Turning tides; Bespoke Northumberland Coast photography 12/10/17
by martin on 17/10/17 17:00, under Druridge Bay, Holy Island
The Holy Island causeway makes it into the news for too frequently due to overly-optimistic car drivers who think that driving into a tidal estuary is going to turn out well…
I collected Tony from Fenham le Moor and we headed to the causeway to watch as the tide fell and the road was uncovered. More exciting though was the mud that was revealed, attracting Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit, Barnacle Geese, Brent Geese, Pink-footed Geese, Turnstone, Teal, Wigeon, Shelduck and Dunlin 🙂 There’s a lot to see as the tide falls and after an hour on the island we had a wander down the coast. A Rock Pipit came close to the car but wasn’t too keen on having a camera lens pointed at it. Grey Heron, Little Egret and Cormorant were proving to be a scourge of small fish and the Red-necked Phalarope at Druridge Pools was performing well among a group of Shoveler, Gadwall and Tufted Duck.
A nice easy-paced day with plenty of birds in front of the camera and, it almost goes without saying now, a client who it was a pleasure to spend the day with 🙂
Autumn arrivals; Otter Safari 04/10/17
by martin on 06/10/17 12:00, under Druridge Bay
There’s something special about birds with ‘Little’ in their name, unsurprisingly quite little and I can’t think of a single one that isn’t a delight to watch…
I collected Calvin from Church Point ahead of an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland searching for Otters, and the first spots of drizzle were in the air on a stiff westerly breeze. We could soon hear the distinctive yapping calls of Pink-footed Geese high overhead, and there was an almost continuous passage of these winter visitors from the north for around 7 hours no matter where we were on the coast. A party of Whooper Swans dropped in, bathing and calling before probably continuing south (we came across what looked to be the same birds a few miles further down the coast later in the afternoon) as a juvenile Marsh Harrier quartered the reedbeds, hanging in the breeze. A very obliging Little Owl was preening itself on top of a stone wall, Goosanders sailed menacingly out from bankside vegetation, four Little Grebes were plundering a shoal of small fish and the passage of geese continued. A nice wader roost included Curlew, Lapwing, Redshank, Dunlin and three really smart looking Little Stints before another juvenile Marsh Harrier drifted by, scattering them all and revealing the presence of two Curlew Sandpipers which quickly vanished away to the north in light drizzle. The most surprising bird of the afternoon was a Green Woodpecker that flew across the track at Druridge Pools – checking with Ipin, it turns out that there are only two previous records for the site!
As dusk approached the forecast drizzle arrived and, as geese continued to pass high overhead, Grey Herons and Little Egrets flew to roost in the gloom.
Waifs, strays and the gloom of dusk; Druridge Bay Safari 26/09/17
by martin on 27/09/17 16:32, under Druridge Bay
I collected Richard and Liz from Whitley Bay and we headed north along the coast for an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland…
After a few breezy weeks, we’d got something different to contend with; dense, patchy fog all along the coast. I don’t mind that too much though, it’s usually manageable, and the birdwatching can be exciting when you don’t know what’s lurking in the mist 🙂 Brambling and Tree Sparrow called overhead as we had lunch, and Redshank, Oystercatcher and Ringed Plover were on the beach below us. A Little Owl, only revealing it’s presence as it flew quickly out of sight, and a much more obliging Little Owl a couple of minutes later were a great find early in the trip. Teal, Wigeon, Mallard, Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Shoveler were sleeping and feeding and, particularly in the case of one female Mallard, being very vocal as Great Crested Grebes and Cormorants hunted with elegant menace, a Little Grebe demonstrated a remarkable aptitude for catching small fish and Lapwings were battling the breeze before settling to roost with Starlings and the disembodied voices of Curlew carried through the mist.
Given the cold foggy conditions, moths and butterflies were a surprise. First a dozen or so Nettle-tap Moths, then the first of several Red Admirals and a Speckled Wood. A Sparrowhawk was pursuing a small bird (possibly a Chaffinch) and passed just a few metres in front of the car windscreen in it’s pursuit and we set about one of the great joys of birdwatching on the Northumberland coast; wandering along a narrow track between Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Elder and Sycamore with the mist curling it’s cold tendrils around us. Robins were ‘ticking’ from the bushes, and at least three were singing when they would be better of putting their effort into feeding. Blackcaps were in the Elders and we tracked down our quarry, although it proved elusive before eventually offering confiding views. First just a brief glimpse of a small warbler as it flitted between bushes, apparently settling in a Sycamore before vanishing again. Then as we were looking where we thought it had gone it flew out from behind us and over our our heads, giving a remarkably loud ‘tsooeest’ call before diving back into cover. Then it appeared at the top of a bush and just sat there, offering great views. Yellow-browed Warbler is one of the real gems of east coast birding in the autumn and this little treasure eventually performed well for all of us.
With the mist making dusk even gloomier than usual, Grey Herons and a Little Egret flew by a noisy roost of ‘chacking’ Jackdaws as Soprano Pipistrelles hunted the leeward edge of a riverside tree and we listened to their calls with our bat detector before heading back towards the bright lights of Whitley Bay 🙂
Birds, birds, birds; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 12/09/17
by martin on 13/09/17 11:32, under Druridge Bay
I collected Peter and Melanie from Cramlington ahead of a few hours around Druridge Bay and apart from a stiff breeze the weather was just about ideal…
Some impressively dense flocks of Swallows and Sand Martins were gorging themselves on flying insects, Little Egrets were stalking through the shallows with the feathers ruffled by the breeze, Goldfinches were foraging among the dried out heads of knapweed, Black-tailed Godwit, Ruff and Dunlin were wading in the shallows and Shoveler, Gadwall, Teal, Wigeon and Mallard were all far less impressive than they’ll be in a few months time with all of the drakes currently in eclipse plumage. Grey Herons were sitting motionless along the edges of reedbeds and in among clumps of rush, Starlings and Lapwings were swirling on the breeze, Cormorants were submerging repeatedly in search of food, Little and Great Crested Grebes were sleeping in the afternoon sunshine and there were a few real quality birds throughout the afternoon. A Black-necked Grebe led us a merry dance as it made it’s way quickly across, and most of the time underneath, the water and a Little Owl was incredibly obliging, first perched on a feed trough, then a stone wall and finally right on the apex of a cottage roof. Marsh Harrier and a typically zippy Merlin rounded out the afternoon and we finished before the rain arrived 🙂
Baby steps; NEWT’s Northumberland Ultimate Pelagic 02/09/17
by martin on 11/09/17 16:47, under North Sea
Our third 10hr ‘Northumberland Ultimate Pelagic‘ for this year brought a remarkable encounter with White-beaked Dolphins, although not out in the Farne Deeps where sightings were brief. Just a few miles from the NEWT office, as the crow flies, we found three dolphins, including a mother and a neonate which she was helping to the surface when it was time for it to breathe!
Dolphin days; NEWT’s Northumberland Ultimate Pelagic 26/08/17
by martin on 28/08/17 17:09, under North Sea
With a forecast of light westerlies and good weather, I arrived at Royal Quays ahead of our 10hr Northumberland Ultimate Pelagic confident that we’d have a memorable day offshore…
Gannet, Fulmar, Kittiwake, Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin, Manx Shearwater, Great Skua and Arctic Skua all gave obliging views and then we started finding Minke Whales 🙂 Continuing northeast I was sitting alongside Allan in the wheelhouse and noticed some distant splashing – and there were six White-beaked Dolphins heading toward us! More dolphins followed and we finished the day with a total of 3 Minke Whales, 6 Harbour Porpoise and 37 White-beaked Dolphins 🙂
We’ve got a few spaces available for our next 10hr sailing from Royal Quays (08:00, Saturday 2nd September), so give us a call on 01670 827465 to book your space before they’re gone!
Halcyon days; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 25/08/17
by martin on 25/08/17 17:18, under Druridge Bay, Southeast Northumberland
This morning saw me working at the opposite end of the day to usual, and I arrived to collect James, Wendy, Megan and Saffy (an adorable Whippet) from Church Point at 09:00, ahead of a morning around Druridge Bay and Southeast Northumberland…
Sand Martins and Swallows were feeding low over the water, a Grey Heron stood motionless as 7 Little Egrets engaged in the favourite heron pastime of wasting energy chasing each other from feeding spots, Mute Swans fed serenely and Little Grebes were diving constantly in search of small fish before being disturbed by one of the egrets. Flocks of Tufted Duck, Mallard and Teal are building and the one remaining Great Crested Grebe chick that we see regularly is now almost the same size as it’s parents. Canada and Greylag Geese are in noisy flocks that will be bolstered when more Greylags, and Pink-footed Geese arrive for the winter and a small Starling murmuration swirled in front of us before executing a rapid descent. Black-tailed Godwits, Ringed Plover, Redshank and Common Snipe represented the waders but a real highlight of the morning was two species that I don’t think I’ve ever seen in one ‘scope view. Cormorants were feeding, often just dipping their heads under the water and catching what looked like snails, and as I scanned the area where the water had just swirled, just to be sure it was a Cormorant, I spotted a Kingfisher. I set the ‘scope up so that everyone could have a closer view of the ‘halcyon bird’, and Wendy looked through the ‘scope and described another bird that was in the reeds just behind the Kingfisher…and there was a Water Rail 🙂 That odd-looking secretive denizen of the reeds stayed in view just long enough for everyone to see before it vanished back into the impenetrable density of the reedbed.
I could get used to earlier starts for our Druridge Bay trips 🙂
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