Normal Service Resumed!

The fibre optic cable broadband was out for just under a week so although I've been out birding the website has been quiet. Thought it was my hub but it was affecting lots of local properties. It's catch-up time!

A foretaste!

Spoonbill

12th August:Hartlepool & Saltholme

It seems a very quiet time since the bridled tern excited my life! At Newburn Bridge the medgull was back on her lamp-post. All's right with the world then! Perhaps she'll be there all winter again! 

Mediterranean Gull Mediterranean Gull Mediterranean Gull Mediterranean Gull On the Headland a juvenile starling looked very fine.

Starling I spotted another medgull...

Mediterranean Gull ...and a ringed plover.

Ringed Plover On to Salthome where my attention turned to damselflies. I was pleased with some of these images, especially the emerald damselflies that perch with wings open.

Emerald Damselfly Emerald Damselflies Emerald Damselflies Three greenshanks graced Saltholme pools plus a tufted duck with her young. They seemed to be doing well.

Tufted Duck Five black-tailed godwits flew over. They always seem to photograph well.

Black-tailed Godwits

14th August: Old Moor and the View from our house!

I'll begin with a couple of common chaser shots. Note the web attached to the seed head.

Ruddy Darter

Ruddy Darter

However the highlight of the visit was a spoonbill, seen first sleeping indolently down at Wath Ings.

Spoonbill Eventually we were treated to a brief fly round. I grabbed and pointed...

Spoonbill Spoonbill Spoonbill Later, coming out of the Wader Scrape hide, Barry suddenly spotted the spoonbill coming towards us. The rest, as they say, is pictures!

Spoonbill Spoonbill Spoonbill Spoonbill Spoonbill At the Family Hide a cormorant sat [photogenically, I thought] on a rock.

Cormorant Nearby many sand martins were clustering around one of the islands, feeding on caterpillars maybe on the thistles.

Sand Martins Walking towards the reedbeds we saw a brimstone butterfly...Brimstone Brimstone ...and a common blue.

Common blue A bullfinch was feeding near the feeders.

Bullfinch Once back home, my wife said: 'What's that bird on the roof across the road?'

I crept out to the car, grabbed camera, took photos, walked ten paces, took photos, walked four paces... It fled!

Sparrowhawk Sparrowhawk

15th Briefly at Blacktoft

Birding world very quiet. Blacktoft pretty much the same. Garganey in eclipse. Wow!

Garganey

17th: Daddy at Home!

What long legs you've got!!

Daddy Longlegs Daddy Longlegs

18th: Blacktoft again!

Barry and I were hoping for a waderfest!

A red underwing moth was sleeping on Reception shed. Perhaps Blacktoft warrants a visitor centre... [Red and black underwing very striking when seen - but not today!]

Red Underwing Waders: ruffs.

Ruff Lapwings and a godwit.Black-tailed Godwit

Black-tailed Godwit Snipe!

Snipe Snipe Snipe

19th: Crossbills galore! It's a drake!

I went back to Broomhead Reservoir near the fabulously named hamlet of Wigtwizzle to see the crossbills. The two-barred were still around but in no mood to pose for my camera. Here's a sample juvenile crossbill with a male also partially visible.Common Crossbill After observing lots of crossbills in the scope I decided to move on after seeing one female two-barred quite well but too far to photograph.

At Fairburn Ings I photographed this mandarin - a drake in fact in eclipse plumage as the drakes are the ones with a red bill! Amazing how eclipse drake looks so like an adult female...

Mandarin eclipse drake Mandarin eclipse drake Mandarin eclipse drake Walking to the Kingfisher Screen [where I had several fleeting views of the blue streaks] I saw another late brimstone.

Brimstone Brimstone Finally, returning to Pickup Hide I had views of a sedge warbler by the sand martin wall.

Nice way to end the blog.

Sedge Warbler Sedge Warbler 246 UK 2013