Back on the patch

Back on the patch today for my first visit of the year after a two-week birding trip to Taiwan.

Taiwan was interesting and it's not a place many birders get to so we were working somewhat blind but managed to see all but two of the expected endemic species.

It was good to be back on the patch on a cold and crisp sunny morning. I only had time for a quick wander around but added 31 species to the year list. The bushes were quiet as expected, a couple of coal tits were interesting as they are usually an autumn species.

Coal tit

All of the ducks were on the big pool as the Budge fields were frozen solid and there were plenty of them - I'll have a better idea of numbers on Sunday when I do the WeBS count but there were plenty of wigeon and teal.

Drake tufted duck

Pair of Mallards

I wandered up to the north end of the patch and onto the beach along the Dunbar Burn channel where I flushed a jack snipe - it shot out as I approached the end of the channel where there is some wrack accumulated which I presume it was feeding on. 

I didn't see jack snipe last year on the patch. This has happened to me so often, I go a whole year without seeing a species and then see it on my first visit of the next year... Bullfinch, greenfinch. yellowhammer and peregrine are all on that list.

This teal was feeding just beyond where the jack snipe came up from, it stayed put as I walked by, must be plenty of feeding among the rotting weed.

Teal feeding amongst wrack in the Dunbar Burn channel

In the dunes to the north, there was a flock of least 80 twite with a handful of chaffinches, goldfinches and reed buntings.

Reed bunting

More Meds

I only managed two very brief visits to the patch this weekend. Unfavourable winds and yesterday mornings rain meant I had the chance to catch up with some chores and drink too much wine.

Saturday

Not much to report. Goldcrests, robins, wrens and chiffchaffs in the bushes, the other highlight was an arrival of six mistle thrushes. They arrived from the northeast and settled in the lone pine at the back of the plantation, calling, before flying off north. I am presuming they were freshly in.

teal from the Oddie Hide

Sunday

Another afternoon visit. The bushes were still quiet, coal tits have been omnipresent in the plantation since the start of September, making the most of the pine cone crop.

coal tit with a pine seed

As a result of the recent warm weather, there are loads of insects about. Butterflies included comma, red admiral and speckled wood and a (migrant?) hawker was still on the wing. There were also lots of mozzies and midges. I had a go at photographing them.

mozzies

midges

On the beach, the gull roost was building up. Amongst about 350 gulls (mainly black-headed and common), I counted SIX Mediterranean gulls - easily a patch record count for me. They seem to be much more common this year.

Spot the meds - there are two in this shot

One of Meds was carrying a green darvik ring, with a white three figure code, I couldn't get the actual code but it would appear that it was ringed in France.

So, mistle thrush puts me on 162 for the year. Already an above-average year and there is still time for a fall....I need nine more species to equal last years 171.

162 mistle thrush

PWC Score = 248

WeBS Count

Today was WeBS count day and it through up a couple of surprises.

The first surprise was a black-tailed godwit amongst the curlews, a further scan revealed a second blackwit. Black-tailed godwits are really uncommon at Druridge in winter. The only other winter record in my database was on 2nd January 2012.

Wildfowl numbers on the Budge fields are picking up with 152 wigeon, 43 teal and 13 shoveler. Lapwing numbered 237 and curlew 46.

On the big pool, the common scoter (female/first winter type) reported on Birdguides during the week was still present. A first record of this species for the inland WeBS count.

common scoter on the big pool - it never raised its head for a better photo.

I popped back to Druridge at dusk. The starling murmuration at East Chevington was visible with the naked eye. It's a pretty impressive site, numbering thousands of birds. The birds finally went into roost just before 4pm, so if you get the chance, head up there for about 3.30 for some great views.

WeBS Count

Today was WeBS count day and the WeBS count was about all I could manage. The wind from the south was biting and sleet threatened, it was grim!

The Budge fields were full of birds and they were flighty, so counting was tricky.

plenty of birds on the Budge fields

The top five were:

Wigeon 226
Lapwing 145
Curlew 118
Teal 114
Greylag 54

Highlights were the two long-staying long-tailed ducks and three pintail. Snipe was the only addition to the year list. It was sleeting hard when i finished the count, I was freezing, so I packed in and went to the Country Barn for some sustenance. 

I managed a brief check of Druridge on Friday evening after work, the evenings are getting lighter and there was still some visibility at half-past-five. Two barn owls were hunting around the dunes and song thrush was addition to the list. This takes the patch list to 64 and the Patchwork Challenge to 68 points.

One of the two barn owls hunting in the dunes

curlews silhouetted at dusk

62 song thrush
63 barn owl
64 snipe

I wish it was March

WeBS count day today, yesterday evening's beautiful spring-like sunshine now gone, a cold SE wind with freezing rain at Druridge.......Joy!

Seeing the National Trust with volunteers coppicing  trees lightened my heart, good to see this vital work getting done, I hope to do some myself next weekend...the Big Society in action!

Less wildfowl on the Budge fields than of late, but still reasonable numbers of wigeon (226) and teal (118). A pair of pintail still remain, the male looking very resplendent with his long tail feather sticking into the air, ten shoveler and two whooper swans were also notable.

36 curlew and 35 lapwing were on the adjacent fields, six stock doves were in among the curlew which were nice to see.

I wasn't brave enough to check out the sea, I was freezing so headed home for a bacon butty.

WeBS Saturday

I did my WeBS count today, a day early, because I have a rather important football match to go to tomorrow. I'm already starting to get nervous, I hate derby days. The buses leave St James' at 10am, we've found a pub that opens at 9 so we can get a couple of nerve settlers in before we set off.

No bitterns today, or yesterday when I checked at first light....humph.

There was lots of wildfowl on the Budge fields, mainly wigeon, teal and mallard. Shoveler, gadwall, goldeneye and tufted duck were year-ticks.

Top counts were:

teal 226
wigeon 197
mallard 78
redshank 41
lapwing 58

It was very windy, force 4-5, from the west which made the big pool very choppy, giving the four coots cowering in the Phragmites bed, the place to themselves.

Nothing much else to report

51 shoveler
52 tufted duck
53 gadwall
54 goldeneye

End of another ringing year

As there are now no leaves left on any trees at Druridge, at all, it's time to pack-up the ringing site, which basically means taking away our bamboo net poles for winter storage.

I've not had time to work out how many birds we have done this season, but I will and post some figures on here soon.

The wind had moved some of the poles deep into the bushes, so I spent most of this morning crawling under and through blackthorn and hawthorn bushes to retrieve them (seemingly it's what trainee ringers are there for). I now look like a self-harmer.

Whilst retrieving the poles, I came across a mixed flock of finches, mostly siskins (about 20 of these) moving through, feeding on alder cones.

Today was also WeBS count day, the Budge fields and the big pool are both brim-full, a large sand bar was blocking the Dunbar Burn mouth, it's flowing a bit now, but is well backed-up. If you are heading to Druridge soon, take your wellies, you'll need them to get to the Oddie hide.

The cows have mysteriously disappeared from the Budge fields, have they been rustled? I thought they were supposed to be on the for the winter, there is certainly more work for them to do.

Lots of teal on the Budge fields (I notice the green-winger was at Cresswell today, it would be nice to see it at Druridge before the turn of the year!), the wigeon were all on the big pool and 35 curlew were on the adjacent fields.