Donna Nook Seals, 9th December

Headed to the coast on sunday morning to see the Grey Seal colony at Donna Nook in Lincolnshire. I've wanted to visit this reserve for ages, but being in notts, its a bit difficult to get to the coast without a car. However my  girlfriend was more than happy to drive us there, and i'm glad we went as we had an excellent couple of hours there.

On cresting the hill the first thing you see is hundreds of seals. The stretch of coast with the viewing area couldnt be better located and it really is wildlife watching made easy. I guess thats why its so popular, as there were many people there from far and wide. Ignoring the crowds, it is a great experience with seal pups sitting there at touching distance while the large mothers sat a little more warily a few metres away. Photo opportunities were rife and with little effort it is easy to get some incredible shots. The larger males busy themselves with sitting further down the beach, fighting and mating, making it a little more difficult to take photos. They are absolutely massive and to see 90 stone of grey seal throwing itself about the beach is quite a spectacle.

Anyway I've added some of the better shots and i've made a Flickr album with more on it. Please feel free to take a look!

Bird-wise there was loads about, a proper treat for an land-locked birder. There were plenty of waders, mainly Turnstone, some of which came quite close in, and there were also several Dunlin a few Redshank and in the distance were some large flocks of Lapwing. There were also large flocks of Starling, Skylark and Twite, and if i had my scope i probably could have picked out some buntings and maybe something more interesting?! A couple of Rock Pipit were a highlight too. A large raptor was seen at a distance on the beach, with the jizz of a Harrier but i lost sight of it before confirming its ID.

A great day out which i hope to repeat next year, and its made me very keen to get to the coast again!

Recent birding, late autumn

been out and about a fair bit recently. There's been an influx of waxwing recently in Notts following the pattern for the rest of the UK. I caught up with some at the Red Cow pub in Lenton last thursday on my way to clifton. Gary and mick from the south notts ringing group were there, hoping to net some of them but they were flying into their feeding tree too high so would miss the nets. Three were found dead, having flown into windows fleeing from a sparrowhawk. Find pictures here. There were roughly 20 of them in the trees, and although I had my camera, they were too high up and the light was terrible, so no photos. I cycled on to clifton in strong blustery winds, and due to this fact I didnt stay too long. Very little was about, and it wasnt til the end that it really felt worth going, as i saw my first ever Brambling, a lovely male bird feeding in some willows with a flock of tits and goldcrest.

There's been loads of Waxwings seen since then, with flocks of up to 150 in beeston, and still plenty in lenton. I had a look today at the usual hotspot of Hucknall road, where flocks are often seen in trees between the Total garage and the Lidl, but there werent any there, but it won't be long til there will be i'm sure. Just waiting for some colder weather!

One of my missions this winter is to see my first short eared owl. Gedling pit is a fantastic place to see them, and up to 5 have been flying up there in recent weeks. I went up on saturday and had an awful time, it was dark, grey, wet and cold - not good raptor weather! The next day, while i was at work, the sun was shining wonderfully, and reports say that 5 were seen up there. Typical.

In other news, i heard a Raven at Holme Pierrepont while walking the dog on monday morning, in the grassland east of the A52 pit. We also flushed a woodcock while walking through some willow woodland. This is the second record of raven i've had this year, after seeing a pair over dukes wood near eakring in july.

Off to gedling again tomorrow hopefully, as its meant to be sunny, so will hopefully get me an owl!

Searching for a Slav

A Slavionan Grebe has been knocking about the A52 Pit at Holme Pierrepont this week. I decided as it had been seen yesterday evening that it would be a good idea to spend the morning around HP and then do some more birding elsewhere. The problem with the A52 pit is that its enormous and is in the middle of privately owned land which is inaccessible to the public, and the range of viewpoints for this huge waterbody is restricted, as far as i know, to ONE place next to a stinky pig farm. I had the joyful experience of dipping on a Red-necked Phalarope there last summer, and was worried about it happening again. I got to the view point and set to scanning the tiny area of water that can be seen from it and lo and behold... no Slav! I waited around for a bit but had no joy though there was plenty of other stuff to look at, including a 'flock' of about 12 Crested Grebes all together in the sun. Very nice but the wrong grebe! Some Wigeon were knocking about on the far bank along with a flock of gulls and some lapwings but all too far for my scope to see properly.

After a while I decided to have a wander round the scrubby grassland at the eastern edge of the site where we do the ringing with South Notts Ringing Group.  There was certainly a lot about in the morning sunshine but nothing to write home about. I did however have a pleasant wander about, seeing some Green Woodpeckers, which this site is particularly good for, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and several noisy Jays. A small flock of Siskin flew over and Goldfinches were knocking about too. In the scrub were lots of Long Tailed Tits, along with a few other tits and lots of Chiffchaff were heard calling as well as the odd Bullfinch. Just as I was leaving the site a Cetti's Warbler burst into song several times in succession.

Moving on from this site I cycled over to Clifton to do my final butterfly survey of the year and to see if any Chats were about. Both Whinchat and Stonechat were here over the weekend but again I had no joy. There's usually a good passage of Whinchat towards the end of august and beginning of september with stonechats a bit later but its not been as obvious this year, though I did get sightings of both species in the spring this year.

I had a brilliant afternoon nonetheless, spending 4 hours strolling around the site. Not much of note was seen on the grove where I did my Butterfly survey (which was awful although I wasn't expecting much at this late stage), aside from common garden/woodland birds including several showy Goldcrest. The area of most interest was Cottages Flash, which was much more underwater than last time I was here. It seemed like a wetland paradise, and seemed to have stolen most of its birds from Attenborough. There were at least 250 Lapwing, some of which were making life hard for a singleton Green Sandpiper. There were 2 Grey Heron and 2 Little Egret (my first for the area!) as well as a load of gulls, ducks and geese. Would have been nice to get some snipe or other waders but it was great to watch so many birds in one place. There were around 200 Starling about too.

It was a day for Finches today though. On Branshill moor 2 largish flocks of linnet went through possibly numbering around 120, and near the rough wood another flock of 30 or so birds were very active, and they didn't go unnoticed as a Sparrowhawk ploughed into them at one point, audibly 'whoooshing' through the air but unsuccessful as far as I could tell. A small flock of the resident Bullfinch were about too in the hedgerow. As I worked the hedgerow at Branshill, several Siskin flocks went over and I was treated to a sight of around ten of these charismatic finches feeding on some Alder in the Rough Wood. A late Blackcap also put in an appearance and several Meadow Pipit were noted flying overhead throughout the afternoon. Some Swallows and lots of House Martin were still in the area.


I got home to find the Slav Grebe was seen about half an hour after I left and again in the afternoon, so I'm going back tomorrow morning! Also a Black Necked Grebe at Attenborough, though I doubt I'll get there before I go away to Bristol on Sunday.

Some nice birds...

Some nice birds are passing through at the moment. None of which I myself have seen I'll hasten to add. Just 2 days after me visiting Attenborough last week a Little Stint turned up, would have been a lifer for me and the first one at the reserve in many years. One has turned up at Carsington in Derbyshire which may be the same bird? Not too far as the stint flies!

I'll have to get to Clifton again soon as there has been a Whinchat and a Stonechat seen along with lots of snipe and other waders still using Cottages Flash. I always look forward to the Chat passage around this time of year though i think the stonechat is a bit earlier than usual! Maybe there'll be some Wheatear about too?

A site I'm yet to visit is Newstead and Annesley Country Park, it always turns up on birdguides with some interesting birds, but I've never actually bothered with it, however this week a Yellow-browed Warbler has turned up, so if it stays about and there's a bit more info I may have to venture up there soon.

So there's still plenty of stuff passig through, so its worth getting out and about. Lets see where I end up this week... 

Attenborough 20th sept

I headed out this morning to Attenborough for the first time since the end of august. I hadn't meant to leave it so long but i've been a bit busy and been to clifton more often getting the last of my butterfly surveys done. Several interesting birds have been knocking about over the last few weeks including 2 osprey sightings, gargeneys and even a sandwich tern, so I was excited to see what was about.

When I opened the curtains at 7 o clock the weather nearly put me off as it was raining and very dull but I was determined so after doing some household tasks set off on my bike just before 9. I arrived at the reserve about 10 and went in the Delta Hide first where 3 Little Grebes and a fly past Gadwall and a singing Cetti's Warbler were the only notables. I ventured on and parked up the bike at the visitor centre. On the tween pond were the usual mix of geese and lapwings, along with quite a few Teal. On the wheatear field lagoon a Ringed Plover was seen feeding, a bird I've only seen once at the reserve and one which obviously was keen to keep the wader passage alive, as there weren't any other waders present today.

Duck numbers seem to be increasing, which is great as my favourite winter pastime at the reserve is counting the numbers of wildfowl using the reserve. Shoveler, Teal and Gadwall were abundant with 50-60 of each species present across the reserve, and there was even a Wigeon present, my first of the autumn. Numbers will swell significantly in the next few months and i'm looking forward to the first returning Goosanders, and maybe even my first Red-breasted Merganser for the site?

Passerines were notably more abundant too, compared to the relatively silent few visits I had towards the end of August. Chaffinches and Tit Flocks were everywhere and there were a few nice looking chiffchaffs about in some of the flocks too. Gulls were also here in greater numbers, mostly black headed gulls, but there were several Herring Gulls knocking about as well as an adult Yellow Legged Gull.

Signs of winter are coming, what with these ducks flocks and gulls! Looking forward to seeing more ducks coming in and the first winter thrushes. And let's not forget the Bitterns!

Late Summer Birding 2012

Been birding quite a lot recently inbetween going away to festivals, birdfair (where I saw heaps of waders, a Black Tern, and dipped on a Little Stint), working and doing butterfly surveys. Somehow i've managed to squeeze it all in.

As is the norm this time of year one of the highlights has been the increase in waders around the country, and while Notts usually misses out on rare 'yank' waders and other vagrants, we do get an influx of passage birds dropping in at our wetland sites. I've managed to get to Attenborough a few times throughout August, picking up a few of these birds which you don't see often in our landlocked county.

Cottages flash, over the river from Attenborough, actually on the Clifton site, has been attracting waders throughout the summer, due to it being inundated through the heavy rains we've had all summer. The Trent has also kept it topped up by breaching its banks a few times early on. At the end of July a Greenshank and Common Sandpiper showed well when I paid it a visit on the Clifton side.

At Attenborough itself, several visits throughout August revealed a Common Sandpiper kicking things off on the 4th, and a Greenshank showing splendidly on the 22nd which stayed for around a week around the wet grassland on wheatear field, along with up to 4 Little Egrets. Things got a bit busier the week after with 3 Common Sandpiper across the reserve, several Snipe, 2 juvenile Ruff and a few Black tailed Godwits, although the latter found it more comfortable spending time over the river at cottages flash. I haven't been since but judging from records there's still a few birds dropping in and moving through.

Obviously songbirds are less obvious around this time of year and its been starkly obvious when walking around, barely hearing anything and only getting the occasional view of a skulking warbler here and there. However duck numbers seem to be slowly swelling, especially at Attenborough, where Teal and Shoveler are trickling in to join the Mallard and Gadwall to create a big mass of confusing brown birds while the males are all in eclipse plumage. Bring on the Wigeon!

In more recent weeks, raptor numbers have been on the up as migrating birds and juveniles have been taking to the skies. I missed out on seeing a Hobby all summer until while working at Clifton on the 22nd of August, one showed itself incredibly well while chasing House Martin up near the farm near Branshill. After that there were several seen within a couple of weeks, with more being seen at clifton, one on a bike ride near Shelford and while working at Skylarks in Holme Pierrepont a male bird was seen hawking dragonflies giving amazing views. Buzzard numbers have increased too which is usual at this time of year as the juveniles are being persuaded to disperse by their weary parents. A visit to Clifton produced at least 10 birds one morning, and counts of even more birds have been recorded in recent weeks. Most interesting however was a Red Kite seen at Holme Pierrepont being mobbed by crows on the 9th of September, only my second record of this species in Notts after seeing one at Attenborough in september 2010.

Other highlights include my first ever Spotted Flycatcher which was seen atop a dead oak tree on Clifton Grove while I was surveying butterflies on the 8th. I'd visited the area a few days previously with the sole intention of finding a Spotted Fly but failed miserably, so I was really pleased to have finally caught up with one after missing them in previous years. Also a very brief and early record of a Bittern at Holme Pierrepont was very exciting and is the first i've seen in notts since winter 2010/11.

So its been an incredible few weeks really. I'm keeping an eye out so hopefully i'll see some more interesting stuff, autumns on its way so let's hope for something a bit special.

Last weeks birding -28th april to 3rd may

April has finally transformed into May, and with it... still some pretty crap weather! Not as rainy as it has been, but still quite rubbish, but i managed to get out a few times.

The day after i got back from Netherfield (see last post), i had planned to get on with some gardening before i went to work. However I got a tip off from a friend that 47 Wheatear had alighted around clifton that evening, so i got up and visited the area, getting there just after 10am. Unfortunately the wheatears had moved on, although I did manage to see one on the ploughed field in front of Branshill Woods, my first spring wheatear since 2010! Otherwise I had a pleasant morning, covering quite a lot of ground and seeing around 45 species. The river was incredibly high after all the rainfall, it must have been 6-8 foot higher than 2 weeks ago. A Kingfisher was seen at the breeding location I'd noted last year, though i'm sure the water is covering the old nest site. Over on the weir fields by the river, there was much water overspilling from the river. The brambles here which normally hold many warblers werew still a bit quiet, although a Sedge Warbler was heard singing in the undergrowth, and 3 pairs of Linnet were noted. There were no Yellow wagtails yet around the cattle, maybe a little early yet, though over the river a few Swift were seen, and Skylarks were in abundance. The paddocks near branshill wood were busy with many birds, including loads of warblers in the hedgerows, mainly Willow Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff, but a few Whitethroat too. Scanning the ploughed field in front of the woods produced the aforementioned Wheatear, as well as 3 Red-legged Partridge and several Lapwing. Reports of some Ruff and Ringed Plover led me to looking at cottages flash, but neither species were present. However, the flash is vastly extended thanks to the river bursting its banks, so there was a good number of wetland birds here, including 2 Common Sandpiper, an Oystercatcher, and lots of wildfowl. Large numbers of Swallow and House Martin were also found feeding over the fields.

I returned to Clifton the following monday, as I woke up to a beautiful sunny morning. I've been doing some butterfly surveys in the area, which have been on hold due to the weather, so with a bit of sun i couldn't really afford not to get out there. Butterflies were indeed in abundance, and on my transect i counted 32 butterflies from 6 species, including a couple of Holly Blue. I did a little bit of birding along the way too, mainly seeing warblers and other woodland species, including some singing Goldcrest. I also noted my first Lesser Whitethroat of the year. The possible Raven I've encountered on several visits to the area was present behind holme pit, and the Cetti's Warbler was in its usual spot, singing loudly from the southern edge of the pond. Loads of Reed warblers were singing too.

A few days working with the wildlife trust ended in me working at Besthorpe on thursday. It was just me and the reserves officer, putting up some signs and interpretation boards, so we had a bit of time to indulge in some birding too. The water levels were again very high here too, with the water covering all the scrapes and islands on mons pool, including all the reed fencing we'd erected last year. This eliminated mosy oppurtunities to see any waders, but for the hirundines it was excellent. On the western section of the lake there were hundreds of House Martin and Sand Martin, as well as a good number of Reed Bunting using the feeders. Over the eastern edge there were swallows instead, following the herd of sheep as they came to inspect us, and we had birds flying within a metre or so of us. A Cuckoo was heard calling from around the heron island, and warblers were in abundance including some Lesser Whitethroat. We later moved onto the central part of the reserve, where another male Cuckoo was heard, as well as the 'bubbling' call of a female. 3 in one day is quite a good record, what with the cuckoo in such decline. A field next to trent lane had been flooded in the rains, attracting huge amounts of wetland birds. The field is usually just a grassy meadow which is being improved into arable land, but it looked more like a lake when we arrived, with loads of geese and gulls using it, a Curlew was noted calling and was soon located, before another 3 were seen nearby. This is my first record of Curlew for Nottinghamshire so I was pretty pleased about that.