A little relaxing in Portugal...
A little relaxing... in Newbiggin
A morning visit to Hornsea...
An afternoon visit to Saltholme...
Then back in Northumberland...
Showing posts with label Osprey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Osprey. Show all posts
Sunday, 2 June 2019
Friday, 10 May 2013
The week that was...
It's been a great week for birding - both locally and further afield. The roller-coaster that birding can be sometimes...
2 county ticks for me - an overdue purple heron and county first: 1s male collared flycatcher
A selection of smashing year-ticks: surf scoter, king eider, white-billed diver, black throated diver, ptarmigan, capercaillie, crested tit, golden eagle, great white egret.
Some great birds at West Hartford too! ~ black-tailed godwit, little ringed plover, ringed plover, wood sandpiper... whatever next?
2 county ticks for me - an overdue purple heron and county first: 1s male collared flycatcher
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| County bird of the year? |
A selection of smashing year-ticks: surf scoter, king eider, white-billed diver, black throated diver, ptarmigan, capercaillie, crested tit, golden eagle, great white egret.
Some great birds at West Hartford too! ~ black-tailed godwit, little ringed plover, ringed plover, wood sandpiper... whatever next?
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| Great encounter with Ptarmigan on Cairngorm |
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| Eight Osprey seen during Highlands visit |
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| Obliging king eider - a stunning sea duck |
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| Pristine great-white egret |
Monday, 2 April 2012
Stuck at traffic lights...
Not too bad, as an osprey was picked up!
The journey home from work was suddenly better as I picked up the northward bound fish hawk, initially seen over the A19 from the Holiday Inn roundabout off the A1 at Cramlington.
Pulled the car over at the entrance road to Arcot Hall and was treated to a prolonged view of the osprey circling over Plessey South Moor Farm Cottages - until it disappeared into the clouds...
The journey home from work was suddenly better as I picked up the northward bound fish hawk, initially seen over the A19 from the Holiday Inn roundabout off the A1 at Cramlington.
Pulled the car over at the entrance road to Arcot Hall and was treated to a prolonged view of the osprey circling over Plessey South Moor Farm Cottages - until it disappeared into the clouds...
Sunday, 3 April 2011
West Hartford Continues...
West Hartford has enjoyed a decent birding-run over the last two weeks or so, with great white egret being added to the patch list just over a week ago and then a steady trickle of good West Hartford birds / signs of Spring... chiffchaff have arrived, a couple of sand martin have passed through, grey partridge are calling, short-eared owl are semi-regular (though not tonight!), peregrine (Monday), 5 goosander through, and tonight... another summer migrant.
It was rather cold tonight, but the clear conditions were enough to get me out for a couple of visits. Late afternoon was quiet and is hardly worth a mention.
Late evening - dusk was much cooler but more satisfactory, as the first scan west to east over the fields, River Blyth and pond produced the aforementioned migrant - a mighty osprey!
Actually, this was almost predictable... the north-east has seen a good passage of these fish-hawks through the region today - indeed, a quick scan of RBA reveals three in Durham and one in Northumberland...
It looked a bit like this -
... but it was really quite far away! The bird was a couple of hundred feet up, loafing in a NW direction , roughly above the River Blyth. It's funny how things turn out - Phil and I had been talking earlier this week about new birds for West Hartford (I fancy a Spoonbill by the way!) - and we never really discussed osprey...
So, with osprey added to the West Hartford list (I must count my tally up...), here are my anticipated species for the future -
It was rather cold tonight, but the clear conditions were enough to get me out for a couple of visits. Late afternoon was quiet and is hardly worth a mention.
Late evening - dusk was much cooler but more satisfactory, as the first scan west to east over the fields, River Blyth and pond produced the aforementioned migrant - a mighty osprey!
Actually, this was almost predictable... the north-east has seen a good passage of these fish-hawks through the region today - indeed, a quick scan of RBA reveals three in Durham and one in Northumberland...
It looked a bit like this -
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| Osprey - Florida, January 2006 |
... but it was really quite far away! The bird was a couple of hundred feet up, loafing in a NW direction , roughly above the River Blyth. It's funny how things turn out - Phil and I had been talking earlier this week about new birds for West Hartford (I fancy a Spoonbill by the way!) - and we never really discussed osprey...
This was my second osprey in Cramlington - the last being a two day bird at Arcot Pond in May 2003. This bird also turned up on a Sunday evening and was even fishing the pond! I arrived early the next morning armed with a trsty 3 mega pixel compact camera and scope, and to great suprise, found the osprey perched in the dead trees at the west of the pool (where in 2010 the 1s hobby rested - Cramlington is such a mecca!!)
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| Osprey - Arcot Pond, May 2003 |
So, with osprey added to the West Hartford list (I must count my tally up...), here are my anticipated species for the future -
- Spoonbill - why not? If Castle Island can draw them in no reason why WH can't either
- Little Egret - long overdue, beaten by its' larger relative last week!
- Tawny Owl - already seen and heard by others, I've been too lazy to venture out at the right time.
- Pectoral Sandpiper - Arcot has had them in the autumn, other waders have found WH to their liking...
- Bittern - There is a nice reed bed forming south of the pool, may be one hard winter will bring one in?
- Red Kite - only a matter of time.
- Reed Warbler - habitat getting better.
- Great Grey Shrike - outside chance on passage - Arcot has had one
- Common Redstart - infrequent through Cramlington on passage (though I did have one in my parents garden many moons ago!)
- Cuckoo - a tricky bird in Cramlington, but possible.
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