The Merry Dancers

 Probably my most significant observation since the last entry on here has to the the celestial one. Everyone in the country either saw or slept through the greatest Aurora display for 21 years, where all things scientific combined into a coincidence that may be a once in a lifetime event!

We enjoyed it from 11.30pm until about 1am when it began to fade. One little tale is worth a mention to show some strange reactions from people. Next door but one to us is the old school house now a holiday cottage. This means we have different neighbours most weeks. Some are quite sociable and friendly while others are scarcely noticed. Over the years Ive had some nice encounters with holiday makers checking my moth trap ( with permission of course) and one chap came to the door to ask if he could paint our shed! At first I thought he meant give it a coat of emulsion but as it is stone that seemed very odd. He was an amateur artist who I left to it after I had gone to work. I never did see his results...

Anyway back to Friday night. We were on the drive in awe of the glowing spectacle over head when a face appeared at the open dorma window in the school house roof. In case they wondered what we were up to I said and pointed to the 'Aurora', thinking it might be a nice addition to their holiday. The response? The chap shut the window!

They cant say I didnt try when they saw Breakfast Telly in the morning....

I managed some shots on my phone...

Thats the School House roof to the right, occupants not fussed...

This is facing due North. The Aurora was faint here, it was best high overhead slightly to the South East. 

Along our village road facing Southish.

 

Time and the White Hare

 Crikey where does the time go?

In late March I mentioned we had lost a close friend in sudden circumstances. What with various investigations taking place, the funeral only took place on Monday so it has been difficult trying to keep business as usual. There is nothing like this kind of shock to the system to get you thinking about mortality and life in general. Its all too easy to complain about trivia when really we should be grateful when we wake up each morning.

Since my last post, I've been out around the doors, not going too far ( I rarely do these days). In light of recent events, I would like to be able to take a more free and relaxed approach to natural history observations. There is no need to fixate on stuff, whether it is about staying local to the exclusion of all else or having to twitch the latest mega 300 miles away. None of it matters you know. Just take a breath and follow your instincts without pressure, just enjoy the time you have left and do what ever it is you want to do. Feel free to change your mind and approach at a whim, just to gain personal enjoyment on any day. We all have fixed commitments, work, family etc, but in your free time, be free!

Spring has been very slow in coming to my corner of Northumberland, as it always is. I can only think it is the close proximity to a winter retaining North Sea that removes our spring from the equation. As with most recent Aprils the wind has been a cool northerly for weeks now, blocking newly emerging nature of all sorts. Spring bird migrants have been delayed in arriving, butterflies almost non existant and the moth trap has lain redundant for weeks. Still there is no stopping the change in the air.

My first signs of a few migrants came on 21st April with ironically, early for here, Sedge Warbler and Whitethroat while Grasshopper Warbler and Redstart was more fitting.

A leucistic Brown Hare ( creamy white all over) crossed our path at that time too. I must check out the mythology around these, surely there will be some tales of ghostly white hares, no doubt bringing a curse on all who's path she crosses...

The White Hare.

A wander around the dunes at Warkworth had a nice display of just emerging Early Purple Orchids too. I must try and get back this week to see them at full opened glory.

In our garden, Holly Blues are out at the slightest hint of sun and a lovely big Hoverfly, Criorhina floccosa was easy to photograph in the chill air.  

The bee mimic hoverfly Criorhina floccosa complete with its diagnostic white flank tufts.

For such a common bird along our coast I had never seen a Stonechat's nest until the other week. While looking for a Grasshopper Warbler a small bird flushed from a clump of marram near my path. I was over the moon to find a nice small, flattened, tunnel leading to a small cup containing 5 eggs. I took one photo with my phone and left her to it.

Stonechat nest.

Whimbrel arrived on the patch on 22nd April witha single bird on the rocky shore beside us.

So with Orange Tips now on the wing and a seemingly drier break in the weather lets hope this Bank Holiday marks the start of a good spell of wether for wildlife / birding!

Early Purple Orchid, one of 200+ at Warkworth.

'Gropper'

Willow Warbler

 

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.