Local chat

With the realisation that the coast would be chocca with charvas, I opted to cycle around Cramlingtons finer sights this afternoon - having missed the mornings marsh harrier at West Hartford it made sense to start there - no harrier nor sanderling / little stint, but compensation in the form of 4 whinchat and a single wheatear.

Onwards to Arcot and the belated addition of garganey to the bike list. Lots of teal, some mallard and a stack of coot too.

With the sun shingles it was then back home for ice cream. More later?

4

...Wood sandpiper at West Hartford this evening, plus Phils' earlier found cracking whinchat (good spring record), 2 wheatear, a pair of ringed plover & shelduck

Warblers still warbling - grasshopper, sedge, willow, chiffie, whitethroat...

All good stuff.

Chatting & Spotting

Here are a few images from yesterdays afternoon potter with some fall migrants. The weather here in the north-east has settled somewhat and only a few of the migrants are being reported today - it may be a while before conditions return to favourble. 

The whinchat pictured to the above and below is the same individual - a mobile bird at Seaton Sluices' "Rocky Island". 

The spotted flycatcher presented below was one of two birds at St Mary's - actively feeding at the top of the wetland. I wasn't quick enough to capture the glorious male redstart that was also present. Forgot to mention yesterday that in addition to the birds listed, there was also a single tree pipit over too.

WH wader numbers increase (a bit)

I spent an enjoyable hour at West Hartford this afternoon.

The immature little-ringed plover remains faithful to the largely muddy pool and today was joined by an impressive (by West Hartford standards) four dunlin. The little-ringed plover stuck with the dunlin as they fed on the muddy patches within the remaining water.

The photograph featured here is of an immature little-ringed plover taken at the Beehive Flash in July 2005, taken from the car - the West hartford bird is not so approachable!

The only other wader species today was lapwing, of which only two were present.

On the pool edge and surrounding fence posts five whinchat reappeared after a day missing (I had been at West Hartford on the 31st August too - there was so little to report on the blog that I didn't) with two stonechat. Stock dove continue to show while numbers of barn swallow and house martin are suddenly declining.

WHwhinchat

A call from Steve Holliday got me on to my first 2009 dunlin at West Hartford - it was keeping company with the LRP, now onto it's third day. More impressive was the presence of five whinchat - all feeding along pools' the western fence line along with two stonechat. This is the highest count of whinchat that I have had here in eight years - and the next couple of weeks is the optimum time for this species here. A bit of birdy chat at the car was interrupted by a fly over golden plover... autumn is most certainly on it's way.