The Sea Saves the Week...

 Lately we have been getting some canny birds around our local patches. Most years we expect this to increase with the onset of September into October, but often we are disappointed. Things rarely turn out as planned.

This last week has been, let me say, mixed. The wind has been from the East or North East for about 5 days and this is sure to produce the goods. Well, it did, and it didnt. 50 / 50.

When the wind is in the east we hope for drift migrants from the continent. Classic birds in these conditions are typically Wryneck, Red backed Shrike, Barred Warbler and Red breasted Flycatcher. 

We saw none of those here. In fact, for instance, yesterday was the quietest day we've seen on the coast for some time. There were none of these rarities but more concerning, there were no common migrants either. A full stomp around the headland of Seaton Point checking all bushes produced a heard only Chiffchaff and a locally bred juvvy Common Whitethroat. I get more in the garden.

Some places did get these good birds though, Holy Island, Low Newton and Newbiggin had them just not here. Spurn was positively sinking under the weight of good birds.

What is the upside of this you might be wondering? For us it was the sea. 

Last Sunday 1st Sept at Boulmer we had 18 Arctic Skua, 2 Long tailed Skua and 2 Bonxie, 43 Manx and 10 Sooty Shearwaters, 2 Red throated Divers, 22 Common Scoter, 1 Red breasted Merganser, 4 Goosander. Then as we were drinking tea at the car park nearly at close of play, we got a message that an adult summer plumaged Sabine's Gull had been seen at St Mary's, Newbiggin, Snab Point and Hauxley very close in, and it was heading our way.

There was no time to walk out to either North or South headlands so we just went to the flag pole seat beside the Lifeboat hut and waited.

The view here was a little bit more distant than the points but we could easily identify terns and kittiwakes in good light as they passed.

We formulated a strategy. In these situations you dont want one birder to see the bird and the other one not be able to get on it, so we focussed our scopes on the sea just south of the haven marker post. That way if one of us saw it, the other could get onto the post and the observer would say, at the post NOW! Ten minutes or so later and thats exactly what happened. I called up first when a small black hooded gull came into view. Luckily, John had seen it simultaneously. As it flew north it came a bit closer giving us great views as it passed, then as quick as it arrived it was gone to the north. Thats Seawatching for you...

During the working week a couple more short seawatch sessions were much quieter though on 4th Sept, I had nice views of 2 Minke Whales feeding offshore from our village for an hour. Its been a canny year for them up here.

On Thursday 5th, it was looking good for migrants so I took a day annual leave. What a waste. There were no small migrants and even worse the drizzle and fog so thick you could hardly see the sea! A couple of short watches had 13 Sooty Shearwaters, 1 likley Balearic Shearwater, 21 Manx Shearwaters, 1 Arctic Skua, 1 Little Gull and a Roseate Tern. Not too bad in the gloom but I just knew there were more birds out there hiding in the fog...

Next day, Friday I was back in the office. What a mistake that was as every one was now seeing masses of good seabirds now the gloom had lifted. So I managed to get finished and head off up to Seaton Point where me and John were sat in position by 4.30. Tide was up and birds were streaming by. Excellent.

In the next two hours we enjoyed - 

Manx Shearwaters 102 N

Sooty Shearwater 4 N

Bonxie 2 N

Arctic Skua 2 N

Long tailed Skua 1 N

Roseate Tern 1ad N

then as with the Sabine's Gull, we got wind that heading our way was a very close in Cory's Shearwater, a rare bird in the North East from the Med and more southern areas.

We had all but given up, as these birds can do anything on route such as land on the sea or go offshore etc. When, out of a trough behind a big rolling breaker it emerged and I called to John, Cory's Shearwater! Less than half way out   and showing well. This is where the fun began. As I touched on with the Sabine's, John could not get his eye on the bird as it slowly wavered its unusual flight north. I called a constant commentary, calling every bird, wave and flag that came into my view, but to no avail.

I could sense a quietness about John then he said, I'm going to miss this...

There is nothing worse than the walk back to the car when only one of us has seen something! Time to up the anti.

I could tell the slow moving bird was close and really he shouldnt miss it, he was looking too far out and to the north. I stood up and scanned with my bins rather than the scope. I soon got its bearings. A bouy and  a  long white topped breaker. I called John to look exactly there. Dropping back to my scope, there were 2 juv Kittiwakes going through. John had those. Then, close behind was the Cory's I'm not sure who was most relieved when he said 'Got it!'. Phew. It was still on view for a good spell after that so it was a result. The first Cory's we've had at Boulmer and a good view too...

I was almost hoarse from shouting directions the Shearwater will have heard me!

This week the weather is set to be a bit colder than recently with strong northerlies. 

You can guess what we will be doing later on...

 

    

Busy...from Fungi to Buff breast!

 Although I have managed to get out and about this week after work, I have struggled to catch up with my notes, sketches, blog posts etc. I blame social media. It has to reduce. Is it any wonder it is only drugs and the internet that call their market 'users'!  

Last Sunday the weather was ok but with a clear night and a westerly wind, it didnt look good for birding so we took the opportunity to hunt for fungi a short way inland, still within our 10km square of course.

I find them incredibly difficult to id, but we managed a decent list and with the images, I got most identified from the field guide and some helped by the demon Facebook...

The list looks like this - 

Birch Polypore Piptoporus betulinus

Common Puffball Lycoperdon perlatum

Orange Grisette Amanita crocea

Suede Bolete Xerocomus subtomentus

Brown Birch Bolete Leccinum scabrum

Pearly Webcap Cortinarius alboviolaceus

Fly Agaric Amanita muscaria

The Blusher Amanita rubescens

Porcelain Fungus Oudemansiella mucida

Orange Peel Fungus Aleuria auranta

Yellow Stagshorn Calocera viscosa

Larch Bolete Suillus grevellei

Red cracked Bolete Xerocomellus chrysenteron

False Chanterelle Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca

Amethyst Deceiver Laccaria amethystina

Egghead Mottlegill Panaeolus semiovatus

Glistening Inkcap Coprinus micaceus

Primrose Brittlegill Russula sardonia

Ochre Brittlegill Russula ochroleuca

Beech Milkcap Lactarius blennius

Grisette Amanita vaginata

Cep Boletus edulis

A Webcap Cortinarius pseudosalor

23 species and good showing.

Amethyst Decievers with an unknown of which there were many.

Beech Milkcap

Larch Bolete

Orange Grisette

Pearly Webcap

  On Wednesday 16th, there was a window of opportunity to have a seawatch.

Two, 2 hours sessions from Cullernose Point had  - 

Manx Shearwater 48

Sooty Shearwater 4

Arctic Skua 6

Bonxie 14

Common Scoter 70

Velvet Scoter 2

Pochard 7, unprecendented. An absolute mega that would have been the highlight of the day had they not been overshadowed by a stunning, adult, summer plumaged Sabine's Gull that came past, quite close in, with 30 Kittiwakes on my last scan of the day!

Adult Sabine's Gull with Kittiwakes.

Knot 1

Shelduck 5

Wigeon 107

Teal 60

Red throated Diver 16 all S 

Bar tailed Godwit 2

Puffin 30

Tufted Duck 3

Scaup 1

Pintail 1

Pale bellied Brent Geese 54

Unless stated they all went north. Not a bad four hours on the patch.

And finally to end this scrambled post, Gary Woodburn found a Buff-breasted Sandpiper at Low Newton while we were seawatching. He went for his camera and when he came back it had gone. Later on, it reappeared 5 miles down the coast on the wader hotspot that is Boulmer beach. 

Having seen a few in the county over the years I didn't go for it the same day despite only being 3 miles away on me on my 2nd local patch. The next day was fine and sunny so after work I thought Id pay it a visit. It is new for Boulmer after all... 

What a lovely little American wader, no bigger than a Turnstone, feeding on the beach at high tide facing regular flushings by dog walkers. I managed a few pics and left it to its business ... 

Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Boulmer.

It seems Blogger has changed again, this time for the better? I click my 1200 pixel wide images to original size and blogger has fiited them in my column width without faffing with the HDML code? Mmm, nothing is that easy....

 

Seawatching...

Once was a time when every late Summer through Autumn we would look forward to regular bouts of hypothermia, sat glued to a spot staring out east. In recent years it seems that these opportunities are becoming ever more infrequent, so, it was a pleasure to get out this weekend, on the deckchair, eye screwed into the scope to look for seabirds.

In Northumberland we are spoiled really.

In Suffolk last week I looked out to the sea from Minsmere and all I could see was a sepia looking, wet patch, practically devoid of bird life. If I looked out just down our road, in any month during a flat westerly there would certainly be more birds than down there.

Recent posts on social media, show birders enthusing over '500 Gannets! a record!' or 'Arctic Skua 2, and a Kittiwake, a good patch day'. Up here we don't have time to count Gannets, Kittiwakes or Fulmars. They are present most of the time, like Black headed Gulls. I am not trying to be smug here, not at all, this is just how it is. Its horses for courses really, its just that our county is a great sea watching area, maybe not up with the likes of Cornwall, but over a full year, not far away. We may not do spring, but seawatching, when weather allows, makes up for it I think.

So, on Saturday morning, I took up position at Craster soon after 6.30am and waited. The wind was a moderate NW4, maybe not the best for us where a straight Northerly or North easterly is best, but at least the thick cloud cover prevented the glare from a rising sun.

First bird past was a nice Sooty Shearwater, quite close in too, always a good sign, closely followed by a juvenile skua that looked suspiciously small. As it came closer it was joined by an Arctic Skua and showed an excellent size comparison - a juv Long tailed Skua!

From then on things were steady as she goes with a nicely building list with nothing earth shattering happening until at 7.20 - Great Shearwater! Only my second county record, it came through at close range, indeed the closest bird of the day, so all features could be seen. Superb. At 8.10am it wwas time for home as we had other commitments...

  On Sunday,John and myself headed up to Beadnell where the point should get us closer views of the sea bird passage. We camped out from 07.15 until 11.45 and had a grand morning, with nice birds, but unfortunately, no cigar...

Later in the afternoon, reports were still coming through of good numbers passing with some better species too, so I though I'd give it an hour back at Craster...it paid off with a juv Sabine's Gull N, albeit, a bit distant but ok...

The lack of detail is deliberate in my notes as this was the view I had. My first patch Sabine's too, so seven and a half hours staring across the waves was really worthwhile. Lets hope there are more northerlies in the near future!

For a further impression of my view, see Jonathan's blog in the side bar, he has some video of what may have been the same bird, though a few were reported during the day.