Spurn etc 19-24th October 2020

Mag and I started our trip off with a visit to Kilnsea Wetlands where relatively few waders were taking refuge at high tide, though there was a Spotted Redshank, two Ruff and a few hundred Knot. A Merlin and a Peregrine flew through, six Pintail were present and the Listening Dish Hedge held a female Brambling, 20 Reed Buntings and a good number of Tree Sparrows, which of course went on to be ubiquitous throughout our stay. 

 

Our next move was to clear out of the Spurn area and head to Johnny Brown's Common in West Yorkshire where the adult male BROWN SHRIKE showed well in the narrow strip by an arable field. Two Crossbills, a Siskin and 27 Fieldfares flew over.

 

We finished the day just outside the Spurn recording area at Skeffling, where it was too close to dusk for the Great Grey Shrike but a Short-eared Owl did show nicely, a Merlin flew through, four Kestrels hunted and 11 Fieldfares appeared.

The next day (Tuesday) started with a walk around Kilnsea, with a Firecrest near Sykes's Field and a Yellow-browed Warbler in the observatory garden being the highlights, along with nice views of a juvenile female Sparrowhawk in a hedgerow. We returned to Skeffling in the afternoon and enjoyed fantastic views of the Great Grey Shrike which hunted actively but payed no attention to us watching from the bank. It performed a couple of very long hovers and was quite a successful hunter. A juvenile Hen Harrier put on a good show, 300 Pink-footed Geese dropped in briefly, a Merlin passed through and two redpolls flew over.

Wednesday at Spurn produced seven Goosanders, a Pale-bellied Brent Goose, a Short-eared Owl, 23 Twite, 12 Common Scoters, two Red-throated Divers, 25 redpolls, a House Martin, 13 Swallows and a Cetti's Warbler.

Thursday was the first good day for vismig, with a Lapland Bunting, a Great White Egret and a Twite headlining. As for commoner species, my very rough and conservative personal totals were 140 Siskins, 450 Goldfinches, 180 Skylarks, 90 redpolls, 80 Linnets, 20 Chaffinches, six Rock Pipits, 30 Meadow Pipits, three House Martins and six Swallows. 35 Dark-bellied Brent Geese and 11 Pintail were also seen, along with the usual suite of Humber waders.

Kilnsea Wetlands had 10 Whooper Swans, six Black-tailed Godwits, a Pintail and three Mediterranean Gulls. Later, Skeffling again offered views of the Great Grey Shrike, a Merlin and two Marsh Harriers. We returned to the Canal Scrape in the evening to witness a murmuration of several thousand Starlings as they came in to roost, and we heard a Water Rail.

More vismig on Friday involved 44 Whooper Swans, 350 Pink-footed Geese, four Lapland Buntings, five Twite, five Yellowhammers, a Brambling, 230 Siskins, 20 Tree Sparrows, 140 Meadow Pipits, 10 Pied/White Wagtails, 60 Linnets, seven Rock Pipits, three Grey Wagtails, 19 Skylarks and nine Swallows. A Greenshank was on the Humber and a Red-throated Diver flew past offshore. Eight Black-tailed Godwits flew over Long Bank Marsh and Sammy's Point had a Short-eared Owl, 12 Grey Partridges (coveys of seven and five), two Bullfinches, three Yellowhammers, 11 Whooper Swans, 16 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, three Black-tailed Godwits, a Mediterranean Gull, a Peregrine, 35 Fieldfares, 

Saturday at The Warren signed our Spurn trip off with three Eiders, a Goldeneye, three Common Scoters, 40 Whooper Swans, six Dark-bellied Brent Geese, a Merlin and a Peregrine. 

We stopped at North Cave Wetlands on the way home and located the adult drake Green-winged Teal among 600 Teal. There were also 70 Wigeon, 60 Gadwall, six Pochards and 20 Shovelers. A Green Sandpiper, nine Curlew, a Ruff, four Snipe and 47 Lapwings made up the waders. A redpoll, a Siskin, a Fieldfare, eight Little Grebes and a Little Egret were among the other birds noted. 48 Common Gulls was the highest number I've logged at any one site so far this autumn.

Spurn

I only had a couple of hours before I had to leave, and DDL kindly dropped me in Hull. Getting in the field provided a last-minute headline bird, with a Red-rumped Swallow south past Numpties some 20 minutes after it flew over the observatory less than a mile away. The highlight at sea was a reluctant Manx Shearwater which kept pitching down. Little Gulls flocked in the far distance and the usual Red-throated Divers, Common Scoters and auks passed by. The swallow diverted our attention to the amazing vismig action, with Meadow Pipits, Reed Buntings and Tree Sparrows piling through, while I also noted singles of Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail and Yellowhammer. I heard a Greenshank on the Humber.

Spurn and Keyingham

Another day of unfavourable conditions. A Sooty Shearwater, a Swift, a Merlin, a Hobby terrorising Starlings, a Fulmar, four Wheatears, two Yellow Wagtails, a Whimbrel, four Sand Martins, several Red-throated Divers and Common Scoters, Razorbill, Guillemot, a Greenshank, two Avocets, a Snipe and some Golden Plovers in-off, and nine Pintails were among the day's highlights.

We saw a Hobby over nearby Keyingham.

Spurn

Conditions were far from ideal. Today's highlights included two Pied Flycatchers, an Eider, three Red-breasted Mergansers, 19 Pink-footed Geese, 11 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, seven Wheatears, five Yellowhammers, a Grey Wagtail, a Yellow Wagtail, two Lesser Whitethroats, hundreds of Meadow Pipitsand Golden Plovers, a Willow Warbler, 30 Skylarks, a Peregrinehunting over the Humber, two of both Arctic Skuaand Great Skua, dozens of Little Gullsand Mediterranean Gulls, a Snipeand an Avocet.

Spurn

Again I can't present a particularly impressive return from the day's birding at Spurn, and today's excuse is our rather foolhardy decision to walk The Point. There were virtually no migrants to be found, the best being a flyover Tree Pipit. A look around the Humber and Kilnsea Wetlands produced a typical assortment of common waders and wildfowl, including 30 Dark-bellied Brent Geese and a Greenshank, but the day was only salvaged somewhat by another enjoyable, though in reality quiet, seawatch in the evening. This produced an Arctic Skua, a few Red-throated Divers, a minor movement of Common Terns and Sandwich Terns, and four Snipe in-off. A Pied Flycatcher was in the bushes around The Warren with a Redstart.

Spurn

A gentle start to our Spurn trip saw David Darrell-Lambert and I have a quick seawatch, though we saw little other than two Red-throated Divers and a Guillemot in half an hour. Kilnsea Wetlands and Beacon Ponds were very quiet, with the tide way out, but over 500 Teal and 100 Wigeon were present, along with three Knot, a Snipe and an Avocet. Tree Sparrows were in the obs garden. No serious birding really, just settling in. A walk down The Point is planned for tomorrow.

Spurn area and Donisthorpe/Oakthorpe

A fairly lively seawatch at Spurn featured an in-off Short-eared Owl, six Sooty Shearwaters, five Manx Shearwaters, five Bonxies, two Arctic Skuas, a good few Guillemots and Razorbills, a couple of Kittiwakes, two Arctic Terns and many Red-throated Divers and Gannets.

On the way home, we broke up the journey by stopping off at the nature trail between Donisthorpe and Oakthorpe, getting brief views of the Glossy Ibis there before it flew off. Also there were five Teal and the nearby fields had a few Red-legged Partridges.

Spurn area

Highlights of our second day - which was still hard work (for Spurn) - included a Manx Shearwater, an Arctic Skua, three Greenshanks, six Pintails, Common Scoter, Shag, three Yellow Wagtails, five migrant Yellowhammers, an Arctic Tern, a Buzzard, Siskins, Rock Pipits, a few moving Meadow Pipits and Linnets, several Red-throated Divers, a Spotted Redshank and a dusk Barn Owl.

Spurn area

Mag, Simon and I arrived at the obs at lunchtime to meet up with Christian. It was deathly quiet but we persisted in birding, enjoying the local Tree Sparrows if nothing else. A Marsh Harrier quartered near Sammy's Point, where a Rock Pipit called, a Whimbrel was along the edge of the Humber and a few Snipe flushed. The usual other waders were about, including flocks of Golden Plovers. A seawatch produced three Little Gulls, Shag and a trickle of Red-throated Divers, Sandwich Terns and Common Terns. Good numbers of Kestrels were around.

23rd September-1st October 2017

Well, it's been a busy couple of weeks but considering that this has been largely due to a fabulous and quite insane trip to Spurn in the unique company of David D-L and Magnus A, that can't be a bad thing. David and I formed the advance line, stopping en-route on 23rd to mop up the juvenile Red-necked Grebe at Roding Valley Meadows, the juvenile Long-billed Dowitcher at Saltfleet Haven and point-blank views of quality waders at Covenham Reservoir, a tight and showy flock of juveniles including a Red-necked Phalarope, a Curlew Sandpiper, nine Little Stints and two Ruff; a second-winter Little Gull also put in an appearance. The next day, we picked up Mag from the station in Hull...

juvenile Red-necked Grebe at Roding Valley Meadows

torn emotions among Great Crested Grebes at Roding Valley Meadows

juvenile Red-necked Phalarope, just my second, at Covenham Reservoir

juvenile Little Stint at Covenham Reservoir

juvenile Curlew Sandpiper at Covenham Reservoir

juvenile Ruff at Covenham Reservoir

We stayed at Spurn till 30th, the only 'standout bird' for me being the stonking adult male Red-breasted Flycatcher which turned up at The Warren on 27th but I will fondly remember the week for the panoply of common migrants including Yellow-browed Warblers, Redstarts, Whinchats, Spotted and Pied Flycatchers, Wheatears, Whinchats, Bramblings, redpolls, Siskins, Lesser Whitethroats (including a potential blythi at Chalk Bank on 25th), Garden Warblers, hirundines, Tree, Rock and Meadow Pipits, etc. Just one Yellow Wagtail for me, on 25th, which might end up being my last of the year, as might a Hobby on 28th. A Bittern was a nice Spurn tick on 26th. Brent Geese had started to arrive, along with a noticeable arrival of Wigeon and Teal; the common waders are always good value, which strong numbers of Bar-tailed Godwits, Knots, Golden and Grey Plovers, etc, along with the odd Greenshank and Ruff. Spotted Redshank, Little Stint, Whimbrel and Common Sandpiper also made it onto the roll-call. Seeing tonnes of Tree Sparrows was also something of a treat. A very enjoyable and wine-enhanced seawatch on 25th produced a Sooty Shearwater, 15 Arctic Skuas, three Great Skuas, two Manx Shearwaters, 52 Little Gulls and a Black Tern, along with nine Red-throated Divers and a trickle of Common Scoters.

adult ♂ Red-breasted Flycatcher at Spurn

Garden Warbler at Spurn

Spotted Flycatcher at Spurn

Whinchat at Spurn

a no-shits-given Roe Deer at Spurn

We did make a little diversion on 27th upon the incredible news that a SCOPS OWL had been seen at Ryhope, Co Durham; as a big owl fan, and this being a species I've forever longed to see in Britain, I was delighted to be able to soak up views of this bark-plumaged beast roosting in an elder before we heading to the Pennines, near Langthwaite, to sort of Black and Red Grouse successfully, both being birthday lifers for Mag.

dream come true... Scops Owl at Ryhope

♀ Black Grouse near Langthwaite

♂ Black Grouse near Langthwaite

♂ Red Grouse near Langthwaite

The return leg featured a pit-stop at Landguard (my first visit to the reserve since the Short-toed Treecreeper there in 2011) for the Red-throated Pipit which was on the fourth day of its unusually long stay. Also there was a Redstart and a couple of Wheatears.

Red-throated Pipit at Landguard, my second

I was back on patch duty on 1st, a visit which featured the Barn Owl, a couple of migrant Mistle Thrushes, a Stonechat and two Red-legged Partridges... it was a pleasure to bump into Steve G. A call from Christian prompted an unplanned but worthwhile trip to the London Wetland Centre, where we had a quick look from the Peacock Tower, counting Snipe, Wigeon and the like.

The Great and the Lesser

For the first time in a while, a couple of very tempting rarities turned up over the weekend and got me moving. The more urgent of the two was the Great Snipe at Spurn so I headed up on Monday afternoon after a morning at the patch (which was fruitful for a hurried walk round, providing a Spotted Flycatcher, a Wheatear, the first Siskins of the autumn and a Yellow Wagtail) and arrived in the evening at the caravan site the bird had chosen as a feeding ground. I'd heard the bird was tame but what I saw was just insane, the GREAT SNIPE walking within centimetres of people's lenses and phones, and even walking between someone's legs at one point before crossing the road and going into a ditch as darkness fell! A top bird, and it was very disheartening to learn of its sad demise apparently at the paws of a cat this morning.

Great Snipe

As I'd left the trip till late in the day (thanks exclusively to my compulsion to miss as little patching time as possible), I didn't fancy driving back to Surrey that evening and I still had the shrike to see, so I figured it would be most logical to stay somewhere between Spurn and Sizewell overnight, wait on news and go to see the shrike in the morning before heading home. I found a lovely bed and breakfast on the outskirts of Cambridge and lay in till news came through on the pager late morning of the bird's continued presence. A couple of hours later I parked up and was watching the very freshly-plumaged LESSER GREY SHRIKE. While not as brash as a spring male, the more subtle plumage characteristics along with the structure of the bird made for educational viewing before a heavy shower saw the bird into cover and me back into the car, and back home after a roaring success of forty-eight hours' twitching!

Lesser Grey Shrike

Spurn Migration Festival

Yesterday evening I returned from a few days at Spurn, including the weekend of the Spurn Migration Festival. I didn't get too involved in the festival itself as I did most of my birding with friends or by myself but enjoyed Martin Garner's talk on how to be the best birder you can be, and the hog roast that went with it.

Despite the time of year and hints of promising pressure systems and winds, there were relatively few birds to see. There were scarcities, but not many, and most common migrants were decidedly uncommon. Still, there was some top stuff on offer. The best of the bunch included the Wryneck seen in the hand on Thursday morning, the Red-backed Shrike seen on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and the Common Rosefinch that was trapped and ringed on Friday. In fact, Friday wasn't too bad with Leach's Petrel being another top-biller, perhaps competing for top bird, actually, as well as Roseate Tern, Black Tern and strong numbers of Arctic Skuas that day.

Wryneck

Red-backed Shrike

Common Rosefinch

Whinchats weren't hard to come by, particularly on Thursday when I probably saw in excess of twenty individuals. Interestingly, they far outnumbered Wheatears, which were somewhat at a premium. Additional seabirds included Little Gulls, Balearic Shearwater, Sooty Shearwater, Manx Shearwater, Eider and Red-throated Diver. Yellow Wagtails were a common bird, their soft call being heard every few minutes at times, while only common warblers were seen and none were evident in strong numbers. Numbers of common waders on the Humber were impressive but unfortunately Common Sandpiper and Greenshank were not outdone in terms of scarcity. Some duck passage was noticable, with Pintail, Wigeon and Teal moving along the point in small numbers. For me, seeing a Marsh Harrier flying out to sea and low south over the waves was one of the more amazing moments of my time at Spurn. September Cuckoo and Common Swifts served as a reminder of the high summer that has only just departed.

It was great fun birding with Liam and meeting quite a few new people, including fellow under-30s Jack Ashton-Booth, Tim Jones, Zac Hinchecliffe, Matt Bruce, Scott Reid, Samuel Perfect, Tim Jones, Chris Bridge, Alex and Dan. The locals were warm, welcoming and informative, helping make my stay something of an eye-opener in terms of how fantastic the Spurn area is for birds and how bird observatories work. I tried and predictably failed to find something good.......... one day!



IMPORTANT PERSONAL NOTE: If anyone has been trying to contact me by my mobile recently they'll struggle as I smashed it to pieces at Spurn - in the meantime email me at devilbirder@gmail.com. I'll get my mobile sorted before too long.

Rocked up just in time

Yesterday, around mid-day, a mega-alert for a Rock Thrush at Spurn came through on the pager. Now that was a bird I HAD to see! I tried a few people but it soon became clear that everyone I'd usually go with was unavailable for some reason or didn't need it. I came close to one lift offer but it didn't work out and I resigned myself to the best/only option of driving there for first light the following day. In the end though, I managed to convince my wonderful dad to let me have the car, though this meant leaving Wallington as late as 2.30pm. I blindly followed the sat-nav, thinking it was taking me onto the A3 then M25 but by the time it ended up leading me through London, on a very busy afternoon, it was too late to change my route. I soon gave up hope of seeing the bird but ploughed on anyway, planning to stay up there overnight and try for it in the morning on the off-chance. Thankfully I did get on the motorways before too long and pelted it as quickly as I could get away with towards Kilnsea, slowly knocking minutes off the ETA on the sat-nav on a pretty clear run. As I began to near my destination an encouraging message came through saying it was still showing at 7.10pm despite the wet and very dull conditions, though it was getting darker by the minute. Grinding to a halt by the Bluebell cafe at 8.00pm I rushed towards a huddle of birders who looked like they might just be on it  - yes, they were - one birder called Leon kindly let me bag the ROCK THRUSH through his scope. I got it in mine for a couple more minutes before it dropped round the back where Leon and I went round and managed two further glimpses before the night truly blanketed the sky. I couldn't believe that I'd actually managed to get there in time just enough to see it. One or two more red lights, or five minutes more time in queues and I'd have missed it. Relief, elation and the shakes after such an intense, close and stressful chase proceeded before I composed myself, fetched some food and arranged digs for the night.

Rock Thrush when I bagged it yesterday (Thursday) evening

This morning I popped in for another look at the bird which had remarkably stayed overnight, getting further views and better pics plus seeing a Hoopoe brilliantly. Also quite a few Wheatears and the odd Yellow Wagtail were in the same field. I set off back home some time between eight and nine this morning, hoping to get to my English lesson at 1.30pm but failed to do so, but never mind - Rock Thrush is on my list!!! I checked in at Canons very quickly this evening, finding a female Whinchat and at least sixteen Wheatears.

Rock Thrush today - more prolonged views this morning

Hoopoe