Somerset Starling spectacle! .... 27-30th January 2011

On the way to Somerset a visit to Slimbridge for a couple of hours was made, more on that visit in the next post. The Starling roost at RSPB Ham Wall was the main reason for the visit to Somerset and also the Great White Egrets and hopefully a Great Grey Shrike at Shapwick Heath a National England Nature Reserve, though I was not optimistic with sighting the Shrike. A B&B had been booked in Glastonbury for the long weekend and very nice it was too with an added bonus of Starlings.....thousands of them in fact that flew over Glastonbury town on their way to and from the roost at Ham Wall. The weather over the weekend was breezy and cold, in fact bitterly cold!! Wrapped up in as many layers as was comfy a visit to Ham Wall was the first stop, actually the small car park is between Ham Wall and Shapwick Heath, very handy as long as there are spaces on the car park. It didn't take long to walk to the 3 viewing points and a treat was in store, 6 Great White Egrets in the reedbeds! They were very obliging and gave great views as they flew along the reedbeds settling for awhile and then taking off again! There were also 11 Little Egrets on view at one point. Later in the morning a walk was started along the path in Shapwick Heath but in all honestly it was so bitterly cold that after what seemed an age to get anywhere need the hides we gave up, the distance I believe from start to finish along the path at Shapwick Heath is approximately 3 miles! 6 miles all told in such cold conditions did not appeal.lol!! Instead a drive around to the site where the G G Shrike had taken up residence was a better option but after a long linger and long looks it was clear that an even longer wait would be needed and I wasn't that desperate to see a G G Shrike though it would have been good to see it.....the Starlings were the main event in my mind!
Around 3.30pm people started arriving at Ham Wall to see the roost. RSPB staff were also at the viewing area and one of them gave an interesting talk about Ham Wall how it had been turned from arable land to the wetlands that it is now, starting in 2003 if my memory serves me correctly. Every reed had been singly planted by volunteers, no mean feat! With such species as Bitterns, Bearded Tits, Cetti's Warblers, Hobby and Otters amongst many other species that can be seen at the the reserve it is a testament to their hard work over the years. It must be a great feeling to have been part of such dedicated and hard work and see it come to fruition! We were informed that over the Winter there has been approximately one and a quarter to three million Starlings coming to roost! With an average of 30 Starlings to a reed stem the heat they generate can raise the temperature up 5 degrees, no wonder they flock together!

The Starlings began to arrive, the vast flocks looking like huge clouds in the distance! What a sight...I cannot say sound as they roosted in reed beds that were distant from where we were viewing from. An almost continuous stream of Starlings flew across the tops of the reeds not far from where we stood, it looked like a fast flowing river, an amazing sight! A couple of G W Egrets were none too happy and alighted from the reeds from time to time! Everywhere you looked there were huge flocks arriving and in the main they were dropping down almost straight away into the reedbeds though a few flocks did make some amazing shapes which drew gasps from everyone! The cold air was beginning to take hold after standing for so long in the open but goodness me it was worth the goosebumps on top of goosebumps to see such a spectacular roost!

On Sunday morning I waited outside the B &B to see the Starlings go overhead as they dispersed to their chosen feeding sites for the day. In the early evenings they flew over the town to roost in huge almost circular flocks, yet I had noticed that in the mornings they dispersed in a long line, a line that looked endless. One huge flock flew low and I heard the incredible rushing sounds of their wings, this made me gasp and also gave me goosebumps!!!

I had added 13 ticks to my year list over the few days in Somerset, no G G Shrike but who needs one when there was something much more special to see which was the Starling roost and I also brought home with me a memory of them that will last with me for some time to come.

The photo's I have added do not do justice to the spectacle but nice to keep along with my memories. I took a couple of short videos and if I can get my head around Youtube I will hopefully add them to the post at some point.







My first attempts at videoing with my camera! Good fun!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lZlp4aIcqk

A triple whammy!

Friday 21st January.
I decided that it was time for a bit of 'me time' at the end of a busy week so off I went for an afternoon walk along Brake Lane in Hagley to see if there was 'anything about'. Well there was...a flock of 46 Yellowhammers sunning themselves in and atop of a hedgerow. I counted 46 but there were probably a lot more than this number. They had the sunshine and I had the shade! The Lane has houses on one side and fields on the other and leads to a bridleway and paddocks. A large flock of Chaffinch were feeding in a stubble field, too many for me to count when they suddenly took flight. I heard and then saw my first Buzzard of the year, I would normally have seen a Buzzard before now so I am hoping they have survived well after the December freeze. I walked up part of the bridleway and had great views of Goldcrests feeding in the small pine plantation, delightful little birds. On the walk back to my car I saw my first Mistle Thrush of the year in fact 3 of them! Not a lot of bird species seen but still an enjoyable walk in, for the best part, sunshine!

Saturday 22nd January.
A cold and frosty morning didn't deter me from returning to Brake Lane to take a walk around the whole length of the bridleway, part of the area is Woodland and fields alongside. No Yellowhammers or Chaffinch this morning, they were probably keeping warm somewhere not like me out in the cold and I do mean cold!! A Raven was a delight to see, it's 'gronk, gronk' alerting me to it! As I placed some seed down for a Great Tit I had spotted in a tree a Wren suddenly appeared and then disappeared as they do! I also placed some seed where I had seen the Chaffinches yesterday, hopefully they found it before the Tits ate it all.lol!! Just a single Goldcrest seen in the pines as I made my way up the muddy bridleway. Once at the top of the hill it opens out to paddocks and the woodland. I had hoped for Treecreeper and Nuthatch but no luck until I reached the end of the first half of the bridleway..I heard a few calls from a Nuthatch so I stood still, looked, waited,looked and then bingo! A Nuthatch was inspecting a hole in a Silver Birch tree then it was off in search of food, a super little bird! There are a few rather nice houses in the area I was now in and a Lake that was partly iced over. The Lake held Mallards, Coot, Moorhen, Grey Heron, Mute Swans and several B H Gulls and a single L B B Gull. I walked on past the Lake to inspect the fields further along the short road. A Pony came over for a nuzzle as I stood by a gate scanning the first field which just held more ponies, now the field on the other side of the road was a different story! It held flocks of Crows, Woodpigeons, Starlings, Goldfinch, Fieldfares and Redwings. I inspected the Thrushes thoroughly and not one was a 'Dusky Thrush'...oh well one day maybe.lol!! I was quite content with the sightings even though they weren't rarities! On the way back to continue my walk along the second half of the Bridleway I saw a flock of Long-tailed Tits, a Jay and also a flock of Canada Geese on an embankment by the Lake. I returned to my car feeling cold but pleased with such a fruitful 'Local' walk.






Painful!!!!



Sunday 23rd January.
The afternoon walk today was at Dowles Brook in the Wyre Forest in the hope of seeing the Hawfinch and Brambling that had been reported there. Walking along the old railway track to Lodge hill Farm was to say the least quiet!! Not a bird was seen or heard until at the end of the track then a Nuthatch and Treecreeper were spotted, hooray! The feeders at the farm were buzzing with Blue, Great & Coal Tits, House Sparrows, Chaffinch and Long-tailed Tits that were feeding on the ground with their tails cocked up like a Wren. The first time I have ever seen them feeding on the ground. The Hawfinch did not disappoint, there were 3 of them perched at the top of a tall twiggy tree on the far side of the orchard! Good views were had of them but they were too far away for a decent photo and the cloudy day did not help matters, I managed a few record pics though so I was pleased. No Brambling today but at least 3 Great spotted Woodpeckers (hard to tell if there were 4 individuals as they were flighty) and 3 Yellowhammers were seen in the area. Walking back along the track Goldcrest, Nuthatch, Treecreeper and a Common Buzzard were seen with Siskin and Redpoll heard only.

All in all, 3 pleasing walks!

Two walks in a local park....18th & 19th January 2011

Two afternoon walks in Mary Stevens Park, Stourbridge were a tonic in the sunshine, plenty of people thought the same judging by the amount that were in the park. After playing on the swings, slides and pink elephant, my toddler Grandson that is not me, we walked around the lake and fed the birds. Canada Geese, Mallards, Moorhens, Coots and B H Gulls were being well fed today also the Muscovy Ducks of which there are now several. On the walk Blackbird, Robin and Blue Tit were also seen and a small flock of Redwings!






Today was a return to colder weather with a sharp frost and a blanket of fog which took most of the day to clear! Woodpigeons, Magpies, Blackbirds and Dunnocks didn't take long to fly into my garden to feed once the ground food went down! A pair of Blue Tits fed on the suet pellets, I have seen two flying together for the last week, Spring isn't that far away.....love is in the air... well if the pair of Blue Tits are anything to go by.lol!!

Upton Warren....16/01/2011

On checking my records I was surprised to see that the last time I visited Upton Warren was September 2010! It doesn't seem that long ago but who am I to argue with my records.lol!! The reason for lack of visits is because of finding various local sites to explore during 2010, always good to find your own birds and see what is around locally.
A pleasant couple of hours was spent at the Flashes and Moors. Nothing really exciting seen apart from the lone Pink-footed Goose that was feeding with Greylags, Canada Geese and a couple of farmyard Geese. The Bullfinches and Reed Buntings were looking particularly striking at the Flashes feeding station!

Roaming down Roman Way. ...09/01/2011

A morning visit to Roman Way, Stourbridge, to see if any of the reported 125 Waxwings were still about..there was... just one! One is better than none so I was not disappointed..well not much.lol!! The path that runs between a housing estate and paddocks and fields is quite a productive area and one that will be worth keeping an eye on. There where several small flocks of House Sparrows, a treat to see and hear as I do not see them in my garden now. Good to see that they are still in numbers fairly locally to me. Collared Doves are another bird I do not see in my garden now and today 8 were perched in a tree, a visit here a couple of days later and there were 13 in a tree! As with the Sparrows it was pleasing to see the Collared Doves in good numbers. The air was filled with bird song along the path as it was such a sunny morning, it made one think of Spring but no doubt colder weather will return before too long! Mistle Thrush, Starling, Blackbird, Robin, Redwing, Blue & Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Chaffinch and G S Woodpecker were other species seen in this relatively small area!






In the afternoon a new area was to be explored... 'The Million' sometimes referred to as the 'Kinver Million', near Enville in Staffordshire. A plantation of extremely tall Pine trees that seemed to stretch forever! The walk was easy underfoot owing to the pine needles and the sandy soil. I had wished I had put my walking boots on instead of wellies but once up the seemingly never ending hill the area opened out to deciduous trees and a muddy bridleway so I was glad of my wellies! Bird species today in 'The Million' consisted of Goldcrests, Marsh Tits and the odd Blue Tit! Quiet for wildlife but still a good walk and the sunset through the pines was a pleasant sight to see after a long day outdoors

A slow start.

My 2011 year list got off to a slow start! Drumming up enthusiasm to go birding in the cold UK weather was partly to blame after my holiday. However my garden birds boosted my list on the 4th January to an impressive count of 9! I decided on the 6th that it was time to get outdoors and find a few local birds. The Fisheries seemed a good place to boost my list up a tad! I added Fieldfare, GSW, Jay, Redwing, Jackdaw, Greenfinch and Chaffinch! So not a lot really but some nice birds to see nevertheless. It was another cold day so no doubt the birds were nestling somewhere keeping warm, which in hindsight I should have done myself.

2011.

New Years Day 2011 and my first bird seen through sleepy eyes was a Collared Dove perched on a lamp post in the hotel grounds in the Algarve. Later in the day a Little Owl, Hoopoe, Corn Bunting, Black-winged Kite and Booted Eagle were the highlights of the first day of the year!
Other highlight bird species seen throughout the week were Spoonbill, Avocet, Black-winged Stilt, Redshank, Greenshank, Black-necked Grebe, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Kingfisher, Little and Cattle Egret, Shoveler, Gadwall, Common Pochard, Red-crested Pochard, Common Snipe, Glossy Ibis, Purple Gallinule, Common Sandpiper, Sanderling, Turnstone, Teal, Mallard, Moorhen, Coot, Golden and Grey Plover, Ringed and Kentish Plover, Lapwing, Sandwich Tern, Dunlin, Crested Lark, Fan-tailed Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Common Redstart, Meadow Pipit, Spotless Starlings, Grey and Pied Wagtail, Stonechat, Wheatear, Chiffchaff, Azure-winged and Eurasian Magpie, Whimbrel, Black-tailed Godwit, Grey Heron, Cormorant, White Stork, Red-legged Partridge, Swallow, House and Sand Martin, Linnet, Black-headed, Lesser Black-backed and Yellow Legged Gull, Marsh Harrier, Peregrine and Kestrel. Robins and Blackbirds were in full song and flocks of House Sparrows were always a pleasure to see.
Painted Lady, Clouded Yellow and a beautiful Monarch butterfly were great to see, also Iberian Hares were seen on several occasions but very camera shy.
A pleasing species list as this holiday was as intended to be a mixed one of birding and making sandcastles on the beaches!
A week of mixed weather with 3 days overcast and heavy rain at times which fortunately was mainly through the night. It was good to feel the warm/hot sunshine though on most days after leaving the bitterly cold weather in the UK.

My first UK bird seen was on the 3rd January, a Starling, in fact a flock of them on the car park at Birmingham airport, they enjoyed the crumbled up biscuits I scattered for them.
I missed starting my year list on the first day of the year in the UK but the warm weather in Portugal more than made up for that.



All my own work!

White Stork...Silves.

Yellow-legged Gull...Carvoeiro beach.

Lesser Black-backed Gull... Albufeira beach. The jury is out on this one though I am sticking to my guns with LBBG.

Black-headed Gull. Albufeira beach.

Little Egret...Pera Marsh.

Dunlin...Quinta do Lago.

Whimbrel. Quinta do Lago.

Purple Gallinule, which seem to be more and more confiding. A delightful bird!

Corn Bunting...my first sighting of one in the Algarve.

Booted Eagle, one of several seen during the week.

A very distant Black-winged Kite! A wonderful bird to watch as it hovers but like the Hares camera shy!

Hoopoe that preened in the sunshine.

Little Owl...Lagoa dos Salgados (Pera Marsh)