Catch-up #2, Early May 2021

Bicester, Saturday 1st May

We actually began this day by travelling to the Wyre Forest hoping to see Wood Warblers primarily but also the other specialist woodland birds that favour mixed forest. As last year, our preferred destination and day out to a Welsh Wood to see these birds was denied to us because of continuing Covid restrictions. Unfortunately, just like last year when we visited to see Pied Flycatchers, we managed to choose a very dreary, misty and cold morning to visit and seeing anything in the trees was incredibly difficult. We did manage to find Pied Flycatchers, a Common Redstart and other common woodland birds but the only hint of a Wood Warbler was hearing the song of one that was away across the valley and out of sight. The best moment was spotting a male Lesser Spotted Woodpecker high above in the canopy. Owing to the conditions I didn't take a photograph of anything!

When we reached the car and regained mobile reception again we saw a report that a birder checking out the Garganey pair close to our home had discovered a Wood Sandpiper on the same scrape. Rather than travel to another woodland in search of Wood Warblers we decided it made more sense to head home and look for the other "Woody" instead. We pitched up at one o'clock but there was no sign of the Wood Sandpiper at all. Justin, one of our fellow Bicester birders, joined us and between us we studied the vegetated edges to the scrape carefully but again found nothing. I turned my attention to the pair of Lapwings, concentrating on the male who frequently tried to ward off any Red Kite or Crow that flew over.

Lapwing

Red Kite & Carrion Crow

A Common Whitethroat appeared and chattered away unconcerned just a few metres from where we stood. 

Common Whitethroat

The sunshine that had greeted us as we drove into town now disappeared, it started to rain, and we retreated to the car, thinking we'd give up pretty soon and head the short distance home. A wave from Justin gained our attention though, he had relocated the Wood Sandpiper on the far side of the scrape. I set up the scope, found the bird for Mrs Caley and myself, the 166th species of the year, and ducked back in the car, keeping tabs on the bird as it fed warily. I took a few record shots just before a Crow flew in, landing right next to the Sandpiper which gave it cause to run back into cover. We watched the corner of the scrape closely but the Wood Sandpiper didn't emerge again. The Garganey pair, missing so far, did swim out again from behind a sunken log where they must have been resting unseen from the road.

Wood Sandpiper

Garganey

Dissatisfied with my earlier poor views, I ventured out after tea to see if the Wood Sandpiper was still present. I went in my van which would double up as an elevated hide too. I re-found the Sandpiper but again it was on the far side of the flood in company with three Little Ringed Plovers. The Garganey were asleep by their now favoured tree stump. The van proved its worth further when a fierce hailstorm ripped through. Once the storm had passed there was no sign of the Wood Sandpiper and I assumed it too had sought cover. With more dark clouds on their way I figured it was time to go home. A big surprise awaited me as I drove slowly along the road though, at the opposite end of the pool I spotted a smallish wading bird which of course turned out to be the Wood Sandpiper. It was striding purposefully but still warily towards the road, picking at the vegetation for insects as it did so. I pulled the van over and lowered the side window.

The male Lapwing took exception to the Wood Sandpiper and chased it out of its territory. That did me a big favour though since the Woody was now forced even closer to the roadside although further along and I'd have to reverse a bit to get back alongside it. The Lapwing settled back down right by the van so I took a couple of shots of the "bossy boots".

From my new parking spot I found the Wood Sandpiper again. It wasn't at all concerned by the big blue tin box, with the camera lens pointing out of the window, towering above it and kept walking directly towards my position until it was just metres away. Time to fill my proverbial boots!

Piddington, Northants, Sunday 2nd May

A fine and sunny start to the day saw us driving the forty miles or so to the village of Piddington close to Northampton and to catch up with one of favourite species which would prove to be a huge bonus year tick too. Normally we take an annual June trip to the mountains of Scotland but haven't been able to for two years now. One of our most sought after birds while there is the Dotterel, a highly enigmatic wading bird that breeds on the high mountain tops and require a great deal of effort for us to see them. To hear that two of these beautiful birds were taking time out and feeding on a pea field within an hour of home was gratefully received. Parking was easy and the walk along the dusty footpath through equally dry fields was considerably less arduous than walking up a mountain. The Dotterel, two brightly coloured females were found easily too but were a fair way away and the heat shimmer meant it would be record shots only. Dotterel are my most favourite wading bird species though so I was more than happy to see them even if we weren't able to walk more closely up to them. For better photos taken in the Cairngorms of this fabulous species see here.

Dotterel

Daventry, Monday 3rd May

It was back into Northamptonshire for the bank holiday Monday morning and the opportunity to get another huge bonus year tick. On the Sunday evening a local birder was walking her dog at the top of Borough Hill, where we'd seen a Black Redstart last autumn, and had found a Wryneck. We have only seen these most skulking of our Woodpecker species on their autumn migration so this would be our first spring example if we could find it. Over the years we have probably dipped more Wrynecks than we've seen. The bird was still present, it had already been reported again in the morning, so we'd have a good chance of getting it.

We joined a few other birders at the correct spot but had missed an appearance of the Wryneck by fifteen minutes. We studied the spot where it had shown but there was no further sign for the next half hour. Wrynecks have a good habit of emerging from deep cover and perching prominently, not always though, so I wasn't too disheartened. Then a chap who had arrived after us and was intrepid enough to search another area of bramble scrub at the edge of the grassy field hailed us over. He had found the Wryneck which had emerged from the cover to feed on an anthill, about fifty metres away from where we'd been advised to look. The Wryneck, our 168the species for the year, specialises in feeding on ants and this hillside had many anthills so it would be happy here for a while.

Wryneck

After feeding for ten minutes or so the Wryneck suddenly flew back along the field edge and into the bramble and bracken where we'd initially looked. My moment of glory came a few minutes later when I was first to find it again and shared its position with the others assembled. The bird itself was more difficult to see however but we were happy to get the views that we'd had so when a rain shower set in we left the others, and folk that were just arriving, to it.

We dropped into nearby Boddington Reservoir where we'd seen a fabulous showy Grasshopper Warbler the week before (see my last blog). On arrival we met Kyle who had been hoping for more photo opportunities with the Gropper but there'd been no sign. He was soon on his way to Daventry though once I'd told him what we'd been doing! We had a quick look in an area which is known as a place to see Willow Tits, a bird that is sadly probably extinct as an a breeding species in Oxfordshire. A pair of Willow Tits are hanging on at Boddington but we have yet to find them. We didn't on this occasion either. A first Garden Warbler of the year bolstered the list further.

Bicester, Tuesday 4th May

After tea I went back to the Graven Hill scrape for some more Wood Sandpiper therapy. It was another showery day, sunny and balmy conditions one minute replaced by stormy and chilly the next. Luckily I was in the van again which allowed me to remain dry and concealed from the birds. The Garganey pair were showing closer to the road than on previous visits.

Garganey

The Lapwing pair were working hard, the male to deter the Gulls, Crows and smaller foes from getting too close to the nest area and the female sitting tight to keep her clutch of four eggs dry and warm.

Lapwing & Little Ringed Plover

Initially I couldn't find the Wood Sandpiper but, after a heavy hail squall had passed through and after I had edged the van right opposite the Lapwings, I relocated it right up against the road and just metres away from my perch. It would have been invisible from a car, the extra height afforded by the van allowing me to peer over the bank-side vegetation. My boots were filled to bursting yet again!

Wood Sandpiper

Calvert & Farmoor, Saturday 8th May

I cut my birding teeth at Calvert, back in the last century when there seemed to be a lot more birds, both in number and variety, than nowadays and Mrs Caley and myself, along with Bobby Box, our dog, spent countless hours there. We used to see Nightingales, Common Redstarts, Grasshopper Warblers, Turtle Doves and lots more in the summer, and scarce Gulls and Smew in the winter. Now we tend to only visit in the winter for the Bitterns that spend the colder months in the small reedbed by the hide although the BBOWT reserve does host other good birds like the Black-necked Grebes we "twitched" last year. We were there on a very wet and blustery morning to see a near adult (3rd calendar year) Mediterranean Gull that had been seen displaying to a Black-headed Gull for the past fortnight or so. We huddled up in the windswept hide, it lacks the rudimentary requirement of a door, but couldn't see the Med Gull so just watched the comings and goings of the other birds. After fifteen minutes of shivering against the foul weather and with us almost ready to quit and go in search of coffee, I heard the familiar and distinctive, "Yeah, yeah" call of the Med Gull. Initially I couldn't see the Gull but then noticed that it had stole in and landed on one of the partly submerged nesting platforms. It was our 170th bird of the year.

Mediterranean Gull

We stayed for an hour during which time the Med Gull saw off all comers except his suitor. He'd disappear for a few minutes every so often but always announce his return with the high pitched and nasal calls. We saw the Gull make a meagre offer of nesting material to his mate, display, and take a bath despite it pelting down with rain.

I don't know why we went but after lunch we ventured out again, this time to Farmoor. I had a lot going on in my own life that I had no control over so maybe I just needed to clear my head a bit and see some birds. And Wader migration season was getting into full swing so I figured that the breezy conditions might just pull a few into our local hotspot. I'm glad that I did because for two hours I was totally distracted even though I felt mightily guilty afterwards that I should be having fun in desperate circumstances.

We met Kyle walking hurriedly towards us as we passed the marina. He'd found a small wader on the concrete slipway and wanted confirmation of what it was. It was a Sanderling which was adorned with no less than five leg rings and a flag! I don't think I've ever seen a bird with so much bling. We watched the bird, which was moulting from its plain grey and white winter coat into its full summer finery of golden browns, scurry along picking at some of the zillions of gnats and water borne insects. I felt sorry for it having to wear all the jewellery but it didn't seem bothered. Apparently the bird hatched in Greenland (the rings and flag do help to garner such information) the year before so was probably on its way back there. To travel such distances, the Sanderling would have spent the winter further south, is an amazing feat for such a small creature.

Sanderling

A short way down the causeway we encountered a lone Dunlin, already festooned in its own full breeding finery, which would also be on a stopover from its own journey north. A few Swifts were hurtling just above the choppy surface of the reservoir. I couldn't capture them very well with the camera though, my A-game was missing.

Dunlin

Swift

There was nothing else wader-wise along the causeway but at the western end a large flock of House Martins had congregated in the trees by the waterworks buildings. We don't expect hirundines to sit in trees so its always an incongruous sight to see them in such a setting.

House Martin

The House Martins, along with a few Swallows, were all feeding in the north-west corner of F2 by the pontoon. I sat for a while and tried to photograph some without too much success. I just wasn't in the zone and the breezy conditions weren't helping much.

House Martin

Swallow

We hadn't gotten far back up the causeway when a group of waders flew towards us and landed just a few metres away.  The group was composed of five Sanderling, including the ringed bird, the Dunlin and a Turnstone. The Turnstone was new for the year, as were the Sanderling, so our list had nudged up to 172. All of the birds were perfectly at home considering that the banks of Farmoor resembled a rocky foreshore at the coast in the windy weather with some sizeable waves being washed ashore.

Sanderling, Turnstone & Dunlin

Turnstone

Sanderling

We secured another year tick with a couple of Common Sandpipers that were clinging on to one of the floating pontoons on F1.

Common Sandpiper

Farmoor, 9th May

We returned to Farmoor on Sunday morning. The weather was slightly improved but it was still windy and overcast. Perfect conditions then for Swifts and there were a fair few hundred careering around the causeway. My game was better too so I was able to get some much better shots of them than I managed the day before.

Swift

Presumably the same flock of five Sanderling, the ringed individual was still with them, plus the Dunlin were still along the causeway but were much more flighty probably owing to the increased foot traffic along the road. I don't think they settled at all whilst we were there but I was grateful to take some photos of the birds as they flew past.

Sanderling & Dunlin (top)

The two Common Sandpipers were still on the same pontoon as on Saturday and we spotted another group of seven further around F1. We watched one of the many Cormorant almost bite off more than it could chew. I've seen a dead Cormorant before at Farmoor which had choked on a trout far too big for its stomach!

Common Sandpiper

Cormorant

We walked along the River Thames and around Pinkhill. A Cuckoo called repeatedly from a treetop on the opposite bank while a Pied wagtail waited patiently to take food back to its own nest. 

Cuckoo

Pied Wagtail

We sat and watched a pair of Greylag Geese carefully chaperone their single remaining Gosling onto the bank-side vegetation while keeping their eyes firmly fixed on us. We were on the seat next to Reggie the Sedge Warblers territory from last year but he doesn't seem to have taken up residence this time. The Grasshopper Warblers were still in the area though and I got a quick view of one flying from a bush into the dense grasses.

Greylag Goose & Gosling

Back at the reservoir I heard the distinctive "poeeep" of a Ringed Plover coming from above us. I looked skywards and spotted the small wader flying high above. It was our 174th bird of the year. I know that we'll see hundreds once we get out to the coast but it was a very satisfying sighting too after reacting to the call and then finding the bird.

Ringed Plover

We stopped for a coffee and sat outside, not that there was a choice to sit inside owing to the present covid restrictions, enjoying the warmer conditions now that a bit of sunshine had drizzled through. Alerted by a flock of Starlings flying rapidly past I looked up and saw a Peregrine soaring high overhead. The large Falcon very thoughtfully made several wide circles allowing me to take some shots without even having to get up from my seat.