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The wind moved into the west which brought an end to exciting seawatches. It's since turned south-s'easterly which can be good for VizMigging  -visible migration - which for me means observing and counting birds on their autumn migration from a single vantage point. I'm normally in Tarifa at this time for the most spectacular VizMig in western Europe, it wasn't to be this year...

Instead, my vantage point was the 'big dune' at Druridge this morning. No flocks of Honey Buzzards, Short-toed Eagles or White Storks but a great vantage point at the innermost part of the bay which funnels coasting birds in to one point. I only had an hour or so before work from 7.30am to 8.30am. The wind was light and the skies were clear.

Typical view of a passing Meadow Pipit

Meadow Pipits and Swallows were piling through as I arrived and continued to do so. House and Sand Martins came through in lower numbers with only a few Skylarks and Pied/White Wagtails. A few waders included 2 Ruff, Greenshank, Black-tailed Godwit and four Snipe. 

The final tally for one hour was:

Barn Swallow - 557

Meadow Pipit - 288

House Martin - 36

Sand Martin - 14

Skylark - 4

Pied/White Wagtail - 2

The last couple of evenings have been warm, sunny and calm and I've had a couple of brief looks on the sea. Yesterday I photographed a wader coming in-off, it flew over my head as I photographed (I nearly went-over backwards) and had me stumped at first. Any guesses what it is?

Out of context wader

The Scoter flock numbers around 350 but is always changing, last night there were two Great-crested Grebes with them, tonight two Tufted Duck. The flock is constantly changing and requires regular scrutiny if a 'Surfy' is to be found. 

Tonight I had two treats, an aerial battle between an Arctic Skua and a young Sandwich Tern and a beautiful sunset. An adult and juvenile Roseate tern were nice as it won't be long until they're gone. 

Let battle commence

 

Off they go

Sunset, that's the Simonside Hills behind the turbines. 

It's been a funny sort of year...

Well that's 2020 over and done with. Whilst it's been a awful year for most people due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic it's actually been quite a good year for birds on the patch. 

Despite the 'hard-lockdown' that kept me away from the patch for the best part of two months I've smashed my personal year list total, which has stood at 174 for a while now and has been achieved in three years, with a total of 179 species for 2020.

So why such a good year this year?

I only added two new species to my patch list year (Great Reed Warbler in June and Blyth's Reed Warbler in October) so it wasn't lots of new species (like 2017) that did it. Even though it caused me to stay away from the patch for nearly two months, I think COVID-19 has been indirectly responsible for the higher list. Working from home due to the outbreak has given me more time on the patch and as the saying goes 'Time spent in the field = birds'. I hardly missed a morning in the summer and autumn, reverting to lunchtime visits as the days shortened. Add a good autumn and some superb seawatching sessions to more time on the patch and there you have it!

I know that I've missed at least three species - Hoopoe during lockdown that would've been a patch tick, Cattle Egret which I saw at Bells Farm as I drove home from the patch and should've turned around for and a Great Egret which briefly appeared on the Budge fields. A chap called Harrison on eBird has recorded five species that I've not seen in 2020 - A Jay(!!) and three Collared Doves in July, two Yellowhammers in June and Cetti's Warbler and Bearded Tit in March - the latter would be a patch tick for me and is overdue. 

I've busted a gut since I finished work for Christmas to reach 180 but I'm happy with 179. Missing species this year include Collared Dove (for the second year), Merlin, Yellowhammer, Storm Petrel and Grey Plover amongst the commonly occurring species.

As well as the two additions, other rare/scarce highlights have included Tundra Bean Goose, Black-necked Grebe, Balearic Shearwater, Long-tailed Skua (several),  White-rumped Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, Grey Phalarope, Sabine's Gull and Lapland Bunting.

I've had two long sessions on the patch in the last couple of days, covering it all. I think there's been a cold-weather movement which has resulted in an influx of thrushes - I had a record count of 14 Mistle Thrushes in the field north of the Coal Road yesterday and a couple this morning by the farm. Fieldfares were in the bushes this morning and there's more Song Thrushes about too. 

Mistle Thrush at Druridge Farm

Male Blackbird, feeding in the gloom by the Budge hide.

After seeing very few Pink-footed Geese during December, suddenly there are lots. Janet and I saw at least 5-6000 in one group this morning, circling around before coming in to land in the fields behind Bell's Pond. Tonight from the dunes, at least 5000 flew south and 3-3500 flew north (there may have been some recirculation but there are a lot of geese about. 

Some of the pink-foots coming in to land this morning - they literally filled the sky

The light was stunning at times today, between spells of cloud and some crispy, cold days have provided some nice photo opportunities to end the year. 

Artistic like - silhouetted curlews and wind turbines

And without the turbines

Looking west across the Big Pool this morning

Looking south down the Bay this evening

Looking east across the Big Pool yesterday

Drake Goldeneye taking off

In-coming Curlew

Black-headed Gull in stunning light this evening.

And here is the sun setting over the patch for the last time this year. It just remains for me to wish you everyone who reads this a healthy and happy 2021 - and good birding! Tomorrow it starts all over again.

The sun sets on 2020 from Druridge Links

Gone West

The wind had gone back into the west and with it some of the excitement of birding the patch, when there's a hint of an easterly at this time you just never know what will turn up, but after a couple of days of westerlies anticipation levels wain a bit.

My morning walks this week have been dominated by the Pink-footed Geese that have been roosting on the Budge fields - about 3000 of them are on the water at first light but they soon lift and head off south to feed. A single Yellow-browed Warbler hung on until Tuesday, it was ringed so presumably the bird we ringed on 16th it was very vocal and made a couple of sound recording of it. 

Goldfinch feeding on Alder cones

Reed Bunting - at least the twig is sharp

After work on Friday evening I checked the bushes to the north. I had the briefest views of Sylvia warbler, as soon as I had my bins on it, it flew and I couldn't relocate it. The upperparts had too much rufous-brown in them for the lesser whitethroats I've been watching, my guess would be Whitethroat but it is very late for them 

Further north, I got onto a Phylloscopus warbler, initial views showed a very broad supercillium and then I lost it, I phoned Janet as it was an interesting bird. I got back onto it with limited views but it showed a peachyness to the under-parts but olive-green above and then it called - Tristis Chiffchaff!

It wasn't very vocal, only calling a few times and I never managed to record it, despite that it was nearly dark, I did get some record shots.

Siberian Chiff

You can make out the light peachy-wash under the tail in this shot

The sky was a fiery orange away to the west at sunset. 

Sunset over the big pool

Sunset over the big pool

And fire in the sky

Lapwings flying south at dusk

Yesterday I had another evening walk and the highlights were another Treecreeper - that's three for the year now, I'd previously only seen six since 1994, Water Rail and Great-spotted Woodpecker.

List here

Today, Janet and I had walk along the Coal Road, inland to the Preceptory and back by High Chibburn and Druridge Farm. It was very windy and we didn't see much of note (list here) but here are some photos.

A small group of Redshank on the fields

Coming in to land

Rook

It looks like south-westerly winds are going to dominate until at least next weekend.

Waders

If I was a migrant wader, I would like the look of the Budge fields at the moment, the vegetation is a bit high, but they'll do.

They were certainly popular with lapwings this morning, there was at least 300 of them. There was also about eight dunlin, one common sandpiper, two ringed plover, one little ringed plover and at least 30 snipe.

On the big pool, there were snipe, three common sandpipers and three whimbrel in front of the hide. Also on the big pool, a pair of great-crested grebes have set up nest, it seems very late, maybe they have failed elsewhere. There were also four pochard, my first of the year.

whimbrel

common sandpipers

snipe

 I caught up with Paul Stewart on the big dune, we saw three little egrets on the Budge fields and very little offshore, an Arctic skua being all of note. Whilst we were chatting, I got a call to say that Bob Dack was watching a curlew sandpiper from the Budge screen. We headed down there and were soon watching a spanking curlew sandpiper, moulting out of summer plumage, still showing plenty of red on the underside.

weird fog this weekend at Druridge

I had a quick look offshore this evening but the light wasn't good as a light fog came and went. The sunset was nice though.

nice sunset over the Cheviot Hills

140 pochard

141 curlew sandpiper

PWC score 185