Getting A Buzz

I got hold of a three hour pass to use before the babysitting when Olivia arrived. We promised to take her out for lunch for “chips and beans”. Unlike Theo who will eat most things put in front of him, like lots of kids nowadays Olivia has a more limited diet that tantalises her taste buds; so on one day a week it’s difficult to wean her off her favourite junk. I don’t find it hard to believe that many kids these days can’t put a name to common fruit and vegetables. Or, as the mystified young lad working on our Tesco checkout when faced with courgettes to key into his till asked, “What are they?”. Maybe we should be grateful that they at least seem to be getting taught about environmental issues, giving them a chance to understand how previous generations messed the world up for them.

I wanted to check out Braides Farm first so headed there via Fluke Hall Lane, frozen overnight again after the umpteenth frost of this abnormal winter. A group of 25 Lapwing and a couple of Black-headed Gulls huddled in a single whitened but still damp patch, but otherwise my notebook remained empty. Near the seawall at Braides were 170 Lapwing, 65 Golden Plover and 60 Curlew, with less than 10 Skylark. I also counted 7 Little Egrets, less than the 11 last week but they certainly get around this whole area with more always further towards Cockerham Moss, Pilling, Bank End, Thurnham and the Lune.

From the track I could see the Buzzard on the sea wall, as could a patrolling Short-eared Owl that proceeded to dive bomb the larger bird. I got pictures of the Buzzard but the owl was less keen to harass me as a predator than the Buzzard. Otherwise I would have got better pictures of it. The Buzzard lifted off and circled to gain height whilst the owl kept its distance from me.

Buzzard

Buzzard

Short-eared Owl
A quick tally at Conder Green revealed the overnight duck turnover of 25 Wigeon, 33 Tufted Duck, 11 Pochard, 2 Shelduck and 35 Teal with a lone Grey Heron and several Oystercatchers, Curlew and Redshank.

Shelduck

Pochard
The tide was way out at Cockersands caravan park so counting much was out of the question but I was content to try my luck with the shy Stonechat and the other small birds along the shore, 11 Linnets, 1 Reed Bunting, 4 Chaffinch, 3 Greenfinch and a couple of Blackbirds commuting to and from the caravans.

Linnet

Stonechat
On the return journey I could see thousands of Pink-footed Geese on the fields opposite Gulf Lane but didn’t have four hours to spend going through them for a “goodie”, especially along Mortuary Mile.

Back at Lane Ends the roadside Fieldfare gradually eating through all the Sea Buckthorn berries has been a great photo opportunity for anyone who likes to take pictures of common birds. A bit “dudy” perhaps for those who only get their camera out for “good” or rare birds with which to fill up all the local bird reports? But I get a buzz out of taking photographs of any birds. I looked at a North West bird report recently and it did not contain a single photo of a common bird, just pictures of the supposed highlights of the birding year. Then everyone complains about the huge turnout at twitches, the Day After Birders, the Weekend target touts, the pagers and mobiles ringing out for fun! Well what do we expect if through local bird reports and pager systems keen beginners are introduced to a diet of rarities and “good” birds, the ”E Numbers” of bird watching, rather than shown the joys of patch watching, survey work, vis migging or taking photographs of common birds? Is it any wonder that so many become hooked on the wrong diet and have no interest in the humble spud?

Fieldfare
Fieldfare
So what’s the big attraction of Sea Buckthorn to the Fieldfare apart from the fact that other berries are now in short supply?

“Sea Buckthorn berries are a common source of nutrition for a great deal of wildlife, birds in particular, but when they are eaten by humans they tend to be very bitter and quite unpleasant and may need to be used as an additive to other types of food in the diet. The most common form of Sea Buckthorn is Hippophae Rhamnoides and the female of the species produces succulent and juicy orange berries which is becoming a popular and fast selling product. Normally found on coastal areas of many areas in Europe and some parts of Asia, the plant includes berries which are now being cultivated to sell to the general public who have discovered that these berries can be potentially very good for health. The berries contain extremely high levels of vitamin C, though vitamins A and E and amino acids have also been found in many varieties of the plant. Although definite research into their exact health benefits have not been fully carried out and evaluated, it is generally assumed that due to their high content of vitamin C that they must have some benefit to health and can be enjoyed in many products. The anti-oxidant properties may be proved to help eliminate some of the harmful chemicals found in the body that may affect the heart and its function. Sea buckthorn berries have also been found to be beneficial in preventing narrowing of the arteries caused by a build-up of cholesterol. Compounds in the berries are now being derived and used in health supplements specifically for this reason”.

Sea Buckthorn
Isn’t the Internet wonderful?

After The Fog

No early morning heroics for me this morning after the forecast predicted heavy frost with a chance of freezing fog again. Although I was up at 0715 and it was fine and sunny, the fog quickly came in, bringing freezing air to whiten the garden. So I had a walk up to the shop to buy the Telegraph, sat at home with a coffee and waited. By 1230 it was bright enough for me to head out to Rawcliffe for a walk.

Today was obviously a Wood Pigeon shoot as gunfire echoed over the moss from every wood but I am pretty sure most of our Wood Pigeon cleared off during the frost, snow and ice of weeks ago, and the fact that I didn’t see more than 20 was down to that, not the success of the shoot.

Woodpigeon
On the way down to the feeding station I stopped to look at a flock of 45 Lapwings in the roadside field which they shared with a biggish flock of Starlings. Part of the attraction was that moles had been very busy disturbing the ground, no doubt leaving plenty of items the birds could consume. A field or two away a farmer busied himself doing whatever farmers do in tractors but seemed too engrossed to stop and watch the Roe Deer not far away. Perhaps because shooters were in every wood I saw three groups of Roe Deer, two lots of four and another of three animals, 11 in total.

Lapwing

Roe Deer
From the feeding track I counted 135 Tree Sparrow, 5 Yellowhammer, 5 Reed Bunting, 7 Blackbird, 12 Chaffinch, 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker and I disturbed a pair of Grey Partridge from below the hedge. I also found two other pairs of Grey Partridge when I walked up the edge of the big field close to some flooded tractor tracks where 3 Snipe hurried off at my passing.In the top fields and along the edge of the plantation I found 8 Linnet, 4 Goldfinch, 3 Corn Bunting and snatches of song, a fairly distant Buzzard and 2 Kestrels, one of which perched on the outermost branches of the trees.

Kestrel

Reed Bunting

Corn Bunting

There were another 30 Corn Bunting near the farm buildings, along with 2 Reed Buntings, 3 Collared Dove and 22 Chaffinch.

A fairly quiet and unexciting afternoon for birds but it's difficult to follow catching 34 Siskin as we did yesterday. An enjoyable walk nonetheless. Let’s see what tomorrow brings.

Siskins, Sun and Sarnies

That was the order of appearance this morning when we returned to Will’s for a ringing session.

The roads were a little dicey this morning with poor visibility and freezing fog of -3C. Ian was a minute behind witnessing a tanker crashing through a dry stone wall on the A6 at Catterall. But we all arrived safe and sound at Will’s, if a little cold but to a welcoming cup of coffee.

The Siskins were there in numbers in the tree tops, we could hear them in the half light and mist, twittering away and waiting for a breakfast of energy giving nyger. Our first round of just the two nets caught 21 Siskins and 2 Goldfinch, tremendous!

Siskin

Siskin

The sun eventually cleared a path through the mist as the Siskin kept arriving; At times they made a tremendous din moving about the garden or simply calling from the single pine and the several alders.

Sunny Morning

By 1145 we had caught 61 birds:

Siskin 34, which included 2 retraps from previous occasions.
Chaffinch 8
Goldfinch 10
Dunnock 1
Robin 1
Great Tit 3
Coal Tit 1
Blackbird 2

And, wait for it you ringers out there, 1 Blue Tit, a retrap! On a frosty February morning there is a Fairy Godmother after all.

There’s always a question about what percentage of birds present or passing through a locality are actually caught at a ringing session. On this occasion, and after a little discussion, we agreed that to double our actual catch would be a conservative estimate of the Siskin seen and heard, so we assumed that upwards of 70 Siskin must have been around the area of the neighbourhood this morning. A few of the Siskin showed evidence of peanuts around their bills (photograph) but our ones this morning stuck to the nyger feeders throughout. Some of Will’s neighbours do feed peanuts only.

The birds kept us fairly busy but naturally we found time to fit in our own energy giving breakfast of bacon sarnie liberally basted with HP of the brown variety.

Siskin

Siskin

Coal Tit

Blue Tit
Other birds we saw this morning; Wood Pigeon 14, Collared Dove 4, Pied Wagtail, Nuthatch 2, Treecreeper 2, Kestrel. Jackdaw 20, House Sparrow 10.

Pied Wagtail

Short But Sweet?

I did get out for a few hours this afternoon, but apologies for the short summary as I have to go a meeting in the Black Bull later.

Over at Pilling before I turned off Wheel Lane to Fluke, there was Great-spotted Woodpecker activity when one perched in a roadside tree followed a second one that flew across in front me from the direction of Fluke Hall itself. I notice how this species has become extremely noticeable and vocal over the last week or so as they sort themselves out for the breeding season.

Along Fluke Hall Lane there were plenty of Lapwings, as in 235 of them, 15 Golden Plover, 40 Redshank, 2 Dunlin, the single Ruff from the previous week or so, 2 Stock Dove and 10/12 Skylarks.

Lapwing

Ruff
At the entrance to Lane Ends I saw a single Fieldfare still working the buckthorn berries above the road, then from the top car park I quickly counted 44 Whooper Swan on the distant marsh, 195 Shelduck with 2 Little Egret closer in.

Fieldfare
I decided to check out Braides, partly as a preliminary to the wader survey work I have permission to do on there. It was fairly productive with counts of 210 Lapwing, 95 Curlew 12 Golden Plover, 9 Skylark, 1 Grey Heron, 2 Short-eared Owl and a high count of 11 Little Egrets. I will have to do a lot of my work from the gate, because although I have full access, by walking along the very open track I was extremely visible to all the birds, most of which gradually moved elsewhere.

Little Egret

I met a farmer up at Cockerham who gave me a ring GC75867 he found about a month ago on a dead roadside owl which he said was a Tawny Owl. I’ll do the business on the BTO website and see what transpires.

Conder Green was well, Conder Green. Greenshank 1, Spotted Redshank 1, Snipe 2, Teal 40 (are numbers going down a little?), Grey Plover 1, Wigeon 7, Tufted Duck 8, and Grey Heron 1. Just as I was about to leave 6 Black-tailed Godwit flew in calling but landed on the far side of the pool and didn’t approach the road side screen – pity.

Ducking Out

Nothing to report today. After cloud, rain and cold most of the day – all at the same time! I ducked out of doing much but I caught up on a lot of paperwork.

Maybe I should take a holiday to South East Asia as it is nice and warm there, where a Coot as a rare vagrant species is causing a stir in Sabah, Borneo. http://horukuru.blogspot.com/

But to keep the blog going here are a few more recent wildfowl pictures including a common or garden UK Coot.

Coot

Pintail

Pintail

Female Pintail


Shelduck

Wigeon

Let's hope for birding weather tomorrow.

Puzzle Time

Out of the house in darkness my first bird this morning was a Tawny Owl that hooted from tall trees a few gardens away. I know they nest nearby every year but it’s a bit problematical looking up trees in other folk’s gardens in the morning, early evening or during the night. There was no need to defrost the car, and although it was cold and the gauge read 0 degrees C, it felt much colder in the trickle of a northerly.

I just hate driving in the half morning light when Blackbirds insist on crossing the road ahead, playing chicken in my headlights; too many near misses for comfort. But I arrived without mishap at Will’s before dawn in time for us to put up a few nets in the hope of repeating the catches of recent weeks.

It wasn’t quite to be, less finches this week, but an agreeable session nonetheless with birds totalling:

Chaffinch 11
Siskin1
Goldfinch 2
Great Tit 2
Blue Tit 4
Dunnock 2
Robin 3
Coal Tit 2
Treecreeper 1
Nuthatch 1
Blackbird 7
House Sparrow 1

After so many Siskin in evidence last week to catch just a single bird today when lots were about midweek was a little mysterious, but this morning the birds simply weren’t there, with just a single first winter male caught. Likewise the Chaffinch, with their numbers similarly lower, with perhaps less than 50 using the garden this morning. Elaborating on the blog’s Goldfinch theme of recent days I can say with certainty that the two caught today were both females.

If only catching birds were as simple or predictable as our supposed human superiority tells us it should be! These birds certainly keep us on our metaphorical toes whilst we put on imaginary thinking caps, devising new net places, keeping out of sight and staying quiet, whilst they outwit us more than we like to admit.

Against the odds and up against the cleverness of the local House Sparrows we did catch a single bird that seemingly blundered into the net in the half light, no doubt to the merriment of wiser fellow spadgers that watched from the feeders next to us. It gave a ringing tick to Ian, as did the Treecreeper we caught.

Six new Blackbirds, 5 of them males, was a little surprising given the intensity of the feeding in the recent weeks of cold weather and the likelihood of experienced local Blackbirds remaining more or less in situ; just another little difficulty that birds like to pose. No doubts however over an adult male with a carrot coloured bill.

Adult Male Blackbird

1st Winter Male Siskin

Adult Female Goldfinch

House Sparrow

Other birds seen this morning included Kestrel, several Greenfinch, 3 Collared Dove, 2 Nuthatch (we caught the male this week), 7 Wood Pigeon, 1 Grey Wagtail and a Sparrowhawk that flies through and hunts in the garden most days but defied the well set nets yet again.

Oh Dear

Over on Rawcliffe Moss I saw quite a few different species this afternoon, some I hadn't seen for a week or two, but I didn’t get many bird photographs because either the little critters weren’t playing ball or I just wasn’t doing the right thing.

I did get fairly close to a couple of groups of Roe Deer, a party of five then a separate group of four in a different location. I don’t know anything about Roe Deer except that they are incredibly difficult to approach, but I found some information at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_Deer

"The Roe Deer is primarily crepuscular, or primarily active during the twilight, very quick and graceful, lives in woods although it may venture into grasslands and sparse forests. It feeds mainly on grass, leaves, berries and young shoots. It particularly likes very young, tender grass with a high moisture content, i.e., grass that has received rain the day before. Roe deer will not generally venture into a field that has had or has livestock (sheep, cattle) in it because the livestock make the grass unclean.

The Roe Deer attains a maximum life span (in the wild) of ten years. When alarmed, it will bark a sound much like a dog and flash out its white rump patch. Rump patches differ between the sexes, with the white rump patches heart-shaped on females and kidney-shaped on males. Males may also bark, make a low grunting noise or make a high pitched wolf-like whine when attracting mates during the breeding season, often luring multiple does into their territory. The Roe Deer spends most of its life alone, preferring to live solitary except when mating during the breeding season".


Roe Deer

Roe Deer

I checked out the feeding spot for Tree Sparrows and counted 120, with upwards of 15 Yellowhammer and 18 Chaffinch. In another part of the farm, and alternating between a dense hedge and the edge of a stubbly field I found 30 more Chaffinch, 4 Yellowhammer, 34 Corn Buntings, 2 Reed Buntings and a single male Brambling. So a good count of these species but as noted before, some seem to prefer natural food to ringer’s largesse, or maybe there is a constant changeover with them all taking both types of food during a feeding day.

Corn Bunting

Chaffinch

Yellowhammer

Reed Bunting

There were 6 Blackbirds along the hedge but I must say that the cold weather and frozen ground of the last few months does appear to have thinned out the population here and elsewhere, unless many return from further south and west soon to replenish numbers.

The feeding station had proved attractive to a Jay that flew back across to the wood when it clocked me approaching, then soon after a female Sparrowhawk silenced the feeding birds before it too sought to watch proceedings from the wood. From the trees I heard the familiar “chick” call of a Great-spotted Woodpecker but no afternoon drumming call.

Up the footpath a pair of Kestrels hunted and hovered the stubble; and I say a pair because they were a male and female that at one point sat close together on a barbed wire boundary fence. Near the plantation I disturbed two pairs of Grey Partridge from cover but within the confines of the trees all I could find were 3 Goldfinch in the alders, a Moorhen near the pool, couple of chattering Wrens and a Reed Bunting along the close by ditch.

Kestrel

I finished off my walk with 2 Buzzards spiralling into the afternoon air and out of reach of my lens. Oh dear, not many new pics today apart from the deer but at least the weather looks dry for the next few days with the promise of low wind speeds and still nets for ringing.