Welcome to my birding blog - first launched 12th March 2012...
Friday 23rd August - Wednesday 28th August 2013
A week is a long time in politics birding!
Well Mr. Cameron probably is thinking just that. Meanwhile I'm ready to report a varied week when the promised easterlies didn't quite deliver - although they did send us a few 'goodies'. Let's tell the story!
Friday 23rd August: Blacktoft
An afternoon visit to Blacktoft in hope of a reported little stint that had left when I arrived. Arrival and departure probably linked to the tides. I made do with a greenshank...
...a snipe...
...an unusually close spotshank still in [fairly] summer plumage [and ruff in the background]...
...and a few black-tailed godwits.
Oops!
Saturday 24th August: Acomb, York: the sparrowhawk dropped in to visit!
Saturday was to be a day at home sorting various bits of paperwork. Bills and receipts etc. From up in my study I heard my wife shouting 'camera' and something else indistinguishable. I grabbed camera. No memory card. Grabbed memory card. Assumed by the time I had done this the bird would have disappeared. By now I gathered the cat was in the conservatory looking up at a sparrowhawk on the fence at the side of the conservatory watching the cat. The cat had gone back to sleep knowing it was safe. It understands the concept glass and the safety it affords.
By now I had reached the back bedroom window to see if the bird was there. It was unbelievably close. At 13 feet just within focus range of my 400mm DO lens. Aim, focus, shoot! Through the double glazing too! So, given the deterioration I expect through glass here is what I think is a great set of images. But I would, I suppose...
Here's looking at you!
The green is next door's lawn if you were wondering, slightly overexposed.
Sunday 25th August: Spurn calling!
An early start, I was hoping for a good seawatch and although things were not that 'busy' I was pleased to see pomarine skuas, one sooty shearwayer, some manxies and, probably best of all, three arctic skuas flying along the shoreline. Incredible views.
As for photographs... There were whinchats everywhere. Here's my best shot from Canal Scrape.
Rumours attracted me to move on to Sammy's Point where wryneck was reported along with some warblers. Wheatear were seen and more whinchats. No sign of a wryneck other than a fleeting glimpse. A painted lady posed. I suppose painted ladies would do that!
A chiifchaff probably.
I returned to Canal Scrape to watch the swallows who were nesting in the hide. They perched on the barbed wire waiting to come in, made nervous by the numbers of birders present.
In the car park I snatched this wall butterfly as it paused ever so briefly with its wings open.
A wryneck was entertaining the crowds at the Rose & Crown. I went along. I'll end this day's report with the wryneck images.
Monday 26th August: Blacktoft &
Barry and I had a day's local birding. No especial targets - just a nice day out!
Blacktoft had insects and birds. We walked down to Ousefleet where we saw this greensand on the pool from the screen.
On the way back we were 'buzzed' by various dragonflies. Common chaser.
Speckled wood at rest. Usually they rest with wings open as in all of my previous photographs of this species.
The scrapes were quiet but we found an attractive greenshank in good light.
A heron was preening but with one wing draped over its body to catch the warmth of the sun.
A little grebe plus chick.
A larger, great crested grebe drifted past the hide.
A very late [juvenile, I think] avocet.
A final dragonfly and a nice butterfly image to round off the day. 
Tuesday 27th August: Flamborough Failure?
Well not quite failure after looking at lots of photos we decided we had seen an icterine warbler along Old Fall hedge. Otherwise we saw spotfly and some willow warblers. Photographically it was more a case of trying to get far enough away from the butterflies as I had the 400mm lens on. Still, it worked out all right.
First red admiral photo of the year.
This wall looks quite different from the pictures in my books.
It's a male from the dark sex brand running down the forewing.
Speckled wood.
We saw the Yorkshire Belle from the cliff top. I'll look forward hopefully to a cruise this autumn...
Wednesday 28th August: Spurn beckons again
Barry and I had a day at Spurn. We found hirundines gathering at the Warren. Not a great photo but I like it because it shows a sand martin [blurred, top right], swallows and a house martin sandwiched between the two foreground swallows. Full set!
A barred warbler was to be released in 10 minutes. We got there!
The wrynecks were still present. Nice views coming up! On the rock armour...
...Crown & Anchor car park...
...roadside near Cliff Farm [all the same bird]
Waders came down the Humber in a long line.
On to Kilnsea Wetlands. Golden plover whirling round.
A few dunlin came close to the small hide.
A curlew drifted past over our heads. I was a bit slow to get onto it.
I'll finish with a few late butterflies. Wall.
Painted lady.
Common blue.
Common chaser? Very red one.
UK 252
Monday 12th August - Monday 19th August 2013
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!
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!
On the Headland a juvenile starling looked very fine.
I spotted another medgull...
...and a 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.
Three greenshanks graced Saltholme pools plus a tufted duck with her young. They seemed to be doing well.
Five black-tailed godwits flew over. They always seem to photograph well.
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.
However the highlight of the visit was a spoonbill, seen first sleeping indolently down at Wath Ings.
Eventually we were treated to a brief fly round. I grabbed and pointed...
Later, coming out of the Wader Scrape hide, Barry suddenly spotted the spoonbill coming towards us. The rest, as they say, is pictures!
At the Family Hide a cormorant sat [photogenically, I thought] on a rock.
Nearby many sand martins were clustering around one of the islands, feeding on caterpillars maybe on the thistles.
Walking towards the reedbeds we saw a brimstone butterfly...
...and a common blue.
A bullfinch was feeding near the feeders.
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!
15th Briefly at Blacktoft
Birding world very quiet. Blacktoft pretty much the same. Garganey in eclipse. Wow!
17th: Daddy at Home!
What long legs you've got!!
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!]
Waders: ruffs.
Lapwings and a godwit.
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.
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...
Walking to the Kingfisher Screen [where I had several fleeting views of the blue streaks] I saw another late brimstone.
Finally, returning to Pickup Hide I had views of a sedge warbler by the sand martin wall.
Nice way to end the blog.
246 UK 2013
7th & 8th August 2013
Not only birds have wings...
Wednesday 7th August
Barry and I spent the afternoon at North Cave looking for butterflies and dragonflies - and, of course, for anything else that happened to turn up!
Let's start with a nice common blue butterfly...
...followed by a common blue damselfly.
This hoverfly was... well, hovering!
Note the beetle, right, coming to have a look.
Meadow browns were showy today, basking with their wings open.
A common darter posed for some nice images.
We were quite surprised to see a brimstone butterfly in August.
Note how almost transparent the butterfly is: you can see the brown stalk through its wings. There were good numbers of small skippers about too.
Plus large whites...
...green veined whites...
...peacocks in huge numbers, looking very pristine...
...speckled woods...
...and very hard to pin down small tortoiseshells. Of course we don't pin down our butterflies these days - only metaphorically!
Some friendly birders put us on to a group of corn buntings. Great views were had including this sequence. My first photos of corn buntings.
We spent a while in East Hide. Some common terns were busy fishing for their youngsters. Black tip to the bill...
...no black tip! But still a common tern I think.
Two black birds!
A little grebe came up close.
Thursday 8th August
This time we went early to Flamborough for a seawatch. Nothing special seen on the sea other than a few manx shearwaters, fulmars, puffins, gannets and lots of pretty juvenile kittiwakes. However as we got out of Tiggy [literally] I spotted a very white bird over by the farm to the south...
..and then, a little later on the clifftop, a wheatear.
Below we watched a kayaking fisherman and a nearby seal.
Looking at the photos I am concerned the seal was somehow entangled in some rope.
Find of the day was when Barry spotted a brightly coloured little butterfly - a small copper. Only small copper has black spots like this - however he was unwilling to give really good views.
We moved on to Thornwick Pools hide where we saw dunlin, greylags...
...and a young grey [?] wagtail.
Always a good idea to check for the enemy!
Nice pose.
We finished the day at Fairburn where we found a female mandarin duck [thanks to the birders at North Cave the day before] and we may have seen a Caspian gull. On the other hand we may not! So not counted. Still on 245 2013. It's about time a biggy came along!!
Dont forget to visit http://barryjohnbishop.blogspot.co.uk/ for another 'take' on our adventures!
Happy birding!
Tuesday 30th July 2013 ff
To destinations unknown!
Tuesday 3oth July: at home in the garden
Saw small white, large white, green-veined white, peacock, holly blue, ringlet and comma butterflies today in the garden. At least I think it was holly blue as that's the blue we normally get in the garden but it flew off over the hedge the moment I saw it. It appeared again later and disappeared over the same hedge equally quickly!
Here are the ones I managed to photograph.
The comma rested briefly on a 6 foot fence top - so not a great image.
This hoverfly was inside a daylily flower.
Heysham Nuclear Power Station
Thursday August 1st 2013
A long drive with a few stops on the way, eventually Barry and I reached Heysham and soon found our way to the seawall and to the outfalls of the nuclear power station. The walk was shorter than I expected; the weather was fine, sunny and getting warmer all the time.
We began to scan the gulls. I soon found a couple of Mediterranean gulls. It turned out later that there were over a dozen present. Some fine looking lesser black-backs loitered below the seawall.
Eventually, after about 3 hours I spotted a smart looking gull with a black head and with very black underwings. Stupidly I thought I had found the Bonaparte's but it was a very smart adult little gull. Really cross with myself for not thinking 'little gull' straightaway. Anyway, about 15 minutes later Barry found the Bonaparte's on the mud beyond the first outfall. [Purely as a throwaway remark, I really have no idea which is regarded as the first outfall. The one you come to first from the footpath or the one nearer the harbour?] We had good views in our scopes.
Earlier I had photographed this whimbrel.
When it flew off it only went across to the rock armour of the outfall.
On the walk back I photographed small skipper and common blue butterflies.
There's a fenced pond near the entrance to the informal sort of nature reserve. Barry spotted lots of damselflies and dragonflies.
Female brown hawker ovipositing.
Common darter also present.
Back to Blacktoft with Barry
Saturday August 3rd 2013
Firstly however we called at Boston Park to pick up a black-necked grebe for Barry's [soon to be!] record-breaking year list. Then it was on to Blacktoft. A pheasant welcomed me as I walked over the hump that protects the fields from the marshes by the feeder station.
In Marshland were a good number of waders including dunlin, spotshank, redshank, ruff, lapwing, godwit plus sedge warblers, bearded tits and even an eclipse garganey. A wood sandpiper was seen fleetingly. The green sandpipers were more accommodating.
From Xerox we added avocets and marsh harriers.
Down to Townend and Singleton where we saw large numbers of snipe and egrets.
Back at home a moth had spent the day on the kitchen window sill. Pyrausta purpuralis doesn't even enjoy a more common name! Still pretty little micro moth.
24th-27th July 2013
Home & Garden
Wednesday 24th July 2013
Whilst working in the garden I had the camera handy as there were butterflies about. With the macro lens on I chased gatekeepers, commas and peacocks to no avail! I did catch up with a few insects and the flowers were less likely to fly away...
Above is the rare and sterile white form of rosebay willowherb, chamerion angustifolium album.
Bees were busy on the daisies.
Green-veined white
Speckled wood
Large white
You can see his proboscis taking nectar.
Ringlet on the house wall.
Baird's or white-rumped?
Thursday 25th July 2013
Barry and I drove down to Frampton Marsh with the hope of curlew sandpiper, little stint, white-rumped sandpiper, Montagu's harrier. Mouth-wateringly tempting! We saw none of these. We thought we saw a white-rumped sandpiper on arrival but by the afternoon the experts had changed it into a Baird's sandpiper. We didn't mind. The curlew sands had been seen at high tide but had gone. My white-rumped/Baird's photos were too distant to merit inclusion so here's a ruff instead!!
We saw RPs ...
...and LRPs...
..and black-tailed godwits.
A common blue paused in the sunshine.
A little egret sought food in front of one of the hides.
My wife and I went to Blacktoft...
Friday 26th July 2013
Met Mike Painter, former work colleague. Not seen since reorganisation in 1985! Hope he wasn't too shocked! Marshland had the birds. Godwits were flying about.
There were quite a few greensands.
The avocet youngsters were doing well.
A few yellow wagtail dropped in. We saw more on the road approaching the reserve. This juvenile shows little colour at rest.
A wood sandpiper made our afternoon complete. Not a tick but a long time since I had been this close to get photos like these...
Great images for species comparison.
Spooked by the exocets [avocets!]...
Saltholme
Saturday 27th July 2013
Got up early and headed north. Tide very high: just a few ringed plover and turnstones at Newburn Bridge - all the small rocks and gravel covered. No sign of the returning med gull.
Two red curlew sandpipers seen from the A178 - great views in the scope with 7 dunlin but too far to photograph. Meanwhile, in Phil Stead hide the pectoral sandpiper was more accommodating...
Birds UK 2013: 244
Life list 395 after seeing bridled tern.