The Un-countables

Started the day finishing a prolonged week of nightshift - the 06:15 stop-off at Arcot produced nothing new for the year, only a calling and drumming green woodpecker and woodcock (that flushed from the roadside hedge).

Thoughts of what to do later in the day were assisted by Tim Sexton and his post of blue-headed wagtail at Whitley Bay. Nice sunshine (albeit cold temperatures) and more importantly, a defined short walk from the car park saw me there late afternoon, just as the tide was getting a wee bit high.

The wagtail flock was impressive - may be a dozen white variants, a few pied and the apparent blue-headed. I say apparent - I did wonder about the paleness of the "blue"... however a quick skim through the Birding World article (Volume 20 Number 3) perhaps supports this bird being blue-headed rather than a  "channel" variant - the darker ear-coverts may add to the weight of "bh" argument.

Whatever - a bonny bird nonetheless. The other uncountable was also photographed, perhaps a little less vigorously - so a pic for the blog with a nice nit of litter in the background will suffice.

In addition to the wagtails the beach contained plenty of rock pipit, a wheatear or two, many sanderling and redshank. Loads of swallow moving north.

News of a great white egret saw me heading Prestwick bound, but news from the site suggested otherwise. And that ended that sortie.

Yesterday gone

Finally caught up with a West Hartford tree sparrow yesterday - a chirpy chap singing from the east side of the entrance plantation. Accompanied with the first yellowhammer of the "spring", and 2 short-eared owl.

Later, the drive to work produced a lone woodcock, flushed from the copse near Shaw by a dog walker.

Mors: Woodcock

Apparently Woodcock is rarely active in daytime. I suspect this unfortunate bird is also rarley active at dusk either...

Found this beauty on the roadside in Cramlington this afternoon - that's two on the patch in two days... although this will not count for my "bike" list.

The short trip out took me along the eastern stretch of the Horton Burn - no kingfisher/grey wagtail nor dipper, but six mallard remain.

West Hartford provided two stonechat, 2 stock dove and six reed bunting. The pools are 95%+ frozen still, so a lone black headed gull was all that was present on the ice. No shorties still...

Three quarters tundra...

With an early shift complete and news of a late morning goose nearby, a quick trip out was called for inbetween wake-me-up coffees.

Headed out just after two, turned onto Horton Drive and boom, woodcock flies over the car. Good start, it again shows in flight as I cross the Horton Burn.

Arriving At the Blyth links car park soon after, it was pleasing to find some of the lads watching the afternoons main quarry - albeit distant. The Tundra bean goose had eluded me on a couple of occasions already in 2013, but not today, as it fed in fields just off the coast road with almost 200 pink-footed geese. Too distant and gloomy for the camera, I resorted to attempted iPhone digi-scope shots. Can't quite manage anything other than record pictures...

Meanwhile a merlin arrives, promptly landing on the fence giving great scope views. And that was that, a decent 45 minutes out.

Frustrating!

Lateshift duties severely restricting birding opportunities this week...

Ridley Park in Blyth yesterday was devoid of any bluetail action - 50 or so redwing along with robins and blackbird were the only migrants on offer.

This morning, St Marys' - no sign of yesterdays dusky warbler, nor todays pallas's / long-eared owl. Hods of robin, redwing (dropping in out of the mist), brambling, goldcrest, blackbird.

Journey back produced a lone woodcock lifting out of a garden in Hartley.

It just could happen...

Last trek around the patch for 2010...

On a somewhat cold and wintry Boxing Day I ventured out to check the Horton Burn and West Hartford, and as if with recent tradition, took the bike out to propel me along the snowy paths.

In the three and a half hours that I was out, I amassed a reasonable selection of birds including a new one for the north of Cramlington (for me, anyway).

West Hartford was very quiet indeed - the highlight being a flyover cormorant...

It was the Horton Burn were the "action" was. At the west end, six siskin were my first of the year in the area, while bullfinch were reasonably represented with a minimum of three males.

Snipe were also well represented, tho I did fail to count them - many were observed on the stream, and at least one was feeding in a hawthorn lines ditch just to the north of the western footbridge.

Grey wagtail probably numbered 2+, but redshank stole the show - at least eight birds were feeding in the burn today - some close to the footbridges...

Only one kingfisher was noted and a single woodcock was complimented later by a second bird.

At the old fire station the chaffinch flock was complimented by a minimum of four brambling - a new bird for me in this area - great stuff!

To finish off, a great spotted woodpecker was noted, along with another burn-casual ~ reed bunting: one female next to the western road bridge. Happy Days!

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Thanks to all who have read this dross during 2010, I hope to get another update squeezed in before year end...

Freezer Birding...

With the snow level maintained by continued freezing conditions I opted to stay local when birding today - 4 wheels were replaced by two as I headed off on my bike. By the first corner of the journey I had almost slid over on the churned up snow on the housing estate - luckily, the main roads were clear, so it was not much later that I arrived at West Hartford.

Hopes were high for some day flying owls, but there was no sign... nor of much else really - 1 buzzard high over the River Blyth, a solitary kestrel and a few blackbird. One advantage (if there is one) was that the snow was so deep that I didn't need a bike stand:

!



As WH was quiet I headed east along the A192 to explore the Horton Burn. At the old fire station there was much activity, with a  several "firsts for the burn" -  a good count of 10 grey partridge and a single woodcock (feeding beneath a hawthorn on the burns bank), a single redshank, followed quickly by a lapwing - purple patch!!

The redshank ended up being the first of four - the hard weather has pushed them right in. Two kingfisher zipped up and down the burn, and snipe lifted at every bridge that I stopped on. Moorhen numbered 3, and only 1 pair of mallard were present.

A pair of bullfinch were at the west end of the burn and goldfinch were abundant, blackbird numbers were very impressive too.

Winter Madness

After the winter walk yesterday we headed into Newcastle for a pint and a spot of Madness. Another great show, packed to the hilt.

Paul Heaton provided support, and he even threw in a couple of Housemartin songs. Nice.

The drive home was uneventful as snow had ceased to fall, a solitary woodcock flew over as we rolled along Fisher Lane at 23.15.

North Strole

Freezing conditions continue in the north-east of England, and after spending a day indoors yesterday I had to get out. The car is well and truly snowed in, so I set off on foot.

I can be at the Horton Burn is a couple of minutes from the house, so I elected to walk the western stretch on wards to West Hartford then east along the A192 back to the old Cramlington Fire Station and back home along the eastern leg of the Horton Burn.

My first steps along the Horton Burn lifted the first of several snipe - calling as they zig-zagged away over the houses. The only other birds of note on the western leg were a single grey wagtail and drake mallard.

West Hartford looks rather bleak with all the snow - there was no early owl activity, but a kestrel and buzzard featured. A few snipe were lifting occasionally off the marsh and a woodcock was flushed by a dog walker who had ventured across to the plantation adjacent the farm.

Three cormorant flew west up the River Blyth (it's always useful to keep an eye over the river) and an adult greater black backed gull flew east (don't get too man at West Hartford, typically winter only).  There was lots of thrush activity, with blackbird, redwing and song thrush abundant, and only a few fieldfare.

My venture east along the very snowy A192 continued to provide thrush sightings, along a splash of colour with a single jay and three waxwing raiding a hawthorn on the roadside. Over 200 common gull flew north and a few chaffinch were noted towards Bog Houses along with a very dapper male bullfinch (sadly a nominate bird...). 1 Grey Heron flew over and a sparrowhawk was hassled by the starlings.

Back at the Horton Burns' eastern leg the bird activity was more active - plenty of house sparrow in the hawthorns along with chaffinch, great, blue and coal tit, while the burn held a further 7 snipe, a staggering 3 kingfisher (highest count), 3 grey wagtail (making 4 for the burn today), a pair of mallard and a moorhen. Not bad for a grubby stream flowing through a housing estate!