We have a notable event to celebrate towards the end of March and we like to get away for a few days to make it more special. The past couple of years we've headed up to North Wales and Anglesey, primarily to take in a Black Grouse lek in that area, but also to relax, catch up with other good birds, and to see whatever else is around at the time.
This year we went the whole hog and booked a four night break away, a night at Wrexham first, and then in a cottage near Denbigh, which is suitably placed midway between the coast and the uplands.
Wednesday 20th March; Out for a Duck at the Cricket!
In the shadow of Edgbaston county & test cricket ground in Birmingham is Cannon Hill Park. We stopped there on the way up to Wales because a Garganey had been reported from there the previous day. It soon became apparent though that it was somewhat of a lame duck. The Garganey was real enough, a fine drake in peak condition. It was living wild but unfortunately, in all probability, in the past it had been a "fence-hopper". It now had the propensity for hanging around with local Mallards, domestic call-ducks and all varieties in between.
I decided that we may as well call in and see it for ourselves anyway. I saw photos of the bird which proved that it was (far too) approachable and I'd be sure to get some pretty good shots.
The only problem with my plan was that for twenty minutes we couldn't find it! We scoured every inch of the parkland lake and couldn't see a Garganey. We found lots of variety of ducks, geese, some Grey Wagtails, and a Kingfisher but not the target bird.
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| Grey Wagtail |
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| Garganey |
Thursday 21st March; Dawn at the Lek!
I had chosen our first night's stay at Wrexham for two reasons. One was for the convenience of being just a few miles away from the Black Grouse site, for which a very early morning start is required to get the most reward from, and because there is a Hickory's Smokehouse restaurant on the outskirts of the town, which counts for an amazing culinary experience.
We arrived at the remote (but only a mile or so away from the nearest village) moorland road in the dark at about five-thirty a.m. We are old hands at this lek watching so had come with blankets and hot drinks in flasks for protection against the cold. It wasn't promised to be the best of weather and it was misty with a light drizzle falling on the windscreen of the car. We'd already wound the side windows down, it is essential to remain inside the car when viewing Black Grouse so that they're not disturbed. It was too dark to see anything at that early hour and surprisingly it was eerily quiet too. We would have expected to hear the strange gurgling calls of the male Black Grouse as we drove up the hill. I hoped that the birds had not been driven off the lek. In the event we had just gotten there too early. At five to six there was a flurry of wings and the first alien-like sounds whistled towards us. We could just about make out several familiar shapes in the murk, around fifty metres from the car.
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| Black Grouse |
I sit, watch and mostly listen to the Blackcocks bubbling song, and their almost "Martian-like" calls. My favourite is the "Cooo-eeessshh" battle cries. Once encouraged to attack by one bird, his rival can't resist and will launch himself into a mock fray. Occasionally there will be actual contact in the combat but mostly it's just posturing and threat. Birds normally challenge in pairs, but sometimes a third bird may become involved in another pairs dispute. From what I've seen watching leks for many years now, it's always the same birds squabbling with each other. Admittedly I don't watch a lek more than a couple of times each year and most Black Grouse look the same to me, but I don't see a particular bird wandering around the lek ground, picking a fight with every other bird, nor does every bird try to assail the top bird. Each bird seems to be embroiled in its own personal battle with another. Maybe they operate a "squash ladder" system and the winners and losers move up and down the league on successive days. The only bird(s) that do appear to take a bit of hiding are the young males, noticeable by having more brown than black feathers, and which hang around the periphery of the lek ground. If they encroach too closely then any of the ascendant males will take time out from their own duels and chase them out of the parade ring.
As the light improves then so do the photo opportunities. Unfortunately though we haven't chosen a good day since it's now raining and the mist refuses to lift. At times we can't see the birds. We know they are there because we can hear them still. Despite the bleak conditions I go on to take over five hundred images. Most of them end up binned.
Something startles the Grouse, maybe an unseen aerial threat, and nine of the twelve fly off. Will that signal an early finish to the proceedings, we wonder? Most of the birds return a few minutes later, giving me a brief chance to get some flight shots, and settle back down in exactly the same positions as before with the same protagonists facing each other once more. So it appears anyway.
There are other birds in the vicinity. Red Grouse can be heard uttering their own calls but they are not tolerated within their cousins lekking ground and will be ejected if they dare get too close. Curiously a pair of Canada Geese arrive and walk straight into the middle of the lek. They look mildly interested in the proceedings and the Blackcocks are distracted momentarily. The Geese are too large for the Grouse to do anything about so once they've been given the once over, the hostilities toward each other resume again. A Stonechat has popped up on a grassy stem just metres away from the car. Other the years we've also seen Meadow Pipits, Wheatears and Whinchats in the lek area. Naturally the spectacle attracts raptors too. Peregrine, Goshawk, Merlin, Red Kite and Buzzard have all been noticed in the past. If either of the first two appear then the Grouse soon disappear.
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| Canada Goose |
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| Stonechat |
By quarter-to-seven the activity is calming down. More birds are nibbling at the grass than fighting. They are still skirmishes but they are less aggressive. With no warning the whole flock of birds is airborne again and for the second time we think it's all over for the morning and begin to think of our own breakfast. But no, not yet, the birds quickly fly back and settle down once more. Reacquaintance on the field of battle renews the hostilities. If anything the tension ramps up a shade and we actually see a feather or two fly.
Another twenty minutes pass during which time the Grouse have quietened down again. There is mostly peace and feeding appears to be the priority. One of the young "satellite" males flies across to the other side of the road but soon realises that the rough moorland grass there isn't greener so walks back very close to the car. The birds have obviously gotten used to the car and are showing it no heed at all. We then wait with bated breath, me especially, as the young bird very slowly edges alongside of us. When it emerges from behind the various tussocks of grass it is no more than ten metres away. I can't believe my luck to be so close to the bird. Even this young male is a joy to behold with the black feathers actually manifesting themselves into shimmering bottle blue colours. As quickly as I congratulate myself on my good fortune, I am also bemoaning the fact that the light for photography is awful still, and I can't do the bird full justice through the camera. Oh, for a few moments of sunshine. A hope as forlorn as the weather.
We are in luck again though, when the the bird that I perceive to be "top dog (bird)" at this lek, spots the young male. Top bird charges down the slope from where he held sway all morning to charge at the other bird. This brings the dominant bird to the same short distance away from us. There is no fight, the young bird knows its own place, and turns heel and flees, but plenty of hostility. We could feel the air move with the beat of wings from both birds as they take off. The young Grouse is ousted and flies off but the older bird flies back and returns to its podium in the middle of the lek. It's appetite for more battles has dissipated though and it joins the remaining birds in hunting out fresh grassy shoots for breakfast.
The Black Grouse leave and we are left with an empty lek. They will be back the next day and hopefully will continue to use the same site for years to come. There were just the dozen on show this time, we have seen as many as twenty-three here before, and no females appeared. We hope that the decrease in numbers is not a sign of a general decline in the Black Grouse population of this moor since this is the best place that we know of to see them lekking. There are three other leks in the area but none are as accessible as this one.
The Grouse were gone for the day, but we stayed for a while longer. A few Meadow Pipits had flown in and were feeding on the short grass. In fresh spring plumage, Mipits are superb looking little birds. I generally struggle with the finer points of Pipit identification so whenever I can study the common congeners of the family, then it must stand me in better stead for when, if ever, I find a rarer one.
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| Meadow Pipit |
As we drove to get our own breakfast at a nearby cafe that we've frequented for a number of years, we reflected on the superb encounter with the Black Grouse. We had been the only spectators too, which made it feel even more special, personal almost. Although we have been visiting this lek for many years now, before we were just realising the spectacle. Now we really appreciate it.
An REM song was playing in my head. It always does when I visit this part of North Wales. It started with an earthquake……
Thursday 21st March; Dipper Dee, Doo Daa!
After a hearty breakfast we drove into nearby Llangollen. Most people know of the small town straddling the River Dee since the main A5 trunk road passes through it and offers the easiest route into North Wales and Snowdonia from the Midlands. We'd travelled this way many times before but had never stopped for any length of time in the town. I had learned, through the power of the internet, that the river was host to a couple of birds that we don't often see locally at home.
Because of houses that reach right down to the river in places, it's only really possible to walk upstream from the town centre. The path hugs the riverbank and passes through pleasant communal gardens, and gives commanding views of the Dee. There were few other people around so our walk was nice and relaxed. The river however, was anything but, and was charging through at a fair old rate. There is nothing quite like the noise of a river that hurtles down a steep course. The various falls and pools formed by the rocky ground create a cacophony of sound and the beauty of the water is mesmerising. I could sit quite happily by a mountain stream or fast flowing river for hours.
Apart from a small flotilla of Mallards and a flock of feral Pigeons, waiting no doubt for a kind local to come by and bestow them with their daily bread, there was little of note to see upon the river. We walked further up towards a small natural weir. I noticed a large duck pop up from underwater and then another. A pair of Goosanders were feeding in a midstream eddy at the foot of the falling water. Goosanders definitely appear to be more common these days. We see them a lot, both on rivers and lakes.
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| Goosander |
We sat down and watched the two large ducks. Despite being in the raging torrent of the river, they stayed put in a small patch of calmer water with ease. Rivers like this are a Goosanders natural habitat, certainly for the females which raise their young on fast flowing waters. Like many ducks the males have little to do with the nesting and raising of the young. Post-breeding, male Goosanders head to the coast and spend the summer loafing around in large male only parties.
We walked on further but reached the end of the riverside path without seeing either of our primary targets. A Wood Pigeon looked at us as we gazed around. A Robin had followed us but my little container of sunflower seeds that I carry for such characters was in my other jacket. I need to double up on bird food carriers.
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| Wood Pigeon |
The Goosanders were still in the same spot. We watched them for a while longer. Then I noticed a quick movement on a rock a quarter of the way out in the river. There was the Dipper that we'd come to see, our first of the year. It must have flown in while we had walked further up the Dee. Dippers are delightful little birds and highly specialised in their habits and choice of habitat. They are able to survive in fast flowing rivers and streams by hunting invertebrates and fish under the water. They have special adaptations such as nictating membranes over the eyes, allowing them to see under water, and clawed feet for grasping onto slippery rocks. And they dip of course!
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| Dipper |
The Goosanders had sidled a little closer to the bank, probably because of a dog walker and her two dogs that were walking along the opposite bank. That gave me a chance of some slightly closer shots although the birds soon resumed their original position midstream once the possibility of danger had passed.
As if by magic, and who'd be surprised if it had arrived in a magic (technicolour) invisible cloak, a male Mandarin Duck, our other target bird here, had appeared. It was swimming up to join the Mallard flock. I had read that Mandarins were breeding along the Dee at Llangollen. Introduced species or not, they are stunning birds and brighten up even the most dullest of days.
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| Mandarin Duck |
The Dipper of Dee had decided that we weren't so bad at all and had come much closer to us. It seems as if our luck was in since we were getting superb views of everything. Of course that good fortune wouldn't hold out for long but for now I revelled in being able to get some decent shots of all three of the species available on the river, and all of them were within fifty metres of where we stood so I didn't even have to move from the bench on which we sat.
The drake Mandarin deserved a little photo session of his own. He had hauled out of the water to preen and make himself look even more amazing. I don't know how many colours his cloak is made up of but it must rival Joseph's. At one point all of the head feathers were stretched out to create a wonderful frill.
It was time for a coffee so we left the fabulous river behind and warmed up in a cafe, suitably overlooking the water and bridge. Llangollen will be a fixture visit for future years whenever we come to this part of the world.
The rest of the day rather petered out as we headed further into Wales. Our luck fluctuated both ways. A warning light on the car dashboard told me that we'd lost pressure in a tyre. Those warnings can happen occasionally when we've driven over bumpy surfaces so I don't always worry untoward. However, it has to be checked out so I pulled into a farm shop and checked the tyre in question. It was almost flat! Luckily I carry a portable air compressor so inflated the tyre and drove on. Less than a couple of miles later the warning came on again. Clearly we had a puncture, testified by the tyre already back to how it was a few minutes before. The A5 passes through some very unpopulated areas with very few settlements so I did become a little bit anxious. However, in the back of my mind, I could remember seeing a garage situated at a junction with the road to Llyn Brenig, that we just happened to be aiming for. The junction was no more than five miles from where we were. Those five miles were taken very carefully. Incredibly the pendulum of fate swung back our way again when we found that there was not only a garage exactly where I remembered it but it was actually a tyre and exhaust fitting centre! It had been an amazing morning.
Tyre fixed we continued on to Llyn Brenig. The promised Redpoll (and especially a Mealy Redpoll) failed to appear on the feeders there while we sipped an indulgent hot chocolate. Our route to our holiday cottage took us past the well known picnic site at Bod Petrul. It is well known amongst birders because it offers a good opportunity to see Crossbills. We found a couple high in trees overlooking the small lake. We'd revisit the picnic site later in the week for another try at getting better views.
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| Common Crossbill (male) |
Friday 22nd March; Anglesey Celebrations
Today was the reason why we were away for a few days. For the past three years we have marked the occasion with a day out birding on Anglesey which offers up a few special birds that we don't see at home. We set off after a champagne breakfast, actually it wasn't but we pretended the orange juice had some bubbles in it, and we didn't have caviar but croissants. The weather was good but a strong breeze had gotten up so it wouldn't be ideal for some of the places that we intended to visit. Before leaving I photographed a Common Buzzard that was stood on a children's swing in the park opposite.
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| Common Buzzard |
First stop on our Anglesey tour was at the RSPB reserve at South Stack. We've had some marvellous times at this clifftop reserve over the years and we make it our go-to spot to see Chough whenever we're in this part of Wales. This wouldn't be our best day there though, evident as soon as we exited the car and received a severe buffeting from the strengthening wind. Strong winds appear to be getting more and more regular around the UK these days, and they can make birding hard work. Normally we'd expect to see Wheatears up here at this time of year but on this walk there were none. In fact even the ubiquitous Stonechats and Meadow Pipits were difficult to find.
We ventured out onto the cliffs but it was far from enjoyable. Keeping on our feet was tricky at times. The seas below the cliffs were empty too. None of the resident Auk species that breed here had arrived back for the summer. We did see a few Gannets and a couple of Fulmars but that was just about the total haul for seabirds. We did find Choughs, it's hard not to at South Stack but the only views we had were of a flock of twelve that spiralled high up over the northernmost of the cliffs.
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| Chough |
On a whim I decided that we should check an area of flat boggy plateau to the south of the main reserve, known as The Range, where a long staying resident Hooded Crow had been seen. We've seen this bird on several occasions in the past and a couple of years got stunning close views of it. Luckily we had our wellington boots with us so we were able to navigate along the very damp and wet paths. Not that it was worth it, we hardly saw a bird other than the more common Carrion Crows and Ravens. We had returned back at the car yearning for a decent lunch when I spotted the Hooded Crow on a telegraph pole along the entrance track. It wasn't there earlier but I wished it had have been because it would have saved a lot of wasted effort. On a seemingly bird-less morning however, the Hoodie was our fourth year tick of the day although we had expected a few more.
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| Hooded Crow & Carrion Crow |
On our way through Holyhead we stopped at the Fish Quay, and at a part of the harbour that isn't used for anything and is laying derelict. You can park right next to the water here and view the harbour from the sanctuary of the car in poor weather. The target bird here is the Black Guillemot, a few pairs of which breed amongst the walls and pilings of the quayside. Some friends of ours have had incredible close views of the birds from the exact spot where we were parked. In five attempts now the closest we've seen the birds is probably midway out in the channel, which isn't close at all. They are smart little seabirds though.
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| Black Guillemot |
We searched in vain (again) for Slavonian Grebes at Penrhos Country Park before finding some lunch. The windy conditions were making birding hard going. Nevertheless we drove up to Cemlyn Bay on the north coast of the island. The lagoon and pebbly beach there holds a large Tern colony in the summer months, mainly consisting of Arctic and Sandwich Terns but we have also seen the rarer Roseate Tern, and the ultra rare Elegant Tern there in the past. More recently it has held a Bridled Tern as well. It was too early in the year for the return of breeding Terns but we did find a couple of Mediterranean Gulls for the year list. The main highlight was a large flock of Golden Plover.
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| Golden Plover |
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| Redshank |
On our way back to mainland Wales we took in a quick sortie to Penmon Point where there is a small Eider flock present all year round and duly added that species to our year list.
Saturday 23rd March; Hurricane! Almost.
If the day before had been windy then the Saturday was really windy! Even at the holiday cottage it was hard to stand against the almost gale force winds blown in from the west by yet another storm. Birding would be hard anywhere. If we were at home then we probably wouldn't even try and stay in for the day, but here we were on a break in Wales so we had to try for something.
Kinmel Bay, a small holiday resort on the edge of Rhyl on the north coast had been playing host to a Black Redstart, on and off, for most of the winter. It had been reported again the day before, so we decided to try our luck. Needless to say despite putting a great deal of effort into looking for it amongst the shipyard and compact nature reserve at the mouth of the River Clywd there was no sign. It was extremely blowy at the seafront and we had trouble standing at times. All birds were sheltering, as evidenced by a large flock of over a hundred and fifty Turnstones all huddling up tightly on a jetty, using a moored boat for cover. I felt sorry for the lone Dunlin that had to cower behind a rope. At least it could.
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| Turnstone |
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| Dunlin |
Thank goodness there was a nice cafe right next to the marina where we could gain some respite from the wind and enjoy a nice coffee.
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| Starling |
Even though we knew that the wintering Surf Scoters at Llanddulas had departed during the preceding week, we went there for a look anyway. It was impossible to keep the scope steady so it was very much a quick visit and a cursory scan of the sea didn't reveal anything more exciting than a small raft of Common Scoters.
We actually retreated back to the cottage for a few hours, something we only do on the worst weather days while away, because some nasty wintery hail showers arrived. We did venture out later in the day, taking a trip up to Moel Famau, the highest point in Denbighshire. The views from up there are spectacular. I remained firmly in the car which was rocking in the wind and watched a couple of Raven drift effortlessly past the windscreen. Foolishly thinking that I'd be able to gain some close and level flight photos, I got out of the car. It was so cold and at the high elevation, a near hurricane. I was back inside the car and driving back to the cottage within seconds. I couldn't believe it when I saw a young couple walking up the track to the summit dressed only in shorts and thin jackets. They must be made of sterner stuff in this part of the world.
Sunday 24th March;
The wind had gone and sunshine had returned as we left the cottage for the journey home. I was tempted to return for another Black Grouse show but knew that on a fine Sunday morning, there'd be quite a few folk up on the moors enjoying that show, and it was already too late in the day to get the best out of it. Instead we ventured back to Bod Petrul for a bit more forest birding. There we only had to deal with a few dog-walkers and the birds we were hoping to see wouldn't be bothered by them or their dogs.
We were looking for Crossbills again but there was no sign of any for the first hour or so. We did enjoy lovely views of some of the other forest inhabitants especially of a Song Thrush, Siskins and Nuthatches.
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| Song Thrush |
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| Siskin |
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| Nuthatch |
The familiar chirping call of Crossbills could be heard and we saw a flock of around a dozen fly into trees above the lake, almost in the same place as we'd seen a couple a few days before. As before they stayed high up in the treetops and didn't fly down to bath and drink as we'd seen in the past. Bod Petrul is a very reliable spot to see Crossbills, a bird that is increasingly difficult to pin down near our home.
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| Common Crossbill |
The trip was over. We did drive home via Lake Vyrnwy but that proved to be a waste of time with the place very busy with other day-trippers. It had been a decent break but one which despite a bright and good start and petered out somewhat with the weather turning against us. But, it is always good to be away with Mrs Caley.
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