Tag: Shoveler

  • mid-October birding; Otter Safari 19/10/17

    There isn’t much that’s better than mid-October birdwatching.  The quiet periods of waiting and observing during an Otter Safari can be filled with all sorts of marvels at this time of the year… I collected John and Stella from home in Cramlington and we headed to the coast.  The first of several flocks of Redwing…

  • Autumn’s treasures; Otter Safari 10/10/17

    Sometimes it can be late in a trip before we find our target species., then there are the times when it’s almost embarrassingly quick and easy… I collected Phil and Glynis from Amble and we headed down the coast for an afternoon and evening searching for Otters around Druridge Bay.  I’d found an Otter at…

  • Waifs, strays and the gloom of dusk; Druridge Bay Safari 26/09/17

    I collected Richard and Liz from Whitley Bay and we headed north along the coast for an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland… After a few breezy weeks, we’d got something different to contend with; dense, patchy fog all along the coast.  I don’t mind that too much though, it’s usually manageable,…

  • Darkness descending; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 20/09/17

    I collected Ian and Julie from Hauxley and before we’d set off for an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay things got off to a great start with Goldcrests and a Yellow-browed Warbler in the car park 🙂 Next up were two young Roe Deer, trotting along the edge of a field before stopping to…

  • Birds, birds, birds; Druridge Bay mini-Safari 12/09/17

    I collected Peter and Melanie from Cramlington ahead of a few hours around Druridge Bay and apart from a stiff breeze the weather was just about ideal… Some impressively dense flocks of Swallows and Sand Martins were gorging themselves on flying insects, Little Egrets were stalking through the shallows with the feathers ruffled by the…

  • Stalking; Otter Safari 29/08/17

    I collected Julie, Thomas, Steven and Mandy ahead of an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland searching for our favourite predator… At this time of the year it’s fair to say that ducks aren’t really at their best and Mallard, Teal, Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Shoveler were all easier to separate based…

  • Persistence; Otter mini-Safari 22/08/17

    Warm and foggy is a slightly ethereal combination of weather conditions, but that was just what we had when I collected Mark and Rachel and Phil and Katrina and Debbie and Neil from Church Point, ready for an evening searching for Otters around Druridge Bay and Southeast Northumberland… We may still be in August but…

  • Contrast and compare; Bespoke Photography holiday 02-05/07/17

    I collected Joy from Morpeth railway station ahead of two days enjoying the best photographic opportunities that the Northumberland coast has to offer in early July, and I outlined the plan for the next two days as we drove to The Swan.  Like last week’s Birdwatching magazine reader holiday, the forecast suggested that Monday would…

  • Localised; Bespoke coastal birdwatching 06/06/17

    I left the house to head to Newbiggin to collect Andy and Caroline, ahead of an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and south east Northumberland, in weather that was slightly less than pleasant with heavy drizzle covering the windscreen in flowing water every few seconds… …12 minutes later and I’m Newbiggin, where all the…

  • A swift return; Druridge Bay birdwatching mini-safari 23/05/17

    I arrived at Newbiggin to collect Brendan for a mini-Safari around Druridge Bay, in weather that was little short of glorious… Brendan lives just a few miles from the village where Sarah’s parents still live; an area that’s historically similar to southeast Northumberland – although we’ve got the North Sea, beaches etc. 🙂  Our first…