2nd October 2015

The last couple of weeks have been pretty busy, so I am playing catch-up.

Little Egret

Last Wednesday (26/09) I was in the North East again for non-nature reasons, so it was quite fortuitous that I happened to see a white shape in the tree line at the back of the wetland by Warkworth Beach.  Wasn't sure at first if it was a bird or a plastic bag and with no binoculars I couldn't check. But I think this distance shot enables us to make out that it was in fact a little egret clinging to the bush.

Indeed a bit of research proves that little egrets have been visiting the area for a good while now.

This Wednesday I had the pleasure of yet another sunny September bike ride up to Moniaive. Bird behaviour seems to have changed since my last run out and it as if they are needing to get nearer civilisation to find food and are therefore becoming more visible.

Cherry Tree?

Just past Skinford Bridge, a nuthatch was on the edge of the road dissecting a peanut. I've only seen them in trees before.

A while later a jay showed well by the edge of a farmyard, flying back and forth rather than just making straight for tree cover with immense squawkings like they usually do. It seemed a little less colourful than other jays, so I wondered if it was perhaps a juvenile of female.

Then just before Moniaive a couple of bullfinches showed briefly, so a good day for reddish birds.

Also very red and sighted while I was looking at the nuthatch was this tree, which I couldn't immediately identify but it looks like it may be some sort of cherry.

Stopping at another bridge on the way back, a dipper made a fairly prolonged experience, the first one I've seen for a little while.