Stoat

Hard to believe I'm sitting here with the heating on when a week ago I was roasting in the sunshine. But that's spring for you. Which brings me to, er, last weekend.

Highlights: Red Kite, Merlin, 2 Shoveler, 1 Redshank, 3 Sand Martin, and bazillions of singing Chiffchaffs. Two Woodcock were something of a surprise.

Saturday 24th March

Harpham - Lowthorpe: a foggy start but a fair bit to be seen with 18 Greylags, 6 Mallard, 2 Grey Partridge, Sparrowhawk, 2 Buzzard, 40+ Lapwing, 1 Woodcock, 4 Great Spotted Woodpecker including one drumming relentlessly, 1 Grey Wagtail, 9 Fieldfare, 14 Redwing - at least one in full song, 10 Chiffchaff singing, 4 Long-tailed Tit, 1 Coal Tit and 1 Bullfinch.

Also seen were 2 Small Tortoiseshell, 3 Squirrel, 1 Roe Deer and best of all a Stoat which ran along the the opposite edge of the beck to me, confiding enough for a photo opportunity - nice!

Gembling - Foston - Millingdale: the herd of Mute Swans at Wansford I mentioned in the last couple of months has grown further, now 42. I'm told these will mostly be young non-breeding birds which have the summer to do nothing much except perhaps form their lifelong partnerships. Other birds were 8 Greylags, 8 Teal, 2 Shoveler - very pleasing after missing out last year, 6 Tufted Duck, 4 Little Grebe, 11 Grey Heron around the heronry, 3 Buzzard, 9 Coot, 12 Lapwing displaying, 1 Redshank - another one I missed in 2011 and it was stood next to the Shovelers, and 8 Tree Sparrow.

At Kelk Lake toward dusk were 4 Greylags, 1 Teal, 7 Tufted Duck and 2 singing Chiffchaff.

Sunday 25th March

An even fogggier start.

Kelk Beck-Gransmoor Lane: 1 Mute Swan, 4 Greylags, 1 Shelduck, 15 Teal, 8 Mallard, 2 Tufted Duck, 3 Red-legged and 6 Grey Partridge, 1 Sparrowhawk, 9 Buzzard, 2 Kestrel, 3 Coot, 22 Lapwing, 1 Woodcock flushed from a hedgerow, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 16 Herring Gull, 3 Sand Martin at Gransmoor Quarry, 3 Meadow Pipit, 40 Fieldfare, 2 Chiffchaff, 2 Tree Sparrow, 12 Linnet, 6 Reed Bunting,

A quick repeat trip to Harpham found us looking at the Red Kite and Merlin 'identified' in the last blog post. Also noted were a Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Grey Wagtail, 14 Pied Wagtail, and 2 Chiffchaff. A couple more butterflies logged in for the year - a Peacock and a Comma.

Now, some photos.

Stoat by the beck at Harpham. Just seeing one is good, getting a photo felt like I was pushing my luck.

A pair of Moorhens being a bit lovey-dovey. Aww. This was taken from the bridge at Lowthorpe which is probably the easiest place in the area to see them.

Next up is a pair of Pied Wagtails together by the beck at Harpham. The male has the blacker back while the female looks rather less tidy.

Female Pied Wagtail.

Comma at Harpham. Always a welcome sight as they're quite unpredicatable in the area.

Here's hoping the spring continues in this manner, though some water wouldn't go amiss. A whopping 10 species were added to the year list including a Little Owl that my brother had seen earlier that week.

075 Little Owl

076 Chiffchaff

077 Oystercatcher

078 Shoveler

079 Redshank

080 Sand Martin

081 Shelduck

082 Lesser Black-backed Gull

083 Red Kite

084 Merlin

A Tale of Two Identities

Summer is here and I have a slightly pinkened forehead to prove it. Must remember to buy some new sunblock!

Just a side note today... proper write up later. The first migrants are back with at least 13 Chiffchaff heard over the weekend and 3 Sand Martins around Gransmoor Quarry.

They weren't the best birds of the weekend, though. That accolade falls to the Red Kite drifting north west and to the fine female Merlin near Harpham. In both cases I spectacularly misidentified them before realising what I was looking at - it struck me as rather amusing so here goes...

Tale 1 - Red Kite

A Common Buzzard appeared, circling in the warm afternoon air on Sunday. I'm so used to seeing them now that a second glance is rarely needed though they're such a joy to watch I often track them for a while. In this case I was stood in the middle of the road and a car came along so had to move sharpish. The car pulled to a halt, it was someone we knew. In the middle of last week, the driver told us, a bird much like a kite had drifted overhead while he was working outside. Very possible, said we, pondering the description of a large bird of prey with a forked red tail.

Anyway, when we'd said goodbye I returned to looking at the buzzard only to find it had morphed into a Red Kite. Eh? Unpossible. So the lesson is - beware buzzards becoming common, for you may be fooled into not looking at them. In my defence, it was quite distant at first and the light was not... oh who am I kidding :)

Tale 2 - Merlin

This one is even worse, though again I got there in the end. We were walking back from Harpham and I was looking at a Kestrel perched on a fence post. The light was perfect and the rufous tones were positively on fire. Beautiful. Further in the distance was a Stock Dove perched in a lone tree. Having helpfully pointed it out it suddenly occured to me this was not a dove at all. It looked more like a falcon the way it was perched. Certainly not a Kestrel as it was too dark. Not a Peregrine, too small. Sparrowhawk? Definitely not.

I was stumped for a moment, a moment during which it suddently took flight. Merlin! Doh! I'm not even sure what the lesson is here other than look at everything again. And then once more.

Finally, something rather more serious. The water levels are so low it's making me fearful for the summer. I've never seen the beck so low at this time of year, but I realise I've been saying that all winter. The photo below is at Lowthorpe bridge - surely it can't dry out?

Edit: this story on the BBC (28/03/12) notes "rainfall figures suggested the Hull and Don catchment areas had had the second driest year on record since 1910"

Februlate

Sharp-eyed readers may have noticed a lack of February action here. Well, I did make a visit but I've had so little spare time I'd kinda forgotten to write it up. But here we are!

Highlights: 190 Pink-footed Goose, 7 Goldeneye, Peregrine, Water Rail, Green Sandpiper, and a very large flock of 85 Yellowhammer.

Saturday 18th February

Harpham-Lowthorpe: 190 Pink-footed Geese flew north, 10 Greylags, 2 Grey Partridge, 4 Buzzard, 2 Kestrel, a Peregrine took a swipe at a Lapwing flock (90), a Water Rail in a small ditch at Lowthorpe, Green Sandpiper in one of the regular winter spots, 50+ Herring Gulls over, 2 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Goldcrest, a large flock of Long-tailed Tit. And a Grey Squirrel.

Little Kelk: 3 Teal, 2 Grey Partridge, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 60 Lapwing, 1 Woodcock, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 90 Fieldfare, 60 Linnet, and 85 Yellowhammer - the largest flock noted locally in the last 5 years. This and the Linnet flock have been around all winter on what must be a seed filled stubble field.

Kelk Lake: 8 Gadwall, 9 Mallard, 11 Pochard, 41 Tufted Duck, 7 Goldeneye, 2 Little Grebe, 8 Coot, 1 Woodcock. A very impressive showing compared to recent times.

Sunday 19th February

Kelk Beck: 2 Mute Swan, 10 Greylag Goose, 14 Teal, 30 Mallard, 2 Red-legged Partridge, 8 Grey Partridge, 8 Grey Heron, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 30 Lapwing, 8 Stock Dove, 12 Skylark, 1 Fieldfare. Also noted were 10 Roe Deer - a most impressive count!

Gembling-Foston: 8 Greylags, 1 Wigeon, 17 Teal, 20 Mallard, 2 Little Grebe, 3 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 6 Coot, 120 Lapwing, and a Mistle Thrush. The herd of Mute Swans at Wansford had grown to 37 - I haven't been studying these birds but I wonder, what is the typical winter peak?

Obligatory photos...

Fieldfare flock all in one ash tree on Gransmoor Lane.

Mad Feb Hare. There doesn't seem to be as many as in recent years but they're still common.

Kelk Beck looking fine in late winter. This is from the footpath upstream of the bridge. 

Roe Deer are fairly common but it's unusual to see more than three or four together. Lovely.

Last but not least a pair of Goldeneye at Kelk Lake. They're one of my favourite ducks, and although regular it's usually the odd female with the males only occasional.

There were 5 additions to the yearlist bringing the total after two visits to 74.

070 Pink-footed Goose

071 Peregrine

072 Water Rail

073 Green Sandpiper

074 Goldeneye

All things being equal I should have the March report before summer arrives. Ahem.

Twelvety

So here's a rewind for January twenty twelve. Given the short days I figured I'd treat myself to a long weekend. Of course Sod's Law states all the action would be on Saturday and Monday would be hopeless. The truth wasn't far away but it was nice anyway. As per my last post the highlights were a Hooded Crow and a Bean Goose, with not a great deal else to get excited about.

Saturday 28th January

Harpham - Lowthorpe - Little Kelk : 20 Greylags, 8 Grey Partridge, 1 Heron, 3 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 300+ Woodpigeon, 4 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Redwing, 1 Goldcrest, 1 Coat Tit, small flock of Siskin heard at Harpham and the Hooded Crow flying over as we were trying to locate them. Pretty much the last bird of the day was the Bean Goose heading over with a few Greylags just before dusk - picked up on call before flying overhead.

Sunday 29th January

Kelk - Kelk Beck : 4 Mute Swan, 7 Greylags, 2 Wigeon, 9 Teal, 14 Mallard, 4 Grey Partridge, 4 Heron, 1 Sparrowhawk, 3 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 6 Coot, 1 Snipe, 1 Kingfisher, 1 Meadow Pipit, 1 Grey Wagtail, 2 Redwing, 46 Yellowhammer (a very large local count!), 9 Reed Bunting.

Gembling - Foston : 2 Mute Swan, 17 Greylags, 1 Wigeon, 23 Teal, 54 Mallard, 2 Red-legged Partridge, 1 Cormorant, 1 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 1 Kingfisher, 43 Fieldfare. A herd of 27 Mute Swans (see pic below) were in a field toward Wansford.

Kelk Lake : 3 Pochard, 25 Tufted Duck, 1 Little Grebe, 6 Coot,

Monday 30th January

Little Kelk - Gransmoor - Harpham : 21 Greylags, 1 Gadwall, 8 Mallard, 2 Grey Partridge, 1 Cormorant, 12 Moorhen together near Kelk Beck, 35 Lapwing, 1 Woodcock flushed by a shooting party, 160+ Feral Pigeons, 1500+ Woodpigeon toward Burton Agnes, 20+ Collared Dove, 5 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 9 Fieldfare, 2 Goldcrest, 1 Coal Tit, 45+ Goldfinch, 1 male Bullfinch, 22+ Siskin at Harpham (same flock as Saturday).

A few photos, starting with a Wren, a species I've somehow managed not to get on film before.

Herd of swans at Wansford - Mutes not Whoopers!

Part of the local corvid pre-roost flock that must have been spooked by the farmer - suddenly the sky was filled with hundreds as they retreated to the safety of the trees.

A caterpillar. In January. A bit of a surprise. Not sure what the appeal of the mole hill was.

My January visit racked up 69 species for the new year list, a marginally better result than the previous two years which suffered snowy conditions.

Hug a Hoodie

2012 has got off to good start - with a new bird for the area!

A single HOODED CROW flew south-west over Harpham on Saturday. These are fairly scarce in Yorkshire with around 10 per year, mostly along the well watched coastal strip.

Following the Bean Goose flock in November last year, another one was seen on Saturday making a local flight with a small party of Greylags over Kelk.

Having said that it was actually a quiet weekend for birds the best of the rest being a Woodcock, a Grey Wagtail, 2 Kingfisher, and a flock of Siskin.

More later plus a few reassuringly rough pictures.

Cattle Egret relocated

So it seems the Cattle Egret has been hanging out at Hempholme near Tophill Low since it left Kelk - about 5 miles as the egret flies.

I hadn't realised that presumably the same one had been seen in November near Spurn. Maybe it was flushed from its favoured field at Hempholme and flew up to Kelk on 18th Dec, decided it wasn't as good and went straight back the following day.

2011 Summery

Looking out of the window at the miserable murk that passes for weather today I was reminded of a work email I received late last year which contained the timely typo "And so in summery..."

Anyway that's the title explained. I thought a review of 2011 might pass some time. First some numbers...

2011 year list - 116
Past 3 years - 117, 114, 115
Total last 5 years - 140 (-1 if I'm not allowed Ruddy Shelduck)
Since 1990 - 179 (at least 175 without dodgy wilfowl).

January to March

The first visit of the year was during the remnants of the hardest winter for a generation. And it showed. Most birds had cleared out of the woods and hedges, some into gardens, some out of the county, but no doubt many lacking the migratory instinct had perished.

A Little Egret was the fourth record for the area. Also in January were 91 Pink-footed Goose, a Water Rail, 2 Woodcock and 2 Green Sandpiper. February was positively Spring-like and there was a lot of water on the fields; 14 Wigeon and 140+ Teal were in the area. 3 Treecreepers together at Harpham made quite a sight. A herd of 15 Whooper Swan flew in from the south and spent an afternoon in Kelk in March. Other goodies in this month were 23 Wigeon on a flooded field, a Curlew and the first Chiffchaff.

April to June

Migrants were arriving early in April with several warblers breaking their own records and an unprecedented number of Yellow Wagtails joining them. There weren't many scarce birds to admire though a fine male Wheatear in Kelk was very welcome as were the pair of Little Ringed Plover in April and May. A Whimbrel heading east was probably the best of the bunch.

Good numbers of singing warblers were doing their thing, especially Blackcap and Whitethroat. Single Grasshopper Warbler and Garden Warbler were a joy to hear. The first sightings of Hobby and Marsh Harrier for the year did not hint at what might happen next.

July to September

The first surprise of the summer was an influx of Quail with birds noted calling at four sites. I even got a brief glimpse of a bird near Gransmoor Lane. This can only have been a sample of the birds present and surely many must have passed unnoticed.

A female Pochard was noted with young in June - the second such event in recent years. Later in the summer the Marsh Harriers had two young on the wing and Hobby looked to have been successful too. Our Buzzards keep being productive - 11 were seen on one day in September. How the Buzzard-free past seems a long time ago!

Scarcer birds were in fairly short supply, understandably, but a Spotted Flycatcher put in an appearance and a surprise flock of 12 Greenshank flew along Kelk Beck. Bizarre. It was left to gulls to provide the summer highlight - 2 Yellow-legged Gulls feeding behind a working tractor with a large number of other large gulls.

October to December

The latter months started to hot up with a Ring Ouzel, a Crossbill, a Redpoll and a Mediterranean Gull in October. There were plenty of common farmland birds too - flocks of 80 Tree Sparrow and 90 Goldfinch are significant local counts.

November tried to calm down a bit but a national influx of grey geese made sure it didn't - Kelk played host to 11 White-fronted and 25 Bean Goose. Truly remarkable stuff, it's just a shame they were only seen through thick fog. A healthy 'corvid' roost at this time held around 1000 Jackdaw and 2000 Rook.

Despite all the scarce birds this year - Little Egret, Quail, Yellow-legged Gull, Crossbill, Ring Ouzel, Bean Goose - there was one thing absent, a first for the Kelk area. So as if by magic a Cattle Egret apppeared in December, a first and the rarest bird I've ever seen locally.