Northern Experience Wildlife Tours

Tag: Common Redshank

  • Feeding time; Otter Safari 29/12/2015

    Yesterday saw returning clients, as Jayne and Andy joined us for an Otter Safari.  Their previous day with NEWT, back in September 2010, proved memorable as we found a White-winged Black Tern at Cresswell.

    Under blue skies and sunshine, in stark contrast to recent days, we headed for Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland.  Arriving at our first site, it was immediately apparent that Little Grebe, Mallard, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Wigeon and Mute Swan were all avoiding one area of the pond.  As a noisy flock of Fieldfare moved through the trees above the reedbed on the opposite side of the water the birds began dispersing over the wider area of water and there was no further sign of possible Otter activity so we headed onwards.  Little Egret were darting at small fish in the shallows, Curlew, Oystercatcher and Redshank were probing the mud as Goosander and Eider dived in search of prey.  I focused my attention on a gap between two small groups of Little Grebe…and there was the tell tale dark shape, twisting and diving 🙂  A second Otter surfaced right alongside the first and as they came closer I could see that they were the two cubs that we’ve been watching for the last few weeks.  We watched them as they came closer and closer, feeding constantly for over 90 minutes, regularly surfacing and diving synchronously.

    After lunch overlooking the North Sea, we headed to Cresswell where an impressive wader roost included Redshank, Oystercatcher, Turnstone, Dunlin, Knot, Curlew, Lapwing and the Long-billed Dowitcher.  Skein after skein of Pink-footed Geese patterned the sky, Red-breasted Merganser were displaying and drake Goldeneye stood out from the gloom as the sky clouded over, a strengthening breeze began to exert a chilling grip and we headed back to Alnmouth.

  • Here come the Scandinavians; Druridge Bay Birdwatching 26/10/2015

    October, mist, drizzle, winds off the sea…

    I collected Bernard from Newbiggin and we headed north to begin a day birdwatching around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland.  A very obliging Dipper was singing from a mid-stream rock, before it started feeding.  If you’ve never seen a Dipper feeding, put it on your list of things that you really need to see!  As Common Redshank and Curlew probed in gooey estuarine mud, we could see a wave of panic spreading towards us from the north.  First, the air was filled with Greylag and Pink-footed Geese, Woodpigeon, Rook, Carrion Crow and Jackdaw. Then Wigeon, Mallard, Canada Geese and Curlew took flight and 20 Black-tailed Godwit passed overhead.  A few minutes later the cause of all the consternation put in an appearance – a female Sparrowhawk, menacing and muscular as she followed the coast southwards.  Then a sight, and sound, that always warms my heart as 20 Redwing and 6 Fieldfare, winter visitors from Scandinavia, flew over.  More waders and wildfowl featured during the afternoon; Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Gadwall, Little Grebe, Common Snipe, Dunlin, Lapwing and Golden Plover resplendent in low autumn sunlight.  A Water Rail wandered out of the reeds and our final new bird for the day was an elegant female Pintail, as the calls of Redwing and Fieldfare continued to cut through the afternoon air.

  • Panic; Otter Safari 24/10/2015

    There’s little that gets my heart racing as much as that moment when panic spreads through the wildlife that we’re watching…

    I collected Anne and Keith from Newbiggin and we headed along the coast for an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland searching for Otters.  First stop was lunch, overlooking the North Sea, with Eiders rafting just offshore and distant Gannets diving into the waves.  Small groups of Starling were scattered throughout the afternoon and Wigeon, Teal, Mallard, Gadwall, Shoveler, Tufted Duck and Little Grebe were around the water’s edge as we concentrated the search for our favourite sinuous, stealthy predator.  One stretch of reeds suddenly had fewer ducks that it had a few minutes earlier.  No great panic, no obvious departure, but definitely not as many birds.  Scanning along the edge I caught a glimpse of a dark shape on the periphery of my vision.  A couple of minutes concentrating on that spot produced nothing more tangible so I returned to scanning the entire pool.  Ten minutes later and there was a definite departure of Mallard and Wigeon from that same reedbed.  I suggested that this could well be due to an Otter…and Keith lifted his binoculars and spotted one 🙂  We watched it feeding for fifteen minutes before it slipped mysteriously beneath the surface and didn’t reappear.  Mass panic among the ducks on the opposite edge of the pool wasn’t down to the Otter, but instead caused by a female Marsh Harrier drifting slowly north.

    As dusk approached, Grey Herons were stalking through the shallows, Common Snipe emerged from long vegetation to probe for worms along the water’s edge, a Water Rail was squealing from the depths of a reedbed and Lapwing took flight in a tight, twisting, turning panic as darkness closed in around us and raindrops peppered the surface of the pool.

  • Dread; Otter Safari 15/10/2015

    The great thing or the worst thing (depending on your point of view…) with watching wildlife is the sheer unpredictability of it.  There’s always something to watch though, and if you watch for long enough it just gets even less predictable…

    I collected Neil and Julia from Newbiggin and we headed towards Druridge Bay for an afternoon and evening searching for Otters.  Anybody who reads our blog regularly will know that Northumberland is a great place to look for Otters, but it usually involves some effort and patience.  45mins into the afternoon and Black-headed and Common Gulls rose in a ‘dread’ then started circling.  The only logical place to look was directly under them…and there was an Otter 🙂  We watched it for nearly an hour, until it eventually caught a huge Eel and vanished into the reeds.  During that hour there was a mass exodus of Wigeon, Teal, Mallard, Shoveler, Little Grebe and Gadwall from one reedbed…and a Fox peered out from the reeds before coming out into the open.

    The rest of the afternoon was a study of fascinating wildlife; Dippers were fighting with the victor eventually bursting into song, although not before it had been seen off itself by a Kingfisher, Hawthorns were dripping with Goldcrest, a Hebe bush was a mass of Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell and Red Admiral Butterflies and Buff-tailed Bumblebees, a second Kingfisher flew by before perching obligingly on a fence post, Grey Herons were stalking patiently in shallow water, a Little Egret perched high in a tree, a Little Owl fixed us with a withering stare and the afternooon headed towards sunset.  In beautiful orange light from the setting sun, Lapwing, Golden Plover, Curlew, Black-tailed Godwit, Turnstone, Redshank and Oystercatcher roosted as Dunlin busied themselves along the water’s edge, Snipe probed in the mud next to a reedbed and a Water Rail emerged from the gloom of the reeds into the gloom of dusk before slipping back out of sight.

  • Every cloud…; Otter Safari 30/09/2015

    The unpredictability of wildlife is part of the attraction.  You never know what you’ll see, whether the species you’re searching for will put in an appearance or something completely unexpected will show up.  I’d collected Judith and Robin from their holiday cottage in Embleton and we were in and around Druridge Bay for the afternoon.  It started well with a spectacular splash of colour as Judith spotted a Kingfisher while Common Redshank, Spotted Redshank and Curlew probed the gooey estuarine mud.  Gadwall, Mallard, Little Grebe, Little Egret, Grey Heron, Snipe, Dunlin and Greenshank all looked stunning in quite beautiful light and we settled into position overlooking one of our regular Otter spots, unaware of just how extraordinary the evening was going to be…

    Mirror-calm water, roosting Lapwing and Teal, an ever growing murmuration of Starlings and noisy Greylag Geese arriving to roost would be the ideal backdrop for an Otter.  Suddenly, unexpectedly, the murmuration plunged towards the reeds and birds funneled out of the swirling twisting mass down into the safety of the roost.  Starlings continued to arrive; ones, twos and groups of up to 50 had missed the display so just headed straight into the reeds.  Then the sussurating buzz stilled, and the birds left the reedbed en masse, joined in the air by Lapwings, as a Sparrowhawk flew low over their heads.  As they dropped back to the reeds, the far corner of the pool was shrouded in mist and the chilly tendrils of a sea fret were creeping over the dunes.  Soon the mist had enveloped everything around us, although it was barely reaching above head height.  The pinks and yellows of a 360 degree sunset added another touch of extraordinary to proceedings as the gloom was split by a noise not dissimilar to a car engine starting.  That was the Starlings again, leaving the reeds and suddenly bursting up out of the mist in front of us, a twisting writhing mass of birds trying to escape yet another fly-through by a Sparrowhawk.  Again they returned to the reeds, as a Barn Owl flew by above the mist, silhouetted against the sunset, and skein after skein of yapping Pink-footed Geese arrived for the night, dropping from the deep blue sky into the mist above the water.  After two unwelcome visits from the Sparrowhawk, the Starlings moved under cover of the mist into the reeds right in front of us,  For nearly five minutes, birds were streaming into their new roost site, as the whistles of Wigeon pierced the gloom and Teal and Lapwing departed for the night.

  • Midsummer moorland meanderings, another alliteration; North Pennines 27/06/2014

    I collected Peter for his third day out with NEWT and we headed southwest towards the big hills of the North Pennines.

    Midsummer on the moors is a very different prospect to the spring and early summer.  Common Snipe, Curlew, Redshank, Lapwing, Oystercatcher and Golden Plover are all still there, but occasional calls are the norm, rather than the all-enveloping soundscape of March and April.  Black Grouse have, in the main, finished displaying but can still be found furtively creeping between clumps of rush, and the condensed growing season for plants in the often brutal environment of exposed areas so high above sea level means that some of the most sought-after species aren’t in flower by the time we reach the end of June.

    What midsummer does bring though is chicks, and photo opportunities 🙂  Young Curlew, fluffy, short-billed replicas of their parents, were pottering about, and apparently intent on not letting Peter get his camera focused on them, Red Grouse with their large broods, including one pair with chicks picking grit from the roadside, seemingly oblivious to our presence, and Golden Plover, watching us from raised tussocks in the heather as their young prodded and poked around the vegetation nearby.  A Blackcock, now showing signs of moult and no longer the strutting dandy of the lekking season, wandered across a rushy field and, after a day in the hills, probably my own favourite moment of the day came as a Common Snipe perched on the apex of a dead tree and Peter patiently waited for it to turn its head to one side so that he could capture the extraordinary length of the bill.  The bird obliged, of course 🙂

  • Autumn chill

    Friday was a trip that I’d been looking forward to for quite some time.  Emily had been on the bird ID course that I ran as part of North Pennines WildWatch and had then booked herself and her dad, Steve, onto an Otter Safari.

    I arrived at Church Point to collect them, and we set off up the coast.  With bright sunshine and a northerly wind, I predicted that our regular Little Owl would be sunning itself on the edge of its nest hole.  Sure enough, it was sitting in full view soaking up the rays 🙂  Waders featured throughout the afternoon, as they have done for over a month now, with Black-tailed Godwit, Curlew, Common Redshank, Common Snipe, Lapwing and very close views of Dunlin and Ringed Plover.  Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Pochard and Mallard were all paddling around, Little and Great Crested Grebes were, as always, much admired, restless flocks of Greylag and Pink-footed Geese swirled from field to pool and back again, and several skeins of Pink-footed Geese passed south high overhead, their presence betrayed by their high-pitched calls.  A Grey Seal was loitering with intent in the Coquet Estuary, and a Grey Heron sat motionless by the water’s edge.

    We ended the day by a  moonlit river, under a starry sky.  A Grey Heron stalked through the riverside vegetation, and a group of Mallards stared intently into the shadows of the overhanging trees on the opposite bank, then scattered soon after the wake from an, otherwise unseen, animal caught our attention.  Darkness, and the chill night air, settled on the river as we made our way back to the car.

  • Not so Ruff

    Wading birds seem to hold a fascination for so many birdwatchers, from beginners all the way to birders with decades of experience, and Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland at this time of year is often very productive.

    I collected Reg and Val (for their second trip within a week) and Nick from Church Point and we started with one of our favourite birds, and one that always impresses, Mediterranean Gull.  With the strong breeze driving sand across our field of vision, there was a real wild feel to the experience of watching the birds as they withstood the elements.

    Heading north along the coast we witnessed one of the oddest pieces of fieldcraft that I’ve seen with clients.  Checking out a small subsidence pond, we were enjoying the sight of Dunlin, Ringed Plovers, Common Redshank and a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper all probing and prodding through the mud at the water’s edge.  Another birdwatcher made his way stealthily to the wall along the roadside, and settled to watch the birds from a crouched position.  Good fieldcraft, the birds continued feeding appearing completely unconcerned by his presence.  Then, when he was ready to leave, he popped up like a jack-in-the-box flushing all of the birds!  As the flock eventually settled back down, there was no sign of the Curlew Sandpiper.  It’s an important lesson that fieldcraft skills should always be applied when retreating from your position as well as when approaching it 🙂

    Cresswell Pond continued the wader theme, with some very obliging Common Snipe, Dunlin, Ruff and both Bar-tailed and Black-tailed Godwits (standing alongside one another and allowing excellent comparison of the differences between these species).

    At East Chevington, Reg spotted a distant bird perched on a fence post and commented that it didn’t look quite right for a Crow.  Tucked down against the wind, the view through our telescope soon revealed that the bird was a juvenile Marsh Harrier.  It remained perched for several minutes, regularly turning it’s head to reveal a lovely orange/cream crown contrasting with the uniform dark-brown of the rest of it’s plumage.  Hundreds of Lapwings and Starlings were flying back and forth, twisting and turning against the very stiff breeze, Cormorants sat motionless and we headed back to Newbiggin at the end of our day.

  • Mud, Murmurations, Med Gulls and Marsh Harriers

    Sometimes, just one animal or bird can make a trip a special experience for our clients.  Other times it’s the scenery.  Maybe a combination of the weather, Northumberland’s stunning skies and the ‘atmosphere’.  Occasionally, it’s a little bit of each.

    I collected Keith and Anne from their home in the Tyne valley, and headed east towards Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland.  As we scoured the woods for Red Squirrels, the high winds made it impossible to pick out any movement that might have been our quarry.  Dragonflies hawked around the edges of the trees and some rather late tadpoles were wriggling around in shallow ponds.  A quick stop at Church Point, produced the hoped-for Mediterranean Gulls; beautiful ghostly pale adults hanging in the breeze over our heads.

    Then we were on our way up the coast in search of mud, glorious mud.  Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Redshank, (Grey) Red Knot and an immaculate Curlew Sandpiper were all found at very close range and then noisy skeins of Greylag and Canada Geese filled the air around us.  Alarmed by the sudden appearance of a juvenile Marsh Harrier, the geese lifted from where they were feeding and headed straight for the nearest pool…where they encountered an adult Marsh Harrier, hanging almost motionless above a reed bed, held in position by the wind.  Small groups of Starlings started to appear, tossed around like leaves on the breeze, merging to form a murmuration.  The late evening light made the haystacks in nearby fields seem to glow, the sky was quite breathtaking and, as dusk rapidly advanced and the wind strengthened, flocks of Golden Plover and Curlew arrived to roost as we headed west again.

  • Wading through August

    August is always a stressful month for NEWT.  As well as leading our regular safari days, it’s British Birdwatching Fair month, and the week leading up to the Bird Fair is always frantic; checking that we’ve got everything for the stand, mounting a new series of limited edition prints for sale, liaising with all of the other Birdwatching Northumberland partners to make sure that everybody knows exactly which aspects of the project they’re  responsible for, and making sure that we’ve got a supply of local beer for the 4pm ‘free bar’ on our stand 🙂

    Then, after a busy three days, it’s all over and we head north…this year to the thankfully cooler temperatures of Northumberland.  From leaving Rutland at 6pm on Sunday to arriving back in Northumberland just after 10pm, the temperature drop was an impressive 14C.

    Yesterday was our first post-BirdFair trip, a day of birdwatching around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland.  I collected Alex from Church Point, and we started with a good scan of the beach. 4 Mediterranean Gulls were close by and a small group of waders contained Oystercatcher, Common Redshank, Sanderling and Ringed Plover. Waders proved to be a theme for the day and we added Common Sandpiper, Spotted Redshank, Lapwing, Ruff, Dunlin, Knot, Curlew Sandpiper, Curlew, Greenshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Turnstone, Wood Sandpiper, Common Snipe, Golden Plover and Avocet to the day list as we made our way around NEWT’s local area.  With an impressive supporting cast that included Water Rail, 3 Little Egrets and a Spoonbill it was a great day to be watching the edges of our local ponds, and a real education in just how much inward and outward movement of birds there is from the feeding and roosting wader flocks that grace southeast Northumberland at this time of the year.  It was a great day too, to appreciate just how friendly and helpful local birdwatchers are in Northumberland – many thanks to Len and Gill for pointing us in the direction of the Wood Sandpiper, and Gill’s sharp eyes picked out the Spotted Redshank which then vanished without trace soon after being found and appreciated 🙂