Somewhere a bit different this afternoon as I took Tristan out for a walk (well I walk and he sits in his carrier on my back!) up on the Levels and out on to Whit Moor, just east of Long Load. This moor had been pretty productive during the floods earlier in August but the water levels had dropped off recently. Despite this I thought it would be worth a walk anyway. We followed the main track out over the moor and I had to watch my footing as I dodged mud and puddles in just my trainers!
A large flock of Little Egrets took to the air and I counted forty birds, plus a few others scattered about the moor, there were also a good number of Grey Herons. A Peregrine caused a bit of a stir as it passed over the moor. I also heard at least three Yellow Wagtails calling from the fields.
As I continued the outward journey a small flock of five Yellow Wagtails actually flew over my head from the west. A minute or two later another ten passed over and then amazingly another flock flew over...this time of thirty-one birds and with a few more stragglers later on I must have counted around fifty Yellow Wagtails this afternoon!
The walk back to the car was also pretty productive with a Wheatear being seen, a Reed Warbler finally pinned down as it "chacked" away in the sedges, and a Whinchat also present.
Another disturbance over the fields, this time caused by a Common Buzzard, flushed a couple of Ruff, and judging by the size difference they were presumably male and female birds. A single Snipe also took to the air and expressed its annoyance as it called loudly as it flew over us.
Before we knew it it was time to get home for tea, but it had been a very enjoyable afternoon.
Not a lot happening at the reservoir today, and water levels are nearly up as high as they were earlier in the year, so no chance of any passage waders dropping in for sure. I started off at the hide where a Little Egret was feeding on the far bank before flying south. A pair of Teal were also seen again and two Stock Doves flew over.
I then drove up to the car park and had a quick scout about. The local hirundines suddenly got rather vocal and as a looked up an adult Hobby soared overhead befor flying off north-east. And that pretty much sums up the birds of interest at SBR this morning!
Tristan and I braved the weather this afternoon and headed south to the coast and paid a visit to Wyke Regis, a site which has produced some real quality birds this year. Today ended up being no exception, though I thought our luck was going to be out due to the incessant wind and steady drizzle.
Upon arrival we were lucky enough to have a slight break in the rain and so after parking up took a walk towards the Bridging Camp, scanning the paddocks in the hope of locating the 1st-summer Woodchat Shrike that had been present all week. There was no sign but I did see a male Stonechat and the slightly scarcer Whinchat. A couple of Wheatears were hunkered down in one of the fields in an attempt to avoid the worst of the weather.
Time was against us as the traffic around Dorchester and Weymouth was dire so we had arrived later than planned, so we had to return to the car. On the way back I noticed the "Bull, No Entry" sign that had been mentioned on the pager, so stopped and had another look about. Fortunately, Tristan was pretty happy in his backpack, so when a saw a smallish black and white bird dart out of a bramble bush and then back again I was able to set up my 'scope feeling confident that I'd found what I was looking for. Sure enough over the next five minutes I was treated to several feeding sorties as the Woodchat Shrike searched for food. The only down side was that when it returned to its favourite bush it was out of site, so no chance for me to get one of my quality record shots! As we returned to the car a Common Tern flew overhead.
So despite the weather and traffic we had a great afternoon out.
UK list for 2012 now at 211 species.
Somewhere different this afternoon as Ellie, Tristan and I took a trip to a place I'd not been to for years, Wayford Woods, to the south of Crewkerne. We had a very enjoyable walk through the woodland and whilst we did not see much in the way of birdlife, there was plenty about that could be identified by voice alone with Goldcrest, Treecreeper and Great Spotted Woodpecker amongst others all being rather vocal in the treetops.
An hour long visit this morning was enjoyable for the number of birds present it not the quality, and I can only put this down to the fact that there were no canoeists, sailors, or anglers about so it made for a quiet and pleasant trip.
A female Tufted Duck and a couple of Mandarin were present from the northern causeway, and pretty much summed up the interest at this end of the reservoir.
A walk from the hide to the Canoe Club and back was pretty productive. On the water the adult Yellow-legged Gull was again present. There were several small passerines feeding in the small sallows and willows on the water's edge which some very smart and bright juvenile Willow Warblers feeding alongside one or two rather scruffy looking Chiffchaffs. A small family group of Whitethroats and a male Reed Bunting were also seen as well as a single Lesser Whitethroat.
So no major rarities or scarcities this morning but it's always good to get up close to the commoner species.
The first of a few days off work this week and we all headed down to the coast after lunch and visited West Bexington...a location chosen because of an elusive Wryneck that had been present for a couple of days. When we arrived Tristan had to have his bottle so whilst Ellie sorted out the hungry little man I did a quick scan of the sea, and amazingly connected with an Arctic Skua! It was pretty much the only bird out to sea.
Unfortunately, this proved to be the highlight of the afternoon on the birding front as despite a fair amount of searching we failed to locate the Wryneck. We did see a single Wheatear on the beach and that was the only bird we saw that was slightly out of the ordinary.
There were loads of butterflies on the wing though, and we saw a very smart Common Blue (only my second of the year believe it or not) and a Painted Lady amongst the more abundant Meadow Browns and Speckled Woods. So whilst our twitch proved unsuccessful it was an enjoyable family afternoon out.
Slightly less than an hour at the reservoir this morning as we were running late getting Ellie to church. The was pretty much nothing to see on site, until a pair of Teal flew past me whilst I was standing by the hide. I've had my suspicions that a pair may have spent the summer at the reservoir, but this could have been a migrating couple.
Soon afterwards my attention was drawn to a falcon as it headed towards me from the far side of the reservoir, I soon realised it was a Hobby carrying prey and as it reached me it started calling. This call received an enthusiastic reply as a second bird came from behind me to join the first where they exchanged the prey in flight. Quite a spectacle and then both birds vanished as quickly as they had appeared.
A quick walk along the road from the hide to the southern causeway produced a single Mandarin as it swam from the near bank away from me.
