The End.

 Of Autumn that is.

We used to begin our county Winter Atlas surveys after 13th November so I always think of that date as the end of autumn. Still, depending upon the weather, some tardy birds are still migrating up until the end of the month.

The Pied Wheatear from my previous post remained faithful to its graffiti daubed skate park right up until Saturday 12th November, allowing even the most reticent of twitchers time to catch up with it if they so wished.

On my patch things have been a bit quiet recently though a female Merlin across our village, well lit from early morning sunshine on the 6th was good and even better was the Snow Bunting on the 14th that danced low over our garden, calling its lovely tinkling tune all the way. This is my 3rd ( I think) garden record. 25 Whooper Swans flew S on 5th while 16 Redpolls were in Village Wood the previous day. Ive seen them in flight a few times and suspect a couple of Mealies in there but cant clinch it.

Other bits of interest around home were a Water Rail sadly killed on the road overnight, having just arrived on its wintering grounds and some big fungi on the cricket pitch, known descriptively as Macro Mushroom Agaricus urinascens. Apparently this is a widespread, but scarce fungi so I was pleased to meet with its oval, tiger bread, form while out walking Peggy.

Macro Mushrooms

On the invertebrate front, the moth trap has been moth balled until the New Year. With the rising cost of electricity units per moth well up, its not worth putting it on for 13 hours for 2 Angle Shades... The last Butterflies for me were a Small Tortoiseshell on 3rd and a Peacock on the 6th.

I've been on holiday this week, using up annual leave before Christmas. The time was to be spent putting the garden to bed for the winter. There has been mixed success here with fine Monday and Wednesday utilised but on other days its just been too wet and windy.

When the weather is stormy from the East we all know what that means to an East coast patch watcher - Seawatching.

Today has been really grim. Raining most of the day, barely daylight  and blowing a strong Easterly.

Although an East wind can be good, I prefer a Northerly for seawatching. My home spots are just too exposed in this weather, so I headed to Boulmer and the safety of the relatively sheltered Seaton Point, where strategically placed caravans make it just about bearable.

From 09.30am - 11am the count went  - 

Kittiwake 1300 N ( a gross under estimate with maybe double that in reality).

Sooty Shearwater 3 late birds taking the 'breeze' in their stride.

Little Auk 24 N

Pomarine Skua 3 N

Arctic Skua 2 N ( these 5 skuas were in one flock)

Skua sp probably a Long tail but it was too fast and hiding in wave troughs)

Brent Geese 2 N

Long tailed Duck 3 drakes N.

Gannets not counted but a light movement.

Fulmar 2N

Hopefully there will be more moving in the morning, I'll give it a couple of hours first thing.

Apologies for the images, I only had my 300mm lens. The pics look black and white but they are in full colour, honest!

Kittiwakes.

Three Little Auks of the 24 seen.

Squint or click and zoom, these are Long tailed Drakes...

Arctic Skua first, then 3 Pomarines, and another Arctic at the tail end. Compare the sizes of the Arctic and Pom at the front.

Three Pomarine Skuas.

10 days of night.

I've just re read my previous post regarding Storm Arwen. A bit of an understatement there I believe. 

On one of our local upland patches, Brizlee Moor, the wind was recorded by the RAF at 98 mph and maybe a bit more down on the coast where we live! 

On Friday 26th November Jane and myself took a trip up to Bamburgh Castle to see the Christmas decorations. We hoped to go towards dusk, but we were contacted to say we should come earlier as the castle would be closing due to the Red Met Office warning that had been put out for the east coast of Scotland and Northern England. Red Warnings a rare things and are linked to a serious weather event that may result in structural damage to properties and the environment with a possible risk to life too.

Bamburgh Castle Christmas Tree

We were back home by 2pm just as the wind began to pick up. Rather than go into itemised details, it is enough to say that by 7pm the wind was roaring making it difficult to stand up outside. At 7.50pm our house was plunged into darkness as the power went off. Luckily we had expected this as our power goes off at least once a year and this was our third time this year but little did we realise how this would impact our community.

Our bathroom at 7am with snow on the roof. No heating, hot water or lights... 

The destruction of large trees around our village was incredible. Large Oaks and Scots Pines uprooted and snapped off as well as lesser trees down everywhere. It was a stand of pines that had blown on to a power pole snapping it and the cables clean off causing our power fault.

A huge tree across the pond field gate... 15 trees were down across this road to Longhoughton on Saturday morning.

So sad to see this massive old Scots reduced to logs...

A 200yr old oak blocks our path. This tree hosted my first patch Golden Oriole...

Carnage in the hill top plantation. The snapped pole can be seen far left against the dark pines.

The cavalry arrive. Day 10, late afternoon..

We were left back in the stone age for 238 hours or the thick end of 10 days, not being reinstated until 6th December at 6pm.

During this time we were constantly cold and tired. It was just physically and mentally exhausting. Some kind souls said that our wood burner looked 'cosy'. Without it heating a 6 feet radius in the living room we would have died. One person said their grandparents first house in 1948 had no electric. It isn't 1948. Then, people were kitted out for no power with paraffin lamps, cooking ranges that heated hot water etc. Some even found it quite funny. We weren't laughing that's for sure. Coping with 16 hours of darkness in zero temperatures is no laughing matter. It was just survival.

But, here we are past the ordeal now reviewing the aftermath before the letter writing begins...

Birding this ordeal?

Yes some. It was good to get out in daylight for a couple of hours to take our mind elsewhere, mostly seawatching.

Saturday 27th November still in the teeth of Storm Arwen.

Only watched from the car for 40 mins as it was really grim. The sea can be too rough for birds to move and today was one of them...

Great Northern Diver 1 S high over head.

Velvet Scoter 3 N

Goldeneye 6 N

Eider 66 on the sea.

Common Scoter 13 N 2 S

Little Auk 1 N very close under neath the bank.

Black Guillemot 1 N a good bird here very close in only my 2nd patch record.

Long tailed Duck 1 drake N

Shelduck 16 N

Pale bellied Brent Geese 19 N 

Sunday 28th November I ventured out to Seaton Point from 0830 - 11am. The weather was much better. Bright and freezing. Masses of birds were moving now the wind had subsided a bit. It was difficult to keep up.

Auks 5000 per hour N. Maybe more. At least 4 were dark hooded Brunnichs-a-like.

Pale bellied Brent Geese 23 N

Goldeneye 11 N

Red throated Diver 51 N

Puffin 26 N

Cormorant 53 N

Eider 40 N

Common Scoter 52 N

Shag 28 N

Shelduck 3 N

Great Shearwater 1 N so close I picked it up with the naked eye and thought it was a young gull! It came over waders roosting on the rocks. In the bins and scope it filled the field of view. Superb.

Great Northern Diver 9 N

Red breasted Merganser 2 N 2 S

Wigeon 36 N

Gannet very few hence count 12 N

Kittiwake 7 N

Red necked Grebe 2 N

Velvet Scoter 1 drake N

Purple Sandpiper 1 N

Mallard 14 N

Teal 1 N

Bar tailed Godwit 1 N

Black Guillemot 1 N again over the rocks, my 2nd in two days cant be bad.

Glaucous Gull 1 N a huge fw bird along the beach with Great black backs.

Black throated Diver 1 N

Snipe 2  and Siskin 1 in off  .

Monday 29th November 10 - 11am. Much quieter.

Red throated Diver 12 N 2 S 3 on sea

Great Northern Diver 1 N 1 S

Common Scoter 3 N 5 on sea

Velvet Scoter 1 drake with 2 duck Commons N

Red breasted Merganser 1 drake and 1 duck N

Manx Shearwater 1N a very late bird for here.

Eider 9 N

Teal 5 N

Purple Sandpiper 1 N

Gannet 2 juv N

Bottle nosed Dolphin 2 N

Some nice birds but no Brunnichs for us.... I didnt take my camera in the storm but Dan Langston did, with excellent results! See Here.

 

Winter

 

The weather forecast looked promising for a seawatch this morning. The wind was curling over the north of Scotland and down into the north sea, giving us a force 5 NW'erly. There was also a 30% chance of some precipitation too, but we didn't realise that seemed to translate into torrential sleet for a third of the time we were out.

We arrived at Boulmer at first light but had to wait in the car for the first of the squalls to subside before deciding what to do. Eventually it faired up enough to walk out south down towards Seaton Point. By the time we arrived, the sky was darkening again and curtains of sleet were heading our way. This is when we took advantage of the winter caravan site being empty and stood in the lea of this cabin. Strictly speaking we should not have been there, but the place was deserted and apart from this blog we left with no one being any wiser of our presence.

With the tide on the ebb, viewing wasn't ideal but the close sea south east of the point was sheltered by the land mass and a lot flatter than the wider sea slightly to the north and east. This meant birds were taking advantage of this and skirting just beyond the rocks and inside that line of breakers you can see in the photo above giving us good views in decent light. As further squalls arrived we just took a step backward under the porch canopy until it passed then we would pop back out again.

For this late, totals were as expected. From 9am - 11.30am we noted - 

Sooty Shearwater 1N

Little Auk 3 singles, 2 of which landed and bobbed around in floating weed for a bit before continuing north.

Long tailed Duck 2 fine drakes N.

Puffin, 15, a lot for the winter.

Red throated Diver  6+ 

Black throated Diver 1 north, close in then landed where it was seen breifly on the sea then lost in wave troughs.

Great Northern Diver 1N

Goldeneye 2N 1S

Velver Scoter 1 N over the rocks.

Pale bellied Brent 3N

Purple Sandpiper 3 on the shore and 1 N

Brambling, 1 calling in-off.

No Fulmars seen, Gannets, Kittiwakes, Gulls and larger auks not counted, but a steady movement throughout. Odd Common Scoters, Eiders, Mallard and Wigeon milling around too.  

So far so good. It was time to head back between storms. Peering out, the north sky looked blue and clear so off we went. Its about 1 km back to the car and as you expects, yes, we didnt make it. After only a third of the way, the black clouds raced over and hit us with driving sleet, right in the mush!

Back at the car, I was soaking with water running off my gear into the boot. Definitely time for home to get warmed and dried, still that was maybe the best local morning we have had for a few weeks...

Here it comes...

Nearly at the car park, sun and driving stinging sleet.

  

Sunday...

We are getting a lot of 'seawatching weather' recently. Some years we hardly get a day with a northerly. However, not all northerlies produce the goods and its a learning curve of experience to pick out good from bad.

I knew today would be a bad one. The wind was NE and gusty, and to the uninitiated seemed good, but, if you drill down a bit, it was coming off a low in the North Sea, not one that had tracked across the top of Scotland hence there was no pre-north westerly ( are you with me) to blow birds into the upper North Sea and then down further south so they can re-track North.

I know that sounds a bit garbled but I hope you get the gist.

We were on Cullernose from 07.30 until 0855.

It was slow.

Still, we managed 8 Little Auks, all nice and close, some landing in front of us, 1 Common Scoter, 2 Long tailed Duck, 1 Velvet Scoter, 2 Red throated Diver, 2 Goldeneye, 5 Fulmar inc a likely Blue phase going S but only see from its arse end as it disappeared, and 5 Eiders.  Gannets and Auks go without saying.

From here we headed along to Craster for some shelter and maybe some passerine action. We had the shelter.

There had been a reasonable fall of thrushes with 30+ Blackbirds, 8+ Redwing, 4+ Song Thrush, 3+ Fieldfare but no small stuff, not even a Chiff or Blackcap to be had.

Best of the walk were 3 Snow Buntings N, just about 300 mtrs out of patch boundary ( they flew from the patch but I was neither in it or saw them in it so they don't count. 6 Willow Tits are good by anyones standards these days and 7 Grey Partridge, 1 Treecreeper and 4+ Goldcrest added interest.

Time for home I stopped at Johns car back at Cullernose. A short scan of the flooded newly sown field had an adult and a 2nd winter Mediterranean Gull, then just before leaving the mega arrived! A Little Egret [160]no less flew low over the fields and off north! Thats patching for you, only my 4th sighting here in 10 years and one I didnt have any hope of adding to the 2019 year list...

Off work on Tuesday and the weather forecast looks dog rough.... wave watching likley...

A Seawatching Weekend....

Not all of it. Very little really, but the three hours spent over two days just a few hundred yards from the door were ones well spent.

Saturday 08.10 -10.00am

After horrendous gales and snow and temps down to freezing, I felt a Little Auk coming on...

Off to view from Cullernose Point where there is a little bit more shelter than off Howick Village ( its only quarter of a mile along, at the north end of  Howick Bay) had -

Little Auk 6 
Great Northern Diver 1, a nice close one too.
Long tailed Duck 2, a pair.
Pintail 1
Bonxie 1 right over head.
Sooty Shearwater 2 as usual, distant.
Velvet Scoter 1
Common Scoter 8
Wigeon 311
Goldeneye 5
Shelduck 3
Red throated Diver 4
Manx Shearwater 2.
Dunlin 12
Knot 2

Not bad at all. Rarer still I was joined by two other birders, after the first hour. Three people birding here...unheard of.

Sunday 08.45 - 10.00am.

Myself and JWR. The sea had calmed right off after yesterdays mountains. The wind has changed too, WNW 3.

I fancied that the calmer conditions might make viewing any re-orientating birds, that bit easier.

Little Auk 107, in small parties up to 30 in number, Very close in ( as typical, unlike yesterdays Sooties)
Long tailed Duck 4
Great Northern Diver 1
Velvet Scoter 6
Pochard 1
Teal 206
Wigeon 135
Common Scoter 24
Goldeneye 1
Red throated Diver 19
Red breasted Merganser 3

Also, some viz miggging with -

Woodcock 2 in-off, both picked up  a mile out and follwed to shore. One landed only yards from us before continuing west. Fantastic.
Fieldfare 12 as the Woodcock, all of these seen low over the waves and eventually reaching shore.
Starling 20
Blackbird 2

Its great to watch these birds arrive after a Scandinavian sea crossing, they must be knackered.

A good weekend!