Northern Experience Wildlife Tours

Tag: Avocet

  • Is this June?; Otter Safari 18/06/15

    Arriving at Warkworth to collect Hugh and Sue, and Lou, it struck me that there was a bit of a chill in the wind…

    Avocets, Black-tailed Godwits and Great Crested Grebes radiated elegance, Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Teal and Tufted Duck were either dabbling quietly or engaging in half-hearted courtship, Swallows chirped at us from their nests, Grey Herons stalked the shallows, Fulmars arced above the cliff edges, ‘rhythmic’ Reed Warblers and ‘scattergun’ Sedge Warblers delivered their songs from deep cover, with occasional forays to the reed tops, but the star of the evening made it’s entrance towards the conclusion of the act.

    Sue spotted it first; distantly, hunched on a fence post, in a breeze that was taking temperatures down to something we’d expect in the late winter.  Starlings, Sand Martins and Swallows were swirling around prior to going to roost as the Barn Owl turned its head and lifted into the air.  Quartering the reedbeds and rough grassland it focused its attention on the ground below.  Graceful, silent and deadly, the ‘White Owl’ is always an attention grabbing bird, and with good reason 🙂

  • Batty; Cheviot valleys/Druridge Bay Bespoke Tour 08/06/2015

    Looking back through previous blog posts I was reminded that we’ve done a few days combining the best of the hills and the best of the coast, and I headed towards Old Bewick to collect Helen for an afternoon and evening exploring the Cheviot Valleys and Druridge Bay.

    As a Common Buzzard soared over the steep valley sides, Curlews launched from the heather, calling in alarm.  Dippers bobbed on mid stream rocks, a Nuthatch with young was busying itself along tree trunks and branches, Whinchats flicked nervously through the bracken, the air was split by the explosive trilling song of Lesser Redpoll and Spotted Flycatchers perched upright on fence posts before sallying forth after flies.

    Down on the coast we enjoyed the sight of Avocets mating, two Spoonbills feeding with their heads sweeping from side to side and bills submerged, a female Marsh Harrier causing alarm as it flew over the edge of a pond and Swallows singing and bringing feathers to line their nests.  Dusk brought a remarkable wildlife spectacle, with 30-40 bats hunting in front of us.  The bat detector revealed an astonishing wall of sound as Common Pipistrelle and Noctule swooped, tumbled and hunted insects…right above an Otter that was stalking Tufted Ducks 🙂

    The journey back to Old Bewick produced Barn Owl, and a Tawny Owl in the middle of the road sitting on a baby Rabbit!  Then it was time for me to head back towards southeast Northumberland…and Northumberland’s country lanes produced a late night plethora of wildlife; Red Fox, Brown Hare, Roe Deer, Barn Owl, another Tawny Owl sitting on a baby Rabbit, and three Badger cubs trotting alongside the edge of the road 🙂

  • Showstopper; Otter Safari 04/06/2015

    Every so often, there’ll be an experience during a trip with clients that is simply jaw-dropping…

    I arrived at Church Point in summary weather and set off with six clients to explore Druridge Bay and south east Northumberland in search of Otters.  Avocets with eggs and chicks were delicately, elegantly beautiful, a Whimbrel flew around, calling noisily, Great Crested Grebes with chicks rivalled the Avocets in elegance, a Cuckoo made its way along a fence line, the rhythmic song of Reed Warbler provided an aural backdrop for much of the afternoon and a Roe Deer appeared from a reedbed at dusk before clearing a fence and bounding away.

    The jaw-dropping moment came, not with an Otter, but with another predator.  Usually when we encounter a Barn Owl you get a brief view before it heads off elsewhere to hunt.  This time though we had a prolonged view with the ghostly white bird no more than 20m away from us at times as it quartered rough grassland, hovering in beautiful golden light, a translucent-winged, silent angel of death scouring the ground below for small rodents to dispatch.

  • Battling the breeze; Otter Safari 02/06/2015

    Tuesday saw Pete and Jan taking their 7th trip with NEWT, and as I got out of the car in Embleton to collect them it was ever so slightly breezy…

    When every bit of water you look at is whipped up into a froth by the wind, with dainty Little Gulls hanging in the wind and delicately dip-feeding, searching for Otters becomes particularly challenging and, despite Tufted Ducks and Great Crested Grebes staring intently at reedbeds, that we’ve seen Otters appear from in recent weeks, there was no sign of our target species for the afternoon.  A really stiff breeze will frequently lead to reduced sightings of all wildlife, but the afternoon produced some impressive sightings…as we watched at least 10 adult Avocets, and four chicks, at Cresswell, alongside a summer-plumaged Sanderling, two huge birds appeared low over the dunes, battling into the wind.  I gave my head a shake and looked through my binoculars again…and there were two Common Cranes 🙂  They slowly crossed the pond, lifted as a flock of Canada Geese took off beneath them, and were blown back towards the sea!  Undeterred they continued their progress westwards, landed for a few minutes and then continued.  I’d alerted a few local birdwatchers to their presence, including Ipin as they were heading towards his house…and he soon had them as an impressive garden tick 🙂

    I couldn’t imagine how the evening could get better…and then as dusk approached, I was scanning through binoculars and noticed a small bird that I couldn’t immediately identify.  A quick switch to viewing through the ‘scope, and there was one of my favourite birds twirling on the water’s surface and darting at flies.  Common Cranes may be huge and impressive, but Red-necked Phalarope is simply a breathtaking avian jewel 🙂

    As we headed back to the car, the breeze had decreased in strength, but had also turned from quite warm to bone-chilling.  A Barn Owl flew silently from a fence post, and the journey back to Embleton produced another one sitting on a post just a few metres away from us.

    And with that wind, I’d been worried we wouldn’t see anything…

  • Here comes the summer; Druridge Bay 15/05/2015

    The transition from winter, to spring, to summer often seems to come in little bursts, then suddenly it’s really the breeding season and the range of species we find on our trips is very different to just a few weeks earlier.

    I collected Angela and Debs from Warkworth and we set off down the coast for a day exploring Druridge Bay in search of Otters and other wildlife.  Elegant Little Egrets and Avocets added a touch of glamour throughout the day as Grey Herons sat motionless, Sedge Warblers and Reed Buntings were singing, Reed Warblers were typically elusive, appearing briefly before vanishing into the base of reedbeds, Swallows, Sand Martins, House Martins and Swifts were hawking insects above the water and Gadwall, Mallard and Tufted Duck were all full of the joys of spring 🙂  A Merlin boldly buzzed a soaring Peregrine, before the arrival of a second Peregrine saw the little falcon beating a hasty retreat and a Cuckoo was mobbed by Meadow Pipits on a nearby fence post.

    One thing that our clients always appreciate is the amount of birdsong, and calls, that we hear while we’re out and about.  There’s one call that I don’t think that could ever be described favourably, and that’s the discordant honking of Greylag Geese.  Some days though, it’s almost a constant aural backdrop 🙂

  • Spring arrivals; Druridge Bay Safari 30/04/2015

    It’s been a cold windy spring, and a few of our summer visitors seemed a bit tardy; we found our first Sand Martin and Chiffchaff later than we would have expected, but the day has been coming when things would start to happen…

    I collected Jan and Peter from Church Point and we set out to spend the day exploring Druridge Bay.  It was, unsurprisingly, cold and very windy again but that didn’t impact on our day birdwatching.  Skylarks soared and sang, Marsh Harriers drifted over reedbeds and fields close to the coast and an impressive range of waders performed obligingly; Oystercatcher, Curlew, Ringed Plover, Avocet, Turnstone, Dunlin, Sanderling and Black-tailed Godwit – the latter three species resplendent in breeding plumage – demonstrated why this is such a popular group of species with birdwatchers.  The godwit in particular stood out; clothed in chestnut and a vision of elegance to rival the Little Egret that was stalking along the water’s edge nearby.  Moorhen and Coot crept furtively along the edge of reedbeds, Stonechat and Meadow Pipit flicked their tails nervously at the tops of bushes in the dunes and an eye-catching fly-catching adult Little Gull was easily picked out from amongst Black-headed Gulls.  Seawatching over lunchtime is a regular feature of our Druridge Bay trips and Eider, Gannet, Manx Shearwater and Common Guillemot could all be seen offshore as Fulmars soared and arced along the clifftops a few metres way from us. Wheatears and a Whinchat flitted from tussock to tussock, strikingly beautiful as they always are at this time of the year, and then a sign that the summer is nearly here; hundreds of Sand Martins were flycatching above every pool on the coast as a group of six House Martins flew in, battling against the strengthening breeze with the imperative to head north driving them on.  Then, a Swift, and another, then six more.  Eight of these scythe-winged masters of the air flew by us, rocking from side-to-side into the wind as they headed to join the feast above the water.

    I love those days when we concentrate on looking for a single species, but a day birdwatching with clients and just enjoying, and marvelling, at everything that comes along is pretty much as good as it gets for a birdwatching guide 🙂 As Jan and Peter headed across to Bellingham, and I took the shorter journey back to the office, I was wondering if perhaps the summer weather was on the way…

  • “I really love otters”; Bespoke Otter Safari 10-11/04/2015

    Friday and Saturday saw a two day bespoke safari for Fran and Georgia, arranged by their mum back in early December.

    I collected the girls from The Swan and we headed towards Druridge Bay.  We weren’t too far along the road when Georgia asked if we’d seen any Otters recently.  I told them about Thursday’s sightings, and there was an obvious raising of excitement levels in the car…and, with typical wildlife unpredictability, we managed to get right through Friday without an Otter sighting 🙁  Dippers zipping back and forth along the River Blyth were entertaining, a drake Garganey on the Wansbeck was stunning, Little Egrets and Avocets were elegant, but of the sinuous stealthy predator there was no sign.  We returned to The Swan and I started revising our plans for Saturday…

    Saturday 05:00 and I stumble sleepily to the bathroom.  There’s one thing I really don’t want to hear, and that’s a howling gale.  This wasn’t looking promising; our plan for the day was a Seal Cruise around the Farne Islands, and then more time searching for Otters, and neither of those would be helped by the hoolie that I could hear whistling through the trees in our garden.  We arrived in Seahouses for our sailing on Glad Tidings V, and the sea was looking ever so slightly lumpy.  We did manage to sail though, and were rewarded with Cormorant, Shag, Guillemot, Eider, Kittiwake and the two stars of the morning – Puffin and Grey Seal.  Back on dry land we resumed the search for Otters, and the wind strengthened so that we could hear an eerie whistling around trees, bridges and us!  With a wind chill factor taking temperatures down to bone-chilling, and a hail storm pinging ice off our heads, we were having to suffer for our wildlife…and still no Otters.  Sarah was out and about checking other locations and sending regular texts to let me know where she’d checked.  Our final backup plan was an 06:00 start on Sunday, but I don’t think anyone was really too keen on that idea.

    18:30 and the wind shifted from west to southwest and weakened slightly, the sun came out and I started to feel more optimistic.  I had one decision left to make though, and that was which of our two options for sunset to go for…

  • Springtime on the coast; Otter Safari 08/04/2015

    The lack of summer visitors has been commented on by local birdwatchers for the last couple of weeks, but there are signs that the summer is on its way…

    I collected Sam and Linda from West Acre House and we headed towards the coast, thankfully free of the sea fret that hampered Monday’s trip.  All of our Otter sites were very quiet on the mustelid front, but birdwatching is starting to pick up.  A male Marsh Harrier, and no less than three female harriers nest-building, was a fantastic start to the morning.  Chiffchaff, Chaffinch and Robin were all singing, Little Egrets were keeping up their recent record of putting in an appearance on our tours, a song-flighting Meadow Pipit settled obligingly close to us, Skylarks were soaring and singing high overhead, Little and Great Crested Grebes may be at opposite ends of the size spectrum but both are quite beautiful, Curlew and Redshank were digging in the mud, Goldeneye were displaying their golden eyes in the bright sunshine and Gadwall, Mallard and Tufted Duck were all caught in two minds between feeding and courting.  15 Avocet were radiating elegance and the day had passed so quickly.

  • Wading through coastal flocks; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 21/08/2014

    Changeable, that’s the thing I love about Northumberland’s weather.  Thursday’s mini-Safari in managed to feature bright sunshine, strong winds and torrential rain – all in just a few hours.

    I collected Diana and Aveen from Alnmouth and we headed down the coast towards Druridge Bay.  Starting with a brief seawatch, we found Eider and Common Scoter on the sea, and Redshank, Oystercatcher and Turnstone on the rocks just above the crashing waves.  Curlew, Avocet, Dunlin, Knot, Ruff, Lapwing and Redshank were roosting at Cresswell, and flushing frequently although we couldn’t see the cause of their concern.  A Little Egret added a touch of grace and elegance, Little Grebes swam amongst Tufted Ducks and Mallard and at one point we had no less than five Kestrels in the air at the same time.  Two lovely clients, and the Northumberland coast delivering the sort of birdwatching experiences that it does so well 🙂

  • The magic of dusk; Otter Safari 20/08/2014

    After four consecutive successful Otter Safaris since mid-July, I was fairly sure that dusk would be the best time to search for them, and the afternoon could be spent enjoying some excellent birdwatching with the added possibility of stumbling across an Otter in broad daylight…

    I arrived in Craster to collect Dave and Naomi and we headed south towards Druridge Bay.  We started with Grey Wagtails bobbing up and down on mid-stream rocks, as Salmon hungrily seized flies from the water’s surface, and then moved on to large roosting flocks of Sandwich Tern, Black-headed Gull, Curlew, Oystercatcher and Lapwing with two Little Egrets standing sentinel-like on an elevated bank above the roost.  Knot, Dunlin, Ruff, Wood Sandpiper, Redshank, Greenshank, Common Sandpiper, Common Snipe and Black-tailed Godwit added to the wader haul for the afternoon and real surprise came in the shape of a Kingfisher over Cresswell Pond.  Ghostly white Mediterranean Gulls drifted over Newbiggin and, as dusk approached, Naomi started spotting mammals.  First a Roebuck, prancing, leaping and sparring with tall plant stems like a boxer with a punchbag.  Then, the big one; an Otter 🙂  Swimming towards us, we followed it’s dives by the trail of bubbles on the water’s surface, before  it eventually disappeared below the edge of the reedbed that we were looking over, with just the tell-tale ‘ring of bright water’ as it surfaced.  After a few minutes without any sign, the Otter, or a second one, reappeared.  As we each gave directions to where the Otter was, it quickly became apparent that we weren’t all watching the same animal.  Then there were two together to our left, and a third away to our right 🙂  At least three Otters, including the smallest cub that I’ve ever seen, and we eventually left, when the light levels had fallen so low that binoculars were all but a hindrance.  As we walked back to the car a Barn Owl passed by, carrying prey, as skeins of Canada and Greylag Geese flew noisily south.