Blyth and beyond

Just a catch up with some photos of last week had the bike out a few times , along the estuary ,Seaton Sluice, St Mary's etc: also a couple of visits to Holywell  Pond one afternoon 16:25 I thought I 'm off at half past but with  the sight of a Marsh Harrier in the west gap  that put paid to that idea . Initially I thought female but no creamy shoulder patches , and the head looked more like a male but it was overall brown well it quartered back and forth along the pond edge on the north side dropping down and presumably settling out of sight it was thought it perhaps had made a kill but no as it lifted again it started hunting again there some very light patches of grey  on the underwing but they did not stand out , the most prominent feature other than the head was the tail which had a pale grey centre section which stood out and through the scope the grey seemed to also be very, very light spreading on either side terminating with a brown triangle on each outer  tip. Well myself and another birder watched this bird for an hour and I soon realised how little I knew about Marsh Harriers and damn it as I had headed out to seawatch which was aborted I had no camera . The Bird at one stage dropped in the reeds and you could see it just on the edge looking down at something and with the flurry and splashing of water a bird must have been seriously panicking , up it lifts again going around the far half of the pond dropping out of sight again this time for ten minutes or so till it again lifted and returned to drop in and harass the bird from earlier, but oddly it made no real attempt to grab anything it just sat and looked down . When I got home later looking for info on ageing Marsh Harriers I was not much further forward save for finding out that some young males can appear like females to avoid confrontation with territory males , my feeling was that this was a male 1st summer bird but whatever it was great to see . While along the estuary a count of 82 Black Tailed Godwits was noted and on another day they where located well up river feeding on the far side .

 

 There seems to have been large numbers of Black Tailed Godwits through the County this flock of 82 on the Blyth Estuary

 

One or two coming into Summer Plumage I thought there would have been more !!!

 

 Young Blackbird had me puzzled at first  as it was singing from deep in cover a harsh loud sub song !

 Sedge Everywhere now this one popped up at Cresswell carpark north end there always seems to be one holding territory there

 Little Owl looking at me with rather distain took a quick shot or two and quickly moved on

 Nice carpet of Bluebells at Widdrington

 Herring Gull collecting nesting material for use on the nearby factory roofs not something I have witnessed before

 It seems to be only selective roofs are suitable for nesting Herring Gulls & Lesser Blackbacks  Industrial estate Blyth

 These where all washed out last year with the torrential rain , nothing could have withstood the downpours !!

 This was a strange sight I came across along the River Blyth, this is the rail bridge, a SUB SEA contractor was on site with digger , dumper truck and a team in the water complete with survival dry suits.  they where loading these stones into the dumper via the digger then tipping them on a large raft , where the men/divers would float it into place and then they placed them around the base pillars . I ask you is that not an embarrassing bit of engineering , I did not photograph the guys to save there blushes , it will be interesting to see how many weeks/days they will last.

 Blackcap there was more interestingly a Garden Warbler nearby  but only the glimpse of that as it relocated along the back of the hedge

A Couple of Barnacle Geese drop into Holywell  with some Canadas

Fulmars-Common Sand

 

Out on the bike last week stopped at the cliffs just south of Seaton Sluice to try for the Fulmars that just seem to hang around I presume they are not yet mature enough to breed as there have been birds at various points on these cliffs for years but as far as I know non have nested. It is just fantastic to watch as they shear along the cliff face sometimes drifting up to have a look at you , forget the big lens they come so close so fast its impossible to focus , I had my SX50 which I have to admit is rubbish at flight shots to slow to focus and to long a shutter lag so I went home with many shots of the tip of a wing or just the sea. It was still early so I called along at the estuary at what is known as Monkey's Island  very little around but I did hear a Common Sandpiper first for the year ,when I located it on the mud and  was surprised to find actually three , I tried to get them all in one shot but they where not having it   

 

Guillemot on the rocks never a good sign 

 

 I tried to be arty with these two Rock Pipits first focusing on one then the other which would also get the sea in focus ,but reality is you would need a tripod  so it did not work

 I took quite a few of the Fulmars it looks so easy till you get the camera up , your own delayed reactions and the camera delay all adds up to a missed shot and I had loads

 I did at least like the composition of this one although the bird is slightly out of focus

 And this one if I had caught it a second later would have had St Mary's lighthouse in the background

 

And here are some loafing on the sea there where seven

 Common Sandpiper one of three on the mudflats,

 This straight out of the camera as is no processing at all

A spider where I sat so I tried Macro/close focus but you have to be very close indeed

Bean Goose -etc:

26th Jan checked out the flock of Pinkfeet along the Links road at Blyth the Bean goose still present and the Geese are  still around the area ,with another flock od similar size near Holywell Pond , I also called back  up the Estuary this time on a falling tide some Grey Plover where close in on some early exposed mud but before I could set up the camera they had all gone so I got a couple of shots of the Bar-tailed Godwits and Knot, there seems more BTG than usual this year with 35-40 present eventually they flew over to the other side giving there distinctive call , checked out the Teal again in the hope of GW, still a good flock of a few hundred Teal around no doubt they will be drifting off to the ponds again soon , Red Throated Diver a 3 Mergansers in the area they used to turn boats in , Fieldfares feeding again on the Buckthorn.

 Bar -tailed Godwits

 For some reason Goldeneye are not the easiest birds to photograph the contrast is so great between the black and white it's very hard to get it right ,these males looked stunning as they drifted just offshore before starting to feed again

 Bean Goose centre

A few Knot where along the estuary

Blyth Estuary

An extended walk along the banks of the River Blyth as it changes from mud flats to more stony sides obviously the birds change waders and gulls feeding on the mud and waters edge ,Goldeneye & Mergansers moving upstream with the incoming tide  ,Black Headed Gulls dip feeding on whatever comes from the surface water  drain that pours into he centre of the river . In between the two bridges one rail one road is where the mallards are feeding also up to a dozen Moorhens ,this day the water was fairly fast flowing and I was surprised to see a Dipper on the far side well that was it scope set up to watch it feed as it dipped into the water and bobbed back up like a cork the water instantly running off it's back . I tried to follow as it was underwater crossing the flow on a diagonal path as it walked along the river bottom but the trouble with digiscoping is once youv'e lost the target its very hard to pick it up again having to take the camera off to re-aquire the bird ,but luckily it posed in-between its forays . The faint call of a second bird could be heard and I picked it up further upstream as it softly called from its perch on a small rock  ,there flight call is usually much clearer alerting you to there passing , and the song is also faint sometimes barely audible above the sound of the water ,but it must be clear to other Dippers, I spent a good 40 mins watching these two birds which is better than just ticking them off and walking on .

Just a couple of short clips I left the sound on in the hope of picking up the call but its impossible to hear over the traffic and flowing river.

You can see just how fast the river is running , an amazing creature that can virtually walk under water , the ever flicking nictitating membrane crossing the eye as it makes a cleaning sweep ,it seems to work from top to bottom ,also the dipping and fanning of the tail.

As I got back further down the river the tide had pushed in this Common Seal popped up to check me out , I love the way they just sink back  into the depths  !!!

Blyth estuary - Leucistic Herring Gull

Another visit to Blyth Estuary this time I got the tide right and it was heaving with birds , Teal I roughly counted out at 300 , with Mallard ,Gadwall, Shellduck , c10 Goldeneye a single Long Tailed Duck , Dunlin , Bar Tailed Godwit, Redshank these all in good numbers and this was just east of the bridge , in between the bridges where about 15 Moorhens and about 30 Mallard , the Mallard look so much more impressive feeding in the river amongst the flow of small torrents , a bird caught my eye as it flitted through the trees behind the new workshops it looked like a Chiff but it was gone before I could confirm . walking further downstream both sides of the river where alive with waders the Dunlin and Golden Plover  feeding on the far bank in an area I see them often it must collect  food between tides consequently they are a bit far away should anything turn up amongst them ,in the field a large flock of Fieldfare dropped down to feed , c8 Grey plover which mostly stayed on the far side  of the spit but one fed beside the outfall. Bar Tailed Godwits where well spaced out making counting harder but there had to be c30 . I picked out  the Leucistic Herring Gull again on the far side its been around for awhile  it is mostly white but does have faint brown on the wings tips and a smudgy mark on the tail although I did not see it in flight , the bill appears all dark so it should be a first year bird . I thought it would be an Albinistic bird being mostly white  but apparently  the presence of Melanin which in this case is being blocked from most of the feathers but not the eye ,bill or tail. But in Albinism the Melanin is blocked from bare parts as well hence a  true Albino  has pink eyes because the only colour present is the blood vessels behind the eye showing through . I have over simplified it so it's worth reading up on 

 Goldeneye another one that is hard to digiscope

 Herring Gulls pair bonding

 I tried taking so much video of the LTD that I ran out of batteries and  trying to get this bird side on took ages , I put one of the dead batteries in my pocket and the warmth revived it enough to get a few more shots

Short video of the Long Tailed Duck ,if you have ever tried to even view them while they feed you can forgive the jerky video trying to keep it in view was a nightmare.You can just hear it calling faintly towards the end which is why I left the sound on

Blyth Estuary

A visit to the estuary a few days ago I unfortunately miss timed the tide and it had already pushed most of the waders of the mud. The small pools held Water Rail at least you could hear them calling despite most of the reeds having been cleasred, about 6 or so Moorhens around and I saw one hop into a Buckthorn bush and start and eat the orange berries which I believe are very high in vitamin C it dropped back onto the ground  but 10 minutes later hopped up again so I got a digi shot. About 40 gulls on the newer of the pools ,not sure why they had to add another , Goldfinch Greenfinch and a single Fieldfare and Bullfinch with 7 Red Breasted Mergansers amongst the boats before the heavy grey sky saw me head home 

 I think this Bullfinch was feeding on the buds

Moorhen feeding on Buckthorn berries new one on me !!!!

Blog catch-up 21st -26th

On the 21st as we were at ASDA near Swallow pond I walked along for an hour to look for any Dragons ,the views from both screens obscured by rush and reeds ,nothing on the large dipping pool and the small pool on the edge of the wood has been enlarged also as a dipping pool but nothing here either on to the large pool Hadrian Pool I think it is called a pair of Mute Swans with a brood of 7 large young , no small feat on an urban pond also a brood of Tufted giving me the chance to get fairly close.

Tufted Duck with one of her brood behind
Young Tufted Duck
Just missed a Kestrel as it dropped in near the pool seemed to pick something up.

On the 22nd we cycled along to St Mary's to catch the rising tide a couple of hundred Kittiwakes on the rocks also a few Common and Sandwich terns

Oystercatcher having been flushed from the island crowd on the rocks before again heading for the causeway roost.

24th I stopped at the Blyth estuary on the way north , Whinchat and Wheatear on the far side .

Woodhprn Flash only had 2 Common darter not seing many of these at all.

Cresswell had 5 Ruff 2 Greenshank, 4 Ringed Plover,30 Dunlin, and c60 which circled twice but did not land, I did not take a single picture all day !!!!.

25th Started the day at East Cramlington again looking for Dragonflies , it was sunny so waited an hour but nothing showed .

Arcot not my favourite destination but has been good for Dragons in the past so an other hour or so, 3 Greenshank, Small Coppers,lots of Wall Brown, Peacock, Red Ad,Emerald and Common Darter and one Hawker distant and I thought Southern.

Big Waters found a Southern Hawker hanging on nettle , Emeralds & Blue Tailed, again a few Small copper and Wall.

Gosforth Park apart from a couple of Willow Warblers along the boardwalk I saw little else here and wasted an hour doing it.

Swallow Pond being a sunnier day than my last visit I headed back to check the ponds, only to find there was a Teddy Bears picnic in progress and still nothing on the ponds....... no wonder I use so much petrol !!!!!
Peacock Arcot Pond
Arcot Pond
Arcot Pond
I found this freshwater mussel shell on the shore that is a golf ball to show the size of it ,I never thought they got that big ???
Some nice Fungi on the dead trees.

Sothern Hawker Big Waters
Comma Big Waters.

26th Found my first Migrant Hawkers of the year 2 along a hedge near Woodhorn.

Cresswell 5 Greenshank,4 Ruff, 1Whimbrel,2 Buzzard, 1 Pintail, Goldeneye a hawker was flying over the east side of the hide but I could not get a good view and it remained unidentified a few Swallows over heading South. I took the bike and headed up the coast.

Druridge another Migrant Hawker near the entrance,Wheatear and Whinchat at the end of the road.

Hauxley at the Ponteland hide only the usual Greylag and a few Redshank, plenty of waders from the Tern hide but looking into the sun by now, I cycled around to the new Wader hide so called from the days when waders could actually be seen from the hide as the water was much lower................ the hide is brand spanking new 30' x 10' it's huge what was wrong with the old one for the amount of people that actually go around this side , anyway perhaps they hire it out for functions etc: at 300 square feet of floor space you would get a few in ...... I wonder,what bird could turn up here that would fill this hide with birders , it would have to something special,more than the 2 Mallard I had !!!!.

Headed back to Cresswell for the car stopping at Snab Point, I noticed the large Bungalow is for sale. a few bushes in the garden and your own sea watch hide you would get some garden list !!!

Migrant Hawker
Whimbrel over Cresswell again not landing
Wall near the carpark

Bridled Ter....no !!!......22-6-10

Bullfinch now a regular visitor to the garden and here a pair taking a bath together, it never fails to amaze me how much birds enjoy a bath some come back 2-3 times for more.

22-6-10 With the news of Bridled Tern on the 21st at East Chevington, it was a long shot but worth a try, checked the spit at BlythEstuary , and a couple of places along the coast in the hope of gathered terns , but too early for that .

Only a few birders at EC scoped the Terns picking out , Sandwich,Arctic, Common and later a Little Tern, with also some Little Gulls Black Tailed Godwit.

Had a walk to look for Orchids at least a 100 spikes of Lesser Butterfly Orchid, Twayblade & lots of Common Spotted, no sign of any Bee sure I have had them in late June before, first Common Blue of the year, Small Heath, only a few Blue damsels on the small pool , but later in the day Four Spot Chaser(lots this year), and Emperor with a single Black Tailed Skimmer at Woodhorn.

Also called in at Druridge for the male Ruff, nice bird it sat fast asleep behind a rock and we had to wait till it decided to have a wander, difficult to capture a good image with it colouring.

The message of reported Bridled Tern at Budle summed up the day , but it was still a good day out.