Sunday, November 08, 2009

Get them where you can....

This week, a stunning montage of images from the wild. I can now confidently declare that this Snow Goose at Budle Bay today is a fully wild bird from the arctic wastes of Canada.

Why?

Because I've seen it. And I'm sick to death of pussy footing around them. I've seen about 8 Snow Geese in Northumberland now and not one has been deemed good enough ( by me) to grace my list.

Meanwhile every other birder in the county has Snow Goose on their totals ( some even have Ross's Goose too but we won't go there).

So If I can't beat them ( or even catch them) I might as well join them...





Cough, erm, er....British List 393 Northumberland List 320


Maybe no one will notice....Feel free to click on the images to see them in their finery, in all HD feather detailed perfection.

Right enough of that I'm glad thats off my chest, it was a bit like a confessional.

Back to today.

We started off at Stag Rocks near Bamburgh hoping to see the Black Guillemot that has been here for a while now. I was tempted yesterday by Alan Hall telling me it was relatively close in at digi scopeable distance. Well today it wasn't. Not a sniff in the hour we were there. The sea was calm and viewing good. Later on I see it had returned to loiter with the 2 Slavonian Grebes we had seen earlier. It must have been on the Farnes side when we were there...

Apart from the 2 grebes, 10 Long tailed Duck including 6 drakes were very nice to see plus half a dozen Red throated Divers and hundreds of Shags were off shore. A Porpoise showed briefly as did a lone Grey Seal.

Then it was off to Budle Bay for the Snow Goose. It flew in with about 100 or so Greylags just as we were getting out of the car. Massive numbers of birds here today included 340+ Shelduck and many waders including Grey Plover, Bar tailed Godwits, Knot, Dunlin, Redshank, Curlew and Lapwing. 1 Pale bellied Brent was out on the flats too.

Occasionally the birds were spooked and we knew who would be responsible but it took some time before we located the male Peregrine sitting in a tall tree distantly.

On the way home, a Merlin flew along the links in Seahouses only feet away from some visitors out for a walk.



Above - A more scenic shot of Budle Bay...

This afternoon I walked Bunty down the Long Walk to the Howick Dene and back by the coast. The whole place was very quiet but pleasant in the afternoon sunshine. In the wood Jay, Buzzard and Bullfinch were the only things of note.

I was nearly home on the main road when a flock of 30 or so Linnets lifted from the hay field and I was suprised to hear Twite calling in with them. This is probably the two birds I saw a few weeks ago...

As for last nights mothing, I was rained off by about 8pm. The only captive was a single Chestnut moth but it kicked off my November list. Maybe it will be the last...

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

And joined them you have. I`d bang it on my list. Well, it`s not as though it`s mid-summer.

340+ Shelduck. That`s one hell of a gathering.

Steve Gale said...

Tick and run Stewart, tick and run... I would.

Ghost of Stringer said...

Yeah, while you're at it why not get that red breasted goose on there too.... yellow plastic ring ? PAH !!...... Surely it was part of a colour ringing scheme in Siberia !!

Stewart said...

Dean - Its aplace renowned for the numbers of Shelduck, Barwits and Grey Plover.

Steve - ;)

Gary - Oh now thats just daft. I've had RBG...

Emma Anderson said...

Great to see the snow goose, Stewart. I remeber years ago seeing a Red-breasted goose with all the Barnacles at Caerlaverock - that was quite a site.

Warren Baker said...

well, one of your snow goose sightings had to be a proper one, so tick it I say!