Whoopers at Big Waters ,1 ringed

Went over to big Waters via the bus last week  pleasant enough day  and there where numerous birds around started at the first hide /bunker which looks out  onto the island there are numerous bolts to undo to open the shutters this is a necessity as the area is prone to vandalism actually a plague of the nation. Three Whoopers nearby and AJ who probably spends as much time here as at home  pointed out one was sporting a darvic ring , so the challange was on although he had read it through his  scope I tried to get some digi of it , the other two seemed paired up as they  where never far apart. the Island had an assortment of Gulls and drying Cormorants, still no sign of Otter for me again so far , the Male Pintail still around but as before constantly upending Great Crested Grebes in nest building fewer birds at the feeding station  Long Tailed Tits 3-4 pairs around , a Red Admiral along the boardwalk in a sunny spot not a bad day overall. 

 Y696 Alan will send in the sighting and inform me .

All seems harmony as both Mute and Whooper preen on the pool edge

It needs some smart comment added here but I'm at a lost.

Craster, Budle ,Stag, Long Nanny

A few days up the coast last week ,the weather was fine but the birding quiet, still a brood of Swallows at the campsite which also held a roost of Pied Wagtails with at least 60 coming to roost in a tree in the middle of the park,plenty of Buzzards around, with Tawnies calling at dusk a set a side field that I thought would be good for Short Eareds was now ploughed over, a small pond nearby had an Emperor and Common Darter but these the only Dragons I saw despite the fine weather.

Cycled along to the Long Nanny which had a huge Gull roost and about 80 Curlew by the stream Newton Pool water level up with absolutely nothing on , Common Porpoise seen from several locations.

A near summer Red Necked Grebe off Stag Rocks and about 100 Linnets in a crop of peas with a Merlin trying to catch one , Monks House Pool a single knot, 30 Snipe 40 + Teal, Budle easily a 1000 Black Headed, with also an adult Med Gull the furthest north in the county for me , 2 Greenshanks 40 Bar Tailed & 30 Dunlin near the road with a strong heat haze affecting the distant views, Craster near the harbour lots & loots of Butterflies on Red Valerium was hoping for a Humming Bird Hawkmoth, but not this year, plenty of Silver Y's.

Still a very pleasant few days in a fantastic area.

Only one left on the nest by the last day

Red Necked Grebe off Stag Rocks

Digiscoped shots from the rocks

Little Egret Budle it's been here for awhile now

Some early evening shots from near the castle

Dunstanburgh from the fields a small pond here with Mallards & Greylags

Silver Y

The Castle from Craster harbour

Not had time to look this up yet it had a curious flight

A Rook end !!!!

That was the week that was !!!!!!!!!!!!

Just catching up on whats been happening or not in this case, spent last weekend camping at Wooler, but absolutely lousy weather Bank Holiday Monday at Glendale Show but not my cup of tea, an evening down at the bridge saw several Daubentons Bats but far fewer than I have seen in the past, there is a very large encased pipe that you could walk on across the river and the bats used to whip past you, but alas now its fenced off plenty of Tawny Owls calling for what seemed like most of the night........... one remark heard as a couple packed their gear away at the site which I thought was humorous (posh voice) " Darling where do we keep the Arxe !!!, your bag or mine ".
Called in at Blyth harbour on the way to St Mary's and the erection of more gates and fences, looks like it's turning into area 51, making Winter Gull watching very difficult if not impossible.
Several Roseates on the rocks but well out , a couple of Whimbrel over but rather quiet.
Had five Migrant Hawkers in a small group all hung up within about 10' of each other and 2 on the same branch but in thick cover so all distant shots also Peacocks a few Painted Ladies Red Admirals & Tortoiseshell and a very raggy Wall Brown, on to Cresswell the water level is up again as you probably already know and the strong wind didn't help either , 5 BlackTailed Godwits, 2 Bar tailed , Curlew Sandpiper, Greenshank & several Dunlin dropped onto the sandbank but all left very quickly, what looked like Little Stint up at the far end still on the main pond but right of that small mound with the channel behind, it stayed there even when everything else flushed .

More Dragonflies 30-06-09

This is 2" long , wing cases on the top & the jaw that shoots out is just below the eyes,with the exit hole just before the wings

Another run around the ponds looking for Dragonflies found 6 Emperors, 3 Four Spot Chasers, and only one Common Darter , 8 Painted ladies,3 Red Admirals, numerous Ringlets and Meadow Browns, I found a few Exuviae, the case left behind when Dragonflies emerge from their larval stage ,one which I think is from an Emperor was too far out, but having stepped in "something " earlier I decided to wade in and get it new trainers or not Ringlet more and more every day

Ruddy Darter

Female Emperor egg laying , I have seen this many times the eggs are not visible in these shots , they look like small yellow flat discs. Here being mobbed they kept grabbing at the wings from behind

Coming in from behind to grab the wing

I found this case, fairly sure its from a flown Emperor

This is another from a Damselfly possibly, difficult to get a size as they are always out of reach

Four Spot Chaser

Another Four Spot Chaser

Frustrating Weather 29-6-09

Lead Belle Or July belle

This weather is rather frustrating for me ,warm it may be ,but so changeable went up the coast the other day stopped near the power station for a walk it was a sunny spell and I counted about 20 Common Blue nearly all males with just a few females , also Red Admirals, Ringlets, & Meadow Browns , various amounts of damselflies at most suitable locations, Willow Warblers & Chiffchaffs still singing family of Whitethroats, stopped beside the travellers camp and looked up the stream very overgrown as is the pool nearby could be anything in there, the flash dried up now, a quick look in at Cresswell the Goosander on the sand beside the hide in heavy moult, Common Sandpiper here also. Druridge pools from the screen had little on show, the track to the hides was good for Butterflies as the sun as out again walked right to the end getting a few shots , went into the hide to find a mist over most of the pond , I ended up in the car for a coffee to see what would happen as I wanted to go to East Chevington to check the north pool , I thought it had cleared enough to be able to see the terns so off to east Chev, Greenshank & 3 redshank , a couple of Arctic Terns & 3 1st summers in with the 10 Little Gulls and numerous Common & Sandwich terns.

A couple of Juvenile Herons outside the hide Druridge Pools Mutes with Young also

Latticed Heath ?

And another paler version

Plenty of Common Blue out today

Common Toadflax starting to flower

A couple of Red Admirals ,this on Viper's Bugloss

Common Blue female

More Ringlets out every day