Showing posts with label Marsh Harrier. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marsh Harrier. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 16, 2023

Another Hobby

Tuesday 16 August. The forecast looked spot on for Wednesday morning so on Tuesday afternoon I drove out to Pilling way to check everything was in place for a ringing session the following morning. I saw five Common Snipe on the mucky pools and where wagtails usually outnumber waders but not on this occasion. Perhaps the time of day was not ideal for wagtails but I was confident there would be both Meadow Pipits and wagtails the next morning. 

Snipe

Pied Wagtail

As I drove off site I spotted the slow, lazy flight of a Marsh Harrier, quartering the ground like a Barn Owl, floating above the grassy fields and reedy ditches on long, V-shaped wings, looking and listening for movement below. The harrier was heading my way, but then veered off and I lost it as it headed north west. Not to worry, there was a good chance the same or another one would be around on Wednesday morning. 

Marsh Harrier
 
On Wednesday morning I met Will at 0630 with a net or two and with the walk-in pipit trap. the one we bait with wriggly meal worms.

Meal worms

Although we caught a few Meadow Pipits, the numbers for a larger total just weren’t around and neither were the wagtails of recent days. We caught 8 birds - 4 Meadow Pipit, 2 Reed Bunting, 1 Reed Warbler,  1 Sedge Warbler. 

We rarely capture Meadow Pipits a second time because the species is extremely transitory in both spring and autumn. Therefore it was most unusual that this morning one of the pipits in the walk-in trap bore ring number ACV6545, previously caught and ringed here on 9 August. The lure of free meal worms had overcome any fear or memory that the bird may have had of the walk-in trap just a week ago. It seemed that the pipit is no hurry to migrate south. 

Reed Bunting

Reed Warbler

Meadow Pipit

Sedge Warbler
 
Our catch was a poor representation of the numbers of small birds and the species we saw, with highlights of 40 Meadow Pipit, 10 Reed Bunting, 8 Goldfinch, 30 Swallow, 15 Tree Sparrow, 3 Sedge Warbler, 15 Linnet and 8 Goldfinch. 

Better was to come when Will’s superior eyes caught sight of a Hobby heading our way. And then we watched as it changed direction upon spotting us and hurried off in the direction of Fluke Hall and Knott End some miles away.  It quickly became a speck in the hazy sky to the west.

It was not a surprise to watch a far off Marsh Harrier as it hunted out over the salt marsh but it was too distant to age or sex from some 100 yards away. Was it the same one as Tuesday? Unlikely since mid to late August is peak passage time for this now fairly common raptor of Northern England. 

We packed in early as numbers and the clear skies above did little for our catch. But we’ll be back soon so don’t go away good friends because there’s always news, views and photos on Another Bird Blog. 

Linking this weekend to Eileen's Saturday. 


Saturday, December 24, 2022

The End

Well that’s it, the end of the ringing year. The weather forecast is so bad that it’s highly unlikely we can manage a ringing session until 2023. 

At least here in the UK we are not suffering from the violent and extreme weather occurring across North America, conditions causing severe disruption and deaths at a time of year that is for celebration. 

It mostly happens that we in North West England receive the tail end of North American weather via Atlantic weather systems and already our own forecasters are predicting New Year snow and ice for us. 

This morning I made my usual trip out Pilling Way to drop supplementary Christmas Fayre for our feathered friends. This will pay dividends soon by way of preventing the premature deaths of birds unable to find their customary food in snow and ice. 

Just two days after the Winter Solstice a Cetti’s Warbler sang out from the edge of the reedy scrub, the exact same spot of November after which all appeared to go quiet. I rather hoped the Cetti’s had looked in his diary and thought this was the time to strike up the band. 

Perhaps not as the extra daylight is not too noticeable just yet but the sound of the Cetti’s and then another sighting of the now confirmed wintering Marsh Harrier gave me positive vibes for the weeks ahead. There's little doubt that both species could breed in this area with sympathetic ownership and management of certain tracts of land.

Cetti's Warbler

Marsh Harrier

I saw no birds on or around the plot prepped for whoosh netting but where many tiny footprints told a different story. Our time will come as the weather turns colder when perhaps even the Linnets may return. The normally dependable Linnets are not around at the moment and it could be that many have gone even further south during the freeze of early and mid-December. 

In the absence of other news here’s a few paragraphs about the very same feeding station from 13 January earlier this year, a clue as to what may be around two weeks into a new year when winter  subsides and spring is around the corner.  And how time flies! 

January 13th 2022. 

In most UK winters the Brambling is a difficult one to find but a bird to prize. These cousins of the ubiquitous Chaffinch live north and east of here on the borders of Finland & Russia, venturing this far west in irregular numbers and unpredictable years. 

At the feeding station I‘ve listened for the nasal wheeze, watched the feeders and the ground beneath for weeks while studying the hedgerow for a flash of white rump amongst the Chaffinches. And then on Wednesday, joy of joys, at last a Brambling, crouching amongst half a dozen Chaffinches, an orange-tinged one, reward for the seed drops and the interminable car washing after the tortuous muddy farm track.

Brambling

The finches scattered for no reason when I saw that the Brambling, now in a nearby tree, was male, perhaps even an adult but not for definite until and if we catch the star. (We did).   

A couple of Reed Buntings, 3 Greenfinch, three or more Blackbirds and 20 or so Linnets completed the count as I scattered more seed in the base of the hedgerow where even the Sparrowhawk’s long legs won’t reach.  

Greenfinch

Chaffinch

Blackbird

I saw Brown Hares on the move too, three together in the first of their Mad March ways. 

I left the Pilling farm and drove to Cockerham where at weekend Andy and I had prepared the seed plot for our now annual whoosh netting of Linnets and the sometime bonus of Skylarks and Stonechats. 

Happy Christmas and a Bird-Filled New Year everyone. Linking today to Eileen's Blogspot and Anni in Texas.

 

Tuesday, September 13, 2022

Last Gasp

Tuesday would be the last opportunity for getting out before jetting off to Greece on Wednesday. Sue reminded me that packing suitcases is a little like cooking - too many packers spoils the baggage - or words to that effect. So I took the advice, left her filling suitcases and bags via the well-thumbed aide memoire then set off to meet Will out Pilling way for 0630. 

Regular readers will know that recent ringing has been slow in numbers and that birding has proved more electrifying in the way of raptors like Peregrines, Marsh Harriers and Sparrowhawks. There’s nothing quite like a dashing falcon or a marauding hawk to enliven a morning of netting tedium that consists of two birds an hour. 

Even the recent Spotted Flycatcher was having none of our wicked ways when it spent two hours and more watching the clumsy efforts without trying out the mist nets. 

Spotted Flycatcher
 
Today’s escapee was Stonechat, a single bird that arrived unseen along a distant fence and then flew to the seed plot and perched up within a yard or two of the single panel nets before doing the proverbial vanishing act.  

Stonechat

Villain of the piece was a female Sparrowhawk which appeared on the scene looking for a meal of Linnet but then scattered not only the Linnet flock but also the Stonechat. The Sparrowhawk easily snatched a Linnet and treated us to superb views but we didn’t see the Stonechat again. 

After a couple of weeks of low numbers Linnets were this morning suddenly back in quantity with a couple of large flocks amounting to 150-180 individuals. We caught five Linnets along with two more Robins and possibly our last Reed Warbler of the year. 

Linnets
 
Linnet

Reed Warbler
 
It seems we are not the only ones to note the reappearance of Linnets with a gang of 220 seen at Hilbre Island, Merseyside on Sunday. 

These movements signify the start of the true autumn migration of Linnets from the top of Scotland, many of which spend their winter in the relative balminess of North West England warmed by the Gulf Stream. Small differences in temperatures may seem bearable to us but to a small seed eating bird like a Linnet spells of Scottish cold, ice and snow are life and death. 

Only briefly did a Marsh Harrier treat us to stunning views when it circled around behind our ringing office where it attracted the attention of assorted crows. The morning sun lit the harrier’s crown and turned it like magic into a pot of yellow butter. 

Marsh Harrier
 
There was a Peregrine again. Brief views as the bird dashed right to left across our viewpoint and in pursuit of some unknown prey not too far away. 

That’s it folks. The packing is packed. There's an early taxi heading this way. See you in Greece. 

I may have Wi-Fi some of the time so if there’s no response to comments and queries, apologies in advance. I’ll be along eventually. 


Friday, August 26, 2022

Oh Dear, How Sad. Never Mind.

I made it to Pilling on Friday morning and met up with Will for a spot of ringing. Another quiet session saw a catch of just 9 birds - 6 Linnet, 1 Sedge Warbler, 1 Chiffchaff and 1 Robin. 

The ringing was quiet but birding while sat in the warming sunshine proved immensely entertaining.  We saw two but possibly three separate Marsh Harriers, one in clear north to south migration, the other two patrolling the landscape. 

A Peregrine tried twice to catch Stock Doves and while the Peregrine failed to connect a Buzzard hung around just in case there were spoils to be had. 

A Sparrowhawk, 3 Little Egrets and 2 Grey Herons added to our sightings with small flights of both Wigeon and Teal in the mix. Linnet numbers are down with a low count of 50/60 made up of small parties between 3 and 8. 

The numbers are down in all respects from those of two and three weeks ago. We suspect that we have witnessed a juvenile dispersal of some magnitude and that there will now be a lull until the arrival of more Linnets when colder weather arrives.   
 
Chiffchaff
 
Sedge Warbler

Robin

Marsh Harrier

There are more birds, birding and photos to come.  Log in soon to Another Bird Blog.

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Meanwhile, there’s interesting and up to date news from Another Bird Blog’s Game and Sporting Correspondent. 

As a reminder and estimates vary, approximately 32 million Pheasants, 9 million Red-legged Partridges and 2.6 million Mallards are released into the countryside annually in the UK. The birds are released to provide ‘sport’ for people who live in or travel to the countryside. The released birds are subsequently killed during highly organised shooting occasions throughout the late autumn and winter months. 

This is known as Driven Game Shooting, a form of shooting more formal than simply walking with a dog alongside the hedgerows, and is usually confined to pheasant, partridge and grouse shooting.

On the shoot day, a team of shooters, or Guns, line out at numbered pegs. Meanwhile, under the gamekeeper’s instructions, a group of beaters and their dogs move through areas of woodland or covert, flushing the game ahead of them.

The aim is to get the birds to break cover and fly high over the line of Guns to provide sporting shots. Shot game is retrieved quickly by a picker-up who sends his/her trained gundog to where the shot game falls. Because of the organisation and number of people involved in a shoot of this sort, the financial cost to the Guns is considerably higher than in the other types of shooting.

Pheasant rearing

“Pippa, her posh pals, piles of dead pheasants and partridges... and some very pukka wellies” 
Daily Mail UK

The huge demand for the millions of young gamebirds (poults) reared for shooting in the countryside needs both home grown birds and imports from Europe. The largest exporters of gamebirds to the UK are France, Poland and Spain. France is by far the largest supplier of factory-farmed pheasants to the UK shooting industry with the Eurotunnel the main supply route for these birds. 

It seems that the price of Pheasant poults in particular is suffering from the same if not higher levels of inflation than the price of Waitrose avocados. Rearing birds requires labour, food, water, transport, husbandry, heating and energy, all of it getting more expensive by the day. 

In the early part of 2022 the industry worried that the price for a single poult might reach the dizzy heights of £5. 

During 2021/2022, France saw a high level of H5N1 Avian Flu outbreaks concentrated in the Vendee and Loire Atlantique regions - some of the main suppliers of game birds and eggs to the British game keeping market – as well as in French game birds themselves. 

The wave of cases in the southwest of France led to the culling of about 4 million birds, according to Reuters. There were 975 outbreaks of avian flu in the country between late November and March 2022. During this time France also experienced restrictions of movement and lockdowns of people and services due to Covid. 

This perfect storm of circumstances has seen the price of Pheasant poults imported to the UK rocket to near £10 a bird, a price that threatens the financial viability of UK shoots where attendance at even the smallest gathering may require a payment of £1,000 or more per person per day. 

It appears that some French producers who earlier in 2022 took orders from the UK have now reneged on deals or stated that they are unable meet new orders. The result is that as the shooting season of 1st September draws near, the price of a single UK grown poult for immediate supply was very recently quoted at £12.50 by a Lancashire supplier keen to fill the gaps in supply. 

A Gun

Organiser of shoots and their Guns worry they may have to cut down on the number of shooting days this winter.


Whatever happens from here on it seems likely that at the very least there will be less shooting this winter, with a corresponding lessening impact on the environment & countryside caused by the release of many thousands of factory farmed birds. 

Linking this weekend to Eileen's Blogspot and Anni in Texas.


 

Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Put The Kettle On

Readers will be pleased to know I survived the two day “heatwave” that only last week was projected to “kill thousands”. This is all very confusing because five or six years ago scientists predicted that “Earth is 15 years away from a mini ice age" when we would all freeze to death. 

For those of a nervous disposition likely to be triggered by the daily diet of doom and gloom served up by TV and newspapers, it’s best not to worry about the latest scam. Just like buses, you can bet there’ll be another one along very soon. 

Instead, take a seat, relax, put the kettle on and contemplate the next birding day. 

Keep Calm

This preoccupation with weather watching does occasionally make for the wrong decision, as we may have for Thursday when at the last minute we cancelled Thursday in favour of ringing on Friday. 

Friday dawned but there was no point in fretting what may have been but instead concentrate on the job in hand at our ringing site out Pilling way. It was 0615 when Andy’s car negotiated the rough track, where in my inability to sleep at the prospect of a ringing session, I had already set the Linnet net. 

With mid-week reports of early migrants including Yellow Wagtails, Whitethroats, large roosts of Sand Martins plus returning waders like Ruff and Greenshank, anything was on the cards in the slight, almost non-existent easterly draft. 

An hour or two later we had our answer when cloud rolled in, the breeze sprung up and drizzly rain enveloped us. This proved very frustrating as by then we had caught just seven birds, two each of Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler and Linnet plus a single Wren. We saw 60/70 Linnets head our way and stop for a look as the single panel net grew increasingly balloon-like; there was no way the Linnets would fall for that. 

Sedge Warbler

Reed Warbler

Wren

A Wren or “wrigglearse” as ringers fondly name them, has a reputation as a tiny, troublesome beast, one that will wind itself into a mist net several times over or run up an unwary ringer’s open sleeved jacket. Twisty turning fidgeting Wrens are the best learning experience for a trainee ringer in how to handle small birds, lessons they never forget. 

However, Troglodytes troglodytes the cave dweller is an in interesting species and certainly more migratory than many bird watchers realise, hence the reason we catch the species. 

Click on the map below taken from the BTO’s phenomenal online migration atlas.


We’ve hit a Wren sweet spot because today we caught another two Wrens plus 2 Sedge Warbler, 2 Linnet, a Willow Warbler, a Greenfinch and the ultimate rarity, a Song Thrush. 

Song Thrush

Greenfinch

We packed in early when contractors arrived to turn the cut grass in readiness for silage stage. The noise and disturbance from the huge machines made ringing almost impossible. 

On The Farm

We saw our first autumn Marsh Harrier when a brown juvenile followed the species’ usual route north to south and then disappeared into the distance. 

Marsh Harrier

Also, 2 Little Egret, 1 Kestrel, 60+ Linnet, 40 Lapwing, 30 Curlew, 300 Starling, 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker, 4 Pied Wagtails. 

I was home early so clicked the kettle on and dropped a tea bag into a favourite mug. Life is sweet when there’s nothing to worry about. 

There’s more news, views and photos soon from Another Bird Blog. 


 

Monday, October 11, 2021

Scoring More

After Saturday’s disappointing foray into the hills Andy and I turned our attention back to the flat fields of Cockerham on Sunday morning. There was zero wind and a cold start until the sun rose to warm the air. We employed two nets only, one in the seed plot and one in the nearby trees, a fast job of setting up that took all of 15 minutes and so much quicker to pack away. And much closer to home for the drive back- for me at least! 

There was a somewhat slow start with 4 Linnets caught in the first hour. Fortunes bucked up quickly and then a good catch of 37 birds with some superb bird watching in-between. 

For once it was Greenfinches that topped the catching chart, not Linnets. All new birds no recaptures - 19 Greenfinch, 13 Linnet, 2 Reed Bunting, 2 Wren, 1 Chaffinch. 

Greenfinch

Reed Bunting

Chaffinch

Thanks to watchful crows we’d had early but brief views of a Peregrine, an hour or so later bettered by the sight of a Peregrine chasing a Wood Pigeon across the open field in front of us. It all happened very quickly but the pigeon proved up to the challenge by diving into the nearby copse where the Peregrine would not venture. 

Later, the morning turned out so warm, inviting and spring like that we agreed “October 10th, it’s not too late for a Marsh Harrier”. Sure enough within 30 minutes a “cream top” arrived from the east, put on a gliding/hunting display and left quite quickly to the south and in the direction of the inland mosses. 

This is the Marsh Harriers’ usual route here; today’s the latest of four autumn sightings of the species. They arrive from the north or east after a journey around or across Morecambe Bay and then fly inland on a direct southerly or south west heading. Their slow but purposeful method of flight allows them to migrate while hunting over suitable landscapes of marsh, reedbeds, and farmland where they find favoured foods like frogs, small mammals and birds, such as moorhen and coot. 

Marsh Harrier
 
It’s virtually every Linnet catching session that a Sparrowhawk or two appears looking for a meal. The hawks are drawn in by the sight and sound of 200 and more chattering Linnets, in the air or feeding in the seed plot. This morning was no different as a young male Sparrowhawk appeared as if from nowhere to single out a Linnet but once again failed to catch. 

I’m not sure what the success rate is for hunting Sparrowhawks but imagine that here at least it is quite low. Sparrowhawks that hunt by surprise tactics in suburban gardens seem to do much better than these probably inexperienced youngsters. 

Not to be outdone and just as we were ready to leave the crows found us a Buzzard that circled above to give great views in sunny sky. After a couple of circuits the Buzzard too drifted off in a southerly direction. 

Buzzard
 
All three raptors, Buzzard, Sparrowhawk and Marsh Harrier are migrants through this part of Lancashire, their numbers increasing in the autumn as young birds disperse and adults wander in search of consistent and good feeding. The Peregrine is a winter visitor to these lowland and coastal areas where concentrations of waders and wildfowl provide rich pickings for the supreme hunter. 

Peregrine
 
That's all for now. Back soon with more news, views and photos.


 

Monday, August 16, 2021

Win-Win

I don’t normally have a leisurely breakfast, more a “grab it and go”. At 0630 on Sunday a steady drizzle rattled on the conservatory roof. It was rain enough to bang another piece of bread in the toaster, make a second cup of tea and wait for the skies to brighten. An hour later it was time to hit the road. 

The plan was the usual - a little birding over Cockerham way and hopefully a spot of ringing. 

I stopped at Gulf Lane where the farmer had promised to cut a swathe through his other seed crop in readiness for the first signs of a decent sized flock of Linnets. Richard had done a gret job with the tractor with a terrific 9ft wide path that skirted the ditch and the bramble patch where many birds frequent during August to May. 

Already birds were in the ride, foraging through the cut crop, along the fence posts or hiding in the hedge - 2 Tree Sparrow, 2 Reed Bunting, 2 Stock Dove and 18 Linnets. 

Tree Sparrow
 
Reed Bunting
 
Linnets
 
Win-Win

A good start to the morning that went slightly downhill as the previously slight breeze picked up enough to signify that ringing was a no-no. Not to worry as the big fields held many birds even if most were a little distant. 

The distance combined with the ebb and flow of birds constantly moving between the field and the marsh beyond made counting almost impossible. My best estimates were 750 Greylag, 200 Lapwing, 175 Carrion Crow, 90 Curlew, 25 Stock Dove and countless gulls, mostly Black-headed. 

Black-headed Gulls

Curlew

Constant activity was enough to draw in raptors in the shape of two Sparrowhawks and a Marsh Harrier. I was be sure of two Sparrowhawks because of their relative sizes, a small, fast moving male and soon after a larger female that circled around in a higher plane as females of the species are inclined to do. 

The Sparrowhawks were quickly followed by a Marsh Harrier, a somewhat nondescript bird of the year, which gave intermittent views as it hunted over and around the ditches, fields and few trees that dot the area. When Richard arrived on the quad carrying the morning breakfast of cattle nuts I asked “Where were you five minutes ago?” 

Luckily the harrier reappeared again to give us both splendid views until it drifted off south, over the A588 and in the direction of Winmarleigh Moss. Mid-August is a classic time to catch up with Marsh Harriers as they disperse from breeding sites north and east of here. In recent years Marsh Harriers have begun to winter on the Lancashire coast, Leighton Moss and Martin Mere/Southport/Merseyside. 

Marsh Harrier
 
Smaller birds were difficult to find with singles of Reed Warbler, Great-spotted Woodpecker, a handful of Goldfinches and about 20 Linnets max. A single south moving Swallow was the only one noted. It's really autumn now. 

After a dismal start the few hours spent in the Great Outdoors proved to be a winner - again. And who wouldn’t rather be birding?  

Linking this weekend to Eileen's Saturday Blog and Ann in Texas.


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