Spring. Its all a myth....

Its easy to get disillusioned with a local patch when you see reports going    on all around you of spring migrants teaming through. From our place, I see tales of waders, passerines and raptors popping up in all manner of parks, reservoirs and suchlike so when I step out into a stiff icy cold Northerly with no birds I am reminded that 'spring' on the          Northumberland coast is almost a myth. Its like those Christmas Cards of  Dickensian scenes when we look out on Christmas day to 10 degrees and    rain...

 But, there are some things that the weather cant hold up forever. Birds   that  winter in Africa and breed in the northern hemisphere will eventually battle through regardless, its just that Northumberland is one of the final places to see any.

On Sunday we headed out hoping that today would see some arrivals, and for once we were lucky. 

The route was from Cullernose Point to Craster in the hope of a Ring Ouzel or at least a Wheatear.

The view south along the coast from Cullernose.

As it happens, the first of 5 new patch birds for the year came before I had left the car park. A Willow Tit buzzed briefly from the blackthorn scrub then promptly vanished.

We moved one vehicle along to Craster then the other back to Cullernose for the walk north. At Craster a pair of House Martins were new and were looking a potential breeding site in the waterworks. 

In these cliff hugging gorse bushes, above, is a short but sheltered farm access track that sometimes holds a few new arrivals. As we ventured in, a small bird flicked up off the grass -  a belter of a male Redstart! This is spring tame fare along the south coast but here it was my first spring Redstart in 14 years. Result. Further along a pair of Wheatears bobbed around on a pile of sand in the field, patch tick 4 in the first half an hour. Nearby a female Shelduck emerged from an open hay barn to meet her mate. No doubt she will have a nest behind the bales.

Redstart

The rest of the way to Craster held no more surprises, but the cover held good numebrs of Chiffchaffs, a few Willow Warblers and Blackcaps . The scrub here looks excellent and rarely sees a birder, including me, so I must make more of an effort.

  

This is the view just to the left of the top image. Dunstan to the left and Craster Heughs to the top right.

We walked around by the harbour and up into the Heughs where a rattling Lesser Whitethroat was the final addition to the year list. Roe Deer flushed and a Sparrowhawk flew overhead. All along, there was asteady but light northerly passage of mostly Swallows with an odd Sand Martin with them. 

As we drank tea and ate biscuits at the car, a report came through of a Crane flying N at Tynemouth and Whitley Bay. In the unlikely hope it might track another 30 miles we headed off back to Cullernose to wait it out. As expected, there were no further reports..

At midday, it was time for home, its seems spring has finally sprung after all... 

Eristalis intricaria Hoverfly on Blackthorn.

Razorbills loafing on Cullernose.

Roe Doe

  

Storming the Castle.

 This might be a longer blog post than most recently, as this week I've finally got something to write about, so please bear with me. There has even been some good signs of spring.

Before I come to the weekends events, on Tuesday mornings dog walk, a smart adult, summer plumaged, Mediterranean Gull flew low south over our village with a team of Black headed Gulls. My first of the year on patch. As far as gulls go they don't get much smarter than these, with backlit angels white wing tips and contrasty hood..

Mediterranean Gull.

The next few days were standard, with that treading water feel to it, until Friday.

I was office based on Friday morning when at 09.17am a WhatsApp message came through - 

Alpine Swift is a rare bird in Northumberland with only around 15 records and there hasn't been one 'gettable' for about 30 years. Not in my time anyway. 

Now, my office is 40 miles from Bamburgh Castle so it is not exactly a short jaunt away. When that last message came through I felt some relief that it had gone, but a short while later, it had returned. Had I been working from home, Bamburgh is only 15 miles away, but not today. 

After another hour and more updated grippage of 'showing well' and a frame filling pic, it all became too much, I had to go. So, colleagues updated, I was going to pop out and work from home in the afternoon...

After a sluggish tractor / tourist subdued drive up the A1 the car finally came to a halt in the large car park over shadowed by the huge bulk of Bamburgh Castle at 12 noon. A quick scan with the bins. Nothing. Just blue sky and fluffy clouds.

Checked phone. 

Bugger. No news for an hour. Its not looking good.

I pulled out of the car park and drove a few hundred yards to the south and parked on the road side so I didn't need to pay and thought I'd give it half an hour and see what happens. As I got out of the car I was joined by Alan Hall who was buzzing having had great views of the bird. By now I had resigned myself to having wasted my time, but you have to try or you'd never succeed.

Then, Alan became quite animated. Gesturing over the dunes  - 'There it is!'

And it was coming our way.

What a bird, Alpine Swift is a good deal bigger and bulkier than Common Swift, appearing like a more stiff winged Merlin as it approached and went low, straight over our heads then gone towards the village. This is only my 2nd UK record after seeing one on this very same date in Scarborough 19 years ago. Alan left for home but I went back to the car park where a few others were watching the now very high Alpine Swift feeding. Sometimes it would drop lower and strafe the castle walls and flag pole at great speed, rocking its wings side to side. I wished for my camera that was lying at home, but no worries, the lack of it meant I could just take it all in above us.

After about half an hour, the car park attendant came. This was cue for me to head back home and work. What a day. The swift was present only for a short while after I left when a rain shower seemed to move it off and despite some vague reports around 3pm it was not seen again. 

Back to reality now. Yesterday was another pleasant day so I met John at Seahouses Farm layby and after some car shuffling where we took one vehicle up to Craster then drove back to Howick to walk the coast line looking for migrants, we set off in clear blue skies for the walk north.

Soon the sound of trumpeting Whooper Swans was followed by the lovely sight of a majestic flock of 47 slowly following the coast north. Another party of 72 was seen later on at Craster as well as a big flock of 350+ Pink footed Geese following the same route back up to breeding grounds. 

Whooper Swans

As we approached the small Salters Gate layby an early Sand Martin flew low west while a couple of Chiffchaffs could be heard singing.

A few Skylarks, Meadow Pipits and Wagtails were also on the move north along the coast path.

Chiffchaff, Howick coast path.

Meadow Pipit

The rocky shore between Cullernose and Craster is excellent for Wheatears or a Black Redstart maybe but we didnt see any on this walk. New additions to my Local Patch year list were welcome though with a drake Red breasted Merganser and 3 Lesser Black Backed Gulls N. A few Razorbills were displaying on the sea below Cullernose cliffs and the first Kittiwakes were back on the sea.

Razorbills displaying.

After a wander around Craster seeing only 9 Purple Sandpipers of note, we arrived back at my car for tea and sausage rolls before moving back down the coast for a short seawatch off Howick. At this time of year seawatching is usually slow but we had things like wildfowl or maybe a Sandwich Tern newly back in the county, in mind.

We had 8 Red throated Divers N, 12 Common Scoter N, 4 Dunlin ( another new patch tick), a few Gannets and Kittiwakes, 1 Shelduck N, 2 Lesser black backed Gulls N and a Harbour Porpoise. More intriguing though, I picked up a flock of tiny dots miles offshore towards the horizon that looked a bit like Lapwings at that range. It was clear they were coming in off so I stayed with them to confirm. When they finally came within reasonable range, I could see it was a group of 31 Jackdaws! What on earth were Jacks doing miles out to sea? That's a first for me, migrating Jackdaws... 

Migrating Jackdaws out at sea.

Low right, adult Lesser black back.

2 of 9 Purple Sandpipers

So not a bad morning out, a good end to a good week. The moth trap has been active too since Friday so here are a few of the moths caught -

Acleris literana

March Moth

Oak Beauty 

Red Chestnut

Twin spotted Quaker, orange spotted form.

Pine Beauty,

 

    

Green days....

 Sunday was a bit quiet so I got up early for a walk north along the coast to Craster. It was bright and cool with  a light S breeze. Its great to be out early at this time of year, I didn't see another person for the first two hours.

A slow wander north along the coast path was very pleasant. A few Yellowhammers, 3 Grey Partridges and 2 Greenland Wheatear were about the only things of note but the soundscape of singing birds, noisy Kittiwakes and gently rolling waves was relaxing.

The Bathing House with Longhoughton Steel, Boulmer in the background.

Craster Farm

This view south shows the majority of my local patch. We live in the village you can see in the trees. 

Kittiwake watching me.

Razorbill below my feet.

The view from Cullernose Point

Thrift and the marzipan smell of gorse.

Greenland Wheatear

Whitethroat

Yellowhammer ( do you think!)

A few other things were noted, a single Painted Lady in off, 3 Wall Brown, masses of Spring Squill in large patches all along the short turf. 

Painted Lady

Spring Squill

A carpet of Spring Squill with Dunstanburgh Castle in the distance.

This post is a bit photo heavy so I'll keep the text down a bit. On the way back, I noticed a bird flying south across the field behind Cullernose Point. It looked odd, but familiar? Green Woodpecker! Another patch mega. Not new here, but I've only had two others, winter 2009 /10 and spring 2017. I tried to take a record shot but the camera would not lock on. I must get the settings for viz mig worked out soon. I saw the bird well enough to believe it was a female...

Green Woodpecker south at Cullernose