Its here!

New PC arrived today, but as you can imagine setting up and transferring data from this one to the new one isnt a job for a donkey wearing boxing gloves...so, I will get a professional to sort things out after the bank hol. I hope to be back blogging soon....

As a short update, I could have had a nice post last week. John and myself took a trip north of the border ( by 5 miles) to a colony of Small Blue butterflies. We had about 20+ on a nice hot day. I've been a bit busy of late to see very much else, artwork for a chap from Notts, visiting Jane's sister and new baby in Northants, writing some articles on the local wildllife for a book about our village , village hall duties, and last night I gave a talk on moths of Howick to Alnwick Wildlife Group. It seemed to go down well, with lots of questions and interest afterwards. Oh and I forgot I still have to fit in work!

Back soon...

Partially postponed.

Hi all, this PC is still causing no end of sluggish behaviour on the blog front. But, help is nigh, I have ordered one of these...MEGA PC!

Hopefully normal service, with photo's 'n' that will be resumed as soon as poss....

This week's update...

The first week of May has pretty much followed in the footsteps of April. Cold.

I am convinced now though that better weather is just around the corner...

On Monday evening a short walk with Bunty up towards Hips Heugh to check for Ring Ouzels, did not find the mark, but 6 Wheatears were a bonus, plus 2 adult Brown Hares and 3 leverets in one field. A Roe doe was flushed on the way up.

On Tuesday after work we walked up the coast path to check Cullernose Point for Spring Squill flowering. This went the same way as the Ring Ouzel hunt-  none were in bloom. The first Sea Pinks were in flower though and the Kittiwake colony were very much in 'full song'. Another 3 leverets were in the Scar field here, showing that there is a good population around here. More concerning, 9 Swallows headed purposefully south along the cliffs. An omen for forthcoming weather?

Saturday am was bright after sleet and 1 degree at midnight last night.

A Stoat was being hounded by a dozen Jackdaws along the road through the village before it could reach the cover of some ivy. One or two butterflies were in sheltered spots -  2 male Orange Tip and 1 Peacock at the top of the Long Walk and a Small White was in the garden. A Whimbrel was feeding on the rocks in the bay this evening.

On Sunday, the first Whitethroat arrived in the village. JWR and myself headed onto new territory, when we checked out Roddam Dene and Harehope woods. The cold suppressed birds and butterflies, but some flowers were struggling through - Greater Stitchwort, Bluebells, Wood Sorrel, Leopards Bane, Ramsons, Wood Rush, Woodruff, Opposite leaved Golden Saxifrage, Water Avens, Wood Forget-me-not, Violet, Primrose and Red Campion were all noted.

Roddam Dene and footbridge. 

Another cold and windy day with a NNE6 and leaden skies. Fortunately the rain held off until dark.

A wander around the Foxton and Alnmouth area this morning with JWR turned up a few spring migrants.

At Foxton Bends what we assume was a pair of breeding plumaged Green Sandpipers took the 'best of the day' award. A much different bird to the autumn juveniles we are used to, these ones were nicely speckled above in black and white. Nearby a Brambling called then flew west while our first Swift of the year flew north overhead.

From here we walked the golf course at Alnmouth. The pond trees held Whitethroat, a singing male with a beak full of nesting material. How do they do that? A Sedge Warbler was also a year first but was sensible and stayed at the bottom of a thick patch of brambles.Plenty of Chiffchaffs, Willow Warbler and Blackcaps were heard but only s few showed themselves.

A half hour seawatch curtailed due to hypothermia was very slow except for Razorbills and Guillemots with hundred flying north.

Green Alkanet

Spring Beauty carpeted the banks in a bright acidic green.

  

Yes I'm still here....

This is getting pretty dreary isnt it. My posts are very thin on the ground these days so here is something to start with.

Last week I was up there in Scotland. Speyside to be precise. We had a nice house in forest near Dulnain Bridge. The first couple of days were cool but sunny, but the rest of the week was pretty much like the rest of April has been, but colder.

We got out when ever the weather allowed but the landscape was very much still wintry up there with little bird activity. We had a lone Osprey on a nest away from the Garten site, sitting with its back into a blizzard, 4 Crested Tits in Abernethy and thats about it really. Roe Deer and Red Deer plus one or two plants helped the days along....

Holiday House - Craignay.

Siskin

Bearberry - Lochindorb

False Morel - Abernethy

No, none...

Our Blackbirds in the ivy are feeding young now and the outhouse Robins have 2 eggs...

Its been a long winter....

12th April. Still nowt. A pair of Shelduck on the coast path were new for the year but proper migrants - nil. While it has long been known that Northumberland does not have a spring, due the the cooling effect of the north sea coupled with the high ground and northerly latitude, this year is getting ridiculous.

For me I reckon on Wheatear on or about 3rd April, Sand Martin first week in April, Willow Warbler 8th, Blackcap 10th, Sandwich Tern similar,  etc, but so far none of them. Swallows are due in the village on about the 15th. At this rate its going to be summer before I see them!

Oh well the Coot is still on the pond along with the same 2 Teal, 4 Tufted and 1 Goldeneye...

Maybe this weekend will drop some in....

Excuses excuses...

Ground Ivy

What can I say. April 11th and not a single blog post. Why? Well, my computer is at death's door and is very slow indeed. I fear every new photo uploaded will do for it, so I am pondering some expense. In the next few weeks I will be getting a new one, powerful enough to launch satellites, but, til then its back to my seven year old one.

Checking the spec on it is a laugh. My current machine is steam driven - 512mb RAM and 160gb HDD. No wonder its slow. I have my eye on one with 6gb RAM and a TB HDD...That should load sites and pics quicker.

So what else have I not been doing....seeing migrants that what. To date, Chiffy is my lot. Not a Wheatear or Sand Martin has gone this way, yet, but I'm sure they will soon. No Blackcaps or Willow Warblers either, what on earth is going on!

I have had one bird highlight though so brace yourself  - Coot. Oh yes, I can induce envy in the hardest of listers. The other day I was over the moon with a Coot on our pond. Its the first since spring 09, making it rarer than Yellow browed Warbler and Barred Warbler, Marsh Harrier, Peregrine, Pomarine Skua, three diver sp, Purple Sandpipers, Storm Petrel(!) Snow Bunting and Waxwing. Patch watching is great for putting things into context...

None-bird highlights - some nice Ground Ivy flowering in the woods among the daffs, mmmmm, er, ...oh dear. Yes - moths - Oak Nycteoline and Chamomile Shark, both scarce county species graced the garden this month.

Thats about it really. I'm still getting out and about just not seeing much. You'll be the first to hear when I do...


  

A Garden tick and a lifer!

Last year I had a brief glimpse of a bumble bee that I fancied may have been Tree Bee, Bombus hypnorum. By the time I grabbed the camera it had gone.

So, while checking the moth trap this morning I was surprised to see this one cuddled into the bottom of an egg tray. They are quite a new arrival up here but Nigel, Tom and Tim have had them in their gardens at Morpeth, Tynemouth and Whitley Bay respectively, so I kind of expected one soon...

This bee was new to the UK in 2001 around the New Forest area, but in recent years its spread has gone on unabated.

A great little creature.

Melancholia...

Well, long time no see.

I have struggled to get blog motivated in recent weeks, despite some lovely days and a few off work too. I'm not sure what the problem is, but please bear with me. Maybe its because I'm not seeing a great deal, enough to keep me happy, but not many photos or exciting migrants for readers.

Its great just pottering around looking at whatever appears. I'm enjoying it so much, milling about my patch in a zen like state, that I have taken a big step. The pager is on its way out. Contract terminated and after 13 years it will be returned at the end of May. I hope the new bird club info emails will keep me up to date with new county birds!

What have I been seeing? A few butterflies locally with Small Tortoiseshells and Peacocks and my first Small White of the year in the garden on Monday. A Bee Fly evaded the camera as it patrolled our plant pots outside on the same day.

Its nesting time in the garden and locale. A Blackbird has eggs in the ivy on our wall, a Wren is building a 'cock-nest' in an old Swallow's in the outhouse while not three feet away a Robin is filling up a nook with leaves. A pair of Grey Partridges are prospecting along the edge of the field next to our drive too, but I dont suppose I'll find that one.

The moth trapping is coming along fine with last nights highlight being a Pale Pinion, only my fourth. While checking the moths in the morning, some migration has taken place overhead with 5 Lesser Redpolls, 8+ Meadow Pipits and 30+ Linnets this week. A Fieldfare was heard chakking in the fog the other day but remained unseen. I wondered if it was a Ring Ouzel briefly...

Brown Hares have been showing well with three in the back field the other night and, tonight, a bull Grey Seal was loafing offshore.

Further afield, on my way home from work last night a pair of Short eared Owls were squabbling over the road next to Boulmer radar base. they were only feet above the car so I stopped and watched for a while.

I'm sure a Wheatear is just around the corner...

Even more string...

While I'm on about records more dodgy than an MPs expenses I cant help but notice an eerie silence about a reported Alpine Accentor for Bamburgh Golf Course in September last year. Needless to say the description is still outstanding....

Is it a coincidence that the Harlequin and site of Alpine Acc can be seen by standing on the same spot?

Waiting to Tee off...

Mega! Mmmm...

Probable female Harlequin off Stag Rocks this afternoon before flying off to Holy Island.

I wonder?

Who knows, maybe it will be relocated....

[ Word is, this might be the real deal. A good known observer is the reporter]
[PPS Nope it wasnt the observer we thought, just same initials! Looking like a mile of string]

Moors and Moles...

 Up on the moors yesterday morning, sunshine and cloud shadow made for a dramatic landscape. Unusually no birds of prey were seen at all, not so much as a buzzard.

A while back I mentioned how common Moles are around here. Well, they have been thinned out a little on the higher pastures. There were 63 on the fence. They mustn't taste very good because they are never picked at by crows or magpies or anything.

 

While we walked up a nice gulley in the moor, a Raven came right overhead chasing a crow off its territory. Look at the size difference, the Raven cronking while the crow gave a panicked chatter...

On the walk we flushed a Woodcock from the burn side, maybe a bird back on territory, 5 Stonechats in one area was good and a scattering of Reed Buntings were feeding on heather seed. A few pairs of Curlew were displaying overhead. All this to a throng of singing Skylarks and Meadow Pipits.

While nothing too special was seen, just being up there, on a spring morning, made it good to be alive...

Chiff-chaff-chiff-chaff

A lovely clear sunny spring day with blue skies all round.

This mornings dog walk was to woodland along the lane to look to see if any Chiffchaffs had arrived. They had! Three males to be precise, all singing away. One seen well in yellow sallow catkins looked typecast for the part.

At the lane end, a Stoat risked death by coming towards me along the main road. Luckily I flushed it into cover before a vehicle came along. Last weeks Long tailed Tit nest is almost finished now, with one bird adding extra lichens to the outer crust.

Elsewhere, a singing male Reed Bunting, a singing male Siskin and a ( you get the picture) singing male Nuthatch made for a pleasant stroll out.

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. 

On my way to work this morning a large skein of about 70 Whooper Swans flew north, low, over Longhoughton. Before the end of the month new visitors will have replaced them....

Reporting In...

After seeing Mr Malloy's post about his cover of the Durham Bird Report, I forgot to show this. A  fine report with a fine cover by a little known artist... ;)

In Annual Reports Top Trumps, I think Northumberland beats Durham...

Today Part 2....

This afternoon reached a mad 17 degrees. A summers day in February.

In the Village Wood, a sallow was covered in Honey Bees and a single Buff tailed Bumble Bee. A Red Admiral was my first butterfly of 2012.

Into the Pond Field, the track was peppered with Toads, 70+ with more in the pond. 90% seemed to be squeaking males. 

 The one above tried to death grip me into submission but failed...

The newly cleared channel into the pond seemed to be the favourite spot for the amorous amphibians. On the way back, 4 Frogs were in a ditch, only the second time I have seen Frogs here in three years....

Raptor Fest...

Peregrine, top, mobbing Buzzard ( looks like a sea eagle in this pic!)

Peregrine, top, over 4 Buzzards.

Walked over the back field towards the heugh first thing.

I was pleased to see 4 Buzzards in the air together, just hanging in the wind, when suddenly, a Peregrine came in from the south and was having none of it. Determined to stop their fun, she dived at them a few times before boredom set in and she moved off north, leaving the sluggish Buzzards to get on with it.

No sooner had the Peregrine gone, 3 Kestrels came out of the wood nearby and began displaying and calling. It was nice to see 8 raptors sharing airspace in the space of a few minutes.

A pair of Grey Partridges and a pair of Reed Buntings were in the marshy field corner, and a Grey Wagtail was on the burn in the village....

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.