It feels like spring.

 

Alnmouth with Coquet Island in the distance.

Sunday was a calm and pleasant day, getting brighter as it wore on and for once spring was in the air. What breeze there was, came from an ENE direction building hopes that we might come across something out of the ordinary. Unfortunately we didnt turn up anything rare but we still had a good morning seeing a few migrants.  

I met John at Alnmouth Cricket Club at 7am. A stroll down to the water works and flood meadows was filled with bird sounds. Lapwings and Redshanks displaying, Geese clattering around, a Water Rail squealed from a dense patch of phragmites and the sound of Chiffchaffs rang from every tree tall enough. 

A field near the track held some Mad March Hares, in April, with 8 or more chasing and boxing around.

Brown Hares mating.

 While watching these, a pair of Shoveler flushed from the small pond to settle again on a flash near the river.

Next we took the car down to the estuary. From here we covered the rest of the patch including the shore, bracken hill, and the estuary itself.

At this time there is an odd mix of birds of both summer and winter. There was a lone Barnacle Goose swimming up river beside a drake Red breasted Merganser, 25+ Wigeon, 20 Teal, 153 Curlew, a Goosander and 80+ Pinkfeet North while newly arrived birds included a female Wheatear, 4 Sand Martins, many Chiffchaffs, a Little Egret and 15+ Shelduck . There was no sign of the Avocet John had here mid week.

Little Egret

Incoming Sand Martin.

Stonechat on shed in the dunes.

Teal looking very smart in the sunshine.

Wheatear flew from beach and relocated in paddock on top of bracken hill.

 Later in the morning the warm sun brought out a few insects - 2 Small Tortoiseshells and a scatter of Hairy footed Flower Bees.

A small solitary bee, I'll need advice from specialists for this one...Andrena scotica. 

A male Hairy footed Flower Bee showing is feathered legs and the white blaze...

Small Tortoiseshell, the first butterfly of the year for me.

Back home at lunchtime, I was pleased to give the lawn its first cut after a wet March. Now I can let the meadow kick in. In the garden were more Hairy feet and 2 Peacock butterflies...

Peacock in the garden.

  

Technicolour....

I'll split this post in two halves, firstly I started out here at home for an hour, then popped down to Warkworth to meet John, then back here to loiter around the garden again as yesterday. A lovely sunny day, a bit cooler, but a cracker of an autumn day all the same.

Howick.

This morning was out before sunrise down to the Bathing House area just to see if there was any viz mig and to get a sunrise photo.

70 Golden Plovers were roosting in Tommy's field, while 300 Pinkfeet flew south over head. 3 Swallows, a few Skylarks and Meadow Pipits also moving south shortly after it got light.

At 7.30am I headed off to Warkworth, see below, returning at 12.30pm.

This afternoon I spent a lot of time just watching what was going on around our garden. There were loads of butterflies again as well as many Silver Y moths. As the sun was quite bright, I kept the camera handy to get some shots of the butterflies as they appeared....

Peacock

Small Tortoiseshell

Comma

Red Admiral

In addition to these four, there were Speckled Wood, Large White and Small White.

The roving party of Long tailed Tits came back, this time bringing a Treecreeper and 8 - 12 Chiffchaffs. Two Blackcaps fed in the yew and elder bushes. Still no striped sprite...

Blackcap

Warkworth.

The time spent at Warkworth was equally lazy but this time sitting at a picnic bench drinking tea and scoffing Bakewell Tarts while watching the birds pass overhead. We had a steady stream of Skylarks ( 50+), Meadow Pipits, 9 Redpolls, 6+ Pied Wagtails, 3+ Swallows, 250 Pink-footed Geese, a few Linnets, Goldfinches and Tree Sparrows. A Snipe bucked the trend by going North.

In the scrub were 4 -5 Chiffchaffs, 2+ Blackcaps, 1 Reed Warbler, 10+ Blackbirds.

Reed Warbler

  We ended down at the estuary where things seemed a bit quieter. The juv Black tailed Godwit was there but there were only 2 Knot with the masses of Redshank, Dunlin, Curlew and Lapwing. Two Little Egrets and 18 Teal were above the weir.

After the rain all day on Friday I was keen to see if there were any migrants around, on both patches. The Farnes and Holy Island between them held Red backed Shrike, Barred Warbler, Wryneck, Thrush Nightingale and 2 Greenish Warblers so maybe we would find something of interest.

On Saturday morning I headed to the north end of my patch at Craster, where there were a few common migrants to look through but that's all.

Today was a lovely sunny morning down at Warkworth where a few more birds were in evidence. The beach car park was a hive of avian activity first thing with 6+ Whitethroat, 6+ Blackcap, 6+ Willow Warbler, 4+ Chiffchaff and a Sedge Warbler. This theme and list continued around Birling Carrs and Amble Marina.

Two Yellow Wagtails flew south.

This Sedgie was not yet on passage, feeding fledged young nearby.

Waders continue to provide interest on the estuary with 228+ Dunlin, 58+ Ringed Plover, 11 Knot, 7 Golden Plover, 3 Sanderling, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Juv Ruff ( probably the day's highlight) and a few Turnstone. Redshank numbers were high but not counted. It was just the cherry from the top that remains missing...

Knot are difficult to approach...

10 Goosander, 3 Little Egrets ( 'Egberts', er, no. This isn't even an abbreviation!) and a Common Tern added to the show.

Out to sea, a large group of dolphins were leaping right out of the water but they were way too far out to identify. A few butterflies were seen -Small Copper, Small Tortoiseshell, Meadow Brown, Wall Brown and the Whites.

So no really noteworthy birds on offer today, but that's the beauty of patch watching...there is always tomorrow.

Small Copper

Small Tortoiseshell

On the home patch this week a few new additions to the list are beginning to trickle through -  a juv Spotted Flycatcher on Tuesday, 2 Dunlin and a Knot with 336 Golden Plover on Thursday. Not a year tick here but only the second on patch was a female Shoveler on the pond this evening hiding under the overhanging trees. A good bird for here but I'd have swapped if for a Gadwall...

128. Spotted Flycatcher
129. Dunlin
130. Knot

A photo blog...

Although it has been the first sunny day for a while, the patch was generally quiet. Mind you, that could be my fault as I was just moseying around and didnt even get to look at the sea! I suppose the highlight was a Woodcock that flushed when I almost trod on it in the wood...

The woods were a sea of Snowdrops. 

11 Herons were beginning to get territorial at the pond.

Some colour in the woods. I've no idea what these are but they mustn't taste too good.

Keeping hidden...

A male Goldcrest singing while feeding.

As was this male Great Tit.

A 7-spot Ladybird on what I think is Male Fern?

 

Small Tortoiseshell dormant only 3 inches from where I placed it on 30th November.

Go wild, go wild, go wild in the country...

A belter of a day today, with the temp at 16 degrees at lunchtime.

This morning was spent at Branton doing the WeBs count with John. Before we started, a casual stroll checking a sunny hedge bottom produced 8 Adders basking in the early morning sun. All seemed to be females (They are males, see comment below). A selection of individuals are above, with one pic containing a pile of three!(Count the heads).

[See note below. Thanks the Greenie for his comment on the Adders. I found it a good help, so maybe it will come in handy for you too...
Stewart ,
Males are very variable in colour and when first out of hibernation as they are now , and can be very dull having spent several months under ground . When they 'slough' their skin , they will be much brighter . They also emerge 2/3weeks before females , and can be found lying around in numbers just outside their hibernacular , as your 3 were . In the past I have found up to ten animals lying together . Females tend to have a light brown/ginger ground colour with darker brown zig zag marking , which is less defined at the edges than the black , more defined zig zag of the male . The 'silver' colouration you mention occurs when a female in season , just every other year for them , is found , then hormones in the male go to work to produce that silver and black phase . Of interest , on all four occassions that I have witnessed 'the dance of the Adders' the combatants have always been silver/black males .]


Lots of Coltsfoot was in flower (top) and on the Sallows -

Peacock

Small Tortoiseshell

Of the birds, a darvic ringed Mediterranean Gull ( ring was Red PJJ1), 3 Great crested Grebes and lots of returning upland breeders such as Oystercatchers, Redshank, Curlew, Lapwing and Lesser black backed Gulls were the highlight.

Back home, it was warm enough for the first grass cut of the year. Time in the garden produced Small Tortoiseshell, Red tailed Bumblebee and Buff tailed Bumblebee and the resident Tree Sparrows. 

A Drive of Activity...

After Friday's Royal Wedding party at our Village Hall it was back to normal today, thank goodness.

Today was nice and warm in the sunshine, but in the nagging easterly breeze it could be very cool. Our drive way at home is nicely sheltered from the east, and the garden wildlife was taking full advantage ...

Above - This is the end of the drive, where I operate the moth trap. As you can see, 'wildness' is actively encouraged and apart from hand pulling clumps of grass and nettles, other plants are left for the wildlife. In here are Buddleia, Ivy and Forsythia, Periwinkle and Elder, while in the hardcore are Mullein, Black Medic, Dandelion, Ivy leaved Toadflax, Willowherbs, Teasel, Clover, Cow Parsley etc. Its a nice sunny spot on a day like today...

These Goldfinches and a pair of Greenfinches have been dandelioning daily and this morning a Tree Sparrow was collecting nesting material...

While above a pair of Swallows are investigating the shed...But the main interest has been from butterflies...

Wall Brown, the first of the year.

Orange Tips, usually too quick to photograph. Never still for a second. At least 3 males have been in the garden.

Small Tortoiseshell on White Dead Nettle.

Green veined Whites, this one on Honesty.

So, it just shows what is around if you neglect a little strip of hardcore!