Sawbill

After seeing the Goosander yesterday at DBCP in overcast conditions, I thought I would call in today with the sun shining...He's a cracker! There is usually one at Morpeth too that eats chips. Today's just kept having a wander up the boat ramp to get some bread and corn? Cant be doing his teeth much good...

On the Tip...

Widdrington Tip that is.

I used to live only half a mile from here when it attracted Glaucous Gulls and Hooded Crows every winter. The land fill has been closed now for many years and has been planted over with alder, birch and willow forming a wet 'carr' type habitat. Its excellent for wildlife in general but is only a small size, maybe  half a km sq, but it has rushy shallow pools, reedmace, some phragmites and rough grass. It holds some nice birds that you would associate with this habitat and today we had a good selection - Woodcock, 4 Snipe ( no Jacks today), 2 Willow Tits, Jays, Sparrowhawk, 9 Crossbills and - Redpolls. No we aren't sick of them. How could you be really, they're fantastic, never still, never boring .

One or two birds down the right hand side are Mealies...

After a tip off from Nigel through the week, we made a very rare visit south of Amble to check them out. We soon found a flock of 40 - 50 birds but they were constantly roving around, giving odd glimpses here and there. After some perseverance, we had a decent look at them, finding a few Mealies in with Lessers, but no candidates from further north. That's not to say there aren't any, later we saw another flock of 25 birds plus small groups flying in from all over. You would need luck to be with you in this habitat.

Lesser Redpolls

 A view across the big lake at Widdrington had a lovely Peregrine sitting on a soil outcrop, maybe digesting a meal. At Stobswood, a single drake Pochard was good, I don't see many up in my neck of the woods these days and we paid a visit to DBCP to take some snaps of the confiding drake Goosander. Its a pity the light was poor.

And that was about it really, a pleasant morning out, now where is the spring...

A heavily edited image to get some colour on a dark day....

A hint of winter....

This afternoon I decided to brave the throngs of Robson Green disciples and head off down to Craster to see if I can add Common Tern to my flagging patch list.

I sat for a while in the sun overlooking a nice blue calm sea. A few Sandwich Terns, Fulmars and Kittiwakes loitered about while a Gannet or two passed by on their way back to Bass Rock.
The tide was full, making the long skeer off the harbour into an island. On here, a Whimbrel called briefly as it jostled for space with a few Oystercatchers, then a Common Sandpiper fluttered across the channel onto the the rock. Patch year tick No 1. As the waves lapped, a smaller bird appeared with the Eiders. A Goosander redhead. We get a few moulting birds in the area at this time, so this was Patch year tick No2.

As I casually scanned about wondering if the seawatching would be any good this year, a gull roosting on the rock caught my attention. An odd colour that, I thought, and went to get the scope from the boot. As suspected, it was a first summer Glaucous Gull roosting in the sun!  Not exactly what you want to be seeing in July, but its a full on patch tick, year tick No3 in half an hour, so it would be churlish to complain. Get on the list.

Now, where are the waders....

Thats it, bang centre. Click on it...

First summer Glaucous Gull, surprisingly, my first on patch since moving here 6 years ago. 

124. Common Sandpiper

125. Goosander

126. Glaucous Gull.

Snakes and bees..

Yesterday I arrived at Rothbury for a meeting about 15 minutes early so I took  a short walk along the river with the camera. Three Goosanders and a Grey Wagtail were the only things of note bird-wise but a fluke shot of a Buff tailed Bumblebee at Snakeshead Fritillary made me pleased I had bothered taking my gear!

Snakeshead Fritillary and Buff-tailed Bumblebee

Goosander

Outside of the village Willow Warblers were everywhere but there were no Green Hairstreaks despite the 16 degrees on the mercury...

Willow Warbler

Nothing to Crow about...

What a bird...

 A very humid night continued through the day. The morning was misty and drizzly, but warm. Not weather we are used to here in Northumberland. By lunchtime it was hot and sunny.

We decided to check the coast between Amble and Boulmer for waders at various sites. First stop was Amble braid, where 3 Common Sandpipers, 2 Knot and 3 Sanderling were with 100+ Redshank feeding on the estuary. In the car park, rubbish was strewn everywhere and we wondered about the mentality of the litter louts responsible, then this handsome Carrion Crow appeared. Clearly the guilty culprit, I suppose he is to be forgiven, when he was just looking for breakfast.

From here it was on to Warkworth Gut where the highlight was a group of 3 Little Egrets on the new pools. How long until they are a regular breeding bird here I wonder? Its only a few years since one would have caused a twitch!

Foxton Bends  only produced singles of Greenshank and Whimbrel early on, and two Common Sandpipers later. 50+ Swifts were screaming over the village.

Top - Merganser, bottom, Goosander. 

 At Boulmer, a day flying Barn Owl was at Seaton Point, but holiday visitors made the waders flighty. Summer plumaged Turnstones, Dunlin and Knot mixed with Redshanks and Oystercatchers on the shore.

A few Goosanders flew past the point alongside a single eclipse Red breasted Merganser for comparison.

Knots.

A similar selection plus a few Ringed Plover were in front of the Fishing Boat Inn. Later this afternoon I popped down to Craster for a short seawatch, my first of the autumn(?). A hour produced 17 Manx Shearwaters, 4 Roseate terns plus the usual auks and Gannets. A Porpoise looked unusual lying like an alligator on the surface for a while before diving out of sight. Maybe it was eating something?

So, this week I am at work on Monday and Tuesday then off for a few days. Cant wait...