My first curlew of the year through this a.m. calling flying west to east. Only other February records up this end; 22nd 2016 also at Rhaslas & 28th 2012 Cwm Woods, heard flight calling while wine roping with Evans in Cwm Woods. Also this morning; pair of peregrine preening at south east dam (silenced all skylark), tufted duck[14], wigeon[16], goldeneye[13], also, once again, pair of great crested grebe in courtship [head turning], but they never attempt to breed. Also factory roof top gulls returning; Pentrebach - herring gull[c30], Abercanaid - herring gull[c70], lesser black backed[c10].
Monday, 25 February 2019
Friday, 22 February 2019
Llangorse
Finally after about 90 minutes searching this afternoon I managed to get the Red Necked Grebe at Llangasty. The Scaup was easier but I could not find the female Scoter which had been reported. A few Pintail were present, the Shelduck was in front of the hide not in its usual position on the far bank. Large numbers of Goldeneye, Wigeon, Gadwall, Tufted Ducks were there, also Shoveler and Pochard. Surprisingly no Egrets were observed.
Earlier I had checked for Tawny Owls in the usual cemetery near Merthyr with no luck but had some compensation with a low fly over Goshawk.
Earlier I had checked for Tawny Owls in the usual cemetery near Merthyr with no luck but had some compensation with a low fly over Goshawk.
Surveys! what surveys
I more or less finished the Glamorgan Bird Club Willow Tit survey yesterday at Nelson Bog and Parc Penallta, with a grand total of 0 Willow Tits, and that also included using the BTO survey tape playback. Has this population died out, or is it still hanging on by its fingernails?
Today it was the first visit to both my tetrads for the National Willow Tit survey. Not as many playback points as Mark's as much of both squares is open moorland, but still took over 6 hrs! The first tetrad covers Beacon's Reservoir, and just extends to the Pen-y-fan car park. Success on my third playback point, below the reservoir dam, with a Willow Tit calling, but I could not locate the bird. The rest of the points round the reservoir produced nil responses from Willow Tits, but I did get responses from Great and Coal Tits and, at one point, a female Chaffinch!
The second tetrad covers the northern clear fell at Garwnant and most of Cantref Reservoir. Success again at point 3, with a bird flying in within 15 seconds of starting the playback. A little agitated then it broke into song. This bird still within Glamorgan. Nothing further until point 10, when playback brought in a single bird that called a couple of times before disappearing. I wonder/presume if those that just called and disappeared were females. It was noticeable that all three birds responded before the end of the 2 minute tape.
I think I've managed to fill in the forms correctly - I think I should have gone to the training day! to quote Mike - ho hum!
Today it was the first visit to both my tetrads for the National Willow Tit survey. Not as many playback points as Mark's as much of both squares is open moorland, but still took over 6 hrs! The first tetrad covers Beacon's Reservoir, and just extends to the Pen-y-fan car park. Success on my third playback point, below the reservoir dam, with a Willow Tit calling, but I could not locate the bird. The rest of the points round the reservoir produced nil responses from Willow Tits, but I did get responses from Great and Coal Tits and, at one point, a female Chaffinch!
The second tetrad covers the northern clear fell at Garwnant and most of Cantref Reservoir. Success again at point 3, with a bird flying in within 15 seconds of starting the playback. A little agitated then it broke into song. This bird still within Glamorgan. Nothing further until point 10, when playback brought in a single bird that called a couple of times before disappearing. I wonder/presume if those that just called and disappeared were females. It was noticeable that all three birds responded before the end of the 2 minute tape.
I think I've managed to fill in the forms correctly - I think I should have gone to the training day! to quote Mike - ho hum!
Monday, 18 February 2019
Day That Kept Giving
Martin Bevan's and myself had planned to go west on Sunday but the actual destination was changed when news of a Red Rumped Swallow was found at Cwm Ivy/Whitford.
We arrived there around 7.20am to hear Rob Jones say those dreaded words it was here less than a minute ago when it flew over my head. No swear words were uttered !!! Less than 10 minutes later however it was back giving us fantastic low and long views. What a stunner to start a day off.
We decided to leave the growing band of birders to do a circuit around Whitford. I swear this circuit is getting longer every time I do it. On the way down we had a quick look through the marsh along the main path and were rewarded with plenty of Snipe including 2 Jack Snipe. Getting closer to the hide we could see that the tide was really far out and it was lucky that Martin had actually brought his scope for a change so we could both scan for waders and wildfowl. The numbers were impressive with Oystercatchers, Brent Geese and Curlew plentiful. After a refreshing cuppa and a snack we walked along the beach towards the lighthouse. This was quite pleasant as the sand dunes were protecting us from the prevailing wind. Birds were even more numerous here and we spent awhile counting them. Martin will give totals later. Eiders, Dunlin, Grey Plover and Great Northern Diver were added here.
Turning left for the long walk along the pebble beach to the entrance to climb back up to Cwm Ivy we were head first into a strong wind which made birding very difficult. Again huge numbers of birds were present including Ringed Plover. Right on the end of the beach perched on a sign was a beautiful female Merlin. Getting back to the RRS site we were told that it had not been seen for awhile. Our luck must have been in has we soon located it again this time with a Barn Swallow. Although not as close as earlier the light had improved so fantastic views were had again. Walking back up the hill to the car park is certainly easier when you have found your target species.
Driving out we stopped at Llanrhidian for a quick cuppa and a scan over the saltmarsh. Great and Little Egret, Red Kite, Golden Plover and Peregrine were amongst others added to the day list.
Next stop was a quickie at Llanelli WWT where we added Spoonbill, Greenshank, Black Tailed Godwit and Avocet.
We then drove a few miles west to Kidwelly to look for the Long Tailed Ducks. These proved to be our bogey bird of the day. We were told that they had been seen quite close but had disappeared. Compensation was added when Martin located a Ringtail Hen Harrier in the distance hunting over the saltmarsh. Lots more Greenshank were seen and quite a few Red Breasted Mergansers on the incoming tide. Again huge numbers of Golden Plover, Curlew and Lapwing were around. We heard someone saying our names and turned around to see John Wilson and Alan Rosney leading a GBC trip who again told us that they had seen the Long Tailed Ducks earlier. We forgave them when they said that there was a Spotted Redshank under the railway bridge. We reciprocated showing them the Hen Harrier.
We bade them farewell as we wanted to try out a new site for us Ginst Point. This is on MOD land so we were not sure if the gates would be open. It was a little further than we thought but we found it fairly easily and our luck held as the gates were open. There was a two mile drive down to the beach area but nearly all the way down looked great habitat for owls. We soon found a suitable pull in and started scanning as the sun dropped out of sight. We managed to find 2 Short Eared Owls and 1 Barn Owl. 2 Sparrowhawks were also noted. Definitely a site to revisit.
We arrived there around 7.20am to hear Rob Jones say those dreaded words it was here less than a minute ago when it flew over my head. No swear words were uttered !!! Less than 10 minutes later however it was back giving us fantastic low and long views. What a stunner to start a day off.
We decided to leave the growing band of birders to do a circuit around Whitford. I swear this circuit is getting longer every time I do it. On the way down we had a quick look through the marsh along the main path and were rewarded with plenty of Snipe including 2 Jack Snipe. Getting closer to the hide we could see that the tide was really far out and it was lucky that Martin had actually brought his scope for a change so we could both scan for waders and wildfowl. The numbers were impressive with Oystercatchers, Brent Geese and Curlew plentiful. After a refreshing cuppa and a snack we walked along the beach towards the lighthouse. This was quite pleasant as the sand dunes were protecting us from the prevailing wind. Birds were even more numerous here and we spent awhile counting them. Martin will give totals later. Eiders, Dunlin, Grey Plover and Great Northern Diver were added here.
Turning left for the long walk along the pebble beach to the entrance to climb back up to Cwm Ivy we were head first into a strong wind which made birding very difficult. Again huge numbers of birds were present including Ringed Plover. Right on the end of the beach perched on a sign was a beautiful female Merlin. Getting back to the RRS site we were told that it had not been seen for awhile. Our luck must have been in has we soon located it again this time with a Barn Swallow. Although not as close as earlier the light had improved so fantastic views were had again. Walking back up the hill to the car park is certainly easier when you have found your target species.
Driving out we stopped at Llanrhidian for a quick cuppa and a scan over the saltmarsh. Great and Little Egret, Red Kite, Golden Plover and Peregrine were amongst others added to the day list.
Next stop was a quickie at Llanelli WWT where we added Spoonbill, Greenshank, Black Tailed Godwit and Avocet.
We then drove a few miles west to Kidwelly to look for the Long Tailed Ducks. These proved to be our bogey bird of the day. We were told that they had been seen quite close but had disappeared. Compensation was added when Martin located a Ringtail Hen Harrier in the distance hunting over the saltmarsh. Lots more Greenshank were seen and quite a few Red Breasted Mergansers on the incoming tide. Again huge numbers of Golden Plover, Curlew and Lapwing were around. We heard someone saying our names and turned around to see John Wilson and Alan Rosney leading a GBC trip who again told us that they had seen the Long Tailed Ducks earlier. We forgave them when they said that there was a Spotted Redshank under the railway bridge. We reciprocated showing them the Hen Harrier.
We bade them farewell as we wanted to try out a new site for us Ginst Point. This is on MOD land so we were not sure if the gates would be open. It was a little further than we thought but we found it fairly easily and our luck held as the gates were open. There was a two mile drive down to the beach area but nearly all the way down looked great habitat for owls. We soon found a suitable pull in and started scanning as the sun dropped out of sight. We managed to find 2 Short Eared Owls and 1 Barn Owl. 2 Sparrowhawks were also noted. Definitely a site to revisit.
Friday, 15 February 2019
All Surveyed Out
It took four and a half hours; I sampled 21 points and got one response. I got the February visit to the National Willow Tit tetrad done. It all went quite well, but it was surprisingly knackering.
Now I just have to try and remember how to fill in the data form.
Now I just have to try and remember how to fill in the data form.
Thursday, 14 February 2019
Birthday Alert
Just a quickie to say that the accident prone old duffer somehow reached his 70th birthday today. Happy Birthday Mike.
Tuesday, 12 February 2019
Raven Count
After last week's grand Raven count debacle (most of them roosted somewhere near the tip and flew back into the roost as the ones in the roost were flying out) this morning's attempt was far more successful, though with a bit of a messy end.
The strong overnight winds had abated, but even the fairly light breeze felt particularly penetrating after half an hour. The visibility was good and the wait for the Ravens to begin flying out enlivened by a bright, satellite flare and a close fly-by Woodcock.
The strong overnight winds had abated, but even the fairly light breeze felt particularly penetrating after half an hour. The visibility was good and the wait for the Ravens to begin flying out enlivened by a bright, satellite flare and a close fly-by Woodcock.
The count went well and the total of 217, is the highest February count within the main, post foot and mouth period.
Sunday, 10 February 2019
Unplanned Trip to Brecon
Had no plans for today has everyone else had other engagements. However when I got up I had a message from Martin Bevan saying that he was now available. A quick call and arrangements were made to go to Llangasty to have a look over Llangorse Lake.
Arriving there the weather was inclement to say the least, in fact it was bloody freezing. The amount of birds on the lake certainly helped in forgetting the cold. Martin quickly found our target birds 2 Scaup. There were at least 36 Goosander, 317 Black Headed Gulls, 1 Common Gull, 1 Great White Egret, 2 Little Egrets, Cetti's Warbler, also large numbers of Wigeon, Shoveler and Coot. There were smaller numbers than usual of Goldeneye.
We then followed Martin's directions to Priory Woods in Brecon and yet again got there first time, what has happened to Martin this is getting too regular. At this rate Rob will not be able to call him Satnav Bev anymore. We hadn't been to this site before but we were both very impressed. There were a constant stream of birds wherever we walked. There were 3 Dippers on the river even though it was running very high. Great, Coal, Blue and Long Tailed Tits seemed to be in every tree along with Treecreepers and Nuthatch. Finally we found what we came for Brambling, about 75 of these Scandinavian beauties. Martin kept hearing a Marsh Tit but frustratingly we could just not locate it.
On the way back we had a quick walk around Garwnant but we seen hardly anything including our target Willow Tit.
Arriving there the weather was inclement to say the least, in fact it was bloody freezing. The amount of birds on the lake certainly helped in forgetting the cold. Martin quickly found our target birds 2 Scaup. There were at least 36 Goosander, 317 Black Headed Gulls, 1 Common Gull, 1 Great White Egret, 2 Little Egrets, Cetti's Warbler, also large numbers of Wigeon, Shoveler and Coot. There were smaller numbers than usual of Goldeneye.
We then followed Martin's directions to Priory Woods in Brecon and yet again got there first time, what has happened to Martin this is getting too regular. At this rate Rob will not be able to call him Satnav Bev anymore. We hadn't been to this site before but we were both very impressed. There were a constant stream of birds wherever we walked. There were 3 Dippers on the river even though it was running very high. Great, Coal, Blue and Long Tailed Tits seemed to be in every tree along with Treecreepers and Nuthatch. Finally we found what we came for Brambling, about 75 of these Scandinavian beauties. Martin kept hearing a Marsh Tit but frustratingly we could just not locate it.
On the way back we had a quick walk around Garwnant but we seen hardly anything including our target Willow Tit.
Thursday, 7 February 2019
Feeding Good!
Now I know this is a truly terrible image, but I thought I'd share it anyway. I was working in Penderyn, yesterday morning and after finishing there, I went up Cwm Cadlan to collect a piece of pony dung. That done, I couldn't leave without nipping on to see if I could find the Great Grey Shrike, as I hadn't yet seen it.
I got to the clearfell, in which I gather it has been seen and after about twenty minutes, in which I walked the track along the top of the southern side, seeing nothing, I returned to the road, and immediately, spotted it on the north side. It never came particularly close, but was very active and gave good binocular views. I tried getting some memory shots with my B700, but they proved to be a dismal failure, as the light wasn't great and even when perched, it was constantly wobbling and waving about.
At one point it disappeared onto the ground for a while and when it flew back up onto a perch, it seemed to be struggling and I could see that it had caught something. As I said, the image is very poor, but is seems to show a small rodent in its bill. I can't see a tail, so I assume it to be a vole of some kind.
I got to the clearfell, in which I gather it has been seen and after about twenty minutes, in which I walked the track along the top of the southern side, seeing nothing, I returned to the road, and immediately, spotted it on the north side. It never came particularly close, but was very active and gave good binocular views. I tried getting some memory shots with my B700, but they proved to be a dismal failure, as the light wasn't great and even when perched, it was constantly wobbling and waving about.
At one point it disappeared onto the ground for a while and when it flew back up onto a perch, it seemed to be struggling and I could see that it had caught something. As I said, the image is very poor, but is seems to show a small rodent in its bill. I can't see a tail, so I assume it to be a vole of some kind.
Tuesday, 5 February 2019
National Willow Tit Survey
I know that Martin, Martin and Phil have been taking part in the GBC Willow Tit survey, but are any of you doing any RSPB national tetrads too?
Monday, 4 February 2019
Whitebird
I hope Phil won't mind me doing another copy and paste post, from my facebook page.
I discovered this albino Blackbird, back in January, but didn't have a camera with me. Today was the first opportunity to go back with my bridge camera for an attempt at getting a proof shot.
It was half dozing and sunning itself well into cover, so it was impossible to get a clear shot of it. As you can see I am no bird photographer, either.
I was desperate not to disturb it and flush it, as being albino, it would be a prime target for being mobbed by other blackbirds and also preyed on by crows and such like. There were a couple of Magpies very close by, as I quickly took a dozen shots and moved on.
Please don't ask for the precise location, as I do not want it to be subject to unnecessary disturbance.
I discovered this albino Blackbird, back in January, but didn't have a camera with me. Today was the first opportunity to go back with my bridge camera for an attempt at getting a proof shot.
It was half dozing and sunning itself well into cover, so it was impossible to get a clear shot of it. As you can see I am no bird photographer, either.
I was desperate not to disturb it and flush it, as being albino, it would be a prime target for being mobbed by other blackbirds and also preyed on by crows and such like. There were a couple of Magpies very close by, as I quickly took a dozen shots and moved on.
Please don't ask for the precise location, as I do not want it to be subject to unnecessary disturbance.
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