Spoonbills.

 

I along with another volunteer took 8 visitors on a "Spoonbill Experience Walk" at RSPB Fairburn Ings today.

This was part of our view. Lots of cormorants in the trees to the left of the ones in the photo.As the spoonbills are the last to arrive, the cormorants, grey herons, little and cattle egrets have all taken the best nesting sites.

 we saw several spoonbills on their nests and the young ones. we also saw spoonbills feeding and flying.

After the walk I went down to the Lin Dike end of the reserve. The highland cattle were near the footpath so i was able to get a few pictures of the cattle egrets.

From the viewing screen I saw a couple of black-tailed godwits.

Tornado: Scarborough Spa Express

 

Osprey

 

The weather was not as bad as forecast. Raining on my journey up the A1 but it was fine by the time I reached the car park at the quarry. I was hoping to see an osprey.

No activity near the nest site.

The water level at Flask lake was fairly low and work was taking place at the right hand end of the lake so I was not too hopeful.

I sat and watched sand martins hunting for about 45 minutes before setting off for the hide on the other side of the lake.

Lots of orchids and as the sun came out so did the insects,

This is the view looking across the lake towards where I had been sitting.

The sunshine had gone as I sat and watched a pair of marsh harriers.

Then I noticed a large bird in the sky, an osprey. It was flying quite high and did not attempt to catch any fish.

Not brilliant photos due to the light and distance. I put the sighting on Bluesky, and when I looked up again I could not see the osprey at all. I walked back to the car park and drove to the other part of the reserve.

Not a lot of water but plenty of activity. Swifts flying around, swooping low over the water.

Lapwings and oystercatchers close to the hide.

I presumed that the land further up the slope was easier for them to penetrate with their bills, rather than the dryer mud close to the waters edge. Shelducks had 3 young, lots of young black-headed gulls and four avocet chicks.

Rarely were they all together, I hope that they manage to survive.

Avocets rule !!

 

A cloudy and cooler day at RSPB Blacktoft on Sunday.

A mixture of sunshine, cloud and rain with a fairly strong breeze. Marshland Lagoon is currently home for several adult avocets and their young. When the birds first arrived on the reserve there was water on Ousefleet and that is where they nested and their young hatched. As the water level on Ousefleet slowly reduced some of the adults took their young to the next lagoon, Marshland. 

The adult avocets rule and anything that is near their young is chased away, even if it is a day old mallard duckling!

The four remaining young avocets are now nearly adult size and their plumage is slowly turning darker.

When a marsh harrier appears, several avocets take to the air to chase it away.

It is now the time of year when waders are starting to return from their breeding grounds in northern Europe or Siberia. Female spotted redshanks leave before the males, who look after the young and make their journey south later.

Three spotted redshanks were on marshland lagoon on Sunday. They like the other birds were chased by the avocets, so they did not come close to the hide, hence the poor photo.

This is one of the 3 green sandpipers having a rest before the avocets attack again. A single greenshank was at the fat end of the lagoon.

Again this is possibly a female as they too leave before the young can fly.

A family of lapwings were close to the hide

the adults were defending their young from the avocets. A few young bearded tits were feeding on the insects at the edge of the lagoon.

So, the next stage of birding begins as the migrants begin to trickle back southwards. Reports from Filey include large numbers of swifts flying south. Gotta travel on, summers almost gone, winters coming on!!

Red Arrows over York

 The red Arrows flew over York on their way back to base after a display in Northern Ireland.

It took less than a minute for them to fly past our house.

Back to feathered flyers at RSPB Blacktoft tomorrow.

Growing families at Blacktoft

 

On duty in reception hide at RSPB Blacktoft, yesterday.  This was my view from Reedling hide at 8 am.

Young Avocets are on Marshland lagoon and the adults are on duty chasing everything away.

This Little egret was keeping to one side of an island, away from the protective adult Avocets.

This mother duck was escorting its young away from the young avocets.

There were 2 green sandpipers also keeping away from the avocets.

Reedling lagoon is home to several families.

This female pochard has two young

The young cygnets do not appear to be growing very quickly.

This brood of mallard ducklings were been watched by a marsh harrier.

Lots of butterflies on the reserve.

Young warblers are out and about searching for food.

Three red deer stags were feeding just behind Reedling lagoon.

A bittern flew from the reedbed in front of 1st hide to the reedbed in front of Reedling hide.

Lots of visitors were able to enjoy their first ever sighting of a bittern, and one couple managed to see a chiffchaff for the first time, despite them trying at lots of different locations. People usually leave the reserve with pleasant memories.