Rave Subbuteo views?? !!

OK, Monday September 11^th, and I bottle it; I said I was going to Rutland, but the weather did look decidedly iffy, and it was in fact on and off showers all day.

This also gave me a chance to retreat to the garage, to re-make a bird table for Sarah.  Back in 2006 I used to make a lot of bird tables, as often as possible and initially from any scrap wood I could get. But as the numbers increased I had to buy most of the wood. I got to the stage that I could make 2 in a day, including painting and assembly. I bought a small circular saw so I could cut up the 31 components for each table very quickly, and I sold many of them to friends and contacts, and at Carsington. My most notable one had a feeding table made from a lavatory seat lid!!

I must be honest….as I was doing all the work in the garage I was able to smoke as I worked. In 2008, I was hospitalised following a TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack), and I persisted with the non-smoking that had been enforced on me in hospital, so I lost one of the raisons d’etre for being in the garage!!

Now, 3,557 days later the saving at £6 per day = £21,342, has made it all worthwhile.

After 8 years, I was therefore a bit out of touch with making bird tables, but I managed to cannibalise a wooden garden seat, bought a table top, and Sarah did get her bird table. Ironic, because at least 6 pieces came from a dilapidated wooden garden seat, which Sarah and Julian had originally given us, so it was good recycling. 

Her new one looks like…

Anyway, Tuesday September 12^th, I decided that I would see what I could find at Rutland Water. The news was good, so I went straight to the North Arm, and with 4/5 fellow birders with scopes, we finally picked up a distant single Black Necked Grebe. Whilst it was repeatedly diving, we could see how much smaller it was  alongside the nearby Great Crested Grebes. We could also just about make out the steep forehead.

A trip to the Fisherman’s Car park to look for a Red Necked Grebe, was abortive and other birders had similar failures. Another day I hope.

So it was off to the main centre for the latest sighting news. Apparently, the reports of a Ruddy Shelduck appeared to be history, so my remaining target was the American Wigeon, which I was told was viewable (with luck and hard work) from Grebe hide.

Mary had waved me off with a tear in her eye, and a Black Pudding and Egg salad so I decided to dine al fresco. The American Wigeon had been around for 16 days, so it was not likely to leave in the next 30 minutes.

Yet another coincidence; I’m sitting by my car, and the couple in the next car turn out to be Wenyu and James, 2 fellow volunteers from Carsington.

I told them that because I have lost almost 4 stone following my operation in May 2016, I’m still trying to add fat.. and the reason for the Black Pudding is that a single round of Black pudding includes 83% fat and 16% protein, so where’s the harm in that. Trouble is, I became hooked on Black Pudding for breakfast, on 18^th October, and despite a full English for over 300 days, I still haven’t added any weight!!     

Ed:   Can we talk about something other than Black Pudding - it upsets Slim Bridge.

The four men in the Grebe hide did not seem to be sure whether they were “on” the Wigeon, and kept talking about the poor light, and “it’s gone behind the island (which island?)”. I spent about an hour in the hide searching and watching birds emerging from behind the 4/5 islands, but to no avail.

As some consolation, a Hobby (and in due course 2) kept flying in front of the hide and across the reeds, calling and picking off Dragonflies at will. Sometimes it perched in a tree before setting off on another sortie. Brilliant viewing.

3 experienced birders came in, and within  a couple of minutes they had found the American Wigeon, and with directions I was able to identify the duck, with the greyish eye patch, and a very wishy-washy wings colouring – well it was in eclipse. Only the second time I’ve seen this bird, the first occasion at Anglers Country Park near Barnsley on 28^th February 2004. 

I leave you with my Year to Date at a satisfactory 202, and with a forthcoming 2 weeks rest, I’ll be posting again in a fortnight.

Don’t forget the next Carsington walk is Sunday October 1^st.

Happy Birding

200 up thanks to a Yellow Legged Gull

EUREKA !!!!!!!!!!!

Sunday 10^th September.   Do you remember that line from Only Fools and Horses when Del Boy’s son was born, and Del came out of the delivery room and said to Rodney (Dave?) and Uncle Albert “I’ve done it, I’ve only bl***y done it”.   Well to-day so have I – to-day, Sunday 10th September 2017, 10.45 am, I saw my 200^th species for the year – a Yellow Legged Gull.

This sighting was particularly pleasing, because my only previous 200 count was in 2010. That year finished with 206, and I did not hit the magic 200 until October. So, I’m ahead all round.

Just in case you are not conversant with this bird, it is only in recent years that, because it has yellow legs, it was split from the Herring Gull, with pink legs. In my experience, the YLG is bigger, as we knew in recent years from the Little Grebe eating YLG called Hannibal.

In recent weeks, I’ve been watching the net to see what has been reported locally, and I kept seeing reports from Carsington Water of one or two Yellow Legs. So, I decided this morning to go to check the good Gull spotting area, the spit in front of Sheepwash hide.    

Alone in the hide, there were a good number of Gulls visible, mainly Lesser Black Back Gulls. Then Jon Bradley, a Carsington Bird Club member came in and I told him what I was looking for, and how he could “make my day”.  He did, instantly, and pointed out what I saw as quite a fine difference between the YLG and the LBG, but it was enough (with the aid of my bird guide) to be sure.

As a nice bonus, and with the water down to about 77% full, it was good to see a pair of Greenshanks, a pair of Redshanks, a single Ringed Plover, and a good group of Dunlin plus a pair of Shovellers. So worth the visit all round.

Nuthatches were in and out of the feeders in the Sheepwash car park (and unusually one on the bird table at the Wildlife Centre), and a squirrel in the feeder was very promptly sent on his way. (No doubt to return when I had gone.)

What else? Well not a lot, but I do have to apologise for an error in my post last week. I referred to the birding cruise from Bridlington harbour, and I incorrectly called the Cruise Ship (!!) the Bridlington Belle. It is in fact the Yorkshire Belle.

Bit of news on the 200 club progress (apart from me!). Amanda is on Anglesey and texted that she had added the predictable Choughs to her 2017 list, a nice addition. With a few rare exceptions, you must travel west to tick off Chough (Either West Wales or Cornwall. I like the fact that the Cornish coat of arms includes a Chough.)

Lorna Lomas, another of the Severn Trent volunteers and a keen birder, has declared her interest in joining the 200 club, and tells me that with the addition of Yellow Wagtail this week, she is on 191.  

Right, I’ve just had a look on the Bird Guides website and I see 3 species at Rutland Water today that I need for my year list, so I’m off tomorrow morning.  Two of them are in the North Arm so I have high hopes of at least a 50% success.   I’ll need to have the Full English to sustain me for the journey, with of course the obligatory Black Pud.

Culinary news – I’m doing a survey on Black Puddings; managed to have 2 different makes last Saturday. One Mary bought at Sainsburys, with a slight apple flavouring, from Scotland, and at a Brunch for a friends 50^th W.Anniversary at Morley Hayes one of unknown origin. I mean you can’t ask the waitress “where did the Black Pudding come from?” can you?

In pole position in the popularity stakes is one from farm Foods – (“It’s a Ten from Ben”) followed by an Irish pudding, which after cooking, falls apart when you put your fork in it, a bit like Haggis - lovely. 

Ed: Slim – please no jokes about Haggis hunting.

TTFN   BFN

How could the Dipper be predicted??

Funny how words come back to (haunt?) you.  I was in Derby on Tuesday, and as I walked passed the City Hotel, one of the Peregrines dropped off the letter Y and flew away.

I was looking skywards (a la David Lindo) and could see the Peregrine circling rapidly high over the river Derwent, and within the 5 seconds of looking back to where I was walking, and then up again he had gone. So that was Tuesday lunch taken care of!!

Saturday 2^nd September. I know I’ve mentioned that I was booked for the RSPB bird trip out of Bridlington, to go out beyond Flamborough and Bempton, hoping to see Skuas and Shearwaters.

A good journey to Brid took 2 hours, and then one hour to find a parking place. Brid is currently chaotic traffic wise, and signs saying, “The Harbour”, send you to roads now closed, with diversions which put you back in the queue you started in. Manic.  Anyway, parking NOT at the Harbour, but at the Coach Station solved matters, and 12.15 saw me visiting a small friendly caf, for an All Day Breakfast (having already had one at home!) and again with Black Pud. But with a pot of tea, £4.50.. don’t knock it.  I even noticed male OAP’s get haircuts for £3.50 in Brid… may only be a mixing bowl and a pair of scissors, but who cares when you put a hat on!!

Sorry I’m rambling.. must be the sea air.

I found myself sitting on not a full boat for the bird cruise at 4.30pm, next to a chap from Anglesey who had the same plans. The difference was that his YTD count was 245 !!!!, so the anticipated additions were important to him.

Well the swell was good, and only one instance was noted of the deck hand getting sea water to swab down (you can guess why!). But boy was it cold, and as a consequence I made my first, and only, mistake.. I went to the Galley for a hot chocolate, exactly at the moment that a Great Skua (a Bonxie) chose to fly over the Bridlington Belle.

By the way, a Great Skua is also known as a Bonxie, a name which is probably of Scandinavian origin and from the Norwegian Bunke meaning something dumpy, which is probably a fair description of such a big aggressive bird.

However I was shivering to death when I did get a good view of the only Arctic Skua, flying towards us and over the ship’s bow, so I did add one for the trip = 199. Mr 245 added nothing, and said he would return to Anglesey on Sunday via Martinmere, and hope to add the Purple Heron. 

Sorry, but this was my 3^rd cruise trip, with trips that were Good v Bad at 1:2, so I think it’s off my future schedule.

Sunday 3^rd September was the usual Carsington walk, and having said I would not be back from Brid, my regulars were surprised to find me at the helm. For a change, we had a small number this week of only 12 people, with 2 newbies from Buxton.

We hit the obligatory 30 species, 33 actually, and a largish flock of Goldfinches got the BOD vote. It was also nice to find a group of 11 small waders off the tip of Stones Island including 9 Dunlin and 2 Ringed Plovers. A distant Great Black Backed Gull got one vote.

 

I may have mentioned that I now do a 5-minute talk at the start of each walk about one selected species. So far, I have talked about Swift, Blackcap and Cuckoo, and today it was the turn of a Dipper, a species never seen at Carsington, mainly because there is no rocky water courses that Dippers favour.

UNTIL TO-DAY !!!!!  Within 5 minutes of my talk, Full time Ranger Dave Drury doing a fun-time litter pick stopped and asked if I had heard about a Carsington Bird Club expert spotting a Dipper at Tail Bay. I said I had seen someone with a scope on the dam wall as I arrived and wondered why.  So, you just never know.

And just in passing, a Dipper is so called, not because it dips into the water, but because of the way it bobs, or dips it's body, much like Wagtails.

I’ve been checking on progress for new entrants to the prospective 200 club, and Mike McDonald (ST Wildlife centre volunteer) and Rob Chadwick (regular on BWB) are both on 171. Rob is booked for the Boston river cruise shortly, so that should help. Mike pops up everywhere, as readers will know.

This is the Boston Belle - a bit different from the Bridlington Belle!

They have got 4 months to go, but it doesn’t get easier.

Happy Birding