12th September 2017 Grimsbury Reservoir

grey phalarope

 Grimsbury reservoir sits on the northern edge of Banbury and at first glance looks a rather soulless place. Essentially a concrete basin with no waterside vegetation save for a few weeds and surrounded by a 2 metre high fence, it's not the most attractive place for birding. Thankfully a few locals do watch the place regularly and one of these loyal patch workers, John Friendship-Taylor, struck gold on Monday evening when he discovered a grey phalarope feeding on the reservoir. It was still present on Tuesday morning (and indeed still is as I write on Thursday evening) so I took a sneaky hour off from work to go and see it.

Grimsbury reservoir with the Kraft factory in the distance 

I left the car and broke into a very quick walk, since I wanted to be back at work within an hour or so, and got stopped in my tracks by Ewan arriving. A quick hello and an explanation that I had to get going quickly and I was on my way again. The water and its edges appeared totally devoid of any birdlife except for a flock of greylag geese and the black chain link fencing made it difficult to see far up the reservoir. I carried on at a pace and still saw no grey phalarope and, as usual, the doubts crept in that I'd maybe missed the bird and that it had gone. There were no other birders around either. However as I approached the northern end of the basin I saw the small wading bird swimming about a foot out from the edge and relaxed. By the time I had drawn up level, the grey phalarope had walked out on to the concrete edge and pecked away at the flies and other insects there. It intermittently fed either in that fashion or by swimming in the shallow edge and picking up food that way. Occasionally it would rest and just sit at the waterside whilst it caught breath.

The phalarope at the waters edge through the fence

Grey phalaropes are true maritime waders and our closest breeders are in Iceland where confusingly they are known as red phalaropes! In breeding plumage they are red coloured and in non-breeding grey hence the variation in terminology. We only tend to get them on passage, post breeding, mainly along the west coast of Britain and Ireland but in periods of stormy Atlantic weather some get blown off course and end up on inland water bodies. I saw my first and then my second grey phalaropes (both juveniles) at Farmoor at the end of November 2015 so this was the third that I've seen in the county and my first adult bird. This bird was just one of two score or more that have been found over the last week on inland lakes and reservoirs throughout the country and one of three in Oxfordshire (the others at Farmoor and Sonning).

Phalaropes of all species (there are also red-necked and wilson's) are quite approachable and usually allow close views and this little beauty certainly did just that. I was able to get right next to the fence and point my camera through the wire mesh and fire off shot after shot. The bird showed no sign of being fazed by either my camera shutter or Ewan's who had now caught me up. I stayed for half an hour and then made my way back to work. It has taken me far longer to go through the 180 photos that I took in that time! By my standards though some of my pictures are among the best I've ever taken! Testament to the birds approachability and the nice sunny weather rather than my prowess I fear.

Churn 9th September

wheatear

Mrs Caley and I haven't seen a little owl for a while and we had heard that there is a pair or more residing on the Oxfordshire Downs at Churn. So on this beautiful sunny morning we headed south to the uplands to spend a few hours looking for the owls and also other farmland species such as corn bunting and grey partridge which are becoming harder to find in the north of the county.

We parked up at the end of Bohams Lane and were greeted by the most awful stench! It smelt as if a very large animal (elephant sized at least) had died nearby and was rotting profusely! In fact the stink was emanating from a huge pile of manure, presumably a by product of the many stables in the area since the Downs are an important area for racehorses. Indeed several parties of horses and their jockeys could be seen galloping along on the distant hillsides. But, as is often the case with smelly places, the pile of revolting dung attracts insects and that attracts birds. Attendant at the manure pile were around a dozen or so yellow wagtails, a few pied wagtails, a fine male yellowhammer, several dunnocks and a few chaffinches. They all seemed rather content with their smelly lot! Between feeding they would rest and preen in nearby scattered bushes and made very confiding subjects in the bright morning sunshine.

yellow wagtails

yellowhammer & yellow wagtails

We checked the disused railway for the little owls but could see none. With no sign of the owls, we ventured along the concrete road towards the ridgeway. We spotted several buzzards and red kites and were treated to a hobby flying over. A kestrel hunted along the grassy verge before flying off at our approach. The kites in particular were following the horses, I guess to feast on any worms or large insects disturbed by the animals hooves. As we approached some small bushes a bird appeared silhouetted on one, a fine wheatear, another bird that I thought we'd see today. It was extremely confiding and allowed close study before flitting down on to the muddy field to feed. It was joined by 2 very smart whinchats, a bird I always enjoy seeing. We watched this small party of 3 for a while before they slowly moved further across the field and out of our view. Many swallows and house martins were flying over, all heading due south on their travels to warmer climes for the winter.

wheatear

whinchat

We cut across the field towards the second railway bridge where we hoped the little owls may be hanging out. Halfway across the field a small flock of buntings flew up and settled in the hedge ahead. I could make out at least 5 corn buntings and a few yellowhammers but most were quite flighty and wouldn't allow a close approach. One bird however lingered at the top of a straggly bush and I managed to sneak up and take some decent photos. The bird was just as tattered as the tree top it perched in! But it was a corn bunting nevertheless and I was pleased to have got so close to it. The bunting was joined by a party of linnets and a couple of greenfinches, a bird that is becoming much less common these days. 

corn bunting

linnet (female)

We checked the disused railway to no avail again, no little owls at this end either, only a very pale buzzard and wood pigeons making use of the old fence posts. We spotted another pale morph buzzard resting in a hedgerow and in total saw 3 such birds through the course of the morning. Most of our local buzzards are much darker than these. I was alerted by the "hweet" call of a chiffchaff and soon got on another and then another. They were chasing insects around the ivy covered bushes and also seemed to be heading southwards. The ivy flowers were also attracting many butterflies of various species. I noted red admirals, small tortoiseshell and large whites but most numerous were comma's. Along the grassy edges to the paths were a few small heath's (I think) too.

chiffchaff

comma (upperside)

comma (underside)

We returned the way we came except for walking a short way along the Ridgeway itself. This is migration time and I am ever hopeful of finding a good migrant bird. Unfortunately my track record for finding anything unusual is poor and yet again there would be no shrike or wryneck this time! We watched the galloping horses get put through their paces and noted that many swallows were now  also following in their hoof prints. The sky was clouding up now though and I couldn't get a quick enough shutter speed to capture them this time. The fields held large numbers of gulls, mainly herring but a few great black-backed too. One particular gull looked very interesting being very elongated in body shape. Its eye was very dark too leading me to suppose that it maybe a caspian gull. I have directed the photos of this bird onto people who know more than me to get their opinion although I am expecting it to be just another herring gull. I'm now told that this gull is actually a lesser black-backed gull! Just goes to show that I still have a lot to learn!

lesser black-backed gull

A bird flew across the road ahead of us and proceeded to flutter up against a telegraph pole. It was a wheatear which then flew right between us and landed just a few feet away scolding us with its "chak" call. What we had done to upset it I have no idea but it allowed me to take the best wheatear photos of my picture taking life! Frame busting and no need to crop apart from getting rid of the blurry foreground. There is always something that lifts an average birding day to a special birding day! After the wheatear had regained its composure and reverted to its normal behaviour and left us alone, I scanned the field to see if there was anything else of interest. There wasn't! 

(super confident) wheatear

A merlin then came sailing past, again probably a migrant bird on its way south. We checked the large dutch barn for barn owls but couldn't see any and stopped to admire goldfinches and linnets eating away at a small stand of thistle heads. The kestrel was now on the lookout from the telegraph wires and balanced skilfully in the now increasing breeze. 

merlin

kestrel

Once back at the railway bridge we looked in vain for the little owls again and watched the yellow wagtails and cohorts with a peg on our noses! A carrion crow called raucously from one of the conifer trees that overlooked the dung heap. Perhaps he was announcing "phwoor" rather than "caw"! The final reward was a small covey of grey partridge across the other side of a field, their wheezy calls carrying far to our ears some hundred metres away.

chaffinch (female)

yellowhammer

yellow wagtails (juveniles)

carrion crow

Churn is really nice place to bird, despite the pong, and gives the birder a real sense of isolation that is increasingly difficult to gain in our area nowadays. We'll return soon for another go at seeing the little owls which are becoming a bit of bogey bird for Mrs Caley and myself!

racehorses

My thanks to Ian Lewington and Badger for their expert guidance in identifying some of the birds contained in this post! Their skills far surpass my own!

Uncommon on the Common, 2nd September 2017

I'm a very indecisive person, particularly when it comes to a Saturday morning and a local birding day out. Should it be Farmoor today or Otmoor or somewhere else. Quite often my mind is only made up when actually on the road. Usually wherever I pick it proves to be the wrong choice! Mrs Caley and I had discussed going to Bempton in Yorkshire to try for a greenish warbler (a touch of irony that will be revealed later) that had been seen there in the past week but in the end the thought of a 400 mile round trip just seemed too much. So we set out for Farmoor and ended up parking up at Noke! On a whim I decided to have a look around Lower Farm and see if there were any migrants around. The weather was nice and sunny so it should be a good morning. We parked up and noted a few common birds in the treetops including a very vocal nuthatch and a mixed flock containing various tit species and goldcrests. A magpie stood on a branch, illuminated beautifully by the morning sunshine.

magpie

The short walk down to the farm was enlivened by a sparrowhawk passing overhead pursued by several dozen house martins.

sparrowhawk & house martins

Indeed house martins were present in large numbers this morning and appeared to be steadily heading southwards. A few swallows were around too. A green woodpecker was busily attacking a fallen apple beneath a tree but frustratingly remained mostly buried in long grass to render photographing it pointless. Reed buntings rested in bushes by the reedbed and a couple of meadow pipits preened away on a gate. But it was generally quiet. We idled by the pond and were thrilled by house martins and swallows coming in to drink and bathe. Some just took a sip from the water while others went all in and doused themselves. Capturing the action was fun since they were very quick. 

bathing house martin

A cetti's warbler burst into its staccato song but as usual remained well hidden. A flash of blue indicated a kingfisher rushing past but it didn't stop. The sparrowhawk was once again overhead, very high up now and this time harassed by a rook. A kestrel joined it and the sparrowhawk was ousted from the airspace. Two jays noisily flew over.

rook & sparrowhawk

jay

I was getting bored so after consulting the latest bird news, decided to head on and twitch something. The overhead wires were now holding several birds including 4 yellow wagtails. The birds were using the lofty perch to preen in between feeding in the farmhouse garden. In the sunshine they were positively radiant. They were joined on the wires in turn by swallows, pied wagtails and starlings.

yellow wagtail

We chose to go to Chipping Sodbury near Bristol which the Sat Nav informed me was only 75 miles and an hour and a half away. A juvenile woodchat shrike had been seen there throughout the previous week and was still present. I've seen 2 woodchat shrikes before, both juveniles, both were fairly distant views and both in pre-camera days. So the chance of observing one at closer quarters and snapping a few shots was appealing. Shrikes of all types are fairly easy birds to see since they all have a habit of perching prominently, usually at the top of a bush or overhanging branch. The downside to shrike watching is that apart from occasional forays out from the perch to catch some prey they don't do a lot! Anyway after just an hour and twenty minutes (Sat Nav's know nothing!) we were walking through the rough grasses of Chipping Sodbury Common to join the small group of birders who must be watching the shrike. Indeed I could make out the bird from a long way away, doing exactly as it should do, perching at the top of a bush. The crowd of birders and photographers were stationed about 50 metres from the small line of straggly hawthorns that the woodchat shrike was frequenting. Close enough for decent views but not really close enough for good pictures with my lens. After 10 minutes or so of watching the bird at the top of the bush I decided to find a quieter and alternative viewpoint.

woodchat shrike (initial view)

 I managed to get the sun (quite hot now) behind me and tried many different exposures to get a decent shot. However the heat haze wasn't helping as usual and I just wasn't close enough to the bird. But I didn't go any nearer and satisfied myself with the views through the scope and told myself to be happy with the photos that I got. The best shots came when the shrike flew out to catch a passing bee or fly. In flight it was actually much easier to capture especially when against the sky rather than the trees. It was certainly feeding very well and a few times, after trapping an insect, disappeared into the thorns to presumably spear its prey to save for later. It also dived for cover when a kestrel flew over but other than that it looked perfectly happy and at home (even though it wasn't). A couple of chiffchaffs scolded it and a trio of goldfinches gave it a wary look but kept their distance. It perched, it flew out and caught prey. Like shrikes do. There were other birds on the common too. We saw resplendent male redstarts, a cracking male whinchat and skylarks. A buzzard casually landed in the tussocks and set about something in the grass. We left after an hour or so thinking that the Common resembled Long Meadow at Otmoor where we also get redstarts (and turtle doves). Maybe one day a woodchat shrike will choose Oxfordshire.

Our journey home was uneventful until we had stopped for sustenance and I checked the bird news once more. To my astonishment a greenish warbler had been called in Middle Barton just 10 miles from Bicester! I couldn't believe it considering how a trip to Yorkshire for just such a bird had been considered earlier. Not only that but a greenish warbler in Oxon would be truly exceptional and would also be a life tick for us. However the news was tainted somewhat by the origin of the report and somehow I knew that it was highly unlikely to be accurate. But we had to go home that way anyway (with a small detour) so we thought best to look for it just in case. We arrived just over an hour later and met a couple of fellow Oxonbirders who were already on site and looking. It wasn't promising and after half an hour of no sign of the bird it was agreed that even if the bird had been seen, which we all thought unlikely, it was no longer around. It hasn't been seen subsequently.