Carsington Water - a 25 year success story

I know my priority is our forthcoming 14 days’ holiday in Majorca starting this Tuesday, so I must tell or remind you of a few things before I go.

As many of you will know, 18^th May 2017 is the 25^th anniversary of the day that Carsington Water was opened. On the day that the Queen cut the tape, Carsington was anticipating 300k visitors pa. In 2016, the number was 1.1million! 

18^th May will be an anniversary event for those closely involved, and will include the official opening of the new Janet Ede hide on Stones Island. I had a look round the hide area this morning, and I must say the finished job does blend in well. ST will decide what to do by way of adding a bird feeding station and any screening each side of the hide to prevent bird disturbance.   It really does look a good spot, and you will read below the good waders seen from the new hide. This morning there was a Ringed Plover visible on the water’s edge, and that despite a sailing day quite close to the shore.

This photo shows the outdoor classroom by the hide, and my coffee cup on the ground!

On Saturday and Sunday 20^th and 21^st, there will be masses of fun and events throughout the weekend, charities participating, and also including short bird walks with Carsington Bird club.

I’m back for the next BWB on Sunday 4^th June, but there will be no Markeaton Bird walk on 21^st May.  NO BLOG on Sundays 21^st or 28^th.Sorry.

A Commercial!!!    I bought a small travelling mini scope at Rutland Water last week with a mono pod (and ticked a pair of Ospreys at Manton bay!). This means I have a Manfrotto mono pod for sale, hardly used, just £10 if anyone is interested.

Right…..birding.    Sunday 7^th May. With a good turnout of 21 people for the BWB walk, we all enjoyed a lovely morning with excellent light and visibility, and which turned out to be a real bird bonanza for all the birds, and birders on the walk.

Straight away, the telescope brigade spotted a gorgeous male Grey Plover* on water sports island, in handsome breeding plumage. As we scanned the island, Keith located a Black Tern* just above and beyond the island resulting in all of us not knowing where to look first! Both birds justified time ensuring that everyone saw them in one of the scopes, particularly because both species had never been seen before in 147 beginner walks.

From the same spot, some birders picked up a nice male Bullfinch, and a further one was seen on Stones Island. At the end of the causeway by the small reed bed is an excellent spot for woodland birds, and we found ourselves hearing and seeing a wonderful range of Warblers.

Garden Warbler was the first one to be located, then Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, and to everyone’s delight, excellent views of a singing Whitethroat. Bird Guide manuals helped those who did not get the best views to compare Whitethroat v Lesser Whitethroat.

To end a good haul on Stones Island, we added a host of waders, including Dunlin, Ringed and Little Ringed Plover, and finally just in front of the new bird hide 3 Turnstones*.   Not surprising and being the most viewable, Turnstone was the bird of the walk, with the 3* birds all being additions to our walk life list. A total of 40 species had only ever been beaten once with a count of 42.

Wednesday 10^th May, Amanda led her annual walk up Padley Gorge. Amanda is very good at identifying birds by their song or call, and the first goodie, at almost the same place as on her walk in 2016, was the lovely yellow breasted Wood Warbler.  

As we progressed we found the occasional Pied Flycatcher, both male and female, and a photographer pointed out a single Spotted Flycatcher, but I was too slow to pick it up, which was a sad miss. A well-hidden Redstart was added to the list, and once we got out above the gorge canopy, Meadow and Tree Pipit were added. 

We then followed the stream up to Burbage, spotting a burbling Curlew, and a Great Spotted Woodpecker disappearing into a nest hole.

Crossing the road on to Burbage, the word was that there were Cuckoos and Ring Ouzels about, and we had only walked a couple of hundred yards, when we duly spotted a pair. A good walk, although Amanda did not hit the targets she wanted, such as Whinchat and Cuckoo (heard, by the way), but you can’t win them all.

So with 181 to date……………..Viva Espanol!

7 miles at Whisby, climbing Padley Gorge.. no wonder I've lost weight!

I know I mention Pat and Amanda from time to time, and of course Chris and John, and Tony, but I’ve probably missed out Mike, Mac, Michael or whatever current name he is answering to - I tend to call him Mac. (Michael MacDonald – comprendi?). Mac is one of the regular Carsington wildlife centre volunteers, who it would appear is making concerted efforts to get into the (Bennett sponsored-) 200 club for 2017.  

I see Mac regularly at Carsington, but the week before last we bumped into each other at Attenborough, and this week it was Padley Gorge that we met. Small world eh?, but useful to share knowledge of what is around, and this time he told us where he had seen and heard Tree Pipits.

Tuesday 2nd May and Chris and I met at 9.30am at Whisby Country Park near Lincoln, normally a good location for Nightingale. Chris got there first(early) and by the time I arrived she had ticked off Nightingale and Mediterranean Gull. But we duly re-located the Nightingale at the same place, with a lot of effort and help from another birder. We learnt that the number of Nightingales were sadly down this year, but in the afternoon we found another pair which appeared not to have been reported, at Teal Lake, the other side of the A46, and this was a good reward for the 7 miles that we walked round the nature reserve. 

Swifts and a male Garganey were also at Teal lake, and before lunch we had a long session tuning into a melodious Garden Warbler.

Although I think I do quite well with my species count on some birding days, we were told about a chap who had been birding the previous (full-) day at Frampton Marsh and saw…………………………………….. 104 species.   Where am I going wrong?

Wednesday 3rd May was a day for Chris and I to explore Padley Gorge, near Grindleford, a well-known Flycatcher site. We left John to do some photography, and set off up the gorge, using a less arduous route that Amanda had shown me in 2016. After the initial steep approach had levelled out, we zigzagged upwards until I spotted a stationery birder, aiming his lens at some branches, and we sidled up to get excellent views of 2 male and one female Pied Flycatcher. The males were very active and we sensed that there was an air of competition going on!

Very soon after a repetitive call made us search the trees, to be rewarded by a nice male Redstart. Unfortunately when we reached the ridge, the wind was so strong that birds were nowhere to be seen, so we left the gorge to follow the stream up to Burbage. We had a lunch break in a sheltered spot by the stream, and enjoyed close up views of Reed Bunting, Grey Wagtail, and a female Mallard 2 inches from the tip of my boot! Plus a close up view of Mac (See above!!)

The Tree Pipits were duly found, on rocks north of the Gorge, and that was enough to make us decide to head down to the Longshaw visitor centre for a nice cup of Tetley. Incidentally, a nice bonus, but not a new bird for me, was to get VERY close up views of Siskins on the feeder in front of the caf!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Tuesday and Wednesday saw the new hide erected at Carsington, and we await the comments and opinions from birders and visitors. I promise you, it is not conventional, but I think it works. I’ve provided the name plate, and THAT’s different as well!

                                                                                               

                                                                                                                                              

Some of us have been getting text messages from Amanda and her husband Noel who last week had 6 days birding with Heatherlee, including 4 nights on the remote island of North Ronaldsay.(Max 6 on the aircraft to get there!!) Not only did they got caught up in a mega twitch, but Amanda finally had close up views of a species she had been longing to see – a Wryneck.   With 22 additions on the trip to add to her life list, and now making her total 188, the 200 target seems an absolute doddle for her this year.

As I am now on 177 in comparison my 200 is looking distant. I did have the temerity to suggest that island sightings should not count, or even be handicapped. I won’t make that mistake again! (I was reminded that I was including Anglesey in my figures, and my claim that it was linked by road to the mainland, did not cut the mustard.    Graceful in defeat I will have to remain!)

Sunday 7^th May………. A brilliant report from our Bird Watching for Beginners Walk…… you’ll have to wait until next week!

PS: No Markeaton walk this coming third Sunday, 21^st May, we are in Majorca.

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