I arrived at Church Point to collect Ray and Joan & Ian and Kate, and we headed up the coast for an evening around Druridge Bay. Mediterranean Gulls, Little Gulls, Avocets, Black-tailed Godwits and a huge flock of Lapwing flushed as a young male Marsh Harrier flew through, Goldfinch, Linnet and Tree Sparrow were busying themselves in the hedgerows and a male Ruff was tucked in amongst a flock of Redshank as a Little Egret stalked elegantly along the water’s edge. As the evening headed towards dusk there was a noticeable increase in the strength of the breeze, carrying the noisy rustle of a Starling murmuration through the air from the reedbeds that were in near darkness, and an equally noticeable drop in temperature, as we headed back to the car and our drive back was slowed briefly as a Brown Hare loped along the road ahead of us.
Tag: Marsh Harrier
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Porpoiseful birdwatching; Druridge Bay Safari 06/07/2015
mid-Summer can be a quiet time for birdwatching, but there are some days where everything just falls into place…
I arrived in Seahouses to collect Nigel and Barbara for a day birdwatching further south on the Northumberland coast, and we headed towards Druridge Bay in beautiful hot summer weather. With a flat calm sea we started with a little while seawatching. Gannet, Sandwich Tern, Eider and Fulmar were all flying by, but our attention was gripped by at least 6 Harbour Porpoise, including a mother with a very small calf 🙂 Moving on we watched the elegant trio of Little Egret, Avocet and Black-tailed Godwit. There were at least 22 of the latter, in a mixed roosting flock with Lapwing, Wigeon, Curlew and 9 Mediterranean Gulls of varying age. More gull interest came in the form of 8 Little Gulls, also with a range of ages. A Sedge Warbler clambered to the top of the reeds briefly before dropping out of sight and breaking into song, a male Linnet looked garishly pink, male Stonechat and male Reed Bunting vied for the award of ‘most attractive’ and we steadily made our way north. Male and female Marsh Harriers impressed, as they always do, Great Crested Grebe sailed serenely by and our wader count for the day rose, with Common Sandpiper, Oystercatcher and Redshank. A quick ID masterclass was helped by Herring, Lesser Black-backed and Great Black-backed Gulls all sitting in a line, surrounded on both sides by Cormorants.
Nigel had mentioned a species that they hadn’t managed to see previously, and as the cold wind cut through the overcast conditions – did I forget to mention the weather had changed 😉 – we went in search of it. “Curlew…curlew…curlew…stripy mean-looking face with shorter bill”, and there was another ‘lifer’ for Nigel and Barbara – a Whimbrel, and a great way to end the day 🙂
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Slugs and snails and dolphin tails; Druridge Bay Safari 25/06/2015
As I drove to Newton to collect Sue and Julian, the first few raindrops hit the windscreen of the car. My optimism that the rain would soon pass over was drenched, literally, by a torrential downpour that the windscreen wipers couldn’t cope with and which sounded like I was in a tin can being pelted with stones 🙁 We set off for Bamburgh, completely surrounded by storms and found a flock of Common Scoter and Eider on the sea, and a miserable looking Puffin on the beach. The rainfall left the air warm and humid, so as the afternoon passed into evening paths were covered in slugs and snails. Common Toad and Common Frog crossed our path too, and the air was alive with small insects – and a good handful of Common Pipistrelles hunting them. A Fox trotted along the edge of Cresswell Pond, where Avocets and Black-Tailed Godwit were roosting and feeding. A male Marsh Harrier flew by, causing consternation amongst the Swallows, and Tufted Duck and Red-breasted Merganser both looked elegant as Mute Swans and Shelduck watched carefully over their young. A Whitethroat sang from rank vegetation just a few metres away from us, and dusk brought Swallows, Sand Martins and Starlings to roost.
The day will remain in the memory for years to come though, as a pod of dolphins put on a remarkable display. We’d just finished our picnic and I decided to have one last scan before heading up the coast. Top Tip – always have ‘one last scan’ 🙂 Close inshore I saw a small group of dolphins breaking the surface. White-beaked Dolphin should be here in a few days time, but these were big, dark animals and we soon confirmed that they were Bottlenose Dolphin. Now, these are big impressive animals, and we spent nearly 40mins watching at least 12 of them as they slowly travelled north. They weren’t just travelling though; synchronous breaching, tail-slapping, lob-tailing, spy-hopping, flipper waving and fighting continued as they passed by our viewpoint and eventually out of sight away to the north. I’ve spent a lot of time watching dolphins, both with clients and when carrying out offshore surveys, but I’ve never seen a group of dolphins so animated as these were. Wonder if they’ll be there for this evening’s pelagic trip 🙂
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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…
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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.
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Mustelid mania; 05/04/2015
Arriving in Newbiggin to collect Susan, Dan, Chris and Helen, the first thing that struck me was just how warm it was. Blue skies, bright sunshine, only a slight breeze – almost an early summer day 🙂
We began our search of Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland with those habitual Otter impersonators, Cormorant and Goldeneye, grabbing our attention. Then Little Egret, Redshank and Mallard all moved away from where I think our regular Otters have their holt, although there was no sign of the elusive predator. A Stoat, all bounding energy, chased, but missed catching, a Rabbit and a pair of Marsh Harriers drifted over coastal reedbeds with a third bird nearby as Cormorants and Curlew lazed in the sunshine and Red-breasted Mergansers delivered their comical courtship display.
Finally, distantly, as the sun slipped towards the horizon a sleek, sinuous shape crossed the river before inspecting a bankside log and vanishing into a tangle of brambles 🙂
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Springtime in Northumberland; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 02/03/2015
Unexpected safaris are always a pleasure, and yesterday was a mini-Safari around Druridge Bay that was only arranged on Tuesday.
I collected Alison, John, May and Isaac from Low Hauxley and we headed down the coast. In glorious weather, the cacophony of unbridled bird song was a noticeable contrast to the gloomy days of March. Chaffinch, Wren, Goldfinch, Blackbird and Robin were all singing and the onomatopoeia of our first Chiffchaff of the year was emanating from deep cover. A pair of Red-breasted Mergansers, all crazy hair do and striking pattern, were swimming back and forth with their heads below the surface in search of fish, a Little Egret stalked elegantly through the shallows, Curlew, Oystercatcher and Redshank prodded and probed in the gooey mud, Goldeneye and Cormorant imitated the Otters we were looking for and Grey Herons stood, sentinel like, against the riverside bushes. Canada and Greylag Geese were noisily proclaiming their arrival, a young Whooper Swan lived up to it’s name and Great Crested Grebes and Pintail vied for the accolade of elegant beauty.
A male Marsh Harrier drifted by and a Mediterranean Gull, ghostly white against the speckled backdrop of Black-headed Gulls, performed for some of the group, before frustratingly hiding in the middle of the gull flock. Common Buzzards were soaring against the blue sky and hovering Kestrels were a feature throughout the morning and early afternoon, as Meadow Pipits song-flighted from coastal fence-posts.
It certainly feels like the spring…