Sunday 7th February

Quite an interesting last ten days in a phase where continuing harsh weather has restricted activities to a large extent.

The last walk I undertook in Chopwell Woods revealed only a red kite en route and a sole buzzard on the way out.  Since then the paths have become so muddy that I've restricted myself to walks around the village, seeing just a few goldfinches and sparrows.

What particularly enlivened things was the appearance of eight or ten new little brown jobs at the back of the garden while I was getting dressed on Friday 29th, some venturing into the garden itself.  Having quickly dismissed sparrow and chaffinch as possibilities, I thought I caught a flash of red and wondered about redpoll.  

Once downstairs I could see some flecked breasts and yellow beaks through the binoculars and loosely considered twite.  As numbers decreased I managed to get a few hurried shots with the camera which conclusively proved they were indeed redpoll.

Redpolls

The last couple of years the Big Garden Bird Watch has brought disappointing results so it was pleasing that a couple of redpolls turned up in the trees at the appropriate time and the session was further enhanced by the appearance of a nuthatch and a better selection of tits than normal. 

Then on the Monday of this week, there were at least twenty redpolls systematically working their way through the birches behind the fence, but annoyingly a bit too distant and obscured to get a decent shot of them.  There were a few more on the Tuesday and then no more, the supply of birch seeds having presumably been exhausted.

During this time my attention turned to wondering whether they were lesser or common redpolls.  It appears that some commentators argue that the lesser redpoll is no longer recognised as a separate species, but this has been gainsayed by most authorities somewhat to my disappointment as I don't feel competent to distinguish between the two.  However, various other members of our Naturewatch group have had redpolls in their gardens and the consensus seems to be that there are at least some common redpolls amongst them.  So my guess is that the influx is partly down to an irruption of common redpolls from Scandinavia.

Later on on the Monday I managed an exercise bike ride, avoiding the parlous and overcrowded state of the cycle tracks and saw what I thought was a sparrowhawk but turned out to be a kestrel behaving like a sparrowhawk.  I assume the apparent white wing barring is a trick of the light.  Shortly afterwards a deer bolted across the road a few yards ahead in a state of some panic.

Kestrel

Wednesday 27th January

There has been a surprise visitor to the garden last week - a chaffinch.  Not the rarest of birds by any means but another example on one that isn't seen too much up here. 

I was over in Dumfries at the weekend and did a walk round the Mersehead reserve.  On a pretty cold and bright day, the low sunshine meant the scenery was beautiful but made it hard to identify and photograph the birdlife.

Heading for the beach there were some canada geese in the fields and a little egret flew past overhead.  When we got there the tide was as far out as I've ever seen it and there was a clear view across to Skiddaw on the other side of the Solway.

Skiddaw across the Solway

Several flights of barnacle geese flew in from the West and landed on the reserve.  It was also very still and the only bird of prey we saw was a buzzard on a dead tree who steadfastly showed his back to us.

We went along the coast towards Southerness some distance in the hope of spotting some merlin after small birds but in vain as there werfe only a few corbids in the fields.  All we saw on the shoreline was one of several robins encountered and a wren.

On moving back inland we encountered the first of two groups of deer.

Roe Deer

Moving through the woodland strip we did see several throstles feeding in a field.  It was hard to make them out properly but on careful observation they seemed to be mainly fieldfare and some mistle thrush.  We didn't see any redwing in the group.

Tits and chaffinches were visiting the feeders on the way to Meida Hide but nothing more exciting. The hides were still closed and almost all the wetlands still frozen and the only ducks were too far away to be seen with binoculars.  Nevertheless a very pleasant walk.

On a brief exercise bike ride today there were some nice bullfinches on the way to Greenside and by Blaydon Burn.  Back home three long-tailed tits were on the peanut feeder at dusk.

Friday 15th January 2021

Another lockdown and some snowy weather have restricted activities more than somewhat.  

I have managed another couple of pleasant but eventless walks in Chopwell Woods, as ever distinguished by the lack of birdsong.   The second in distinctly wintery conditions on New Year's Eve was slightly better, producing five robins and one blackbird but I cut it short as it was quite strenuous negotiating the ice packs on the main trails.  I'm at a loss as to why such a large area of woodland isn't more productive.

Snowy Weather

By contrast a walk down the bridlepath towards Rowlands Gill produced a good deal of song.  There was nothing spectacular, mainly tits and more robins but it gave a more postive feel, as if some birds are already thinking of asserting their territories before mating.  There are less walkers here than in the Woods.

Long-tailed Tit

I ended up on the Derwent River Walk and got a good view of a red kite but it quickly soared off and settled in some trees to make mewing noises.  Things were quieter on the way back.

The normal visitors have been turning up and long-tailed tits have been quite frequent.  They often arrive at the feeders in groups of four or five.  I'd like to photogrpah a group of them but, like the coal tits, they never hang around for long.  Nothing special here either and no sign so far of the blackcap that turned up last year.  No woodpeckers for some while either.

There were at least a couple of rematches between robin and nuthatch on the birdtable.  On the first occasion, the nuthatch arrived second and the robin gave way a bit but didn't fly off, which I adjudged to be a draw.  The second time, the nuthatch was there first but flew straight off leaving the robin victorious.  In this case maybe the redder bird rather than the larger bird has the upper hand.

The robin behaves as if s/he personally owns the bird table, which may also be a factor.

Wednesday 30th December

After much uncertainty over the new Covid restrictions, I worked out that being in a support bubble meant I could visit Dumfries over the Christmas period. 

This wasn't really a nature trip but I did get good sightings of a pair of goosanders in the afternoon light at the caul on the Nith.  The male's head showed hardly any sign of its normal green colour.

Female Goosander

Male Goosander

An extra bonus was the bright reflections on the water around the female, which give quite a surreal effect.

After returning home ahead of the stormy weather, we managed another beach dog walk at Cresswell yesterday.  The tide was coming in and the surf hitting the beach with some force, with some rather unusual results.  The first was a live sprat that had been thrown up on the beach.  Later we encountered a small flounder, a jelly fish and another sprat which had met the same fate but were dead.  All were returned to the sea except the dead sprat which the dog ate.

We got as far as the Chevington Burn without seeing any bird life apart from a single goldfinch and a stonechat.  But we did encounter a rather good rainbow en route.

Rainbow

On the way back there were a few birds including oydtercatchers on the move and I got a nice photo of this sanderling, which came up quite close while we stood still.

Sanderling

At home the garden is still quite busy and the latest not-so-rarity was a female chaffinch.

Tuesday 22nd December

It continues to be a period when I'm seeing more activity in the garden than on my trips out.

A trip to Holywell Dene only revealed a few tits and a walk at Wallington Hall some more tits and a single nuthatch.

Long-tailed tit

However my garden nuthatch still visits the bird table often, and several long-tailed tits often appear though generally just for short raids.  Coal tits are still the most frequent visitors, ahead of blue and great tit and the larger birds.  Wren, dunnock and blackbird have all turned up plus the 'not quite right' greenfinch (see previous two posts).  The long-tailed tits have started feeding a good deal on the fatballs, which have been neglected right through the autumn period for whatever reason unless I had removed them from the feeder and put them somewhere else.

There has also been a surprising first - a goldfinch.  Although common locally, I've never seen one in the garden before.  Overall, it seems the shorter days and the need to feed intensively around the middle of the day is the main cause of the increased traffic.  

On Saturday I did take a trip to Swinsty Loch in North Yorkshire for a socially-distanced walk with daughter and fiancé with slightly better results, starting with a good view of a red kite over the village as I set off.

The walk around Swinsty Loch is advertised as a gentle stroll on a gravel path.  Unfortunately the youngsters had decided instead on a hike through the moors to Badger Dyke Loch, which unbenown to them proved to be a tour of the local swamp grounds and quite hard on both lungs and legs.

However we did happen on this couple of peacocks on the way.

Peacocks

They were wise to shelter in the little hollow as a full-scale pheasant shoot was underway at Badger Dyke Loch.  Apart from dead pheasants we managed to see several score of wigeon at the peaceful end of the water and a handful of tufted duck on the way back down the other side.  In the fields a few fieldfare and redwing were around without showing too well.

To be honest I was slightly disapponted by the wigeon as I had thought I had spotted some pochard in the group.  At least I felt well-exercised and wholly justified in not doing any exercises at home the day after.

Monday 14th December

Some slightly strange if not exactly world-shattering happenings this week...

I'd just finished discussing the 'not quite right' greenfinch mentioned in my last post with someone by email when what was obviously a female greenfinch turned up on the peanut feeder, to be succeeded by the 'not quite right' one which fed off the decking for a few minutes with me thinking it was a chaffinch, then visiting the feeder and revealing the same plumage features I photographed last time. I haven't seen it since.

Nuthatch

A very frequent visitor to the feeders has been this male nuthatch, which has to my pleasure also started visiting the bird table and fighting off the coal tits and others.  I wondered if he would also scare off the rather aggressive robin who clearly regards the bird table as his personal possession.  On the one occasion they did meet up, the robin won somewhat against my perception that in such confrontations, the larger bird will prevail.  Maybe in this situation the redder bird prevailed but I look forward to seeing if the same result occurs the next time.

Shortly after a session watching the nuthatch and more coal tit aerial acrobatics, I was amazed to see a grey wagtail land on the bird table.  It didn't stay long but I couldn't help wondering what it was after as they don't eat seeds.  Maybe it got a whiff of the rather smelly soldier beetle larvae I've been adding to the birdfeed lately.  One awaits developments.  There was another grey wagtail around near Swalwell today so perhaps they get a bit more adventurous in winter.

The next minor shock came when I went to close the bathroom window yesterday and a queen wasp crawled in.  Apparently they can live for a year, but a wasp active in December??  I should probably have taken a photo but decided to usher it out as soon as possible as I don't want a wasp's nest in the bathroom for Christmas.

I did do an ettempted twitch on Friday as a whimbrel had been reported in the Cambois area and I've never seen one.  On returning home with so to speak empty binoculars I had to recognise that I'd been looking in the wrong area in spite of having seen a fairly clear map!  The whimbrel hasn't been reported

Young Deer

since so probably had moved on anyway.

What was slightly strange about that trip was that on driving out of Greenside several deer ran across the road in front of and behind. I was lucky not to hit one.  Then at Cambois the only thing I did see (apart from one hovering kestrel) was a young deer happliy grazing away on what was blatantly a brownfield site.

Today I have enjoyed watching a squad of half a dozen long-tailed tits invade the garden.  Nothing strange about that though...

Monday 7th December

Having caught sight of a jay showing well on the edge of Chopwell Woods as I returned from the doctor's,  I decided to take a walk there last week.  This was also to test my theory that you see far less in the way of birdlife there than you would expect from what is an apparently attractive area.

The theory was pretty much proven.  I wandered around for an hour or two, trying to keep off the main tracks as much as possible.  Birdsong was notably absent as I went.  Eventually I caught sight of a nuthatch on a conifer and got one distant sighting of a jay in a tree.  There were a few tits singing in the trees on the way out but that was it.  Overall I think you're more likely to see deer there than a notable bird, but can't really say why.

I'd have seen more if I'd stayed in the garden, which is where I saw this female greenfinch a few days ago.  Getting the rear view first, I thought it might be a siskin, which would have been a garden first.  Something about this bird strikes me as not quite right  (too pale?) but greenfinches are certainly around although not on the feeder.

On Saturday I took advantage of some improved weather to track down the black redstart at Tynemouth.  It wasn't where I expected to find it. Instead there was an eider duck quite near to the shore.

Eider Duck

Eventually after fish 'n' chips I managed to locate a birdwatcher who told me where to look, just outside the pier rather than inside the harbour.  Others reported it hadn't been seen for  half an hour but when one left, it duly turned up, moving about the rocks and occasionally pursued by a jealous robin.

It was hard to get decent shots in the shade but once again "mission accomplished".  It seemed paler than the ones I have seen in Germany.

Black Redstart

Black Redstart

An additional bonus was a rock pipit patrolling the same area.

Rock Pipit

With some time available I moved on and did a walk from Seaton Sluice to St Mary's Island where there was at least a hundred lapwing at the water's edge just after low tide.  I looked for golden plover among them but instead found these waders at distance. 

Waders