Birds

chris c wrote:Oh aren't Bullfinches just gorgeous? We have them well distributed in small numbers around these parts. They've been in the garden in winter back before the rat invasion when I was putting seed out. Dippers, not so much. I remember watching one with a nest beside High Force, and we had them in the stream by the disused railway yard in Somerset.

Went for a prolonged drive around the villages between a couple of short walks yesterday and spotted my first Swallow on power/phone lines. Normally Sand Martins arrive first, Swallows not until the first or second week of April and House Martins a week or two later. This year the first House Martins turned up about a month early, beating all the others.

The churchyards and gardens are a daffodil riot.

Today I did Minsmere again, about six Marsh Harriers but not really sky-dancing, just flying around. Close flyby by a Bittern but no booming (I went over to where I previously heard the boom when I was on t'other side). Again not a sound of Bearded Tits, nor for once any Water Rails, but a couple of Little Grebe (powder puffs) swimming up right in front of the hide, carefully swallowing sticklebacks. Eight of the Goosanders still around but mostly sleeping/loafing.

It was such a beautiful day I did the entire walk, about five miles round. Heard a Treecreeper briefly in song but couldn't see it, no sign of the Marsh Tits and neither the Long Tailed Tits which had been busy nestbuilding, but a great closeup view of a Green Woodpecker laughing like a mad thing. Plenty of Chiffchaffs but not a single Blackcap. The Smews were said to be in a pool off the reserve and some Garganeys still around, and some Jack Snipes, but I didn't spot them this time. My ears are still ringing from the gulls.

Polished off the last of the Cumberland sausages with PSB and crashed out for a while, hence why I'm still up.

Love reading your bird watching reports, I dig out my Observers Book Of Birds by S. Vere Benson published in 1956 to identify your sightings. The Observers books are fantastic little books I have been reading since I was a kid. For me something very calming about these books, they remind me of times gone by when life was uncomplicated. These books can be had for a couple of quid in second hand book shops and great value for money.

Sadly VERY out of date now though. My childhood "bible" was Birds Of The Wayside And Woodland by T A Coward.

Probably a good place to look for current recommendations

http://shopping.rspb.org.uk/birds-wildlife/bird-wildlife-books-media.html

I have the BTO Atlases from the 60s and 70s, and the earlier Birds of Suffolk from 1962. Even the upgrade - by Steve "Barn Owl Box" Piotrowski from 2003 - is out of date.

After a recent discussion with some professional ornithologists and knowledgeable amateurs, the general consensus of opinion was that modern techniques like ringing and especially radio tracking and genetic sequencing proved several things

1/ a lot of what was previously known has been proved correct

2/ a lot of what was previously believed has been proved wrong

3/ many things that were once true have changed in the meantime.

This thread started with Derek spotting a Yellow Browed Warbler. In our lifetime this has gone from being vanishingly rare to just very rare - like from once every several years to dozens a year. They seem to have changed their migration routes and more are flying west rather than south for the winter.

Some of our birds that used to fly south for the winter now stay around. Others still fly south but are replaced over winter by continental birds that also now fly west rather than south. Still other things have arrived here from the west and become established. Even one of those sodding green parrots was seen in Lowestoft recently, that's come up from sahf of the rivvah.

It had me thinking what a nightmare it would be taking a dietician birdwatching.

"What's that big white thing?"

"Little Egret"

"It can't be, my book says they aren't found here. What was that noise?"

"Cetti's Warbler"

"But my book says they aren't found here either"

"Your book is out of date, they've been here for decades now"

"BUT IT SAYS IN MY BOOK . . ."

Another great walk around Minsmere in the sunshine. I went round in the other direction to keep the wind mostly on my back.

Initially not much in the way of rarities, just lots of (locally) common stuff. Finally a couple of Blackcaps singing along with the now standard gazillions of chiffchaffs, and finches galore. Stonechats all in the coastal bushes and gorse, singing their little hearts out and flying up to catch newly arrived insects. Dozens of Mediterranean Gulls mixed in with the hundreds of Black-Headed Gulls, and most of the Common Gulls have now gone home. Avocets in pairs looking totally elegant, Black Tailed Godwits now changing into their summer plumage. A pair of Mandarins looking as bizarre as they do - well the males anyway. Long Tailed Tits now feeding young.

It all kicked off when I got over to the big hide with the comfy chairs.

Many Marsh Harriers still sky-dancing and busy building their nests. A pair of Great Crested Grebes doing their weed dance

http://phototropic.co/notebook/great-crested-grebe-courtship-display-mating-and-nesting/

A couple of dozen Sand Martins and about a dozen Swallows dancing over the water and high into the sky over the reedbeds, the numbers gradually increasing as we watched.

I'd heard a Bittern booming from the other side of the reserve but the people in the hide hadn't heard it - they'd seen one fly down into the reeds though and were waiting for it to reappear.

I went back onto the walkway to the hide to listen for Bitterns and Bearded Tits. Heard the Bittern booming again - this time the folks in the hide also heard it - and some very distant Bearded Tits pinging, also a Water Rail which makes a noise like a piglet that's just been told David Cameron is in the next room and the trousers are coming down.

Back in the hide and then a Sedge Warbler burst into its chattering, chuntering song - first I've heard this year. Suddenly a Bittern appeared, coming right out into the open. They are such weird, reptilian birds with the world's slowest Silly Walk

http://www.arkive.org/bittern/botaurus-stellaris/video-00.html

This one was much slower, picking up its huge green feet as if to say "I'm not moving and you can't prove I am!" It picked out some sticklebacks and frogs and swallowed them down, making the most bizarre poses "this is what Concorde used to look like!"

Then what appeared to be an Otter appeared in the channel. Actually it was another Bittern, swimming, something I'd never seen before



The swimming one seemed to be slowly creeping up on the one in the open, and started booming. Imagine a foghorn in an echo chamber. Eventually the one that was posing - probably a female - crept slowly back into the reeds.

Heard what I think was a Firecrest on the extended walk I took back to the car, probably about five miles in total. All done as usual on a thickly buttered oatcake with smoked salmon and a few cups of coffee. By the time I got home it was nearly nine hours later and I was looking forward to my lamb chop with PSB but some bugger had eaten it. Oh it was me! Well I still had some sausages so I forced them down with a glass or two of Argentinian Malbec.

A couple of days ago I did another long walk, through the swampy woods and alder carr on a boardwalk and on through the reedbeds. About four pairs of Marsh Harriers on one side, and two more pairs on the other. More Water Rails doing the pig squeal and a lesser known call which sounds like a galloping horse. Only one distant Sedge Warbler, drowned out by Linnets, though some people I met had heard more than one, and also a Reed Warbler which I haven't seen or heard yet this year. I was expecting more of both by now. Several Swallows and Sand Martins over the reedbeds and fields, and a couple of Willow Warblers to add to the Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps.

A few Cetti's Warblers trying to blow out my eardrums, and I actually saw one briefly, and later a pair chasing one another around.

I first heard and then saw a couple of pairs of Jeremy Corbyns. Oh sorry, I meant Bearded Tits. The people I'd passed earlier caught me back up and we watched the tits come and go for a while, and heard about four Bitterns booming distantly.

I considered walking on to reach the beach, but the lure of the Cumberland sausages, liver and bacon, purple sprouting broccoli and the first asparagus of the season (last bunch in the shop, I got lucky!) were starting to call me from the car so I turned back.

Probably five miles or so, all fuelled by my usual breakfast, plus of course the stored energy from the previous day's meal. When I got home the sausages and PSB won out, just, accompanied by the buttered oatcake and glass of Argentinian Malbec and a square of 85% chocolate, and a bit of a lie down, about ten hours since breakfast.

Yesterday was a bit miserable by comparison. I had a refeeding day, I don't normally eat lunch but since I got hungry I polished off a massive bloater, and later had a stir fry with tinned salmon, bacon and the usual bunch of veggies, and just enough quinoa to soak up the EVOO and toasted sesame oil flavoured with crushed chillies. I saw a pair of Swallows over the garden and the back field.

Today I had two shorter walks, one to the Hen Reedbeds where more Marsh Harriers were flying and another Bittern was booming, and Herons and Egrets were on their nests up in the trees. I spotted a Wheatear, sat on top of a fence post not moving for about an hour, probably just arrived after its migration, maybe thrown off a United Airlines flight. Eventually it perked up and started hopping about on the ground while another one perched on another fence post. Then I drove on to a nearby wood for a second shortish walk. Had the liver and bacon with a giant mushroom and the first asparagus. I just had a buttered oatcake with a huge hunk of Vacherin Mont d'Or cheese and I might just have to have another meal soon.

Currently I'm throwing out mealworms for the nesting Blackbirds, Robins, Dunnocks and Wrens. Well the Robins and Wrens may not be nesting yet but they are certainly thinking about it.

Oh yeah, after I bought the mealies a few days back I walked in another wood and heard most of the Usual Suspects. Curiously there was a single sneaker beside the path. I wondered who had failed to notice they'd lost one shoe, then I realised it was probably a high carb diabetic who'd gone out for a hop.

Hi Chris, not heard Water Rail doing galloping horse song but Jack Snipe also a good candidate , not heard how they differ? Derek

If you can see it, just, it's a Snipe. If you can't see it it's a Jack Snipe (G) the one I saw briefly was more ginger and gold than black and brown, but was silent.

I just checked out the Jack Snipe on Xeno-Canto, yes I see what you mean! The Water Rail is louder and more irregular

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Rallus-aquaticus

quite a lot of different calls here as well as the pig squeal but I didn't find the galloping horse one, not common and they also make other strange popping and clunking noises from time to time. I only thumbed through the first page of recordings though.

Hi Jan, It looks like a male indigo bunting, saw them in States c.20 years ago. Not to be confused with the yellow billed blue finch! regards Derek

Derek wrote:Hi Jan, It looks like a male indigo bunting, saw them in States c.20 years ago. Not to be confused with the yellow billed blue finch!  regards Derek

Thanks for the info Derek, I did see this picture on a friends blog, who is based in the US, ... it is such a lovely colouring.

Another Bird Blog I like is Bob Bushell's, he lives near the Forest of Dean
His blog can be found here
http://birdsfod.blogspot.co.uk/

All the best Jan

That's the blue bird of happiness obviously.

There are so many wonderful birds both here in the UK and further afield.

Sitting at my computer with the window open, I can hear birds singing ... but can't see them, which is annoying, as the sound is so lovely (I think they hide from me sometimes   )

For those who are interested in birds and wildlife have a look at Phil's blog here

http://anotherbirdblog.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/tuesday-trundle.html

All the best Jan

Your bluebird got me thinking, there aren't many truly blue European birds, off the top of my head I could think of Kingfisher, Bea Eater and Blue Rock Thrush.

There are quite a lot with blue patches or markings though, Swallows are kind of blue-black and there are not a few that are blue-grey. Perhaps Derek would know, is that intense blue principally a New World colour or is it tropical - I don't know enough about African birds to know if they have any.

I was also thinking about weird bird songs and calls

Capercaillie - check out the lekking and male song

http://www.xeno-canto.org/explore?query=capercaillie

Great Reed Warbler

http://www.xeno-canto.org/explore?query=great+reed+warbler

They only turn up in the UK occasionally, I wonder if they may spread here to breed.

Currently I have Sparrows and Great Tits pulling the fluff off the Pampas Grass seedheads to build their nests, and a pair of Goldfinches appear to be building in my shrubbery, stripping fibres from the honeysuckle stems. It also didn't take long before the Starlings noticed I was throwing out mealworms again, now they line up ready to pounce whenever they hear the back door open.

Big fall of migrants around the end of last week. Saturday I did Minsmere again and the reedbeds were full of the chuntering and chattering of Reed and Sedge Warblers. There was a Grasshopper Warbler and a Savi's as well but I heard neither. A couple of Lesser Whitethroats having a song duel from various bushes, and several Common Whitethroats, and House Martins have now joined the Swallows and Sand Martins. Sandwich Terns and a few Common Terns also. A Red Rumped Swallow has been seen, also Redstarts and Ring Ousels, and more Wheatears, and even a White Tailed Eagle, but I missed all them too. Still very few Willow Warblers which used to be just about the commonest summer visitor, but there was a Nightingale in magnificent song. I'd previously been to a few Nightingale locations but only a brief snatch of song on Westleton Common. Last year they were sparse and very late, and most of the Willow Warblers didn't arrive either. I think I heard a very distant Cuckoo.

Went over to the Big Hide which was full of macho-man birders, the kind that glare menacingly at you "You looking at my bird???" who were all talking loudly about how much beer they drank in various exotic parts of the world. There were a couple of Great Crested Grebes posing, and a convoy of three otters swam by in the distance.

Several of us went out onto the boardwalk to get away from the noise, but we failed to hear the Savi's Warbler. There were a couple of pairs of Bearded Tits though, which appeared to be collecting nesting material then flying long distances across the reedbed to where they were presumably building, then flying back again empty. Nine times out of ten you hear them without seeing them, and it was the first time for several of the visitors. All the usual stuff - to me - but relative rarities to some of the others, Marsh Harriers, Bitterns booming sporadically, Black tailed Godwits changing into their summer plumage.

After about a five mile walk I stuffed lamb chops and asparagus into my face and went for a lie down, aided by Malcolm Kendrick-approved red wine.

Yesterday I walked on one of the commons. Plenty of Woodlarks chumbling about on the ground, and some flying up to the treetops and calling, but very little song again, strange that as two years ago they were very scarce and last year I had them coming out of my ears, and I have known them start singing in February.

Loads of Linnets in the gorse, Chaffinches, Greenfinches, Goldfinches and some very small birds I think were Halfinches

sorry

Actually a whole treeful of Siskins singing their little hearts out.

Normally I drive round from one common to the other as it's on the way home, but I walked through all the way to the back of the second common and sat for a while on a treetrunk hoping to hear the Nightingale, but no luck. At one stage I had a really bad attack of tinnitus - then realised a hoverfly had landed on my left shoulder and was making a high pitched hum. Not a single Dartford Warbler anywhere.

That must have been about another five miles and was followed by a massive kipper with toasted almonds, spinach and the usual thickly buttered oatcakes and glass of red wine.

Today I'm having a refeeding day, I walked in another wood and heard another Nightingale but again no Willow Warblers, polished off the last of my Gloucester Old Spot sausages with PSB and am shortly going to demolish a Bolognese and Halloumi with asparagus.

Nice mix of birds Chris, but like you I would find the attitude of some birders difficult to put up with. We don't have many birders in Cumbria and when we go to Northumbria the birders over there are a grand set of characters with loads of experience but not arrogant.. We had an incredible beautiful day in Lakes Sunday but too many tourists driving round Derwentwater. Caught up with Pied Fly, Restart and Tree Pipit but no Wood Warblers in yet. Willow Warblers down but present throughout, Chiffchaff's more common than formerly. Blackcaps common.
Hard frost outside this am and snowed yesterday evening. regards Derek

@Derek"We had an incredible beautiful day in Lakes Sunday but too many tourists driving round Derwentwater."

It can be difficult getting the numbers right ... areas need tourists, and you often see so many coaches as well as cars.

It is so nice to get off the beaten track, but obviously care and safety need to be taken into account.

The Lakes are such a beautiful part of the UK, hopefully we may get a visit up there later in the year.

For scenery, birds, wildlife it is majestic

All the best Jan

Jan1 wrote:@Derek"We had an incredible beautiful day in Lakes Sunday but too many tourists driving round Derwentwater."

It can be difficult getting the numbers right ... areas need tourists, and you often see so many coaches as well as cars.

It is so nice to get off the beaten track, but obviously care and safety need to be taken into account.

The Lakes are such a beautiful part of the UK, hopefully we may get a visit up there later in the year.

For scenery, birds, wildlife it is majestic

All the best Jan

Hi Jan, yes we feel we are fortunate,been here over 50 years now but family had to go south to get jobs. The mountains above 1500' have some snow on them today, it is very cold for the insect eating migrants now.
regards
Derek

Yes most of the birders here are interesting and helpful so the others tend to stand out. As a registered Old Fart I'm happy to pass on what I've learned, because that's how I learned in the first place, and of course I'm still learning.

When I was young we had Spotted Flycatchers in our garden, and as recently as ten years back we still had them in the churchyard and some gardens in the village. A couple of years back there was a big group of birders at Minsmere quite ecstatic because they'd seen one on migration (in autumn) and I realised most years I see far more Pieds passing through. There used to be breeding Redstarts in small numbers in the eighties but they're all gone too, dunno if they're still in Surrey and Sussex where they also used to be in small numbers along with Wood Warblers and Tree Pipits, or in the New Forest. Further west and north they are still common, and pass through here mainly in autumn. Glad to know you still have them, Redstarts are one of my all time favourite birds.

We've sent most of the Golden Plovers and Curlews back, did you get them yet? Also some of the Snipe, the rest will be in the next consignment.

I remember the winter of 1962 - 3 which decimated the populations of many small residents and reduced the Dartford Warblers to something like 8 pairs in the entire country. Then there was the Sahel Desert expansion in I think 1968 which severely affected Whitethroats, Willow Warblers and many other trans-Saharan migrants. Most of them recovered in numbers but Willow Warblers took another hit in I think the nineties when they were outnumbered by Chiffchaffs.

Last year the Willows took yet another hit along with the Nightingales, I think the weather in Europe had an effect at the wrong time and lots of them never bothered to come this far. Nightingales still trickling in, and Swifts starting to show up, but the Willows are still lacking here, nice to know you have them at least. Yes loads of Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps here too.

Remember that late Hobby you saw last year? I had one about a week later, and another (or the same one) was reported about a week after that. This year one was spotted back in February so I wonder if it overwintered somewhere, along with the very early House Martins. More Hobbies are arriving though I didn't see any yet. Low numbers of Redwings and Fieldfares this winter but I spotted several of the latter still around recently, and Waxwings still being reported but to be honest I no longer even try to find them.

Probably the current cold snap, including snow and hail and horrid cold rain, will put the kybosh on migration for a while. There was a serious lack of wintering Starlings too but judging by the numbers queueing up on my gutter begging for mealworms they've started breeding.

Found a couple more Nightingales in their usual haunts, but for some reason one had translocated from its historical spot to the other side of the path. They aren't singing that much yet, like some other migrants when they first arrive they put out a burst of song and then listen for replies and if they don't hear any others they stop and go back to feeding. When more have arrived and they can hear one another and are establishing territories they will sing 24/7, except for feeding breaks.

They are buggers to see, and when they do come out of cover they are quite disappointing, like a large nondescript brown Robin with a rusty tail. They do an equally nondescript "wheet" call a bit like Chiffchaff, Willow Wobbler, Redstart, Chaffinch etc. but also a characteristic grunt, both of which I heard more than the song.

Saw a baby Robin just fledged already, and finally heard a Willow Warbler singing properly, silvery cascades of notes while flitting around in the treetops. Only about the third I've seen or heard this year so far.

Female House Sparrow has discovered the mealworms, they had become almost extinct by the time we left Surrey and are only now diminishing in numbers here. Haven't had Tree Sparrows since the neighbours deleted their chickens, and haven't seen one for the last couple of years anywhere, but people tell me they are still around mainly further north and west.

Nightingales have been in the news recently.

Back in 1924 cellist Beatrice Harrison played cello in a Surrey garden while nightingales sang
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01z12h7

Forward to May 2017 and on the BBC Breakfast show this clip 'Singing with Nightingales' was played
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x-DEV6aLbA

All the best Jan

My parents once took me to the wood where Beatrice Harrison played. There's also a famous BBC recording of nightingales and bombers during the war



Suffolk is pretty much the nightingale capital of the country, they get rarer even as close as Norfolk, and since I didn't go there for so long I don't know how many are left sahf of the rivvah, Kent used to be better than Surrey and Sussex and there used to be some in the New Forest. When I lived near Gatwick I had one in the garden, strangely in August post-breeding, trying desperately to drown out the noise of the aircraft, which reminded me of that recording. They can be window-rattlingly loud.

Hoped but failed to see Swifts in town today but they are filtering in now. Plenty of rarities passing through

http://www.freewebs.com/suffolkbirding/index.htm

Mrs Sparrow brought her husband to show him where to find the mealworms, it's quite endearing how she spots me through the kitchen window and flits about in the rose bush until I feed her.

"Mrs Sparrow brought her husband to show him where to find the mealworms, it's quite endearing how she spots me through the kitchen window and flits about in the rose bush until I feed her."

That's nice Chris ...

Also nice to read about the robin (your post of 29 April).
There is something special about robins. I've always liked them, perhaps it's the colour, or the fact that as a child they reminded me of Christmas, and that memory stays with me ...

All the best Jan

Robins are cute, and usually friendly. I believe they used to follow pigs around as they churned the soil and turned up insects, now they do the same with gardeners.

They're quite easy to tame too, I've had several which would come to my hand for mealworms, and my parents had some which would come into the house and hop about in the lounge.

They can be completely vicious to other Robins though, and will even pull a stuffed one to pieces.

Back on one of the commons and up to three Nightingales, still only singing sporadically though. No sound of the Woodlark I heard last year, and both there and in the woods where I later walked still no Willow Warblers.

Hi Chris,
Plenty of Willow Warblers still up here, one coming into the garden to sing of late. Small passage of Swifts since the beginning of the month. What is noticeable this year is the numbers of Orange Tip butterflies locally.
Derek

Oh yes we have goodly numbers of Orange Tips too, starting early in the season.

I went to the bluebell wood but there seemed to be some sort of event going on, the car park was jammed and there were hordes of people milling around, including one in a hi-viz jacket, so I drove down to the Hen Reedbed again. Apart from the regular Marsh Harriers - all males in flight, including three having a territorial battle including grappling, the females were presumably on nests already - there were at least four Hobbies, some flying very high and others flashing past at head height. Among other things they were catching Hawthorn Flies - what one of the others there, a fisherman, called blackflies.

Only sporadic Bittern booms but Grey Herons and Little Egrets flying in and out of the heronry so presumably feeding young. A couple of Sedge Warblers having a good ding-dong, including popping right out into the open on top of bushes, and doing some song flights.

One of the guys I was chatting to was from Essex. As usual we were reminiscing about the changes over the years, in the course of which he told me there were a lot of Cuckoos in Essex. There wasn't much I could say to that.

I went on to a smaller, less well known and less populated bluebell wood, which smelled gorgeous, but again no Willow Warblers. Glad to know someone still has them! <jealous>

By then the wind had gotten up and it even drizzled a bit so I came home to feed the sparrows and eat the last of the sausages and purple sprouting.

We like to get down to Lincoln in the Spring, they still have quite a few Nightingales singing in Whisby Nature Park. It was a gravel pit in my youth. This will be pretty much the end of the Nightingales northward range on the east side of England.
Derek