpies before catching any dragonflies, taking its annoyance out on the Starling flock which had been resting on overhead lines. Another good day at Spurn with two rarities added to the year list.
Firstly and perhaps the most important, I am delighted to say we have obtained a 'long stay Visa' for our Winter visit to Portugal this year. In previous years, there has been no problem but since Brexit, a Visa is required for a stay exceeding 90 days for UK visitors. It has been a challenging time over a period of five months, justifying every move we are likely to make and, supplying evidence to prove it!! A huge paperwork and communication exercise to say the least. After an initial refusal, followed by more head scratching to hammer home an appeal - we got there! We are now looking forward to seeing all our friends again, participating in the Sagres Bird Festival and generally enjoying the country we have come to love so much. Around the garden, Green Woodpeckers have been putting on a good show this week. I noticed this one on the telephone pole outside the house. A small red spot developing on the cheek indicates it is likely to be a juvenile male bird. The following day, another young woodpecker was feeding on ants on the grass verge. This one appears to be a juvenile female green woodpecker. It's very encouraging to have breeding birds such as these woodpeckers in our locality. A few days ago I visited Kilnsea Wetlands, at a time when wader passage is getting underway. Redshanks and Dunlin were seen in good numbers and Ruff totalled around a dozen birds. These juvenile Ruff have a very smart plumage. A Ruff overflying some Dunlin. Another wader which passes through is the Curlew Sandpiper. Again a juvenile, this one fed among the Ruff most of the morning. The gull roost is always worth checking. Several Caspian Gulls have been here recently among the Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls. The flock below shows a winter Mediterranean Gull lifting off (bottom centre) with many Black-headed and Common Gulls present. Today we visited Ladybower Reservoir in the Peak District and enjoyed a walking day with Ellie the Dog. The reservoir was completed in 1945 and provides water for the nearby City of Sheffield. After lunch we drove higher onto the moor above Hathersage where the heather covered hills are spectacularly in flower at the moment.
A change of scene for a few days with two nights stay in the small coastal town of Amble. The harbour has been the home of a Caspian Gull which has returned for a number of years. I saw this gull as a first winter, on a previous trip a few years ago. Now looking like an adult Caspian, I soon found it perched on its favourite lamp post on the quayside. Before arriving at Amble on the first day, we walked the beach at Newbiggin where there was a nice variety of passage waders on the beach. Sanderlings were changing to Winter plumage. Here, a Bar-tailed Godwit but Black-tailed Godwits were also seen. Flocks of Curlews were moving with the incoming tide, finding new resting places on the rocks. A lone female Eider in Amble harbour, many more were out at sea. This is the beach at Longhoughton where an Iceland Gull was seen the previous day. I checked the gulls among the rocks but didn't locate it. Another interesting beach to walk though, with occasional grey herons and common waders. We took a boat trip around the Farne Islands, not landing having done that before and in any case, most of the birds have left and moved out to sea. We saw a few remaining Puffins in flight past the boat. Guillemots were attaining their Winter plumage and only a handful of those were seen, these near the boat. Most of the remaining birds were Kittiwakes, with plenty of juveniles either still on the nest or taking to the air. Many Cormorants reside on the islands. Getting really close to them illustrates how much they appear to have prehistoric characteristics. It was disappointing in that the Arctic Tern colony failed entirely this year. This was due to the National Trust not being able to manage the breeding area during the Covid pandemic. A trip to the Farne Islands would not be complete without a quick look at the Atlantic Grey Seals, always obliging and beautiful mammals. Relax!
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