Industrial Oyks and the (Not so) Secret Wood.

 This post is another all-over-the-shop cornucopia of wildlife sightings locally.

Lesser Redpolls.

In April I like to keep an even closer eye on my bird feeders than usual because there is always the chance of a Brambling or Mealy Redpoll on its return migration. Who knows, even a Hawfinch is a possibility. 

To keep up the Mealy hopes I make sure the niger is filled each morning. This has attracted up to 20 Goldfinches at a time and a couple of Siskins on some days. The other day two Redpolls appeared, both Lessers and one was injured with a broken leg. That didn't seem to hamper it as it fed well for a couple of days before departure.

While it was sunny in the garden on Saturday a Holly Blue kept me company. A second was along the road by the Village Hall. The slow moth trapping continues with a nice Chamomile Shark being the highlight. This is only my 3rd here in 15 yrs.

Chamomile Shark

The ever present ( in spring anyway) Hairy Footed Flower Bee males.

Above - Holly Blue butterfly. Still earlier that usual...

This Pale Mottled Willow is the county earliest by 3 weeks. Maybe a migrant?

Industrial Oystercatchers.

On Sunday we visited a new spot, a little bit further than usual but not much. You might have seen me mention our severe lack of decent woodland up here, well this spot had a quite a large area and some of it quite mature too. Mature enough to hold a single singing male Redstart that was typically camera shy as they often are.. The whole area looks good for plants and insects too when the weather warms up a bit.

Today we found a couple of pairs of Marsh Tit, including one at a nest site. This is the best year I've had for these for a decade. Long may it be so. 

Marsh Tits prospecting a likely nest site.

Also around the area were good numbers of Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers with 3 Buzzards, Brambling heard and Siskins singing. A carpet of Bluebells were on the cusp of opening.

It just shows, no matter how long you live in a place, there are always discoveries to be made if you only look...

They're here!

 Since my last post, just for a change, the weather has been biblical. Gales and Rain. Even today it is pouring and cold with a mod NW wind. Everywhere is flooded, roads, fields, woods, even our tiny village pond now encompasses half the Village Hall car park too. Still the Toads were singing in it last night.

On Sunday we had our first Swallows, Sand Martins, Willow Warblers and Wheatear all at Alnmouth. Didnt get a single pic of any of them due to the wind.

There were plenty of Bees there too with Red tailed, Early and Buff tailed Bumblers, Hairy Footed Flower Bees, all males, no black females yet and a single Vestal Cuckoo Bee.

Vestal Cuckoo Bee

Male Hairy footed Flower Bee, it can be seen well in this shot.

Red tailed Bumblebee

On the home patch, 3 Swallows south along the coast path on Monday were my first, but since then the weather has put a block on any further additions.

A nice adult Lesser black backed Gull was with Herring Gulls on new plough watched from ou kitchen window making the garden list #61 now.

Lets continue to hope for a more prolonged dry spell soon, we need to release the over wintering Hedgehog before it gets much bigger ( 1100 gms!) but need a better forecast than this... 

Easter.

 Not a bad Bank Holiday weekend weather wise. Well, 75% was ok, Monday was a wet and windy write off.

Friday was Good in more ways than one. 

At 0710 Ben Steel reported a Great White Egret in off the sea a few miles north of us at Dunstanburgh Castle, but more crucially it was now heading south, over Craster.

Thinking I'd be too late, I grabbed the dog and the bins and headed up the road. 

By 0715 I was on the coast road scanning south as I was convinced the bird would have been past us by now. No sign. Then a look north saw a couple walking their dog towards me and there above them an angel-like apparition glowing in the low morning sunshine. The Great White Egret was slower than anticipated due to the moderately strong head wind it was flying in to. It passed low over the dog walkers who saw me watching, so I pointed to the bird. By now they were only 20 mtrs from me so I said Egret. They seemed quite impressed at the big birds beauty as it majestically passed over us on route south, so I explained what it was and a bit about them. Id like to think I educated in a small way.

I was pleased to have seen it, only my 2nd patch record after a bird on the pond in 2013. These might be on every puddle further south but in my corner of North Northumberland they are still a big deal.

Back home for breakfast, around 0830, I decided to take Peggy for the rest of her morning walk along to the pond field. As we arrived, I could see a large white 'umbrella' standing in the far corner. The Egret had Landed!

This site gets busy on fine days so there was no way this bird would linger here, the track walked right past it. So poor Peggy was marched home again so I could get the camera. As time was of the essence, I took the car along to the pond and walked back along the track. Luckily the bird remained for 5 mins, long enough for a few shots to record the event before it flew off in a SE direction not to be reported again.

Nice start to spring.

Saturday was spent doing some gardening and the first grass cut of the year. While pottering around, the first Hairy footed Flower Bee was dashing around while 5 Brown Hares were in the Rectory Paddock.

On a fine Sunday morning JWR and me stocked up on Greggs Vegan Sausage Rolls and cakes (Chocolate Eclair for me, Pach Melba for John) then headed on to the moors. We were greeted by bubbling displaying Curlews, Stonechat and 30+ Brambling still hanging around from the big flock.

A lovely conditioned orange Fox was really taking its life in its hands at this heavily keepered and hunted site. Without a doubt its days are numbered.

We had a wander up the old railway line near Lemmington where there was a good show of the 'wild' Daffodils Narcissus pseudonarcissus .

As the morning warmed, after breakfast we went up to our site for Orange Underwing, a rare, day flying, spring, moth in the county. I've not seen one for about 5 years, mainly due to poor weather in this crucial 4 week period but today seemed promising.

As it turned out, it was! Just not for me. John called from a few metres away to say he had one. As is their way it fluttered along a line of trees vanishing as I got to the spot. At least its good news they are still here for another day. Maybe next weekend when the weather is warmer we'll have another look. I'd love to get a photo of one.

Also seen, Woodcock, Buzzard and Peacock butterfly.

Finally, to put the icing on the cake, back home in the afternoon the sun shone and it was sheltered in the garden. A lovely Holly Blue butterfly showed on three occasions both back and front of the house, but it was too flighty to get a photo. Still its my first in March and about 3 weeks earlier than the previous earliest here. A very welcome sight.

Also more Hairy footed Flower Bees, Early Bumblebee and Tawny mining Bee were all good to get.

 

Above - Orange Underwing site, with the view west.

 

 

Time.

 What an awful week this has been. I wont be going into details on a public web page but last Friday a close friend and neighbour of ours passed away suddenly at work. A fit, active and positive soul. There are various ongoing investigations so we are doing all we can to support his wife, but it all feels so helpless.

Things like this, and in times of dark, wet days cant help but make even the most optimistic of people, lack motivation to do much. I'm pleased its Bank Holiday approaching just so we can sit at home and not have to do anything like work.

On the wildlife front, a couple of bits seen on my 'several times daily' dog walks include the burn Water Rail in a brief period of low water in the stream. That lasted all of one day before rain flooded it out again. The first one I've seen this year.

A female Barn Owl has been by our house a few times in the last week or so. I'm not sure where she has come from or what has happened to bring about this change but its over a year since Barn Owls regularly did this here.

A Brambling has been in the finch flock along the lane still and a new patch and garden year addition  appeared last week when I heard Red legged Partridge calling from the back field while I was in the loo! Later on the bird could be seen from our kitchen window. Always a tricky bird on my patch.

This takes the Garden Year List to 60, with Linnet still adrift.

Siskins are now coming to our feeders so hopes are that they will bring a passing Mealy or a Brambling with them too... 

 

  

March

 Over the last couple of weeks the weather has improved a little, but thats just a brief interlude as things are due to get colder from tomorrow again. What we would give for a  proper dry spell to get the ground firmed up a bit.

So, whats been going on here?

On 3rd we had a walk at Kimmer Lough, not a place we visit very often these days but its only about 10 miles from home on the edge of the moors. A few Lesser black backed Gulls were making their way inland via some grassy fields here. In around them were 20+ Fieldfares and a few Redwings. A patch of Bog Myrtle is not a common site in our area so I took a shot of its attractive copper burnished buds.

Bog Myrtle buds.

From here we checked out a woodland site for Goshawks without any luck. Most of our forest areas have been chopped after Storm Arwen flattened swathes of them. This must move Gos out of the area?

We managed 3 Woodcock, 21 Lesser Redpolls, several singing Crossbills and Siskins and a couple of Buzzards.

Clearfell looks great for future generations of Nightjars and for inverts in summer.

At home the local village Chaffinch flock increased up to 120 birds with a female Brambling, a few Yellowhammers and 50+ Linnets in there. On 11th I bumped into the Marsh Tit again not far from my last sighting. Its many years since Ive had more than a single view in a year.

Marsh Tit, Howick arboretum.

The garden list is trickling along with a few new additions. Canada Goose and Moorhen were heard only but Whooper Swans heading North, Mallard, Stock Dove, Chiffchaffs, Grey Heron, Barn owl, Greenfinch and Meadow Pipit brought the total to 59 so far.

Last week my first butterflies of the year, a couple of Peacocks were good to see and this weekend Bumblebee numbers are starting to increase.

On Sunday a Hedgehog was at our bird feeders, a surprise after a dearth of sightings last year. It might be company for our rescue inmate who will be released in April having gone up from a starving 250 gms in November to an elephantine 950 gms last week! 

On Monday a calling Redpoll low south along the coast path was large and pale enough to go down as a Mealy, my first here for a while. Today, the first cliff nesting Kittiwakes arrived on patch with a vocal 27 birds on the sea close in.

False Spring.

 Well that made a change. Some very pleasant weather for Saturday and Sunday! 

Saturday was spent cleaning the greenhouse and tidying in the garden a bit. Some molehills were collected to mix with peat free compost to plant seeds in but that was about it really. Heron was added to the garden list as there has been some territorial flighting past with birds grunting at each other on the way.

As it felt quite spring-like, on Sunday we took a short trip to a usual inland patch to look for Goshawks. That particular quest didn't end well and a lot of our forest area has now been clear felled, mainly in the aftermath of Storm Arwen damage a couple of years ago. Still, the place is now a light-filled open space so there might be more plants and insects in the summer plus it has extended the Nightjar habitat by a great deal.

On the way, a short stop to scan a finch flock in a stubble field was a nice surprise. There were 80-100 Bramblings with a few Yellowhammers, Reed Bunting, Chaffinches and Linnets. The air was filled with singing Skylarks, Snipe were tick-tocking and Lapwings were in tumbling display in the next field, but they need to be careful, this is just a temporary 'false' spring that we always get at this time of year. There is a chance we will get some snow yet.

Up in the clearfell it was quiet other than some nice Crossbills singing and showing very well and a Raven carrying nesting material. For me it doesn't matter too much if there isn't much to see up here, it just feels so quiet and remote, and we never bump into anyone so its always a great walk.

We were back at the car for lunchtime. On the way home a short roadside stop found 3 Adders basking. Two were very black looking individuals with a more normal olive toned female. Seeing these is a highlight every spring, long may it continue.

That area on the left was tall pines when we were last here.

 

At the top of that spindly tree is a singing Crossbill. This is just my phone shot. Compare how much difference a shot through the scope makes. 

This female was further along. We saw around 25 birds in total.

Fulmars Incoming!

 Around about the patch this week.. An odd Snow Bunting or two seems to be hanging on in the Bathing House field with birds heard last weekend and this morning first thing but I couldn't see them in the dawn light. 

The undoubted highlight of the week goes to a Marsh Tit on Valentines Day in the Arboretum. This is my first on site since one visited my bird table in 2018 . This weeks bird was doing a chattery sub song and showed well in some taller Lime Trees beside a birch planting called Red Wells. Just across the track is the wild wood, a wet bit of wood behind the pond that gets no management at all so should be ideal for them.

Last year one or two Marsh Tits were seen all down the Arboretum to the coast by three different good observers but I couldn't find them. Lets hope this might be the start of a re-colonisation here.

Spring gets closer with the first local Toads crossing the road and Coltsfoot in flower.

For the garden year list, a Sparrowhawk was causing much pandemonium in the local Sparrows at the feeders yesterday plu,s in true garden list fashion, I was lying in bed on Sunday morning when an unusual call outside clicked me awake. It was the guck-guck-guck of Fulmars! Peering out of the window three birds were chasing around overhead, close enough to take a phone shot. These are not rare even in a garden context here in early spring but when I am taking special notice this year they do seem an unusual garden bird I suppose.

 

First light Fulmars from the bedroom window.

 Today's lunchtime walk was along the lane where the 70+ wintering Chaffinches have suddenly gone up to 110+ and in with them 2 Brambling, a male and a female. No good for the garden (yet) but a patch year first so that will do nicely. 

2024 Garden List - 48