Northern Experience Wildlife Tours

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  • Autumnal

    I woke this morning to the sound of a gale howling across our back garden. I didn’t need to worry about the fence blowing down though…it had already been slowly removed over the last four years, so we now have a hedge of bramble and clematis on one side and a slowly developing hedge of hawthorn, blackthorn, elder and other native species down the other side of the garden.

    Today’s excitement wasn’t in the hedges though – it was in the air over the garden as the local Jackdaws did that thing they do when it’s windy; almost beak-to-tail chases vertically up, and then back down, before a group of birds all gathered together and seemed to place themselves at the mercy of the elements. Are they just being blown about, or do they make the decision to place themselves on that particular rollercoaster? The joie de vivre of Corvus monedula.

  • You pay your money, and take your chance

    It’s rare that the content of our blog strays away from wildlife. After all, that’s what we spend most of our lives either searching for or watching. However, today was a ‘non-wildlife’ day as it was time to take our Landrover for it’s six-monthly safety inspection. Potentially a very stressful morning, but the Landy has now sailed through the last two tests without any problems; a real testament to the skill of Sandy Fairbairn, who has done an excellent job servicing, repairing and maintaining the vehicle since the inception of Northern Experience.

    All of the testing may seem like a hassle and an expense, but it’s a matter of public safety; if you’re in a vehicle that’s licenced by a local authority, or by VOSA, then you know that it’s been tested to a high standard and is being properly maintained. And, of course, the correct licencing is necessary for the vehicle’s insurance to be valid…although undoubtedly there are companies operating tours similar to ours but who aren’t licenced.

    I was told recently about one bird tour operator who makes his clients sign a disclaimer about transport, and then provides it without any of the necessary paperwork. Highly illegal, and the sort of thing that really makes my blood boil as he’s putting maximised profits ahead of client safety. When we first began trading I had a permanent falling out with a business coach because I refused to do the same; being an entrepreneur is one thing, being reckless is something else altogether.

    Rant over…just don’t get me started about boats.

  • Wildlife at night

    National Moth Night is always a good excuse to hold an event in our local woodland. This year we held two. One was a day early; Thursday was our second ‘Things that go Squeak in the Night’ evening at The Swan at Choppington. We set up the moth trap and then went on a bat walk around the woods. Along one stretch of footpath we had pipistrelle bats flying back and forth over our heads. Back at the pub we all enjoyed an excellent meal and a couple of drinks before checking the trap. It was fairly cool outside so there were very few moths active. We did catch a Square-spot Rustic and a Canary-shouldered Thorn (just about as shocking yellow as you can imagine) but that was it.

    Friday saw us leading another moth-trapping session in Choppington Woods, this time for the Northumberland Wildlife Trust. A portable generator, moth trap, sweep nets, sample tubes, headtorches and a good group of participants, including families, made for an excellent evening. A very vocal Tawny Owl was serenading us from the trees nearby and the bat detector sporadically burst into life while, around the trap and along the footpaths, moths, craneflies, spiders, crickets and grasshoppers were all caught, potted, studied and released before everyone headed home.

  • Birdwatching at sea

    No, not a comment on the state of the hobby. Rather, it’s one of my favourite destinations. After last Saturday’s excellent pelagic (with Sooty Shearwater and Sabine’s Gull added to nearly everyone’s year lists, and a few life lists as well) I spent all day Wednesday on the SarahJFK carrying out some research for next year’s Northern Experience Northumberland Pelagics. Even in westerly winds there were good birds moving North; 6 Black Terns (although they were a long way east of Church Point when I photographed them) were a very pleasant surprise.

    Tomorrow we’re back to sea, this time on Glad Tidings V, in search of whales, dolphins and seabirds. Then we’re going to follow that with a bat & moth night and BBQ at Lee Moor Farm. From some of our largest wildlife, to some of the smallest. It’s not too late to sign up for either event so give us a call. Variety is the spice of life!

  • Harvest Festival

    After watching the weather forecasts carefully for the last few days, we set the start time for Friday’s Prestige Tour at 1pm…and it stopped raining at 12:50!! Collecting Mary and Malcolm from West Acre House in Alnwick, we headed down the coast. Despite all of the rain there was some exposed mud around the pond edges, and it’s the right time of year for passage waders. Adult and juvenile Greenshanks, and a juvenile Dunlin beginning it’s moult into winter plumage, allowed a detailed discussion about moult and ageing – the first step in identifying a number of species is accurately ageing the bird you are looking at. In a list of birdwatching skills this should be right near the top. Not only does it expand your knowledge, it encourages close observation…even experienced birdwatchers are often guilty of giving birds a cursory glance if the identification isn’t in doubt. A Common Tern spent a long time fishing just in front of us, Cormorants (an under-rated species if ever there was) were back and forth and 2 Garganey flew past. A charm of Goldfinches never fails to delight anyone with an interest in birds and 30-40 were seen as we walked along a footpath. Then, my personal highlight of the day…a Harvest Mouse sneaking through the pathside grass. I tried to catch it for a closer look but only ended up plunging my hands into a patch of stinging nettles. More waders stimulated an explanation of the differences between Bar-tailed and Black-tailed Godwits. As the afternoon drew to a close, a juvenile Marsh Harrier caused panic among a flock of Teal and Gadwall, a Barn Owl was watched from the roadside and a Sparrowhawk was sitting on a recent kill in the verge. An excellent Northumberland birdwatching afternoon. And today…now for something completely different.

  • Things that go Squeak in the Night

    A second new event launch in two days was yesterday evening’s activity. Martin went along to The Swan at Choppington mid-afternoon to set out all the cables and extension leads to enable us to run a moth trap amngst the bushes around the pub lawn. As Martin and Chris were setting it out, the heaven’s opened and they both received a good soaking.

    By 6.30 the clouds had all cleared and the evening promised good weather. Sparkling wine on arrival for our guests was followed by an explanation of moth-trapping (and a beauty parade of Thursday night’s catch – most of which were very active after warming up following day in our fridge). A short Landrover journey took us to the path we were going to walk and, after a brief history of Choppington Woods, we set off along a birdwatching route that we could probably lead blindfolded. A Jay flew across our path and a flock of 42 Swallows swirled overhead. As dusk descended, the first bat of the evening appeared; a Common Pipistrelle that everyone managed to see as it flew in and out of the trees. Back to The Swan, and a meal of the usual excellent standard was followed by a moth-trapping session. Although windy and cold, we still managed to catch a few moths, including the first Small Fan-foot for Choppington Woods. Into the pub again, and everyone was ready for dessert. Our next ‘Things that go Squeak in the Night’ is on Thursday 17th September and there are still places available. With the earlier sunset we’ll have by then, there’s always the possibility of seeing foxes and hearing owls before we retire to the warmth and comfort of The Swan.

  • Purple Haze

    Having set dates for our new Kielder Safaris only two weeks ago, the route was almost as new to me as it was to our clients, Helen and Steve. Having someone who is both a client and a friend as the first participant helped to calm any ‘first night’ nerves.

    Collecting the couple from Alnwick we headed through Rothbury and across to Bellingham. The first part of our Kielder Safari route is the special bit; it isn’t open to vehicle access by the general public and, from the mobile hide that is our Landrover, who knows what could be seen along the way. Soon we were enjoying close views of Stonechats, Meadow Pipits and a Siskin that was almost in the vehicle with us as it fed on a thistle head. Along the narrow forest tracks we had close prolonged views of Common Buzzards – something I’ve never managed on Northumberland’s ‘normal’ roads. Dragonflies were patrolling the tracks and butterflies were all along our route. When we left the Landy and set off on a short walk, the thing that struck us all was the quantity, and diversity, of fungi. A Southern Hawker Dragonfly inspected us closely as we passed through it’s territory and we made our way down to the edge of the reservoir. As well as tree-roost of 14 Cormorants, highlights were a screaming Jay, a yaffling Green Woodpecker and a Dipper that flew low over the water.

    Our route out of Kielder is also along a forest road and we had good views of more Buzzards, five Wheatears lined up on adjacent fence posts and Mountain Bumblebees. Perhaps most impressive though, is the sight of the heather on the moors in bloom.

    Our next Kielder Safari is on Thursday September 3rd so why not give us a call on 01670 827465, we’ve got a few places left. Dates for 2010 will be sorted sometime soon.

  • Marsh Harriers breed in Northumberland

    We returned to Northumberland late yesterday afternoon, after spending a few days in Rutland as part of the Birdwatching Northumberland team at the British Birdwatching Fair. Three solid days of promoting our beautiful county and,no sooner were we back home, then we were away up the coast to give a slideshow about…birdwatching in Northumberland.

    Today has been a day at the computer, finishing the raptor species accounts for Birds in Northumbria 2008. When I first joined the team of authors several years ago, one very long-standing author assured me that spending a lot of time analysing all of the records for any given species would provide insights…

    Back in 2006 I managed to photograph Hen Harrier, Montagu’s Harrier and Marsh Harrier in Northumberland and all three species looked like potentail breeders that year. When I was writing the species account for Marsh Harrier in BiN2007, I became convinced that they had bred in Northumberland that year. 2008 again produced interesting records of juvenile birds at East Chevington in early-mid August. Finally, after nearly 130 years,breeding has been confirmed in the county. I’ve had the privilege to watch the adult birds food-passing, and the juveniles exploring the area around East Chevington, with our clients this year. Magnificent birds, and it’s fantastic to have them back as a breeding bird. With Osprey and Mediterranean Gull breeding in the county this year as well, it will be a long time before we have so many modern/first-time breeders in one year. Med Gull is almost certainly a first-time breeder; they’ve tried on Coquet Island previously, and birds have been seen at inland Black-headed Gull colonies, but there hasn’t been a confirmed breeding record.

    Predictions? Little Egret and Avocet…

  • Kielder…wilderness birdwatching

    With the Bird Fair fast approaching, and my species accounts for Birds in Northumbria due by the end of the week, things are rather busy. However, this morning saw me driving down to Northumbria Water’s offices in Pity Me (surely a contender for one of the oddest village names in Britain?) for a photoshoot for the Kielder Partnership. This was part of the marketing for our new range of Kielder Safaris, which start on August 27th and September 3rd. Our usual Kielder Safaris dates lie between March and May but the late-summer/early-autumn offers some mouth-watering prospects. Working closely with the Kielder Partnership (particularly the Forestry Commission) we’ve obtained a permit to take our tours through a usually ‘off-limits’ area of the forest. With the possibility of raptors, Otters, Roe Deer and Red Squirrels, and the spectacular scenery of Northumberland’s greatest wilderness, it should be a trip to remember. Give us a call on 01670 827465 to take advantage of our special introductory offer for these ground-breaking trips.

  • The future naturalists

    In the late nineties and early noughties, when I was a committee member of the Northumberland & Tyneside Bird Club, the issue of the ‘next generation’ of birdwatchers, and the recruitment of new members, was often discussed. Like many organisations, the average age of the club’s membership was increasing by one every year (which isn’t that surprising; you would need an awful lot of new, young members to affect that particular statistic). Committee attitudes varied from genuinely concerned through not thinking there was an issue to, and I still find this one hard to believe. not wanting new, inexperienced, birdwatchers to join at all.

    We frequently hear wildlife ‘celebrities’ bemoaning the fact that young people aren’t interested in wildlife. Are they right in that assumption? I had chance to consider this last week – August is a busy time for family bookings for NEWT (not surprisingly) and we had an Otter mini-Safari, with a family who had sons aged 12 and 15, and a Druridge Bay mini-Safari, where the family had a 9-year old son and 6-year old and 2 year-old daughters. Both trips were very succesful; Otters performing right in front of us on the first one and a wide range of spiders, wasps, bees, moths, butterflies and damselflies on the second….and all of the children were enthusiastic. On Thursday evening, we helped to lead a Bat Walk in Choppington Woods. The walk was fully booked, with 16 participants, and this was mainly families. Despite having to wait for the first bats to appear, enthusiasm levels stayed high and eventually we had them hunting close to us. Two of the children managed to locate a slight gap in the trees and discovered that this was where the bats were hunting. With a bat detector, and the keen eyesight of the young, they were enthralled for nearly 2 hours. There is a generation of young naturalists out there; we just need to work out how to engage, encourage and support them.