An afternoon at Marshland

Marshland, Blacktoft - just about the only part of the reserve with a decent amount of water - apparently. I spent my whole visit in Marshland hide. Watching curlew sandpipers. 3 present along with spotshanks, ruff, godwits, woodsand, dunlins and supporting wildfowl. Reed warbler seen too. Here are the curlew sands.

Camera settings went wrong at one point and ruined some yellow wagtail shots. I rescued this one...

Grey heron

 Sunday 11th September - a day at Borough Hall

Have you noticed how if anyone is providing information on tv or radio these days they seem to always begin with the word 'so'?

So I drove up to Hartlepool heading straight for the Headland. I sensed some good birds were going to be there. I began with a spotted flycatcher. In the gloom of heavy shade. [Photo brightened as much as I dare]

I could see a group of birders on the Putting Green. I went to see what was there. 

Garden warblers - 2 of them. Not a bird I find easy to spot and, in fact, one I had never photographed. I went back several times to get these photos. 

A sparrowhawk flew overhead and the birds all went into deep cover.

A false alarm sent everyone [me included] rushing off to the Heugh Pier to see a red-breasted flycatcher but it was a case of misidentification. A wheatear graced the rocks.

Later I went back to Borough Hall to one particular line of trees that had pied flycatcher, lesser whitethroat and yellow-browed warbler. I managed a better view of a spotfly.

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Six of the Best!

Thursday 1st September: up early and off to Spurn

The plan was to get to Spurn and do a seawatch. However a check on the pager in a lay-by near Market Weighton told me there was a wryneck at Sammy's Point. Good job I decided to go there first as I discovered later that I'd left my scope at home! Camera and bins would have to do. The wryneck appeared after a ten-minute wait while it hid in the bottom of a hawthorn bush about 3 yards in front of me. 

Next report was of a  citrine wagtail in a dark and heavily vegetated ditch just inland from Chalky Point. A new place for me - you take a footpath just north of the Riverside Hotel out to the Humber. The marshy area and ditch will then be on your right. The wagtail was extremely tricky to lock onto because of the reeds sticking up between me and the bird. But I had a go!

A red-backed shrike was seen distantly from the road near Canal Scrape. I decided to go to the Canal Scrape hide and wait for a better view.

3 year ticks. A brilliant day was slotting into place. Beacon Ponds was my next destination. A birder told me 'they're quite near the concrete ramp.' That sounded promising and I put my best foot forward. [It's the left one!]

There were 2 of them but not swimming together. Red-necked phalaropes by the way.

4 year ticks

A few fellow travellers - dunlin and ringed plover.

I fancied a sit and the now spacious Kilnsea hide was almost deserted. I scanned the waders. Great white egret some way off. Then a wader flew in with the dunlin. Bigger and better. Curlew sandpiper. [5 ticks]

I headed back to Sammy's Point to see what was on the mud now the tide had gone out. So with bins round my neck and my scope happily taking it easy upstairs at home I had a look around. Plenty of common waders, an egret, shelducks a-plenty. I was looking for a grey plover but couldn't find one. Turning back to the car I spotted a wheatear.

It landed quite close to me.

Not a tick.

I strolled over to the first horse paddock. A robin appeared at the base of a hawthorn just in front of me. The robin left and seconds later a redstart appeared. I went to the car to get the camera [about 10 yards away]. But I never saw redstart or robin again. Nonetheless my sixth tick of the day. I don't think I manage that often in September.

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Greater sand plover

No more needs to be said really except to confirm: Redcar beach between the bandstand and the new Regent cinema.

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