Everyone Loves An Owl.......6th April 2018

It's been a good winter for Snowy Owls in the UK, with long stayers on Scilly and Orkney, a bird intermittently around the Wash and others briefly in South Wales and elsewhere. Numbers on continental Europe were unimpressive this winter, but there was a large influx in the US and so it's quite probable the British birds were of American origin. 

 

I'd only ever seen one in the UK (Shetland, 1990) and another couple in the States, most recently in 1998. I'd been hopeful of connecting with one this winter, but that seemed increasingly unlikely as spring got underway. One was photographed on St David's Head in Pembrokeshire last weekend but reported to have gone, so it was a surprise when news came out that it was still present on Thursday afternoon. Once news came through of it's continued presence on Friday it was just too tempting, so I set off at lunchtime accompanied by work colleague Dan Foy and his ten year old budding birder son. The journey was long, four and a half hours winding through central Wales, but at least there were plenty of Red Kites to keep us company.

We arrived around in the car park around 6pm. A new area for me and I will be back, it's stunning. The walk up the headland was only 10 minutes or so, and a few Choughs passed by uttering their cheerful squawks.

The immature female Snowy Owl was immediately on view and remarkably close. Pleasingly, there was practically no-one else there. We waited for the her to get more active as the day ticked on towards dusk and the few remaining birders drifted off too, we were left with a handful of interested locals as the bird awoke, stretched, preened and readied itself for the night ahead.

 

A raven was clearly interested in the visitor, twice alighting on a nearby rock, but then not getting too close either.

 

As dusk approached she sat up on a rock and stretched and preened, clearly readying herself for flight. And then off, heading down the valley and giving excellent flight views before disappearing seemingly out to sea. We assumed that it would head around to a nearby headland, but it seems that we were the last people to see it as there was no sign for the Saturday crowd. Presumably the same bird was reported a few days later heading northwards long the coast about 30 miles away and a possible was reported later on Anglesey. A couple of weeks later a remarkably similar bird was appeared on St Kilda, so perhaps the same bird had headed north and west, headed back to the US. Who knows? 

 

We ambled back to the car and began the long journey back through the dark feeling very glad to have made the effort.

   

Patch Spectacular

It was a cold clear day, so I Called in to Ashton’s Flash on the way home from work for the impressive starling roost and it certainly delivered a spectacle. A brief kingfisher flew across as I arrived.

 

Who knows how many, starlings but certainly well into the tens of thousands, probaby not hundreds. Lovely to see a good turnout of people dotted around enjoying the show and connecting with nature too.
 

 

 

 

 

Affer the show was over I strolled across DHM and then back around Neumann’s on a quick owl search, but only managed tawny owls calling and a bried flight view. A small group of golden plover flew over DHM but that was it. Nevertheless it was enjoyable to be out and atmospheric in the dark with the teal, wigeon, water rails, coots and the odd curlew providing the background sound. Even in the dark, huge numbers of starlings were visible and audible in the reeds on both Neumann’s and Ashton’s. Home for beer and pizza in the warmth.

8th Feb 2018

Out and about for work today, so took the opportunity to call in at Groby Lane Sandbach for the regular long-eared owl roost. Only one bird was on show, but it was splendidly out in the open and awake, actively looking around with those spectacular glaring orange eyes.

 

 

Not Bad For A Tuesday - 6th Feb 2018

Taking the dog to work has the advantage of ensuring I get out, whatever the weather. And so today it proved to be worthwhile.

 

A pre-work visit to Neumann’s was uneventful, with just the usual waterfowl to show. Come lunchtime I was yet again at the Old Hall - the only person around as it snowed - but was rewarded with all 10 hawfinches up in the poplars. Amazing. Ten were seen a few weeks ago, so it seems this is the peak count and surely the largest flock in Cheshire for decades.

 

Better was to come later. Greg had seen a bittern yesterday evening, so I thought I’d give it a go. Malc soon joined me in the cold and we waited. Four whooper swans on the mere were a bonus (they’d been seen over NF earlier), and 6 goosander and 2 goldeneye were on the water. Water rails squealed and a female sparrowhawk sat by the reeds, anticipating a starling sized meal. Sure enough a few thousand starlings appeared and surged, but quickly headed off (to NF perhaps), and the light contained to deteriorate. Just as we were about to give up, a bittern climbed into view and showed superbly for a few minutes before becoming more obscured. It was actively fluffing up it’s neck feathers, which seemed unusual until we realised there was a second bittern a few metres away. Fantastic!

There’s life in the old patch yet!

Patch Sunday 4th Feb 2018

Lovely sunny morning so tool the mutt for a long stroll around the park.

 

Once again the highlight was the hawfinches, with at least 5 present around the Old Hall area. Views were simply stunning in the warm sunlight and - best of all - one of the males spent long periods singing. Unsurprisingly I’ve never heard hawfinch song before, and it’s hardly ear-catching: kind of a less fluty shorter version of goldfinch. Nice to show Dave the ranger and a few passers-by a singing bird too.

 

The sun continued to shine and the woods were vibrant with bird song. Woodpeckers drummed, song thrushes and great tits piped cheerily. Lovely.

 

On the mere, an impressive 9 goosander were present; an unimaginable count just a few years ago. The spit held around 40 lapwings, still flocking for the winter, but there were signs of spring in an oystercatcher and the noise emanating from the heronry.

 

A stroll over to DHM was largely uneventful until 60 or so pink-footed geese headed over westward, no doubt headed from Norfolk to Lancashire. A pair of ravens were the only other birds of note. Neumann’s was partly frozen so held unspectacular numbers of wildfowl, but half a dozen shelduck were busy chasing each other around and green woodpeckers yaffled in the sunshine.

 

All in all a very pleasant morning, followed by a family afternoon at Chester Zoo where a calling rhinoceros hornbill turned my head towards the jungles of Asia (again). It’s been too long.

Jan 2018

A quick patch jaunt on 2nd with the highlight of 2 hawfinches, imm drake scaup, 3 goosander, 4 pochard and 2 goldeneye whilst out with the dog.

 

A day of local spotting with Jonno, Andy C and Mark Payne on 6th was an enjoyable; 5 hawfinch, 2 jack snipe, woodcock, stonechat and 2 barnacle geese kept interest going on patch before we opted for Sandbach where a 1st w glaucous gull and great white egret stood out, although the sheer numbers of wigeon, lapwing and gulls were more impressive and put Marbury to shame.

 

Jonno and I were out again on Saturday 27th, but foul weather meant we failed with the Howden Reservoir parrot crossbills and pretty much anything else. In the afternoon we headed back for Sandbach gulls but few arrived, so a single pink-footed goose and the great white egret were all we had to show (aside from much laughter and quality pies). Always a pleasure.

 

On 30th I finally made the effort tohead down to Surrey’s Staines Reservoir for the American horned lark, which turned out to be a very enjoyable and remarkably distinctive bird.

 

 

Then I decided to have head down the road to Wishmoor Bottom in nearby Berkshire, where i wandered aimlessly for a couple of hours seeing very little before a more local birder pointed me in the right direction and rather luckily I arrived just as the 16 parrot crossbills appeared, giving splendid views in th sunshine. I watched them snip pine cones off and hold them in thei feet whilst removing the seeds - so that’s why they’re called parrots!! Sadly I’d neglected to take my camera, so only hand held phonescope shots.

 

 

Not a bad day out in the end and an insurance policy duly banked.

Late ‘17

The remainder of the year was quiet bird-wise, aside from the obvious highlight of hawfinches on the patch around the old hall. Two were found in October, with numbers increasing to 4 mid November and up to 7 or so by year end (with 10 present in January ‘18). A joy to have them around.