HMS White billed Diver

 On Saturday we went for a pub lunch at Warkworth. On the way back as we called in to the CO-OP a message came through saying Ben Steele had a White billed Diver on the sea close in at Seaton Point, about 2 miles away. What was there to do but to head straight there.

A quick yomp south from Boulmer on a rising tide and there it was, a battleship of a bird floating in a weed filled rock channel about 100 mtrs off the beach. The bird gave great views in the scope as it loafed around between dives but when it went under, creating a big bow wave, it was down for ages and would appear well away from where you first saw it.

White billed Divers are getting about as easy to see here as Black throated Divers these days. In fact Ive had two White billed since my last Black throated sighting! This bird was a second year, showing some white spots on the wing coverts.

Back home, a flock of 200 Geese headed low towards our house so I dashed in for the bins. Sure enough the first birds I got on to were 3 Russian White fronted Geese in with the Pink feet. They were too low and quick for details searching for others.

The moth trap was dusted off on Saturday night for its 2026 debut. It was a good success too with 34 moths of 9 sp, inc 3 Satellite, 13 Chestnut, 3 Dark Chestnut etc.

On a lovely fine sunny Sunday morning John and myself went back to Boulmer to see if the diver was around, but, as expected, the tide has been out and in again since Saturday taking with it the banana bill to who knows where. 4 Purple Sands, 21 Bar tailed Godwits and 37 Pink feet S were the best.

As it was sunny we headed a couple of miles to one of our off coast sites. We did a full eBird count with some good resluts. We had 2 Stock Dove, 2 Woodcock, 1 Willow Tit and a singing Dipper, 13 Crossbills inc a nice red male perched in hazel catkins and 12 Yellowhammers. Best though was a fluke while John was elsewhere. Awaiting his return I scanned the rise over the fields to increase the Buzzard count to three . A large rapter flying steadily south attracted attention. It looked to have a longer tail than a Buzzard, then a crow came up to head it off, After some panicking from both birds, the raptor flipped around and headed back north where I could see it was a nice adult Goshawk! White below, with long flappy wings, the hand narrower but the secondaries carried a large curved trailing edge. The tail had some darker banding. When flying a hint of display was noticed with deep butterfly wing beats. I could also see it was a size bigger than the crow too.

What a bird, this is my first Gos east of the A1 up here. Maybe the storm flattened forests since Arwen in 2021 have dispersed birds out into other bits of countryside?

 

A rewilded field that held a few birds of up to 42 species.

Cateran Hole

 What a perfect day for a walk on Sunday morning. It was calm, sunny and cold on the fingers when we headed up to the moors north of Eglingham via the North Charlton road from the A1 North of Alnwick.

For sometime we have been going to check out a unobtrusive cave hidden in the heather called Cateran Hole, on the north slope of Cateran Hill. This gash down into the moor is steeped in folklore with tales of Smugglers and Faeries. Rather than plagiarise bits of others research, check out this link for more pics and the tales...

Not that we were hoping to add to the myth, we were looking for any wildlife that might lurk within...

To begin with, above are two maps of the location. Its quite a remote spot as you can see below.

Park the car at this finger post and walk across the moor for about 10 minutes until...

...you see this post with arrows on, in the distance. Its there honest. At this point turn left.

A small stone in the middle of the path is carved, pointing left again just off track to the cave,

And there in a small depression is the hole. There are carved stone steps down into it. A torch or headlamp is a must. Its about 40 feet of narrow passage through the rock.

The way in..

Once in, water drips through and glistens on the walls covered in green algae. Signs of visitors date from 1700s, right to the present day. We hoped to find Cave Spider and a small Bryophyte called Tunbridge Filmy Fern, but we couldnt find either.

Only one spider was found - 

Metellina merianae 

A selection of unfamiliar mosses and spleenworts adorned the step walls, I'll try and get id's later...

Common Feather Moss

Hart's Tongue Thyme Moss

Waved Silk Moss

Once back into the light we checked out the view from the top of Cateran Hill, to see if any birds were to be had. Red Grouse called unseen hidden in a multitude of Red legged Partridges and Pheasants ( there were even 2 Japanese Green Pheasant types) . 2 Buzzards and 2 Ravens hung around while a few Skylarks were newly back on territory.

Back at the car for tea, I scanned North and saw a raptor flying steadily across the moor. It immediately looked different and  I called John to look. By now, closer and lower down it was obviously a smart male Goshawk! It soon perched up on the side of a tall larch where I could get the scope on it. A belter. 

After a minute or two it was gone, flushing pigeons to the four winds as it went.

Male Gos, perched.

Back along the road, another 2 Ravens gave closer views gathering nesting material and harassing a Buzzard.

And with that it was time to leave, a very pleasant morning, we could almost kid ourselves it was spring...    

Days Off...

 

Coquet Island from Seaton Point

I like to keep a few days leave back for autumn just in case we get some 'weather' but this year its all staying pretty much 'as you were' . At least this allows me to just take some odd random days to see what is happening. This week my days off were Thursday and Friday making a nice long weekend. 

Before we get on to that, however, the early part of the week turned up some bits and pieces too.

Monday was a bit interesting despite there being a mild southerly breeze. First thing when I took Peggy for her morning walk, our village was ringing to the sound of Redwing calls for the first time this autumn. Several small flocks of up to a dozen birds left garden cover and moved west.

Later on more seemed to arrive. We did another coast path walk in the afternoon where we soon counted 150 Redwings and a few Blackbirds in-off. One tired individual barely made it, dropping into the long grass of the Bathing House only a few yards from the waves. As we approached the sycamores near the road a small bird scuffling along the track side caught Peggy's attention. A smart male Brambling, again looking knackered after its crossing. Back home another Brambling looked similar on our drive and another dozen Blackbirds and Song Thrushes were in the wood. How many of these birds are lost to the sea isnt known but it will be a big toll I'm sure.

On Tuesday morning, the coast path Brambling was now along the main road verge, looking no better. A few more were picked up on call as they flew west overhead. One Starling, like yesterdays Blackbird struggled in from low over the sea, alone, but it didn't stop, it just steadily kept on course, low west.  

By Wednesday the immigrant passage had dried up, leaving two groups of Whooper Swans, 20 and 25 birds, to keep me looking up. 

There was a nice moth surprise on Wedesday night, again on a Peggy walk. I routinely shone my headlamp along some flowing Ivy beside our lane to see if any moths were present. The first thing I saw was only my 3rd ever Pearly Underwing, fresh conditioned individual alongside 6 Angle Shades and a couple of Silver Ys.

Pearly Underwing, a rare migrant here.

With the working week now done, the wind began to increase from a North westerly direction and with it so did my hopes of some seabird action.

I was in position on Cullernose by 8.15 eagerly awaiting birds to pass. To cut a long story short, by 10.15 a few birds were in the notebook but not enough to merit sitting it out. I decided to cut my losses and try again later on.

Birds seen included 5 Red throated Divers, 48 Wigeon, 3 Common Scoter, 600+ Pinkfeet, 20 Barnacle Geese, 2 Pale bellied Brents and 1 Arctic Skua. Best of all were 2 each of Twite and Snow Bunting south over head.

I gave it another two hours from 2pm, this time at Seaton Point, Boulmer. There were masses of birds feeding along the very high tide line with thousands of Black headed Gulls, Wildfowl and Waders including 17 Grey Plover, 74 Curlew, 35 Bar tailed Godwit, 4 Purple Sandpipers 1 Goosander 56 Mallard and 8 Wigeon. Another 2 Pale bellied Brents flew N and a Swallow over the caravans was my first for 2 weeks. It could well be my last until April. 

Masses of birds along the shore.

Pale bellied Brent Geese

Ever present Eiders

Juvenile Grey Plover

Pinks South

There were hundred of Turnstones with odd Purps.

Wigeon

On Friday we had a nice walk around Longhoughton Steel to Sugar Sands. There had been a Shorelark around but we didnt see it. A bit of viz mig was evident though with 1 Snow Bunting, 5 Whooper Swans, 15 Siskins, 1 Grey Wagtail, 75 Pinkfeet south and 2 Red throated Divers North. 

We narrowly averted disaster when a freak wave rushed up previously dry shore ( the tide was going out too) and caught us unaware. Jane and myself ended up nearly knee deep in water while Peggy floated around us! Luckily we kept our footing and made it up to dry ground with nothing worse to endure than a slosh back to the car with boots full of briny.

A postcard from Northumberland.

On Sunday, for a change John and myself headed to our inland areas for a change from the sea. Despite the forecast, the sun shone and it was quite pleasant. A great contrast from the coast in only a short drive.

Not expecting many birds, I only took my macro lens to look for fungi and other small stuff. As it happened, we didn't find many fungi but we did get some good birds. 

Highlight was a cracking male Goshawk sparring with a Raven. What a size they are and even the Raven made sure it stayed higher up than the Gos. In flight Gos have a much longer wing than the much smaller Sparrowhawk, to my mind, giving more of a ring tailed Harrier impression. They immediately look different. The two put on a great show for about 15 minutes with one taking advantage of the other in turns, the Raven uttering a short 'gruk' of panic when Gos flipped over to retaliate. Lovely. The things you see when you don't have your gun....

We also had a nice female Merlin low overhead, another Raven, 1 male Crossbill song flighting and another 7 over, 4+ Brambling, 7+ Jays, 1 female Sparrowhawk, 1 Kestrel, 1 Buzzard, 10+ Meadow Pipits and a Stonechat. A nice suite of upland birds for the time of year.

The only fungi we had were - 

Dusky Puffball Lycoperdon nigrescens

Raspberry Slime Mould Tubulifera arachnoidea

  

Go Wild in the Country II...

Despite nursing the mother of all colds, I've tolerated it enough to go to work, so I can certainly manage to get out over the weekend, we headed off west to look for snakes...

Today has been a lovely 'quiet ' calm day, cool at times but a warmer 13* in sheltered spots. Birds were singing, the first Marsh Marigolds were in flower and an odd bumblebee droned by. At Branton Pits, the water was still, only disturbed by the clamour of Canada Geese. A Great crested Grebe was back on territory and Goldeneye were displaying before departure.

A slow stroll along the road side revealed 7 or 8 Adders out basking, hoping for sun through the hazy cloud. These snakes have an irritating habit of lying fully exposed apart from the bit you want to photograph, the head, but today I tried something new. One such individual seemed quite relaxed so I gently stroked its tail with a thin twig, like you would a trout under a stone, to see what it would do. It seemed inquisitive and began to come closer to my twig, tasting the air with its tongue to see what the movement was about. Once fully in the open, I stopped and took some pictures, then left it to bask in peace.

We left here for a brief roadside stop over looking some forest where the sky was full of raptors! There were 12 Buzzards, but better still a juv Goshawk being mobbed by a Sparrowhawk. Whilst too distant for photos, good views could be had with the scope and an excellent comparison with the two accipiters...

Goosanders, Goldeneye and Goshawk...

Its nice have a pleasant, fair and sunny weekend for a change.

Yesterday morning my first singing Blackbird of the year was announcing the new day in all his glory.

I went off to meet John a little earlier than usual now that the mornings are getting light sooner, and we headed off to Branton Pits to do his WeBs count a week late.

Some of the pond had a very light skim of ice showing that winter is still grabbing on to the door frame as we throw her out for, what we hope will be, the last time. The wildfowl were in fine fettle though with groups of Goldeneye and Goosander displaying around the site.

Goosanders

The Fishing Party...

We had 10+ Goldeneye, 6+ Goosander, 25+ Tufted Duck, 1 Pochard, 20+ Wigeon and 61 Teal. Returning waders included 17 Oystercatchers and 4 Lapwing, while around the car park 3 Song Thrushes were singing and chasing around, Chaffinches sang every where and, not to be outdone, even a Reed Bunting was 'shouting it out'. A Kingfisher dashed across the pond while maybe another two called unseen.

At the west pond, an imm male Peregrine was showing well sitting on one of the pylons before moving off up the valley. We checked the favoured spots for Adders but there were none, its still maybe a little too early.

One of Johns pics, better than mine...

Goshawk

After finishing the count at Hedgeley, we moved up to higher ground to scan some forest while having our tea. Soon, our goal appeared,a close view of a male Goshawk over the road showing close enough to see his supercillium in the sunshine. Its a pity my photos are so poor...

Back home, more raptors were being territorial when 4 Buzzards flew low over garden mewing their heads off. 30+ Tree Sparrows were on the feeders and checking out nest boxes and 2 Grey Partridges were in the back field.

Somewhere else...

Yesterday we took a trip west to an upland area, other than that frequented by many other birders in the region, to look for Goshawks.  

We arrived far too early as the birds don't get up and about usually until after 11am, but it was a lovely morning and the Skylarks were singing. Three Roe Deer, a doe and two year old youngsters, gave a great show, with the young leaping up and butting each other like lambs, in the morning sunshine.

Pairs of Crossbills flew here and there, calling, with odd ones in song, but difficult to hear above the Siskins and odd Redpolls. A pair of Buzzards lazily soared over head. 

Cranberry

The blanket bog habitat here looks great for plants and I'l be back in the summer to check for Large Heath butterfly and dragonflies. It looks ideal. A new plant for me was this tiny Cranberry. The creeping plants were all over the sphagnum moss, but very few still had berries. I wonder why they are red? Tiny and on the deck, I cant see them being plundered by Fieldfares thats for sure....

On the moor we heard a Gos callng briefly then moving silently into the wood. No luck here then.

So returning to the car, we drove behind the same wood just in case, when bang on cue, a male Goshawk 'butterflied' out and just over the tree tops then over the road.

After stopping the car roadside, it was a scrabble for optics. If I had gone for the camera I might have taken a reasonable shot, it was that close, but I decided to be greedy and grabbed the scope instead. I'm pleased I did, as the bird was banking over into the sunshine where a good amount of detail could be seen instead of the usual distant silhouettes.

The male's flight technique must have worked because a massive female came up to join him in circling for five minutes before she sank back to the forest and he drifted off west. The display scattered hundreds of crows, pigeons and Lapwings to the horizon.

A brilliant show.