Hartlepool Headland

 A day out with Stuart.

We started our day with a spell of sea watching from the Headland at Hartlepool.

The tide was starting to go out, but still lots of activity close to shore. Rafts of guillemots and razorbills on the sea with a smattering of kittiwakes. A steady flow of cormorants with one of two shags. Gannets were also back and forth and a single fulmar. A light phase arctic skua made a brief appearance. One, then two red -throated divers flew south, a while later two flew north and then a single one flew south. We had no way of knowing if they were the same birds or 5 different ones.

We could hear the sound of sandwich terns as they flew past along with common terns and several arctic terns. A  single light phase arctic skua flew south. Lots of starlings on the grass in front of us and house martins hunting for insects. Swallows were also flying around catching insects for their young.

A walk to the Pilots Pier did not results in any new birds for our list.

Newburn Bridge had lots of gulls and a few juvenile sandwich terns but no waders. No birds close to the road to North Gare, so we drove down Zinc Works Road and parked the car. We then walked out towards Seaton Snook.

A little water still on the sands.

A very large beach area with lots of gulls, terns and cormorants fishing just off shore. Or at least they were until the dog walkers came along and disturbed everything. Lots of sandwich terns, a few common and arctic terns and Stu found 3 roseate terns. No sign of any skuas.

Phil Stead hide was our next stop.

2 great white egrets

 A little egret, 36 black-tailed godwits

2 snipe

Saltholme Pools was our last stop as we hoped to see a white fronted goose.

The weather forecast was for rain so we did not stay long in the hide. Stuart found some barnacle geese but no sign of a white fronted goose. A pair of snipe were feeding close to the hide.

We just got back to the car as it started to rain. A good days birding with excellent company.

11 species of waders at RSPB Blacktoft Sands.

 On duty at Blacktoft on Saturday the 23rd. Water levels may be a bit low, this is Townend lagoon,

 

More water on Reedling lagoon with a good mix of duck and waders.

Thanks to careful management by the team even more water on Singleton lagoon.

From first hide visitors had good views of water rail and bearded tits, Singleton was the place to be with 11 species of wader on view.

Lots of ruff some in different plumage.

Lots of visitors to the reserve to see the waders and none left disappointed.

One couple saw yellow wagtail, water rail and bearded tits for the first time. Stu and Catherine called in to reception for a chat and a drink. A very pleasant day.

30 minutes with an accipiter.

 Domestic duties took me to the East Coast today, so I took the opportunity to visit Filey Dams.

Like a lot of places water levels are very low. From the car park hide I could see a single green sandpiper and several moorhens.

A couple of pools of water in view from the Central hide.

Ruff and green sandpiper busily feeding. I then walked to the East hide.

A larger pool of water here. Lots of mallards asleep at the edge of the reeds. Ruff and moorhens feeding, a single shelduck

and a single black-tailed godwit.

Something in front of me caught my eye.

Spot the sparrowhawk.

The bird stayed there for a while before flying to my left

it then flew into the vegetation at the bottom of a mature tree.

I lost sight of it for a while and then saw it back in the tree.

It kept changing position on the branch

Then a magpie flew into the tree

Then a second magpie appeared and the sparrowhawk flew away.

A very interesting half an hour. I left the hide shortly afterwards and walked to East Lea. I met Judith near the memorial trees. She was trying to take a photo of a blue butterfly. As we stood looking for it we were distracted by the sight of two birds flying out of the nearby brambles.

The birds very quickly flying out of the brambles, catching insects and returning to the brambles. I managed a very hurried shot.

They were 2 lesser whitethroats, year tick 175.

I then walked onto towards the hide, stopping at the view point to look over the fields. a cattle egret had been seen in the field with the cows, I could not see the bird.

As you can see there is not much water here, a couple of areas of wet mud on which a single ruff and 16 moorhens were feeding.

On the way back to my car I stopped at the viewing point to try and see the cattle egret. The cows were quite close with lots of corvids and greylag geese in the field and in the distance I saw the egret fly a short distance. A pleasant 2 hours.

Dearne Valley

 RSPB York Local Group field trip to RSPB Old Moor that Masha was leading. I decided to go early and try to see some wood sandpipers, which had been reported at Edderthorpe Flash. This picture was taken from the old railway line and is about as close as you can get to the area. Another grey day with spots of rain.

Soon after i arrived, 3 other birders joined me and before long we had seen 2 wood sandpipers, dunlin, ruff, common sandpipers and several ringed plovers. I decided to go to Broomhill Flash before meeting the rest of the group at Old Moor. I soon had a list of 24 birds seen during the 20 minutes I was there.

I met Masha and 9 other group members in the car park. Masha said that we would go to Wath Ings first then the Reedbed hide after lunch.

Lots of changes since my last visit in February 2024. From the Family  hide we were able to enjoy seeing, swifts, sand martins, swallows and house martins along with several spoonbills.

Not the best day for photography. Mash saw a pair of peregrines on the other side of the lagoon, near the waters edge. From Wath Ings hide we saw 3 great white egrets and several grey herons.

we counted at least 6 greenshanks

8 ruff, 6 black-tailed godwits and a common sandpiper. A single curlew was looking for food, i have no idea what it caught!

After lunch we walked down to the Reedbed hide

several little egrets

a young great crested grebe

and several bearded tits. we decided to end our trip by calling in at Broomhill Flash on our way home.

Here Masha found a couple of mandarin ducks and Lynn found 2 yellow wagtails. A pleasant day with good company. %% birds on my day list including year tick 174.

Witton Sands

 

A morning out with Stuart. We parked at Faxfleet and then walked eastwards towards where the Weighton Lock joins the river Humber. As you can see from the photo it was a grey leaden sky with a little fine drizzle.

The tide was going out and we could see lots of birds feeding on the exposed mud.

About 250 avocets, 20 plus shelduck, 7 barnacle geese flew past as did 3 black-tailed godwits.

There were 7 spoonbills feeding in different parts of the area. These two were together.

They gradually got closer to us as they walked along the channel feeding. When they got to the end of that channel they flew past us.

The second bird was a young one with black wing tips.

After a couple of hours we walked westwards so that we could see up the Trent and over Blacktoft. Cormorants, greylags, avocets were on the mud. Marsh harriers were flying over the reserve and we could see the 2 diggers at work on the reserve. One on Ousefleet and one on Marshland. It will be interesting to see the work when it is completed and hopefully the high tides next month will fill the lagoons.

A very pleasant morning with Stuart as we planned our forthcoming trip to Scotland.