Northern Experience Wildlife Tours

Tag: Little Egret

  • Swinging squirrels and beat-boxing bats; coastal mini-Safari 16/08/16

    At this time of year, some of our favourite activities are mini-safaris for families with young children.  With reasonable weather mammals, birds, insects. flowers and stargazing can all be wrapped up into an evening around Druridge Bay and the southeast Northumberland coast…

    I collected Niall, Emma, Betty and Pearl from Cresswell and we headed off to search for our first target species for the evening.  Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Dunnock and Great Tit were all around the feeding station where I thought we’d find a squirrel, and sure enough, Niall spotted one coming through the trees nearby.  This was a young Red Squirrel though, and it was struggling with the concept a of a feeder with a hinged lid; sitting on the lid and peering wistfully through the transparent front of the feeder didn’t hold it’s attention for long so it set about plundering the bird feeders, stretching across from the tree trunks and swinging from the feeders like an Olympic gymnast.  Then it returned to the squirrel feeder and sat on the platform, lifted the lid and made off with a hazelnut 🙂

    Heading up the coast we were treated to the sight of a Barn Owl quartering the dunes on silent wings before hovering and plunging into the grass then rising and flying off carrying a hapless vole in it’s talons.  Little Egrets, Grey Herons and Canada Geese were all studied through the ‘scope and Rabbits made brief appearances throughout the evening.

    As dusk began fading to darkness, with Shoveler and Teal silhouetted against the final rays of daylight,  Noctule Bats were hunting overhead as the near-full Moon made an excellent subject for study with the ‘scope.  Turning on the bat detector allowed us to listen to them as well as watching their hunting flight.  If you’ve never heard a Noctule then treat yourself by listening to a recording of one.  Betty’s comment really sums them up though “It sound’s like it’s beat-boxing”.  With the dark cloak of night finally starting to take a grip, stars and planets appeared as if a light switch had been flicked on.  Mars, eeriely red low in the west, Vega, one of the three bright stars that make up the Summer Triangle, and then the grand finale, Saturn; appearing elongated through binoculars, and resolving to the giant planet and it’s rings in the telescope view 🙂

    If you’re visiting Northumberland with your family give us a call on 01670 827465 to find out what we can do for you 🙂

  • The sharp eyes of youth; Otter Safari 11/08/16

    We’ve always said that the best thing for spotting wildife is other wildlife, although the sharp eyes of younger humans could probably give them a run for their money…

    I collected Gill from Alnwick, for her third trip with NEWT, and we headed to Bamburgh to collect Debbie, Roger, Joe and Ben.  Our plan for the afternoon and evening was to search Druridge Bay and the Northumberland coast  for Otters and other wildlife.  Oystercatcher, Lapwing and Curlew quickly became the target for some digiscoping by Joe as five Little Egrets sat on the riverbank opposite and a brood of Goosander formed a menacing fleet crossing the river.  Digibinning (yes, that is a real thing!) was then employed to capture images of a Great Crested Grebe and well-grown chick while the light was still reasonable, and we headed to our favourite dusk site.  A Grey Heron stalked the shallows, catching lots of small fish and other unidentified prey, becoming another digibinning target, Mute Swans stalked serenely across the water, a Sedge Warbler flitted around in the reeds just in front of us and then Little Grebe, Mallard, Teal, Gadwall and Tufted Duck all fanned out from one reedbed giving the distinct impression that they’d rather be somewhere other than close to those reeds.  Starlings flushed from their nighttime roost as a Grey Heron flew over and, as dusk began to take on a dark grey cloak, two young Tawny Owls flew out from a bush nearby, a Hedgehog trotted along in front of us and Noctule and pipistrelle bats could be seen and, with the aid of our bat detector, heard.  The walk back to the car brought lots of wildlife and the benefit of Joe and Ben’s keen eyesight allowed us to avoid treading on slugs, snails, spiders and an incredible number of toadlets and froglets 🙂

  • “Can you remember when…”; Druridge Bay Safari 04/08/16

    Yesterday was a Druridge Bay Safari for Andy, Jill and Cat, who’d been out with us in February, and Gill, who’s a newcomer to NEWT, but has two more trips booked next week 🙂

    Five Little Egret together between Amble and Warkworth was a good start to the day, while 15 juvenile Goosander formed a sleek and menacing flotilla along the river as mum watched sleepily from the river bank nearby.  Curlew and Lapwing flew overhead and we continued down the coast where more Little Egret awaited.  This was a really rare bird in Northumberland, not too long ago, so encountering them just about everywhere you look is quite odd.  Waders were next on the list and an impressive selection at Cresswell included a stunning summer-plumaged Knot, 1 Ruff, 2 Common Sandpiper, 2 Little Stint, 5 Avocet, 14 Golden Plover, 24 Black-tailed Godwit and lots of Dunlin, Curlew, Lapwing and Oystercatcher.  Alongside them were another 10 Little Egret! Len and (another) Gill were in the hide and Gill asked “Can you remember when…” 🙂

    The end of the afternoon brought another wader for the list (Common Snipe), Yellow Wagtails and a Pied Wagtail dicing with death around the hooves of cattle and a close encounter with an adult and chick Great Crested Grebe.  The chick’s incessant begging, even when it was apparently asleep with it’s head tucked under it’s wing, had the adult hunting constantly and effectively. Time and again it surfaced with a small fish which it shook and battered on the water’s surface before offering to the chick, which went quiet for just a few seconds before resuming it’s demand for food.

  • Summer…; Otter Safari 25/07/16

    July is a month when most of my time is spent at sea, either carrying out transect surveys or leading pelagic trips, so an afternoon and evening looking for Otters brings some welcome variation…

    I collected Susan and Mike from Seaton Burn and then Frank, Gabrielle, Boudewijn and Odette from The Swan before heading to the coast.  Boudewijn’s sharp eyes picked out tiny insects as we made our way along footpaths with dense vegetation alongside as Swallows and House Martins swooped low over the fields, picking off flying insects that had strayed just a bit too far from safety.  Adult Swallows were feeding young in a nest just a few feet away from us and, out on the water, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Gadwall, Wigeon and Pochard were all decked out in the shabby chic of late summer and a Grey Heron caused alarm as it flew in, scattering Lapwings and Black-headed Gulls from the edge of the pool.  Cormorants dived, doing their best Otter impressions, Common Sandpipers bobbed nervously on the riverbank, a well-grown brood of Goosander were remarkably well camouflaged amongst piles of rocks and Little Egrets were stalking tiny fish in the shallows.  As the wind started to pick up and the first few drops of rain began to fall, Swifts scythed their way through clouds of insects overhead.  Whimbrel was a nice addition to the wader list for the day along with Curlew and Redshank which are much more expected.  Common and Sandwich Terns called as they flew by and Eider were rafting on a flat sea as we had our picnic.  Our final site for the day was where I was confident we’d find an Otter.  Starlings were murmurating, Reed Buntings and Meadow Pipits flicked through the vegetation just ahead of us, a roe Deer emerged from behind a reedbed to take a drink at the water’s edge…and then the sky turned dark rather quickly and the rain started hammering down 🙁 That did produce one entertaining moment though, as a rather large Great Crested Grebe chick took shelter on its parent’s back just before we admitted defeat to the weather.

  • Trying; Otter Safari 02/07/16

    Collecting Rhiannon and Phil from Alnwick, we headed to the coast for an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland…

    Cormorants were doing their best Otter impersonations as the breeze strengthened and the first rain shower of the afternoon caught us out on the river bank.  Tufted Duck, Mallard and Teal were all looking relaxed so we were confident there wasn’t an Otter around.  Little Grebes featured throughout the trip, bobbing to the surface before diving again in search of small fish, and a Little Egret put in a brief appearance before dropping behind a clump of rush.  Swallows sitting on nests were remarkably tolerant of us and, as dusk approached, a Roe Deer was feeding quietly in the open beside the water.  Greylag Geese suddenly stretched their necks up, staring at the water as flocks of Starlings swirled overhead in a pre-roost gathering.  Tufted Duck and Mallard joined the worried staring and one area of the pool was bereft of birds.  That’s always a good sign, but this time the cause of the birds’ consternation didn’t reveal itself; presumably staying tucked away in the relative warmth and comfort of the reedbeds as a breeze that would be more fitting for mid-winter than mid-summer whipped the water into a choppy mess.

    Sometimes, no matter how hard you try…

  • Over there, no over there, what about over there?; Otter Safari 08/06/16

    One of the things I love about leading tours for NEWT is that almost all of our clients enjoy watching all wildlife.  No matter what the particular target species is during a tour, there’s always plenty to hold the attention while we search for that target.

    I collected Jo from Church Point for what turned out to be a one-to-one birdwatching and otter safari afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland (our other participants had cancelled on Tuesday…).  As is often the case wildlife watching was steady during the afternoon, with an interesting ID comparison between Black-headed Gull and Bonaparte’s Gull, but the evening, and falling light levels, brought the best of the day.  A lone Avocet was voicing it’s displeasure at something – it isn’t always certain what, Avocets are just generally noisy and feisty – a distant whirring resolved into the drumming of a Common Snipe almost directly overhead, Curlew were calling over the marshes as a Brown Hare loped by and an obliging Barn Owl quartered grassland in front of us, periodically dropping into the vegetation but reappearing without prey until it was finally driven away by the attention of couple of Carrion Crows.  Small flocks of, mainly juvenile, Starling began gathering until there were several thousand whirling around us, their wing beats like the arrival of a storm.  My attention was on a group of Tufted Ducks though – alert, looking nervous and constantly lifting their heads to look around the water.  I pointed them out to Jo and said I was confident that they’d seen an Otter close by.  20 minutes later and there it was 🙂  We watched it for an hour before it slipped from view.  Then it reappeared and I gave directions “over to the right, next to that Mute Swan“…just as Jo spotted one away to our left, and a third one in front of us!  Three Otters in an atmospheric cloud-heavy dusk and a second Barn Owl carrying prey low over the ground made for an exciting end to the day 🙂

  • “I’ll believe Otters exist…”; Otter Safari 26/05/16

    “…when I actually see one”.  A remarkable number of NEWT’s clients seem to have had holidays on Mull/Shetland/Orkney/Skye searching for Otters (often on guided tours) without seeing one, and that revelation at the start of a tour always ramps the pressure up a bit…

    I arrived at Church Point in heavy mist and drizzle, and quickly met up with Sarah and Charlotte, Keith and Maggie, and Stephanie, and we set off for an afternoon and evening searching for Otters around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland.  I juggled the sites we were visiting, to take account of the weather, but I knew where I thought we should be towards dusk.  In the misty, drizzly gloom a Little Egret looked luminous.  With warm, humid conditions the air was alive with the sussurating buzz of recently emerged insects.  Black-headed and Little Gulls, and swarms of Swifts, were rampaging through the dense clouds of flies as a Pheasant sat motionless in the grass on the water’s edge.  Gadwall, Goosander, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Canada Goose and Greylag Goose were all lazing on the water and Common Terns harried a Moorhen that had ventured just that little bit too close to their nest.  Grey Herons flew around calling and a dispute over a prime feeding spot broke out between two of these huge birds.

    We arrived at what I’d planned as our final location for the evening and I suggested that one particular part of the pool would be worth keeping a close eye on.  Was that a dark shape beneath the gulls?  I lifted my binoculars and scanned, then decided my eyes must have been playing tricks on me.  As I set the ‘scope up, there was an “erm…” from Charlotte, who was looking at the same spot…and there was an Otter 🙂  We watched it for over an hour as it made it’s way around the pool, feeding almost constantly and creating an interesting wildfowl exclusion zone!  Here’s an Otter from last year, showing it’s fearsome dentition 🙂

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    Eventually it vanished into the impenetrable depths of a reedbed and we headed back towards Newbiggin, encountering a Little Owl perched on a telegraph pole at the roadside 🙂

  • Welcome home to Northumberland; Bespoke Coast Safari 28/04/16

    As I arrived at Church Point to collect Tom and Sue, the weather was slightly breezy but dry.  The forecast suggested that it might be showery later during the afternoon and promised a bit of a contrast with Tom and Sue’s home country of Australia. Tom’s a Northumbrian so I was really looking forward to showing him parts of the coast that he wasn’t familiar with, hopefully with the weather showcasing Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland at its best…

    Cormorants air-dried their wings in the stiffening breeze and a Coot took umbrage at a Moorhen that was doing nothing more sinister than just wandering along the water’s edge, Woodpigeons, Jackdaws, Greylag Geese and Canada Geese speckled the dark grey sky.  A typically nervous Great Spotted Woodpecker watched us warily from behind a tree trunk, Tree Sparrows were chipping in the hedgerows, a Magpie was going back and forth presumably from it’s nest, Robins flicked across paths just ahead of us, Curlew, Redshank and Oystercatcher probed in the mud in conditions that were starting to resemble the winter and a Little Egret was a shockingly bright bundle of white feathers in an ever darkening vista of Northumberland’s coastal wildlife as Avocets, delicate visions in black and white, swept their heads from side to side through shallow water in seach of food.

    Great Crested Grebes comported themselves with their usual elegance as more Cormorants stood hunched in the wind and then, as Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler must have been wondering if they were in the right place at the right time of year, the heavens unleashed hail, sleet and snow from an apocalyptic sky and a Water Rail scurried mouse-like between reedbeds as two Otter cubs appeared just beyond the grebes 🙂  Their first appearance was fleeting, just a few seconds before they vanished from sight behind a reedbed.  Then they were back, and porpoising side by side, back and forth, before once again heading into the shelter of the reeds.

    As Fulmars soared along the clifftops and Gannets rode the uplift just above the waves offshore, we ended the day with the clouds overhead breaking to reveal blue sky and sunshine in a remarkable area of glorious weather that was surrounded in every direction by leaden grey clouds and storms.  Atmospheric wildlife watching…

  • Patience; Otter Safari 07/04/16

    I collected Gwyn for a day searching for Otters around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland and we headed towards the coast…

    Our first site didn’t produce any Otter sightings, and there was nothing happening amongst the assembled Curlew, Redshank, Cormorant, Little Egret, Oystercatcher and Mallard to suggest that they were worried about any unseen predator lurking nearby.  That took us up to lunchtime, and overlooking the North Sea we watched Swallows and Sand Martins battling into the wind.  After lunch our next site was a hive of activity with Goldeneye, Tufted Duck, Red-breasted Merganser, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Mallard, Gadwall, Canada Goose, Greylag Goose and Grey Heron.  Then there was suddenly an obvious gap in amongst the waterfowl, which became a much bigger gap as Goldeneye scattered in an impressive radial pattern that had an Otter cub at its centre 🙂  We tracked its progress for a few minutes until we couldn’t see it any more – although the flock of Black-headed and Common Gulls circling above it still could 🙂

    I was confident it would reappear so we sat and waited.  Cormorant flew by and the arrival of a heavy rain shower brought a dense flock of Sand Martins and Swallows plundering the clouds of midges that had been present throughout the afternoon.  Then the gulls were suddenly up in the air again, along with a couple of very vocal Sandwich Terns…directly above two Otter cubs 🙂  They fished alongside one another, and the highlight of the afternoon was when one came into shallow water and consumed an Eel that it seemed to be having a bit of a struggle with.  With Marsh Harrier and Common Buzzard (now both a regular feature of the Northumberland coast) during the day too, it was a procession of spectacular wildlife in ever-changing, and occasionally dramatic, light – ideal for Gwyn’s camera.

    Otters, raptors and a client with a passion for wildlife and photography (and a fellow Nikon user too!) – a great start to April!  We’ve got Otter Safaris regularly throughout the year so give us a call on 01670 827465 to book your place now.  We can tailor our tours to suit anyone from families with young children all the way to experienced wildlife watchers and serious nature photographers 🙂

  • Spring has sprung…; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 25/03/16

    Arriving at Church Point to collect Eddie and Carol the first thing that struck me was just how nice the weather was.  Good Friday and nice weather combined to make much of the coast incredibly busy, so we just headed to places that I knew would have less people and more wildlife…

    Little Egret and Curlew were stalking along the water’s edge as a Red-breasted Merganser was looking outrageously resplendent on the water and Oystercatcher and Redshank were demonstrating the rising hormone levels associated with the time of year 🙂  Cormorant were drying their wings in the sunshine, Goldeneye are still hanging on in the winter haunts, although in diminishing numbers, Great Crested Grebe are back at breeding sites and there was a real early spring feel to everything as a female Marsh Harrier drifted back and forth over the reedbeds, briefly in the air close to a Common Buzzard, allowing an easy comparison between the two.

    Lovely weather, lovely clients and an interesting chat about the ethics of wildlife watching and wildlife photography.  Can’t think of a better way to start the Easter weekend 🙂